Monthly Archives: December 2009

Runoff results open thread

Posted on December 12, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

As tonight is Lights in the Heights, I will be paying attention to things other than election results this evening. Assuming you’re not at an election night party, you can follow results as they are posted here or on the … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2009 | Tagged , , , | 8 Comments

Saturday video break: Eight days of Hanukkah

Posted on December 12, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

When was the last time you heard a Hanukkah song that was written by a Mormon Senator? Well, here’s your chance: Eight Days of Hanukkah from Tablet Magazine on Vimeo. Pretty catchy, actually. The story behind it is here. You’re … Continue reading →

Posted in Music | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Vote today!

Posted on December 12, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Today is Runoff Day. If you did not vote during Early Voting, this is your lasr chance. The following is from the Harris County Clerk’s office: Harris County Clerk Beverly Kaufman, the chief elections officer of the County, made available … Continue reading →

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Two for Treasurer

Posted on December 12, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

As of today, there are two declared Democratic candidates for Harris County Treasurer – Chad Khan, a three-time candidate for State Representative, and attorney Billy Briscoe, whose press release is beneath the fold. As you may recall, I spent a … Continue reading →

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Villarreal files for re-election, not Comptroller

Posted on December 12, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Not really a surprise, I guess. A shame, but not a surprise. State Rep. Mike Villarreal, D-San Antonio, will run for re-election next year instead of launching a statewide race for comptroller. The five-term legislator says allies encouraged him to … Continue reading →

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Herzog and Harvey to the Hall

Posted on December 12, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Meet your newest members of the Hall of Fame. Manager Whitey Herzog and umpire Doug Harvey got the call Monday, elected to the baseball Hall of Fame by the Veterans Committee. Herzog and Harvey missed by one vote in their … Continue reading →

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Friday random ten: Lights out

Posted on December 11, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Tomorrow is Lights in the Heights, so today here are ten light-related songs. 1. Blinded By The Light – Bruce Springsteen 2. Trick of the Light – The Who 3. Whenever God Shines His Light – Van Morrison 4. Paradise … Continue reading →

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Mayoral miscellania

Posted on December 11, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

A few links of interest about the Mayor’s race. Because I know you haven’t read enough about it already. Nancy is ready for all the third-party attacks in the race to stop. Here’s an interview with Annise Parker at Open … Continue reading →

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Chron on the Jones pileup

Posted on December 11, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s the Chron story about the mailers being sent out opposing Jolanda Jones. The effort by five council members to oust Jones, arguably the most controversial and well-known figure on council, was virtually unprecedented in the past several decades, according … Continue reading →

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Getting smarter about crime

Posted on December 11, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

The news that Harris County DA Pat Lykos has changed the office’s policy to no longer will file state jail felony charges against suspects found with only a trace of drugs is good news indeed. Lykos said the move “gives … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

A few words with David Wolff

Posted on December 11, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron talks to David Wolff, the soon-to-be-former Chair of Metro, about the state of the agency. Q: Why has it taken six years to build new light rail lines when the Main Street line was built so quickly? A: … Continue reading →

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The Willingham jury

Posted on December 11, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

You know, I don’t blame any of the jurors in the Cameron Todd Willingham trial for the verdict they rendered. Based on the evidence that was presented to them, a guilty verdict was to be expected. They had no way … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

KHOU/KUHF poll gives Parker a big lead

Posted on December 10, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

This was the top story on the 5 PM news. The final 11News/KUHF Houston Public Radio poll shows Controller Annise Parker has a 13-point lead over former City Attorney Gene Locke. In the poll, which was conducted this week by … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: Another takeback

Posted on December 10, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Got a press release yesterday from Lane Lewis announcing that he had won an endorsement that had previously gone to his opponent. HARRIS COUNTY COUNCIL OF ORGANIZATIONS RESCINDS STARDIG ENDORSEMENT Houston, Texas – City Council District A candidate Lane Lewis … Continue reading →

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One last look at the early voting numbers

Posted on December 10, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Here is a copy of that Johnston report I’ve been referring to, updated through the end of early voting. A few things to note. – The total number of people who voted in the City of Houston election through the … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2009 | Tagged , , , , , | 12 Comments

Culberson sticks his nose in

Posted on December 10, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Last week, when we heard that the Federal Transit Authority had notified Metro that they would be cleared to begin preliminary engineering of the University Line project if no member of the local Congressional delegation objected by today, I figured … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Holmes fibs about his donation history to Hotze

Posted on December 10, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

As we know, Ned Holmes, the finance chair for the Gene Locke campaign, made a $20,000 donation to Steven Hotze’s Conservative Republicans of Harris County PAC just before Hotze sent out his homophobic mailer to voters. Holmes claims that the … Continue reading →

