Photo: MANDEL NGAN
Following this week’s PR battle between County Judge Lina Hidalgo and the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, State Senator Paul Bettencourt is calling for her resignation.
Hidalgo was ultimately removed from Tuesday’s Megan Moroney concert at the Rodeo after she tried to access the premium chute seats and dirt area without the appropriate tickets.
This resulted in a days-long back-and-forth between HLSR and Hidalgo, which ultimately led to her Ex-Officio Director status being revoked. The title of Ex-Officio Director has been given to a number of elected officials in the Houston area and the State of Texas.
One such Ex-Officio Director is State Senator Paul Bettencourt, who represents portions of Harris County and is now calling on Hidalgo to resign as County Judge.
Bettencourt posted a statement to his Facebook page that read in part: “I called for Judge Lina Hidalgo’s resignation because of her latest bizarre behavior at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, and then her totally unfounded attacks on others, spewing nonsensical claims of racial bias as the basis for her personal actions at this year’s Rodeo.”
Bettencourt also called out the significant comped premium tickets Hidalgo had already received from HLSR: “County residents do not get 21 free tickets valued at $9,000, plus the use of a free suite at the Rodeo, and then get to go on a tirade because they were told NO in advance about more special perks,” he said.
You can see Senator Bettencourt’s full statement here.
