A reader offers the following challenge to prove the liberal bias of the Houston Chronicle:

I love how all of you will just dismiss the Chronicle a “liberal rag” and disparage the op/ed writers, but some of us don’t exactly see the Houston Chronicle as a bastion of liberalism.

I challenge the fine folks of LST (and its readers for that matter) to count the number of editorial pieces that lean left versus the number that lean right. Let’s do this for a week and we will have an answer to how “liberal” the Chronicle really is.

Ron

First off, does Ron even read the Chronicle? Let’s list the positions of its editorial board:

- Against the Iraq War
- In favor of more environmental regulation
- Pro-light rail
- Pro-abortion
- Anti-death penalty
- In favor of gay "rights"
- Opposed to the Bush tax plan
- In favor of more social spending
- Thinks Tom DeLay is the anti-Christ

Well, that sounds pretty liberal to me! But let’s take up this fellow on his challenge. Here’s today’s editorials:

Hard of hearing: Give the public equal say in issuing plant permits

- In favor of the NIMBY mentality. Their position restrains industrial development, supposedly for environmental reasons. A liberal staff editorial.

Real leader: Fox places democratic legacy above party’s passion

- A staff editorial praising Mexican President Victinte Fox for halting prosecution of Mexico City’s left-of-center mayor. Pretty liberal.

Another Voice: Arnold and the immigrants

- An LA Times editorial condemning Governor Schwarzenegger for praising the "Minutemen." Very liberal.

U.S. to blame for erosion of nonproliferation treaty

- An op-ed from Jimmy Carter blaming the US in foreign policy matters. It doesn’t get more liberal than the peanut farming peacenik.

Brooks: Frist blew the chance to make a deal, avert disaster

- A David Brooks column condemning the actions of Republican House Speaker Bill Frist. Brooks is middle-of-the-road, but the editorial appeals to liberals.

Dionne: Bush playing Social Security hand with stacked deck

- E.J. Dionne condemns the Bush Social Security plan. Liberal.

That’s it. If anybody wants me to do this all week, that’s fine. But I think the point is made. The Chronicle may run some conservative op-eds and columns (and occasionally even a conservative staff editorial) but these are few and far between. The paper is overwhelmingly liberal.