Category Archives: Show Business for Ugly People

John Cornyn sounds like a Democrat

Posted on August 8, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

To be more precise, he’s saying something many Democrats around here have been saying for a long time. Days before the president visits Austin and Dallas for Democratic fundraisers, Cornyn lashed out at Obama for focusing his Texas visit on … Continue reading →

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TFN poll on public school curriculum

Posted on July 17, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

This is generally good news. Eight of 10 Texans want high schools to teach contraception, including the use of condoms and abstinence, according to a statewide opinion poll that also shows high support for letting teachers and scholars write public … Continue reading →

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Let’s call it what it is

Posted on July 9, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I do not understand the resistance to renaming the Texas Railroad Commission to reflect what it actually does. The Railroad Commission is the state’s chief regulator of oil and gas production. The agency no longer deals with railroads yet still … Continue reading →

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TPJ files ethics complaint against Perry

Posted on June 26, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

It’s a dirty job, but someone’s got to do it. Texans for Public Justice, a nonprofit watchdog group, filed a complaint [Wednesday] urging the Texas Ethics Commission to require Gov. Rick Perry to provide detailed reports of campaign spending on … Continue reading →

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Texas sues the EPA

Posted on June 17, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I suppose this was inevitable. Texas filed a federal court challenge Monday to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s decision to reject part of the state’s air-quality program. […] State Attorney General Greg Abbott’s office — in a statement accompanying the … Continue reading →

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Man the barricades!

Posted on June 13, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Wayne Slater, on the just-ended state Republican convention in Dallas: For a party in power, there seem to be a lot of martyrs in the Texas GOP. Rush Limbaugh says Democrats are the party of victims. But it was the … Continue reading →

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The alternate Congressional universe

Posted on June 7, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Since I brought up redistricting yesterday, here’s an interesting thought experiment for you: What might the state’s Congressional delegation look like today if the 2003 DeLay-orchestrated re-redistricting had never happened? I’ll leave it to you to peruse the maps and … Continue reading →

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One more thing about polling

Posted on June 4, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

When I wrote about the Rasmussen problem, I said that they were the only outfit polling on a lot of “issue” questions. That’s not totally true, though nobody does nearly as much of that as Rasmussen does. The UT/Trib poll … Continue reading →

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The Rasmussen problem

Posted on June 3, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Jonathan Chait discusses the “Rasmussen problem”, which basically boils down to the fact that Rasmussen’s polls have become rather extreme outliers, and they all seem to serve a narrative about the country taking a sharp pro-conservative, anti-Obama turn. As Nate … Continue reading →

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So much for Abbott’s big “voter fraud” case

Posted on May 28, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Back in 2005, Attorney General Greg Abbott announced with a flourish a rash of arrests in South Texas on various counts of voter fraud. These arrests, some of which were announced while the Lege was debating a voter ID bill, … Continue reading →

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Worker’s Comp goes before the Sunset Commission

Posted on May 27, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The worker’s comp battle has moved to the Sunset Advisory Committee, with testimony being given about how the Division of Workers’ Compensation does its business. Elise Hu continues her reporting on the war of words between several former employees of … Continue reading →

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RV voters

Posted on May 26, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Really interesting story about a group of RV owners who “live” in a park in Polk County and vote there, but are seldom actually physically present. On the one hand, Escapees Inc. is a business catering to recreational vehicle enthusiasts. … Continue reading →

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White wants to “undo some of the damage” the SBOE has done to social studies

Posted on May 25, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Lord knows, there’s a lot of it to undo. Bill White wants to start with changing the Chair. Some Texans have called for a limited review to address some of the more controversial standards that will influence new history, government, … Continue reading →

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The Worker’s Comp Commissioner fires back

Posted on May 24, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

How can you tell when whistleblowers are having an effect? When the entitiy they blew the whistle on attacks them. As the Division of Workers’ Compensation heads into a public hearing at the Sunset Advisory Commission next week, Commissioner Rod … Continue reading →

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The clown show finally calls it a wrap

Posted on May 22, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I don’t know about you, but I’m ready for some other state to be the national laughingstock again. The Court of Criminal Appeals gives it a good run for its money, but you just can’t out-embarrass the SBOE, and every … Continue reading →

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More on worker’s comp fraud

Posted on May 21, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Elise Hu has a followup to her story from last week about worker’s comp fraud and the lack of investigation of same. It seems she attracted the attention of the Lege. “My primary concern is patients getting improper treatment — … Continue reading →

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Back to the clown show

Posted on May 20, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

So here’s a bunch of coverage from yesterday’s SBOE hearings: from the Chron, the DMN, the Statesman, the Trib, TFN, and BOR. Very short summary: Many people testified. Some said crazy things. Others begged the SBOE to not enshrine crazy … Continue reading →

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AFL-CIO offers Perry cheaper housing

Posted on May 19, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

There’s some first-class snark in this press release I got from the Texas AFL-CIO today. The speaker is Texas AFL-CIO President Becky Moeller. In light of the state’s historically huge budget shortfall and new cuts that will place hundreds if … Continue reading →

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And the clown show gets underway again

Posted on May 19, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s your TFN liveblogging of today’s SBOE social studies hearings. Brian Thevenot of The Trib is also there, and he reports that an interesting character has asked the Board to slow down. Former U.S. Secretary of Education and Houston Superintendent … Continue reading →

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Briefly noted

Posted on May 18, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Some interesting things from today that I wanted to note… There are plenty of people who want to be on the Appropriations Committee, so putting some who doesn’t want to be there, like State Rep. Joe Driver of Dallas, doesn’t … Continue reading →

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Perry’s rental crib

Posted on May 18, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

This AP story about the Governor’s rented mansion is certainly entertaining. With the state facing a budget shortfall of at least $11 billion, Texas Gov. Rick Perry has spent almost $600,000 in public money during the past two years to … Continue reading →

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New frontiers in open meeting laws

Posted on May 17, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

There’s an awful lot here to think about. The Texas Legislature may become the first in the nation to tackle whether tweeting and texting is being used to circumvent open meetings laws and whether the private devices of public officials … Continue reading →

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“We went out and won some elections”

Posted on May 17, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I know people who read this blog understand the importance of voting in every election, but I think it’s good to be reminded from time to time. So with that, this Statesman article about the current state of the SBOE … Continue reading →

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White tells the SBOE to wait till next year

Posted on May 16, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

As we know, the SBOE is set to take a final vote on their proposed revisions to the social studies textbook standards. They’ve received a lot of mostly negative feedback so far, but have said they’re still considering specific suggestions. … Continue reading →

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Blowing the whistle on worker’s comp fraud

Posted on May 14, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Really good article in the Trib about worker’s compensation fraud and why so little of it is being actively investigated these days. This is the sort of thing that really ought to get traction, as it has something for all … Continue reading →

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They get letters

Posted on May 12, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Many people have told the SBOE what they can do with their proposed textbook standards for social studies. The State Board of Education had received more than 20,000 public comments as of last week on the proposed revision of social … Continue reading →

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How about filling all of the court vacancies?

Posted on May 11, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I don’t really have an opinion about the newest Supreme Court nominee, Elena Kagan. There are people I respect who think she’s a good choice, and people I respect who wanted someone else, generally Diane Wood, to be the nominee … Continue reading →

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We whine bigger than other states, too

Posted on May 5, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Someone please call a waaaaaahmbulance. Since January, besides losing big federal contracts, Texas’ pollution permit process has been rejected for failing to meet Clean Air Act requirements; the state is facing fines for chronically missing food stamp benefit deadlines, and … Continue reading →

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The historians have their say

Posted on April 30, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The various legislative groups held their SBOE hearings on Wednesday. In pointing out the many ways in which that unesteemed body screwed the pooch on social studies, they joined with others in calling for a delay in adopting the new … Continue reading →

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The big picture for health care reform in Texas

Posted on April 29, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The number you need to know is four point two million. Texas’ uninsured population will drop from 6.5 million this year to 2.3 million once the federal health care overhaul is fully implemented, and about a third of the remaining … Continue reading →

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Where’s Gail?

Posted on April 28, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

This morning at 9 AM in Austin, a hearing will be held by various legislative groups including the Mexican American Legislative Caucus, the Legislative Study Group, the House Black Caucus, and Senate Hispanic Caucus, to discuss the recent changes to … Continue reading →

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Meet Steve Brown

Posted on April 24, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Meet Steve Brown, the new Chair of the Fort Bend Democratic Party. Steve Brown, a 35-year-old with a résumé of political experience, has big plans for the moribund Democratic Party in Fort Bend, and his confidence in the party’s ability … Continue reading →

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Disclose, please

Posted on April 22, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

This is a step in the right direction, but it’s not enough by itself. The U.S. Supreme Court opened the door for corporations to pour money into influencing Texas elections, but the state ethics commission today is taking up a … Continue reading →

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Historians want SBOE to hold it right there

Posted on April 17, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

A group of historians have called on the SBOE to review and rethink its recent changes to the social studies curriculum. Historians are decrying the social studies curriculum standards crafted by the State Board of Education that they say misrepresent … Continue reading →

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