Tag Archives: Congress

Harris County to buy digital devices for students

Posted on August 15, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

An excellent use of CARES money. Harris County commissioners on Tuesday voted to spend up to $32 million in federal COVID-19 funds on providing hundreds of thousands of WiFi hotspots and devices to children in school districts across the county. … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Fallon fallout

Posted on August 12, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Of interest. After Sen. Pat Fallon’s impressive though not unexpected victory this weekend in the insider’s race to be the GOP nominee for Congressional District 4 – being vacated by Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe – rumors are flying … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Once again with female Congressional candidates

Posted on August 9, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

This is another post that was drafted in the Before Times, specifically right after the March primary. I went through the runoffs and assessed all of the races that could or would contain a female candidate or incumbent against a … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Once again with female Congressional candidates

CD24 poll: Valenzuela 47, Van Duyne 41

Posted on August 8, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

From the Twitters: Big #TX24 numbers in Morning Score this AM @candacefor24 leading @Bethvanduyne 48-41 @JoeBiden leading @realDonaldTrump 49-45 — Cole Leiter (@coleleiter) 6:41 AM – 6 August 2020 You can see the poll info here. The 48-41 and 49-45 … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

It’s like we don’t want any extra Congresspeople

Posted on August 7, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

As someone once said, where’s the outrage? For months, as Texans have been asked to stay home to avoid the spread of the new coronavirus, Jennifer Edwards has been doing the rounds at gas stations in a trio of counties … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Rental assistance

Posted on August 7, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

We’re going to need a lot more like this. Houston on Wednesday added another $20 million to its rent relief program, aimed at helping thousands of tenants catch up on late rent payments. City council voted unanimously to add the … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Rental assistance

Recount requested in CD23 Republican runoff

Posted on August 3, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

This race is still unsettled. Raul Reyes announced Friday night that he will seek a recount in the razor-thin Republican primary runoff to replace retiring U.S. Rep. Will Hurd, R-Helotes, in his national battleground district. Reyes’ announcement came after the … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Recount requested in CD23 Republican runoff

Congressional Dems winning the money race in Texas

Posted on August 2, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

The times, they have definitely changed. Early this election cycle, U.S. Sen. John Cornyn publicly worried about complacency within the Texas Republican political class — even after Democratic gains made in 2018. So in early 2019, the state’s senior senator … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Congressional Dems winning the money race in Texas

A slightly less rosy view of Democratic prospects

Posted on August 1, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s the latest race ratings from Texas Elects: Texas Election Source has updated 27 race ratings based on the latest polling, July campaign finance reports and primary runoff results. Twenty of those races moved one column toward the Democrats’ advantage. … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Gohmert’s gonna Gohmert

Posted on July 31, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

On brand, possibly to the end. Texas Republican Rep. Louie Gohmert, a mask skeptic who tested positive for the coronavirus Wedneday as he was pre-screened to join President Donald Trump on a visit to Midland, told Fox News that he … Continue reading →

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

Matt Glazer: A way to end surprise medical bills

Posted on July 31, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

(Note: The following is a guest post that was submitted to me. I occasionally solicit guest posts, and also occasionally accept them from people I trust.) At a young age, I had to deal with medical issue after medical issue. … Continue reading →

Posted in National news | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

CD25 poll: Roger Williams 45, Julie Oliver 43

Posted on July 30, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

This is genuinely astonishing. To showcase just how extensively Trump’s decline has shifted the playing field, the DCCC shared with the Washington Post details of an in-house poll it conducted of Texas’ deep-red 25th Congressional District that finds Joe Biden … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Louie Gohmert gets COVID-19

Posted on July 30, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

The universe works in mysterious ways. U.S. Rep. Louie Gohmert, R-Tyler, has tested positive for the new coronavirus, he said in an interview with East Texas Now where he speculated that he may have caught the virus from wearing his … Continue reading →

Posted in Show Business for Ugly People | Tagged , , , , , , , | 46 Comments

Checking in on CD21

Posted on July 29, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Thar’s the race where Wendy Davis is trying to unseat the mini-Ted Cruz known as Chip Roy, and the pundits are thinking she can do it. All signs are pointing toward a competitive race between incumbent conservative firebrand U.S. Rep. … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

What a Democratic House means for redistricting

Posted on July 28, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Rick Casey makes a point about what a Democratic-majority State House will and won’t be able to do in 2021, in particular with redistricting. I would put the Democrats’ chances of taking back the State House of Representatives as better … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

How to lose a Congressional seat

Posted on July 27, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

As things stand right now, Texas will gain three Congressional seats in the 2021 reapportionment, as Texas continues to be the fastest-growing state in the country. There is one thing that can stop that, however: Donald Trump. President Donald Trump … Continue reading →

Posted in National news | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Abandon ship!

