Category Archives: Show Business for Ugly People

Defining tyranny down

Posted on April 16, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

These people, I swear. A group of conservatives, including an influential Texas activist, penned an open letter to President Donald Trump this week, asking him to restart the economy and “let Americans manage their own risks,” while decrying expanded government … Continue reading →

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The Republican death wish

Posted on March 26, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

It would be one thing if they were just putting their own lives at risk, but that’s not how viruses work. After Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins became the first to announce a mandatory stay-at-home rule, conservative groups including Empower … Continue reading →

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Update on the “Judicial Selection Committee”

Posted on January 15, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Yes, this is a thing. All but one member of the new Texas Commission on Judicial Selection indicated at the group’s first meeting Thursday that they believe partisanship is problematic in the state’s method of selecting judges. Only Sen. Joan … Continue reading →

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That’s a weird definition of “thriving”

Posted on December 29, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

I have three things to say about this. Surrounded by fellow Libertarians during a 2018 election night watch party at a rented Airbnb in Fort Worth, Eric Espinoza, who was running for state Rep. Jonathan Stickland’s seat, saw a Facebook … Continue reading →

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Maybe try updating your pop culture references?

Posted on December 21, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Allow me to say something very obvious but often overlooked about this. Gov. Greg Abbott revived a debate Saturday about a controversial line from a decades-old Pace Picante ad: “Get a rope.” Abbott tweeted the reference after a follower jokingly … Continue reading →

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Let this finally be the end of the Heidi Group’s grift

Posted on November 11, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

And you should all be thoroughly appalled at the waste, fraud, and abuse committed in the name of screwing Planned Parenthood. An anti-abortion group that came under fire for failing to provide services to thousands of Texas women must repay … Continue reading →

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On Abbott, Austin, and homelessness

Posted on October 12, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

What Chris Hooks says. On Wednesday, the governor plunged headfirst into a political controversy that has dominated discussion in the city since June. Back then, the city council partially neutered several ordinances that essentially made being homeless in the city … Continue reading →

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Everybody hates Dan

Posted on September 21, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

You just hate to see it. Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick is doubling down on his call for closing loopholes in gun sales background checks despite withering criticism from other Republicans, conservative groups that have ardently supported him, and the … Continue reading →

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Dan Patrick and Michael Quinn Sullivan fighting is the sweetest sound you will ever hear

Posted on September 18, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Inject this directly into my veins. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and Michael Quinn Sullivan, a hardline conservative activist long aligned with the head of the Texas Senate, publicly accused each other of “destroying” the Republican Party on Tuesday — seeming … Continue reading →

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Voting centers everywhere

Posted on September 15, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

In Dallas: Starting in November, problems like Mr. Voter’s, at least in Dallas County, will be a thing of the past. Tuesday afternoon, the Texas Secretary of State’s Office officially gave the county permission to participate in the countywide voting … Continue reading →

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Boosting student turnout at UT

Posted on September 4, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Cool story. Between 2013 and 2016, Texas eliminated more than 400 polling locations, the largest drop in any state during that time. In 2013, after years of litigation, it implemented a strict voter ID law. The law, which lists seven … Continue reading →

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“Mistakes were made”

Posted on August 31, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Oops. Gov. Greg Abbott said Thursday that “mistakes were made” in his fundraising letter that used alarmist language in calling to “DEFEND” the Texas border and was dated one day before a deadly shooting that targeted Hispanics in El Paso. … Continue reading →

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Our first look at how Engage Texas will operate

Posted on August 29, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Interesting move. As people filed in and out of the massive driver license office in Southwest Houston on Tuesday morning, two workers at a tent affiliated with a conservative advocacy group asked if the passersby would sign a petition or … Continue reading →

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We have a new SOS

Posted on August 21, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Yippie. After losing his last chief election officer over a botched review of the state’s voter rolls, Gov. Greg Abbott on Monday appointed a new secretary of state: Ruth Ruggero Hughs. Ruggero Hughs is moving from the Texas Workforce Commission, … Continue reading →

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The main concern about voting centers

Posted on August 3, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

This Trib story, which is about the implementation of voting centers in multiple counties across Texas for the 2020 election, delves into one of the main concern about them: Voting centers can change from one election to the next, which … Continue reading →

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No SOS

Posted on July 31, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Just in case you were wondering. Just as they do every year, hundreds of county officials from all over Texas are packing a hotel ballroom in Austin this week for three days of all things elections. On the agenda are … Continue reading →

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It’s up to cities to make the Census work

Posted on July 23, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

The Lege shirked its duty, so this is what’s left. Across the country, states are spending millions on making sure they get a better headcount of their residents. For example, California officials announced they are investing as much as $154 … Continue reading →

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There’s no reason to trust the Republican study to “reform” the judicial election process

