Category Archives: The making of the President

Julian 2020?

Posted on November 9, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

He has raised the possibility. Texas Democrat Julian Castro confirmed Sunday he is seriously considering running for president in 2020 and former state Sen. Wendy Davis left open the possibility she will take another run at running for governor in … Continue reading →

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Our electors can continue to be faithless

Posted on June 11, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

So much for that. The momentum seemed to be there. After Donald Trump easily defeated Hillary Clinton in Texas, two of the state’s 38 Electoral College members cast ballots for someone other than the Republican nominee — a less-than-flattering moment … Continue reading →

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The other “faithless elector” speaks up

Posted on January 12, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Meet Bill Greene, political science professor at South Texas College, and the other Texas member of the Electoral College who did not cast a vote for Dear Leader Trump. Greene, who has kept a low profile since the vote, explained … Continue reading →

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Two “faithless electors”

Posted on December 21, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

In the end, Donald Trump got thirty-six of Texas’ 38 electoral votes. All but two of Texas’ 38 electors voted Monday to officially put Donald Trump in the White House, with one elector casting a ballot for Ohio Gov. John … Continue reading →

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You can’t stop the faithless electors

Posted on December 12, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

So says Carolyn Shapiro, associate professor at IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law, where she is co-director of the Institute on the Supreme Court of the United States. Earlier this week, in a New York Times op-ed, Texas presidential elector Chris … Continue reading →

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No faithless electors!

Posted on December 9, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Dan Patrick has had enough of this nonsense. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said Wednesday that a Texas Republican elector’s decision not to vote for Donald Trump may lead state legislators to pass a law requiring electors to support the winner … Continue reading →

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Another non-Trump elector

Posted on December 7, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

I don’t know if this is becoming a thing, but it is interesting. I am a Republican presidential elector, one of the 538 people asked to choose officially the president of the United States. Since the election, people have asked … Continue reading →

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Dropping out of Electoral College

Posted on November 29, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

I have some respect for this. A Texas Republican elector is resigning over the election of Donald Trump, saying he cannot “in good conscience” vote for the incoming president. The elector, Art Sisneros of Dayton, detailed his decision in a … Continue reading →

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Sid and Donald, BFFs

Posted on November 2, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Birds of a feather. At a rally Sunday in Las Vegas, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump paused his usual meditation on the latest polls to direct his crowd’s attention to a “great guy on television today.” “His name was Sid … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: What’s the matter with Waxahachie?

Posted on October 31, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Donald Trump goes one for Texas in newspaper endorsements. While recent polls suggest Republican Donald Trump is just a few points ahead of Democrat Hillary Clinton among Texas voters, the presidential race is far more lopsided among the state’s leading … Continue reading →

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Republicans: Still worried about the Trump effect in Texas

Posted on October 30, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

The continuing story. Texas Republicans are slowly coming to grips with the unthinkable: Hillary Clinton has a shot at winning the nation’s most iconic red state. The odds are long, they say, in a state that hasn’t voted Democratic for … Continue reading →

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UT/Trib: Trump 45, Clinton 42

Posted on October 28, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Even the UT/Texas Trib poll shows a tight Presidential race in Texas. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump held a three-percentage-point lead over Democrat Hillary Clinton on the eve of early voting in Texas, according to the latest University of Texas/Texas … Continue reading →

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Donald who?

Posted on October 27, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Never heard of him. As national polls show Hillary Clinton widening her lead just two weeks before the presidential election, Texas Republicans mostly have gone silent about the candidate at the top of their ticket, presidential nominee Donald Trump. Lt. … Continue reading →

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CBS/YouGov: Trump 46, Clinton 43

Posted on October 25, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Texas is being tracked as a battleground state. I can’t even believe I just typed that. Hillary Clinton holds a three-point lead over Donald Trump in Florida, while in Texas – a state that has voted Republican by wide margins … Continue reading →

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The state of the polls

Posted on October 20, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

I’m just trying to get a handle on the numbers, with the idea of establishing some kind of guide for what to expect in the Presidential race in Texas. Bear with me. The RCP average for the two-way Trump/Clinton race … Continue reading →

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UH Hobby School: Trump 41, Clinton 38

Posted on October 19, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Damn! Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has one of his slimmest leads yet over Democratic rival Hillary Clinton in Texas, 41 percent to 38 percent, according to a new poll among registered voters. Trump’s support falls within the survey’s margin … Continue reading →

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Clinton campaign to run ads in Texas

Posted on October 18, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

It’s come to this. Hillary Clinton’ campaign is going on the air in solid-red Texas, a remarkable move by a Democratic presidential nominee as her Republican rival, Donald Trump, struggles across the country. Clinton is launching a one-week ad buy … Continue reading →

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WFAA/SurveyUSA: Trump 47, Clinton 43

