Another round of bad news for Republicans

-- Wendy Davis defeats Greg Abbott... again.  She won a lower court decision in her redistricting case, which meant he had to pay her legal fees.  He contested that, and not only lost but got slapped by the federal judge, Rosemary Collyer.  Emphasis mine.

This matter presents a case study in how not to respond to a motion for attorney fees and costs. At issue is whether defendant-intervenors, who prevailed in Voting Rights Act litigation before a three-judge panel, may recoup attorney fees and costs even though the Supreme Court vacated that opinion in light of the Supreme Court’s subsequent decision in a different lawsuit that declared a section of the Voting Rights Act unconstitutional. A quick search of the Federal Reporter reveals the complexity of this narrow question. Yet, rather than engage the fee applicants, Plaintiff Texas basically ignores the arguments supporting an award of fees and costs. In a three-page filing entitled “Advisory,” Texas trumpets the Supreme Court’s decision, expresses indignation at having to respond at all, and presumes that the motion for attorney fees is so frivolous that Texas need not provide further briefing in opposition unless requested. Such an opposition is insufficient in this jurisdiction. Circuit precedent and the Local Rules of this Court provide that the failure to respond to an opposing party’s arguments results in waiver as to the unaddressed contentions, and the Court finds that Texas’s “Advisory” presents no opposition on the applicable law. Accordingly, the Court will award the requested fees and costs.

What a splendidly crappy lawyer Greg Abbott is.  The whole thing, if you're into that.

-- TXGOP chair Steve Munisteri backs slowly away from the reparative therapy plank in his party's platform.

Munisteri, who won re-election as chairman during the convention in Fort Worth, told Texas Public Radio this week he doesn’t think it’s possible to convert someone from homosexual to heterosexual through therapy.

“And I just make the point for anybody that thinks that may be the possibility: Do they think they can take a straight person to a psychiatrist and turn them gay?” Munisteri said.

Yeah... no.  You broke that shit, you own it. Update: Wonkette.

-- A majority of Americans, between 57% and 67% depending on how the question is asked, support the Obama administration's new EPA guidelines meant to throttle power plant pollution.  A majority of TeaBaggers -- 74% -- do not.  Of course, they are out of step with the country on Common Core, and immigration, and pretty much everything else, so is this really news?

The only reason they think they're the majority is because they're the only ones voting.  Then again... is that their fault?