County Commissioner Pct. 2 race: Heating up or Dumbing down?

In January, amid the throes (up) of “BJGate,” Mike Montemayor was sworn into office as Webb County Commissioner, Pct. 1.

Louis H. Bruni seen outdoors during the daylight hours! Click to view the YouTube

This was due, in great part to the fact that the spotlight shone brightly on combatants in BJGate, former commissioner Frank Sciaraffa and former county judge and perennial candidate “King” Louie Bruni, who duked it out for months in a giddy lover’s quarrel that captivated the darkest corners of our imagination.  This sordid dance took place first in the courts, where Bruni likes to fight his battles, and then on the streets of South Laredo, where Sciaraffa had held his personal “job fair” for two terms.

When Bruni was rejected by the voters in the 2012 primary, he threw his support – and his money – behind Montemayor (allegedly) to exact his revenge on his former bailiff-come-commissioner.  (Does anybody remember why they were feuding to begin with?)

Montemayor won, and Bruni wound up – at least temporarily – as a member of the Webb County Appraisal District, where he acted as, well, as we all figured he would.  He was recently removed.

Now, amid reports that King Louie has had to vacate another throne, forced out of his castle and traded his golden carriage for an burro, he has resurfaced in a new part of town, and has announced he’s running for County Commissioner in Precinct 2, against Rosaura “Wawi” Tijerina, with his brother Raymond Bruni, providing the financial firepower.  

Unannounced, but also expected to throw his hat into the ring is Laredo City Councilman Mike Garza.

If Garza gets into the race, it will be a hard fought battle.  Tijerina is very strong on the streets.  Garza is probably more highly regarded and has all the name ID he needs to bring down the longtime incumbent.  Both have their faults and share of questionable votes and hirings.  Expect this one to get dirty.  (Big surprise!)

Where does Bruni fit into the equation?  He’s announced his intention to run for everything but Governor in the past few weeks, including County Commissioner, Precinct 1 in 2016 against Montemayor, the very person he helped bankroll in the runoff against Sciaraffa.

Will he go through with it?  Who knows?  If you read any of Bruni’s midnight musings on Facebook, you have as good an idea as anybody.  Word on the street is that Raymond Bruni may not be as solidly behind his brother and that Louie is trying to raise funds for his filing fee.

Oddly, Bruni has reportedly asked his longtime nemesis, former Commissioner Judy Gutierrez, to be his campaign manager. 

And all those years, we thought he meant something else when he used the “C” word in reference to Gutierrez … certainly not “Commissioner” or “Campaign Manager.”  Sorry Lizardistas, that’s probably inappropriate (OK, it’s definitely inappropriate), but as we all know, the truth can be mighty stupid… especially when we’re talking about scalawags.