Op-ed: Harris County corruption culture runs deep

Lincoln Steffens wrote "The Shame of the Cities" in 1904. The book, a collection of articles, is about the inner workings of America’s corrupt big-city political machines and the efforts to push back. In it, he wrote, “The misgovernment of the American people is misgovernment by the American people.”

That statement remains as true today as it was the day it was written.

In recent months, Harris County residents have seen corruption exposed on levels that we have seen in recent years, and it’s just the beginning. Every now and then, big scandals arise, Houston Community College, Houston ISD, the City of Houston, but it’s the county’s turn.

While campaigning and after taking office, Judge Lina Hidalgo has paid lip service to transparency, even making cosmetic changes to follow through with what she says is how she leads her administration.

Hours long Commissioners Court meetings, in an attempt to be more transparent, and a vow to return and prohibit any campaign contributions from county vendors had many people under the impression that her office would take corruption and pay-to-play politics seriously. But is it all a façade?

Meetings that run for hours seem more transparent, but not when you’re eroding public oversight and participation, refusing campaign contributions from vendors seems good practice but not when it serves as a distraction from directing contracts to politically allied vendors.

With the latest issue, leading to the Texas Rangers executing search warrants in county offices, we’re coming to understand the true level of corruption, incompetence, or a mix thereof, that plague the County Judge’s office.

When an $11 million COVID outreach contract passed Commissioners Court and was called out for being directed to a political ally, Hidalgo feigned ignorance.

When it was revealed that that vendor didn’t even win the contract but rules were bent to award it to Elevate Strategies, she claimed this was a political attack getting in the way of good work.

Now, following information coming out about the contents of those search warrants, Hidalgo posts a picture from her “ski vacation” saying she was “relieved” to make it happen. Again, a façade to assure Harris County residents that the investigation into her office is merely a political hit job.

From court documents, we know that there is probable cause to believe that laws have been broken, that staff shared information on the proposed project with the preferred vendor before the proposal was even public, we know that one wrote, “We need to slam the door shut on UT and move on,” and “don’t let UT get it.”

Hidalgo’s attorney responded saying, “The misleading storyline of today’s release is the latest of political theater from a politically motivated investigation. Ultimately, this was about dedicated public servants trying to get the best team to fight COVID-19 in Harris County. Since she came into office, Judge Hidalgo has held herself and her staff to the highest ethical standards and is the only official to refuse donations from all County vendors.”

Isn’t the reason for the procurement process to “get the best team” and if it isn’t, then fix the process, don’t cheat it.

But, the important point in what her attorney said is, “Hidalgo has held herself and her staff to the highest ethical standards,” that’s what we need to remember in all of this. Regardless of illegality, and regardless of Hidalgo’s personal and direct involvement, the actions of her staff are a reflection of her leadership.

We know that this process fell short of ethical standards and short of the bar that taxpayers should have set for our employees, because, remember, they all work for us.

There’s something to be said about the confidence and comfort Hidalgo’s team had in not only plotting against the taxpayers and other vendors, but how comfortable they were doing it in writing. They were so certain that their actions would go unpunished that they didn’t even try to conceal them.

Only a culture of corruption that runs deep would foster that level of brazenness and leadership sets the tone for the culture.

As voters and taxpayers, we fund and employ government officials. We are the tip of the spear.

We determine just how much of this we are willing to accept because, again, as Steffens said, “The misgovernment of the American people is misgovernment by the American people.”

Charles Blain is the president of the Urban Reform Institute.