E L Short
Encyclopedia
E L Short is a farmer, rancher, and business
man from Tahoka
in Lynn County, Texas
, who is a former Democratic
member of both houses of the Texas State Legislature.
in Lynn County to Cleburne E. "Bert" Short (1897–1980), a farmer originally from Greenville
, Texas, and the former Eva Lena McCord (1900–1989). Short graduated from Tahoka High School. Thereafter, he served in the United States Navy
from 1943 to 1945, having been stationed on the California
coast and then dispatched to mainland China
. After the war, he attended for several semesters Texas A&M University
in College Station
.
In 1947, Short wed the former Ernestine "Dink" Fortenberry (born January 27, 1929), a native of Dawson County. The couple has four daughters, Vivian Bruns of Sierra Vista
, Arizona
, Patti Kilpatrick of Brownwood
, Robin Taylor of Brownfield
, Texas, and Leah Taylor of Tahoka. Except as in-laws, the husbands of Robin and Leah Taylor are otherwise unrelated. Short is United Methodist.
from then District 73 in a special runoff election held on August 8, 1969, to fill the vacancy created by the resignation on June 30 of Democrat Randall George Pendleton
, then of Andrews
. Nine candidates had entered the first round of balloting on July 22. Pendleton accepted appointment from Governor
Preston E. Smith
as the Director of State and Federal Relations in Washington, D.C.
Short held the House seat for ten years and for a time chaired the Inter-Government Affairs Committee. In 1975, he garnered statewide attention by focusing on the deadly hazards of hydrogen sulfide
following an explosion of the gas in Denver City
, located in Yoakum and Gaines counties in his district. Short endorsed an investigation by the Texas Railroad Commission
and urged that residents be warned "by knocking on doors if necessary" of the imminent danger stemming from the gas. Often one dies from the second inhalation of the gas, and a warning itself may be too late.
of Dimmitt
, the seat of Castro County, who was instead elected to the United States House of Representatives
to fill the seat vacated by the retiring George H. Mahon
of Lubbock
. Hance, then a Democrat, defeated the Republican
choice, George W. Bush
, who had beaten Jim Reese, the former mayor of Odessa
, in a GOP
runoff primary.
Meanwhile, Short's House seat was won by the Democrat Jim Rudd of Brownfield
in Terry County.
Short was appointed by Lieutenant Governor
Bill Hobby, the presiding officer of the state Senate, to serve on the Finance Committee. Short worked to increase funding for the nursing school at Texas Tech University
in Lubbock
. He pushed for passage of bills to require cotton
buyers to register with the state and to permit oversized modular trucks hauling cotton to be ginned to continue using the highways, as such operations are seasonal in nature. He was the vice chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee and in the 1981 legislative session worked to thwart passage of seven land-use bills.
Texas Monthly
magazine
named Short to the list of the "Ten Worst Legislators" in the 1981 session. Others negatively cited were Democrat Carlos Truan of Corpus Christi
and Republican John N. Leedom
of Dallas
, the author of the "Texas Rainy Day Fund." Rated among the best in 1981 were future U.S. Representative Lloyd Doggett
of Austin
, one of the Senate's more liberal members, Speaker
Bill W. Clayton
of Springlake
in Lamb County, and Ray Farabee
of Wichita Falls
, all Democrats.The magazine said that Short repeatedly told colleagues that he would support their pending legislation but failed to follow through. Texas Monthly quoted Short as having said to a colleague, "I told you I'd vote for that bill; I just didn't say when."Texas Monthly said that Short was "without malice or guile" and might make a good alderman in Tahoka but was unsuited for legislative business.
After a term in the Senate, Short was narrowly unseated in the 1982 Democratic primary by John T. Montford, the district attorney
of Lubbock County. Short lost even though he had carried twelve of the fourteen counties in the district, losing only Lubbock and Borden
, a small rural county. Montford then defeated Jim Reese, the unsuccessful Republican congressional candidate from both 1976 and 1978. Short speculates that he would have defeated Montford had rains not suppressed the Ector County turnout, which was extremely low that year, and had not some conservatives in Odessa voted instead in the Republican primary, which then had a relatively small rate of participation. Though Short had worked successfully on the Senate Finance Committee to obtain funding for the Odessa branch of the Texas Tech Medical School, his effort did not yield the political dividend in the primary that he had expected.
In the Montford-Reese general election
contest, Short endorsed no one. Short, considered a conservative Democrat, later switched affiliation to the GOP
but after his time in elective politics had passed.
There is a political exhibit with some of Short's memorabilia at the Garza County Historical Museum
in Post
, Texas.
