Monthly Archives: July 2013

Remember how concern for women’s health was supposed to be a thing?

Posted on July 24, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Now that the omnibus anti-abortion bill has been passed and signed, the Republicans can quit pretending to care about the state of health care access for women in Texas as before. Three Planned Parenthood family planning clinics in Southeast Texas … Continue reading →

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What it takes to win statewide

Posted on July 23, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Via Ed Kilgore comes this analysis that tries to paint an especially bleak picture for Texas Democrats in 2014. First of all, Democrats have yet to win more than 44 percent of the total vote in any recent statewide election … Continue reading →

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Uber

Posted on July 23, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Mark me in favor of this. A smartphone app could be the subject of the year’s most spirited regulatory battle at City Hall, as lobbyists line up for a fight that pits taxicab companies against a car-service technology company called … Continue reading →

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Transportation bill heads to conference committee

Posted on July 23, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

There’s still that fundamental disagreement in approach to be worked out somehow. Representatives from the House and Senate are preparing to spend the next week informally negotiating a compromise proposal to boost funding for the Texas Department of Transportation, with … Continue reading →

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Film incentive lawsuit

Posted on July 23, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

I can’t wait to see what happens with this. A lawsuit filed by Austin-based filmmaker Robert Rodriguez and the production company behind his film Machete accuses The Texas Film Commission of denying agreed-to financial incentives after the commission decided the … Continue reading →

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July 2013 finance reports for district Council candidates

Posted on July 22, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

We move now to the remaining Council races, which are the district races. Here are the July finance reports for candidates in District Council races. Please note that all reports now appear on my newly-published Election 2013 page. Refer to … Continue reading →

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On Jon Buice and Paul Broussard

Posted on July 22, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Grits has a provocative guest post from Michael Berryhill, an author and journalism professor, about the murder of Paul Broussard, the way it has been portrayed by the media, and the effort of convicted killer Jon Buice to win parole … Continue reading →

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Judge assigned in complaint about Perry veto of Public Integrity Unit

Posted on July 22, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Moving along slowly. A San Antonio judge on Tuesday was assigned to hear a complaint that alleges Gov. Rick Perry committed coercion, bribery and official oppression by vetoing funding for the Travis County District Attorney’s Public Integrity Unit. Senior Judge … Continue reading →

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Austin wins X Games

Posted on July 22, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Congrats, Austin. The X Games are going from the glitz of Los Angeles to deep in the heart of Texas. Athletes with skateboards and motorcycles will be competing in the Texas capital after ESPN announced Wednesday that Austin will be … Continue reading →

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Weekend link dump for July 21

Posted on July 21, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

“Because [Rex] Reed makes no efforts to hide the fact that he’s a big, snotty baby, the whining id of white male privilege, there’s little reason to take him, or by extension any other critic, as an authority.” That’s from … Continue reading →

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Petitioning for Early To Rise

Posted on July 21, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

This arrived in my inbox a couple of days ago: With only two weeks to go, we really need your help! We are working to get an initiative on the ballot in November 2013 to fund the Early to Rise Program. The … Continue reading →

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Ashbys all over

Posted on July 21, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s that Chron story that I mentioned yesterday, which talks about increasing neighborhood resistance to multi-story residential projects in areas that mostly have single-family houses. Tension mounted as 20 or so Morrison Street residents, armed with city documents and Internet … Continue reading →

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From the “Wooing Latino Voters: You’re Doing It Wrong” department

Posted on July 21, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Greg Abbott visits McAllen and gives the locals his best reason why they should vote for him. Gubernatorial candidate Greg Abbott called for unity between Republican candidates and Hispanics in McAllen on Monday, with the promise of being in South … Continue reading →

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Remembering the bad old days

Posted on July 21, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

We’re headed back to them if the courts don’t intervene. Dr. Howard Novick winces as he recalls treating two and three women a week for infections and complications from botched abortions. It was the early 1970s, before the procedure was … Continue reading →

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Saturday video break: Hazy Shade Of Winter

Posted on July 20, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Song #10 on the Popdose Top 100 Covers list is “Hazy Shade Of Winter”, originally by Simon & Garfunkel and covered by The Bangles. Here’s S&G: This one I’d heard before – I’m pretty sure I knew The Bangles’ version … Continue reading →

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We may have our first Democratic statewide candidate

Posted on July 20, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

And it’s John Cook, outgoing Mayor of El Paso. Former El Paso Mayor John Cook will seek the Democratic nomination for Texas land commissioner in 2014, he told the El Paso Times Wednesday night. “I think it’s an embarrassment to … Continue reading →

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The Mexican abortion option

Posted on July 20, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Get ready for it. At the Whole Woman’s Health center here, a young woman predicted what others would do if the state’s stringent new abortion bill approved late Friday forces clinics like this one to close: cross the border to … Continue reading →

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More construction on Yale

Posted on July 20, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

It’s Alexan Heights II: Midrise Boogaloo. For residents near Yale and 6th street, Independence Day fireworks were nothing compared to the sparks flying when news of another proposed apartment complex came to light July 5. A heads-up notification from District … Continue reading →

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Friday random thirteen – The stars at night, part 2

Posted on July 19, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

And we’re back to baseball after the All Star Break, and we’re back for a supersized serving of “star” songs. 1. At The Stars – Better Than Ezra 2. When You Wish Upon A Star – Ringo Starr & Herb … Continue reading →

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How about Wendy for Lite Guv?

