Category Archives: National news

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 → Continue reading →

Yesterday was a lot of fun, wasn’t it? (Well, for most of us, anyway.) I suspect there was a pretty big dip in productivity right around 11 AM at most workplaces. But now that the pomp is over, it’s time … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Good news from Washington. The House of Representatives [yesterday] approved a major expansion of federally funded health coverage for children, kicking off what Democrats hope will be a historic legislative campaign this year to overhaul the nation’s healthcare system. The … Continue reading → Continue reading →

My cousin Jill, who has been working on making changes to the Consumer Protection and Safety Act (CPSIA) that will be less onerous to small businesses that make toys and children’s products, points me to this open letter to artisans … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Just to follow up on my earlier post about the Handmade Toy Alliance and their efforts to modify the Consumer Protection and Safety Act (CPSIA) from last year, here’s a story my cousin Jill’s local paper ran about her business … Continue reading → Continue reading →

My cousin Jill runs a small business that makes baby toys and accessories – she sent us a handmade bib and diaper-change pad that we got a lot of use out of when Olivia was born. Recently, she’s been active … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Dear President-elect Obama, When you take office (in 20 days, not that I’m counting or anything), please make sure that one of the first things you do is to order that lawsuits filed by Homeland Security to take land to … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Seems to be a growth industry in that town. A former Farmers Branch City Council member filed a lawsuit against the city Wednesday, asking a state district judge in Dallas to order the city to turn over invoices for legal … Continue reading → Continue reading →

El Paso joins the lawsuit brigade against the border fence. In asking the court to review a lawsuit previously dismissed by a federal court judge, lawyers for El Paso County contend that U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff overstepped his … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Bummer. There are no signs yet of a nationwide abandonment of recycling programs. But industry executives say that after years of growth, the whole system is facing an abrupt slowdown. Many large recyclers now say they are accumulating tons of … Continue reading → Continue reading →

While I’m sorry that Rick Noriega will not get the job as Secretary of Veterans Affairs, I certainly can’t argue with the selection of Gen. Eric Shinseki, who has displayed remarkable courage and foresight throughout his career. I’m glad to … Continue reading → Continue reading →

An update on the Noriega for Cabinet story: The Congressional Hispanic Caucus, frustrated that just one Latino has been picked for Barack Obama’s Cabinet to date, is pushing Houston state Rep. Rick Noriega and 13 other prominent Hispanics for the … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Waaaaaah! Preparing for a new administration in Washington, Gov. Rick Perry said Tuesday that regulating greenhouse gas emissions would have “devastating implications” for Texas’ economy and energy industry. Although the Bush administration has rejected such regulation, President-elect Barack Obama is … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Okay, look. This sort of thing doesn’t bother me. Daniel Pue is one of 14 people — including two other Texans — who received a pardon from the outgoing president on Monday. Daniel Pue by no means will go down … Continue reading → Continue reading →

This would be excellent if it happens. State Rep. Rick Noriega of Houston, the unsuccessful U.S. Senate candidate who served in Afghanistan and on the Mexican border as a Texas Army National Guard officer, met with President-elect Barack Obama today … Continue reading → Continue reading →

You ever get the feeling that the border fence just wasn’t a very good idea? Yeah, me too. The federal government has completed just a half-mile section of the 110 miles of pedestrian border fence promised along the Texas-Mexico border. … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Former Texas State Demographer Steve Murdock, now the director of the US Census, sounds an alarm about that upcoming tasks. Fear of the government in some communities after the Sept. 11 attacks and years of debate over immigration policy could … Continue reading → Continue reading →

So DPS wants to prevent undocumented immigrants from driving. Good luck with that. In a clampdown on illegal immigrants, the Texas Department of Public Safety has adopted a new policy requiring noncitizens to prove they are in this country legally … Continue reading → Continue reading →

By the way, amid all the bailout and debate drama last week, the border fence got the extra money it needed to make up for its budget shortfall. The Observer, which continues to do great reporting on this story, has … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Could be. Farmers Branch officials are backing away from vows to go as far as the U.S. Supreme Court to defend a voter-approved ban on apartment rentals to illegal immigrants. The city instead is relying on a replacement ordinance designed … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The perils of premature credit-taking. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and his top aides took credit for building a winning bailout coalition – hours before the vote failed and stocks tanked. The rush to claim he had engineered a victory now … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I would have thought that something “bad” was, by definition, not an asset. Clearly, I am naive in the ways of the financial markets. Fortunately, I have sites like this to help me figure it all out. With our economy … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I don’t follow the national stories that much around here, as you know. And I certainly don’t claim to have any deep understanding of the crisis in the financial markets, or what should be done from here to make sure … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The following comes from my neighbor Cathy Courtney, who so kindly helped me run the caucus in Precinct 003 after the March primary: RALLY for Health Care Reform! Saturday October 4th, 2008, 4pm-6pm Houston City Hall Increase awareness about Single … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Is it just me, or is the main business of Farmers Branch these days defending itself against lawsuits? Latino advocates and a civil liberties group are suing a Dallas suburb whose officials want to oust illegal immigrants by checking the … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Back in May, a federal appeals court ruled that the U.S. discriminates against blind people by printing paper money that makes it impossible for them to distinguish among the bills’ varying values. Now a judge on that court has told … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Everything the Bush administration has touched has been a screwup. Why should the border fence be any different? The Bush administration needs an extra $400 million to complete its fence along the country’s southwestern border, and government investigators say that … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Here we go again. Opponents of a Dallas suburb’s latest effort to drive away illegal immigrants asked a federal judge Monday to restrain Farmers Branch officials from enforcing a ban on rental housing to people who can’t prove they are … Continue reading → Continue reading →

That headline sounds more apocalyptic than I intend for it to be, but it’s just a reference to the fact that U.S. District Court Judge Sam Lindsay entered a final judgment striking down Ordinance 2903, the law in Farmers Branch … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I just have one question about this: After a barrage of consumer complaints, the government is banning phone calls of recorded sales messages unless consumers agree to receive the calls. The Federal Trade Commission also announced that by December all … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Whoda thunk it? In the weeks since Immigration and Customs Enforcement director Julie Myers revealed in a TV interview that officials were planning to offer a new “self-deportation” program, the story has been picked up by media outlets worldwide. ICE … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Gardner Selby asks an impolite question: I may have exasperated an aide to U.S. Sen. John Cornyn of Texas the other day by asking if Cornyn did more than speak against senators taking a break. Cornyn’s office had ballyhooed his … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Julia Child and the OSS. Who would have guessed? Famed chef Julia Child shared a secret with Supreme Court Justice Arthur Goldberg and Chicago White Sox catcher Moe Berg at a time when the Nazis threatened the world. They served … Continue reading → Continue reading →