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Texoblogosphere: Week of July 1st

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The Texas Progressive Alliance stands with Wendy as it brings you this week’s roundup.

Off the Kuff points to two recent polls about abortion to note that the people really aren’t asking for more restrictions on reproductive choice.

Horwitz of Texpatriate asks the question on everyone’s minds: will the Senate Democrats stay or go in the Second Special Session?

Rick Perry thought he learned more from the life of Wendy Davis than she did, so he mansplained it to an anti-choice organization last week. And even Joe Straus was appalled. PDiddie at Brains and Eggs observed that this mansplaining business is a much more common form of testosterone poisoning than anyone previously knew.

WCNews at Eye on Williamson says it was a bad week for voting rights, A sad day in the United States.

At TexasKaos, Libby Shaw tells us about http://www.texaskaos.net/diary/7362/the-night-texas-turned-blue”>The Night Texas Turned Blue. Wendy Davis made us all proud.

This week at McBlogger, Cap’n Kroc has a message of welcome for the people newly energized by the Filicluster.

CouldBeTrue of South Texas Chisme hails the Supreme Court ruling on DOMA, but check out what the DOMA ruling means in a state like Texas.

The Ghost of Sam Houston makes an appearance at Darth Politico to talk Wendy Davis, Democracy, the rule of law, and the importance of civil disobedience.

And here are some posts of interest from other Texas blogs.

Jim Rigby pens an open letter to the women of Texas.

Iain Simpson contemplates the connection between whistleblowing and civil disobedience.

BOR explains what the SCOTUS decision on UT’s admissions policy means.

State Rep. Mark Strama announced his plans for the future.

Nonsequiteuse places the blame for Tuesday’s debacle in the Senate where it belongs, and reminds us that the fight is far from over.

Lone Star Ma stands with Wendy.

Mark Bennett gives the ten commandments of courtroom humor.

Andrea Grimes explains to people outside Texas why they should never write us off.

Texagain and Rachel Farris document their experiences in the Senate chamber during the Davis filibuster.

Concerned Citizens thinks Sen. Davis should run for Lt. Governor, not Governor.

Harold Cook updates us on the latest Republican minority outreach program.

Houston Politics

Rule Number 1– Never Underestimate Wendy Davis

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Until one week ago, most people in the United States had never even heard of Texas State Senator Wendy Davis. I’ll even wager that most Texans didn’t know who she was. But they’re sure starting to find out now. In that 168 hours, her Twitter account skyrocketed from 1,200 follower to upwards of 127,000. She’s been interviewed by every national news network under the sun, and even gotten major write-ups in international papers like the Guardian and Le Figaro. It’s sufficient to say, that over the last week, she became a Democratic superstar and a national sensation.

I guess that’s what a well-publicized 13 hour filibuster can do for you. When you get #StandWithWendy trending on Twitter, your name becomes known. And sure, I agree with Kathleen Parker of the Washington Post… Wendy Davis shouldn’t be praised solely because of one filibuster. But it seems that the national media has done what they typically do.. focus on the event to build the person, instead of starting with the person to build the event. And as the national media’s attention shifts, they have started to sour on Davis’ prospects, partly due to a new PPP poll that predicts a slim chance of her making it to the Governor’s mansion. Luckily the GOP is going right along with them on this, and that will prove to be a big mistake. People need to know that Wendy Davis isn’t your bargain basement politician… she’s a real political fighter, with real guts.

Wendy Davis is someone that has beaten the odds her entire life. She was a poor, single mother at the age of 19, with no college education. But even then, Davis saw that her life could be more that her immediate surroundings. She put herself through community college, earned a scholarship to Texas Christian University, graduated with High honors, and went on graduate from Harvard Law School. All the while, raising a family. When she finally decided to run for State Senator of District 10, Davis once again faced a tough road. As a Democrat in a solidly Republican district, she beat the male, Republican incumbent Kim Brimer in a nail-biter race. Also worth noting, her former City Council seat is currently held by the wildly popular LGBT politician Joel Burns.

