Tag Archives: ethics

On filing financial disclosure reports

Posted on October 16, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Campaign finance reports aren’t the only filings that city candidates can screw up. About a quarter of the candidates running for city council seats and mayor have not provided financial disclosures to the City Secretary due in September. Twenty-three out … Continue reading →

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There’s still more Paxton stuff to investigate

Posted on June 30, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

He’s the grift that keeps on giving. The Texas House investigation into impeached Attorney General Ken Paxton has reportedly widened to include a series of property purchases he made as he faced a federal probe over allegations that he abused … Continue reading →

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Kubosh drops out of Controller’s race

Posted on June 21, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

In other city election news. Michael Kubosh, an outspoken member of Houston City Council since 2014, withdrew his candidacy for the city’s controller position Monday following a “series of health-related issues.” Kubosh, who is 72, in a news release said … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2023 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 14 Comments

That’s a lot of impeachment-related subpoenas

Posted on June 16, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Some great stuff from the DMN. The day after the Texas House voted overwhelmingly to impeach Attorney General Ken Paxton, the ethics panel investigating his alleged misdeeds issued a dozen new subpoenas that indicate their inquiry is far from over. … Continue reading →

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Of course Dan Patrick has a Ken Paxton conflict of interest

Posted on June 14, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Why wouldn’t he? Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has cast Attorney General Ken Paxton’s upcoming impeachment trial in the Senate as like a real-world courtroom, with senators sitting as jurors and Patrick serving as judge. “Would you go to a judge … Continue reading →

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The easy and obvious case against Sid Miller

Posted on September 10, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Chron business columnist Chris Tomlinson writes a 95% good column about ol’ Sid. Sid Miller appeared genuinely surprised when during floor debate over his 2011 bill requiring a sonogram before an abortion, Rep. Carol Alvarado brandished the foot-long probe a doctor would … Continue reading →

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This is why you don’t put a crook in charge of enforcing the law

Posted on July 17, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Y’all, Ken Paxton. For the past two and a half years, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has declined to sue hundreds of candidates and elected officials who altogether owe more than $700,000 to the state in unpaid fines for campaign … Continue reading →

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Ken Paxton finds a new thing to lie about

Posted on May 19, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

This counts as personal growth for him. The state police made him do it. That’s the excuse Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton gives on his Texas ethics disclosures in place of revealing, as required by law, the addresses of properties … Continue reading →

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Rules that can’t be enforced are just suggestions

Posted on April 6, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

This is ridiculous. Sugar Land Mayor Joe Zimmerman’s dual roles as a member of the Houston region’s transportation planning board and consultant at an engineering company will not receive further scrutiny by the local board after staff concluded the panel … Continue reading →

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Let the sun shine in

Posted on August 8, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Make ’em disclose. Empower Texans, the deep-pocketed conservative advocacy group, is well-known for its heavy hand in steering the Texas GOP further to the right and for its shadowy setup that hides its funding sources from the public. But a … Continue reading →

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Why not appoint newly elected Trustees to the Board of Managers?

Posted on December 5, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

It’s a perfectly reasonable question, posed recently in the Chron op-ed pages by two of those new Trustees-to-be, Judith Cruz and Dani Hernandez. As former Houston Independent School District educators, a product of HISD, and a parent in HISD, we … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2019, School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

So are there any legal consequences to the Bonnen tape?

Posted on October 17, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Probably not, but maybe a little. Does that help? It was, according to his critics, “hurtful,” “vindictive” and “unbefitting of the high office he holds.” But was House Speaker Dennis Bonnen’s June 12 meeting with conservative activist Michael Quinn Sullivan … Continue reading →

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How’s that investigation into the Bonnen-MQS kerfuffle going?

Posted on October 12, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

About how you’d expect. If recent history is any indication, House Speaker Dennis Bonnen has little to fear from a Texas Rangers investigation into allegations he offered a bribe to a conservative activist. Investigators who have delved into accusations of … Continue reading →

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HISD has a lawsuit against the TEA over that ethics investigation

Posted on August 20, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

I missed the first act of this story, but that’s okay because this is where it gets interesting. Lawyers for Houston ISD’s school board are seeking to stop the Texas Education Agency from replacing the district’s elected trustees following a … Continue reading →

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We await HISD’s fate

Posted on August 19, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

I mean, I think we know what it’s going to be, but there are still some questions. Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath came to and left the Greater Houston area Thursday without addressing one of the biggest issues on his agenda: the … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

What can the county do about ethics?

Posted on July 15, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Maybe something. Maybe not. Who can tell? Harris County Precinct 1 Commissioner Rodney Ellis has proposed two ethics reforms he says are needed to improve transparency in county government, though Texas counties’ limited rule-making power may scuttle his plan. Commissioners … Continue reading →

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How long will that TEA ethics investigation of HISD take?

Posted on April 9, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Could be months, but they don’t really know. The state investigation into allegations of Open Meetings Act and procurement violations by some Houston ISD trustees could last months, a top Texas Education Agency official said Saturday, potentially leaving the district … Continue reading →

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What’s wrong with the Permanent School Fund?

