Tag Archives: Attorney General

Who wants to protect our voting systems from hackers?

Posted on July 31, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

You would hope the answer to that question would be “everyone”, but that’s not the world we currently live in. A bipartisan group of 21 state attorneys general are demanding Congress’ assistance in protecting the 2018 election. Writing to Rep. … Continue reading →

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Paxton joins the wimp brigade

Posted on July 28, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Seems fitting. Attorney General Ken Paxton said in a TV interview that he would be “happy to debate anybody on the issues” as he seeks re-election this fall, but he is now backing off that offer by refusing to debate … Continue reading →

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Don’t expect any other debates

Posted on July 27, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Cowardice + lack of incentive = avoiding engagement. Land Commissioner George P. Bush (son of Jeb and nephew to George W.) has no plans to go one-on-one with his challenger, Miguel Suazo — at least, not as of Tuesday, July 24. … Continue reading →

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Business groups file brief opposing Paxton’s anti-DACA lawsuit

Posted on July 24, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

This is good. A federal lawsuit by Texas officials earlier this year seeking to order the end of the federal immigration program called the Deferred Act for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, will have “immediate, irreparable injury” to Texas businesses and … Continue reading →

Posted in La Migra, Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

“Fetal remains” trial ends

Posted on July 22, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Now we wait for a ruling. State and reproductive rights attorneys wrapped up a five-day trial in federal court on Friday that will determine whether a Texas law requiring health providers to cremate or bury fetal remains can go into … Continue reading →

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“Fetal remains” lawsuit trial underway

Posted on July 17, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Here we go. State and reproductive rights attorneys are going head to head again in federal court on Monday to argue whether Texas should require health providers to cremate or bury fetal remains. “It’s a tough case for everybody,” U.S. … Continue reading →

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Gravis: Cruz 51, O’Rourke 42

Posted on July 11, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s a new poll of four statewide races in Texas, for which there may or may not be any news coverage. The executive summary: Gravis Marketing, a nonpartisan research firm, conducted a random survey of 602 likely voters across Texas. … Continue reading →

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Back to the barbecue battle

Posted on July 10, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Once again, Sid Miller makes us pay attention to something we shouldn’t have to. Texas’ barbecue culture is sacred. But some pitmasters are catching heat from a former rodeo cowboy overseeing the state Department of Agriculture. Commissioner Sid Miller is … Continue reading →

Posted in Food, glorious food | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Don’t expect a Ken Paxton trial to happen this year

Posted on June 30, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Delays, delays, nothing but delays. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton was indicted for fraud nearly three years ago but is unlikely to go on trial before Election Day. Paxton’s trials are on hold while the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals decides whether the prosecutors on the case are … Continue reading →

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UT/Trib: Cruz 41, O’Rourke 36, part 2

Posted on June 27, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

We pick up where we left off. Republican Ted Cruz leads Democrat Beto O’Rourke 41 percent to 36 percent in the general election race for a Texas seat in the U.S. Senate, according to the latest University of Texas/Texas Tribune … Continue reading →

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Paxton wants magistrates’ lawsuit tossed

Posted on June 20, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

We all want things, Kenny. The state attorney general Monday asked a judge to dismiss a lawsuit by three Harris County hearing officers who are fighting sanctions by Texas’ judicial ethics commission earlier this year over unfair bail practices. Texas … Continue reading →

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Justice Department won’t defend DACA, either

Posted on June 10, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Even less of a surprise. Agreeing with a lawsuit filed by the state of Texas against the Trump administration to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, the U.S. Justice Department told the courts late Friday the program should … Continue reading →

Posted in La Migra, Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 20 Comments

Justice Department drops out of latest Obamacare lawsuit

Posted on June 9, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Which of course was filed in Texas by our felonious Attorney General. The Trump administration said Thursday night that it will not defend the Affordable Care Act against the latest legal challenge to its constitutionality — a dramatic break from … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , | 58 Comments

The status of Confederate monument removal

Posted on June 7, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

We still have a long way to go. Texas has removed the most Confederate symbols and statues in the country since 2015, according to a new Southern Poverty Law Center study. But the trend does not extend to the state … Continue reading →

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Fifth Circuit does its thing in the motor voter case

Posted on June 2, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

The sky is blue, water is wet, and the Fifth Circuit does what the state of Texas asks it to do. Texas will not be required to meet a 45-day deadline to implement online voter registration for drivers — for … Continue reading →

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State asks for emergency stay of “motor voter” ruling

Posted on May 27, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Also as expected. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on Friday asked a federal appeals court to block a San Antonio judge’s order that gave state officials 45 days to correct an online voter registration system that was found to violate federal law. … Continue reading →

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Opioid lawsuits

Posted on May 26, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

From last week: Attorney General Ken Paxton is leading Texas into a lawsuit against Purdue Pharma for exacerbating the opioid crisis among Texans. In an announcement Tuesday afternoon, Paxton, a Republican, flanked by several assistant attorney generals, said the state … Continue reading →

