Tag Archives: Briscoe Cain

State Reps to P Bush: Reconsider

Nearly all of the Harris County State Reps have written a letter to Land Commissioner George P Bush asking him to reconsider the ridiculous process that completely shut Houston and Harris County out of federal flooding funds. A bipartisan group … Continue reading

Posted in Local politics, That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Trying to make the sausage less bad

RG Ratcliffe walsk us through some bipartisan negotiations on HB6, the House version of the big Senate voter suppression bill, as three Democrats who want to make this bad bill slightly less bad work with a couple of Republicans who … Continue reading

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

House passes its omnibus voter suppression bill

But don’t bother asking what’s in the bill, because it’s going to change and we won’t know what’s in the real bill until it’s time for a final vote in both chambers. As opposition to Texas Republicans’ proposed voting restrictions continues … Continue reading

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

Businesses finally offer some real resistance to voter suppression

About time. With less than a month left in the legislative session — and Texas Republicans split on which package of proposals might cross the finish line — Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft, Unilever, Patagonia and two dozen other companies are urging state … Continue reading

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 13 Comments

Briscoe Cain’s latest follies

This guy, I swear. After an early misfire, House Republicans on Thursday succeeded in pushing their proposed restrictions on voting to the legislative forefront as the Texas Legislature’s 2021 session enters its final sprint. The House Elections Committee’s Republican majority … Continue reading

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

House committee passes its voter suppression bill

I remain pessimistic about this, but we have no choice but to fight. A Texas House committee on Thursday advanced an elections bill that would make it a state jail felony for local election officials to distribute an application to … Continue reading

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

The Briscoe Cain follies

Play stupid games, win stupid prizes. The Texas House Elections Committee abruptly ended its meeting [Thursday] before about 200 people who traveled to the Capitol could testify on a controversial anti-voter fraud bill. Rep. Briscoe Cain, R-Deer Park, who chairs … Continue reading

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 18 Comments

We have a poll that says people oppose more voting restrictions

A good sign, just remember our mantra about polls. As state Republicans push to restrict voting, a new poll shows a majority of Texans want more time to vote early and do not approve of threatening voters or those who … Continue reading

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

Republicans roll out their big voter suppression bill

They can’t do anything about blackouts or floods or COVID vaccinations, but they sure can do this. Joining a nationwide movement by Republicans to enact new restrictions on voting, Gov. Greg Abbott indicated Monday he will back legislation to outlaw … Continue reading

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 15 Comments

How Greg Abbott wants to restrict voting

More from that Trib story following the State of the State address. As part of his State of the State speech, Abbott designated five emergency items, or items that lawmakers can vote on within the first 60 days of session. … Continue reading

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 12 Comments

House adopts its rules

Here you go. The Texas House unanimously adopted rules Thursday that will require members to wear masks in the chamber and during committee hearings and allow them to cast votes on legislation from outside the House floor. But the chamber … Continue reading

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on House adopts its rules

The Lege will start out with masks

We’ll see how it goes from there. People attending the opening day of the 2021 legislative session will be required to wear a mask and asked to take a coronavirus test ahead of the event, the chair of the House … Continue reading

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on The Lege will start out with masks

How is the Lege going to operate?

It’s going to be an interesting session. In the most detailed public glimpse yet at how the 2021 legislative session might play out during a pandemic, the chair of the committee that handles administrative operations in the Texas House told … Continue reading

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

Rep. Senfronia Thompson files for Speaker

One hat in the ring, who knows how many to go. State Rep. Senfronia Thompson, the longest-serving woman and Black person in the history of the Texas Legislature, filed Friday to run for speaker of the Texas House, making her … Continue reading

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Endorsement watch: Carol and Borris

This is another easy call. When Carol Alvarado was elected to represent state Senate District 6 in a special election in 2018, she already had an impressive record under her belt. After serving on Houston City Council and as the … Continue reading

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 17 Comments

The HCDE makeover

One more world to conquer in Harris County. The future looked bleak for Texas’ last remaining county education department in early 2019. After years of state-level efforts to abolish the Harris County Department of Education, a new majority of trustees … Continue reading

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Endorsement watch: No Briscoe

The Chron follows the basic principle that bad acts should not be rewarded, and bad actors do not belong in positions of trust and power. In his two terms representing House District 128, Rep. Briscoe Cain has quickly acquired a … Continue reading

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

GOP sues over cancelled convention

As the night follows the day. The Texas Republican Party on Thursday sued Mayor Sylvester Turner and Houston First Corp. for canceling the party’s in-person convention that was scheduled for next week in downtown Houston. The lawsuit, filed in Harris … Continue reading

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

More reopening

It’s going great so far, right? Gov. Greg Abbott will allow hair salons in Texas to reopen Friday and gyms on May 18, moving more quickly than expected to further restart the Texas economy during the coronavirus pandemic. The businesses … Continue reading

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 34 Comments

January 2020 campaign finance reports: State House, part 1

I’m going to take a two-part look at the finance reports in State House districts. Part One will be from Harris County, looking at both contested primaries and contested November races. Part Two will focus on races in the counties … Continue reading

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Where the primary action is

It’s on the Democratic side in Harris County. This should come as a surprise to no one. The crowded Harris County Democratic primary field reflects a new reality in Houston politics: With the county turning an even darker shade of … Continue reading

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

Filing period preview: SBOE, Senate, House

Previously: Congress, and Statewide. As before, I am using the Patrick Svitek spreadsheet as my primary reference. Buckle up, there’s a lot to talk about here. I’m going to limit my discussion of State House races to the greater Houston … Continue reading

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Beto v Briscoe

I approve of this, with some small reservations. Presidential contender Beto O’Rourke is helping a fellow Democrat raise money to unseat the Texas Rep. Briscoe Cain, after the Republican lawmaker tweeted last week that his AR-15 is “ready” for O’Rourke. … Continue reading

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

There’s only one solution to the anti-vax crisis

They have to be beaten at the ballot box. There’s no other way. On the South steps of the Texas Capitol, state Rep. Briscoe Cain prayed that the children standing beside him would not be mocked for their parents’ decision … Continue reading

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on There’s only one solution to the anti-vax crisis

Things the Rainy Day Fund was not intended for

This, for one. A pair of conservative lawmakers want Texans to help pay for President Donald Trump’s border wall and plan to ask lawmakers to take $2.5 billion out of its rainy day fund to cover the costs. Reps. Briscoe … Continue reading

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Things the Rainy Day Fund was not intended for

The Harris County slates

Let’s talk about the filings for Harris County. The SOS filings page is still the best source of information, but they don’t provide shareable links, so in the name of ease and convenience I copied the Democratic filing information for … Continue reading

Posted in Election 2018 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

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

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

Posted in Election 2018 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Filing news: The “not much to add but I’ll add it anyway” edition

House passes its budget

Mostly shenanigan-free, with a nice little side order of shade for a few people who deserve it. After 15 and a half hours of debate on hundreds of amendments to the Texas House budget, lawmakers in the lower chamber passed … Continue reading

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

Cain retains lead in HD128 after recount

It’s all over. After a recount, Briscoe Cain remains the winner in his Republican primary challenge to state Rep. Wayne Smith of Baytown. Cain, an attorney from Deer Park, edged out Smith, a longtime incumbent, by 23 votes last month … Continue reading

Posted in Election 2016 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Cain retains lead in HD128 after recount

Two runoff recounts in the works

It’s not over yet in HD128. In a reversal, state Rep. Wayne Smith is now pursuing a recount in his narrow loss in Tuesday’s Republican primary runoff. Deer Park attorney Briscoe Cain beat Smith, a longtime incumbent from Baytown, by … Continue reading

Posted in Election 2016 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Republican primary runoff results

Harris County results Statewide results Trib liveblog Your new State Senators are Bryan Hughes, who defeated his former House colleague David Simpson, and Dawn Buckingham, who defeated former Rep. Susan King. Hughes is a Dan Patrick buddy, who will fit … Continue reading

Posted in Election 2016 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Republican primary runoff results

Final runoff early voting numbers

Here are your final early voting numbers for the Republican and Democratic primary runoffs in Harris County. Note that in both cases, mail ballots have accounted for the majority of the total so far: On the Dem side, there have … Continue reading

Posted in Election 2016 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Runoff watch: Legislative races

I’m going to spend a few posts looking at the runoff elections that will be on the ballot this May. Primary runoffs are completely different than regular primaries, mostly because the races involved are low profile and only the hardest … Continue reading

Posted in Election 2016 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

2016 primaries: State races

Let’s start with the Democratic race for Railroad Commissioner, and a few words from Forrest Wilder: The Gene Kelly Effect: Texas Democrats are almost perennially embarrassed by what you might call the Gene Kelly Effect — the depressing tendency of … Continue reading

Posted in Election 2016 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on 2016 primaries: State races