Category Archives: Show Business for Ugly People

The state of the Democratic bench

Posted on August 25, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

It’s deeper now, and it could keep getting deeper after this year. The speaking turns may have been brief and the spotlight not as bright, but Texas Democrats got a glimpse at their national convention this week of their emerging … Continue reading →

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Why wouldn’t Dems attack Abbott for his COVID response?

Posted on August 24, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

I am puzzled by the premise of this article. As the Democratic National Convention opened on Monday, former First Lady Michelle Obama condemned President Donald Trump for having downplayed the coronavirus pandemic and scenes flashed throughout the night from Houston, … Continue reading →

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Dan Patrick’s Confederate posturing

Posted on August 23, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Whatever else you can say about Dan Patrick, he’s always on brand. n response to a letter by Democratic state senators urging the removal of Confederate monuments and symbols at the Texas Capitol, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick blamed Democrats on … Continue reading →

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Wait, you can’t cut that spending!

Posted on August 19, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

This is the sort of thing you come up with when you’re out of other ideas. Property tax revenue would be on the line for cities that choose to defund their police departments under a new legislative proposal pitched Tuesday … Continue reading →

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More on Abbott’s approval rating

Posted on August 4, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Further evidence of decline. Approval for Gov. Greg Abbott’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic continues to erode, according to a new poll from a consortium of universities. The survey, conducted through Sunday by Harvard, Northeastern, Rutgers and Northwestern universities, found … Continue reading →

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Gohmert’s gonna Gohmert

Posted on July 31, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

On brand, possibly to the end. Texas Republican Rep. Louie Gohmert, a mask skeptic who tested positive for the coronavirus Wedneday as he was pre-screened to join President Donald Trump on a visit to Midland, told Fox News that he … Continue reading →

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Louie Gohmert gets COVID-19

Posted on July 30, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

The universe works in mysterious ways. U.S. Rep. Louie Gohmert, R-Tyler, has tested positive for the new coronavirus, he said in an interview with East Texas Now where he speculated that he may have caught the virus from wearing his … Continue reading →

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Of course Abbott’s “Strike Force” are all Abbott donors

Posted on July 26, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

I have three things to say about this. Members of Republican Gov. Greg Abbott’s coronavirus “strike force” have contributed hundreds of thousand of dollars to his re-election campaign as the number of COVID-19 cases and the death toll has mounted, … Continue reading →

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State GOP wraps up its historic convention

Posted on July 21, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

And what a convention it was. Allen West, the firebrand former Florida congressman, has defeated Texas GOP Chairman James Dickey to lead the country’s largest state Republican Party. West claimed victory shortly before 3:30 a.m. Monday, while Dickey conceded about … Continue reading →

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Censuring Abbott

Posted on July 17, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

An amusing sideline, if nothing else. Republicans in eight different Texas counties have now voted to censure Gov. Greg Abbott for his order requiring Texans to wear face coverings and take other protective measures as COVID-19 spreads throughout the state. … Continue reading →

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The GOP convention is off to a great start

Posted on July 17, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Ain’t technology great? Getting the virtual state convention up and running “has not been a walk in the park,” said Republican Party of Texas Chair James Dickey in a Facebook Live chat Wednesday evening. Glitches related to credentialing had yet … Continue reading →

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Abbott’s approval rating

Posted on July 9, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

This has gotten a bit of chatter, so let’s take a closer look. We released the remaining results of the June 2020 UT/Texas Politics Project Poll today. This post focuses on Texans’ assessment of the state’s political leaders, the state … Continue reading →

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City cancels Republican convention

Posted on July 9, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Game on. Mayor Sylvester Turner announced on Wednesday that the city has canceled the Texas Republican Party’s in-person state convention in downtown Houston next week. Houston First, the public nonprofit that serves as the city’s convention arm, sent a letter … Continue reading →

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GOP declines Turner’s invitation to cancel their convention

Posted on July 8, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

The ball is back in your court, Mr. Mayor. The Texas Republican Party is proceeding with an in-person convention next week in downtown Houston, a rejection of Mayor Sylvester Turner’s formal request Monday to move the event online amid a … Continue reading →

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So how’s Greg Abbott doing post-mask order?

Posted on July 7, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Greg Abbott consistently polls as the politician with the highest approval rating in the state. He was basking in adulation a few weeks ago when things were reopening and the coronavirus numbers still looked good. How are things going for … Continue reading →

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Mayor Turner asks GOP to not hold its convention

Posted on July 7, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Good luck with that. The city of Houston will deploy health inspectors to enforce COVID-19 restrictions at the Texas Republican Convention, and potentially shut down the event if guidelines aren’t followed, Mayor Sylvester Turner said Monday. In a letter to … Continue reading →

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State GOP will have its convention

Posted on July 4, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

I hope they don’t kill any convention or hotel workers as a result. Beyond that, I don’t know what to say. The Texas GOP’s executive committee voted Thursday night to proceed with plans to hold the party’s in-person convention in … Continue reading →

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Maybe that Republican convention won’t happen after all

Posted on July 1, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

First, there was this. The Texas Medical Association is encouraging Texans to practice social distancing, stay home when possible and wear masks to slow the spread of the new coronavirus. But despite the potential mixed message it may send, the … Continue reading →

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Is this convention really necessary?

