Author Archives: Charles Kuffner

Interview with CM Sallie Alcorn

Posted on September 14, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

There are three open At Large Council seats this year, which means there are two incumbents running for re-election. Council Member Sallie Alcorn is the incumbent in At Large #5, serving as the chair of the Regulatory and Neighborhood Affairs … Continue reading →

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Connecting Buffalo Bayou Park and Memorial Park

Posted on September 14, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I approve of this. Two popular Houston parks may finally be bridged together after Harris County Precinct 4 unveiled a $13.5 million Buffalo Bayou Greenway Connector project to join the recreation areas. Harris County Commissioner Lesley Briones announced $170 million … Continue reading →

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More on the HISD District of Innovation pursuit

Posted on September 14, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Some good stuff from the Chron. Houston ISD took the first step Thursday in the process to be a District of Innovation, a move that would allow it to seek exemptions to several state laws. To become a DOI, an … Continue reading →

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Texas blog roundup for the week of September 11

Posted on September 14, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

The Texas Progressive Alliance wishes a happy start of the football season to those who celebrate (and peace and football-free weekends to those who don’t) as it brings you this week’s roundup.

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Interview with CM Abbie Kamin

Posted on September 13, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

We take a brief diversion from the At Large races today to have a conversation with Council Member Abbie Kamin, the incumbent in District C. A civil rights attorney who served the Associate Regional Director of the Anti-Defamation League’s Southwest … Continue reading →

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Impeachment trial, Week 2: This could actually be the end

Posted on September 13, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

They’re on the clock. The clock is quite literally running down on the impeachment trial of suspended Attorney General Ken Paxton. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick on Monday morning told the Texas Senate — which is serving as the jury — … Continue reading →

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The fight over abortion access in New Mexico

Posted on September 13, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Great story from the AP. The sanctuary in Grace Covenant Reformed Church was packed. People stood shoulder to shoulder wherever they could — near the stained glass windows depicting scenes from the Bible, behind the neatly lined rows of chairs … Continue reading →

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Interview with Melanie Miles

Posted on September 12, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Continuing on in At Large #1 we have Melanie Miles, a board-certified family law attorney and member of the Harris County Sheriff’s Civil Service Commission. Miles has a degree in computer information systems and worked as a systems engineer for … Continue reading →

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The lawsuit over the omnibus voter suppression law has begun

Posted on September 12, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Settle in, this will take awhile. Two years after voting rights groups challenged Texas Republicans’ sweeping overhaul of its voting and election laws, the case comes to trial Monday in a federal court in San Antonio. The lengthy roster of … Continue reading →

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Two Controller candidates favor Fair for Houston

Posted on September 12, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

The third is Orlando Sanchez. A ballot measure seeking to increase Houston and Harris County representation on regional councils is getting support from city controller candidates. Chris Hollins, the former Harris County Clerk, expressed his support for the measure Wednesday. … Continue reading →

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Interview with Leah Wolfthal

Posted on September 11, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

As I said last week, most of the action is in the At Large races, where there are three open seats and a lot of candidates. There are six candidates in At Large #1, including a current HISD Trustee that … Continue reading →

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Rep. Carl Sherman enters Senate primary

Posted on September 11, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Crowded in here all of a sudden. State Rep. Carl Sherman, D-DeSoto, announced Saturday he is running for U.S. Senate, becoming the latest Democrat to launch a campaign to challenge Republican Sen. Ted Cruz. Sherman, a pastor, jumped in the … Continue reading →

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That other high speed rail line is moving along

Posted on September 11, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Hadn’t heard about this in awhile, but it’s now clearing some key regulatory obstacles. A high-speed rail line from Fort Worth to Dallas is moving “full steam ahead” and could be ready even before the proposed Dallas-Houston line that received … Continue reading →

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Weekend link dump for September 10

Posted on September 10, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

“But another major Giuliani development has drawn less attention: An FBI whistleblower filed a statement asserting that Giuliani “may have been compromised” by Russian intelligence while working as a lawyer and adviser to Trump during the 2020 campaign.” “Domain names … Continue reading →

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First week of impeachment ends

Posted on September 10, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I will state upfront that I followed the impeachment trial from a bit of remove. There’s still a lot going on elsewhere, and thanks to the massive amounts of data dropped during discovery, there really hasn’t been anything new or … Continue reading →

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Houston to fund database to track gun violence

Posted on September 10, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

This is a good thing. A data project to track gun injuries will receive city funding as trauma centers across Houston saw a steady increase in firearm injury victims in recent years, but lacked a systematic way to report the … Continue reading →

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The Pat Walsh Memorial Bikeway

Posted on September 10, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I love this. Friends remember Pat Walsh as someone who saw the big picture of what Houston could be, and the little details necessary to get a massive city bureaucracy headed in the right direction. Now they want the former … Continue reading →

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“District of innovation”

Posted on September 9, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

We’ll see what this means. Houston ISD’s state-appointed school board unanimously voted Thursday to begin the process of becoming a “District of Innovation,” a move that could ultimately allow the district to extend the school year for students and teachers. … Continue reading →

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Ken Paxton’s sleaze goes beyond his (alleged) crimes and misdemeanors

Posted on September 9, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Just a reminder, in case you needed it. When Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton held a news conference in May decrying state lawmakers’ anticipated vote to impeach him, he framed the decision as not only a threat to his political … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: For the proposition allowing Council members to put an item on the agenda

Posted on September 9, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I didn’t think we’d begin Endorsement Season with a charter referendum, but here we are. This is no way to run a representative democracy in the nation’s fourth-biggest city. Thankfully, Houstonians have an opportunity to change that in this year’s … Continue reading →

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Dispatches from Dallas, September 9 edition

Posted on September 9, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

This is a weekly feature produced by my friend Ginger. Let us know what you think. This week, in news from Dallas-Fort Worth, we have a lot of business. We start with coverage of the Ken Paxton trial. Then we … Continue reading →

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Interview with CM Tarsha Jackson

Posted on September 8, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

It’s more than fair to say that first-term District B Council Member Tarsha Jackson had a long, strange trip to electoral success Even then there were still things that happened, but she made it in the end. Jackson is a … Continue reading →

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All candidates should support repealing the revenue cap

Posted on September 8, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Long overdue to get rid of the stupid thing. The Gulf Coast AFL-CIO released a platform for City Hall on Saturday that calls for eliminating Houston’s property tax revenue cap and avoiding worker layoffs. The union has endorsed state Sen. … Continue reading →

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Isaiah Martin to run for CD18

Posted on September 8, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

The primary is now officially contested regardless of what happens in the Mayor’s race. Isaiah Martin, a University of Houston graduate who has been volunteering for Democrat Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee’s mayoral campaign, launched a campaign Wednesday for her congressional … Continue reading →

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Interview with Joaquin Martinez

Posted on September 7, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Moving over to District I, there’s a two candidate race to succeed term-limited (and Mayoral candidate) Council Member Robert Gallegos. One of those candidates has no web presence and has filed no finance reports. The other is Joaquin Martinez, who … Continue reading →

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Nueces County DA announces Senate candidacy

Posted on September 7, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Okay. The embattled district attorney for Nueces County, Mark Gonzalez, announced Tuesday that he will enter the Democratic primary to challenge U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas. By announcing his campaign, Gonzalez resigned his current position — a significant development given … Continue reading →

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The push to make driving out of state for an abortion a crime

Posted on September 7, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Take a deep cleansing breath. Have a few sips of your favorite relaxing beverage. Settle into a nice, comfy chair. Then, when you’re feeling calm and collected and your blood pressure is under control and you think you can handle … Continue reading →

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Texas blog roundup for the week of September 4

Posted on September 7, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

The Texas Progressive Alliance wishes everyone a happy and less heat-dome-y unofficial end of the summer as it brings you this week’s roundup.

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Interview with Cynthia Reyes-Revilla

Posted on September 6, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

There are five candidates running for the open District H seat on Council, but only two of them had raised any money as of July or shown much in the way of campaign activity. As such, I will conclude my … Continue reading →

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Paxton’s motions to dismiss rejected

Posted on September 6, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

We’re off to a good start. The Texas Senate on Tuesday rejected all of Attorney General Ken Paxton’s efforts to dismiss the articles of impeachment against him, moving forward with the first removal proceeding against a statewide elected official in … Continue reading →

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The HCC races have already been decided

Posted on September 6, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

All three races are uncontested. Houston Community College Trustee Elections 2023 The following candidates filed an Application for a Place on the Ballot for the November 7, 2023, HCC Trustee Elections (listed in district order): District IV Laolu Davies-Yemitan (Unopposed) … Continue reading →

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Website issues mostly fixed

Posted on September 6, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I’m sure you noticed that the website looked funky all of a sudden for a few weeks, and now it has a different look that has brought back the right sidebar. It’s still not perfect, but it definitely looks better. … Continue reading →

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Interview with Mario Castillo

Posted on September 5, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

We move on to City Council races now. This is a weird year in that only six of the sixteen Council seats are open – 2027 is gonna be crazy, y’all – with most of the fierce action in the … Continue reading →

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Hervis Rogers again cleared of voting charge

Posted on September 5, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

What the hell, man? District Attorney Kim Ogg’s prosecutors quietly reviewed a voter fraud allegation against Hervis Rogers — the Houston parolee who waited six hours to vote in the February 2020 presidential primary — nearly a year after illegal … Continue reading →

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