Posted on July 26, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

LOL. During Troy Nehls’ recent bid for the Republican nomination in one of Texas’ battleground congressional districts, the Fort Bend County sheriff prominently displayed his support for President Trump across his campaign website. “In Congress, I will stand with President … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

CD03 poll: Taylor 43, Seikaly 37

Posted on July 25, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

I expect we’ll see a fair amount of Congressional district polling this cycle. There is a single-digit race underway for Texas’ traditionally red 3rd Congressional District, according to a new poll from the new Democratic nominee’s campaign. The nominee, Lulu … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

July 2020 campaign finance reports: Congress

Posted on July 24, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Congratulations, everyone. Not only have we made it to the other side of another quarterly reporting period, we have also successfully navigated the primary runoffs. My next quarterly finance report post for Congress will thus be shorter, as this is … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

The cities still need COVID relief

Posted on July 22, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Just a reminder, in case you’d forgotten. As Congress resumes work on a new coronavirus financial relief package, nearly 100 Texas mayors are pressing the state’s congressional delegation for more funding to address revenue losses incurred due to the economic … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on The cities still need COVID relief

What Ted Cruz is scared of

Posted on July 22, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Let’s give him a reason for it. U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz delivered a dire message to Texas Republican activists on Saturday about the danger President Donald Trump faces in November here. “This is a real race,” Cruz told the Republican … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

More pressure on Biden to really compete in Texas

Posted on July 21, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Fine by me. With President Donald Trump’s poll numbers sliding in traditional battlegrounds as well as conservative-leaning states, and money pouring into Democratic campaigns, Joe Biden is facing rising pressure to expand his ambitions, compete aggressively in more states and … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020, The making of the President | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Dems could possibly win a lot of Congressional races in Texas

Posted on July 19, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

It started with this: what does a biden win in texas look like? here’s how a D+1 nailbiter might turn out, if we use 2016 and 2018 as a guide → (hint: biden would win 9 currently R-held districts and … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Some brief runoff thoughts

Posted on July 16, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

You know the drill here… – The Election Night Results page at the SOS shows 955,735 votes total in the Democratic Senate runoff. That number is likely to increase a bit over the next few days, as we’ll see shortly. … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Some brief runoff thoughts

2020 primary runoff results: Congress

Posted on July 15, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

I’m going to bullet point these just for simplicity. There will be news stories to look at later. CD03 Dem: Lulu Seikaly cruised to an easy win here. She was just over 60% at around 10 PM, with some Election … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on 2020 primary runoff results: Congress

The progressives and the runoffs

Posted on July 14, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

May as well check in on this. Judging from March, the ideological left wing of the Democratic Party in Texas should be inconsolable. After months of high hopes, the faction ran into a centrist buzz saw in the March 3 … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

A new homelessness initiative

Posted on July 10, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Good. Harris County Commissioners Court voted unanimously on Tuesday to authorize $18 million for a two-year program serving the homeless as advocates project a rise in homelessness with the novel coronavirus. The program is the county’s most ambitious partnership with … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on A new homelessness initiative

A bullish take on the State House

Posted on July 8, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

From Mike Hailey of Capitol Inside: The wildly unpredictable coronavirus appears to be fueling a massive blue wave that sweeps the Democrats back into power in the Texas House of Representatives with President Donald Trump as their all-time greatest ally. … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Here’s a Census data preview

Posted on July 5, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Guess what? The same trends we saw ten years ago are still trending. Texas’ Hispanic population has grown by more than 2 million since 2010, according to new population estimates released Thursday by the U.S. Census Bureau, and the state’s … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Here’s a Census data preview

Three runoff stories

Posted on July 3, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Just a sample from three high-profile and highly-contested Democratic primary runoff races. TX-SEN: MJ Hegar versus Royce West No two issues have impacted the Texas primary runoffs like the coronavirus pandemic and the protests surrounding George Floyd’s death, but as … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

What should Joe Biden do in Texas?

Posted on June 30, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

“Win” would be my preferred answer, but it’s more complicated than that. No matter how frequently it happens, it’s always a bit startling. Ever since February 2019, polls have been coming out indicating that former Vice President Joe Biden is … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020, The making of the President | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

Hey, how about trying that local control thing again?

Posted on June 30, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Seems like it might be worth a shot to led Mayors and County Judges lead on coronavirus response again, since they’ve done so much better a job of leading than Greg Abbott has. As Texas grapples with soaring coronavirus cases … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Interview with Rep. Marc Veasey

Posted on June 29, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

When I came up with the idea to do a series of interviews about redistricting, Rep. Marc Veasey was among the first people I wanted to talk to. He was a State Rep in 2011 when the original maps were … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters, National news | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Early voting for primary runoffs starts tomorrow

Posted on June 28, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Remember the runoffs? It’s time we settle who our nominees are. Who can vote in the runoffs? Texas has open primaries, meaning you don’t have to be a registered member of either party to cast a ballot in a primary … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment