A laughing emoji on a Facebook post led to a meeting Friday between long-time Odessa resident Ronnie Lewis and At-Large Odessa City Council member Denise Swanner. It also led to Swanner challenging Lewis to run for her seat.
The pair discussed recent appointments, fake Facebook profiles, her autonomy and transparency.
Lewis, a retired Republican businessman who famously built and ran Dos Amigos for years, is the son of well-known Republican activist Alma Byrd. Lewis recently took to the Odessa American’s Facebook page after it was revealed Swanner filed a complaint with the State Bar of Texas about former City Attorney Natasha Brooks.
“Denise Swanner wasn’t satisfied with firing Brooks right before Christmas, Councilperson Swanner now demands her pound of flesh. I can’t imagine the workplace environment our city employees are currently forced to endure….just my opinion,” Lewis posted.
After Swanner reacted with a laughing emoji, Lewis hinted Swanner will not do well during the next election and Swanner invited Lewis to lunch. Lewis agreed, although he said he preferred she answer questions in an open forum.
When the Odessa American posted that a reporter would like to sit in, Swanner said she wasn’t interested in speaking to the OA. She, her husband, Bob, and Odessa Development Corporation Board member/Odessa Headlines Publisher Jeff Russell showed up anyway.
Swanner immediately demanded to know why an OA reporter was there and Lewis reiterated the reason he gave on Facebook – he thinks Odessans are entitled to answers about recent events and since she wouldn’t answer them on the OA Facebook page, he agreed to lunch.
Facebook, Lewis said, is today’s equivalent of a town square where people engage in back-and-forth debates. Lewis thanked Russell for being in attendance, too.
Swanner said she doesn’t think Facebook is the proper forum for debates and explained her husband was present because, she said, Lewis “trolls” her all of the time on Facebook. She reminded Lewis he once said he’d campaign against her in only his underwear. She said she found that disrespectful.
Lewis disagreed, but said if he liked her answers and if he sees different behavior from her over the next two years he’ll campaign for her in his underwear. Swanner declined that offer and remarked he only counts for one vote anyway.
“You can sit here and say I’m only one vote, but you know better,” Lewis said.
Appointments
Lewis asked Swanner about the recent appointments of Tim Harry to the ODC’s compliance committee and Ector County Republican Chairwoman Tisha Crow to the Downtown Odessa board. He questioned whether she had ever asked herself if either one were really a better choice than those they replaced.
Harry replaced Gaven Norris, an attorney, and Crow replaced Sondra Eoff, a philanthropist and owner of the Downtown Marriott.
Swanner noted that appointees “serve at the pleasure” of the council, but when pressed further, she agreed Eoff and her husband have done a lot of good things for the city. However, she said she thought maybe Crow could bring something different to the table.
As for Norris, Swanner said she didn’t want him representing her and the committee has “plenty of attorneys.”
“I dislike his tactics when he comes into the council chambers,” Swanner said, noting she finds him disrespectful.
Lewis said in his opinion Harry, too, is disrespectful, especially on Facebook.
“You’re the only one who has problems with the appointees,” Swanner insisted.
When Lewis replied he may be the only one with guts enough to take on the “attack dogs” who support her, Swanner responded, “Are you not an attack dog?”
Swanner said she’s not even sure the ODC needs a compliance committee as the city council is ultimately the one to decide if companies should be awarded grant money.
The city councilmember declined to comment on the firings of City Manager Michael Marrero and City Attorney Natasha Brooks, citing pending litigation.
Autonomy
Switching gears, Lewis said he’s been told Russell, Harry, Crow and her husband, ODC Chairman Kris Crow, are included on a lot of emails from city council members and asked Swanner if she seeks their input on matters.
“Why would I do that?” Swanner replied.
As far as the emails, Swanner said if someone requests information, she’ll send it to them.
Lewis also asked Swanner about her consistently voting with Mayor Javier Joven and Councilmember Mark Matta. He pointed out there was one instance in which she started to vote in opposition to Joven and changed her mind. He remarked many believe Joven often gives her an “authoritarian nudge.”
“He doesn’t give me any nudge at all,” Swanner said.
She also denied Russell is her “go-to” person.
The councilmember said she doesn’t like it when people refer to her, Joven and Matta as the “squad” and suggested that Lewis himself may have named them that.
Right now, the three of them are part of a majority, not unlike the majority once held by former Mayor David Turner and former council members Dewey Bryant and Peggy Dean, she said.
“I think a voting block and a majority are two different things,” Swanner said.
She said she believes the current council is much more transparent than councils in the past.
Lewis said he’ll never believe Swanner isn’t a member of a cabal out for power.
As for transparency, he asked Swanner if the council was being transparent when they fired Brooks and Marrero and when Joven signed and executed the T2 Professional Consulting contract one day after Brooks and Marrero were fired.
“You know me. What kind of power do I need or want?” Swanner replied. “Have you ever thought that we have the same Republican values?”
She asked Lewis if he had been in favor of the council’s Sanctuary City for the Unborn ordinance, to which he said no.
Swanner said he must not be a Republican then.
Finnegan & Josiah
Lewis also repeatedly asked Swanner if she truly does not know who is behind the fake Finnegan Lane and Josiah Vargas Facebook profiles, which routinely praise “the squad.”
Swanner insisted she does not and that she “doesn’t pay attention” when various people “Friend” her on Facebook.
Vargas did truly pay for her lunch one day, though, Swanner said.
“A waitress told me Josiah Vargas picked up my tab and I said, ‘Thank you,’” Swanner said.
Lewis remarked that if he were her, he would refuse to accept the support of Lane and Vargas because of the “vile” things they say on Facebook. Lewis said he doesn’t believe she was not aware that the accounts are fakes.
Swanner said some people think he says vile things.
She also suggested people create fake Facebook profiles because they fear retribution from their bosses. Lewis suggested people are too afraid to voice opposition to the “squad” because they fear them, the Crows, Harry and Russell.
He noted the membership of the Ector County Republican Women has dropped dramatically and suggested it was because of the ugliness going on within the party. Swanner suggested the current board of the ECRW is not doing a good job recruiting and retaining members.
In his opinion, the Republicans in Odessa have gone “too far,” Lewis said.
“It’s gotten out of hand and it has nothing to do with roads, bridges or water,” Lewis said.
He later remarked, “A lot of people feel betrayed. A lot of them supported you not knowing where this was going,” Lewis said.
“I hear the same thing about you,” Swanner replied.
Lewis laughed at that, noting he’s not “glad-handing or looking for photo ops” he’s normally just running errands when he’s not home.
At one point Lewis asked Swanner if she didn’t think it was hypocritical of Kris Crow to say there’s a “new day dawning” in Odessa when his wife has been in her position 15 years.
“I haven’t really thought about it,” Swanner said.
The Future
Swanner said residents will find out in 2024, which faction is the most popular.
“Let’s run the race. Run against me. I challenge you,” Swanner said.
Lewis asked Swanner if she thinks Tisha Crow would allow him to run. He also asked Swanner if she should have run the idea of him running against her past “corporate,” referring to Russell, the Crows and Harry.
“I don’t need to check with anyone,” Swanner said.
At the end of the meeting, Swanner told Lewis the questions were easy.
“I was prepared for harder questions,” she said.
Lewis told the OA reporter he found most of her answers “evasive” and they were “flat-out dishonest” when she said she didn’t know who was behind the fake Facebook profiles.
It’s upsetting to him because as the at-large city councilmember “it’s her job to bring clarity to” what’s happening within the city, he said.
As for running for city council, Lewis said he is considering it despite the fact most people would be too scared or sane to jump into the fray.
