2010: The First Gubernatorial Debate?

Unless Gov. Rick Perry eases up on his refusal to debate his Democratic opponent, Bill White, this may be the closest Texas gets to a gubernatorial showdown.

In February, the Austin Tea Party Patriots, in conjunction with a statewide coalition of tea parties called Common Sense Texans, presented every gubernatorial candidate with the same set of questions provided by members of local tea parties and similar organizations. Back in the pre-primary season, the field was much wider. Now, with only two of those options remaining (current Libertarian Party nominee Katherine Youngblood Glass was not in the mix back then), they have strung together and released just the responses of Perry and White. They're billing it as the "Texas Debate."

As Greg Holloway of the Austin Tea Party Patriots notes in an introductory video, the resulting series of YouTube videos represents “the first and perhaps only” chance to see Perry and White go head-to-head.

All 10 videos are available on the Austin Tea Party Patriot's YouTube page, but — to whet your appetite — here's a sample: