Swiss cheese, fruit salad, and giant hot dogs

They weren't throwing these things.  There was some good verbal sparring by the two Cubans at the opera house at U of H last night, but the media was crowded into a converted gymnasium across Cullen, thus the prodigious boxing metaphors.

Seriously about the groceries, though.  A couple of times I thought someone had changed the channel and we were watching the Food Network.

The bantamweight Rubio and the middleweight Cruz did an effective job of pummeling the Oompa Loompa-colored pinata hanging between them.  Alternately screwing his face into a tight grimace and unleashing his regularly-scheduled torrent of insults, with a reeling Wolf Blitzer having lost control of the affair in the early rounds, Trump landed no counter-punches to speak of.

But will it matter once we see the returns roll in Tuesday night?

The tenth Republican presidential was a good show, as it always is with Donald Trump on the stage. 

But for the first time in this unprecedented primary election, Trump could have used a little more winning. He left the stage in Houston, Texas, having been pushed around for most of the night. 

Standing between the two U.S. senators who remain the only obstacle between him and the GOP nomination, Trump was under assault from both Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida and Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas for a large part of the two-hour spectacle. 

A little more than halfway through the raucous back-and-forth, Trump was clearly tiring, and angry at being under so much duress. When the radio talk show host Hugh Hewitt directed another question at Trump, the businessman and reality TV personality snapped at him in anger. 

“Every single question comes to me? I know I’m here for the ratings, but it’s a little bit ridiculous,” he complained. 

Rubio was relentless. He pushed, prodded, provoked and badgered Trump as no one else during the campaign has been able to do on a stage. Rubio, smiling much of the time, interrupted and talked over Trump rather than standing by and waiting for him to insult or belittle him. 

And Cruz followed up on many of Rubio’s attacks or criticisms.

That Trump-Rubio ticket might be in a little trouble after tonight. While Rubio did do the best punching up, Cruz got under his heavily-powdered skin by needling him about his tax returns.

After 2012 Republican nominee Mitt Romney trolled The Donald by saying that Trump won't release his tax returns because he has something to hide – which, remember, is exactly what Democratic Senate Leader Harry Reid said about Romney four years ago – the other candidates took the baton and ran with it during the latest GOP debate Thursday night. 

For instance, Sen. Ted Cruz said, "He can release past year's tax returns. He can do it tomorrow. He doesn't want to do it, because presumably there's something in there."
Sen. Marco Rubio said, "Here's a guy that inherited $200 million. If he hadn't inherited $200 million, you know where Donald Trump would be right now? … Better release your tax returns so we can see how much money he made." 

And moderator Wolf Blitzer even got in on the act, starting a fracas by asking "Romney said either you're not as wealthy as you say you are, said maybe you haven't paid the kind of taxes we would expect you to pay, or you haven't been giving the money to veterans or disabled people. Are any of those accusations that he has leveled true?"

There were good scrapes on healthcare and immigration.  Former president of Mexico Vicente Fox's retort that he wasn't going to pay to build "no fucking wall" was the best.  But Rubio's best lines were used during the "if no Obamacare, then what?" exchange.  (It's too far along in the cycle to just say 'repeal and replace', after all.)

This all led up to the most punishing blow Rubio landed, again refusing to let Trump get away with a superficial answer on how he would reform the U.S. health care system. Casually but with a touch of disdain, Rubio pressed Trump on what his plan for health insurance reform would be, other than allowing customers to shop across state lines for a plan. 

“What is your plan, Mr. Trump?” Rubio said. “What is your plan on health care?” 

“You don’t know,” Trump replied. “The biggest problem —“ 

“What’s your plan?” Rubio asked again. 

“The biggest problem, I’ll have you know…” Trump said, before being interrupted once again. 

“What’s your plan?” Rubio said. 

Trump gave up, instead mocking Rubio for his near-catastrophic debate performance Feb. 6 in New Hampshire, when New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie badgered the Florida senator into repeating himself multiple times in a way that was subsequently mocked as robotic. 

