I know that everyone is experiencing voter fatigue right now, but the Republican runoff for County Court at Law #2 deserves our time and attention. The court faces a huge backlog of cases and its image has been tarnished by scandal. We must elect a new judge with the seasoning and temperament needed to restore integrity to the bench. It is for this reason that I am encouraging my friends to join me in electing Laura Barker to serve as our new judge.
The contrast in experience and credentials between Laura and her opponent, Warren Waterman, could not be starker. In addition to having more than 6-times as much experience as Waterman in private practice, Laura also has the breadth of experience we should be looking for in a judge. She is the only candidate with extensive experience in civil, criminal and juvenile law. She’s also the only candidate who has grown a successful small business and balanced budgets.
On the other hand, while Waterman is claiming the mantel of “most experienced”, what he doesn’t tell you is that most of that experience is in a very narrow area of the law, prosecuting low-level misdemeanors over and over again. Given the broad range of cases heard in this court, I believe it would be a mistake to hand the gavel over to someone who lacks both the breadth and the depth of legal experience, as well as the business and administrative experience, needed to properly run a court.
The members of the Williamson County Bar seems to agree as they overwhelmingly chose Laura Barker as their preferred choice to preside of County Court at Law #2 in a recent bar poll. Additionally, our Republican and civic leaders seem to agree as well. From GOP precinct chairs, mayors and councilmembers, law enforcement associations, a professional firefighter association and over 250 grassroots conservatives and community leaders, the support for Laura Barker just continues to grow as we approach Election Day.
Turnout is expected to be extremely low in this runoff election, which means every vote counts now more than ever. So please grab your family, friends and neighbors and be sure to go to the polls and join me in electing Laura Barker as our new judge. She’ll make us proud.
Bill Sattler, Sun City
