Monthly Archives: July 2017

War on local control update

Posted on July 23, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Example one: Sen. Craig Estes’ Senate Bill 18 would require cities and counties to get voter approval if they plan to spend a certain amount more than they did in a previous year. His bill ties such an election trigger … Continue reading →

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Anticipating the future bathroom-related litigation

Posted on July 22, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

It will be a matter of when, not if, should a bathroom bill passes. [B]oth sides agree if any version of the bathroom bill becomes law, it will likely trigger a protracted legal battle that could have implications for the … Continue reading →

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Plaintiffs again ask for voter ID law to be tossed

Posted on July 22, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Again I agree with them. Minority groups have asked a federal judge to scrap Texas’ voter identification law and place the state under the jurist’s supervision for at least a decade, according to court filings this week. Not only are … Continue reading →

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Rebidding reycling

Posted on July 22, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Do-over! Pummeled by procurement concerns on a 20-year curbside recycling contract, Mayor Sylvester Turner said Friday he will seek a new round of proposals from the four final bidders. Turner had met with small groups of City Council members Thursday … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Hey lady, wanna referee a high school football game?

Posted on July 22, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Texas could really use you. The Houston chapter of the Texas Association of Sports Officials is somewhere between 50 and 200 officials short for the 2017 football season. TASO Executive Director Michael Fitch has referred to the statewide shortfall of … Continue reading →

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Friday random ten – All American

Posted on July 21, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

I know it’s past the Fourth of July, but how about some American music? 1. The American And Florence/Nobody’s Side – from “Chess” 2. American Girl – Roger McGuinn 3. American Idiot – Green Day 4. American Land – Bruce … Continue reading →

Posted in Music | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Tom Wakely

Posted on July 21, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

As noted in the update and comments to Wednesday’s post about our first Democratic candidate for Governor, we now have a second such candidate, Tom Wakely. PDiddie brings word of Wakely’s announcement, which he made on Down with Tyranny, a … Continue reading →

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Yet another lawsuit filed over yet another unconstitutional anti-abortion law

Posted on July 21, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Stop me if you’ve heard this one before. Texas is heading to court over a state law going into effect in September banning the most common second-trimester abortion procedure. The Center for Reproductive Rights and Planned Parenthood announced on Thursday … Continue reading →

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Mayors to Abbott: Don’t mess with our cities

Posted on July 21, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Good luck getting through. Less than 24 hours after Gov. Greg Abbott blasted local government restrictions like tree ordinances as a threat to the “Texas brand,” city government leaders statewide are seeking a meeting with the Republican leader. “We would … Continue reading →

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Pasadena has a decision to make

Posted on July 21, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

To continue the redistricting appeal, or to drop it and accept the ruling? One factor to consider is the cost involved. Pasadena has already paid more than $2.5 million to its outside attorneys. But there’s a complication: Under federal law, … Continue reading →

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Harris County Attorney files amicus brief in SB4 lawsuit

Posted on July 20, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Good. Last week, Harris County Commissioners Court opted not to join a lawsuit challenging the state’s controversial “sanctuary cities” law as unconstitutional. Harris County Attorney Vince Ryan, however, has filed a brief asking a federal court to halt its implementation … Continue reading →

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Recycling deal gets a rough reception at Council

Posted on July 20, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Feisty. Houston City Council members blasted a proposed 20-year recycling deal Tuesday, questioning the $48 million price tag, the process by which the winning bidder was chosen and Turner administration officials’ reluctance to share information about the deal. The proposal … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

RIP, Manuel Rodriguez

Posted on July 20, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Sad news. Every Tuesday at 8 a.m., Houston ISD Trustee Manuel “Manny” Rodriguez, Jr., would roll his maroon mobility scooter up to his favorite table at the Tel-Wink Restaurant & Grill in Southeast Houston. Rodriguez always left the seat across … Continue reading →

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Texas blog roundup for the week of July 17

Posted on July 20, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

The Texas Progressive Alliance will only be discussing Russian adoptions in this week’s roundup.

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Senate will hold bathroom hearing tomorrow

Posted on July 20, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

They just can’t wait. From the inbox: BREAKING: The Senate State Affairs Committee is pushing for a hearing on anti-transgender “bathroom bill” legislation this Friday at 9AM, Charles. Intel from the Capitol tells us that Sen. Lois Kolkhorst will introduce … Continue reading →

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More on the firefighters’ pay parity proposal

Posted on July 19, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s that full Chron story I mentioned yesterday: Houston firefighters delivered over 32,000 signatures to City Hall on Monday in support of asking voters in November to mandate parity in pay between firefighter and police officer ranks, a maneuver that … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 21 Comments

Jeffrey Payne

Posted on July 19, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

There’s at least one person who wants to run for Governor against Greg Abbott. Democrat Jeffrey Payne of Dallas says he’s going to try. “I love Dallas, and I love Texas.” Hours before Abbott’s announcement, Payne filed his paperwork at … Continue reading →

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Long read on the ongoing bathroom bill fight

Posted on July 19, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

From the Daily Beast. Covers a lot of ground, some of which is familiar but quite a bit of which is new or at least additive. A small sample: Two bills, HB 46 and HB 50, have so far been … Continue reading →

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Gallego-Hurd 3.0

Posted on July 19, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

It could happen. Less than a year after he lost his bid to reclaim his U.S. House seat, former U.S. Rep. Pete Gallego, D-Alpine, is seriously considering another run for Congress, citing shifting political winds in Texas’ 23rd congressional district … Continue reading →

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Firefighters turn in their petitions

Posted on July 18, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Good for them, but boy is this thing a train wreck. Houston firefighters delivered over 32,000 signatures to City Hall Monday in support of putting a ballot initiative on the November election mandating parity in pay between firefighter and police-officer … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Special session starts today

Posted on July 18, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

It was a good summer before now, but all of that comes to an end today. In the best case scenario, the sunset bills get passed and nothing else happens. I don’t know what will happen, but at least the … Continue reading →

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News flash: Businesses still hate bathroom bills

Posted on July 18, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

IBM hates them. As state lawmakers return to Austin for legislative overtime, tech giant IBM is stepping up its fight to defeat legislation it says would discriminate against children and harm its Texas recruiting efforts. In an internal email sent … Continue reading →

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Rockets for sale

Posted on July 18, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

The end of an era. Rockets owner Leslie Alexander, among the longest-tenured owners in North American professional sports, has put the franchise up for sale, team president Tad Brown announced Monday in a stunning, hastily-called news conference after Alexander reached … Continue reading →

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This special session is going to be so much fun

Posted on July 17, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

So much repressed hostility… Five days before the Texas Legislature is scheduled to open a special session, it is clear the relationship between the leaders of the House and Senate remains as strained as it was at the end of … Continue reading →

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Let a thousand hypothetical alternative Texas Congressional maps bloom

Posted on July 17, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Stephen Wolf of Daily Kos Elections takes a crack at drawing a remedial Congressional map for Texas. Just how effective is GOP gerrymandering in Texas, and what might a redrawn map look like in 2018 as a consequence of a … Continue reading →

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Who still misses the National League?

Posted on July 17, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron’s Brian Smith makes the case for acceptance of the Astros’ league change. Admit it: You don’t think about the old National League that much anymore. I devote a lot of my daily brain space to the Astros, and … Continue reading →

Posted in Baseball | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

Weekend link dump for July 16

Posted on July 16, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

What part of DO NOT TOUCH was unclear to you? Somehow, this is not satire. I got nothing. “This, of course, presents a problem for marketers: How do you sell food to a group of people that American culture has … Continue reading →

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Redistricting trial wraps up

Posted on July 16, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Now we wait. The state of Texas faced a healthy dose of judicial skepticism on Saturday as its lawyers laid out final arguments in a trial over whether lawmakers intentionally discriminated against minority voters in enacting current Texas House and … Continue reading →

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Coming home to run

Posted on July 16, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Another Washington Post story about 2018 Congressional candidates that spends a lot of time on a Texas race. Before Donald Trump was elected president, Laura Moser was a freelance writer delving into a project about alternative religions in America. In … Continue reading →

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The broader implications of the Pasadena voting rights lawsuit

Posted on July 16, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Buried in this Trib story about the ongoing saga of Pasadena’s voting rights lawsuit is this nugget about the state getting involved. The case could reverberate beyond Pasadena’s city limits. Legal experts contend that a decision by the 5th Circuit could guide other … Continue reading →

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Saturday video break: Secret

Posted on July 15, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

We’re all about the 80s here, and very few things say “the 80s” like Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark. It’s the hair, the synthesizers, the usage of black and white footage to tell a story about…well, I don’t know exactly, … Continue reading →

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Redistricting trial update: Invoking privilege

Posted on July 15, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Interesting choice. Texas’ defense of its electoral maps suffered a setback Friday when a state witness couldn’t defend lawmakers’ intentions for much of his testimony. […] Rep. Drew Darby, R-San Angelo, was the chairman of the House Select Committee on … Continue reading →

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HCC Board censures Chris Oliver

Posted on July 15, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

It’s the most they can do. The Houston Community College system’s board of trustees decided Thursday to reprimand a 21-year veteran of the elected board who has pleaded guilty to a federal bribery charge. The board’s eight other members decried … Continue reading →

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Your periodic reminder that non-citizens very rarely vote

Posted on July 15, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

I know you don’t need a reminder, being sophisticated followers of the news and all, but here it is anyway. Since Donald Trump won the Electoral College vote in November, our new commander-in-chief has consistently attacked the legitimacy of popular vote … Continue reading →

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