Author Archives: Charles Kuffner

Interview with Fair for Houston, which is now Yes on Prop B

Posted on October 3, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I trust you are familiar by now with Fair for Houston, for which there was a successful petition drive to put an item on the Houston ballot this November. That item, which will be City Proposition B, aims to reform … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2023 | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

And now we have a hue and cry about Whitmire’s campaign treasury

Posted on October 3, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I’m surprised it took this long, to be honest. U.S. Rep Sheila Jackson Lee and former Metro Chair Gilbert Garcia have requested the city attorney to investigate alleged campaign contribution limit violations by State Sen. John Whitmire, hinting at a … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2023 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

HISD update threefer

Posted on October 3, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I can’t keep up with all of the HISD stories, so I’m going to just highlight a couple of recent ones. Rumors of closure spark third rally at HISD campus as parents consider options. The family joined a Wednesday afternoon … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on HISD update threefer

Interview with Richard Cantu

Posted on October 2, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I have one late-breaking interview for At Large #3 before I bring you some interviews for other items in this election. Richard Cantu is another familiar name, having been elected to serve on the HCDE Board of Trustees in 2018. … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2023 | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

A Loving County update

Posted on October 2, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

The country’s smallest county has the biggest election contest lawsuits. Most people can tell you where they live. But here in the least-populated county in the United States, “Where is your home?” can be a trick question laced with dark … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2022, Legal matters, The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Metro moves forward with its bike plan

Posted on October 2, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Really interested to see what this looks like. Metro’s board of directors voted Thursday to negotiate a contract with a Canadian company to launch Houston’s second bike-share program, but left unclear how – or whether – the two bicycle rental … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Metro moves forward with its bike plan

Weekend link dump for October 1

Posted on October 1, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

“[Clarence] Thomas has attended at least two Koch donor summits, putting him in the extraordinary position of having helped a political network that has brought multiple cases before the Supreme Court.” “Here’s a rule of thumb: If you have to … Continue reading →

Posted in Blog stuff | Tagged | 1 Comment

The young activists of today

Posted on October 1, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Keep track of these names, or better yet get to know them. Olivia Julianna typed “#johnnyboywhitmire” into TikTok’s search bar. To her delight, her five videos critiquing Texas state senator and Houston mayoral hopeful John Whitmire had garnered a combined … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2023 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on The young activists of today

From the “Idiots file dumb lawsuit” department

Posted on October 1, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I hesitate to give this any attention, but I feel it needs to be noted. Five people filed a lawsuit with Harris County District Court on Friday to remove Judge Lina Hidalgo from office, days before she is scheduled to … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

Endorsement watch: For Letitia Plummer

Posted on October 1, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I guess we’re rolling these out one at a time, and in no particular order. When some politicians shift their positions on high-profile issues, they get tagged with the dreaded “flip-flopper” label. So when At-Large Position 4 Councilmember Letitia Plummer … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2023 | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Endorsement watch: For Letitia Plummer

SCOTx rules whistleblowers’ lawsuit can proceed

Posted on September 30, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Good. The Texas Supreme Court has sided with former top deputies of Attorney General Ken Paxton and cleared the way for their whistleblower lawsuit to move forward. The all-Republican Supreme Court on Friday rejected Paxton’s request to dismiss the lawsuit … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

New criminal courts coming online

Posted on September 30, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Good. Three new felony courts with a $9.2 million budget are expected to open next week, in what officials say is the final stretch in tackling a backlog of criminal cases that have piled up over the past six years. … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment, Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Sarah Stogner to run for RRC again

Posted on September 30, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

But not as a Republican. This could be interesting. Sarah Stogner announced Saturday at The Texas Tribune Festival that she is mounting her second campaign for the Texas Railroad Commission — this time, leaving the Republican Party to run as … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2024 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Sarah Stogner to run for RRC again

Interview with CM Mary Nan Huffman

Posted on September 29, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I had not planned to do an interview for District G this cycle – I only have so much time and capacity, and as of the July reporting deadline, incumbent CM Mary Nan Huffman did not have an opponent. And … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2023 | Tagged , , , , , | 8 Comments

Cruise cars are out on our streets

Posted on September 29, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

From Axios. Cruise is testing autonomous vehicles without safety drivers in Houston ahead of a planned expansion into commercial nighttime service by the end of the year. Driving the news: A spokesperson for the autonomous vehicle company confirmed to Axios … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Endorsement watch: For the hospital bond

Posted on September 29, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Good call. It’s unacceptable for a public hospital whose mission is to save lives to instead endanger them due to aging infrastructure that’s been neglected for too long. The pipe break was the second of three in 2020. Just weeks … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2023 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Dispatches from Dallas, September 29 edition

Posted on September 29, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

This is a weekly feature produced by my friend Ginger. Let us know what you think. This week, in news from Dallas-Fort Worth, the mayor of Dallas has jumped parties, quelle surprise. Also, some local follow-up on the Paxton impeachment, … Continue reading →

