14,000,000 Reasons NOT to Vote for Presas-Garcia

New, Improved "Caty" Presas-Garcia

Are you buying Cata Presas-Garcia's carefully presented makeover?  Does Caty sound softer, more feminine, less bullying than the old Cata?  In a speech before a tiny group at a campaign event on Central Avenue that we videotaped, she spoke of "working together," being a "team of eight," concepts administrators she castrated, displaced or fired or teachers she frustrated and intimidated might not recognize as the old Cata they despise.  Even her old mentor, benefactor and guru, convicted RICO felon Carlos Quintanilla, is nowhere to be seen with respect to the new "Caty" campaign.  It may have taken a few years, but perhaps, Quintanilla has finally learned that the good con artists are those you never see or read about and is now laying low out of the limelight he always craved.

But, before we soften too much out of Christian charity or the benevolence of "second chances" and find the rehabilitation of Presas-Garcia somehow believable, think of the children of BISD, the shortage of art supplies, hand sanitizer, the swelling classrooms, the mess at Veterans, the vindictive musical chairing of administrators into unfamiliar positions, enormous payouts to administrators for NOT administrating.  The old Cata had a hand in all of this even though her primary mission as an elected BISD trustee was even more sinister.

When a P.A.C. or political action committee was formed in the showroom of VSOP, Pat Lehmann's Chinese motor scooter enterprise on Central Blvd.(his trash consulting business, up for BISD approval, shares the same address), it had a twofold mission.  The P.A.C.'s name, DefeatZayasCortezPowers reveals the obvious function, ridding BISD of three evidently self-serving trustees, but that was simply step one, a necessary pre-requisite to the committee's more important focus, financially supporting, electing trustees who, once elected, would drop the district's $14,300,000 lawsuit against Healthsmart for overcharges.  

The pattern or model for executing this plan was already working at the City of Lubbock, where Ted Parker had sent his heyboy, Carlos Quintanilla to spend money in the city to elect new city commissioners who would see their way clear to drop a similar lawsuit against Healthsmart filed by that city.  Quintanilla was so successful in Lubbock, that before the new commissioners were installed, the old city commission voted to settle the lawsuit for $4,000,000 after seeing the proverbial handwriting on the wall.  Mr. Q's work with BISD would be even more lucrative for benefactor Ted Parker.  

Consistent with the PAC's purpose, it's primary financial support came in increments of $1000 contributed by Carlos Quintanilla, who doesn't even have the money personally to make his house payment.  Ted Parker, however, the former majority owner of Healthsmart, does have money, putting it to strategic use, first in Lubbock and then in Brownsville through his intermediary Quintanilla.

While you may read the spin of Presas-Garcia, mealy-mouthed BISD lawyers and others that pursuing the lawsuit would have been counterproductive, even costly.  But that is a blatant lie, especially since able local attorneys were willing to take the case on a contingency basis to recover the monies for the kids.  Even if the full 14.3 million dollar recovery was never realized, what if 12, 10 or even 8 millions of dollars could have been recovered by the district.  Why would any honest trustee who claims to be "for the kids" turn their back on such funds, especially when deserved, owed the district?  Just as no trustee with a genuine interest in BISD would have done this, no voter concerned about educational needs would re-elect such a trustee.  Yes, there are 14 million reasons to NOT vote for Presas-Garcia.

Butch and Ernie

If you are Butch Barbosa or a Barbosa supporter reading the above, it is not a Barbosa endorsement.  As detailed in MMB, Barbosa clearly has a history of self-service while holding public office:  

"Butch Barbosa gets instant disqualification for being an Ernie Hernandez lackey while serving on the City Commission. Barbosa facilitated Ernie getting city wrecker service privileges, an ethical violation in its own right, but we've heard that Ernie was not simply one wrecker out of three getting calls. Some calls were allowed to go to an answering machine and then told, when it was too late, someone else got it. We're told dispatchers got a $25.00 handshake for handling calls in this way. We DO NOT NEED Barbosa on the school board making sweetheart deals for his bud Ernie. Oh, Butch did get the AOBE endorsement by promising that he would ONLY deal with that particular union in labor negotiations."

Donald Clupper

The alternative to Barbosa and Presas-Garcia is crusty, retired math teacher Donald Clupper.  Unlike Barbosa and Presas-Garcia, Clupper is both educated and an educator with a masters degree in business.  The former stock broker was a BISD teacher for 22 years, seems to understand district needs and favors the reinstatement of the 14.3 million dollar lawsuit.  He is not a perfect candidate, but may be the best option for Position 5.

Meanwhile, Cata pays for supportive blog articles to be churned out, undermining her opponents and those who have helped peal back the thin veneer covering her close association and dependence on the Dallas con artist.  For the sake of the kids and the sanity, stability and wellbeing of the teachers and administrators, please don't be fooled.