Tag Archives: Dan Patrick

Don’t expect any other debates

Posted on July 27, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Cowardice + lack of incentive = avoiding engagement. Land Commissioner George P. Bush (son of Jeb and nephew to George W.) has no plans to go one-on-one with his challenger, Miguel Suazo — at least, not as of Tuesday, July 24. … Continue reading →

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Cruz proposes five debates

Posted on July 26, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

All on Fridays, but at least he’s offering something. U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, has challenged Democratic opponent Beto O’Rourke to five topical debates before Election Day, about three months after O’Rourke challenged Cruz to six. Cruz strategist Jeff Roe … Continue reading →

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Dan Patrick is a wimp

Posted on July 25, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Yes, you’re such a big tough meanie, Danno. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick does not intend to debate his Democratic challenger, Mike Collier, before Election Day, according to Patrick’s campaign. “It’s no secret Lt. Governor Patrick relishes debates, but since his … Continue reading →

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Two views of Democratic fundraising

Posted on July 19, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Positive: For the first time in a generation, there is a Democrat running for Congress in every single district in the state. Most of those candidates vying to unseat Republicans will likely lose. Many are running in districts where President … Continue reading →

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Santa Fe ISD to install metal detectors

Posted on July 19, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

If that’s what they want… Metal detectors will be installed in all four of Santa Fe ISD’s campuses after its Board of Trustees voted to accept at least 16 devices that had been donated by two private companies and Lt. … Continue reading →

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

Dems keep posting very strong finance reports

Posted on July 17, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Wow. There are few bigger warning signs for a member of Congress that their re-election may be in doubt than when a challenger outraises them. In Texas, it just happened to seven incumbents, all Republicans. Since last week, when U.S. … Continue reading →

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Republican reactions to Beto’s fundraising

Posted on July 14, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

The interesting bits of this story: El Paso Democrat Beto O’Rourke, the underdog challenger to Republican U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, recently burnished his grass-roots credentials by completing a tour of all 254 counties in Texas. Now O’Rourke has proven his fundraising chops as … Continue reading →

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Gravis: Cruz 51, O’Rourke 42

Posted on July 11, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s a new poll of four statewide races in Texas, for which there may or may not be any news coverage. The executive summary: Gravis Marketing, a nonpartisan research firm, conducted a random survey of 602 likely voters across Texas. … Continue reading →

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Metal detectors

Posted on July 5, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

They’re like magic. More than a month after a deadly shooting at Santa Fe High School left 10 dead and 13 injured, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick is taking steps to tighten security in the southeast Texas school district, part of … Continue reading →

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UT/Trib: Cruz 41, O’Rourke 36, part 2

Posted on June 27, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

We pick up where we left off. Republican Ted Cruz leads Democrat Beto O’Rourke 41 percent to 36 percent in the general election race for a Texas seat in the U.S. Senate, according to the latest University of Texas/Texas Tribune … Continue reading →

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Our typically feckless state leaders

Posted on June 21, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Way to set an example for the rest of us, y’all. Gov. Greg Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick frequently talk tough about illegal immigration, but they refuse to publicly support the Trump administration’s “zero-tolerance” policy that’s spurred outrage for … Continue reading →

Posted in La Migra | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 53 Comments

Health care needs to be a twofer

Posted on June 19, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Lt. Governor candidate Mike Collier is on the right track here, but he needs to keep going. Lieutenant governor hopeful Mike Collier announced his health care reform plan Tuesday, which aims to reduce costs and increase access to health care … Continue reading →

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Senate considers mostly symbolic ideas on school safety

Posted on June 13, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Once again, see if you can tell what’s missing from this discussion. Nearly three weeks after a shooter killed 10 people at a high school southeast of Houston, lawmakers gathered at the Texas Capitol on Monday to discuss new school … Continue reading →

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Who’s willing to tell Trump he’s all wet?

Posted on June 9, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Not Greg Abbott or Dan Patrick. During a visit to Pinkerton’s Barbecue on Friday afternoon, gubernatorial candidate Lupe Valdez said Gov. Greg Abbott failed to forcefully refute the president, who said on Wednesday that some Texans “went out in their … Continue reading →

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The status of Confederate monument removal

Posted on June 7, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

We still have a long way to go. Texas has removed the most Confederate symbols and statues in the country since 2015, according to a new Southern Poverty Law Center study. But the trend does not extend to the state … Continue reading →

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From doors to video games

Posted on May 27, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

See if you can tell what’s missing from this discussion. While Democrats clamored for stricter gun regulations and Gov. Greg Abbott discussed measures to tighten school security following Friday’s mass shooting at Santa Fe High School, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Many more school districts are feeling the pinch

Posted on April 19, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Not just HISD. Not by a long shot. For eight-straight years, Cypress-Fairbanks and Conroe ISDs earned the Texas Smart Schools Award, bestowed on school districts with prudent financial practices and high academic achievement. Now, Cypress-Fairbanks faces a $50 million deficit … Continue reading →

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From the “Answering my own rhetorical question” department

Posted on April 8, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Nobody could have seen this coming! Ever since Texas’s “sanctuary cities” ban was first proposed in late 2016, the measure’s Republican backers have painted it as a public safety measure targeting criminals — without racist or anti-immigrant intent. But records … Continue reading →

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Precinct analysis: One of these things is not like the others

Posted on March 27, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Let’s finish up our look at the primary precinct data with a peek at the Republican side of things. As a reminder, my analysis of the Democratic Senate primary is here, my analysis of the Governor and Lt. Governor races … Continue reading →

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Did Greg Abbott oppose the bathroom bill?

