Tag Archives: border

Butterflies versus the wall

Posted on October 21, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Go, butterflies! The National Butterfly Center in South Texas sent a certified letter to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Wednesday stating its intent to sue over the construction of a border wall on its private property. In July, Marianna … Continue reading →

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The DPS two-step

Posted on June 14, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

First, there was this. Despite a two-year budget of $2.4 billion, the Texas Department of Public Safety, with little notice, has reduced office hours at 11 of the state’s busiest driver’s license offices and plans to lay off more than … Continue reading →

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Texas Lyceum poll on immigration

Posted on April 19, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Our state has more nuanced views than you might think. The pollsters found that 62 percent of Texans said immigration helps the United States more than it hurts the country. That’s an increase from 2016, when 54 percent of the … Continue reading →

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Border walls are bad for the environment

Posted on March 11, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Not that anyone pushing for a border wall cares, but just so you know. There’s been a lot of debate about how effective the Bush-era barrier has been at keeping out illegal crossers and drug smugglers. Some data indicates the … Continue reading →

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The Observer talks to Rep. Beto O’Rourke

Posted on January 30, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

I wish this were longer, and I’d have definitely asked about how he plans to win a Senate election in 2018, if indeed he does run, but it’s worth reading nonetheless. You mentioned how incredibly expensive congressional elections have become. … Continue reading →

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Dan Patrick and the wall tax

Posted on January 28, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Hey, you know who’s going to pay for Dear Leader’s wall? You and me and everyone else in the country. The Trump administration sparked widespread surprise Thursday by announcing it intended to implement a 20 percent tax on Mexican imports … Continue reading →

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Abbott goes authoritarian

Posted on January 26, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

I suppose this shouldn’t surprise me, but it is still shocking, even in the world we now inhabit. Gov. Greg Abbott said Wednesday that he and state lawmakers will pursue legislation that would “remove from office any officeholder who promotes … Continue reading →

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The coming legislative border battle

Posted on January 14, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Here we go again. House Republicans on Wednesday said they aren’t backing away from recent efforts to secure the southern border despite an incoming president who made beefed-up immigration enforcement a hallmark of his campaign. And as a final admonishment … Continue reading →

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Fifth Circuit hears immigrant harboring lawsuit appeal

Posted on January 6, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

This time it’s the state that’s appealing a lower court ruling. A federal appeals court in New Orleans heard oral arguments Wednesday about whether a key portion of Texas’ omnibus border security bill is legal. Lawyers for the state of … Continue reading →

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Immigrant harboring law blocked

Posted on April 15, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Good. A federal judge has blocked part of the state’s omnibus border security bill that makes harboring undocumented immigrants a state crime. Under a provision of House Bill 11, which went into effect in September, a person commits a crime … Continue reading →

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MALDEF sues over provision of border bill

Posted on January 27, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Worth watching. The Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, or MALDEF, filed suit Sunday against Gov. Greg Abbott, Texas Department of Public Safety Director Steve McCraw and the Texas Public Safety Commission, which oversees the DPS. The group alleges … Continue reading →

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Senate hearings on “border security”

Posted on January 19, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Sen. Sylvia Garcia sent me the following to alert people of some Senate committee hearings of interest: Joint Committee on Border Security is Thursday, January 21 at 1pm at Capitol Extension, E1.030. This is a joint Senate & House Committee … Continue reading →

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Current trends in Texas immigration

Posted on January 1, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

More Asian, less Latino is the nickel summary. The number of Latin Americans moving to Texas from abroad and other states has dropped by almost a quarter as the amount of Asians coming here doubled, offsetting the decline and echoing … Continue reading →

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Nothing says “holiday season” like immigration raids

Posted on December 27, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

How festive. Immigration agents are planning to round up Central American families that have been ordered deported by a judge in response to an unexpected surge in children and families crossing the border in South Texas, a former high-ranking immigration … Continue reading →

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Carrizo cane and French wasps

Posted on September 13, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

I love stories like this. They’ve burned it, bulldozed it, hacked it and poisoned it. Now they want to try wasps – imported from France, no less. The target is carrizo cane, a bamboo-like reed that’s a fearsome enemy of … Continue reading →

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Immigration bills fail

Posted on June 2, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Another thing to celebrate from this session. As the sun begins to set on the 84th Texas Legislature, promises to enact tough immigration legislation remain unfulfilled. State Sen. Donna Campbell says she’s not giving up just because the last gavel … Continue reading →

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Budget passes House as most amendments get pulled

Posted on April 2, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

It was a long day in the House on Tuesday and Wednesday but not a terribly bloody one as many of the budget amendments and riders that had been queued up got withdrawn. A brief recap of the action: Border … Continue reading →

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The Senate’s opening budget

Posted on January 29, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Could be worse, I guess. Senate Finance Chairwoman Jane Nelson presented a $205.1 billion two-year base budget Tuesday morning, vowing to provide property tax cuts that Texans “actually feel” while keeping the state’s economy humming along. The Senate budget is … Continue reading →

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What’s the Lege going to do with the revenue?

