Peter Brown Urges Houstonians to Vote for Annise Parker

I was very impressed with Peter Brown's speech endorsing Annise Parker for mayor. He was sincere, passionate and enthusiastic. He drew a sharp contrast between Parker and Gene Locke, saying we cannot be sure what Locke's priorities are or who will advise him. He described Parker as the one candidate who cares about the things he has fought for, including efficient, transparent government and quality of life issues. Several times he got very direct in his urging for all Houstonians to vote for Parker.

Parker repeated some of his themes when it was her turn to speak. She thanked him, his family and supporters for being so gracious and generous. She repeated one of the best things I've heard her say on the campaign trail, "I will always tell you the truth." She reiterated that her administration will be transparent and said, "when I am Mayor, lobbyists and special interests will not run City Hall!" She and Peter were very warm with each other, and I got the impression they were both having fun. His supporters nodded their heads in agreement with everything Parker was saying. I think bloggers came to an agreement that we counted five fist pumps by Brown!

The most effective thing was that Brown and Parker both openly criticized Locke and his lobbyist/special interest ties and warned against the style of government that would result from the promises he's made to them vs. Parker's commitment to efficiency, transparency and focusing on basic city services.

A special thank you to Team Locke for the delicious snacks. How kind!

I would have liveblogged this, but I forgot that City Hall is the one place you want to be if terrorists ever figure out how to attack you through your AT&T phone, because there is a 100% certainty that a "No Service" message will save your life.

UPDATE: Stace was there, and he has more, including some great photos!