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“McCaul Drops The Ball”

Posted on December 10, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Following up on the reports about BAE Systems and the curious claims by Rep. Mike McCaul that his office had been “in regular contact with BAE Systems” during the bidding process, yet none of that communication was written, the Lone … Continue reading →

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Putting prisoners to work

Posted on December 10, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

This sounds like a pretty good idea to me. Harris County Commissioner El Franco Lee has proposed that the county consider putting more prisoners to work cleaning local bayous and parks. The plan would give working inmates three days’ credit … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Dunbar not running for re-election

Posted on December 9, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Hallelujah. Richmond Republican Cynthia Dunbar will not seek re-election next year to a second term on the State Board of Education, fellow board member David Bradley confirmed Wednesday Dunbar, whose expansive district includes northern Travis County, wrote in an e-mail … Continue reading →

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H-GAC Livable Centers Study of the Ensemble/HCC Station Area in Midtown

Posted on December 9, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Tomorrow night at 7 PM at the Trinity Episcopal Church located at 1015 Holman Street at Main (map) is a public meeting for the H-GAC Livable Centers Study of the Ensemble/HCC Station area in Midtown. You can click on the … Continue reading →

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Villarreal considering run for Comptroller

Posted on December 9, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Very interesting. Democratic statehouse Rep. Mike Villarreal of San Antonio is considering running for comptroller and is expected to make a decision next week. The five-term House member is an investor who holds a masters in public policy from Harvard. … Continue reading →

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Eight days out finance reports, District Council candidates

Posted on December 9, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

To wrap up our tour of the finance reports for the city runoffs, here’s a look at the two District Council races. First, District A, in which Lane Lewis is up against Brenda Stardig: Candidate Raised Spent Loans Cash PAC … Continue reading →

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Bernstein responds to “Jail Misery”

Posted on December 9, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

I guess I missed this one, but on November 19, the Houston Press published a story called Jail Misery by Randall Patterson that was about Monte Killian, an HIV-positive person who had recently spent time in the Harris County jail. … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Unemployment taxes triple

Posted on December 9, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Here comes the Rick Perry unemployment tax increase that we’ve been waiting for. Nearly two-thirds of Texas businesses will see the unemployment taxes they pay per employee per year nearly triple – from $23.40 to $64.80 – under rates announced … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Irving’s sign ordinance

Posted on December 9, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s an interesting story about the experience the city of Irving has had with its new ordinance that restricted signage by businesses. Strict new rules regarding business signs in Irving were enacted to literally remake the city’s image. The goal … Continue reading →

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Texas blog roundup for the week of December 7

Posted on December 9, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Once again it’s time for the Texas Progressive Alliance to bring you the highlights from the blogs.

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Runoff EV wrapup

Posted on December 8, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

The final tally is in, and after 13,534 in person votes were cast today, a total of 66,909 have been counted so far. This compares to 80,516 early votes for the November election. Except it doesn’t, since that total represents … Continue reading →

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Jolanda versus the world

Posted on December 8, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

If you’re on Carl Whitmarsh’s mailing list, you’ve probably seen this, which is one of several mailers being sent out by the Jack Christie campaign. That one is going to the Heights, Montrose, and District C. The others are this … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2009 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 22 Comments

Eight days out finance reports, At Large candidates

Posted on December 8, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Continuing on with our look at the eight days out reports, here’s how things stack up for the At Large Council candidates in the runoffs. Candidate Raised Spent Loans Cash PAC $$ PAC % =============================================================== Derr 26,692 13,034 5,000 5,487 … Continue reading →

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Locke backers funded Hotze

Posted on December 8, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Nice. The finance chairman and a finance committee member of Gene Locke’s mayoral campaign helped bankroll the conservative political action committee that sent out an anti-gay mailer targeting City Controller Annise Parker and other municipal candidates earlier this month, according … Continue reading →

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Statesman profiles White

Posted on December 8, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

We’re probably going to see a lot of stories like this in the coming weeks, as the papers outside of Houston inform their readers about the new Democratic candidate for Governor. That one is a nice, thorough effort, which among … Continue reading →

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More on BAE Systems

Posted on December 8, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Just a followup on the BAE Systems situation, which I didn’t get around to blogging about last week. I see that in addition to everything else he’s got going on, Mayor White will be trying to save BAE’s contract, along … Continue reading →

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Council to hear Ashby appeal

Posted on December 8, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Via Nancy Sarnoff, the developers of the Ashby Highrise will appeal the dismissal of their appeal of not getting everything they wanted when their project was finally approved back in August. There’s a public hearing Tuesday and a Council vote … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments