Tag Archives: Rick Perry

It’s easier than you think to behave responsibly

Posted on August 12, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

With all the clutching of pearls and threatening of lawsuits surrounding those federal funds that Congress intends to be used for education and not general fund budget balancing tricks, we should all take a deep breath and keep in mind … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on It’s easier than you think to behave responsibly

Congress wants education money spent on education

Posted on August 7, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

It sounds simple, but around here these things never are. State leaders on Thursday threatened to sue the federal government over a restriction Congress is placing on $830 million in education funding for Texas. Texas educators and Democratic congressional allies, … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Win a date with Karl Rove

Posted on August 6, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Desperate times and all that. The Perry campaign is offering supporters who submit 11 names of registered voters for the campaign to contact a chance to win prizes in a raffle. The gifts include a jogging lesson from RunTex founder … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Remember the Alamo ™

Posted on August 1, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Trademark this. An attorney working for Gov. Rick Perry’s office filed a “notice of opposition” [last week] with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office stating that Texas — not the Daughters of the Republic of Texas, which operates the historic … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Remember the Alamo ™

The Trib’s electoral three-parter

Posted on July 30, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

In case you haven’t seen it, I recommend the Trib‘s three-part series on the state of electoral politics in Texas, which was done in conjunction with the El Paso Times: The Map: Can A Democrat Win? The Map: The Giant … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on The Trib’s electoral three-parter

Dirty deals, done dirt cheap

Posted on July 29, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

So I missed this DMN story from the weekend about Rick Perry’s excellent fortune in the real estate market. Three years after Gov. Rick Perry’s biggest real estate score, questions persist about whether the governor benefited from favoritism, backroom dealing … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

In case you need a reminder to vote this November

Posted on July 27, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

What we have to look forward to in Austin next year if nothing changes. Legislators next year will face severe budget problems, divisive redistricting, school funding troubles and reviews of major state agencies, including the Texas Commission of Environmental Quality … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

So what did the Forensic Science Commission do?

Posted on July 25, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I guess I wasn’t expecting this. A majority of the Texas Forensic Science Commission has tentatively concluded that there was no professional negligence or misconduct by arson investigators whose flawed work in a fatal Corsicana fire contributed to the conviction … Continue reading →

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

John Bradley is a political hack: Film at 11

Posted on July 23, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

John Bradley, the District Attorney for Williamson County and the hand-picked-by-Rick-Perry Chair of the Forensic Science Commission, continues to be the single biggest impediment to the Commission doing the job it was specifically created to do. In an op-ed on … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Meet the Mostyns

Posted on July 22, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I have two things to say about this. Attorney Steve Mostyn said Tuesday he and his wife, Amber Anderson, are committed to putting a “substantial” amount of money that likely will exceed $3 million into ending hard-right Republican politics in … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Back to Basics PAC back on the air

Posted on July 19, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

From the “Stuff That Happened While I Had Put Down The Internet” department, here’s an update on the Back to Basics PAC, which produced and ran a great TV ad about Rick Perry’s budget hypocrisy. Since we’ve released the ad … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Back to Basics PAC back on the air

Perry settles lawsuit with Bell

Posted on July 18, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The settlement in the lawsuit by Chris Bell against the Rick Perry campaign over allegations of illegal campaign contributions to Perry by the Republican Governors Association (RGA) is now official. Gov. Rick Perry’s campaign paid $426,000 to former Democratic challenger … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2006 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

White reports $9 million on hand

Posted on July 15, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Not too shabby. Democrat Bill White hit the mid-year mark with more than $9 million in the bank for his November challenge to Gov. Rick Perry. White raised $7.4 million since his last report, in February, bringing to $16.4 million … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Rick and Bill at the Farm Bureau

Posted on July 11, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The gubernatorial campaign, in a nutshell. Gov. Rick Perry delivered a patriotic speech to the Texas Farm Bureau on Thursday, but gave short shrift to the property rights issue that caused a split between him and one of the state’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Rick and Bill at the Farm Bureau

The first candidate forum

Posted on July 6, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

What do you get when you have a gubernatorial candidate forum without Governor Perry? Pretty much the same as what you’d have with him, but without the distraction of his pathetic attempts to defend his record. The League of Women … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

It’s all right, he wouldn’t have contributed anything to the debate anyway

Posted on July 5, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The first gubernatorial debate of the general election is today, and one person will not be there. Democratic nominee Bill White and Libertarian Kathie Glass, both lawyers, are scheduled to face off in a Kerrville Area League of Women Voters … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

The community college crunch

Posted on July 3, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Increasing enrollment and decreasing funding is a bad combination. Community colleges, like most other state agencies and institutions of higher education, faced a 5 percent cut in state funding for 2010 and 2011. That was about $3.2 million each year … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on The community college crunch

EPA cracks down further

Posted on July 1, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Here it comes. The Environmental Protection Agency has formally denounced the state’s air-pollution permitting system for some of its biggest industrial plants — and reactions are pouring in. Texas’s system, the EPA said in its release, “allows companies to avoid … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Who wants to answer for Rick Perry’s policies?

