Article on Actions to Audit TxDOT

A large amount of meaning can be put into a small amount of words. In this article by Michael A. Lindenberger, he writes briefly on Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst's and House Speaker Tom Craddick's effort to audit TxDOT. The article is on The Dallas Morning News' website, and being such a popular paper, the article should not have an extremely ideological agenda. However, do to the fact that its target audience is more liberal (citizens of Dallas), I would expect the paper to have at least a slight liberal overtone, which it does. In the article, Mr. Lindenberger states the fact that both the Lt. Gov. and the House Speaker are Republicans, and that they are asking for the audit. After that, he gives a few defenses for TxDOT, but says nothing supporting Dewhurst and Craddick. Clearly he favors TxDOT. As many know, TxDOT and the toll roads associated with it were extremely controversial. While members of both parties were for and against the toll roads, almost all conservatives were strictly against TxDOT due to the fact that double taxation goes against most conservative's principles. All of these things together strongly suggest that Michael A. Lindenberger is at least slightly liberal in ideology.

This becomes clearer when one views what Mr. Lindenberger does not say. Dewhurst and Craddick say clearly in their letter to John Keel, the Senate Auditor, that they have found reason to believe that there are "questionable accounting procedures" in TxDOT's financial reporting and forecasting. The letter then goes on to give a few their reasons on why they believe this. By not giving these reasons that support Dewhhusrt's and Craddick's actions while writing his article he shows that he is not simply writing about an event but is also showing his opinion on the event and therefore he is making an argument. He is arguing that TxDOT is innocent of misused funds and that both the Lt. Gov. and the House Speaker are wrong. In his argument the winners are TxDOT and those who can afford toll roads, and the losers are conservatives and the poor.