Listen
Jack Morman was on the phone listening and scribbling on a legal pad at his desk in his 9th floor office of the Harris County Administration building downtown. It’s a big office with enormous windows that capture the beauty of the city’s impressive sky scrapers. After we move to a circular conference table, I asked the new commissioner if he had stopped pinching himself.
“For now, but since something else will happen and I’ll have to re-pinch.”
By now you know the story of Jack Morman. The 32 year old attorney was a virtual unknown in political circles. Despite being outspent 40 to 1, he ousted incumbent Sylvia Garcia, the highest ranking Hispanic elected office holder in Harris County, and the first woman to serve as county commissioner. He says frustration lead to a burning desire to run.
“It began to just build over time, and eventually it was the just the thought of ‘we can do better, we certainly can.’ It’s certainly not just me, not be a long shot. I’m of course, at the top of the food chain, but I depend on many, many good people and managers, and certainly it’s definitely a team effort.”
Commissioner Morman says his agenda will reflect the needs of Precinct-2:
“We’re gonna focus on infrastructure. We’re gonna focus on building our roads, our bridges, our drainage. We’re gonna make them better so we can make sure Precinct-2 stays moving, and that’ll provide for all the other social services that we have come to rely on here in Precinct-2.”
PH : “In your belief in limited and efficient government, how will youir agenda reflect that?”
Morman : “And that’s especially appropriate for the times that we’re in with our budget issues, because there’s just not any room for any excess whatsoever, so we’re gonna have to cut out the fat, we’re gonna become more efficient, more lean and still provide the level of service that people of Precinct-2 have come to expect.”
He may be the youngest member on Commissioner’s Court, but Morman says he’s in a unique position to call upon his colleagues for guidance and wisdom. As a life long resident of Precinct-2, Morman says his values began to take shape in high school:
“Growing up in the precinct and then going to Deer Park High School, I think that was excellent basic building blocks to get me where I am today and so, absolutely.”
PH: “Does it also entail your new job?”
Morman: “Oh clearly. This is definitely not a part time position for me, nor should it be. So, while my clients in my old life and my old profession deserved absolutely the best, the same holds true for the new job, and now my clients are the people of Precinct-2.”
As he attends his very first meeting as Harris County Commissioner, Morman says he plans to listen to his constituents to make the best decision for the precinct.