Monthly Archives: April 2022

Trump judge tosses longstanding law allowing in-state tuition for undocumented students

Posted on April 14, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Crappy ruling from an activist judge. A federal judge has ruled that the University of North Texas can’t charge out-of-state American students higher tuition than undocumented Texans who qualify for lower in-state tuition under a 2001 Texas law. UNT lawyers … Continue reading →

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Texas blog roundup for the week of April 11

Posted on April 14, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

The Texas Progressive Alliance stands with the people of Ukraine as it brings you this week’s roundup.

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Texans added to Brian Flores’ discrimination suit against the NFL

Posted on April 14, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Of note. Former Dolphins coach Brian Flores amended his class action racial discrimination lawsuit Thursday to include allegations that the Texans retaliated against him by removing him from consideration for their head coach vacancy because he sued the NFL and … Continue reading →

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Interview with Kathy Lynch Gunter

Posted on April 13, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

We continue with our interview series of candidates running in the May 7 special election for HCC Trustee in District 2, and this time we have a candidate who has run for HCC Trustee before. Kathy Lynch Gunter ran for … Continue reading →

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More on Lizelle Herrera

Posted on April 13, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Listen to the advocates. They’re seeing this clearly. A 26-year-old woman was arrested and jailed in South Texas last week over a self-induced abortion just months after the state banned most abortions and weeks before the U.S. Supreme Court could … Continue reading →

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Even Sid Miller thinks Abbott is being an idiot

Posted on April 13, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

I mean… Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller called on Gov. Greg Abbott to halt his recent policy of additional commercial inspections at the border, calling the measure “political theater” and predicting it will leave grocery store shelves empty within weeks. … Continue reading →

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We don’t have to treat political performance art as news

Posted on April 13, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

This is a story in the Chronicle about one of our Senators, who made some whiny petulant statements on social media about a celebrity best known for work in the 1980s who had posted about getting his second booster but … Continue reading →

Posted in Show Business for Ugly People | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

Interview with Y. Jayne “Baby Jayne” McCullough

Posted on April 12, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

We continue with our series of interviews wit candidates in the May 7 special election for HCC District 2. I consider races like this to be one of the core purposes of this blog, since they get little attention but … Continue reading →

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Grand jury indicts three Hidalgo aides

Posted on April 12, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Not great. Three Harris County staffers at the center of a mounting investigation into a since-canceled vaccine outreach contract have been indicted with misuse of official information and tampering, according to district clerk records. Aaron Dunn, Wallis Nader and Alex … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 12 Comments

Greg Abbott is a threat to international trade

Posted on April 12, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

We live in such strange times. Commercial traffic at a key South Texas border crossing has stopped after Mexican truckers on Monday blocked north- and southbound lanes on the Mexico side of the Pharr-Reynosa International Bridge in protest of Texas … Continue reading →

Posted in Show Business for Ugly People | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

COVID hospitalizations at a low in the state

Posted on April 12, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Good news (say it with me) for now. Texas hospitals are treating fewer than 1,000 patients with COVID-19 for the first time in two years. According to the Texas Department of State Health Services, hospitalizations totaled 993 on Sunday. The … Continue reading →

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Interview with Charlene Ward Johnson

Posted on April 11, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

In less than a month, it will be time to vote in the May special election, which for some people will include the special election in HCC District 2 to fill the seat left vacant by Rhonda Skillern-Jones’ resignation. Four … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2022 | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

The “self-induced abortion” saga

Posted on April 11, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

This was quite the journey. Starr County District Attorney Gocha Allen Ramirez said Sunday he has filed a motion to dismiss a murder charge against a woman for performing a “self-induced abortion.” Ramirez said the Starr County Sheriff’s Department “did … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

White Oak bike trail extension update

Posted on April 11, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

I drive by the construction work being done to extend the White Oak bike trail so that it connects to the Heights bike trail on the north side of the MKT Bridge. I’ve been keeping an eye on its progress … Continue reading →

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Weekend link dump for April 10

Posted on April 10, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

“Everyone should watch television with the captions on, in almost all situations, even if your hearing is not an issue. I started doing it a few years ago and it has improved my viewing experience a lot.” “The Bat-Signal wouldn’t … Continue reading →

Posted in Blog stuff | Tagged | 11 Comments

Dan Patrick wants a “Don’t Say Gay” bill for Texas

Posted on April 10, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Of course he does. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said Monday he will prioritize passing Texas legislation that mimics the recently signed Florida bill referred to as the “Don’t Say Gay” law. That state’s controversial law prohibits classroom lessons on sexual orientation or gender identity … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , | 19 Comments

Deshaun Watson must disclose whether he had sex with 18 massage therapists

Posted on April 10, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

There’s a headline for you. NFL quarterback Deshaun Watson now will have to answer whether he had sex with 18 additional therapists who came to his defense about his massage habits last year, according to a ruling Tuesday by a … Continue reading →

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Will the Huntsville bats be homeless?

