YO LA TENGO, TONY?
Que pasa, Tony Garza? Apparently, not a race for governor – at least not in 2010. A recent spate of stories previewing a potential barnburner of a gubernatorial race in Texas mentioned Garza – a former South Texas judge and Texas railroad commissioner and now the U.S. ambassador to Mexico – as a potential candidate.
No way, he said in a statement Tuesday. (Or as Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison once said, when asked to say something in Spanish, nolo contendere.)
Speculation is the next race for governor could pit Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst against Sen. Hutchison. Others in the mix include outgoing Texas Secretary of State Roger Williams and state Sen. Dan Patrick, the Houston talk radio host and fan boy of the populist right.
But as for Tony Garza, who recently married the billionaire heiress of the Corona beer fortune, he says such speculation is “flattering but off the mark.”
Here’s his statement:
“I love Texas and have enjoyed serving it both at home and abroad. But the fact is, I’m not running.
“Why this statement now? I have read the stories and known for some time that seeking the nomination in 2010 was not something I was going to do. I would prefer not to have that sort of speculation detracting in any way from the important work that is still to be done here in Mexico.
“I intend to continue serving as Ambassador to Mexico as long as the President has confidence in my abilities and doing so furthers this most important, and indeed unique, bilateral relationship.”
So what’s next? Garza says lots of people serve their state without serving in office. “This is what I would like to do when my tenure as Ambassador is complete: be one of those Texans who stand outside the political arena but who continue to serve and make a positive difference in people’s lives.”
Translation: Look for Garza and his wife to buy a house here in Texas, maintain his political ties in the state and look for an opening for future statewide office. Can anybody say 2014?