Monthly Archives: September 2014

On polls and turnout

Posted on September 15, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

So as you know, the latest YouGov poll came out on Friday, and it was ugly for Wendy Davis, showing an 18-point lead for Greg Abbott. PDiddie was despondent, EoW was trying to keep the faith, and Texpatriate was somewhere … Continue reading →

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The run and hide strategy

Posted on September 15, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Where’s Danno? Texas voters [were] treated to a peculiar sight Friday evening: a one-candidate debate. Leticia Van de Putte, the Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor, [answered] questions in a Spanish-language television event without Republican rival Dan Patrick. He’ll be meeting … Continue reading →

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Congressional Dems request federal investigation of Abbott’s persecution of Houston Votes

Posted on September 15, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Good. Democratic congressmen from Texas have asked the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate a raid by Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott’s office that targeted a nonprofit voter registration group. The Dallas Morning News reported Aug. 31 on the attorney … Continue reading →

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Weekend link dump for September 14

Posted on September 14, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

“But if policymakers really want to clean up the tax code, they need to look at tax breaks that are embedded in our system. And the best place to start is with some of the most regressive ones: taxes breaks … Continue reading →

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Fifth Circuit hears HB2 arguments

Posted on September 14, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

As always with anything that involves the Fifth Circuit, pessimism is called for. Federal appeals court judges who got their first look at the latest challenge to Texas’ tough new abortion law Friday appeared to show support for the law … Continue reading →

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Enos files complaint against Judge Franklin

Posted on September 14, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Here we go again. Lawyer Greg Enos filed a criminal complaint this month with the District Attorney’s Public Integrity Division alleging 311th District Court Judge Alicia Franklin submitted false and questionable pay vouchers to the county for court-appointed work in … Continue reading →

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Plaintiffs respond to Abbott’s brief in same sex marriage appeal

Posted on September 14, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

They give it the respect it deserves. Lawyers for two same-sex couples who are trying to overturn Texas’ gay marriage ban said Tuesday that the state’s attempt to defend its prohibition has defied both logic and a stream of recent … Continue reading →

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UberASSIST and UberACCESS

Posted on September 14, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

As I’m sure you recall, access for the disabled was a major point of debate in the vehicles for hire saga. There was a lawsuit filed by a coalition of Texas disability advocates against Uber and Lyft over their lack … Continue reading →

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Saturday video break: Dance This Mess Around

Posted on September 13, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

The B-52’s, who are not easily imitated: And the Asylum Street Spankers, who are up to the challenge: I had the privilege of seeing the Spankers many times before they sadly broke up a couple of years ago. I had … Continue reading →

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Voter ID trial testimony ends

Posted on September 13, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

The state of Texas put on its case in the voter ID trial. Lawyers from the Texas attorney general’s office presented witnesses Wednesday in federal court defending the state voter ID law as necessary and attempting to rebuff claims that … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: First of many for Sam Houston

Posted on September 13, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

The Statesman gets an early start on endorsement season. A famous name can be a mixed blessing in politics. Sam Houston, the Democratic candidate for Texas attorney general, has persuaded us that he is more than just a name, and … Continue reading →

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HISD’s volunteer reading army

Posted on September 13, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

HISD’s number one priority is, or at least needs to be, improving reading performance. I really hope this will help. Leaders of the Houston Independent School District turned to the community on Thursday, launching the district’s largest volunteer recruitment effort … Continue reading →

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Art Car Parade to move to April

Posted on September 13, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Adjust your calendars accordingly. The 28th annual Houston Art Car Parade is now set for April 11, 2015, The Orange Show Center for Visionary Art, producers of the annual Houston Art Car Parade Weekend, announced today. This year’s past parade … Continue reading →

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Friday random ten – Mind your Ps, but not your Qs

Posted on September 12, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Your Qs can do whatever they want, there aren’t enough of them to worry about. 1. Walkin’ After Midnight – Patsy Cline 2. Big Bottom – Paul and Storm 3. Still Crazy After All These Years – Paul Simon 4. … Continue reading →

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Davis’ internal poll

Posted on September 12, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I had been wondering if Wendy Davis was going to release one of these. Democratic gubernatorial nominee Wendy Davis is trailing Republican opponent Greg Abbott by single digits for the first time this year in her campaign’s internal polling, according … Continue reading →

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Time again to talk textbooks

Posted on September 12, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Kathy Miller of the Texas Freedom Network sounded the alarm in the Sunday op-eds. The last time Texas adopted social studies textbooks – in 2002 – political activists and members of the state education board themselves demanded scores of changes … Continue reading →

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Abbott files complaint with Ethics Commission over Davis book tour

Posted on September 12, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Whatever. The campaign manager for GOP gubernatorial candidate Greg Abbott filed an ethics complaint on Thursday alleging that the book tour of Abbott’s Democratic opponent, state Sen. Wendy Davis of Fort Worth, represents a conversion of political contributions into personal … Continue reading →

