Monthly Archives: March 2009

Senate committee passes unemployment insurance reform

Posted on March 31, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

You’d think, after all the high-profile squabbling over stimulus funds for the unemployment insurance trust fund, that the news of SB1569‘s advancement in the Senate might get a bit more notice than this, but apparently not. The only other story … Continue reading →

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Innocence, exoneration, and compensation

Posted on March 31, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

We’ve seen all of the stories about inmates being freed from jail in Texas after however many years inside, the result of DNA evidence proving they could not have committed the crime for which they were convicted. But what happens … Continue reading →

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“Play to extinction”

Posted on March 31, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

In my previous post on gambling, in which I presented the economic case for “racinos” as made by the racetracks, I alluded to the moral case against gambling. Bringing moral arguments into political discussions is fraught with pitfalls, but sometimes … Continue reading →

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Senate panel approves budget

Posted on March 31, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

As you know, the Lege has one task they absolutely must do every biennium, and that’s pass a budget. The Senate Finance Committee has taken its first step towards doing that. A two-year state budget that accepts federal stimulus money … Continue reading →

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What else have you not told us, Sharon?

Posted on March 31, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

As we know, Sharon Keller, the Presiding Judge of the Court of Criminal Appeals, has asked that the state pick up her legal fees in defense of the charges against her on grounds that paying for her own attorney would … Continue reading →

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

Texas blog roundup for the week of March 30

Posted on March 31, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

It’s April Fool’s week, but there’s no fooling around with the Texas Progressive Alliance and the weekly blog roundup. Click on for the highlights.

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Cornymandias

Posted on March 30, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Look on his works, ye Mighty, and despair! Texas Sen. John Cornyn is threatening “World War III” if Democrats try to seat Al Franken in the Senate before Norm Coleman can pursue his case through the federal courts. Cornyn, the … Continue reading →

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Let the shenanigans begin!

Posted on March 30, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Boy, we only thought voter ID would not be brought up in the House till next week. Apparently, Rep. Betty Brown tried to attach a voter ID bill she has pending in its entirity to HB71, an otherwise fairly innocuous … Continue reading →

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Candidate interview: Maverick Welsh

Posted on March 30, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

We’re past the halfway point in my interview series for the District H special election. Today’s subject is Maverick Welsh, who resigned as chief of staff to Council Member and Mayoral candidate Peter Brown to run in this race. Welsh … Continue reading →

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Regional crime lab

Posted on March 30, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

This has been talked about for some time, and not unexpectedly it’s starting to move forward. After years of scandal at crime labs across the state, local officials have proposed opening a regional lab based at the Harris County Medical … Continue reading →

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The Heflin plan for voter ID

Posted on March 30, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

While I still have hope that voter ID can be stopped one more time, I can certainly understand the viewpoint that a sufficiently determined Republican majority can push through what it wants to if it really tries, especially if we … Continue reading →

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The TRCC should be sunsetted

Posted on March 30, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

What EoW says. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, it’s ludicrous to think that a rational profit-maximizing actor such as Bob Perry would spend as much as he does on political access without expecting to get some … Continue reading →

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Weekend link dump for March 29

Posted on March 29, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

And so we approach the end of another college basketball season. Which can only mean one thing: Time for baseball to begin! Woo hoo! Amazing beer bottle dominoes. May be the best thing I’ll see on YouTube this year. Now … Continue reading →

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Which Republicans do you have in mind for that?

Posted on March 29, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Republican attorney Jacob Monty calls on his party to tackle the problem of immigration reform in a serious and rational way. I think he makes some good points about the toxic relations the GOP currently has with Hispanics nationally, and … Continue reading →

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UTMB versus Shriners

Posted on March 29, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Well, this might help keep Shiners Galveston Hospital open. The University of Texas Medical Branch on Friday asked a judge to stop Shriners Hospital for Children Galveston from locking its doors and imperiling millions of dollars in shared burn research. … Continue reading →

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Solar power

Posted on March 29, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

As you know, I’ve been a big advocate for wind energy on this site. Texas has done a lot to make itself a leader in that industry, and I believe it will pay many long-term dividends. But just as we … Continue reading →

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Slowdown at the Mint

Posted on March 29, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

They’re not making as many coins as they used to. As falls the economy, so falls the jingle of coinmaking at the U.S. Mint. Production at the federal government’s coin factory in Denver fell a sharp 26 percent in 2008 … Continue reading →

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No hog hunting

Posted on March 28, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Bummer. Remember the plan Harris County Commissioner Steve Radack floated to allow bowhunting of feral hogs in George Bush Park, both as pest control and boon for the local food banks? The Army Corps of Engineers, which had say-so on … Continue reading →

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Win some, lose some for science

Posted on March 28, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

That’s the basic conclusion to draw after the three-day circus that was the now-concluded SBOE hearings in Austin. TFN Insider sums it up: TFN President Kathy Miller: Texas State Board of Education Adopts Flawed Science Standards The word “weaknesses” no … Continue reading →

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The Statesman on the state of beer in Texas

Posted on March 28, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

The Statesman visits an issue with which we are familiar. Ever wondered why you can’t go to the store and buy a six-pack of the North by Northwest Restaurant and Brewery’s beer? How about one more: Ever wondered why, in … Continue reading →

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Friday random ten, Hawaiian style

Posted on March 27, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Two weeks ago, I printed a Special Guest Star edition of the Friday Random Ten with an offering from Chron reporter Alan Bernstein. At the time, I asked if anyone else would like to submit a list for publication. I … Continue reading →

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You have the right to an attorney, but it doesn’t have to be of your choosing

Posted on March 27, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

In her response to the charges pending against her before the State Commission on Judicial Conduct, Sharon Keller made the claim that the state should foot her legal bills. Rick Casey notes the problem with that claim. [We do] provide … Continue reading →

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A setback for Shriners

Posted on March 27, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Alas. Local Shriners vowed Wednesday to take their case for reopening the storm-damaged Shriners Hospital for Children in Galveston to convention delegates after the national leadership again decided to keep it closed. Officials of the 1,000-member Galveston-based El Mina Shrine … Continue reading →

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Making reregistration easier

Posted on March 27, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

This is a positive step. In Harris County, the voter registration office is starting to anticipate your next move. County Tax Assessor-Collector Leo Vasquez has put together a coalition of private organizations and large employers to make sure that residents … Continue reading →

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Redistricting commission advances

Posted on March 27, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

We know about Sen. Jeff Wentworth’s biennial efforts to create a nonpartisan redistricting commission for Texas. On Monday, those efforts advanced forward a step. By a vote of 21-10, senators approved Senate Bill 315 that would create the nine-member commission … Continue reading →

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Strengths and weaknesses fails

Posted on March 26, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

That’s the good news. San Antonio’s Ken Mercer, part of the board’s seven-member social conservative bloc, tried to put the much-debated “strengths and weaknesses” language back into the state’s science standards that guide the content of textbooks and curriculum. Mercer’s … Continue reading →

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Your eyes may deceive you

Posted on March 26, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron covers a report by the Justice Project about faulty eyewitness testimony and the many wrongful convictions to which it has led. Most wrongful convictions in Texas stem from mistaken eyewitness identifications, errors that experts say could have been … Continue reading →

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Locke to formally announce today

Posted on March 26, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

I don’t think there’s any mystery about who is and isn’t running for Mayor, but as other candidates have had their formal campaign announcements, so today will Gene Locke. From the press release: WHAT: Gene Locke To Announce Candidacy Gene … Continue reading →

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Response from the racetracks

Posted on March 26, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

When I wrote my earlier post about how much revenue expanded gambling would generate for Texas, I said I’d be more than happy to do a similar exercise for someone on the pro-gambling side of things. Sure enough, I got … Continue reading →

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OK, you can use some stimulus money on rail

Posted on March 26, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Whew! Federal transit officials on Tuesday reversed course and agreed to allow Metro to use nearly $30 million in economic stimulus funds for utility relocation work on the proposed North and Southeast rail lines, Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee announced. Just … Continue reading →

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Red light camera revenues remain unspent

Posted on March 26, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

The state has not yet appropriated the money in the trauma center fund that it has collected from cities with red light cameras. That is because the Legislature, which passed a 2007 law requiring cities to share profits with the … Continue reading →

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Ogden’s stem cell skulduggery

Posted on March 25, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Sigh. Steve Ogden may have lost support of Senate Democrats for SB 1 with his surprise rider prohibiting state funds to be used in stem cell research, or as the rider states: ”in conjunction with or to support research that … Continue reading →

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Chronicle cuts

Posted on March 25, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Brutal day at 801 Texas yesterday, with more today. I confess, I don’t understand how getting rid of the people who create the content helps make the product more viable going forward, but what do I know? I’m sure they … Continue reading →

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Keller blames others for her actions

Posted on March 25, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Court of Criminal Appeals Presiding Judge Sharon Keller, who has been formally accused of violating her duty as a judge in the matter of the Michael Richard case, has filed her response to the State Commission on Judicial Ethics. (For … Continue reading →

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