I give you the history of just one seat in the Texas Legislature, an Amarillo district. The incumbent, Representative Chip Staniswalis, came to grief in a recent bid for higher office. He was heavily handicapped by having the district attorney call a press conference at the beginning of the campaign to announce that Staniswalis was under investigation for getting kickbacks from a legislative employee.
Staniswalis’s predecessor in the seat was Representative Ben Bynum, who has since been convict of failing to keep track of public monies; Bynum kept cashing checks — at liquor stores around town — intended for a campaign to build a new courthouse. Bynum is currently on probation while he appeals his case.
His predecessor was Representative Walter Knapp, who went to prison for misusing his postal privileges in a major way. Shortly after Knapp got out of Stripe City, he murdered his wife and then himself. Knapp’s predecessor was Representative Hudson Moyers, who went to the hoosegow for an unusual maneuver. He bought a