Posted in Blog stuff | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Dispatches from Dallas, September 29 edition

Interview with James Joseph

Posted on September 28, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

One more interview in At Large #3, then I’ll have a bonus interview for you tomorrow. Today we speak with James Joseph, a native Houstonian, Fifth Ward resident, and newly minted PhD. A public relations consultant with a long background … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2023 | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Interview with James Joseph

Two book ban updates

Posted on September 28, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Bad news. A state law banning “sexually explicit” books from Texas schools will now go into effect, after an appeals court temporarily blocked a lower court ruling. The three-judge panel did not offer any reasoning. Their decision is temporary until … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Two book ban updates

City Council approves B-Cycle lifeline

Posted on September 28, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I approve of this as a stopgap, but a real plan needs to be in place. Houston’s floundering bike sharing system has a little more life, after city officials approved $500,000 to keep the system operational, at least until a … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics, Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on City Council approves B-Cycle lifeline

Texas blog roundup for the week of September 25

Posted on September 28, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

The Texas Progressive Alliance is rooting for as much Republican division post-impeachment as possible as it brings you this week’s roundup.

Posted in Blog stuff | Tagged , | Comments Off on Texas blog roundup for the week of September 25

Interview with Casey Curry

Posted on September 27, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Moving on in At Large #3, we come to another candidate with an interesting former job, longtime TV meteorologist Casey Curry. After a decade of weather reporting on the local news, Curry is now working in philanthropy and communications. She … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2023 | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

Drag ban officially ruled unconstitutional

Posted on September 27, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Good. Texas cannot enforce a new law that restricts some public drag shows, a federal judge said Tuesday in declaring the legislation unconstitutional. U.S. District Judge David Hittner found Senate Bill 12 “impermissibly infringes on the First Amendment and chills … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Lots of people will not get that latest COVID shot

Posted on September 27, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Sadly not a big surprise. We could move this at the margins, but not as long as any part of government is in Republican control. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends new covid-19 booster vaccines for all — … Continue reading →

Posted in National news, Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Interview with Twila Carter

Posted on September 26, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Continuing on with At Large #3, today we meet Twila Carter, who among other things has had one of the best jobs of anyone I’ve interviewed: For over a decade, she served as Senior Vice President of Community Relations of … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2023 | Tagged , , , , , | 5 Comments

The whistleblowers say they aren’t going away

Posted on September 26, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Glad to hear it. In a Monday filing to the Texas Supreme Court, the whistleblowers [Blake Brickman, David Maxwell, Mark Penley and Ryan Vassar] argued that Paxton has failed to uphold key parts of the settlement agreement, including the $3.3 … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters, Scandalized! | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Endorsement watch: Picking someone in District E

Posted on September 26, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron makes their first candidate endorsement for November 2023. Houston City Council races are officially nonpartisan, but since just about everything seems partisan these days, let’s go ahead and say it: District E, the bizarrely shaped district that conjoins … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2023 | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Endorsement watch: Picking someone in District E

Interview with Donnell Cooper

Posted on September 25, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

The last open At Large seat is At Large #3, which also has the biggest field of nine candidates. I have interviews with four of them this week, beginning with Donnell Cooper. Cooper is a Houston Community College Acres Homes … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2023 | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Interview with Donnell Cooper

Harris County libraries are now “book sanctuaries”

Posted on September 25, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

It’s great that they’re doing this, and terrible that they have to. As book bans and challenges occur across the state and nation, Harris County libraries have joined a movement dedicated to preserving people’s right to decide for themselves what … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Harris County libraries are now “book sanctuaries”

Metro introduces its bike share program

Posted on September 25, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Sounds pretty good, actually. The Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County is expected to contract with a Canadian operator that will provide up to 700 e-bikes and 100 charging stations as the agency embarks on the creation of its own … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Weekend link dump for September 24

Posted on September 24, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

“Before Alex Rodriguez flipped the switch on his defiant, longtime drug-cheat image … before the post-career entrepreneurial whirl and frolic across the celebrity landscape with superstar then-fiancée Jennifer Lopez … before the TV gigs with Fox Sports and ESPN and … Continue reading →

Posted in Blog stuff | Tagged | 3 Comments

The Chron talks to some Mayoral candidates

Posted on September 24, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

You can find a bunch of Mayoral Q&As with the Chron editorial board here on this Mayoral Candidate Questions page. All of them also include a brief video of the chat, with the following Mayoral candidates so far: John Whitmire … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2023 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on The Chron talks to some Mayoral candidates

Katy ISD’s book banning

Posted on September 24, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

What are these people doing? Katy Independent School District has remained silent on the reasons 14 additional books were removed from shelves and how the district’s book review policy is being implemented, despite a public pledge of transparency on book … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

“Mars” mission update

Posted on September 24, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Keep these coming, please and thank you. Ultra runner Kelly Haston is not going stir-crazy inside her 1,700-square-foot Martian habitat, and that’s a pleasant surprise. “It is comfortable and spacious, and I do not yet miss being outside,” Haston said. … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments