Why is everybody always picking on Dan Patrick, and get your guns up

-- I'd like to say "because he is retarded," but that's no longer socially acceptable.

Once in the breakfast, Patrick and Straus began arguing over the House not moving on Patrick’s agenda bills, while Straus was critical of the Senate action on the border security bill. At that point, Abbott interjected his displeasure with the letter attacking the pre-k bill that he supported.

With Abbott and Straus coming at him, Patrick declared that he was tired of them “picking on me.” 

Take out the papers and the trash, dipshit.

-- Did Jonathan Stickland hoodwink everyone and get a no-gun-license-needed open carry bill passed through the Texas House?

Instead of open carry, Texas just went wide open.

Anybody openly packing a handgun is no longer a police concern, at least not under an amendment passed 133-10 Monday by the Texas House.

See somebody with a gun? Don’t bother dialing 911.

That’s right. Under House Bill 910, police are barred from asking anyone “whether a person possesses a handgun license.” Maybe even regardless of age.

Look, passing open carry wasn’t supposed to be a big deal. The idea was just to let nearly 1 million Texans with concealed-handgun licenses choose where they holster a gun.

But this amendment is a very big deal. If nobody ever has to worry about being stopped to show a license, that’s closer to the unlicensed-carry freedom promoted by Rep. Jonathan Stickland, R-Bedford.

“Where do you think they got the idea?” Stickland asked slyly Tuesday. That was after a leader of the Dallas-based Come and Take It Texas open-carry group wrote on social media: “We unintentionally just got unlicensed open carry.”

"Former fetus" Stickland, uncharacteristically, gave all the glory to others.

Harold Dutton Jr., D-Houston, and Matt Rinaldi, R-Irving, jointly offered the amendment, saying they meant to deter police harassment.

(On Wednesday, Stickland wrote on Twitter: “To be clear @MattRinaldiTX and Rep. Dutton should receive all the credit.” On Facebook, he wrote that he did not mean the amendment was his.)

Does Greg Abbott actually sign a bill like this?  (No odds yet.)  Does it pass the Texas Senate?  (Easily, I would venture.)  Does it get marked up -- or down -- in bicameral conference?  (That's a possibility.  How strong, I wouldn't guess at this point.)  Nice going again for Harold Dutton.

It's getting really stupid in Austin, and the worst is yet to come.

Update:  From Chris Hooks at the Observer, more on the simmering feud between the Texas triumvirate, and via the governor's own Tweet stream, what Abbott has been up to this month.

On stage tonight at the American Country Music Party for a Cause supporting our soldiers. #vets #txlege pic.twitter.com/Ee0iC0NGIM
— Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) April 19, 2015

Cheering on @ussoccer at the #USAvMEX game. GO USA! pic.twitter.com/QLQSxGmn3v http://t.co/QLQSxGmn3v — Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) April 16, 2015

Throwing out the Texas Toss to @Pudge_Rodriguez before today’s @Rangers @Astros game. Time for #baseball pic.twitter.com/CvPH9S1DN5 — Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) April 10, 2015

I got to hold the bunny at today’s Easter Egg Hunt at the Mansion. #txlege pic.twitter.com/Jg2lGn1i20 — Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) April 2, 2015

Earth Day Toons

Barely a tree to hug in view.

Ted at jobsanger also has some good polling news, and links to some of the myths surrounding climate change.  Here's just one.

Myth #6: I'm just one person — I can't make much of a difference.

FACT: Our lifestyle decisions control a shocking 75% of emissions in the U.S. If we all improved the energy efficiency of our homes by just 10%, it would be the equivalent of taking some 25 million cars off the road! And as voters, we control a portion of the other 25%. Check out the nonprofit Citizens' Climate Lobby, which can help you write letters to Congress in support of Earth-friendly legislation.

84th Texas Lege: just as bad as we thought it would be

-- The Senate passed school vouchers.

Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has championed school voucher legislation since he entered the Senate in 2007, comparing the effort to the civil rights struggle. After numerous defeats during past sessions, Patrick’s voucher crusade came a step closer to reality today as the Senate passed Senate Bill 4, by Sen. Larry Taylor (R-Friendswood).

The bill passed 18-12 on mostly partisan lines. Only one Democrat voted for the bill, Sen. Eddie Lucio (R-Brownsville), while two Republicans voted against it, Sen. Konni Burton (R-Colleyville) and Sen. Robert Nichols (R-Jacksonville).

Taylor’s bill would create scholarships for mostly low-income students to attend private and religious schools. Under the measure, private businesses would receive a tax credit for funding the scholarships. The bill is similar to one proposed by Patrick in 2013, which died in committee.

“This is not a voucher bill,” Taylor said during the debate.

And I'm a NASA astronaut.

-- The House strips the Public Integrity Unit away from the Travis DA's office.

The Texas House voted 94-51 Monday to give initial approval to a stripped-down bill that would remove public corruption cases from Travis County’s Public Integrity Unit.  Final House approval is expected Tuesday.

House Bill 1690 was amended on the House floor to apply solely to corruption allegations against elected or appointed state officials, who would be investigated by the Texas Rangers and prosecuted, if the allegations are confirmed, in the official’s home county.

House members adopted an amendment dropping state employees from home-county prosecution, keeping the status quo that would keep those cases in the county where a crime occurred — typically Travis County, where most state employees work.

State Rep. David Simpson, R-Longview, joined Democrats in arguing that home-county prosecution would create a special privilege, and a “home-court advantage” for state officials that is not available to other Texans.

“I just want to plead with you that you not create, with this bill, a specially protected class,” Simpson said. “I urge you not to treat yourself better than the constituents who you serve.”

