Monthly Archives: June 2009

Schieffer announces

Posted on June 24, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

State Sen. Leticia Van de Putte is out. State Sen. Kirk Watson may or may not jump in. Tom Schieffer is in. After a rally in front of the Fort Worth elementary school he attended, Schieffer plans stops in Houston … Continue reading →

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Kirk Watson on the vetoes

Posted on June 24, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

State Sen. Kirk Watson gives his view of Governor Perry’s vetoes. As he was one of the biggest victims of Perry’s pen, he had a lot to complain about. Among the bills he discusses is one I hadn’t been aware … Continue reading →

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Friends and foes

Posted on June 24, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

The Texas Observer poo-poos the idea of “Best Of” and “Top Ten” lists, then gives us its stab at a Best and Worst tabulation by naming six of “The People’s Friends” and five “Foes”. Where Texas Monthly focuses more on … Continue reading →

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Radnofsky says she’s in for AG

Posted on June 24, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

No surprise, since she has been talking about running for Attorney General for awhile, but Barbara Radnofsky sent out a press release yesterday confirming that she’s in the race for keeps. From the release: Barbara Ann Radnofsky, a Houston attorney … Continue reading →

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Fort Worth’s red light camera experience

Posted on June 24, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

They like them so far. The city Transportation Department pronounces itself pleased with progress made by red-light cameras. The number of accidents has decreased at the targeted intersections. The cameras have resulted in about $1.2 million in fines — $765,000 … Continue reading →

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Fireworks and droughts

Posted on June 23, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

It’s hard out there on a fireworks vendor. As July 4 approaches, Michael Girdley is praying for rain. The president of Alamo Fireworks, based in China Grove, is worried a summer drought could lead to a fireworks ban in Harris … Continue reading →

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From the “Things are tough all over” department

Posted on June 23, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Texas trying to keep up with unemployment claims. The rising number of jobless Texans has generated more claims than the Texas Workforce Commission can handle. The commission has added hundreds of workers and phone lines to call centers to deal … Continue reading →

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Van de Putte says she’s not running for Governor

Posted on June 23, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

State Sen. Leticia Van de Putte, who has been contemplating a run for Governor next year, has sent out a press release saying that she will not do so. Here it is: Statement of Senator Leticia Van de Putte regarding … Continue reading →

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Who are these people?

Posted on June 23, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

As we know, there are vacancies in the US Attorney’s offices in the Southern and Western district offices in Texas, which will be filled by Presidential appointment. Normally, when the President is of one party and both of a given … Continue reading →

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Commissioners Court tries again on ethics reform

Posted on June 23, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

They meet today to try to get something done. After months of political maneuvering, County Judge Ed Emmett is asking commissioners to approve a series of ethics reforms. They include the voluntary registration of lobbyists, online posting of officials’ personal … Continue reading →

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Time to replace that portable TV

Posted on June 23, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

I don’t have a portable TV, so I hadn’t given the matter of their obsolescence due to the digital transition any thought, but if you have one, you ought to be aware of it. Though Americans were given four extra … Continue reading →

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Texas blog roundup for the week of June 22

Posted on June 23, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

It’s Monday, the day after the first day of summer, and it’s time for another Texas Progressive Alliance blog roundup. Click on for the highlights.

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SCOTUS upholds Voting Rights Act

Posted on June 22, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

For now, anyway. The Supreme Court ruled narrowly today in a challenge to the landmark Voting Rights Act, siding with a small Texas governing authority but sidestepping the larger constitutional issue. The court, with only one justice in dissent, avoided … Continue reading →

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Bacarisse, too

Posted on June 22, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Rick Casey jumps on the Ed Johnson bandwagon, and he starts off with the information that former District Clerk Charles Bacarisse was doing the same kind of moonlighting as Johnson was. Bacarisse hired out as a $4,500-a-month consultant to a … Continue reading →

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Once more with the vetoes

Posted on June 22, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Governor Perry explains why he vetoed legislation to improve ethics in Harris County. “I was never for that bill. Now, there may have been some people on my staff who were of a different mind,” Perry said, responding to a … Continue reading →

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Ryan versus the polluters

Posted on June 22, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

This is the sort of thing that happens when you elect Democrats. Here’s something relatively new: A Harris County polluter is going to jail. Vince Ryan, the new Harris County Attorney, has decided to make pollution a priority, and he … Continue reading →

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Is there a problem with the stimulus funds?

