The Weekly Wrangle

The Texas Progressive Alliance is enjoying the change of seasons as it brings you this week's roundup.

Off the Kuff took a deeper look at that Wilson-Perkins poll of Texas.

Three Harris County judicial candidates and two Greens -- one for US House of Representatives and one for US Senate -- received the coveted Brainy Endorsement last week from PDiddie at Brains and Eggs.

 BossKitty at TruthHugger knows this just another season for political science experiments on the voting public. Let's see how well they do on transportation funding, the Voting Rights Act, and voter ID: Generalizations: Politics is Science and we are all test subjects.

WCNews at Eye on Williamson posted about his afternoon at the Texas Tribune Festival.

Libby Shaw asks What is Mitt hiding? Find out what she thinks it is at TexasKaos.

Neil at Texas Liberal posted about donations he made to both Green Presidential nominee Jill Stein and to President Obama. Neil said that Ms. Stein is best on issues such as our rigged economy, climate change, and the freedom to dissent. He also said that those who think there is no difference between Barack Obama and Mitt Romney are simply wrong.  

CouldBeTrue of South Texas Chisme wants you to know that polluters can do untold damage and be liable for only $2 million, thanks to Republicans and their crony capitalism.

Sunday Funnies

"Borat the Plutocrat." 

Political debates schedule (more than just Obama and Romney)

-- You've probably already seen the Commission on Presidential Debates' October schedule of the traditional three-P-and-one-VP. Free and Equal has also scheduled a presidential debate between Jill Stein, Gary Johnson, and Virgil Goode on Tuesday, October 23rd, in Chicago. They're still waiting on RSVPs from Obama and Romney. No, seriously.

Free & Equal Elections Foundation gained national attention in 2008, when it hosted the only Presidential debate in the country in which every candidate who had ballot access in enough states to become President was invited. Both Ralph Nader and Chuck Baldwin participated in 2008, and Free & Equal is seeking to increase that number for the 2012 election. The debate made history, being the first and only all-inclusive, nationally televised debate on C-SPAN2. 

The Libertarians are suing the CPD, the Dems, and the Repubs because of being excluded from the Obama-Romney matches, but their legal argument doesn't appear to hold a great deal of water.

If you would like to see Stein, Johnson, Goode and/or Rocky Anderson added to the CPD roster, you can sign a petition here.

-- Jon Stewart and Bill O'Reilly plan a faceoff that should be worth exceedingly more than the $4.95 pay-per-view price. Count me in on that.

-- Ted Cruz and Paul Sadler have two debates scheduled in Dallas next month, both to be televised. They likewise haven't invited David Collins or John Jay Myers to participate. Myers has been busy protesting that decision as well, just not inside a courtroom. The Green and Libertarian senatorial candidates are holding discussions about having their own debate, and I'll post news about that if/when it breaks.

-- Nick Lampson and Randy Weber (CD-14, to replace Ron Paul) had a debate scheduled this past week but Weber canceled. The two have another one on the calendar for October 3rd in Clear Lake.

-- And Pete Gallego and Quico Canseco (CD-23) will debate en Espanol next Tuesday the 25th in a contest that will last for an hour, but be edited down to 30 minutes and then televised on Sept. 29th. The Alpine Daily Planet, Gallego's hometown newspaper, has more. Once again, their Green and Libertarian counterparts -- Ed Scharf and Jeffrey C. Blunt, respectively -- are not invited to join them in any language.