Category Archives: Scandalized!

The Bonnen-MQS saga makes the Times

Posted on August 20, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Gotta love it when our little intramural squabbles go national. In Texas, they are calling it the case of “The Speaker and the Creeper.” The political imbroglio started last month, when Michael Quinn Sullivan, a conservative pit bull who routinely … Continue reading →

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Rep. Dustin Burrows steps down as House GOP Caucus Chair

Posted on August 18, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Noted for the record. State Rep. Dustin Burrows of Lubbock has resigned as chair of the Texas House GOP Caucus, according to two people familiar with the matter. Burrows’ departure comes amid allegations that he and House Speaker Dennis Bonnen … Continue reading →

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Here come the Rangers

Posted on August 13, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

I don’t know where this is going to go, but it sure will be fun getting there. The Texas House General Investigating Committee voted Monday to request that the Texas Rangers look into allegations against House Speaker Dennis Bonnen and … Continue reading →

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Will Ken Paxton ever be prosecuted?

Posted on June 20, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

At this point, I’d have to say it’s very unlikely. After mulling the question for nearly six months, the nine Republican judges on Texas’ highest criminal court will not reconsider their 2018 ruling that threatens to imperil the criminal case … 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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SJL accused of retaliation against staffer

Posted on January 25, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Not good. Houston Democrat Sheila Jackson Lee, under fire from a former aide’s lawsuit alleging she was fired in connection with a sexual assault complaint, said Wednesday that she will step down temporarily as chairwoman of a key House Judiciary … Continue reading →

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Ron Reynolds released

Posted on January 7, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Good for him. State Rep. Ron Reynolds was released Friday from the Montgomery County Jail after serving nearly four months of his yearlong sentence — just days before the 86th Legislature kicks off in Austin. The Missouri City Democrat, who … 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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One Stockman aide sentenced

Posted on December 14, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

He cooperated. A federal judge Wednesday sentenced an ex-GOP congressional aide to prison for 18 months for helping former U.S. Rep. Steve Stockman illegally pilfer $1.25 million in campaign funds from wealthy Republican political donors. Thomas Dodd, a 40-year-old Houstonian, … Continue reading →

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Ron Reynolds reports to jail

Posted on September 8, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

We’ll see how long a year lasts. State Rep. Ron Reynolds has turned himself in to authorities in Montgomery County to begin serving his year-long jail sentence. Reynolds, a Democrat from Missouri City, was convicted in 2015 on misdemeanor charges … Continue reading →

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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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Culberson’s continued stock problems

Posted on August 9, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Oopsie. Two members of Congress from Texas — Republican U.S. Reps. Mike Conaway of Midland and John Culberson of Houston — purchased stock in a company last year that is now at the center of insider trading charges against one … Continue reading →

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Uresti gets 12 years

Posted on June 28, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Harsh, but hardly unfair. Standing before a federal judge in a San Antonio courtroom on Tuesday afternoon, former state Sen. Carlos Uresti was contrite. “I truly feel remorseful, ashamed, disappointed, disgraced, angry at myself and sad,” Uresti told the court, … Continue reading →

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Carlos Uresti resigns

Posted on June 19, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

About fscking time. Finally heeding calls from his colleagues on both sides of the aisle, state Sen. Carlos Uresti announced his resignation Monday, four months after he was found guilty of 11 felonies. The news comes just over a week … 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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Sid Miller and the unqualified creep

Posted on April 14, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

I missed this when it came out last Friday, and now that I’ve seen it I wish I was still blissfully ignorant of it. Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller in late 2016 appointed to the state’s Rural Health Task Force … Continue reading →

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Stockman trial: Off to the jury

Posted on April 10, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Please return a verdict. The defense team for former U.S. Congressman Steve Stockman told jurors Monday the ex- GOP lawmaker did not plot a massive fraud scheme, but said the government should have targeted two wealthy conservative donors for making … Continue reading →

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Stockman trial update: Defense rests

Posted on April 7, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

And we’re done. The defense rested its case Thursday in ex-GOP congressman Steve Stockman’s federal campaign fraud trial, after calling only two witnesses who together testified for less than an hour. The former Republican lawmaker from Clear Lake told the … Continue reading →

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Stockman trial update: The prosecution abides

Posted on April 5, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

From Monday: The second of two key government witnesses took the stand late Monday in Houston in the federal fraud trial of former U.S. Congressman Steve Stockman, telling jurors his main duty on the ex-lawmaker’s staff was to “just do … Continue reading →