But as Trump once again invoked purchasing health plans across state lines, Rubio used Christie’s tactic against him. 

“Now he’s repeating himself,” Rubio said. The audience cheered loudly and knowingly, acknowledging that Rubio was not only demonstrating a toughness that he had not shown under fire from Christie, but was using against Trump the accusation Christie used against him. 

Trump was flustered.

But the $64,000 question remains.

Hours before the debate, a Quinnipiac University poll sounded what could be a death knell for the hopes of party elders intent on blocking Trump's advance: it showed Trump handily winning in Florida, Rubio's home state. 

It found that 44 percent of Republicans there would vote for Trump, compared to 28 percent for Rubio. Cruz would place third with 12 percent, according to the February 21-24 survey of likely Republican primary voters. 

"If Rubio can't win in his home state, it is difficult to see how he can win elsewhere," said Peter Brown, the poll's assistant director. 

The March 15 Florida primary is among the juiciest prizes of the Republican nomination race because it is the first big battleground where the winning candidate scoops up all of the state's delegates. 

Some within the party still expect a long fight and cling to a scenario in which Trump, Rubio and Cruz stay in the race until the convention, with none gaining an absolute majority of delegates. In this case, after a first round, delegates would be released from their initial commitment and could vote for the candidate of their choice in a second round, thereby reshuffling the electoral deck.

If Cruz wins Texas next Tuesday by some significant percentage, and Rubio forges a comeback in the Sunshine State, it could happen.  I'm not betting -- today -- against PredictWise's percentages on it, though.

 Ben Carson begged someone to attack him and whined about not being asked enough questions again. Kasich may have moved into the understudy role for the vice-presidential nod, if he didn't ruin it by saying "we're not going to break up families".

Not a shitshow and not a food fight.  There was lots of laughing and ooo-ing at snappy remarks and chucking and giggling at double-entendres, like Apple's back door and the like.  The event was logistically executed without a flaw, the feed and swag compliments of Google memorable, but being in a room with maybe four or five hundred media types was a bit overwhelming at times for this reporter.  I can't listen to what's being said and Tweet it out as fast as the kids can, which is why I rely on the snark or others.  And the snark was a buffet all its own.

Now we wait for fresh polling and some election returns next week.

Update: Worthy reaction from Kevin Drum ...

Scorecard: I think Trump took some real hits tonight. He could start to lose a few points in the polls, especially if he spends the next week fending off questions about his tax returns and his $1 million fine and his health care plan. Rubio and Cruz both did well, but I give Rubio the edge. His attacks were a little sharper and the rest of his debate performance was a little better. Carson and Kasich were, of course, nonentities. Never has it been so obvious that no one cares about them anymore.

... and Newsweek ...

No one seems to go after Trump for not caring about the little guy. His opponents didn’t make enough of the old woman who lost her home to make way for a casino parking lot Trump was building in Atlantic City. But it quickly turned into a debate over eminent domain, not a woman at the end of her life. 

There’s plenty to use against Trump, namely the way he’s treated the help. The writer Mark Bowden once depicted him as a rich maniac screaming at his gardeners and handymen. As long as people see Trump as outrageous in service of America, they love him. If they see him as indifferent to or hostile towards the little guy, then he’s going to hurt. That’s a battle Hillary Clinton with her fighting-for-you message could win. 

Instead, Cruz and Rubio fumble soundbites. “The Palestinians aren’t a real estate deal,” Rubio kept repeating, even though it’s a malapropism. (I’m pretty sure the Czechs aren’t a real estate deal). And if Trump sees the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as a kind of real estate deal, he’s no crazier than every president since 1967. But in their effort to try to portray him as a mogul in a keffiyeh, Cruz and Rubio stepped all over themselves without likely picking up a single vote in Boca Raton. 

Maybe a year from now when President Rubio is in his first 100 days, these criticisms will seem lame, fleeting. But I suspect it’s much more likely the first 100 days of the new administration will belong to a president from New York—Trump or Clinton.

... and the Chron's compilation of spinmeister takes.

Update II: Here's how it reads when I play it straight down the middle.

I AM THE MEDIA.

There will be some words blogged later.

Underneath those tarps at the entrance to the media center, there are about 8-10 strapping young men checking bags and backpacks.  They are wearing "Secret Service"- emblazoned bomb vests. Additionally, there seem to be a thousand HPD officers, a hundred of those with bomb-sniffing dogs, swarming the U of H campus.  Cullen Boulevard is blocked and barricaded to cars and pedestrians. Super Bowl security has nothing on the RNC.

Click on these for larger views; they get a little fuzzy if I post them any larger.  It's time for a new celly with a better camera.

More later.

Update: These pictures were taken between 12:30 and 1 p.m. today, and the atmosphere was already crackling with electricity.  These debates are always tense for the candidates and campaigns and supporters, but the nonchalant and cynical seen-it-all vibe from the corporate media lining the bullpen is apparent.  The locals and especially the millennials among them are trying to look serious but they're bubbling over, three hours before kickoff.

There are three hundred of the cheap seats where I am, with the chili mix package and a Google pen and a Cardboard YouTube viewer.  Google fed the mob breakfast, lunch, and dinner.  The only thing that really impressed me so far is when I logged in on the WiFi, and Android instantly updated 16 app drivers on my phone.  Oh, and I need a nap; I've been up since 3 a.m.  Unless somebody does something crazy, no further updates here.  Follow the Twitter feed, top right hand column, and look for the wrap-up early tomorrow morning.

Fight Night in Houston tonight

Republicans are in a frenzy.

As Houston readied to become the center of the Republican universe, hosting a crucial presidential debate to be aired on CNN and Telemundo, the GOP hopefuls lined up, holding rallies and headlining dinners. 

With Trump still missing on the eve of the debate, Cruz and Sen. Marco Rubio spent the day firing up supporters, some of whom drove halfway across the state to hear from their preferred presidential candidate. 

However, fresh polls released Wednesday provided conflicting takes on who's in front in the Lone Star State. One had Cruz up 15 points on Trump, while another showed the contest was a dead heat. 

"Cruz should win the state, but he can't be a credible national candidate if he can't win his own state, and his campaign has hit a lot of turbulence lately," said Richard Murray, a University of Houston professor who co-directed the poll showing Cruz in the lead. 

A full 19 percent of respondents to that poll had yet to make up their mind, however, and another poll, commissioned by WFAA-TV in Dallas, had Trump and Cruz tied with 32 percent each.

Bold emphasis mine.  That 'undecided' figure suggests some awfully heavy Election Day turnout for the GOP.  Your top two questions: If Cruz loses Texas, why does he carry on?

Most (of his supporters at yesterday's rally) said they supported Cruz because of his strict interpretation of the Constitution, his commitment to religious values, his proposal to repeal Obamacare and his proposed immigration policies. (As of Monday, that plan is to, somehow, round up and deport all 12 million undocumented immigrants estimated to be living in the country.) Still, a couple said they wanted to vote for “whoever could stop Trump.” Others called Trump “a conservative by convenience.” But when it came down to it, most pledged to vote for him anyway should Cruz lose the nomination, because Trump has an R next to his name.  

“If our party picks him, then there you go, we have to stand behind our guy,” said Tex Christopher. 

One man, Blake Insel, said that Trump as president would “drive me to prayer,” saying that he has no reason to trust Trump and has never been given one. But when asked if he would still vote for him over Clinton, he said, “absolutely.”

Fall in, lemmings.  Q #2: If Rubio finishes third, what's the point of his campaign?

With no wins to show after the first four contests in the Republican presidential primary, Marco Rubio's supporters are growing nervous that their candidate's chances of becoming the party's nominee may already be slipping way.  

