Tag Archives: Congress

It’s not too late to pass a voting rights bill

Posted on September 15, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Look, we have one queued up. Senate Democrats are close to an agreement on updated voting rights legislation that can get the support of all 50 Democratic-voting senators, three Democratic aides familiar with negotiations said. The For the People Act … Continue reading →

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Precinct analysis: Congress, part 1

Posted on September 14, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Introduction Congressional districts State Rep districts Commissioners Court/JP precincts Comparing 2012 and 2016 Statewide judicial Other jurisdictions Appellate courts, Part 1 Appellate courts, Part 2 Judicial averages Other cities District Attorney County Attorney Sheriff Tax Assessor County Clerk HCDE Fort … Continue reading →

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The final Ike Dike plan

Posted on September 13, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

It’s taken a long time to get to this point. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has released the final version of its Coastal Texas Study, which examines a proposed coastal barrier to protect the Houston region against storm surge. … Continue reading →

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The contract health worker surge

Posted on September 6, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Don’t know how sustainable this is. Dr. Esmaeil Porsa, president and CEO of Harris Health System, said the hospitals in the system were at a breaking point when he learned that 100 temporary medical workers were being sent to help. … Continue reading →

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Sine die’d

Posted on September 4, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Special session 2.0 is over. And what a lousy thing it was. The Texas Legislature adjourned its second special session Thursday evening, ending a nearly 30-day stretch that was called to pass a GOP elections bill after House Democrats carried … Continue reading →

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January 6 committee seeks answers from Paxton

Posted on August 28, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Good. Play hardball and do not let him get away with anything. The U.S. House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol has requested communications between Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and Trump White House officials in the … Continue reading →

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Metro moving forward on new BRT line

Posted on August 28, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

As they should. Even with fewer riders hopping aboard and a more dour financial outlook, Metro officials say the agency is full steam ahead on a host of projects aimed at adding buses to scores of routes and neighborhoods. That … Continue reading →

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Texas gets its Medicaid 1115 waiver back

Posted on August 22, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Hrmph. A federal district judge on Friday temporarily reinstated a 10-year extension of a federal health care program that Texas uses to help pay for health care for uninsured Texans and is worth billions of dollars annually. The agreement was … Continue reading →

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Is it really a quorum?

Posted on August 21, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

It is if no one is counting too closely. Texas House Republicans finally got their long-sought quorum Thursday — by the skin of their teeth. There were 99 members registered as present Thursday evening, the exact number needed to end … Continue reading →

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We have a quorum

Posted on August 20, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Welp. For the first time in nearly six weeks, enough lawmakers were present in the Texas House on Thursday for the chamber to conduct business — opening the door for the passage of the GOP priority elections bill that prompted … Continue reading →

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Census data is out

Posted on August 14, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Get ready, there’s about to be a whole lot more legislative activity. Setting the stage for what is expected to be a bruising battle over political representation, the results of the 2020 census released Thursday showed that Texas’ explosive growth … Continue reading →

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The march for voting rights

Posted on August 2, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Good work, but it can’t be the end. Saturday marked the third time in as many months that former U.S. Rep. Beto O’Rourke has headlined a voting rights rally at the Texas Capitol, as Democrats hope to keep momentum with … Continue reading →

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Day 17 quorum busting post: Testify

Posted on July 31, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Ladies and gentlemen, Ms T. State Rep. Senfronia Thompson described to a U.S. House committee on Thursday occasions in 2010 and 2012 when white Republican poll watchers showed up at a Houston polling place where she and many other Black … Continue reading →

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Jake Ellzey wins CD06 special election runoff

Posted on July 29, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

I confess, I had totally forgotten about this. State Rep. Jake Ellzey of Waxahachie beat fellow Republican Susan Wright on Tuesday to succeed her late husband, U.S. Rep. Ron Wright, R-Arlington, and pull off a major upset against a candidate … Continue reading →

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July 2021 campaign finance reports: Congress

Posted on July 26, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

It’s July, and that means its campaign finance report season. I’m going to do a tour through the finance reports as I have done before, beginning with Congressional reports. I have posted reports from January 2021, which is the completion … Continue reading →

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Day 9 quorum busting post: See you in August

Posted on July 22, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s your endgame, more or less. Texas House Democrats will not return to the state until after the special session of the Legislature is over, one of the leaders of their walkout confirmed Tuesday. State Rep. Trey Martinez Fischer, D-San … Continue reading →

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Michelle Beckley announces for Congress

Posted on July 21, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Interesting. State Rep. Michelle Beckley, one of the House Democrats who is camped out in Washington, D.C., announced Tuesday that she is challenging U.S. Rep. Beth Van Duyne, R-Irving, a national Democratic target. Beckley unveiled her plans in a video … Continue reading →

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How HISD intends to spend its COVID relief money