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Stockman trial update: Tanning salons and dolphin boat rides

Posted on April 1, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

I love this trial so much. It’s the gift that keeps on giving, about the grifter we all deserve. Former U.S. Congressman Steve Stockman spent $450,000 in charitable funds from an East Coast philanthropist on personal expenses including dolphin boat … Continue reading →

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JP Hilary Green resigns

Posted on March 31, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Wise decision. The Harris County justice of the peace accused of paying prostitutes for sex, abusing drugs while on the bench and sexting a bailiff officially resigned this week – although her attorney says it has nothing to do with … Continue reading →

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The prosecution keeps piling on Steve Stockman

Posted on March 29, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

From Monday: A fundraising director who quit and returned most of his salary after four days as an employee of ex-U.S. Congressman Steve Stockman characterized the work environment as “horrific” for Washington, D.C., interns, according to his testimony in the … Continue reading →

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The Stockman trial gets weird

Posted on March 24, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

I mean, with Steve Stockman you have to expect some weird crap, but I didn’t see this coming. The American Phoenix Foundation — a now-defunct conservative activist groupknown for attempting undercover stings of lawmakers and lobbyists — planted an intern in … Continue reading →

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Stockman trial update

Posted on March 23, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

From Tuesday: “This case is the story of how the defendant over the course of four years exploited the trust and charity of others to pull off a massive scam,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Heberle, of the Justice Department’s public … Continue reading →

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Steve Stockman’s trial has begun

Posted on March 20, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Hope you have your popcorn ready. A year after he was charged with running a wide-ranging scheme to divert charitable donations to pay for campaign and personal expenses, former U.S. Rep. Steve Stockman is scheduled to begin a month-long trial … Continue reading →

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Stockman’s trial set to start

Posted on March 11, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Get ready. Former U.S. Congressman Steve Stockman stood before a federal judge in a mostly empty Houston courtroom Friday and confirmed he wants a jury to decide if he diverted nearly $1.25 million in charitable donations intended for conservative organizations. … Continue reading →

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Just so we’re clear, Sen. Carlos Uresti needs to resign

Posted on March 2, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Any time soon works for me. Last Thursday, a jury convicted Uresti, who represents Senate District 19, on 11 felony counts, including fraud and money laundering, for his work with a defunct frac-sand company. In addition, he has a separate … Continue reading →

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Sen. Uresti convicted on fraud charges

Posted on February 23, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Time to resign. The courtroom was silent and thick with anxiety Thursday morning as the judge’s deputy read the verdicts: “Guilty,” “guilty,” “guilty” — 11 times over, and on all felony counts. State Sen. Carlos Uresti sat stone-faced, his gaze … Continue reading →

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Chris Oliver gets sentenced

Posted on January 9, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Goodbye. A former Houston Community College trustee was sentenced to nearly six years in prison on Monday after a judge said he accepted more than a quarter million dollars in bribes in exchange for his influence over contract work with … Continue reading →

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No Paxton trial till prosecutor pay case resolved

Posted on January 3, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

It’s not on the court calendar at this time. Attorney General Ken Paxton’s fraud trials have been put on hold as the lawyers pursuing the criminal charges against him fight for years of back pay. Judge Robert Johnson has taken … Continue reading →

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CCA to review Paxton prosecutors pay case

Posted on December 21, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Good. The state’s highest criminal court agreed Wednesday to take a closer look at prosecutors’ long-running fight to get paid for their handling of the securities fraud case against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. The move by the state’s Court … Continue reading →

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You can’t legislate from jail

Posted on December 17, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

That’s the Ron Reynolds story. There’s a chance state Rep. Ron Reynolds could be sentenced to serve a year in jail next year. If that happens, he wouldn’t have to resign, according to state officials. The Houston-area Democrat recently lost … Continue reading →

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Farenthold changes course

Posted on December 15, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Sort of. U.S. Rep. Blake Farenthold, R-Corpus Christi, will retire from Congress after finishing his current term, a source close to the congressman told The Tribune Thursday morning. Farenthold soon confirmed the decision in an emotional video posted on Facebook.The … Continue reading →

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So now that names have been named, now what?

Posted on December 11, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Maybe some hearings? I don’t know. Texas leaders called for a review of sexual harassment policies at the state Legislature following a Texas Tribune story detailing how current procedures offered little protection for victims and describing a wide range of harassment at the … Continue reading →

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