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Pratt gets a reprimand

Posted on September 12, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

From the State Commission on Judicial Conduct. Not exactly timely, but at least it’s on the record. The commission found that [Denise] Pratt, who resigned in late March, “failed to be diligent and failed to timely execute the business of … Continue reading →

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The revenue cap has already hit

Posted on September 11, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Lovely. Houstonians will see their first property tax rate cut in five years as the city runs up against a revenue cap imposed by voters a decade ago. The modest rollback works out to $12.27 a year for the owner … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Abbott’s health care small ball

Posted on September 11, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Is that all there is? Increased funding for preventive care and luring medical professionals to Texas are at the center of gubernatorial candidate Greg Abbott’s health care plan, unveiled at St. Joseph’s Women’s Medical Center here on Wednesday. The Republican … Continue reading →

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Perry wins SD28 special election

Posted on September 11, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

That would be Charles Perry, the current incumbent in HD83. State Rep. Charles Perry on Tuesday night won the special election for Senate District 28, besting a crowded field to avoid a runoff for the seat in West Texas. With … Continue reading →

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Texas blog roundup for the week of September 8

Posted on September 11, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

The Texas Progressive Alliance commends Sen. Wendy Davis for her courage as it brings you this week’s roundup.

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Interview with Judith Snively

Posted on September 10, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

As I said on Monday, once you get past the District Attorney race, there’s not a lot of high-profile electoral action in Harris County this year, but as we know not being high profile doesn’t make your race any less … Continue reading →

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Perry’s lawyers ask again for indictments to be tossed

Posted on September 10, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Stop me if you’ve heard this one before. Attorneys for Gov. Rick Perry, indicted last month on charges related to his veto threat of money for the Travis County District Attorney’s office, have filed another request for a judge to … Continue reading →

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Defense to begin in voter ID lawsuit

Posted on September 10, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Entering the home stretch. The Texas voter ID trial with national implications is shifting its focus in U.S. District Judge Nelva Gonzales Ramos’ courtroom Tuesday. After a week of testimony largely opposed to the law, the State of Texas’ legal … Continue reading →

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Of course the film industry thinks we need more film incentives

Posted on September 10, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

It’s all money to them. Why wouldn’t they think the state should provide more funding for them? A Warner Bros. executive told a panel of Texas lawmakers they would have to pony up more cash for film industry incentives if … Continue reading →

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Judicial Q&A: Harold Landreneau

Posted on September 9, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

(Note: As I have done in past elections, I am running a series of Q&As for Democratic judicial candidates on the November ballot. This is intended to help introduce the candidates and their experiences to those who plan to vote. … Continue reading →

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Greg Enos drops another bombshell

Posted on September 9, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Greg Enos, the chief catalyst in getting Judge Denise Pratt ousted from the 311th Family Court, now documents bad behavior by Pratt’s successor on that bench, Alicia Franklin. I truly like Alicia Franklin personally and I do not want to … Continue reading →

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Abbott claims Davis’ book tour constitutes an illegal campaign contribution

Posted on September 9, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I guess he has to do something to distract from what’s actually in Sen. Davis’ book. Republican gubernatorial nominee Greg Abbott asked the Texas Ethics Commission on Monday to rule whether opponent Wendy Davis’ book deal and tour crosses the … Continue reading →

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Revising the historic preservation ordinance

Posted on September 9, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Gird your loins. Houston officials are preparing to revise the city’s historic preservation ordinance, a signature issue for Mayor Annise Parker that spurred a prolonged and divisive fight over property rights in her first term. That contentiousness has never fully … Continue reading →

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Interview with David Rosen

Posted on September 8, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Once you get past the District Attorney race, there’s not a lot of high-profile electoral action in Harris County this year. County Judge Ed Emmett has no Democratic challenger, and while there are things happening at the legislative level most … Continue reading →

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The best coverage of the voter ID trial

Posted on September 8, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

You want to know what’s going on with the voter ID trial, which enters its second and likely final week today, go check out the Brennan Center for Justice, which has daily coverage that would put any newspaper to shame. … Continue reading →

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Abbott issues bag ban opinion

Posted on September 8, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

It’s complicated. Do plastic bag bans and restrictions in cities like Austin, Laredo, and Brownsville violate Texas law? According to an opinion issued by Attorney General Greg Abbott’s office handed down on Friday afternoon, that depends on how you define … Continue reading →

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The trouble with the Southwest Freeway

Posted on September 8, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I think the problem is easy enough to identify. The solution is another matter. Houston-area transportation planners are considering some novel strategies – at least for Texas – for managing traffic to ease congestion on U.S. 59 between downtown Houston … Continue reading →

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