Austin town hall turns heated for Dems Valdez, White

Left, Texas Democratic gubernatorial candidate Andrew White speaks during a San Antonio event Feb. 17, 2018. Right, Texas Democratic gubernatorial candidate and former Dallas County Sheriff Lupe Valdez at San Antonio event, Jan. 12, 2018. less Left, Texas Democratic gubernatorial candidate Andrew White speaks during a San Antonio event Feb. 17, 2018. Right, Texas Democratic gubernatorial candidate and former Dallas County Sheriff Lupe Valdez at San ... more Photo: Files, Staff Photo: Files, Staff Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Austin town hall turns heated for Dems Valdez, White 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

AUSTIN – The two Democrats running for Texas governor were confronted Sunday during a town hall forum over their positions involving immigration, putting them on the defensive at an event that was expected to be friendly.

A second surprise: Hours after the forum, the Latino group sponsoring it snubbed Lupe Valdez, the first Latina running for governor, and endorsed Houston entrepreneur Andrew White.

Injecting drama into a race that so far has mostly been a snoozer, former Dallas County Sheriff Lupe Valdez was questioned about why she cooperated with federal immigration detainers while she was in charge of the Dallas County Jail.

The forum that attracted about 200 people was staged Sunday by Jolt The Vote, a civic-engagement organization working to mobilize Latino millennials in the 2018 elections. Only Democratic statewide candidates appeared.

In its endorsement, the Jolt group said White he had shown his "commitment to improving the lives of Latinos." The group also endorsed Beto O'Rourke for Texas Senate for the same reason.

Valdez took exception with the suggestion in a question by Karla Quinones, a Dallas student, that she had a legacy of supporting "anti-immigrant policies" while she was sheriff from 2005 until last December, a reference to her surrendering detainees to federal immigration officials for deportation.

Quinones said some participants at a community forum at the time turned their backs on Valdez and walked out in protest of her position.

Valdez, insisting that she is a strong believer in comprehensive immigration reform, said the questioner was referring to "several things that were quite misunderstood."

She said a few attendees at the forum, where she had arranged for federal immigration officials to explain the law, walked out rather than listen to the presentation.

She offered no further details.

Pressed by reporters after the forum ended, Valdez told reporters that she had stood up to Republican Gov. Greg Abbott, who demanded she comply with the federal immigration detainers. She said she could not discuss details because litigation on the issue is still pending in Dallas.

"I think there's a misunderstanding of the track record," she said.

Pressed further, she seemed to bristle at the continued questions: "OK, I've given you your answers. You wanted some answers. I've given them to you, OK? Now, let us do what we love to do best and (greet) some of the voters and go on to the other things we have to do. OK?"

White was confronted over his longstanding ownership of Geovox Security Inc., a company that sells electronic devices that can detect heartbeats — and is used in border security to detect the presence of undocumented immigrants inside semi-trailer trucks at Texas checkpoints near its border with Mexico.

White said the technology is being used by several countries to curb sex trafficking along with border interdiction "to protect people's lives" by detecting them inside trucks, rather than have them die in summer heat.

"I call it smart security, where you're making smart decisions to protect people's lives," he said, comparing it to Republican leaders' decision to send National Guard troops to the border.

Both White and Valdez have supported de-funding the state-funded $800 million border-security program supported by Abbott and the GOP-controlled legislature, and using that money to pay for improvements in public education, healthcare and other initiatives.

White's ownership in Geovox has been an issue for months, first raised by immigration reform groups who questioned whether he was profiting from federal immigration policies that he was criticizing.

He said he got into the company in the 1990's with his late father, former Gov. Mark White, and that it makes up "a very small part" of his business portfolio. Texas' prison system bought the technology years ago to detect convicts trying to escape in delivery trucks, and federal officials have said it has been effective in busting human-smuggling rings.

Valdez on Sunday offered no comment on White's ownership in the firm.

White, though, told reporters that Valdez needs to answer questions about her policies as sheriff: "She didn't really answer. She put it off. The young lady who asked it deserves an answer."

In addition to Valdez and White, who discussed their campaign goals and then answered questions, U.S. Rep. Beto O'Rourke who is running to unseat incumbent Republican U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz and Land Commission hopeful Miguel Suazo also appeared Sunday.

Mike.ward@chron.com

Twitter.com/@ChronicleMike