Monday, April 19, 2021

The Monday Morning Wrangle from Far Left Texas


Lots to get to since I skipped the update at the end of last week.
How much time and space should I spend on documenting the atrocities associated with gun carnage just in Texas over the past few days?  Frankly it's too difficult to keep up with.  Perhaps I'll just point out that the bloodshed doesn't register with any members of the Lege that weren't previously concerned about it ... and that includes a handful of Democrats.


A reminder to Rep. Crockett that the open permitless carry bill passed with bipartisan support.

Two of the Democrats who voted for HB 1927 — Reps. Terry Canales of Edinburg and Ryan Guillen of Rio Grande City — were expected because they were already joint authors of the legislation. [...] The five other Democrats who backed the bill were Reps. Tracy King of Batesville, Harold Dutton of Houston, Eddie Morales Jr. of Eagle Pass, Richard Peña Raymond of Laredo and Leo Pacheco of San Antonio.

(The tally was 87-58, which is to say that it would have passed without any Ds voting for it.)

So it is accurate to describe this legislation -- and a host of additional bills on voting rights, womens' rights, transgender childrens' rights -- as the extreme conservative faction in Austin going for broke.


Most of the Texblogosphere remained focused on the bills that will reduce voter turnout in order for the Republicans to maintain their grip on power.  The rationales are still flimsy.


And the costs more significant than who retains control of the state.


Kuff analyzed the propagandist's advantage in pushing voting restriction.  Rep. Erin Zwiener reacted to the passage of anti-trans bill HB1399, while Rep. Gina Hinojosa answers Dan Patrick's questions about voter suppression in SB7.  And Reform Austin covered Rep. Briscoe Cain's history of supporting laws that reduce the vote.


Alluding to Rep. Zwiener's Tweet embedded above, the most compelling testimony under the Pink Dome last week came from a ten year-old girl.


Yvonne Marquez profiled the notable trans-activist Shappley in Texas Monthly.  And the Dallas Voice compared these legislators to a pack of schoolyard bullies.


More about our lawmakers making bad laws, as referenced above.


I'll do Greg Abbott's polling against Matthew McConaghey, John Cornyn and Ted Cruz acting like fools again, some environmental, COVID, and election-related and social justice news later.

Chandler Davidson, professor emeritus of Rice University and one of the nation's leading authorities on voting rights in relation to racial equality and social justice, passed away on April 10.


I join the Texas progressive bloggers and the many students he mentored in grieving the death of Jim Henley: teacher, debate coach, CD7 challenger to John Culberson, and former HCDE trustee.


More on the way.
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