Category Archives: National news

An update on election security

Posted on July 31, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Nothing to see here. Russian hackers probed election systems in all 50 states, a new Senate report confirmed Thursday. The report comes one day after former special counsel Robert Mueller told Congress that the Russian government is working to meddle … Continue reading →

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The next Census threat

Posted on July 17, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

From TPM: Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross has directed the Census Bureau to prepare to offer states the data they’d need to do a redistricting overhaul that would boost “Republicans and Non-Hispanic Whites,” in the words of a deceased GOP consultant. That … Continue reading →

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Of being “White” or “Other” on the Census

Posted on July 16, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s something I hadn’t thought about before. When Randa Kayyali reached the race and ethnicity portion of the 2010 Census, she stared at the form for a while. Her options were white, Hispanic and/or Latino, black/African-American, Asian, Native Hawaiian and … Continue reading →

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The lawsuit to kill Obamacare has its hearing at the Fifth Circuit today

Posted on July 9, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Brace yourselves. Last year, after a federal judge in Texas declared the entirety of the Affordable Care Act unconstitutional, throwing into question millions of Americans’ health coverage, the state’s Republican leaders promised they would come up with a plan to … Continue reading →

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Another cure for partisan redistricting

Posted on July 8, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

From the Brennan Center, written before SCOTUS lit a match to judicial remedies for partisan redistricting, and even more relevant now. Congressional redistricting is broken. In most states, districts are drawn by partisan lawmakers, and the manipulation of district boundaries … Continue reading →

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No Census citizenship question

Posted on July 3, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Hallelujah. The Trump administration is dropping plans to add a citizenship question to the 2020 Census, the Justice Department confirmed Tuesday just days after the Supreme Court described the rationale for the question as “contrived.” The decision to back away … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters, National news | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 19 Comments

How to rig the Census

Posted on May 31, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

This is how you would do it. The Trump administration’s controversial effort to add a citizenship question to the 2020 census was drawn up by the Republican Party’s gerrymandering mastermind, who wrote that it “would clearly be a disadvantage to … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters, National news | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 16 Comments

Who needs disaster recovery funds?

Posted on May 26, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Not this guy. A bipartisan group of Texas members of Congress will have to wait until early next month to see passage on a long-sought measure that will release more than $4 billion dollars in aid to parts of Texas … Continue reading →

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Congressional Republicans seek to halt SOS voter purge inquiry

Posted on April 16, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

I know, I’m as shocked as you are. Republicans are challenging the authority of a U.S. House panel to investigate the Texas effort to purge thousands of suspected non-citizens from voter rolls, contending in letters Monday that a recent request … Continue reading →

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Third Census lawsuit ruling against Trump administration

Posted on April 9, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Once, twice, three times an injunction. A federal judge in Maryland ruled Friday against the government’s addition of a citizenship question to the 2020 Census, The Washington Post reported Friday. Judge George J. Hazel found that in deciding last year to … Continue reading →

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Trump goes all in against health care

Posted on March 27, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Game on. The Trump administration wants the federal courts to overturn the Affordable Care Act in its entirety, an escalation of its legal assault against the health care law. The Justice Department said in a brief filed on Monday that the administration supports a … Continue reading →

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A second win for plaintiffs in Census citizenship question lawsuit

Posted on March 11, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

It’s all up to SCOTUS now. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross acted in “bad faith,” broke several laws and violated the constitutional underpinning of representative democracy when he added a citizenship question to the 2020 Census, a federal judge ruled Wednesday. In finding … Continue reading →

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Bush coins

Posted on March 3, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Feels like it’s been awhile since we’ve had a good dollar coin story. A bill introduced in the U.S. Senate would authorize the U.S. Treasury to mint $1 coins honoring former President George H.W. Bush and his wife, Barbara, for … Continue reading →

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MALDEF Census lawsuit in court

Posted on January 23, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Census lawsuit #2. In a federal courtroom in Maryland on Tuesday, lawyers representing the Mexican American Legislative Caucus, the Senate Hispanic Caucus and several Texas-based nonprofits that advocate for Latino and Asian residents will set out to convince U.S. District … Continue reading →

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What if he does it anyway?

Posted on January 18, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

That’s my question. Gov. Greg Abbott, the state’s two Republican U.S. senators and a bipartisan group of 20 U.S. House members released a letter stating their staunch opposition to raiding Texas’ hard-fought Harvey money. “Recent reports have indicated that your … Continue reading →

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Plaintiffs win in Census citizenship question lawsuit

Posted on January 16, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Very good news. A federal judge on Tuesday blocked the Trump administration’s plan to add a citizenship question to the 2020 census, with an opinion that found the move by Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross violated the Administrative Procedure Act. Furman’s … Continue reading →

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It’s always possible to make a border wall proposal stupider

Posted on January 14, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s Exhibit A. An emergency Trump administration plan to tap storm protection funds to pay for a border wall was slammed Friday by Houston lawmakers who said it could endanger the city’s recovery from Hurricane Harvey and jeopardize the region’s … Continue reading →

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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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RIP, George H.W. Bush

Posted on December 2, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

The 41st President passed away on Friday evening. George Herbert Walker Bush, whose lone term as the 41st president of the United States ushered in the final days of the Cold War and perpetuated a family political dynasty that influenced … Continue reading →

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Who wants to protect our voting systems from hackers?

Posted on July 31, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

You would hope the answer to that question would be “everyone”, but that’s not the world we currently live in. A bipartisan group of 21 state attorneys general are demanding Congress’ assistance in protecting the 2018 election. Writing to Rep. … Continue reading →

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The status of Confederate monument removal

Posted on June 7, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

We still have a long way to go. Texas has removed the most Confederate symbols and statues in the country since 2015, according to a new Southern Poverty Law Center study. But the trend does not extend to the state … Continue reading →

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Scenes from the March For Our Lives

Posted on March 25, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

From Houston: Nearly 15,000 descended Saturday morning on downtown Houston for the city’s March For Our Lives, advocating for greater gun control in light of last month’s Florida school shooting. A mix of children and adults gathered in Houston’s Tranquility … Continue reading →

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Ted Cruz has your personal data

Posted on March 21, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Hope that doesn’t creep you out. Sen. Ted Cruz is under fire for his connections with a voter targeting firm that used data taken from 50 million Facebook users without their knowledge. The Cruz presidential campaign touted its collaboration with … Continue reading →

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Nothing to see here

Posted on March 16, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Remain calm, all is well. Next Saturday, March 24, hundreds of Texas Democratic Party activists will gather at the Austin Hyatt Regency to nominate candidates for political office in Travis County, a kick-off event leading up to the 2018 midterm … Continue reading →

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The sad fate of some giant Presidential heads

Posted on March 4, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

It is to weep. It is a peculiar sight – Ronald Reagan has a large mark on his damaged face, George Washington is missing a piece of his nose, William Taft has a stain trailing from his eye to cheek, … Continue reading →

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Don’t hold your breath waiting for Harvey aid

Posted on January 18, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Your Republican Congress, ladies and gentlemen. Republican lawmakers were hammering out a stop-gap deal Wednesday to avert a weekend government shutdown of the federal government this weekend, setting aside a long-sought disaster aid package for the victims of Hurricane Harvey … Continue reading →

Posted in Hurricane Katrina, National news | Tagged , , , , , | 11 Comments

Some pushback on Jeff Mateer

Posted on December 14, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

A small bit of sanity. Even as President Donald Trump rushes to fill federal judge openings across the nation, a top Senate Republican is urging the White House to put the brakes on an outspoken nominee from Texas. Iowa Republican … Continue reading →

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Rally against the GOP tax scam

Posted on December 4, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Are you upset about the terrible tax giveaway passed by the Senate last week? (If you aren’t, you should be.) Here’s one action you can take to channel those feelings. Rally Against Robbery! The People Fight the Tax Scam. Hosted … Continue reading →

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Rep. Al Green’s articles of impeachment

Posted on October 12, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Gauntlet thrown. U.S. Rep. Al Green, a Houston Democrat, introduced formal articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump on the House floor Wednesday during a session otherwise devoted to whistleblower protection legislation. In his argument for impeaching the president, Green … Continue reading →

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Sure would be nice if we could not kill CHIP

Posted on October 6, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Just a thought. Insurance coverage for more than 390,000 Texas children and pregnant women is in jeopardy after Congress failed to renew authorization for a federal program. Congressional authorization for the Children’s Health Insurance Program, which provides low-cost health insurance … Continue reading →

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On DACA

Posted on September 6, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

I don’t have enough words to sufficiently condemn Donald Trump’s shameful decision to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. So, I’m going to let these people to speak for me. And these people, and these people, and this … Continue reading →

Posted in La Migra, National news | Tagged , , , , | 27 Comments

The “death by a thousand cuts” strategy

Posted on July 26, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

How To Kill A Health Insurance Market, Non-Legislative Division: The move by the White House to quietly end the contracts of two companies key to assisting people enrolling for insurance under the Affordable Care Act caught Houston health advocates off … Continue reading →

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Not many states are honoring that “give us your voter data” request

Posted on July 6, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Glad to hear it. Forty-four states and the District of Columbia have refused to provide certain types of voter information to the Trump administration’s election integrity commission, according to a CNN inquiry to all 50 states. State leaders and voting … Continue reading →

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Texas will turn over some voter info to Trump vote “fraud” commission

Posted on July 2, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

I have three things to say about this: Texas will hand over personal information of the state’s more than 15 million voters to President Donald Trump’s commission that is looking into voter fraud. Secretary of State Rolando Pablos said his … Continue reading →

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