Tag Archives: Congress

Looking ahead for Rep.-elect Sylvester Turner

Posted on November 30, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

This article starts off with a look back at the career of former State Rep and Mayor, now US Rep-elect Sylvester Turner and his relationship with the late Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, and then gets into what he will face … Continue reading →

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Dispatches from Dallas, November 8 edition

Posted on November 8, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

This is a weekly feature produced by my friend Ginger. Let us know what you think. This week, in news from Dallas-Fort Worth, election results, and only election results, because we’re all dealing with our grief right now. Next week … Continue reading →

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Well, that sucked

Posted on November 6, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

It’s about 10:30 PM as I write this, and I don’t care to stay up any longer. The national situation looks dicey, but it’s not yet clear what will happen. I’ll put that off for now. It was bad here … Continue reading →

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A brief list of things I’ll be watching for today

Posted on November 5, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

In no particular order… 1. I don’t expect Democrats to win statewide in Texas. It would be great, it would do a world of good, but I’d be setting myself up for disappointment if I start there. What I want … Continue reading →

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October 2024 campaign finance reports – Senate and Congress

Posted on October 20, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

We’re about to get into early voting, so you don’t need much of a preamble here. Just one final check-in on the finance reports for our Senatorial and Congressional candidates. The July 2024 reports for both are here, the April … Continue reading →

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The South Texas Congressional races

Posted on October 17, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Feels like I’ve heard less about them this year than in 2022, but as the story notes, the Dems are on offense this time. It’s déjà vu in South Texas. Texas’ two most competitive congressional races will feature rematches from … Continue reading →

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Interview with Kristin Hook

Posted on October 16, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

I said on Monday that I had reached out to the campaign of Dr. Kristin Hook in CD21 for an interview but hadn’t heard back. As fortune would have it, I got a reply from her later that morning, and … Continue reading →

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On longshot candidates

Posted on October 14, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron looks at candidates running in districts they are highly unlikely to win. I have a few thoughts. In the 2022 election, a Houston Chronicle analysis found only about 5% of Texans lived in districts with competitive races for … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: The obvious choice in the special election

Posted on October 11, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron endorses Erica Lee Carter in the special election for CD18. Erica Lee Carter isn’t her mother. “I can never be that iconic,” she told the editorial board. When her mother, the late U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee passed … Continue reading →

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Interview with Rhonda Hart

Posted on October 9, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

From the Railroad Commission to Congress today, where we meet a candidate that I specifically wanted to meet. I wrote about Rhonda Hart after she announced her candidacy in CD14, a red district with a truly awful incumbent (yes, even … Continue reading →

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Court reform has to be about more than just SCOTUS

Posted on September 29, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Exhibit A. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton returned to court on Thursday to press his case against the Biden administration’s workforce protections for transgender employees. Texas’s lawsuit, filed in federal court on Thursday against the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and … Continue reading →

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One “Trump Train” defendant found liable

Posted on September 25, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

The rest were cleared. An Austin jury cleared all but one of six Donald Trump supporters who were accused of breaking federal law when they surrounded a Joe Biden campaign bus driving down a Texas highway days before the 2020 … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: Still catching up

Posted on September 24, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

A couple of endorsements of interest for you. First, the Chron stuck with incumbent Sheriff Ed Gonzalez. A routine inspection of the state’s largest jail really shouldn’t garner headlines. Meeting “minimum safety standards” should never be cause for celebration for … Continue reading →

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Jury deliberations begin in “Trump Train” lawsuit

Posted on September 22, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Axiously awaiting a verdict. A jury in Texas began to deliberate Friday whether the so-called “Trump Train” that surrounded a Biden-Harris campaign bus days before the 2020 election in a heated highway encounter amounted to political intimidation. “This case is … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: Catching up

Posted on September 18, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron has been doing endorsements a few days a week, one at a time, in no particular order. Here are three recent ones, to catch up a bit. CD22: Marquette Green-Scott Marquette Greene-Scott says she never got to know … Continue reading →

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Interview with Sylvester Turner

Posted on September 11, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

I’m sure that by now you are well familiar with the story of CD18 after the passing of Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee in July. As such, you know that former Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner is now the Democratic nominee for … Continue reading →

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Trump Train trial gets underway

Posted on September 10, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Let’s have a Day One check in. A federal trial began Monday over claims that supporters of former President Donald Trump threatened and harassed a Biden-Harris bus in Texas four years ago, disrupting the campaign on the last day of … Continue reading →

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Interview with Erica Lee Carter

