► Dallas Morning News – 09/15/10 - Stefani Carter, Carol Kent supporters spar in Texas House race Print

Dallas Morning News – 09/15/10 - Stefani Carter, Carol Kent supporters spar in Texas House race

By Ian McCann – Reporter
 
The war of the press releases continues in the contentious race for the Texas House District 102 seat.
Late yesterday, Republican challenger Stefani Carter put out a news release touting polling that she says shows a 49-40 lead for her over incumbentDemocrat Carol Kent. (Kent, for her part, says district voters will favor her, a moderate who can bridge party lines to find consensus.)
 

The site also denounces Carter's continued attack on Kent for taking a per diem for her time working last legislative session and also paying for expenses with campaign funds. Carter uses work by California ethics watchdog David Palmer, though the report has been dismissed by leaders of both the Republican and Democratic caucuses in the House. They say the practice is both legal and a longtime practice, but Carter has continued to call it "double dipping."
 
The new pro-Kent site is paid for by the Back to Basics PAC, funded by trial attorney Steve Mostyn, a leader of the Texas Trial Lawyers Association. The PAC is supporting Democrats running for the House and has produced similar sites attacking Republican incumbent Reps. Joe Driver and Linda Harper-Brown.