No, no, no. Not the tin-pot Panamanian dictator G.H.W. Bush imprisoned after that little Latin American invasion back in the 80s. No, this is Rick Noriega, a veteran state lawmaker who also happens to be active in the Texas Army National Guard and has recently served in Afghanistan--not to mention commanded troops during the recovery efforts of hurricanes Ike and Rita. He's challenging do-nothing Bush II stooge John Cornyn, who, after being Dubya's most loyal lapdog in Washington, has the audacity to run a campaign ad lauding himself as the candidate of "leadership" and "change." Ugh.
In a fair world, Noriega would be wiping the floor with Cornyn. Unfortunately, Cornyn has a huge money advantage, and is leveraging that to its fullest. Even so, Noriega is within 7 points in recent polls--a vast improvement from the 20+ point deficit he faced just a few months back. So pass Noriega's campaign spots around to your Texas friends and remember to vote for Rick this coming election.