Monthly Archives: September 2004

More winners

Posted on September 30, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

Major congrats to the Burnt Orange Report for being named the Best Local Political Blog by AusChron readers. A well-deserved award, guys. Way to go! And while I’m in congratulatory mode, kudos as well to ArchPundit for being named Best … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Blog stuff | 2 Comments

Blinking…why did it have to be blinking?

Posted on September 30, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

So as a 2004 Houston Press Best Of winner, I get to include a little icon on my blog that proclaims my victory for all to see. There’s a problem, though – the GIF they’ve provided (this is the one … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Blog stuff | 3 Comments

Looking ahead

Posted on September 30, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

Greg notes two entries by George Strong in which he indicates that Ken Bentsen will throw his hat in the ring for the Senate race in 2006, and in which the DSCC comes to town on behalf of already-all-but-declared candidate … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2006 | 5 Comments

Aguirre’s arbitration ends

Posted on September 30, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

Fired HPD Captain Mark Aguirre’s arbitration hearing has ended with a little media bashing. Fired Houston police Capt. Mark Aguirre’s civil service hearing ended Wednesday with testimony from Executive Assistant Police Chief Chuck McClelland, who called media footage of the … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in K-Mart Kiddie Roundup | Comments Off on Aguirre’s arbitration ends

It now costs more to be a bad driver in Texas

Posted on September 30, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

I’ve snarked about the many new fees and surcharges imposed by the Lege last year while they crowed about “no new taxes”, but this is one new surcharge I fully support. The hefty surcharges — totaling $67 million since they … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | 7 Comments

AusChron all over TRMPAC

Posted on September 30, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

Timing is everything when you’re a weekly publication and a big story breaks. The TRMPAC indictments came down last week too close to the Austin Chronicle’s publication date for them to have anything about it, but they made up for … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | 1 Comment

Read my lips: No new tax cuts!

Posted on September 29, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

No new symbolic Harris County property tax cuts, anyway. Harris Commissioners Court voted Tuesday to keep the county tax rate the same this year after rejecting County Judge Robert Eckels’ proposal to lower it a quarter-cent. Eckels and county Tax … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | 4 Comments

Mister Youppi Goes to Washington

Posted on September 29, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

So it finally happened – Les Expos have a new home. Baseball returned to the nation’s capital for the first time in 33 years Wednesday, with an announcement from Major League Baseball that the Montreal Expos will move to Washington … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Baseball | 3 Comments

Registrations up in San Antonio

Posted on September 29, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

We know (via Byron) that voter registrations are up sharply in Travis County. Now, via Lasso, we see that it’s way up in Bexar County, too. More than 62,000 Bexar County residents have registered to vote since January, boosting the … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2004 | 6 Comments

DeLay fundraises – for himself

Posted on September 29, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

Getting worried, Tom? You should be. U.S. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay plans to raise money for his re-election race Monday, just a few blocks from the courthouse where three associates were indicted last week on charges of illegally using … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2004 | 3 Comments

If wishes were horses

Posted on September 29, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

Do you ever wonder if the reporters who cover the state Capitol keep stories like these written and ready to go at all times so that they can file them easily whenever the Governor makes his next “we can have … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | 1 Comment

Aguirre in arbitration

Posted on September 29, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

Former HPD Captain Mark Aguirre, fired for his role in the K-Mart Kiddie Roundup fiasco of 2002, is in arbitration and seeking to be reinstated. During emotional and sometimes angry testimony Tuesday, former Houston Police Department Capt. Mark Aguirre claimed … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in K-Mart Kiddie Roundup | 3 Comments

Behind the snark: The Julia Interview

Posted on September 29, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

Julia, one of my daily faves, gets interviewed by The Goddess on the What She Said blog. What She Said is a huge compendium of female political bloggers and a good place to look the next time you find yourself … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Blog stuff | 2 Comments

Abramoff gets sleazier

Posted on September 29, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

Jack Abramoff, the disgraced DeLay crony currently under investigation for swindling a tribal casino in Texas, just keeps getting more disgraceful. The Capital Athletic Foundation’s Web site portrays youths at play: shaking hands over a tennis net, learning how to … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | Comments Off on Abramoff gets sleazier

Procrastination pays

Posted on September 28, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

Surely by now you’ve heard that the Lone Star Iconoclast, Crawford, TX’s hometown newspaper, has endorsed John Kerry. I was going to do a longish post on this, tying together some of the other iconoclastic things this paper has done, … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in The making of the President | 3 Comments

Poor Tom

Posted on September 28, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

I see via Taking on Tom DeLay that our poor misunderstood Majority Leader is not such a hot draw on the campaign trail. When Billy Tauzin III announced this month that top Republicans would “campaign on his behalf” for Louisiana’s … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | 1 Comment

On campaign cash

Posted on September 28, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

Campaigns for People is running an ad decrying the influence of money on political campaigns. A grass-roots low-budget effort aimed at reforming how Texas campaigns are financed has begun circulating this week on the Internet and television in four Texas … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | 1 Comment

Kopper speaks

Posted on September 28, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

The prosecution put on its star witness in the Enron Nigerian Barge case yesterday as Michael Kopper testified. Kopper, 39, calmly and thoughtfully explained that in 1997 he and ex-Chief Financial Officer Andrew Fastow started to divert funds to themselves, … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Enronarama | 1 Comment

“The Hammer”

Posted on September 28, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

New to my bookshelf – The Hammer, by Lou Dubose (that would be longtime Texas Observer editor Lou Dubose) and Jan Reid. Sean-Paul of The Agonist was kind enough to not only get me a copy of this book, but … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Books | Comments Off on “The Hammer”

Care to CHIP in?