Posted on July 19, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Robert Miller makes a pretty good case. Governor General Abbott appears unbeatable by Democrat or Republican. Sen. Davis, as a Harvard-trained lawyer, could run for the open office of Texas Attorney General. However, that does not appear to be a … Continue reading →

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House passes different transportation bill than the Senate passed

Posted on July 19, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Our endless summer of special sessions isn’t over yet. The Texas House on Thursday gave final passage to a measure to boost funding for transportation projects, though few members expect it to survive the Senate without significant changes. After more … Continue reading →

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To sue or not to sue?

Posted on July 19, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Now that SB2 has passed, it’s time to consider the next move. As an omnibus bill restricting abortion access in Texas makes its way to Gov. Rick Perry’s desk, opponents of the measure are already weighing the possibility of suing … Continue reading →

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Council approves Costco tax rebate

Posted on July 19, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

I still don’t think this is a good idea. The Houston City Council on Wednesday approved a $1 million economic development deal to help Costco build a store outside the city limits. In a rambling discussion ending in a 12-3 … Continue reading →

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July finance reports for At Large candidates

Posted on July 18, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Still plowing my way through all the July finance reports. July and January are very busy months, since everybody has finance reports to do. After I’m done with the city candidates, I’ll be looking at HISD and HCC candidates, then … Continue reading →

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The Chron continues to rage against the pensions

Posted on July 18, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Hobby horse mounted, away we go! There is something particularly frustrating about municipal pensions, which are funded by the city but controlled by the state. This is a recipe for disaster, which can be seen in ballooning burdens to the … Continue reading →

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People who don’t know about Obamacare can’t benefit from Obamacare

Posted on July 18, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

One suspects that’s the point. Texans, and in particular the state’s Hispanic population, might remain in the dark on the benefits of the new federal health care law because outreach efforts are largely focusing on the 24 states participating in … Continue reading →

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Texas blog roundup for the week of July 15

Posted on July 18, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

The Texas Progressive Alliance stands with Texas women as it brings you this week’s roundup. Off the Kuff gives some advice on what to do now that the anti-abortion bill has passed. Horwitz at Texpatriate explains why he is a … Continue reading →

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The University Corridor

Posted on July 18, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Sorry for the late notice about this. Every year Houston combs its plan for future road building and improvements and makes changes. Generally, it’s relatively minor stuff that reflects putting on paper something that is going to happen anyway. […] … Continue reading →

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July finance reports for Controller candidates

Posted on July 17, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Continuing my look at July 2013 campaign finance reports for city candidates, here’s a look at the reports for the two Contoller hopefuls, incumbent Ronald Green and challenger Bill Frazer. Candidate Raised Spent On Hand Loan ————————————————- Green 71,548 31,185 … Continue reading →

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Davis raises $1 million, BGTX raises $1.1 million

Posted on July 17, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Considering she had only two weeks to do it, that’s not too shabby. State Sen. Wendy Davis, the new star of the Texas Democratic Party, raised nearly $1 million in the final two weeks of June, much of it from … Continue reading →

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Pot policy

Posted on July 17, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

From Hair Balls: Rehman Bhalesha was raised around marijuana. That’s not to say that he dealt, or that he pushed, or that he used. He didn’t have to. Weed, growing up, turned wherever he went. “Living in South Texas, you … Continue reading →

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The drought is still a big deal

Posted on July 17, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

In case you were wondering. The Brazos River has nearly dried up, prompting cities in Galveston County to issue drought alerts and preventing Brazoria County rice farmers from planting a second crop this year. Water for rice farmers and 12 … Continue reading →

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Mayoral finance reports for July

Posted on July 16, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Let’s go to the press releases for the initial hype. Here’s Mayor Parker’s announcement of her fundraising haul for the July report. Houston Mayor Annise Parker has raised more than $2.2 million for her re-election campaign since February, with the … Continue reading →

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Abbott’s mushy launch

Posted on July 16, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

For a guy who’s supposed to be The Chosen One to succeed Rick Perry, Greg Abbott’s formal campaign launch has been remarkably substance-free. With his wife and daughter standing near, Republican Attorney General Greg Abbott kicked off his campaign for … Continue reading →

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