Posted on March 7, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

For starters, it should have more money in it. It was a grand promise, one our forefathers made 165 years ago to all Texas children, to theirs and ours and those not yet born. With $2 million and the state’s … Continue reading →

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The family that grifts together

Posted on February 19, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

I am utterly flabbergasted. In what state Sen. Angela Paxton describes as an effort to safely expand Texas’ burgeoning financial tech industry, the freshman Republican from McKinney has filed a bill that would empower the office of her husband, Attorney … Continue reading →

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The state of the state 2019

Posted on February 6, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Sometimes it’s what you don’t say that gets noticed. Gov. Greg Abbott, in his biennial State of the State address Tuesday, stayed on message about schools and taxes, continuing state leaders’ so far unified focus on bread-and-butter policy reforms in … Continue reading →

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Dick and Wolfe turn on each other

Posted on January 24, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Pass the popcorn. A trustee on the Harris County Department of Education board who lent money to a fellow trustee’s campaign for justice of the peace has lodged a complaint with the Texas Ethics Commission accusing him of failing to … Continue reading →

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Trying to make “pay for play” an issue

Posted on January 17, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Good luck. With more than nine months to go until Houston’s municipal elections, Mayor Sylvester Turner’s first two opponents turned their attention this week to limiting political donors’ influence at City Hall. Both challengers, millionaire lawyer and Texas A&M University … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2019 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

The Blake Farenthold Memorial Sexual Harassment Bill

Posted on December 16, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

That’s what this should be called. Less than a year after Corpus Christi Republican Blake Farenthold left Congress behind with an $84,000 settlement for sexual harassment, the House and Senate have agreed to make lawmakers pay their own misconduct judgments. … Continue reading →

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Use that mandate in Harris County

Posted on December 4, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Jay Aiyer pens an agenda for Harris County and its Democratic government. First and foremost, flood mitigation has to be at the top of any list. Harris County has taken good initial steps to improve flood control infrastructure, and the … Continue reading →

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Police raid Jared Woodfill’s office

Posted on November 13, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Oh, my. Authorities on Monday raided the law office of former Harris County Republican Party chairman Jared Woodfill. Investigators with the Harris County District Attorney’s office wheeled carts of documents from Woodfill’s office at 3 Riverway at least an hour … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Blake Farenthold is still a toad

Posted on August 21, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

In case you were wondering. A former Texas congressman had tried steering a federal contract to the owner of a business who gave him a $160,000-a-year job after the congressman resigned amid sexual harassment allegations, according to a newspaper investigation … Continue reading →

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No set-aside for Stockman

Posted on June 17, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Sorry, Stevie. A Texas federal judge has declined to set aside a jury’s conviction of former U.S. Rep. Stephen Stockman, R-Texas, who was found guilty in April of funneling what were solicited as charitable contributions into accounts that funded political … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Stockman remains in custody

Posted on June 2, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

So sorry. A federal judge ruled for the second time that former U.S. Congressman Steve Stockman is a flight risk and ordered him to remain in federal custody while he awaits sentencing in an elaborate $1.25 million fraud scheme. Chief … Continue reading →

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Stockman asks for his verdict to be set aside

Posted on May 31, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Never know till you ask, right? Attorneys representing former U.S. Rep. Stephen Stockman, R-Texas, who was found guilty in April of funneling what were solicited as charitable contributions into accounts that instead funded political campaigns and personal expenses, have asked … Continue reading →

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Blake Farenthold is a gift that keeps on giving

Posted on May 25, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Oh, Blake. Nearly a month after abruptly resigning from Congress in the wake of revelations over lewd and verbally abusive behavior, former Corpus Christi Rep. Blake Farenthold had been angling for several days to get a lobbying job at a port … Continue reading →

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Farenthold finds a trough

Posted on May 16, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

It’s the circle of life. Former Republican U.S. Rep. Blake Farenthold has accepted a lucrative position lobbying for a port in his ex-Texas district — mere weeks after resigning in disgrace amid fallout from using public funds to settle a … Continue reading →

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Farenthold tells Abbott to go pound sand

Posted on May 6, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Well, what did you expect? Blake Farenthold — a disgraced former Texas congressman who resigned last month — will not fund the special election to replace himself, he told Gov. Greg Abbott in a letter Wednesday, the Houston Chronicle reported. Abbott … Continue reading →

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Abbott wants to send Farenthold a bill for the CD27 special election

Posted on April 26, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Good luck with that. Gov. Greg Abbott is demanding that former U.S. Rep. Blake Farenthold “cover all costs” of the special election to fill his seat using the $84,000 the Corpus Christi Republican used to settle a sexual harassment claim … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2018 | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Someone needs to sue Blake Farenthold

Posted on April 18, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

That’s my response to this. Four months after U.S. Rep. Blake Farenthold promised to repay an $84,000 sexual harassment settlement funded by taxpayers — and 11 days after the Republican resigned his Corpus Christi seat — he has yet to … Continue reading →

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