Posted on June 22, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

I hope not. The debate over whether Texas lawmakers can use federal stimulus money to boost education spending, including funding a raise for teachers, is heating up. The Obama administration warned states Thursday it may withhold millions of dollars if … Continue reading →

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Schieffer and centrism

Posted on June 21, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Tom Schieffer continues his task of making the case for himself as the Democratic nominee for Governor. Fort Worth lawyer Tom Schieffer helped make George W. Bush a wealthy man. And as President Bush’s ambassador to Australia, Schieffer sold the … Continue reading →

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Weekend link dump for June 21

Posted on June 21, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Happy Father’s Day to all the dad out there, especially Eric Mongerson. The Internet consumes one to two percent of the world’s electricity in a given day. I’m thinking there’s some opportunities to go green in there. The best Facebook … Continue reading →

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The IR Guide to Parenting

Posted on June 21, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

In honor of Father’s Day, I bring you this post by Stephen M. Walt on how parenting and international relations are basically the same thing. First off, modern realist theory focuses on the structure of the system and especially number … Continue reading →

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TDP responds to Vasquez

Posted on June 21, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

From Saturday’s op-ed pages, here’s the Texas Democratic Party’s response, written by the TDP’s legal counsel Chad Dunn, to Leo Vasquez in the matter of Ed Johnson. Johnson’s conflict of interest doesn’t pass the smell test, and during the course … Continue reading →

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Cillizza on White

Posted on June 21, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

The WaPo’s Chris Cilizza surveys the Senate campaign scene, and makes an interesting comment about Texas: Democrats’ best opportunities to broaden the current playing field are in Louisiana and Texas. […] Texas is a bit more of a longshot although … Continue reading →

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Where that new transit corridors ordinance came from

Posted on June 21, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Christof takes another look at the proposed urban transit corridors ordinance, and asks a simple question. Days after the City of Houston’s draft corridor urban corridors ordinance was released, Houstonians For Responsible Growth – a developer group that generally opposes any new … Continue reading →

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Saturday video break: Who are you working for, Dwayne?

Posted on June 20, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

I know I’ve been using these for mostly silly and/or amusing music videos, but given recent developments, I figured this was a good fit for the day. Now we just need someone to do something similar for Leo Vasquez.

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More on Perry’s vetoes

Posted on June 20, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Governor Perry’s veto of SB2468, the “revolving door” restrictions bill for Harris County, has puzzled its sponsor. In his veto message, Perry said he rejected the ethics bill, authored by Sen. Mario Gallegos, because it addressed lobbying matters and related … Continue reading →

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Your Texas Republican delegation in action

Posted on June 20, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

David Weigel tells us what some of our Republican Congressfolk have been up to. Rep. Bill Posey (R-Fla.), who has introduced a bill that would require future presidential candidates to provide proof of U.S. citizenship, has collected four more co-sponsors — Reps. … Continue reading →

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Planting vegetation against the tide

Posted on June 20, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

I suppose there’s more than one way to try to save your beachfront property. In Texas, a thin green line in the sand separates private property from public beach. And that line of vegetation is drawn by Mother Nature. Some … Continue reading →

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Calorie counts

Posted on June 20, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Honestly, this is long overdue. Restaurant groups, nutrition and disease-prevention advocates and Washington lawmakers from both sides of the partisan divide on Wednesday announced they have hammered out an agreement that will put calorie contents on the menus of chain … Continue reading →

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And here are the vetoes

Posted on June 19, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s the full list, with links to statements about individual bills, here’s his press release, and here’s his budget statement. A few points of interest: – Perry wimped out and allowed HB770, the Wayne Christian Homestead Bill, to become law … Continue reading →

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Perry reportedly to veto Safe Passing bill

Posted on June 19, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

The veto deadline is fast approaching, and with it comes word of various potentially doomed bills – indeed, according to Rep. Garnet Coleman, Governor Perry has already nixed one of his bills, HB3485 – so expect to hear some urgent … Continue reading →

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Friday random ten: What’s the big idea?

Posted on June 19, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

It’s very simple, really: Ten songs that start with the word “Big”: 1. Big Bottom – Hayseed Dixie 2. Big Fellah – Black 47 3. Big Legs, Tight Skirt – John Lee Hooker 4. Big Noise – Eddie from Ohio … Continue reading →

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Five for SBOE 10

Posted on June 19, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

I think it’s safe to say the State Board of Education elections aren’t going to be the obscure affairs they’ve historically been any more. We know that now-former SBOE Chair Don McLeroy has drawn a high-profile primary challenger, and one … Continue reading →

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Recycle thyself

Posted on June 19, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

I suppose I had assumed that the city of Houston was already collecting recyclables separately from trash. Apparently, that was not the case, but it will be now. The Solid Waste Management Department has implemented programs at breakneck speed to … Continue reading →

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Remaking “The Prisoner”

Posted on June 19, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

If you’ve ever seen The Prisoner, the trippy sci-fi British miniseries that starred Patrick McGoohan as a former British intelligence agent trapped in a bizarre remote village by his former employers who want to know why he quit, you will … Continue reading →

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