Tag Archives: Rick Perry

What to expect from the DACA announcement

Posted on November 20, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

So today is the long-awaited, should-have-happened-months-ago announcement of executive action by President Obama on immigration enforcement and deportation. Stace, the Observer, and Politico have good overviews of what to expect. I personally hope Obama goes big, but whatever he does … Continue reading →

Posted in La Migra | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

McCrum avoids contempt charge

Posted on November 19, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Whew. Mike McCrum, the special prosecutor in the criminal case against Gov. Rick Perry, was cleared Monday of an attempt to find him in contempt of court stemming from a separate case. Visiting Judge Dick Alcala declined to find McCrum, … Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on McCrum avoids contempt charge

Bell ordered to pay $300K to RGA

Posted on November 19, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Ouch. Unsuccessful 2006 Democratic gubernatorial candidate Chris Bell, once awarded $2 million in his lawsuit against the Republican Governors Association, has instead been ordered to pay the organization $300,000 in legal fees after losing on appeal. The case dates to … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2006 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Bell ordered to pay $300K to RGA

While we wait for a ruling in the Rick Perry case

Posted on November 17, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

This story about a group of big-name lawyers filing a brief in support of Rick Perry’s motion to dismiss the charges against him ran a week ago. I put off writing about it because it looked like we might get … Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

The privilege of voting

Posted on November 16, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

It’s not a right if you aren’t allowed to do it. A day before Texans go to the polls, an unusual group gathered for lunch at a Mexican restaurant not far from downtown: an unemployed African-American grandmother; a University of … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2014 | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Even Rick Perry appointees back Medicaid expansion

Posted on November 15, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

It’s just the right thing to do. A board of medical professionals appointed by Gov. Rick Perry said Wednesday that the state should provide health coverage to low-income Texans under the Affordable Care Act — a move the Republican-led Legislature … Continue reading →

Posted in Show Business for Ugly People | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Even Rick Perry appointees back Medicaid expansion

Perry’s first day in court

Posted on November 8, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Hopefully not his last, but that’s up to the judge at this time. Gov. Rick Perry appeared in court Thursday to watch his attorneys, armed with plenty of theater, try to convince a judge that the prosecutor pursuing abuse-of-power charges … Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

McCrum responds to Perry’s motions

Posted on November 5, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Another story to distract us from the election results. Special prosecutor Michael McCrum filed court papers on Monday, saying the governor, who was indicted for abuse of office, shouldn’t have access to grand jury testimony because he could intimidate witnesses. … Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on McCrum responds to Perry’s motions

Perry has a court date

Posted on October 15, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Happy Halloween, Rick. Visiting Judge Bert Richardson of San Antonio on Monday set the appearance for Oct. 31. Richardson also gave special prosecutor Michael McCrum until Nov. 7 to respond to two motions to quash the case. Richardson had excused … Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Perry has a court date

Complaint against McCrum dropped

Posted on October 13, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Good. Travis County Attorney David Escamilla said Wednesday he has looked into recent allegations by a Houston attorney against the special prosecutor in the case against Gov. Rick Perry and will not investigate further. Escamilla said he found no evidence … Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Complaint against McCrum dropped

Perry’s lawyers are earning their paychecks

Posted on October 6, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

You never know what might stick when you throw everything you’ve got at the wall. Lawyers for Gov. Rick Perry on Friday filed a request to dismiss the indictment against the governor, saying paperwork needed to properly swear in the … Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Perry’s lawyers are earning their paychecks

Abbott’s Enterprise Fund issues

Posted on September 30, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

It’s a bit of a problem for him, isn’t it? While critics were hounding Gov. Rick Perry a decade ago about his job-luring Texas Enterprise Fund, his lawyers went to Attorney General Greg Abbott to block the release of applications … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2014, Scandalized! | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Perry doesn’t have to show up at his court hearing

Posted on September 29, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

He’s excused this time. But don’t push it. Gov. Rick Perry does not have to appear at an Oct. 13 court hearing in his case, but that does not mean he has a pass to skip all future hearings, Visiting … Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Perry doesn’t have to show up at his court hearing

McCrum slaps back at Perry

Posted on September 25, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Interesting legal strategy. The special prosecutor in the criminal case against Rick Perry said Tuesday that the governor is asking for “special favors” and that his activities, including a rally when he was booked, are making a mockery of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on McCrum slaps back at Perry

McCrum asks for help

Posted on September 22, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Because many against one is not a fair fight. The special prosecutor in the case against Gov. Rick Perry is asking for some help. San Antonio lawyer Michael McCrum, who guided the case to last month’s indictment, filed a motion … Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

On polls and turnout

Posted on September 15, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

So as you know, the latest YouGov poll came out on Friday, and it was ugly for Wendy Davis, showing an 18-point lead for Greg Abbott. PDiddie was despondent, EoW was trying to keep the faith, and Texpatriate was somewhere … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2014 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on On polls and turnout

Perry’s lawyers ask again for indictments to be tossed

Posted on September 10, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Stop me if you’ve heard this one before. Attorneys for Gov. Rick Perry, indicted last month on charges related to his veto threat of money for the Travis County District Attorney’s office, have filed another request for a judge to … Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Perry’s lawyers ask again for indictments to be tossed

The best coverage of the voter ID trial

Posted on September 8, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

You want to know what’s going on with the voter ID trial, which enters its second and likely final week today, go check out the Brennan Center for Justice, which has daily coverage that would put any newspaper to shame. … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on The best coverage of the voter ID trial

Complaint filed against Whitmire

Posted on September 5, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I think this is more a political stunt than anything else, but we’ll see. A conservative group has filed a criminal complaint against state Sen. John Whitmire, accusing him of coercion in an exchange of text messages with University of … Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Complaint filed against Whitmire

Now how much would you pay for Rick Perry’s lawyers?