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State appeals “motor voter” ruling

Posted on May 22, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

No surprise. The legal fight over whether Texas is disenfranchising thousands of voters by violating a federal voter registration law is on its way to federal appeals court. Just after a federal judge gave Texas less than two months to … Continue reading →

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State offers no fixes for “motor voter” law non-compliance

Posted on May 19, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

I’m shocked, I tell you, shocked. Told it was breaking the law, and asked to propose a fix, Texas seems to have mostly declined. Following a ruling last month that Texas was violating a federal law designed to ease the voter registration … Continue reading →

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State ordered to come up with fix for voter registration problems

Posted on May 14, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

The clock is ticking. Texas has less than a week to tell a federal judge in San Antonio how it will begin complying with the National Voter Registration Act, a decades-old federal law aimed at making it easier for people … Continue reading →

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Paxton versus Miller on barbecue

Posted on April 26, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Just embrace the fact that this is the world we live in. A nonbinding opinion issued Monday by Attorney General Ken Paxton continues a battle between lawmakers, restaurants and Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller over regulation of scales used to measure … Continue reading →

Posted in Food, glorious food | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Special election set in CD27

Posted on April 25, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Here we go. Gov. Greg Abbott has called a June 30 special election to replace former U.S. Rep. Blake Farenthold, R-Corpus Christi. The candidate filing deadline is Friday, and early voting will run from June 13-26, according to the governor’s … Continue reading →

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Abbott does want a special election in CD27

Posted on April 21, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Well all righty then. Gov. Greg Abbott wants to hold a special election to replace former U.S. Rep. Blake Farenthold, R-Corpus Christi, as soon as possible.That’s according to a letter he sent Thursday to Attorney General Ken Paxton, seeking guidance on whether … Continue reading →

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From the “Answering my own rhetorical question” department

Posted on April 8, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Nobody could have seen this coming! Ever since Texas’s “sanctuary cities” ban was first proposed in late 2016, the measure’s Republican backers have painted it as a public safety measure targeting criminals — without racist or anti-immigrant intent. But records … Continue reading →

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Texas loses another voting rights lawsuit

Posted on April 4, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Anyone else detecting a pattern here? Handing the state another voting rights loss, a federal judge has sided with a civil rights group that claimed Texas violated federal law by failing to register residents to vote when they updated their … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 12 Comments

Paxton and Paxton, Inc

Posted on February 8, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

How exactly is this not a conflict of interest? Attorney General Ken Paxton’s political campaign guaranteed a $2 million loan to help his wife fuel her bid for a state Senate seat in North Texas. The Bank of the Ozarks … Continue reading →

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“Fetal remains” law blocked in court

Posted on January 30, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

It’s deja vu all over again. Texas’ second attempt to require health providers to bury or cremate fetal remains has been temporarily thwarted by a federal judge and another court battle is imminent. In his Monday afternoon ruling, U.S. District … Continue reading →

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Darian Ward resigns

Posted on January 28, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Adios. Mayor Sylvester Turner’s press secretary resigned Friday afternoon, three weeks after news broke that she had been suspended for routinely conducting personal business on city time and failing to release public records. Ward sent or received roughly 5,000 pages … Continue reading →

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Finance reports start coming in

Posted on January 16, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

And once again, CD07 is the big story. The winner in the money chase so far is nonprofit executive Alex Triantaphyllis, who raised over $255,000 in the fourth quarter of 2017, bringing his total raised for the election to over … Continue reading →

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Chron profile of Justin Nelson

Posted on December 28, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Hope he earns a lot of coverage in 2018, it sure would help. Justin Nelson stood with his wife around the island in their kitchen and had one final gut check about campaigning to become Texas’ next attorney general: Were … Continue reading →

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Early polling on the AG race

Posted on December 18, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

It looks sexy, but keep your salt handy. The 2018 election for the job of the state’s top lawyer could be a tight race if voters go to the polls knowing about Attorney General Ken Paxton’s criminal indictment, according to … Continue reading →

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The statewide lineups

Posted on December 14, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s the statewide lineup for Democrats. I’ll add in some notes afterwards. U. S. Senator Beto O’Rourke U. S. Senator Edward Kimbrough U. S. Senator Sema Hernandez Governor Adrian Ocegueda Governor Andrew White Governor Cedric Davis, Sr. Governor Demetria Smith … Continue reading →

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Voter ID back before the Fifth Circuit

Posted on December 6, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

And the worst judge on the Fifth Circuit does her thing. In Texas’ bid to keep its voter identification law intact, it was its legal foes — lawyers representing voting and civil rights groups and individual voters of color — … Continue reading →

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State has not appealed the voting rights case on language interpreters

Posted on December 2, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Interesting. Texas has spent years defending its voting laws in court, regularly appealing rulings that found state lawmakers violated the rights of their voters. So when a federal appellate court in August ruled against the state’s restrictions on language interpreters at the ballot … Continue reading →

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