Posted on March 15, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Color me skeptical. Gov. Greg Abbott himself was opposed to the controversial “bathroom bill” that dominated debate at the Texas Capitol for much of 2017, according to a state representative involved in keeping the legislation from passing the Texas House. … Continue reading →

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Does primary turnout in a district predict the November result?

Posted on March 12, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Karl Rove would like you to think so. At the House level, Democrats hope to win three districts won by Hillary Clinton and now held by Republican incumbents, as well as some of the six seats opened up by GOP … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: Not Dan Patrick

Posted on March 9, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Scott Milder, who was defeated by Dan Patrick in the Republican primary, endorses Mike Collier for the general election. Scott Milder, who lost his Republican primary challenge to incumbent Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick two days ago, says he will vote … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2018 | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

2018 primary results: Statewide

Posted on March 7, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Statewide Dem totals Statewide GOP totals Harris County Dem totals Harris County GOP totals (Please note that all results were coming in very slowly. I expect there will still be some precincts not yet reported by the time this publishes. … Continue reading →

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UT/TT poll: Trump approval more or less the same as before

Posted on February 20, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

A tad bit more positive than last time, but still nothing to write home about. With the usual disclaimers about partisan imbalance, President Donald Trump’s job approval ratings are holding steady, according to the latest University of Texas/Texas Tribune Poll. … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: A veritable plethora, part 1

Posted on February 20, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Whoa, all of a sudden the Chron is chock full of endorsements. Let’s run through ’em. Actually, let’s start to run through them. So many appeared all at once that I’m going to need to break this into more than … Continue reading →

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Sandra Bullock hurts Dan Patrick’s fee-fees

Posted on February 10, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Poor little snowflake. Texas Lieutenant Gov. Dan Patrick is not too pleased that Oscar winning actress Sandra Bullock has agreed to star in a movie about former state Sen. Wendy Davis, whose 13-hour filibuster helped stall an anti-abortion bill in … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege, TV and movies | Tagged , , , , , | 7 Comments

No, the bathroom bill issue hasn’t gone away

Posted on February 9, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Lisa Falkenberg tries to argue that the bathroom bill issue has faded away this election, but I don’t buy it and I don’t think she does, either. But there’s one hot-button issue that’s been notably absent: the bathroom bill. And … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2018 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Endorsement watch: Sylvia and more

Posted on February 6, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron makes the obvious choice in CD29. The frontrunner is clearly state Sen. Sylvia Garcia, the only current elected official on the ballot, who has name identification with this area’s voters that stretches back more than 20 years. The … Continue reading →

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Voter registration deadline is Monday

Posted on February 1, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Check your registration status. Houston-area voters are registering to vote in record numbers just in time for the March 6 primaries, and the two major political parties are bracing for yet another wave of newcomers over the next few days. … Continue reading →

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Republicans “against” Dan Patrick

Posted on January 18, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

RG Ratcliffe reports on a “loose coalition” of business and education interests who are seeking to clip Dan Patrick’s wings. [FBSID Board President Kristin] Tassin is now running for a seat in the state Senate, and she is just one … Continue reading →

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Dan Patrick wants SAPD Chief arrested

Posted on January 15, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Bring it on. Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick on Wednesday asked the state’s attorney general to determine if the chief of the San Antonio Police Department violated the state’s immigration-enforcement law during a human smuggling incident. Late last month, San … Continue reading →

Posted in La Migra, Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Filing news: Jerry’s back

Posted on December 9, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Former Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson would like his office back, please. Patterson, who was first elected as the state’s land commissioner in 2003, wants to head the agency that manages state-owned lands and the Alamo. He gave up the job to … Continue reading →

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State of the County 2017: Ed Emmett versus state leadership

Posted on December 1, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

That sound you heard was a fight breaking out. Harris County Judge Ed Emmett on Tuesday used his annual State of the County speech to blast state leaders who he said attack local governments and seek to cut needed taxes … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

There’s scared and there’s strategy

Posted on November 21, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

What we’re seeing from the GOP is some of both. Republicans are beginning to worry that a “blue wave” of Democratic voters angry with the Trump administration could crash into the 2018 election, even in the deep red state of … Continue reading →

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