Posted on September 28, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

Various Texas campaigns are focusing on the cuts in CHIP. U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards of Waco, a Democrat trying to win re-election in a Republican-majority district, charged his challenger the other day with depriving children of health insurance and shorting … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2004 | 7 Comments

Texas Tuesdays: Martin Frost

Posted on September 28, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

Yes, it’s time for another edition of Texas Tuesdays, this time featuring special guest star Martin Frost. Byron has a state of the race overview and a chat with the Frost campaign that you should check out. We’re about to … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Texas Tuesdays | Comments Off on Texas Tuesdays: Martin Frost

Busy weekend

Posted on September 27, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

If you’re in the Houston area and are looking for some good political activities this weekend, there’s a veritable cornucopia from which to choose. There are five Kos Dozen parties on Friday and Saturday nights, with all of the Saturday … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2004 | Comments Off on Busy weekend

New voters

Posted on September 27, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

You’ve probably seen this NYT artlce about new voter registrations in swing states like Ohio and Florida, but in case you haven’t, you should read it. MyDD has a good discussion of it as well. Of course, as noted on … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2004 | Comments Off on New voters

The sweet smell of desperation (again)

Posted on September 27, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

Remember that strong stench of desperation that emanated from the Orlando Sanchez campaign last year when he tried to link Bill White to Hezbollah? I’m getting a whiff of the same stuff from Louie Gohmert in CD01 now. Republican Louie … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2004 | 1 Comment

On Kenny Boy’s public relations strategy

Posted on September 27, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron discusses Kenny Boy’s PR offensive. Prosecutors have started using Ken Lay’s public statements against him in legal filings, leading some experts to suggest the former Enron chairman keep quiet while others insist he should just keep on talking. … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Enronarama | 1 Comment

How bad is it?

Posted on September 27, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

How bad are things for the Illinois Republican Party these days? According to this Chicago Tribune poll, they’re really really really bad. Together, the surveys paint a portrait of a Republican Party so divided that it may have trouble fielding … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2004 | 2 Comments

More on the Regional Transportation Plan

Posted on September 27, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

This op-ed on the Regional Transportation Project (RTP – see here for more) is a month old but worth reading. Guaranteed is that not one, but several roadways near your home and business are on the construction timetable. All the … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | 2 Comments

Murphy benched

Posted on September 26, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

Hall of Fame basketball player Calvin Murphy, currently under indictment on several charges of sexual assault against five of his children, will not be part of the Houston Rockets broadcast team in 2004-05. Calvin Murphy’s leave of absence from his … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Other sports | 1 Comment

Schlitterbahn Galveston fire

Posted on September 26, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

I kept forgetting all last week to blog about the fact that there was a huge fire at an old WWII airplane hangar down in Galveston, destroying what was to be an integral part of the new Schlitterbahn park. That … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | 1 Comment

Weekend scandal roundup

Posted on September 26, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

The WaPo updates us on the Scanlon/Abramoff/Ralph Reed casino-swindling scandal. Washington lobbyist Jack Abramoff and public relations consultant Michael Scanlon quietly worked with conservative religious activist Ralph Reed to help the state of Texas shut down an Indian tribe’s casino … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | 5 Comments

New DA in Waller County

Posted on September 26, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

Governor Perry has appointed a replacement for the leaving-in-shame Oliver Kitzman. Gov. Rick Perry on Friday appointed William Parham of Hempstead as the new criminal district attorney for Waller County. Parham, an assistant district attorney, will succeed Oliver Kitzman, who … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Comments Off on New DA in Waller County

ActBlue feature

Posted on September 25, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

Nice article on the founders of ActBlue, the online clearinghouse for donating to Democratic candidates, even if they do somehow manage not to mention the Texas Tuesdays ActBlue page. I want to touch on something in this paragraph: After originally … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Show Business for Ugly People | 1 Comment

Instant replay

Posted on September 25, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

Ever since I spent a summer umpiring Babe Ruth League games back in college, I’ve thought the idea of using technology to help officiate sporting events was a good one. As far as I’m concerned, the so-called “human factor” is … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Other sports | 4 Comments

August traffic report

Posted on September 25, 2004 by Charles Kuffner

September’s almost over, isn’t it? That means I really ought to do the August traffic report, so I don’t fall any farther behind. We had about 45,000 hits in August, a nice rebound from the doldrums of July but still … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Traffic Reports | Comments Off on August traffic report