So that’s how Davis became a State Senator in 2008. Most GOP operatives blamed her victory on the “Obama wave” (eventhough John McCain clearly won her district) and saw Davis as a novelty that would be easily beaten in 2012. They of course thought wrong. Senator Davis won reelection in 2012 from a during a bitter campaign battle. Here’s an excerpt from the Texas Tribune’s 2012 election night article…

State Sen. Wendy Davis, D-Fort Worth, narrowly clung to her seat on Tuesday night, fending off Republican state Rep. Mark Shelton in the most-watched legislative race of the Texas election…

Her win kept Republicans from coming within one vote of the two-thirds majority needed to render Democrats virtually powerless in the upper chamber. And it gave hope to Texas Democratic Party officials, who see Davis as a rising star and a potential a statewide candidate.

The Tarrant County district was hardly a certain bet for either candidate. It has traditionally leaned Republican: Gov. Rick Perry won the district in the 2010 gubernatorial race; U.S. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., won the presidential vote there in 2008.

“I think it’s really a reflection of people wanting a bipartisan voice,” she said. “People rose above partisanship in the way they voted tonight. They voted for integrity, for a fighter.”…

Clearly with Davis, HD10 has started some new traditions.

But what happened with the previous races is critically important for Texas Democrats, and national Democrats to understand… thanks to the make-up of HD10, Wendy Davis is well-practiced for a statewide race. Her district is virtually a microcosm of it, and she has figured out what Democrats need to do in order to win there. That’s why you’re not going to see her spewing hardcore “left-wing” ideology. Instead Davis carefully speaks about Texas values, and limited, but effective government. She has carefully crafted a message that allows her to appeal across party lines and political philosophies. This is exactly why I wrote back in February that Davis is the top Democrat prospect for a statewide victory. She’s a pro at this stuff.

So I have to agree with Andrew Kaczynski over at BuzzFeed… winning statewide is “not likely” for a Texas Democrat…

But thankfully… Texas is a state that never cared for “likely”. Senator Davis, the ball is in your court.

For more opinions, check out Off the Kuff and Texpatriate on this.

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Myth EXPOSED: How Texas Democrats Nailed GOP on Abortion

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For forcing a Special Session and protecting Women’s Rights, State Senator Wendy Davis is now a bonafide Texas hero. But as the bright spotlight has focused most of the attention on her, another huge part of the story has been overshadowed. As we head into a second Special Session, it’s critical to get this part of the story out to the world. And for this, you have to go over to the Texas House of Representatives, and their proceedings leading up to the bill’s arrival in the Senate. This is truly where the most important part of the fight happened, and it’s where to watch as the next round begins.

A big portion of these issues that’s getting muddled up in the national media coverage? These bills are not about a 20-week abortion ban. They are about closing health facilities. That’s why they set impossible goals for the facilities and doctors to meet. A Doctor’s office is not a hospital. If you have a cold or the flu (assuming you have health insurance), the first place that you go to is NOT going to be the ER. We have these places as separate facilities for a reason. But under the guise of HB60 and other TRAP laws, all facilities where a Doctor would give basic women’s health care have to be upgraded to “ER” status, Ambulatory Surgical Centers. This leaves Doctors with a nearly impossible choice… either spend Hundreds of Thousands of dollars to turn their small clinic into a full-fledged, fully staffed hospital, or close up shop.

Here’s an excerpt from an ABC News article, written by Emily DeRuy…

Republican Gov. Rick Perry says he’s fighting to protect the lives of unborn children, but he stands to hurt living, breathing Texans in the process.

Both men and women, particularly low-income minorities who are more likely to lack health insurance and medical-care options, rely on the “abortion clinics” for services like contraception, STD testing and even cancer screenings. One in four women in the state are uninsured.

“That is part of the concern that’s getting drowned out in the abortions versus pro-life soundbite,” Texas Rep. Trey Martinez Fischer (D) said during a Monday phone interview.

Right now, Texas has more than 40 clinics that not only perform abortions but also offer birth control and condoms. All but a handful will be prohibited from operating under the proposed bill. Those that could remain open are in a few urban areas, which would leave rural women with few options.

The restrictions “would represent a significant step backward for the health status of Texas women,” Dr. Lisa Hollier, chairwoman of the Texas District American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, wrote in testimony before the Senate Health and Human Services Committee.

Lawmakers in the Lone Star state barred Planned Parenthood from the state’s Women’s Health Program several years ago because the organization funds abortion clinics. The organization estimates that 130,000 women in Texas now go without preventive health care due to the state’s 2011 cuts to women’s health care funding.

Abortions make up just three percent of Planned Parenthood services in Texas, according to a spokeswoman for the organization. Thousands of women visit the organization’s clinics all over the state to receive STD treatments and other services. The organization also runs education programs to teach men and women how to avoid HIV and unwanted pregnancies.

Clinics not affiliated with Planned Parenthood provide similar services. The proposed law could force them to shutter their doors: In addition to banning abortions later than 20 weeks into a pregnancy, the bill requires abortion clinics to meet unusually high surgical standards and mandates that doctors who perform abortions must have admitting privileges at a hospital within 30 miles of their clinic.

Many of the clinics don’t currently meet such standards and would have to either remodel, relocate, or shut down if they perform more than several dozen abortions in a year. This is despite the fact that few people suffer complications from abortions in current clinics.

So even after being opposed by Texas ACOG, Republicans have continued to push the omnibus bill. Thankfully, House Democrats had plan to at least expose the lie that the bill has anything to do with women’s health or safety. The Democratic caucus submitted a slew of amendments to weaken the bill. But in the process, they forced the House to vote on each issue, instead of just rushing the whole thing through. Take a look at some of the amendments…

Rep Naomi Gonzalez offered this amendment to strike “medical evidence” and substitute “evidence, defined as the great preponderance of published peer-reviewed and scientifically based medical literature, knowing that the science surrounding fetal pain in support of the bill is inaccurate.

This amendment caused bill Sponsor Jodie Laubenberg to openly question studies from both the American Medical Association and Harvard Law Review regarding fetal development. The one study she produced to counter the claim had already been debunked. Voted DOWN by the GOP

Rep Senfronia Thompson submitted an amendment to create an exemption to the 20-week ban for victims of rape and incest. Given how emotionally traumatic the situation, a woman may need more time to make a very difficult choice. Voted DOWN by the GOP

Rep Mary Gonzalez offered an amendment to exempt abortion facilities that are located more than 50 miles away from the next nearest provider. Given how large of a state Texas is, and how few options currently exist for comprehensive care, this helps to protect the rights of women in rural Texas, and actually anyone living West of San Antonio. If a woman is going to seek an abortion, surely the GOP legislators would want her to have at least one safe option near her, correct? Why discriminate against women and make them travel up to 500 miles just because you don’t agree with their decision? Yep, you guessed it… Voted DOWN by the GOP

Rep Donna Howard offered several amendments to change the strict codes regarding upgrades to an Ambulatory Surgical Center, citing that state law already requires any abortion performed after 16 weeks to be done in an ASC. She asked to create exemptions to the space and height requirements, and exorbitant construction costs. Voted DOWN by the GOP

Rep Eddie Rodriguez offered several amendments to give clinics, at the very least, six more months to adjust to a slew of expensive new regulations. The bill, if signed by Governor Perry, would be effective immediately. That means any clinic not already in compliance has to shut its doors. Even the most ardent supporter of the bill would have to assume that any business needs time to transition, right? Voted DOWN by the GOP

The other amendments and record of the full vote are available here.

All throughout the amendment process, House Reps Jessica Farrar, Dawnna Dukes, Trey Martinez-Fischer and others debated GOP members on why changes to the bill were needed. So there you have it… the GOP caucus doesn’t truly care about what’s best for Texas women, and they proved it through their votes. They don’t care how many Doctors have to get put out of business, or how many people lose critical reproductive care. If so, then they would have passed any of several amendments to make the legislation more realistic. The above affirms that for the GOP, this bill is all about ratcheting up the religious Right flank so they can stay in office. Be on the lookout for more amendments in the next round.

Also important to note… What was formerly HB60 and SB5 in the first Special Session have been renamed HB2 and SB9 for this session.

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The 1st Stand With Texas Women Rally

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In case you haven’t heard, the fight over Women’s rights in Texas is far from over. Like the summer in this state, it’s just now heating up.