Business
A business is an organization engaged in the trade of goods, services, or both to consumers. Businesses are predominant in capitalist economies, where most of them are privately owned and administered to earn profit to increase the wealth of their owners. Businesses may also be not-for-profit...
man from Tahoka
Tahoka, Texas
Tahoka is a city in and the county seat of Lynn County, Texas, United States. The population was 2,910 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Tahoka is located at ....
in Lynn County, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, who is a former Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
member of both houses of the Texas State Legislature.
Background
Short (the E L stands for nothing) was born in GrasslandGrassland, Texas
Grassland is an unincorporated community in Lynn County, West Texas, United States. According to the Handbook of Texas, the community had an estimated population of 61 in 2000....
in Lynn County to Cleburne E. "Bert" Short (1897–1980), a farmer originally from Greenville
Greenville, Texas
Greenville is the county seat, and the largest city, of Hunt County, Texas, in the United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 25,557....
, Texas, and the former Eva Lena McCord (1900–1989). Short graduated from Tahoka High School. Thereafter, he served in the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
from 1943 to 1945, having been stationed on the California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
coast and then dispatched to mainland China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
. After the war, he attended for several semesters Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University is a coeducational public research university located in College Station, Texas . It is the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System. The sixth-largest university in the United States, A&M's enrollment for Fall 2011 was over 50,000 for the first time in school...
in College Station
College Station, Texas
College Station is a city in Brazos County, Texas, situated in East Central Texas in the heart of the Brazos Valley. The city is located within the most populated region of Texas, near three of the 10 largest cities in the United States - Houston, Dallas, and San Antonio...
.
In 1947, Short wed the former Ernestine "Dink" Fortenberry (born January 27, 1929), a native of Dawson County. The couple has four daughters, Vivian Bruns of Sierra Vista
Sierra Vista, Arizona
Sierra Vista is a city in Cochise County, Arizona, United States. According to 2007 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the city is 43,044....
, Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
, Patti Kilpatrick of Brownwood
Brownwood, Texas
Brownwood is a city in and the county seat of Brown County, Texas, United States. The population was 18,813 at the 2000 census.-History:The original site of the Brown County seat of Brownwood was on the east of Pecan Bayou. A dispute arose over land and water rights, and the settlers were forced...
, Robin Taylor of Brownfield
Brownfield, Texas
Brownfield is a city in Terry County, Texas, United States. The population was 8,940 at the 2009 census. It is the county seat of Terry County near Lubbock in West Texas.-Geography:...
, Texas, and Leah Taylor of Tahoka. Except as in-laws, the husbands of Robin and Leah Taylor are otherwise unrelated. Short is United Methodist.
State representative
Short was elected to the Texas House of RepresentativesTexas House of Representatives
The Texas House of Representatives is the lower house of the Texas Legislature. The House is composed of 150 members elected from single-member districts across the state. The average district has about 150,000 people. Representatives are elected to two-year terms with no term limits...
from then District 73 in a special runoff election held on August 8, 1969, to fill the vacancy created by the resignation on June 30 of Democrat Randall George Pendleton
Randy Pendleton
Randall George Pendleton, known as Randy Pendleton , was a businessman from Andrews, Texas, and later a lobbyist in Austin, who served as a Democrat in the Texas House of Representatives from 1961–1969....
, then of Andrews
Andrews, Texas
Andrews is a city in and the county seat of Andrews County in the U.S. state of Texas within the West Texas region. The population was 10,448 in 2009. Along with Midland and Odessa, these cities form the Midland-Odessa Combined Statistical Area with a population of 241,316 in four counties...
. Nine candidates had entered the first round of balloting on July 22. Pendleton accepted appointment from Governor
Governor of Texas
The governor of Texas is the head of the executive branch of Texas's government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor has the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the Texas Legislature, and to convene the legislature...
Preston E. Smith
Preston Smith (Texas)
Preston Earnest Smith was the 40th Governor of Texas from 1969 to 1973, who earlier served as the lieutenant governor from 1963 to 1969.-Early life:...
as the Director of State and Federal Relations in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
Short held the House seat for ten years and for a time chaired the Inter-Government Affairs Committee. In 1975, he garnered statewide attention by focusing on the deadly hazards of hydrogen sulfide
Hydrogen sulfide
Hydrogen sulfide is the chemical compound with the formula . It is a colorless, very poisonous, flammable gas with the characteristic foul odor of expired eggs perceptible at concentrations as low as 0.00047 parts per million...
following an explosion of the gas in Denver City
Denver City, Texas
Denver City is a town in Gaines and Yoakum counties in the U.S. state of Texas, just a short distance from the New Mexico boundary that is named for the petroleum company, Denver Productions. The population was 3,985 at the 2000 census. The town is located at the intersection of Texas State...
, located in Yoakum and Gaines counties in his district. Short endorsed an investigation by the Texas Railroad Commission
Railroad Commission of Texas
The Railroad Commission of Texas is the state agency that regulates the oil and gas industry, gas utilities, pipeline safety, safety in the liquefied petroleum gas industry, and surface coal and uranium mining .Established by the Texas Legislature in 1891, it is the state's oldest regulatory...
and urged that residents be warned "by knocking on doors if necessary" of the imminent danger stemming from the gas. Often one dies from the second inhalation of the gas, and a warning itself may be too late.
State senator
In 1978, Short was elected the Texas State Senate to succeed Kent Ronald HanceKent Hance
Kent "The Hancellor" Ronald Hance is a lobbyist and lawyer who was a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives from West Texas, having served from 1979 to 1985...
of Dimmitt
Dimmitt, Texas
Dimmitt is a city in Castro County, Texas, United States. The population was 4,375 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Castro County. It is located on the old Ozark Trail, a road system from St. Louis, Missouri, to El Paso, Texas...
, the seat of Castro County, who was instead elected to the United States House of Representatives
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
to fill the seat vacated by the retiring George H. Mahon
George H. Mahon
George Herman Mahon was a Texas politician who served twenty-two consecutive terms as a member of the United States House of Representatives from the Lubbock-based 19th congressional district....
of Lubbock
Lubbock, Texas
Lubbock is a city in and the county seat of Lubbock County, Texas, United States. The city is located in the northwestern part of the state, a region known historically as the Llano Estacado, and the home of Texas Tech University and Lubbock Christian University...
. Hance, then a Democrat, defeated the Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
choice, George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
, who had beaten Jim Reese, the former mayor of Odessa
Odessa, Texas
Odessa is a city in and the county seat of Ector County, Texas, United States. It is located primarily in Ector County, although a small portion of the city extends into Midland County. Odessa's population was 99,940 at the 2010 census. It is the principal city of the Odessa, Texas Metropolitan...
, in a GOP
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
runoff primary.
Meanwhile, Short's House seat was won by the Democrat Jim Rudd of Brownfield
Brownfield, Texas
Brownfield is a city in Terry County, Texas, United States. The population was 8,940 at the 2009 census. It is the county seat of Terry County near Lubbock in West Texas.-Geography:...
in Terry County.
Short was appointed by Lieutenant Governor
Lieutenant governor
A lieutenant governor or lieutenant-governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction, but is often the deputy or lieutenant to or ranking under a governor — a "second-in-command"...
Bill Hobby, the presiding officer of the state Senate, to serve on the Finance Committee. Short worked to increase funding for the nursing school at Texas Tech University
Texas Tech University
Texas Tech University, often referred to as Texas Tech or TTU, is a public research university in Lubbock, Texas, United States. Established on February 10, 1923, and originally known as Texas Technological College, it is the leading institution of the Texas Tech University System and has the...
in Lubbock
Lubbock, Texas
Lubbock is a city in and the county seat of Lubbock County, Texas, United States. The city is located in the northwestern part of the state, a region known historically as the Llano Estacado, and the home of Texas Tech University and Lubbock Christian University...
. He pushed for passage of bills to require cotton
Cotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective capsule, around the seeds of cotton plants of the genus Gossypium. The fiber is almost pure cellulose. The botanical purpose of cotton fiber is to aid in seed dispersal....
buyers to register with the state and to permit oversized modular trucks hauling cotton to be ginned to continue using the highways, as such operations are seasonal in nature. He was the vice chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee and in the 1981 legislative session worked to thwart passage of seven land-use bills.
Texas Monthly
Texas Monthly
Texas Monthly is a monthly American magazine headquartered in Austin, Texas. Texas Monthly is published by Emmis Publishing, L.P. and was founded in 1973 by Michael R. Levy, Texas Monthly chronicles life in contemporary Texas, writing on politics, the environment, industry, and education...
magazine
Magazine
Magazines, periodicals, glossies or serials are publications, generally published on a regular schedule, containing a variety of articles. They are generally financed by advertising, by a purchase price, by pre-paid magazine subscriptions, or all three...
named Short to the list of the "Ten Worst Legislators" in the 1981 session. Others negatively cited were Democrat Carlos Truan of Corpus Christi
Corpus Christi, Texas
Corpus Christi is a coastal city in the South Texas region of the U.S. state of Texas. The county seat of Nueces County, it also extends into Aransas, Kleberg, and San Patricio counties. The MSA population in 2008 was 416,376. The population was 305,215 at the 2010 census making it the...