Posted on October 15, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

The margin keeps narrowing. After perhaps the most damaging week of his campaign, Donald Trump’s lead in Texas has slipped to four percentage points – within the margin of error – according to a new poll released Thursday night. The … Continue reading →

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Interview with David Cay Johnston

Posted on October 14, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

This interview is a little different than the ones I usually present. Barbara Radnofsky got in touch with me a couple of weeks ago to say that Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author David Cay Johnston was going to be in … Continue reading →

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KTVT/Dixie Strategies: Trump 45, Clinton 38

Posted on October 10, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

This is post-debate but pre-“grab her by the pussy”. In a state where it is generally accepted that a GOP nominee is almost guaranteed a win in a presidential election, real estate mogul and presidential nominee Donald Trump has “under-performed” … Continue reading →

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“Grab her by the p—-“

Posted on October 8, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Donald Trump, ladies and gentlemen: Donald Trump bragged in vulgar terms about kissing, groping and trying to have sex with women during a 2005 conversation caught on a hot microphone, saying that “when you’re a star, they let you do … Continue reading →

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YouGov: Trump 50.1, Clinton 41.5

Posted on October 7, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

So says the YouGov Election Model for Texas. Here is how that works. The raw data for our analysis is a rolling sample of over 30,000 respondents to YouGov’s polling over the past two weeks, updated with around 3,000 new … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: Who stands with Trump?

Posted on October 7, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Texas Monthly wonders if any Texas newspaper will endorse Donald Trump. Between the three newspapers with the largest circulations in Texas—the Houston Chronicle, the Dallas Morning News, and the San Antonio Express-News—there have been exactly two endorsements of a Democratic presidential nominee in the … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: Let your conscience be your guide

Posted on September 24, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

That Ted Cruz sure does stay firm to his principles, doesn’t he? U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz endorsed Donald Trump on Friday after months of withholding his support from the Republican presidential nominee who defeated him in the primaries. “After many … Continue reading →

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Two more Clinton campaign offices opened in Texas

Posted on September 21, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

In Austin: The Democratic National Committee opened its Austin headquarters on Sunday. The move comes amid a surprisingly narrowing gap (given the longtime deep-red status of the state) between Clinton and her GOP rival, Donald Trump, for the presidency. The … Continue reading →

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So what’s going on with these polls of Texas?

Posted on September 18, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Republicans are feeling a little touchy about them. “I think the emerging picture is one that looks a little bit tighter in the presidential election than we’ve seen in recent elections in the state,” said Joshua Blank, whose Texas Lyceum … Continue reading →

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Lyceum: Trump 39, Clinton 32

Posted on September 16, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

From the Texas Lyceum, another single-digit poll result. If the U.S. presidential election were held today, ballot tests show a tighter race at the top of the ticket in deep red Texas than recent history would suggest, according to independent … Continue reading →

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ECPS: Trump 42, Clinton 36

Posted on September 15, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Another state poll result to add to the list. A new Emerson College poll in Texas, which has long been a Republican stronghold, shows Donald Trump leading Hillary Clinton by only 6 points (42% to 36%), with 10% of respondents … Continue reading →

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The ground game in Texas

Posted on September 9, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron looks at the Trump campaign in Texas, such as it is. Just over two months before the November general election, Bryant typifies the Trump campaign in Texas, a mostly invisible but active network of supporters that Republican Party … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: A Halley’s Coment event

Posted on September 8, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Every 75 years or so, the Dallas Morning News endorses a Democrat for President. This is one of those years. There is only one serious candidate on the presidential ballot in November. We recommend Hillary Clinton. We don’t come to … Continue reading →

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Washington Post: Clinton 46, Trump 45

Posted on September 7, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Whoa. With nine weeks until Election Day, Donald Trump is within striking distance in the Upper Midwest, but Hillary Clinton’s strength in many battlegrounds and some traditional Republican strongholds gives her a big electoral college advantage, according to a 50-state … Continue reading →

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Independent candidate lawsuit update

Posted on August 31, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

There’s already been a lawsuit filed by a wannabe independent candidate for President seeking to get on the ballot in Texas, but not by that guy you might have heard of. It’s still up in the air whether Evan McMullin, … Continue reading →

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We won’t have Robert Morrow to kick around any longer

Posted on August 28, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Valar morghulis, y’all. The brief, zany tenure of Travis County GOP Chairman Robert Morrow came to an end Friday, as party officials made clear the conspiracy theorist abandoned his post by running for president and he accepted their conclusion without … Continue reading →

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It’s not crazy to think that a downballot Democrat could win statewide this year

Posted on August 22, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

I’ll get to that headline in a minute. I’ve got some reading to sort through first. We’ll start with the most pessimistic, or perhaps the least blue-sky, story of how things are likely to go. Arizona. Georgia. Utah. Indiana. Is … Continue reading →

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