"He's got to do something, he's got to stir up the mix a bit," said Steve Hosheinz, a 55-year-old accountant from Houston who was among 2,000 people who waited to hear Rubio speak to a rally here on Wednesday. "He's a true conservative but he also as a very positive message. He's someone who can appeal to the middle. He's got to show that."

Neither one is dropping out any time soon; both have oodles of cash to burn through and a measure of "not Trump" support that continues to hold the front-runner in the mid-thirties even as he keeps winning.  This is still a primary that could go all the way to the convention; it's just taking on a Clinton-esque air of inevitability.  (Or is that an odor?)

Besides being this week's big deal for the GOP, it's kind of a big deal for the U of H, too.

The university won the event in a whirlwind competition against unnamed Houston venues after the Republican Party dumped NBC in favor of CNN, setting up a frenzied schedule with just two weeks to get the campus ready. 

In that time, Google turned the Yeoman Fieldhouse, an indoor track-and-field venue that could fit about 60 single-family homes, into a giant media center. The RNC doled out 500 press credentials for 1,000 requestors, vetting them all in days. The university figured out how to get wireless signals to a parking lot for throngs of reporters and visitors while converting its Cullen Lawn into a broadcasting hotspot. Police and the Secret Service did secret things. And nearly 4,700 students, staff and faculty vied for 25 randomly drawn tickets to get a seat inside the Moores Opera House, where the school's symphony orchestra was still practicing a week ago and where Wolf Blitzer will wrangle the candidates to keep them on point tonight. 

Viewers won't see the 16 cameras swiveling about, or appreciate the three days that shoulder-held camera operators spent getting their footwork down, so as not to stumble. They won't see how 320 super-high-resolution display panels were pieced together behind the podiums, or the hours of color balancing and lighting tests. They won't see (Trump stand-in and cruz flack Matt) Wiltshire or other student volunteers doing their best Trumps, Rubios and Carsons. 

The Student Government Association received 550 volunteer applications in about a day -- for everything from general runners to audience coordinators - then interviewed 240 applicants in 16 hours, weeding out potential tomato-throwers and ensuring those chosen would professionally represent the Cougars to an audience of millions. 

The stand-in jobs went to the biggest politics nerds -- and not just Republicans, Wiltshire said. As they stood around while technicians checked sounds and lights, they traded barbs over issues of the day - campus carry, Jeb Bush dropping out of the race, John Kasich's recent comments about women in their kitchens. Those discussions spilled over into the faux debate as CNN checked camera angles and practiced cutaway shots when other stand-ins interjected.

Texas Leftist wishes Cougar Town was getting more of the focus.

There will be protests galore.  The parties last night were hyper also.  I'm going to wade through it all tonight, read some goat entrails, see if anything makes sense.

I'm skeptimistic.

Rick Perry skates

Justice purchased once again.

The state’s highest criminal court dismissed the indictments against former Gov. Rick Perry on Wednesday morning, apparently ending the case that started with his threat to veto state funding for a local prosecutor if she refused to quit her office. 

After Travis County District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg was arrested and pleaded guilty to driving while intoxicated, Perry threatened to veto state funding for her office unless she first resigned. The Travis County DA's office was home to the state's public integrity unit, which is charged with investigating and prosecuting state corruption. 

Lehmberg, who served a short jail term, refused to quit. Perry followed through on his threat to veto state funding for her office. 

He was indicted by a grand jury, accused of using his office to coerce a public official. He and his lawyers argued — successfully, as it turns out — that he was acting within the powers of a governor and did nothing criminal.

Here's the only news we need more of.

Two of the courts nine judges dissented; one abstained. 

Here are the nine Texas Court of Criminal Appeals judges.  They include Chief Justice Sharon "Killer" Keller, Bert Richardson (about whom I have written extensively and endorsed in 2014) Larry Meyers (the only Democrat on the bench), and six other greasy no-name Republicans.  Until I know for sure, I'll wager that Richardson and Meyers were the dissenters -- or the abstention.  Meyers (Place 2), Place 5 (open) and Place 6 (Keasler, R incumbent) are on your November ballot.  We'll be blogging a lot more over the next eight months but for now, keep in mind that this court needs fresh, uncorrupted faces.