Posted on December 9, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Not as much as it should, of course, because the Lege never comes close to doing as much as it should. It’s a question of whether they’ll try to address some real problems, or just engage in an orgy of … Continue reading →

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Perry’s border surge

Posted on July 22, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Stupid. Gov. Rick Perry, leaping again into the national spotlight on illegal immigration, announced Monday he is sending up to 1,000 National Guard troops to the Texas-Mexico border, where an influx of young Central Americans has overwhelmed the federal government. … Continue reading →

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The real reason we need border security

Posted on July 9, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

To protect us from these guys. Several anti-government groups – many of which participated in the standoff at Cliven Bundy’s Nevada ranch – are recruiting armed volunteers to travel to the Texas-Mexico border as a citizen militia to participate in … Continue reading →

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Special session for border security?

Posted on June 20, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

What could possibly go wrong? State Sen. Dan Patrick, the Republican candidate for lieutenant governor, joined some of his conservative colleagues on Tuesday in calling for “immediate action” to address the surge of undocumented immigrants crossing into Texas. “The Texas … Continue reading →

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Abbott’s border surge plan

Posted on February 8, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

A whole lot of not much here. Attorney General Greg Abbott, the Republican candidate for governor, said Tuesday he wants to nearly double state spending to improve security along the U.S.-Mexico border, proposing a “continuous surge” with 1,000 new boots … Continue reading →

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Outsourcing Texas border security

Posted on March 22, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

What could possibly go wrong? A little-known private defense contractor from Virginia has quietly received about $20 million under a series of no-bid contracts with the State of Texas to develop its border security strategies, an effort that included shaping … Continue reading →

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Sheriffs not sold on Arizona immigration bill

Posted on January 8, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Texas’ sheriffs are not very enthusiastic about being charged with enforcing federal immigration laws. Texas has 254 sheriffs, and while opinions vary about whether illegal immigration should be their problem, some Republicans are pushing measures that won’t give them a … Continue reading →

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Don’t fall for it, Mr. President

Posted on December 27, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I have two things to say about this. Congressional Republicans are pronouncing President Obama’s proposal that the next Congress overhaul the country’s immigration laws as dead before arrival. In his year-end news conference Wednesday, Obama said his biggest regret about … Continue reading →

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Will Texas make like Arizona?

Posted on April 29, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

If there’s been one small positive thing about the ridiculous Arizona anti-immigrant law, it’s been to remind the rest of the country that states besides Texas do crazy, inexplicable things as well. And I do believe that there’s a reason … Continue reading →

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How much would you pay for those border cameras?

Posted on April 22, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Remember all those border cameras Rick Perry wanted to install so ordinary citizens in the comfort of their living rooms could help catch people entering the country illegally? How have they worked out? Perry has invested a total of $4 … Continue reading →

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Perry’s border shenanigans

Posted on March 20, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

It’s an election year, and that means it’s time once again for Rick Perry to pay attention to Texas’ border communities, by which I mean “grandstand about drug violence”. I recommend you read these BOR posts for a sense of … Continue reading →

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Bye bye, border fence funds

Posted on October 12, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Good riddance. A provision to build an additional 300 miles of pedestrian fence along the U.S.-Mexico border has been stripped out of a $42.8 billion spending bill for the Department of Homeland Security. The provision by Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., … Continue reading →

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Corruption on the border

Posted on August 18, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Very interesting article from the AP about official corruption along the US-Mexico border. An Associated Press investigation has found U.S. law officers who work the border are being charged with criminal corruption in numbers not seen before, as drug and … Continue reading →

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Virtual border fence: Still a failure

Posted on July 14, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Our Governor in action. Gov. Rick Perry’s border Web camera program has run out of money, and in its first full year of operation failed to meet nearly every law enforcement goal. Last year, Perry gave the Texas Border Sheriffs … Continue reading →

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The border camera boondoggle blues

Posted on January 27, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Your tax dollars at work, courtesy of Governor Perry. A virtual border surveillance program Gov. Rick Perry has committed millions of taxpayer dollars to fell far short of expectations during the first six months of operation. Border sheriffs, who Perry … Continue reading →

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