and Republican John N. Leedom
John N. Leedom
John N. Leedom, Sr. , is an engineer and lobbyist from Dallas, Texas, who served from 1981 to 1996 as a Republican member of the Texas State Senate from District 16...
of Dallas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
, the author of the "Texas Rainy Day Fund." Rated among the best in 1981 were future U.S. Representative Lloyd Doggett
Lloyd Doggett
Lloyd Alton Doggett II is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2005. He previously represented from 1995 to 2005. He is a member of the Democratic Party...
of Austin
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
, one of the Senate's more liberal members, Speaker
Speaker (politics)
The term speaker is a title often given to the presiding officer of a deliberative assembly, especially a legislative body. The speaker's official role is to moderate debate, make rulings on procedure, announce the results of votes, and the like. The speaker decides who may speak and has the...
Bill W. Clayton
Bill W. Clayton
Billy Wayne "Bill" Clayton , was an American politician from West Texas who served as a state legislator for 20 years and was Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives from 1975 to 1983, a tenure twice as long as that of any other presiding officer of the house elected before him...
of Springlake
Springlake, Texas
Springlake is a town in Lamb County, Texas, United States. The population was 135 at the 2000 census. The community is known for its agricultural processing.It was the hometown of the late Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives, Bill W...
in Lamb County, and Ray Farabee
Ray Farabee
Kenneth Ray Farabee, known as Ray Farabee , is a retired attorney in Austin, Texas, who served as a Democratic member of the Texas State Senate from Wichita Falls from 1975 to 1988. He is credited with the authorship of 245 Senate bills that became law during his 13-year tenure. In 1985, he was the...
of Wichita Falls
Wichita Falls, Texas
Wichita Falls is a city in and the county seat of Wichita County, Texas, United States, United States. Wichita Falls is the principal city of the Wichita Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Archer, Clay and Wichita counties. According to the U.S. Census estimate of 2010,...
, all Democrats.The magazine said that Short repeatedly told colleagues that he would support their pending legislation but failed to follow through. Texas Monthly quoted Short as having said to a colleague, "I told you I'd vote for that bill; I just didn't say when."Texas Monthly said that Short was "without malice or guile" and might make a good alderman in Tahoka but was unsuited for legislative business.
After a term in the Senate, Short was narrowly unseated in the 1982 Democratic primary by John T. Montford, the district attorney
District attorney
In many jurisdictions in the United States, a District Attorney is an elected or appointed government official who represents the government in the prosecution of criminal offenses. The district attorney is the highest officeholder in the jurisdiction's legal department and supervises a staff of...
of Lubbock County. Short lost even though he had carried twelve of the fourteen counties in the district, losing only Lubbock and Borden
Borden County, Texas
Borden County is a rural county located in the U.S. state of Texas. In 2000, its population was 729. Its county seat is Gail. Gail and Borden County are named for Gail Borden, Jr., businessman, publisher, surveyor, and inventor of condensed milk...
, a small rural county. Montford then defeated Jim Reese, the unsuccessful Republican congressional candidate from both 1976 and 1978. Short speculates that he would have defeated Montford had rains not suppressed the Ector County turnout, which was extremely low that year, and had not some conservatives in Odessa voted instead in the Republican primary, which then had a relatively small rate of participation. Though Short had worked successfully on the Senate Finance Committee to obtain funding for the Odessa branch of the Texas Tech Medical School, his effort did not yield the political dividend in the primary that he had expected.
In the Montford-Reese general election
General election
In a parliamentary political system, a general election is an election in which all or most members of a given political body are chosen. The term is usually used to refer to elections held for a nation's primary legislative body, as distinguished from by-elections and local elections.The term...
contest, Short endorsed no one. Short, considered a conservative Democrat, later switched affiliation to the GOP
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
but after his time in elective politics had passed.
There is a political exhibit with some of Short's memorabilia at the Garza County Historical Museum
Garza County Historical Museum
The Garza County Historical Museum houses a large collection of mostly ranch, cowboy, Indian, and pioneer artifacts located in a 1912 two-story colonial-style building of twenty-six rooms and hallways in Post, Texas, a community established by and named for the cereal magnate C. W. Post.The museum...
in Post
Post, Texas
Post is a city in and the county seat of Garza County, Texas, United States. The population was 3,708 at the 2000 census.There are many ranchers and civic boosters in Garza County, among them Giles McCrary, a former mayor who operates the OS Museum, a hybrid of exhibits from both the American West...
, Texas.