Tag Archives: Bill Zedler

Win one, lose one at SCOTX

The win: Early voting in Texas can begin Oct. 13, following the timeline the governor laid out months ago, the Texas Supreme Court ruled Wednesday, rejecting a request from several top Texas Republicans to limit the timeframe for voters to … Continue reading

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Paxton opposes Hotze mandamus to curb early voting

From Reform Austin: In a brief filed with the Texas Supreme Court, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton argues that the GOP group suing Gov. Greg Abbott to prevent him from extending early voting for the November election has no standing … Continue reading

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Hotze and crew appeal to SCOTX to stop the extra week of early voting

Here we go again. Republican Gov. Greg Abbott is facing a lawsuit over his extension of early voting for the November election from prominent members of his own party — including state party Chairman Allen West, Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller … Continue reading

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Another lawsuit against Abbott over emergency orders

This one is a bit more serious due to the lack of Hotze and Woodfill, but it’s still not a great way to have the debate about this issue. Five Republican Texas lawmakers are suing Gov. Greg Abbott over the … Continue reading

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Hotze versus contact tracing

We should have expected this. Conservative firebrand Steven Hotze has launched another lawsuit challenging Gov. Greg Abbott’s coronavirus response, joined by current and former lawmakers and several hundred business owners who argue the state’s contact tracing program infringes on their … Continue reading

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Hotze and pals still crying to the Supreme Court

It’s hard to keep track of it all. Houston GOP activist Steve Hotze and a coalition of business owners and conservatives have launched a legal challenge claiming Gov. Greg Abbott’s emergency orders related to the coronavirus violate the Texas Constitution. … Continue reading

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After-deadline filing review: The Lege

Now we come to the State House, which is where most of the action will be in 2020. In 2018, much of the energy and focus was on Congressional races, to the point where some hand-wringing articles were written about … Continue reading

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There’s only one solution to the anti-vax crisis

They have to be beaten at the ballot box. There’s no other way. On the South steps of the Texas Capitol, state Rep. Briscoe Cain prayed that the children standing beside him would not be mocked for their parents’ decision … Continue reading

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Precinct analysis: 2018 State House

Beto O’Rourke won 76 State House districts. Out of 150. Which is a majority. Let me say that again so it can fully sink in. BETO O’ROURKE WON 76 STATE HOUSE DISTRICTS. Remember that after the 2016 election, Democrats held … Continue reading

Posted in Election 2018 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

World’s worst pastors drop Austin equal rights lawsuit

Good. A conservative Christian organization has dropped a federal lawsuitthat sought to overturn an Austin anti-discrimination ordinance that offers employment protection based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Dave Welch, head of the Houston-based U.S. Pastor Council, said the decision was … Continue reading

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The anti-vaxxers keep on coming

Eternal vigilance, and some more problematic legislators getting booted out of office, are required. Among the new Texas proposals is an “informed consent” bill filed by state Representative Bill Zedler, an outspoken anti-vaccine member of the House Public Health Committee. Zedler drew national … Continue reading

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Can we turn the anti-vax tide in the Lege this session?

It sure would be nice, and this needs to be the primary goal. In Texas, children are required to have certain sets of vaccinations before they can be enrolled in public school – including the vaccine for measles. But parents … Continue reading

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The state of equality 2019

From Equality Texas: IN 2019, THE STATE OF EQUALITY IS: OUT OF STEP WITH TEXAS VALUES As the 2019 Texas Legislature approaches the mid-point, Equality Texas has surveyed the current state of equality and concluded that urgent legislative action is … Continue reading

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The anti-vaxxers had another good legislative session

Sure would be nice if we could put a stop to this. It was mid-April, more than halfway through the legislative session, and Texans for Vaccine Choice was finally getting the fight it had been spoiling for. On April 11, … Continue reading

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Bill to allow discrimination in adoptions and foster care passes the House

Shameful. Under House Bill 3859, which advanced on a 94-51 vote, providers would be protected from legal retaliation if they assert their “sincerely held religious beliefs” while caring for abused and neglected children. The measure would allow them to place … Continue reading

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House approves charter expansion bill SB2

A big step forward for those who would like to see more charters. Senate Bill 2 passed on a 105-34 vote on second reading. It now faces a third reading before it can be reconciled with a similar version the … Continue reading

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It’s still OK to be gay at Texas A&M

It was touch and go for awhile there. Here’s the Dallas Voice from Friday: Texas A&M Student Body President John L. Claybrook has vetoed an anti-gay bill passed by the Student Senate on Wednesday that would have allowed students to opt out … Continue reading

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House debates its budget

As you know, yesterday was Budgetpalooza in the House. The House budget puts more money into public education and less into health and human services than a Senate proposal that passed the upper chamber last month. “No one is or … Continue reading

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House defies Perry over Amazon and sales taxes

This is a pleasant surprise. Breaking with Gov. Rick Perry, the Texas House today refused to kill a provision that aims to tighten the state’s rules on when online retailers like Amazon.com must collect sales taxes. The vote could force … Continue reading

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House approves Medicaid changes

Hard to know what the effect of this will be. Texas lawmakers passed major changes to Medicaid on Wednesday that would privatize the health program in South Texas and allow the formation of health care cooperatives. The 142-page measure is … Continue reading

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Time for the biennial attack on the Travis County DA

Every two years, some Republican legislators try to kill the Public Integrity Unit of the Travis County District Attorney’s office. An amendment tacked on to the House budget bill approved last week would shift roughly $3.4 million a year from … Continue reading

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