Watched neither the #DemTownHall nor the Nevada GOP caucus returns

There don't seem to be any surprises ... if you don't count Hillary's added condition of releasing transcripts of her Wall Street speeches 'if the Republicans do' a surprise.

Is it really any surprise so many people deem her untrustworthy?

Democrats like Hillary (well, at least Democrats over the age of 50 like her), but that's pretty much it.  Outside of AARP-eligible blue partisans, Hillary is strongly disliked and disbelieved.  Even Ted Cruz scores better.  Let's establish that she can win the nomination with the solid support of middle-aged and senior Democrats, but that is not a demographic that can -- all by itself -- take the White House.

The prevailing sentiment in 2016 is fairly clear: turnout is skewing downward, and the majority of Republican -- and nearly 50% of Democratic -- voters and caucus-goers are choosing the anti-establishment candidate.  The anti-insider vote is showing up in far larger numbers than the status quo, incrementalist caucus.

So what are Democrats going to do?  Run the ultimate insider establishment figure against the ultimate anti-establishment candidate.  Clinton owns all the baggage that the ruling class is carrying in this cycle's zeitgeist.

Seems very dangerous.

What happens if the judge in her e-mail investigation starts ordering subpoenas?

A federal judge ruled on Tuesday that U.S. State Department officials and aides to Hillary Clinton should be questioned under oath about whether the former secretary of state's use of a private email system was an effort to skirt open records laws.

The ruling by U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan is likely to add to the uncertainty hovering over Clinton, the front-runner for the Democratic nomination for the November U.S. presidential election, about the legal consequences of her decision to exclusively use a private email server in her New York home for her government work.

More from CNN.  For the record, that judge was appointed by Bill Clinton.  Hillary could be severely damaged goods if things keep going south for her on the e-mail matter.

Are these personal attacks or are they factual observations?  Far too many Clinton supporters believe the former, in fact take them on as personal attacks to themselves.  So they respond with shit pulled out of their ass.  Voter turnout -- as referenced a couple of days ago -- is a universal Democratic problem.  Charles and the Chronic have more on lagging voter participation.

Update: If you'd rather believe that limp Democratic voter turnout is not going to be a problem, Jeff Stein at Vox is there for you with the comforter.

-- Trump sails in Nevada, Cruz and Rubio battle to a draw over second place.  The spin is that's a loss for both of them.  Duh.

The Republicans are streaming into town for tomorrow night's debate.  Hide the children.

Much of the Republican presidential field is set to appear in the Bayou City on Wednesday, ahead of their debate the following day at the University of Houston.
Texas Sen. Ted Cruz will hold a 1 p.m. rally at Mach Industrial Group, in the 6100 block of Fulton. 

Wednesday evening, Cruz and retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson are scheduled to speak at the Harris County Republican Party's Lincoln-Reagan dinner, which Gov. Greg Abbott also is expected to attend. 

The reception at the Bayou City Event Center in southwest Houston is set to begin at 6 p.m. 

Two hours later, a candidate town hall with Megyn Kelly, filmed in Houston, is scheduled to air on Fox News. Cruz, Carson, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio and Ohio Gov. John Kasich have confirmed their participation, though real estate mogul Donald Trump will not be joining, according to CNN.  

Rubio also has organized a 4:30 p.m. rally at Houston Marriott South, near Hobby Airport. 

I have a media credential for the set-to Thursday evening and an invitation to Chris Cuomo's party at an undisclosed location.  Cuomo, for the record, is a jackass.  He's setting the stage for a Cabinet appointment, or for his brother's run for president in 2020 ... when Clinton loses in November.

That won't stop me from eating his food, drinking his whiskey, and screwing his women (the latter only figuratively speaking).