Posted on September 1, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

The tab has gone up. Gov. Rick Perry has billed taxpayers $133,000 to hire several lawyers to defend him against public corruption allegations, his office confirmed Friday. That’s more lawyers and more state money spent than previously disclosed. After Perry … Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Now how much would you pay for Rick Perry’s lawyers?

More about TPJ

Posted on August 29, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron profiles Texans for Public Justice, the group that filed the complaint that led to Rick Perry’s indictments. [Craig] McDonald’s Texans for Public Justice, which operates out of a small office west of the University of Texas-Austin campus and … Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on More about TPJ

Rick Perry was actively searching for Rosemary Lehmberg’s replacement

Posted on August 26, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

The plot thickens. Gov. Rick Perry personally called a well-known Austin Democrat to discuss her interest in replacing Travis County District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg days before the public learned Perry was threatening to withhold state funding from Lehmberg’s office unless … Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Rick Perry was actively searching for Rosemary Lehmberg’s replacement

Shine a light on dark money

Posted on August 26, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I totally favor this. Secret campaign donors in Texas may soon be forced out of the shadows. The Texas Ethics Commission, already fighting a conservative group in court over whether it can regulate dark money disclosure, appears poised to approve … Continue reading →

Posted in Show Business for Ugly People | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Shine a light on dark money

Perry’s legal team to try to get indictments tossed

Posted on August 25, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

It’s what any defense attorney would try to do. A lawyer for Gov. Rick Perry said Friday he will challenge felony charges that the governor overstepped his authority when he said he would veto state funding for Travis County prosecutors … Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Perry’s legal team to try to get indictments tossed

LVdP for Medicaid expansion

Posted on August 24, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

No surprise here. Democratic state Sen. Leticia Van de Putte vowed to overturn Republican opposition to expanding the state’s Medicaid program under the Affordable Care Act if elected lieutenant governor, saying the state should act to protect poor, uninsured adults. … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2014 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on LVdP for Medicaid expansion

Perry will pay for his own defense

Posted on August 22, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Wise decision, something our Governor is not known for. Gov. Rick Perry, who has been using taxpayer dollars to pay his defense lawyers, will tap campaign funds from now on to compensate the attorneys who are fighting his felony indictments, … Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Perry will pay for his own defense

Possibly the last thing I’m going to say about the Perry indictment for now

Posted on August 20, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Certainly not the last thing I’ll ever say, since there’s a vast amount of the story left to be told, and I reserve the right to change my mind. But for now, since the indictment came down on Friday there’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Look behind the scenes

Posted on August 19, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

There’s another angle to consider the Perry indictment saga, which is that the indictment isn’t so much about what Rick Perry said publicly regarding Rosemary Lehmberg and the Public Integrity Unit but what he was saying behind the scenes. Erica … Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Look behind the scenes

On Mike McCrum and Pa Ferguson

Posted on August 18, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

There were two stories from Sunday about special prosecutor Mike McCrum that were worth flagging. First, here’s the Express News with an angle that I think has been underappreciated. People who know McCrum said he is not the type to … Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

More on the Perry indictment

Posted on August 17, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Just some more thoughts and links relating to the big story that turned a relatively quiet Friday into one of the busiest news day of the year so far. Let’s start with a reality check from Harold Cook. First of … Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Just a reminder: Medicaid expansion is still a great deal

Posted on August 17, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

But only if you do it. We learned late last week that the decision by 24 states to reject Obamacare’s Medicaid expansion comes as a startling cost — $423.6 billion in lost federal funds from 2013 to 2022, according to … Continue reading →

Posted in National news | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Just a reminder: Medicaid expansion is still a great deal

Perry indicted

Posted on August 16, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Wow. A grand jury indicted Gov. Rick Perry on Friday on charges of abuse of power and coercion as part of an ethics inquiry into his veto of funding for the state’s public integrity unit. The inquiry began last summer … Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Abbott does one last solid for Perry

Posted on August 15, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

He lets him keep his little secrets. After critics raised a stink about the tax dollars being spent to provide security for Gov. Rick Perry while he was gearing up to run for president, lawmakers passed a bill in 2011 … Continue reading →

Posted in Show Business for Ugly People | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Abbott does one last solid for Perry

Wait, there’s another special Senate election coming up?

Posted on August 12, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Yes, there is. And you thought (okay, I had thought) SD04 was the last election till November. The field is taking shape for the special election next month in Senate District 28, with at least five people announcing they’re running … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2014 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment