Tag Archives: Brains and Eggs

Texoblogosphere: Week of May 18th

The Texas Progressive Alliance doesn’t need hindsight to know that invading Iraq was a tragically stupid decision as it brings you this week’s roundup.

Off the Kuff is pleasantly surprised to hear that the Houston Metropolitan Transit Authority and US Rep. John Culberson have reached an accord in their longstanding feud over funding for light rail in Houston.

Letters from Texas provides a step-by-step guide to using your hypocrisy to justify your bigotry.

Libby Shaw at Texas Kaos and contributing to Daily Kos calls it as she sees it when the U.S. Congress cut Amtrak’s budget within hours of the train wreck outside of Philadelphia last week. Republican Austerity Kills. Literally.

Nonsequiteuse asks you to consider the long game for progressives in Texas, and explains why she’s building progressive infrastructure and working the next generation of leaders through New Leaders Council.

From WCNews at Eye on Williamson. The GOP’s end of session plan for tax cuts is getting near completion, Give It All To Business – The GOP Tax Compromise.

In a roundup of events, Socratic Gadfly says this week in Texas politics was probably even nuttier than normal — a high bar to clear.

Julian Castro is Hllary Clinton’s pick for running mate, according to Henry Cisneros. That suggests a Latino will also be the vice-presidential nominee of the Republicans. PDiddie at Brains and Eggs thinks that might be the most interesting thing that could liven up an otherwise completely predictable 2016 presidential season.

CouldBeTrue of South Texas Chisme is surprised that a Republican was so honest about tax cuts being just for the business cronies. Who needs roads, schools, or safety inspections. The rich can buy their own. But, the shrinking middle class and the poor must pay for what’s left.

Neil at All People Have Value posted about 11 pictures he keeps in his phone that involve death. APHV is part of NeilAquino.com.

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

Texas Clean Air Matters examines what Tesla’s Powerwall home energy storage battery means for Texas.

Better Texas Blog names the least worst way to under-invest in schools, college access and health care systems.

Stephanie Wittels Wachs documents her efforts to get the Legislature to require insurance companies to cover the cost of hearing aids for children under 18.

The Lunch Tray calls self-regulation of kids’ food advertising a “doomed effort”.

Paradise in Hell warns us that the anti-gay crowd isn’t going anywhere.

BEYONDBones explains why you should care about endangered species.

The Texas Election Law Blog tracks what has happened to election law-related legislation so far this session.

Chron: Sheriff Adrian Garcia Certain To Run For Mayor

The clock is slowly ticking on towards the Houston municipal elections.  But one area that has seen significant action is the race for Mayor. This week, another major candidate has made moves that are sure to shake up the race.  Theodore Schleifer of the Houston Chronicle reports that all the signs point to an impending announcement from Garcia…

Harris County Sheriff Adrian Garcia is sending every possible message that he intends to run for mayor this year, aggressively increasing his political operations and signaling to some close advisers and backers that a campaign may be imminent.

Garcia, under the Texas Constitution, would have to resign as a county official immediately upon declaring his candidacy. That presents Garcia, who watchers expect to immediately move to the field’s top tier if he joins the burgeoning mayoral fray, with a fateful decision: Does he step down as the county’s top Democratic officeholder to make a bid that would make him either Houston’s first Latino mayor, or politically unemployed?

“At the end of the day, it’s like standing at the craps table, placing the bet – and you could walk away with nothing,” said Garcia confidant Greg Compean.

[…]

Perhaps most tellingly, county sources say, is that Garcia’s top staff at the Sheriff’s Office are looking to jump as they eye other county positions that would give them a landing place beyond Garcia’s tenure and vest them in the county’s pension system. Garcia’s top lieutenant and close friend, Armando Tello, left last month for a lower-profile post in Precinct 6, and other executive officers currently are scoping out other opportunities.

“He’s running,” said Hispanic Chamber of Commerce head Laura Murillo, who once considered her own bid for mayor. “He’s getting ready to make his announcement very soon.”

Murillo is not in Garcia’s inner circle, but several of the sheriff’s other allies confirmed a bid is all but inevitable.

Sheriff Garcia joins a growing field of possible candidates… including State Representative Sylvester Turner, former Congressman and City Council member Chris Bell, current Council Members Stephen Costello, Jack Christie and Oliver Pennington, Ben Hall, Bill King and Orlando Sanchez.  Crowded doesn’t even begin to tell the story here, but it’s important to note that some candidates have more potential than others.  From the pillars of potential money and name ID, Garcia presumably sits in the upper echelon of contenders right out of the gate with Sylvester Turner.  Though there is certainly nothing to stop Ben Hall from bank rolling his own massive campaign, as we basically saw from 2013.

Side note… are there any women interested in running for Mayor? Any??

By far, a Garcia run will have the most immediate impact on local politics.  As Dos Centavos points out, his resignation as County Sheriff could mean a substantial roll back of the Progressive policy agenda that has been actualized in recent years.  Would a more Conservative Sheriff dismantle aggressive Mental Health reforms and LGBT protections in Harris County law enforcement?  That remains to be seen.  But those fears aside, there is no doubt that Garcia is a most worthy candidate to lead the city of Houston.

Brains and EggsOff the Kuff and Texpatriate have more on this fast-moving development.

 

Sheriff

(Harris County Sheriff Adrian Garcia.  Photo credit:  harrisdemocrats.org

 

Texoblogosphere: Week of December 1st

The Texas Progressive Alliance is back from its tryptophan vacation as it brings you this week’s roundup.

Off the Kuff is cheering for the Texas same-sex marriage plaintiffs as they move for the stay of the ruling that threw out the ban on same-sex nuptials to be lifted.

Libby Shaw writing for Texas Kaos and Daily Kos is taking a few days off to spend quality time with family. I hope all of our readers had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday.

Some helpful tips to avoid looking like a jackass with respect to the events in Ferguson, Missouri this past week were offered by PDiddie at Brains and Eggs.

CouldBeTrue of South Texas Chisme disagrees with the GOP view that only rich, white, old men should vote.

Neil at All People Have Value attended the Michael Brown protest march in Houston this past week. The work of freedom is always up to each of us. APHV is part of NeilAquino.com.

The controversial decision in Ferguson, Missouri sent shockwaves across the country, with many communities immediately engaging in protests. But as Texas Leftist discovered, the Houston protests may yield some substantive progress in the quest to outfit officers with body cameras. Plus, a new video highlights HPD’s work to tackle homelessness.

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

The Rivard Report, with a clear view of what “bipartisanship” means these days, reminds us that it only takes a few generations to go from immigrant to hypocrite.

Lone Star Ma has had it with the textbook adoption process.

Grits for Breakfast questions Republican funny math on border security funding.

Texans Together discusses hardship exemptions for the Affordable Care Act.

LGBTQ Insider explains another acronym for the spectrum.

 

(Photo credit:  Dr. Marvel on Flickr)

Holiday Lights Houston

Texoblogosphere: Week of October 20th

“Voting freshens your breath, whitens your teeth, and improves your sex life.” — Molly Ivins

The Texas Progressive Alliance reminds you that EARLY VOTING HAS BEGUN as it brings you this week’s roundup.

Off the Kuff published an interview with John Cook, the Democratic nominee for Land Commissioner.

Libby Shaw writing for Texas Kaos and Daily Kos is sickened by the corporations are people Supreme Court of John Roberts for allowing Greg Abbott to disenfranchise 600,000 American citizens in Texas of their right to vote. TX GOP, Greg Abbott stand by Discrimination and Disenfranchisement.

Two special days in the blogosphere last week: Blog Action Day for inequality was a global initiative, and Texas blogs dropped a money bomb for Wendy Davis. PDiddie at Brains Eggs has details on both.

After this week’s big announcement, Texas Leftist is left to wonder… Did the Dallas Morning News editorial board incorporate facts into it’s Endorsement process for Governor? If so, maybe this week’s decision for Greg Abbott would have went the other way. Clearly DMN should’ve taken a few minutes to read their own paper.

Republican racism revealed in TWIA emails about storm damage to Brownsville ISD property. CouldBeTrue of South Texas Chisme encourages everyone in South Texas to go vote. You can stop the racism. VOTE!

From WCNews at Eye on Williamson. Two campaign ads to check out, Must See TV – Great Ads From Mike Collier and Sam Houston.

Neil at All People Have Value wrote about things he is doing to make a difference in the 2014 elections in Texas. Neil says you can make a difference as well. APHV is one of many interesting things to see at NeilAquino.com.

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

Dan Solomon speaks from personal experience when he says that the Wendy Davis wheelchair ad shines a long-overdue light on the devastating effect tort “reform” has had on victims of medical malpractice.

The Lunch Tray keeps fighting the fight for healthier school lunches and snacks.

Grits for Breakfast calls on Texas jails to opt out of the Secure Communities program.

Texas Vox documents the big heat waves of 2013.

Socratic Gadfly was pleasantly surprised by the SCOTUS ruling that overturned the Fifth Circuit order allowing HB2 to go into effect pending appeals.

Helen Philpot would like for someone to explain to Greg Abbott where babies come from.

LGBTQ Insider compares Wendy Davis and Greg Abbott’s positions on LGBTQ issues.

Andrea Grimes has the GIF-based explanation of the HB2 timeline that you’ve been waiting for.

 

(Feature photo is the interior dome of the Harris County Courthouse, taken by Texas Leftist.)

Harris County Courthouse Dome

 

Greg Abbott Ordered Armed POLICE RAID of Houston Voter Group

Many across the nation were shocked to see the heavy-handed techniques employed by the police department in Ferguson, Missouri.  In a series of protests, American citizens were routinely threatened by the very officers that were sworn to protect them. No matter what one’s opinion of the case, any time a situation degrades to that level in the United States, it is something that must be investigated to the full extent of the law.

But similar excessive uses of force have been enacted in Texans too, and in their case, they weren’t protesting or putting anyone else’s life in danger.  At the direction of Attorney General Greg Abbott, Houstonians were subjected to a frightening armed police raid, all because they were trying to register voters.  Here’s the exclusive story, as reported by James Drew of the Dallas Morning News

On an overcast Monday afternoon, officers in bulletproof vests swept into a house on Houston’s north side. The armed deputies and agents served a search warrant. They carted away computers, hard drives and documents.

The raid targeted a voter registration group called Houston Votes, which was accused of election fraud. It was initiated by investigators for Attorney General Greg Abbott. His aides say he is duty-bound to preserve the integrity of the ballot box.

His critics, however, say that what Abbott has really sought to preserve is the power of the Republican Party in Texas. They accuse him of political partisanship, targeting key Democratic voting blocs, especially minorities and the poor, in ways that make it harder for them to vote, or for their votes to count.

A close examination of the Houston Votes case reveals the consequences when an elected official pursues hotly contested allegations of election fraud.

The investigation was closed one year after the raid, with no charges filed. But for Houston Votes, the damage was done. Its funding dried up, and its efforts to register more low-income voters ended. Its records and office equipment never were returned. Instead, under a 2013 court order obtained by Abbott’s office, they were destroyed.

And the dramatic, heavily armed raid never was necessary, according to Fred Lewis, president of Texans Together, the nonprofit parent group of Houston Votes. “They could have used a subpoena,” he said. “They could have called us and asked for the records. They didn’t need guns.”

To be innocent citizens subjected to a police raid, only to have the charges of any illegal activity dropped is nothing short of persecution.  And to make matters our, the would-be Suppressor-In-Chief doesn’t seem to regret the turmoil endured by Texans working with Houston Votes.  Just recently in the Dallas Morning News, Greg Abbott actually defended the police raid directed from his office…

Attorney General Greg Abbott said Tuesday that his office’s investigation of a Houston voter registration group that netted no prosecutions but left the organization in tatters was justified.

The 2010 investigation, which included an aggressive raid, targeted a group called Houston Votes, which was accused of voter fraud.

“We have a division that focuses on issues like this, and they operate very professional,” he said. “They undertook an investigation of allegations that were made.”

Even those that support Abbott should be taking pause from this. If Greg Abbott’s idea of an “investigation” always means armed cops forcing their way into a home via warrant, there is much to fear for the future of Texas if he gets elected.

The whole situation doesn’t bode well for Abbott’s stated political philosophy either.  There was nothing “Conservative” about the Attorney General’s actions here.  In a city where real criminals roam the streets waiting for their next victim, who could ever conceive that sending an armed law enforcement team to go after a few voter registration forms as an appropriate use of Texas tax dollars?

Before Texans go to the polls this November, they must stop and ask… if Greg Abbott is capable of raiding Texas voting groups, what else is he capable of??  Let’s hope it doesn’t take an armed police raid to find out.

For more, see Brains and Eggs, Nonsequiteuse, Texpatriate and Off the Kuff.