Posted on September 9, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Welcome to Fall 2024 Interview Season. Thanks in no small part to the latest round of redistricting, primary season tends to be busier for me, but we’re got some races and other matters of interest to explore. This week we … Continue reading →

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Congressional Dems ask DOJ to investigate Paxton

Posted on September 9, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

There will be plenty to find if they look. Several Democratic Texas lawmakers are asking the Justice Department to investigate recent “raids” of South Texas homes and businesses by Republican Texas’ Attorney General Ken Paxton’s office in its efforts to … Continue reading →

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“Trump Train” lawsuit goes to trial

Posted on September 8, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Very big deal. It’s been four years since a campaign bus carrying Wendy Davis and others was nearly run off the road by a so-called “Trump Train” — a caravan of Republican activists waving giant flags showing support for Donald … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: Mayor Turner for CD18

Posted on September 6, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron is getting an early start on endorsements this year. Dabbing at his eyes, former Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner recalled the final conversation he had with the late Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee in an interview with KHOU11’s Len Cannon. … Continue reading →

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Water, water, everywhere

Posted on September 2, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

All due to leaks. Texas’ most populous cities lost roughly 88 billion gallons of water last year because of aging water infrastructure and extreme heat, costing them millions of dollars and straining the state’s water supply, according to self-reported water … Continue reading →

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CD18 special election lineup set

Posted on August 25, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

It’s Erica Lee Carter and two people you’ve never heard of. U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee’s daughter, Erica Lee Carter, will be the only Democrat on the ballot seeking to finish the late congresswoman’s term, priming Carter for a few … Continue reading →

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Rep. Nehls sued for allegedly having a homophobic workplace

Posted on August 19, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

It sure has been a year for Rep. Troy Nehls, hasn’t it? A gay former staffer for U.S. Rep. Troy Nehls, R-Richmond, sued the congressman’s office Friday, saying he was effectively forced from his job after a history of homophobic … Continue reading →

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Erica Lee Carter to run in the special election for CD18

Posted on August 15, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

She says she’s in. U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee’s daughter Erica Lee Carter announced Monday that she is running to finish out her mother’s term in Congress. Jackson Lee died July 19 after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. She represented … Continue reading →

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Turner wins CD18 nomination

Posted on August 14, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

It was very close. Several dozen precinct chairs Tuesday night elected former Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner to be the Democratic nominee for Congressional District 18, replacing the late Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee on the Nov. 5 ballot. The vote means … Continue reading →

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The CD18 candidate forum

Posted on August 12, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

This was a well-organized event, and my kudos to everyone who put it together in such a short period of time. I just have a couple of comments. Candidates vying to fill the congressional seat of the late U.S. Rep. … Continue reading →

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Two more small updates on CD18

Posted on August 10, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

I learned two things of interest from this Houston Landing story about the CD18 situation. The bulk of the story is about the candidate forum today and the recent Zoom interviews that candidates did (see here for more on each), … Continue reading →

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Two small updates on the CD18 race

Posted on August 7, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

From this Trib overview of the five candidates “with extensive elected experience” in the CD18 race: Since the candidate selection is internal within the party, there is no formal filing process for candidates and precinct chairs could theoretically choose anyone. … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: SJL’s kids for Turner

Posted on August 6, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Over the past several weeks we’ve been overwhelmed by the outpouring of support and love from the residents of the 18th Congressional District. Countless people have reached out to express not only condolences for our mother’s death, … Continue reading →

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Special election for CD18 set for November 5

Posted on August 4, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

I was beginning to wonder if this would even happen. Gov. Greg Abbott on Friday set a special election to fill former U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee’s seat for the remainder of the term on Nov. 5, the same day … Continue reading →

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The election to nominate a candidate in CD18 has been set

Posted on August 3, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Per an email that I got yesterday from the HCDP, the Executive Committee meeting of CD18 precinct chairs to fill the vacancy on the November ballot will be next Tuesday, August 13, at Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church, with the meeting … Continue reading →

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The potential candidates so far for CD18

Posted on July 28, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron lists a few, but I can and will tell you there are others. The campaign to replace the late U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee in Congress is playing out behind the scenes, with potential candidates calling precinct chairs … Continue reading →

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Memorial service information for Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee

Posted on July 27, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

From the Chronicle. Monday: Jackson Lee will lie in state from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. at Houston City Hall, making the late congresswoman the second person to receive this honor. The first was Dr. Michael DeBakey, a heart surgeon, … Continue reading →

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