Posted on June 29, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Seriously. I know they don’t care about anyone else, but maybe the state GOP might think about the health and well-being of their own people? As the coronavirus pandemic engulfs Texas’ metropolitan areas, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott has left the … Continue reading →

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From the “Live by the leaked audio, die by the leaked audio” department

Posted on June 20, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Oh, the irony. Two staffers for the hardline conservative group Empower Texans have been caught on an audio recording disparaging Gov. Greg Abbott with profanity and joking about his wheelchair use. Upon the comments surfacing Friday morning, Abbott’s office and … Continue reading →

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Where do they find these people?

Posted on June 6, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

News item: Five Texas GOP county leaders share racist Facebook posts, including one juxtaposing an MLK quote with a banana. Republican leaders in five Texas counties shared racist Facebook posts, some of which also floated conspiracy theories, leading Gov. Greg … Continue reading →

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Of course they have voted by mail

Posted on June 1, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

It should surprise no one that the three main opponents to an expansion of voting by mail have all voted by mail themselves in past elections. Three of Texas’ top Republican leaders are vigorously fighting efforts to expand mail-in voting … Continue reading →

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Patrick’s megadonor task force tells him what he wanted to hear

Posted on May 8, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Knock me over with a bag full of unmarked bills. Local governments could find their emergency powers hemmed in during future emergencies under recommendations proposed by a task force that Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick set up. State government needs an … Continue reading →

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You got to dance with them what brung ya

Posted on May 4, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Kenny Boy Paxton is looking out for you. If you are one of his rich donors. When a small county in the Colorado mountains banished everyone but locals to blunt the spread of the coronavirus, an unlikely outsider raised a … Continue reading →

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The real problem is those uppity local officials

Posted on April 25, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

My God, the Republican playbook is so predictable these days. Local governments have gone too far in issuing emergency orders during the coronavirus pandemic and can expect to have those powers whittled down when the Texas Legislature meets again, key … Continue reading →

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“There are more important things than living”

Posted on April 22, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, everybody. After facing intense criticism for suggesting on Fox News last month that he’d rather perish from the new coronavirus than see instability in the state’s economic system, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said last night that … Continue reading →

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Only the megadonors can save us now

Posted on April 17, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Actual headline, from an actual Houston Chronicle story: Dallas megadonor leads secret team charged with carrying out Dan Patrick’s plan to restart economy Remember how I said that the story of Steve Stockman and his supporters using the cover of … Continue reading →

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Defining tyranny down

Posted on April 16, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

These people, I swear. A group of conservatives, including an influential Texas activist, penned an open letter to President Donald Trump this week, asking him to restart the economy and “let Americans manage their own risks,” while decrying expanded government … Continue reading →

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The Republican death wish

Posted on March 26, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

It would be one thing if they were just putting their own lives at risk, but that’s not how viruses work. After Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins became the first to announce a mandatory stay-at-home rule, conservative groups including Empower … Continue reading →

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Update on the “Judicial Selection Committee”

Posted on January 15, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Yes, this is a thing. All but one member of the new Texas Commission on Judicial Selection indicated at the group’s first meeting Thursday that they believe partisanship is problematic in the state’s method of selecting judges. Only Sen. Joan … Continue reading →

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That’s a weird definition of “thriving”

Posted on December 29, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

I have three things to say about this. Surrounded by fellow Libertarians during a 2018 election night watch party at a rented Airbnb in Fort Worth, Eric Espinoza, who was running for state Rep. Jonathan Stickland’s seat, saw a Facebook … Continue reading →

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Maybe try updating your pop culture references?

Posted on December 21, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Allow me to say something very obvious but often overlooked about this. Gov. Greg Abbott revived a debate Saturday about a controversial line from a decades-old Pace Picante ad: “Get a rope.” Abbott tweeted the reference after a follower jokingly … Continue reading →

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Let this finally be the end of the Heidi Group’s grift

Posted on November 11, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

And you should all be thoroughly appalled at the waste, fraud, and abuse committed in the name of screwing Planned Parenthood. An anti-abortion group that came under fire for failing to provide services to thousands of Texas women must repay … Continue reading →

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On Abbott, Austin, and homelessness

Posted on October 12, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

What Chris Hooks says. On Wednesday, the governor plunged headfirst into a political controversy that has dominated discussion in the city since June. Back then, the city council partially neutered several ordinances that essentially made being homeless in the city … Continue reading →

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