Abbott Suppressor In Chief

Texoblogosphere: Week of August 4th

The Texas Progressive Alliance thinks Congress can stay in recess all the way till November as it brings you this week’s roundup.

Off the Kuff marveled at the warmed over banality of Greg Abbott’s appellate brief in the same sex marriage lawsuit.

John Coby at Bay Area Houston wonders “If a tree falls on you, would Gregg Abbott defend the tree?”

Libby Shaw at Texas Kaos discloses the cynical and deceptive efforts by Ted Cruz and other anti-government ideologues to sabotage the people’s business in the U.S. House of Representative. Only cowards would scapegoat children. Ted Cruz: The Texas Republican Anti-Government Demagogue Strikes Again.

The Democrat in the race for Harris County judge abruptly quit the race last week, and PDiddie at Brains and Eggs saw that as a pity for one candidate and his party and an opportunity for another.

CouldBeTrue of South Texas Chisme isn’t surprised that for profit, low oversight schools, aka charter schools, have severe performance problems.

Neil at NeilAquino.com started a new blog called Blog About Our Failing Money-Owned American Political System. This blog joins All People Have Value http://www.neilaquino.com/all-people-have-value as the two blogs on the site. NeilAquino.com has nine pages total and is well worth your time.

Frustrating as it may be to see abject failure from state political leadership to address ongoing Border challenges,Texas Leftist Is still heartened and inspired to witness such an extraordinary response from Texas faith communities. I wish someone would remind Austin and Washington that basic humanity should ALWAYS come first.

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

Keep Austin Wonky proposes a better way to spend a billion infrastructure dollars in the Capitol city.

Better Texas Blog ruefully reports that Texas is a tough place to be a kid or a parent.

Lone Star Q reminds us that it is still perfectly legal in 32 states to fire someone for being gay.

Greg Wythe wonders how Republicans will react to truly free market pricing of new medications.

Concerned Citizens calls for a comprehensive transit solution in San Antonio.

Offcite reports on Plant It Forward, an ambitious vision for urban farming in Houston.

Scott Braddock details Michael Quinn Sullivan’s bad week.

BOR has a suggestion for how Stop Patriarchy can do some actual good in Texas.

(photo credit: VIP Realty SA)

Texoblogosphere: Week of July 6th

The Texas Progressive Alliance has been driving around asking about incendiary chemicals as it brings you this week’s roundup.

Off the Kuff reports on the petitions turned in by opponents of the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance to require a repeal referendum on the ballot in November, and the determination of the ordinance’s backers to defend it against such efforts.

Libby Shaw at Texas Kaos is sick and disgusted to report another chemical explosion like that in West, TX last year is a strong possibility. Why? Because Greg Abbott has a Koch problem. Greg Abbott has a Koch problem. Why Texas residents are essentially powerless.

WCNews at Eye on Williamson shows that Greg Abbott’s chemical problems makes clear that the, GOP In Texas Is Corporate-Owned.

While PDiddie at Brains and Eggs finds a great deal to be enthusiastic about in recent developments for the Blue team’s chances in November, it’s not all peaches and cream for Texas Democrats.

CouldBeTrue of South Texas Chisme knows Greg Abbott loves profits for his cronies over worker safety and Blake Farenthold loves cronies so much he’s eased up a tensy bit on the usual republican Hispanic bashing. It’s oligarchy first for the GOP.

The Supreme Court ruling giving Hobby Lobby the right to deny contraception health services was a surprise to many Americans. But given how ecstatic Greg Abbott was about the decision, Texas Leftist is left to wonder just what surprises he’d have if elected Governor. Would Abbott try to ban birth control in Texas??

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

Paul Kennedy and many other defense attorneys in Harris County protested the actions of a criminal court judge that was “encouraging” defendants to do their business before him without being represented by a lawyer.

Texas Election Law Blog analyzes True The Vote’s ability to intervene in the Thad Cochran/Chris McDaniel election dispute.

Texas Clean Air Matters celebrates the recent SCOTUS ruling that confirmed the EPA’s authority to address climate pollution.

Greg Wythe shows us what signing in on Election Day may look like in the near future.

SciGuy reassures us that we are not likely to be eaten by a shark.

The Bloggess researched fireworks options so you don’t have to.

And finally, Lowering the Bar isn’t a Texas blog, but as a legal humor blog targeting Greg Abbott for his pathetic performance in the redistricting legal fee dispute with Wendy Davis, they’re welcome to be in this week’s review.