From the Burnt Orange Report…

Here in Texas, Republicans are waging an all-out assault on women. After the close of the regular legislative session, Governor Rick Perry called a special session to fast-track severe abortion restrictions that would close 37 of the state’s 42 abortion providers. This comes on the heels of vicious cuts to women’s health and family planning in 2011, which slashed 75% of the budget for what is primarily preventative care and access to birth control. Oh, and Perry also vetoed the Texas Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act that passed with bipartisan support in 2013.

During the regular legislative session in which female legislators from both parties stood up against further attacks on women’s health — though let’s be honest, there wasn’t much left to dismantle. However, Perry decided to add abortion restrictions to an initial special session that was initially called to pass redistricting maps. (The maps suck and are intentionally discriminatory against minorities, but that’s a topic for another time).

Texas women stood up against the abortion restrictions. Planned Parenthood organized women to stand in the Senate dressed in 1950’s garb, while NARAL sent “tangerine vagilantes” in orange shirts to silently display their opposition. The movement grew when several of the abortion bills were heard in a State Affairs committee — pro-choice groups and the Democratic Party organized hundreds of women to attend to tell their stories about why they oppose the bill. When Committee Chair Byron Cook silenced the women by cutting off testimony, he tossed gasoline on a long-smoldering anger of women who had long ago grown sick and tired of Republicans’ endless chipping away at reproductive rights.

Hundreds of Texans thronged the Capitol for the second reading of the bill on the State House floor, during which Democrats valiantly offered sane amendments and sharp commentary on the bill in an effort to slow its passage. Eventually the bill made it out of the House and back to the Senate, but a mandatory 24-hour waiting period — which Dewhurst tried to out-maneuver due to the absence of Democratic Senator Leticia Van de Putte, who was attending her father’s funeral — put the firm Tuesday, June 25 midnight deadline within reach of a valiant last stand by the Democrats.

The first session ended with the now-famous filibuster by State Senator Wendy Davis, who read testimonies cut off by Cook and others submitted via email and engaged in debate with her colleagues on the Senate floor for over 11 hours, until she was silenced by Republican points of order. Her Democratic colleagues debated those points of order until with less than 15 minutes to go, the Senate Gallery erupted into shouts and screams against the bill and the gross abuse of Senate rules that was facilitating its passage. The clock ran out on the special session, and after it was ascertained that the bill did not pass, Perry called everyone back to do it again.

So that’s where we are: back for a second special session to pass unwanted abortion restrictions that a galvanizing citizen-led effort helped shut down the first time.

The first Stand With Texas Women rally begins at noon in Austin at the state capitol. But other events are also being held for those that cannot make it to Austin, but want to stand in solidarity with the protesters.

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Houston, We Have A Budget…

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And we didn’t have to fudge it.  

As exciting as Texas state politics have been this week, it’s important to also take a look back at events in local politics. For the City of Houston, a lot has been accomplished in the last couple of weeks. Far-removed from K-street underbelly controlling DC, or even the overt grand-standing that you find in Austin, Houston politics is on the whole a series of honest events. But that doesn’t mean municipal government lacks for excitement, or doesn’t have its fair share of fights. Houston City Council is about as diverse a government body as one may find. With a contingencies of Liberals, Conservatives and even Tea Party members holding office, Houston’s City Government feels quite reflective of the nation itself.  
But there is one critical delineation… In local government, failure is not an option. If Houston is to be a successful city, we must have a successful council. If they mess things up, Houstonians immediately know it. It also means that a city’s annual budget has to be real. Council can’t pass Continuing Resolutions, or waste constituent time and money promoting religious holidays through meaningless legislation. For a city, every dollar counts.  
That was the massive task that lay before Houston City Council on last week. They showed up to City Hall, political philosophies in tow, and worked together  past sundown. It wasn’t easy, but it was done.  
From Houston Chronicle reporter Mike Morris, here’s a summation of how the day went down…  
The roller-coaster 10-hour meeting – all but 45 minutes of which focused on Mayor Annise Parker’s budget and council members’ 60 proposed amendments to it – will require Parker to shuffle about $3.9 million in the $2.2 billion general fund budget. The rest of the city’s spending occurs in enterprise funds fed by fees and not taxes.

Parker said this year’s budget cycle has been far different from the past three, which saw the city slash spending during the recession.  


“This budget we had new revenue coming in, and so there was an opportunity to set priorities for new spending,” she said. “So it was a little more difficult here at the table because we all had different ideas on how we spend that new money.”  

Among the successful amendments: A $2 million push to redeploy four ambulances shelved during the cutbacks; a $1.5 million summer jobs program for youth; $250,000 for cameras to monitor illegal dumping; and money to increase the Houston Center for Literacy’s budget from $400,000 to $500,000. Other big-ticket items, including a $3 million summer-jobs program and $1.5 million for after-school programs, were voted down. 
Houston’s Senior Citizens will be getting some tax relief as well. The city’s current tax exemption for homeowners 65 and older will rise from $70,862 to $80,000. This exemption, along with the other amendments will impact the overall budget, requiring the Mayor’s office to look for flexibility in other areas.

“I’m not going to make the cut right away… Since we all believe that the revenue will come in above our expectations, we believe we can still hit our targets even with this cut. It just means there’s less going to next year’s fund balance” Mayor Parker said. Council Member Brown went on to reiterate that this year’s budget came in with a $6 million- dollar surplus as well, confirming that the money was available to absorb the cut.

And 10 hours later, the Houston City Council adopted a $4.9 Billion- dollar budget. The first one in three years with no significant job cuts. I applaud the Mayor and Council members for their hard work. 

A city budget may lack the glamour of a raucous floor vote at the Capitol, but keeping an area as massive as Houston running is noble and necessary work indeed. Mayor Parker and City Council deserve to be lauded for it. Off the Kuff has a more timely post on the subject.

Houston Politics

BREAKING: Immigration Reform Bill PASSES the Senate, 68-32

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In continuance of has turned out to be quite the week in American politics, the United States Senate has passed the Gang of 8’s Comprehensive Immigration Reform Bill by a vote of 68 to 32. The final vote was taken at approximately 3:24pm CST.

Now the pressure is officially on for the US House of Representatives. The bi-partisan legislation includes the votes of 14 Republicans. It is up to House Speaker John Boehner to see Immigration reform to the end. Most analysts say that the bill could pass the House if Boehner is will to break the “Hastert Rule”. If this is done, the bill would pass mostly by Democratic support.

Here’s my quick look at the Senate’s Comprehensive Immigration Reform plan.

Houston Politics

La Mort du DOMA

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The death of DOMA

From the Associated Press…

WASHINGTON (AP) — In a historic victory for gay rights, the Supreme Court on Wednesday struck down a provision of a federal law denying federal benefits to married gay couples and cleared the way for the resumption of same-sex marriage in California.

The justices issued two 5-4 rulings in their final session of the term. One decision wiped away part of a federal anti-gay marriage law that has kept legally married same-sex couples from receiving tax, health and pension benefits.

The other was a technical ruling that said nothing at all about same-sex marriage, but left in place a trial court’s declaration that California’s Proposition 8 is unconstitutional. Gov. Jerry Brown quickly ordered that marriage licenses be issued to gay couples as soon as a federal appeals court lifts its hold on the lower court ruling, possibly next month.

In neither case did the court make a sweeping statement, either in favor of or against same-sex marriage. And in a sign that neither victory was complete for gay rights, the high court said nothing about the validity of gay marriage bans in California and roughly three dozen other states. A separate provision of the federal marriage law that allows a state to not recognize a same-sex union from elsewhere remains in place.

And just like that on June 26th, 2013… the Defense of Marriage Act is over. 

But what happened today was not the beginning of gay marriage… it was the end. As I’ve written previously, the GLBT community should stand for full marriage equality, and the only way to achieve that is for the very notion of a gay marriage to be eradicated. To have a separate class of marriage is to ensure inequality of that class. We learned this lesson from the Plessy V. Ferguson ruling. African-Americans became an underclass of American society, until they rose to demand full equality. In the fight for marriage and other rights, the GLBT community must do the same.

The fight for equality is far from over. But as we celebrate this milestone and look forward to the next, let’s not forget that equality is just as much an internal barrier as it is external. Get rid of the term “gay marriage”, and demand one standard of marriage equality for all Americans.

A Voice for the Rest of Texas