Posted on July 16, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Oh, hell no. After a punishing election for Republican judges, state leaders are set to take a long look at Texas’ often-criticized judicial selection system — a partisan election structure that Texas Supreme Court Chief Justice Nathan Hecht has described … Continue reading →

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It’s not an apology that’s needed

Posted on June 10, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

This may make for good rhetoric, but it’s not what the goal should be. Congressmen Joaquin Castro and Lloyd Doggett on Friday demanded Gov. Greg Abbott apologize to Texas voters for attempting to purge as many as 95,000 people from … Continue reading →

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Another dive into the Heidi Group grift

Posted on June 10, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

The Observer is on it this time, and as before if you’re not mad by the time you’ve finished reading you’re doing it wrong. The state of Texas has poured hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars into [Carol] Everett’s clinic, … Continue reading →

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It was Abbott all along

Posted on June 5, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Who was behind that botched voter purge that caused now-former Secretary of State David Whitley to not get confirmed by the Senate? Greg Abbott, that’s who. Two top officials at the Department of Public Safety named Gov. Greg Abbott’s office … Continue reading →

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Whitley lands on his feet

Posted on June 1, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Were you surprised? Former acting Secretary of State David Whitley, who resigned Monday after failing to be confirmed by senators following his botched oversight of an investigation that questioned the citizenship of nearly 100,000 voters in Texas, has landed back … Continue reading →

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Will the next SOS be any better than David Whitley?

Posted on May 30, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Anything is possible, but don’t count on it. Voting rights advocates are celebrating Whitley’s forced departure, but said they have no illusions that his successor will be any more committed to upholding voting rights for all Texans. “There is certainly … Continue reading →

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Adios, David Whitley

Posted on May 28, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Sine die and see ya. The ill-fated tenure of Texas Secretary of State David Whitley has come to an end. The Texas Senate gaveled out Monday without confirming the state’s top election official, who served for less than half a … Continue reading →

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Paxton again refuses to comply with House Oversight Committee

Posted on May 18, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

It’s like he has no interest in oversight, or something. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s office this week again denied a request for a records by a U.S. House panel seeking to investigate the state’s botched voter purge program. […] … Continue reading →

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Why would any Dem Senator change their mind on Whitley?

Posted on April 30, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

I can’t think of a good answer to that, but the man himself is going to try. Acting Secretary of State David Whitley, whose confirmation has been stalled in the Texas Senate after a controversial advisory from his office questioned … Continue reading →

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A closer look at how Texas strongly discourages voting

Posted on April 28, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Well, it strongly discourages some people from voting. Julieta Garibay, a native of Mexico City, was brought to Texas by her mother when she was 12. For 26 years, she was told to assimilate and stay quiet so people wouldn’t … Continue reading →

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Texas versus AirBnB update

Posted on April 20, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

From last week: The Texas Comptroller’s office said Tuesday it’s reviewing the inclusion of Airbnb on a list of companies that boycott Israel and are banned from doing business with the state after the company announced a change to its … Continue reading →

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Congressional Republicans seek to halt SOS voter purge inquiry

Posted on April 16, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

I know, I’m as shocked as you are. Republicans are challenging the authority of a U.S. House panel to investigate the Texas effort to purge thousands of suspected non-citizens from voter rolls, contending in letters Monday that a recent request … Continue reading →

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Paxton gives the middle finger to House Oversight Committee

Posted on April 12, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

I’m sure you’re as shocked as I am. Facing an investigation over the state’s botched efforts to screen its voter rolls for noncitizens, the Texas Attorney General’s Office is declining congressional leaders’ request for information about the review. In a … Continue reading →

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Failing upward

Posted on April 8, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Must be nice. The day after David Whitley took office as Texas secretary of state on Dec. 17, he received a 49 percent pay raise thanks to his friend and political patron, Gov. Greg Abbott. In a Dec. 18 letter to the Legislative … Continue reading →

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Congress to investigate bogus SOS advisory

Posted on March 29, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Elections do have consequences. The U.S. House’s main investigative committee has opened an inquiry into the Texas secretary of state’s review of the voter rolls for supposed noncitizens. In letters sent to top Texas officials on Thursday, U.S. Reps. Elijah … Continue reading →

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TCRP report on Texas election administration problems

Posted on March 28, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Today the Texas Civil Rights Project (“TCRP”) released a report—utilizing data from the largest non-partisan Election Protection effort in the state, provisional ballot data, as well as publicly available information—to analyze the the long-standing failures in Texas … Continue reading →

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Holder talks gerrymandering

Posted on March 28, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

The former AG was in town as part of his national activism on the topic. Texas is “ground zero” in a national effort launching Saturday to ensure that every American’s vote counts in upcoming elections, former U.S. Attorney General Eric … Continue reading →

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