Another lonely Republican voice of reason silenced under the crimson wave.  But at least they didn't let Lazy Eye escape unscathed.

Rep. Chris Turner, D-Grand Prairie, won approval of a provision potentially affecting Paxton. It would require a local prosecutor who currently or in the past has had “a financial or other business relationship” with the target of a probe to ask the judge to let him be recused “for good cause.” If the judge approved, the hometown prosecutor would be considered disqualified, Turner’s amendment says.

As he explained the amendment, Turner did not mention Paxton or Willis or their offices. Bill author Rep. Phil King, R-Weatherford, accepted the amendment, which passed on a voice vote.

Last year, Paxton, then a state senator from McKinney, admitted breaking a securities law. He submitted himself to the wisdom of the Texas State Securities Board, which made him pay a $1,000 fine. The case wouldn’t go away, though.

It will be awhile before we know if that grand jury is a runaway or a whitewash.

Update (from a couple of days ago):

(On April 20) Public Integrity Unit director Gregg Cox rejected DPS director Steve McCraw’s request for the investigation of the agency’s alleged “no bid contract” to be resumed.

(Cox said): “It is very timely that you should choose now to write me a letter pointing out that there is no other agency in state government that is equipped to investigate allegations concerning your department."

As Cox noted at the time, Governor Rick Perry’s veto of the funding for the Public Integrity Unit effectively killed the investigation into an agency run by a Perry appointee and long time ally.

-- Open carry is almost a done deal.

After turning back last-minute attempts to let city voters opt out, the Texas House gave final approval Monday to legislation allowing gun owners with concealed weapons licenses to carry their side arms openly.

House Bill 910, by Rep. Larry Phillips, R- Sherman, passed on third reading 101-42. Similar legislation has already passed the Senate, and Gov. Greg Abbott has promised to sign open carry legislation. Minor differences in the bills will most likely be ironed out in conference committee before the measure is forwarded to Abbott's desk.

Nothing could possibly go wrong, with either the bill itself or Texans' reaction to it once it is in force.  nonsequiteuse with the best response.

We don’t have reliable statistics, of course, about gun violence, because the National Rifle Association has spent buckets of money lobbying against any attempt to do so, but I appeal to your common sense and lived experience.

When was the last time you were in the grocery store, delicately testing avocados to find the one that would be ripe in time for dinner, when you had to drop everything and squeeze off a couple of rounds because someone was threatening the lady at the cantaloupe display?

When was the last time you were sitting at home with friends, watching a movie, when you had to shoot someone who kicked in the door to your kitchen?

When was the last time you were at a museum and had to hide behind a full-scale model of a dinosaur while bringing down a nefarious character with a single shot to the heart from your snub-nosed whatever who had just grabbed a rare opal and a screaming 6-month-old from the Hall of Gems?

Are you always tense thinking about the gun battles that ensue every time you go to the bank to cash a check?

No,  you are not.

The best way to fight back on this one is with your wallet and not your Glock.  If you are in the grocery store, or a restaurant, or any other place of business and see someone openly carrying a firearm, leave immediately.  Leave your basket in the aisle, walk the check (call them back and tell them you'll return and pay as soon as the guys/gals with guns leave).

Let's allow the invisible hand of the free market -- our free hand, the one not holding a weapon -- decide whether we should transact business in a "politely armed" society... or not.

-- Finally, Texas draws the same warning from Uncle Sam that he gave Florida on Medicaid: take the free money we're giving you to expand access to healthcare for the poor, or lose it... and more.  Via Burka -- with the scolding -- National Journal.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services indicated to Texas officials Thursday that whether the state expands Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act would factor into the renewal of a multibillion-dollar Medicaid funding stream next year, according to state officials.

Federal officials requested a call with the Texas Health and Human Services Commission, during which they outlined their position, Linda Edwards Gockel, a spokeswoman for the Texas health agency, said in an email to National Journal.

The call came the same day that Florida Gov. Rick Scott said he would sue the Obama administration, accusing CMS of pushing the state to expand Medicaid by leveraging $1 billion in federal Medicaid funding, which is up for renewal this summer and helps cover some uncompensated care.

The TexTrib gets a little deeper in the weeds, but the choice is clear: forfeit almost $4 billion for being obstinate, or receive $9 billion to swallow your bitter partisan pride.  With hundreds of thousands of Texans' lives hanging in the balance, to say nothing of the ancillary economic benefits, maybe we should send Greg Abbott a bottle of water to wash it down.

Hard times in the land of plenty

-- Baker Hughes increases their oilpatch layoffs to 10,500.  Halliburton cuts 9,000.  Schlumberger slices another 11,000.  The freshly-unemployed will be blaming Obama at some point.

-- Blue Bell is recalling ALL of its ice cream products in the United States, because it cannot pinpoint the origin of the listeria outbreak in its supply chain.

Brenham-based Blue Bell Creameries is pulling all of its products from the shelves after more ice cream samples tested positive for a life-threatening bacterial infection.

The voluntary decision, announced Monday, is the latest and most sweeping development to plague the Texas business icon since a recall last month, the first in the company's 108-year history.

It came after an "enhanced sampling program" that found half-gallon containers of Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream produced on March 17 and March 27 contained the Listeria monocytogenes bacteria, company officials said.

[...]

The latest tests mean the company had several positive tests for listeria in different plants.  On Monday, company officials said they "cannot say with certainty" how listeria was introduced into their plants.

This is the sort of disaster that usually devastates a company.  Blue Bell has indeed been a Lone Star staple almost all of my life, but what happens to them from here is likely either bankruptcy or acquisition by another food conglomerate for pennies on the dollar.

Houston and Houstonians are in for a world of hurt in the months ahead.