Posted on July 19, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Seems reasonable. Houston ISD expects to spend $1.2 billion of federal relief shoring up academic losses from the pandemic under a wide-ranging plan that would target accelerated instruction to kids that have fallen behind, bolster tutoring and after-school services, seek … Continue reading →

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GLO defends P Bush in Congressional hearing

Posted on July 18, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Dude couldn’t be bothered to show up himself, so he had someone else there to defend him. Texas Land Commissioner George P. Bush did not play a role in the process that left Houston and Harris County without any federal … Continue reading →

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More federal stimulus money for education coming

Posted on July 13, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Good. Texas soon will receive another $4.1 billion in federal stimulus money to address the post-pandemic needs of public school students, many of whom fell behind academically during months of remote learning. The funding comes come as the U.S. Department … Continue reading →

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The next level of vaccine resistance

Posted on July 10, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

I’m speechless. Some Texas Republicans are pushing back against President Joe Biden’s push for greater outreach to get more Americans to receive COVID-19 shots, as vaccination drives in states like Texas have stagnated. “Not on my watch!” Attorney General Ken … Continue reading →

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Testify, George P!

Posted on July 9, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

I’m ready for this. A congressional panel is set to review the Texas General Land Office’s denial of federal flood mitigation funding to Houston and Harris County, the latest in an ongoing spat over more than $1 billion in aid … Continue reading →

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Let a thousand Justice Department probes of Texas voter suppression bloom

Posted on July 4, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Just don’t expect too much to happen. With Texas lawmakers poised to push for new voting restrictions in a special session next week, the state’s congressional Democrats are urging U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland to investigate Texas’ existing voting laws. … Continue reading →

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And the STAAR results ain’t great either

Posted on June 30, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Oof. The COVID-19 pandemic appeared to undo years of improvement for Texas students meeting grade requirements in reading and math, with students who did most of their schooling remotely suffering “significant declines” compared to those who attended in person, according … Continue reading →

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You can’t use that money for your stupid wall

Posted on June 29, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

So say Democratic members of Congress from Texas, and they’re asking the Treasury Department to back them up. Texas Democrats in Congress are irate that Gov. Greg Abbott can divert federal funds intended for COVID-19 relief to build a border … Continue reading →

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Lawsuit filed against suspension of federal unemployment benefits

Posted on June 27, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Not sure how likely this is to succeed, but it’s worth a try. Thousands of Texans have banded together and hired an attorney to file suit to block Gov. Greg Abbott from ending emergency federal unemployment benefits before the programs … Continue reading →

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Suing the “Trump Train”

Posted on June 25, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Good. A group of people traveling on a President Joe Biden campaign bus on a Texas highway last fall when it was surrounded and followed by former President Donald Trump’s supporters have filed a lawsuit against at least seven people … Continue reading →

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Everyone’s waiting on Beto

Posted on June 24, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Pardon me while I brew myself a cup of tea and stare meaningfully out the window. Texas’ Republican statewide primaries are heating up as challengers emerged in recent weeks for both Gov. Greg Abbott and Attorney General Ken Paxton. But … Continue reading →

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You can announce any time now, Beto

Posted on June 22, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Sunday at your rally would have been a good time, but honestly I’m not too picky about that. About three weeks after Texas Democrats staged a dramatic walkout to temporarily kill a GOP-led voting restrictions bill, dozens of the party’s … Continue reading →

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An alternate route to Medicaid expansion

Posted on June 21, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

I’m okay with this. Texas Democrats have tried for years to convince Republican state leaders to increase access to Medicaid. Now they think they have found a way to do it with or without their help. U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett … Continue reading →

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Get ready for your first Universities Line BRT map

Posted on June 21, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Feel the excitement! No, seriously, we’ve waited a long time for this. The largest and most-sought segment of Metro’s planned bus rapid transit expansion in Houston is poised next week to officially move from being just lines on a map … Continue reading →

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The Texas Dem legislators and the push for federal voting rights legislation

Posted on June 19, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

We know this happened. Vice President Kamala Harris on Wednesday pointed to Texas Republicans’ push for sweeping new voting restrictions as a key illustration of the need to restore federal oversight of elections. While meeting at the White House with … Continue reading →

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SCOTUS upholds Obamacare again

Posted on June 18, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Another Ken Paxton failure, for which we should be grateful and also really pissed off. The U.S. Supreme Court struck down a Texas-led legal challenge to the Affordable Care Act on Thursday, saying the plaintiffs in the 2018 lawsuit are … Continue reading →

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Juneteenth

Posted on June 18, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Very cool. And a little bit surprising. But very cool. As soon as U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee heard that the U.S. Senate had passed legislation on Tuesday making Juneteenth a federal holiday, the Houston Democrat said she began pushing … Continue reading →

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