The Dallas Morning News, which has thrown its support to local Democrats in most close races, has backed Republican Lowell Cannaday for sheriff over embattled incumbent Lupe Valdez. It was a predictable endorsement -- the paper has dutifully chronicled her doddering missteps for nearly four years now -- and the op-ed neatly summed up what's at stake:

If voters knew the hard, cold facts ahead –- that the next four annual inspections would bring the same failure to meet Texas' minimum standards and the federal government would demand oversight of our jails –- how would they have voted?

If they had known that employee morale, amorphous as that may be, would decline under Sheriff Lupe Valdez –- that she would prove incapable of managing a $135 million budget, much less leading 2,300 employees –- how would they have voted?

The editorial spent considerably less time on Cannaday and aptly noted that the former Irving police chief can be awfully vague on how he would fix the mismanaged jail. In fact, in praising the challenger, the piece reads like its authors did little more than a cut-and-paste job from his Web site:

His three decades as a police commander give him the perspective, background and, importantly, the leadership experience needed to turn the corner at Commerce and Industrial.

He understands that respect for competent leaders is the fastest way to boost morale. He has the support of every major local law enforcement employees group, including the Dallas County Sheriff's Deputies Association.

It was as if the editorial board just wanted to say: "How can he be any worse than what we've got?"

Expect Valdez's acolytes to trot out the worn claim that the News is a Republican paper. Yawn. Don't ask them to explain how the paper has endorsed Democrats in most of the key local races including incumbents Allen Vaught in House District 107 and Kirk England in House District 106 and challenger Carol Kent in House District 102.

But Valdez's core supporters are as delusional as any group in Dallas politics. They'll go to great lengths to explain how the press has it in for the sheriff without ever pointing to a flaw in anyone's coverage. In their mind, facts have no currency in the upcoming election: This is merely about backing the Democrat versus the Republican. Never mind that one critique of the sheriff -- that her jail is a terribly unfair and dangerous place for the most marginalized citizens in the county -- is a devoutly liberal one.

Of course, that's not the only perspective. There's also the issue of whether our sheriff is a good steward of public resources. Considering that both the state inspectors and federal authorities see her jail as a failing facility, while the sheriff's overtime costs annually soar over budget, Valdez will have a tough time winning people over on the strength of her record. Of course, none of that matters if voters in an increasingly Democratic Dallas County merely pull a straight ticket. Four more years?