Tag Archives: Congress

A third PPP Congressional poll in Texas

Posted on December 26, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s a Public Policy Polling Twitter thread of interest. I’ve highlighted the specific relevant tweets. The generic ballot polling certainly looks great for Democrats, but how is that playing out at the district level? We've polled 36 GOP held Congressional … Continue reading →

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SCOTUS to consider Texas redistricting case in January

Posted on December 23, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Batten down the hatches. The U.S. Supreme Court will meet Jan. 5 to consider whether to take up a case on how Texas draws its congressional and statehouse maps. In a 5-4 decision split along ideological lines in September, the … Continue reading →

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Farenthold gets off the ballot

Posted on December 21, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

It started with this. The Republican Party of Texas managed to clear a path Tuesday in federal court for its chairman, James Dickey, to remove U.S. Rep. Blake Farenthold’s name from primary ballots. But as of press time, a party … Continue reading →

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Filing roundup: Outside Harris County

Posted on December 20, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

A look at who filed for what on the Democratic side in the counties around Harris. These are all predominantly Republican counties, some more than others, so the Democrats are almost all challengers. On the flip side, there are many … Continue reading →

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Republican Party sues to get Farenthold off the ballot

Posted on December 17, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Now here‘s something you don’t see every day. The Texas GOP is suing the Texas secretary of state to keep embattled U.S. Rep. Blake Farenthold off the 2018 primary ballot — one day after the Corpus Christi Republican announced he … Continue reading →

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Filing news: A few tidbits while we wait for the dust to clear

Posted on December 12, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

As you know, yesterday was the filing deadline for the primaries. Lots of things happen at the last minute, and the SOS filings page isn’t always a hundred percent up to date, so I’m hesitant to make final pronouncements about … Continue reading →

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A look at past primaries

Posted on December 11, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

I think we can all agree that the 2018 Democratic primary season is already unlike anything we’ve seen in recent memory. And since I like putting expressions like that into numbers, I thought I’d try to do it here. First, … Continue reading →

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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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Farenthold draws a crowd of opponents

Posted on December 9, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Bring ’em on. Bech Bruun, chairman of the Texas Water Development Board, resigned Thursday from that position ahead of an anticipated bid to unseat U.S. Rep. Blake Farenthold, R-Corpus Christi. “Serving as the Chairman of the Texas Water Development Board … Continue reading →

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Filing news: Lupe Valdez is in for Governor

Posted on December 7, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Here she comes. Dallas County Sheriff Lupe Valdez announced Wednesday morning that she is running for governor, giving Texas Democrats a serious candidate for the top job with five days until the candidate filing deadline for the 2018 primaries. “Like … Continue reading →

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Harvey’s lingering health effects

Posted on December 7, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

It’s going to be a long time before we can really say we have put Hurricane Harvey behind us. Three months after Hurricane Harvey, local health officials now are beginning to see the storm after the storm. In Harris County … Continue reading →

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Filing news: Adrian Garcia is in for County Commissioner

Posted on December 6, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Former Harris County Sheriff Adrian Garcia announced his candidacy for Harris County Commissioner, Precinct Two, citing his experience in bringing people together around smart government, transparency, and delivering results for taxpayers. “We all know that sometimes government … Continue reading →

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Filing news: Jeffrey Payne and a whole lot of Congressional candidates

Posted on December 5, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

And then there were six Democratic candidates for Governor. Signing paperwork and presenting a $3,500 check, [Dallas businessman Jeffrey] Payne became the sixth Democrat to file for the state’s top office. In addition to Payne, the list currently includes Houston … Continue reading →

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Filing news: The “not much to add but I’ll add it anyway” edition

Posted on December 4, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

One more week to go till the filing deadline. There’s already been a lot of activity, but there should be plenty more to come. A few highlights as we head into the last week for filing: – An old familiar … Continue reading →

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Hey, remember that harassment lawsuit against Rep. Blake Farenthold?

Posted on December 4, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

I’m just gonna leave this right here. Rep. Blake Farenthold used taxpayer money to settle a sexual harassment claim brought by his former spokesman — the only known sitting member of Congress to have used a little-known congressional account to … Continue reading →

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Rally against the GOP tax scam

Posted on December 4, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Are you upset about the terrible tax giveaway passed by the Senate last week? (If you aren’t, you should be.) Here’s one action you can take to channel those feelings. Rally Against Robbery! The People Fight the Tax Scam. Hosted … Continue reading →

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Just a reminder, CHIP is still running out

Posted on December 3, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

In case you were wondering. Nearly 400,000 Texas children could lose healthcare coverage in late January unless Congress renews funding for the Children’s Health Insurance Program, a decades-old federal program that provides health care to millions of children across the … Continue reading →

