Texas Speaker of the House

Two years ago, a battle over who would be House Speaker nearly erupted into fistfights on the House floor, as Speaker Tom Craddick refused to allow debate on the issue. Talk of another attempted coup has been heating back up over the last month and reached fever pitch yesterday as Rep. Burt Solomons (R-Carrollton), a former Craddick ally, announced that he would join those running to lead the House.

Because of Rep. Solomon's past support for Speaker Craddick, there was speculation in Austin yesterday that his candidacy was only intended as a means of holding votes that he could deliver to Mr. Craddick once other candidates were eliminated in the early rounds. However, a well-placed Republican source in Austin told The Oracle that Mr. Solomon's would not have run if he did not intend to win.