Posted on April 10, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

I sure hope not. Hundreds of thousands of Mexican free-tailed bats in the coming weeks will return to an abandoned Texas Department of Criminal Justice warehouse, their preferred spot to spend the summer. They will find their usual digs partly … Continue reading →

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I really don’t want to have to pay attention to the race for TDP Chair

Posted on April 9, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

But I suppose I have to make note of this. The race for Texas Democratic Party chair is being roiled by allegations that a challenger, Kim Olson, pushed the party’s top staffer during a bus tour in 2018. Olson denies … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2022 | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

More rich guys in space

Posted on April 9, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

But it could be good for Houston, so… Axiom Space launched a high-stakes mission Friday, sending three paying customers to the International Space Station as Houston seeks to anchor a new era of human spaceflight. The crew, tucked inside a … Continue reading →

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Feds warn about lawsuits to come over anti-trans legislation

Posted on April 9, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Bring it. The Department of Justice is warning states like Texas that policies meant to block transgender children from receiving gender-affirming care violate their constitutional rights. “Intentionally erecting discriminatory barriers to prevent individuals from receiving gender-affirming care implicates a number … Continue reading →

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Hispanic Policy Foundation: Abbott 50, Beto 42

Posted on April 8, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

More poll data. In the November 2022 gubernatorial election, Greg Abbott leads Beto O’Rourke by 8% (50% to 42%) among likely voters and by 12% (53% to 41%) among the most likely (almost certain) voters. Among both groups, Libertarian Mark … Continue reading →

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Superintendent House backs off a key piece of his budget plan

Posted on April 8, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Sounds like he heard the concerns. Houston ISD Superintendent Millard House II on Wednesday said he would scrap a plan that would have centralized the funding of specific positions and programs, instead asking his administrators to come up with a … Continue reading →

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When is an emergency no longer an emergency?

Posted on April 8, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

I don’t know, but not yet. Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo still has emergency powers to handle COVID, after a proposal to end her authority failed at commissioners’ court this week. The proposal, by Precinct Four Commissioner Jack Cagle, failed … Continue reading →

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From Harvey to Ukraine

Posted on April 8, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Good story. The former Marines from Houston had no idea what to expect what then they finally arrived at the Polish-Ukrainian border. What the members of the CrowdSource Rescue team found was “a heart-wrenching mess” — a miles-long caravan of … Continue reading →

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We have a final count of rejected mail ballots

Posted on April 7, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

About one in eight got canned. That’s a lot. The votes of more than 24,000 Texans who tried to cast ballots by mail were thrown out in the March primary — a dramatic increase in rejected ballots in the first … Continue reading →

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Sen. Powell ends her re-election bid

Posted on April 7, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Disappointing but understandable. State Sen. Beverly Powell, D-Burleson, ended her reelection campaign Wednesday morning, citing an “unwinnable race” in a district that Republican lawmakers had redrawn to make a Democratic win impossible. “Under the new map that will remain intact … Continue reading →

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City Council to return to in-person meetings

Posted on April 7, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

I feel like I should always append a “For now” onto commentary about things like this. You know, for all the obvious reasons. Mayor Sylvester Turner said Wednesday he wants all City Council members to return to the chamber next … Continue reading →

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Texas blog roundup for the week of April 4

Posted on April 7, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

The Texas Progressive Alliance stands with the people of Ukraine as it brings you this week’s roundup.

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MLB unveils a technical fix for sign stealing

Posted on April 7, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

I like this. Pitchers and catchers will have the option of shaking off the traditional means of communicating between pitches during the upcoming Major League season. MLB informed clubs in a memo today that it is moving forward with regular-season … Continue reading →

Posted in Baseball | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

CD34 special election set for June 14

Posted on April 6, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Wasting no time. Gov. Greg Abbott on Monday called a June 14 special election to replace former U.S. Rep. Filemon Vela, D-Brownsville, in a South Texas seat that Republicans are working to flip. The filing deadline for the special election … Continue reading →

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Maybe not so fast on the HISD budget stuff

Posted on April 6, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

I’m OK with this. The Houston Independent School District may reconsider proposed budget changes that would have centralized the funding of certain positions and programs, a top district official told principals Monday. “Our cabinet team is revisiting the budget and … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Rules that can’t be enforced are just suggestions

Posted on April 6, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

This is ridiculous. Sugar Land Mayor Joe Zimmerman’s dual roles as a member of the Houston region’s transportation planning board and consultant at an engineering company will not receive further scrutiny by the local board after staff concluded the panel … Continue reading →

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Do tell, Chris

Posted on April 6, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

I have three things to say about this. A rival of the Astros during their current run as a Major League Baseball power said Houston wasn’t the only team that’s resorted to cheating. Red Sox lefthander Chris Sale, who pitched … Continue reading →

Posted in Baseball | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment