As Bell tests waters, he still soaks DeLay

HoustonChronicle.com - Mack: As Bell tests waters, he still soaks DeLay: "Chris Bell is running for governor against Tom DeLay.
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DeLay, the U.S. House majority leader from Sugar Land, isn't running for governor, of course. But you wouldn't know it from Bell's stump speeches as he explores seeking the Democratic nomination for governor.

Bell, a casualty of the DeLay-engineered Texas congressional redistricting, lost his U.S. House seat in the 2004 Democratic primary after his district was redrawn.

The best-known legacy of Bell's single term was an ethics complaint he filed that led to admonishments of DeLay.

In a speech he's been reciting as he tours the state, he mentions DeLay as much as Rick Perry, the Republican in the Governor's Mansion now. And he gets more reaction when attacking DeLay.

'Some people call me a reform candidate. I guess I can't blame them. You file one little ethics complaint, and suddenly you have a reputation,' he said. 'If they mean I will demand real ethics reform, not later, not soon, but without delay' — he punctuates the word with a slight pause so the audience doesn't miss the pun — 'then, yes, I am your reform candidate.'"