A mere five hours after Republican and longtime Rick Perry lackey Phil Wilson announced that he would be stepping down as Texas Secretary of State to pursue "other opportunities," it's now becoming clear what those other opportunities are. In a press release, Energy Future Holdings (the company formerly known as TXU Corporation, and still known as the guys screwing Texas consumers blind on their electric bills) has announced that Wilson will become Senior Vice President of Public Affairs for Luminant, the company's wholesale subsidiary responsible for electric generation. Wilson will begin in his new position on July 7, one day after his scheduled last day as Secretary of State, overseeing the company's community relations, communications, regulatory and government affairs efforts. Wilson's resignation follows the departure of fellow Republican Bruce Gibson, former chief of staff for Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst, in March of last year to become a legislative consultant for TXU. Their transition from working for the government to working for big energy comes in the wake of TXU's battle with consumer groups over proposed legislation that could have undermined the deal that led to the creation of Energy Future Holdings, and leads into next year's legislative session, where the company can expect to benefit from having Wilson and Gibson in their camp.
And this is business as usual in Rick Perry's Texas. Let's hope that we have a Democratic majority in the Texas House next year, to at least throw a monkey wrench into the incestuous relationship between Republican government officials and the businesses they're supposed to be regulating.
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