Posted on June 30, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

There was a hearing of the House Public Education Committee yesterday to discuss the Texas Education Agency’s controversial methodology for rating school districts, but the person responsible for that metric declined to show up to explain it. Rep. Scott Hochberg, … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Feds fine Texas for food stamp failures

Posted on June 30, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Our longstanding food stamp problems continue to cost the state of Texas millions of dollars. Federal officials have fined Texas $3.96 million for errors in issuing food stamp benefits, according to a letter sent to House Speaker Joe Straus. The … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

The Kinky/Strayhorn effect

Posted on June 28, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

As I did my analysis of the Latino vote in the 2006 election, it occurred to me that I had stumbled across a framework for trying to understand what the effect was of Kinky Friedman and Carole Keeton Strayhorn’s candidacies … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2006 | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Corpus coverage

Posted on June 26, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Due to unavoidable schedule conflicts, I’m not down in Corpus Christi this weekend for the TDP convention. Here are some of the places where I’ll be following what’s going on: The Trib’s liveblog Abby Rapoport Bob Moser John Coby David … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Corpus coverage

TPJ files ethics complaint against Perry

Posted on June 26, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

It’s a dirty job, but someone’s got to do it. Texans for Public Justice, a nonprofit watchdog group, filed a complaint [Wednesday] urging the Texas Ethics Commission to require Gov. Rick Perry to provide detailed reports of campaign spending on … Continue reading →

Posted in Show Business for Ugly People | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on TPJ files ethics complaint against Perry

Cuts for thee but not for me

Posted on June 24, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Nice! That comes courtesy of the Back to Basics PAC, and the Trib says they’ve bought $250K in airtime for it. More like this, please.

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

PPP poll: Perry 43, White 43

Posted on June 22, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

This will likely shake things up a bit. One of the biggest questions about the 2010 election cycle, which we still don’t really know the answer to, is whether it will be solely an anti-Democratic year or more broadly an … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Rick Perry and the Latino vote, part 3

Posted on June 21, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Having looked at the 2002 election last week, I turn my attention now to 2006. This presents a number of challenges, thanks to the bizarre four-way contest that was the Governor’s race. In all my previous work on the 2006 … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2002, Election 2006, Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Republicans for White

Posted on June 21, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I’ve said before that Rick Perry can win, or at least he believes he can win, on Republican voters alone. Bill White needs to draw crossover support. With 49 percent of Republican primary voters choosing someone other than Perry, that … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

EPA goes after more permits

Posted on June 18, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Good for them. The Environmental Protection Agency said Tuesday it was taking over the issuance of operating permits for two more Texas facilities — Chevron Phillips Cedar Bayou and Garland Power and Light — further escalating the federal-state fight over … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on EPA goes after more permits

Rick Perry and the Latino vote, part 2

Posted on June 17, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

On Tuesday, I took a look at how Rick Perry did in the 2002 election in the State Rep districts (SRDs) that have Spanish surname voter registration (SSRV) percentage of 50 or more in order to try to get a … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2002, Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Public spending on private travel

Posted on June 16, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s an excellent bit of investigative journalism from Forth Worth’s Channel 11: Must be nice getting to go on all these corporate-funded junkets, with public-provided security, and not have to tell anyone any of the details about it. But as … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Public spending on private travel

Maybe having a press conference in front of your opponents’ campaign HQ isn’t such a hot idea

Posted on June 16, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Especially if they’re ready for you to arrive. Chicken suits are the new black. That’s what happens when you’re afraid to debate your opponent. BOR has more.

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Maybe having a press conference in front of your opponents’ campaign HQ isn’t such a hot idea

Rick Perry and the Latino vote, part 1

Posted on June 15, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Say what you want about Rick Perry, he’s got a much firmer grasp of the changing demographics of Texas and their political implications than many of his partymates do. As such, he plans to compete vigorously for the Latino vote … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2002, Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

What about A&M?

Posted on June 13, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

On the one hand, there’s evidence to suggest that the Aggie faithful want to sever ties with UT and go East. SEC commissioner Mike Slive visited College Station on Saturday, according to Billy Liucci’s Maroon & White Report, and A&M … Continue reading →

Posted in Other sports | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on What about A&M?

What Becky Moeller says

Posted on June 12, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I like this statement by Texas AFL-CIO President Becky Moeller so much, I’m printing it in full: Texas AFL-CIO President Becky Moeller issued this statement at a news conference held near the site of the Republican State Convention in Dallas: … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment