Earlier this month, the former U.S. Housing Secretary announced he’ll be coming home to San Antonio in September–older at age 53, wiser after scandal tarnished his image, and richer after his private sector job in Los Angeles revitalizing Univision, the nation’s largest Spanish-language broadcaster. Cisneros’ announced intention: to form a new company to build socially worthy urban residential communities–or “villages within cities”–at affordable market prices across the Southwest.
Within nanoseconds, the speculation began. What’s the sub-plot? Cisneros, the Texas rumor mill decreed, must be planning a run for the office George W. Bush may be about to exit. “No, no, no, no,” Cisneros replied, when asked if his move cloaked political ambitions. True believers thought he protested a bit too much.
Could Henry still be a contender? Even after the mid-life disappointments, onetime wonder boy Cisneros–once seen as a potential President–still inspires longing among Texas Democrats. His national star faded with the disclosure of an affair in 1988 and a long federal probe that ended with a misdemeanor guilty plea last year for lying to the FBI about payments to his former mistress. But you don’t need a President known as the Comeback Kid to realize that what goes down can also resurrect. “He’s still got the magic,” says one old Cisneros friend who talks regularly to the former four-term mayor of Texas’ third largest city. Movers and shakers in San Antonio “have been calling him every 10 minutes asking him for help,” says another. “And he’s not even here yet.”
The speculation prompts contempt in some Texas GOP circles. “If the Democrats want to rebuild their party with somebody who’s been indicted and convicted, bring ’em on,” says Austin political consultant Mike Baselice. Baselice conducted two surveys to test Cisneros’ standing with Texas voters. In one, in metropolitan Houston, he drew a positive response from only 28 percent of respondents and negatives from 38 percent. In a second survey in his home base, metro San Antonio, 53 percent saw Cisneros favorably and 41 percent unfavorably. “We ran the numbers,” Baselice says. “And we’ve concluded that he’s a loser.”
But even Baselice acknowledges there’s a serious thread to the idea. Hispanic voters constitute 28 percent of the Texas electorate. By 2020, if not sooner, they will outnumber whites. No one has yet unlocked the potential those numbers hold for winning the governorship of the nation’s second most populous state.
No one doubts Texas Democrats need some magic. They hold no significant statewide office. And if Bush wins the White House, power at the statehouse will pass automatically to Republican Lt. Gov. Rick Perry until the term expires in 2002. Austin consultant Bill Miller, who has worked for both Democrats and Republicans, thinks the return of prodigal son Cisneros could restore the Democrats to health, especially in a state growing Hispanic more rapidly than it’s growing conservative. “The Democrats are only one candidate away from being back in the game,” Miller argues. “Texas politics is personality-driven, and George Bush is a personality now. But Henry Cisneros is every bit as daunting as anybody you can look at. Never, never count him out.”
The comeback, if it comes, will probably take years to materialize. Even consultant Miller thinks Cisneros needs to redeem himself with good works at home before a statewide campaign. And another Hispanic, Laredo oilman Tony Sanchez, looks likely to run as the Democratic nominee for governor in 2002–with Cisneros’ backing. Sanchez, who owns Texas’ 18th largest gas-producing company, failed to show at the Democratic convention in Los Angeles. One reason: he’s a six-figure contributor to Bush’s gubernatorial campaigns and has raised more than $100,000 for his White House run. Bush appointed Sanchez to the University of Texas Board of Regents.
Lone Star Democrats who have succumbed to Dubya’s charms aren’t exactly as rare as yellow dogs these days. Even so, it’s no wonder that Cisneros provokes a powerful nostalgia. “The real story is how quickly the speculation about a Cisneros comeback started to fly,” noted a recent editorial in the Dallas Morning News. “That’s a testament to Mr. Cisneros’ enduring star quality and an indicator of a vacuum for Latino leaders.”
Cisneros, who has rebuilt his marriage and made a small fortune at Univision, may not know himself what his future holds. “This is a return to roots,” he told reporters. “Political office is not all it’s cracked up to be.” Everyone remembers Cisneros’ roots lie in politics. And few of his friends doubt that he’s enjoying the hoopla over his impending return. “Henry’s a political flirt,” laughs one confidante. Even in the reconstructed family values era of Al Gore, consider the Democratic Party in Texas aroused.