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Smokey Joe will not run for re-election

Posted on December 1, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Another one bites the dust. Embattled U.S. Rep. Joe Barton, R-Ennis, announced his retirement from Congress on Thursday. “I am very proud of my public record and the many accomplishments of my office. It has been a tremendous honor to … Continue reading →

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KP George files for Fort Bend County Judge

Posted on December 1, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Current Fort Bend Independent School District Board Trustee, Board Certified Financial Planner, father of three beautiful children, husband of a FBISD educator, and an Asian American citizen, KP George of Fort Bend County, is announcing his campaign … Continue reading →

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Nobody likes Smokey Joe any more

Posted on November 29, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Pobrecito. One day after a group of local Republicans met privately with U.S. Rep. Joe Barton about a nude photo of him that ended up online — and his political future — a number of Tarrant County Republicans are calling … Continue reading →

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Rep. Al Green’s revelation

Posted on November 28, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Not totally sure what to make of this. More than a decade ago, Congressman Al Green had a “romantic encounter” with a former aide in Houston, which later led to an allegation of sexual assault and talk of lawsuits and … Continue reading →

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Post-holiday weekend filing update

Posted on November 27, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Pulling this together from various sources. – According to the Brazoria County Democratic Party, Beto O’Rourke has company in the primary for Senate. Sema Hernandez, whose campaign Facebook page describes her as a “Berniecrat progressive” from Houston, is a candidate … Continue reading →

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A little concern trolling from the WSJ

Posted on November 27, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

This is a story that tries to stir up concerns about all those Democratic Congressional candidates spending money and energy running against each other in the primaries. I flagged it mostly because of the CD07 content at the end. In … Continue reading →

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Republicans are worried about Culberson

Posted on November 26, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

They should be, though I bet they wish they didn’t have to be at this point in the cycle. Republican strategists are warning that some of the party’s veteran House incumbents aren’t adequately preparing for the 2018 election, putting the … Continue reading →

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Early Congressional odds

Posted on November 25, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Decision Desk provides an early view of the 2018 Congressional election. The 2018 House Midterm Election is bound to be one of the more interesting in recent memory. With Donald Trump in the White House, infighting on both sides of … Continue reading →

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You’ve never seen Smokey Joe quite like this before

Posted on November 25, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Oh my bleeping God. U.S. Rep. Joe Barton, R-Ennis, released a statement on Wednesday apologizing for a graphic nude photo of him that circulated on social media earlier this week. “While separated from my second wife, prior to the divorce, … Continue reading →

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Rep. Walle files for re-election, not CD29

Posted on November 24, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: State Representative Armando Walle (D-Houston) released the following statement to announce his run for re-election to the Texas House of Representatives: After much consultation and consideration with my family, friends, and community, I have decided to run … Continue reading →

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An incomplete filing update

Posted on November 22, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

First, a little Republican action in CD02. Hurricane Harvey is reshaping congressional campaigns in Houston. When the flood waters socked the Meyerland area, it also washed out the home of former hospital CEO David Balat, a Republican, who was hoping … Continue reading →

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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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Texas v the feds, disaster recovery funding edition

Posted on November 20, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

This would be quite entertaining to watch, if the stakes weren’t so high. Texas Republicans on Friday panned the White House’s latest disaster aid request, with Gov. Greg Abbott calling it “completely inadequate” for the state’s needs in the wake … Continue reading →

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PPP polls show “generic Dem” winning in CDs 07 and 32

Posted on November 19, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Via Daily Kos, Public Policy Polling sampled a number of targeted Congressional districts for 2018, including two in Texas, and the results are encouraging, to say the least. TX-07 In Texas’ 7th Congressional District, Republican incumbent Congressman John Culberson has … Continue reading →

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The potential Sylvia effect

Posted on November 16, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

As we know, Rep. Gene Green is retiring, and as we also know, Sen. Sylvia Garcia is one of the contenders to succeed him. As noted before, this is a free shot for Garcia, as she would not otherwise be … Continue reading →

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Who’s in for CD29?

Posted on November 15, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Start your engines, y’all. State Sen. Sylvia Garcia and state Rep. Armando Walle threw their hats in the ring Tuesday to represent the district that covers much of eastern Houston and part of Pasadena. State Rep. Carol Alvarado, meanwhile considering … Continue reading →

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At some point we will be able to stop talking about who may run for Governor as a Democrat

Posted on November 15, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

That day is December 11. I am looking forward to it. With less than a month before the filing deadline, the most prominent declared candidate for Texas governor is probably Andrew White, the son of former governor Mark White. White, … Continue reading →

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