"The biggest stadium in Texas we can find"

As big as his hands.

Not only is the arena Trump picked not the biggest in the state, as he promised, but it’s not even the largest in the neighborhood. Nearby NRG Stadium – different from NRG Arena – holds tens of thousands of people.

As the Dallas News pointed out, “At least one venue in Texas holds more than 180,000 and NRG Arena isn’t even the biggest venue in Houston, let alone in Texas.”

But it is the biggest one they could find.  Allegedly there's something like 50 high school football stadiums in the Lone Star State that can seat 8,000, so settling for the place where the Houston Rodeo holds a horse competition is probably due to the fact that Poop just isn't very familiar with Texas, as Texans already knew.  Sometimes it's hard to believe Trump called Cruz "Lyin' Ted" because Ted wasn't smart enough to nickname Trump that first, isn't it?

Ashton Woods has a terrific idea for you disruptors out there.

Step 1: Reserve tickets.

Step 2: Don't attend.

Step 3: Celebrate the emptiness of Houston's third largest stadium. #FuckTrumphttps://t.co/2aYzRwf5ue

— Ashton P. Woods (@AshtonPWoods) October 16, 2018

(Don't use your real name.  Trump is having peaceful protestors arrested, you know.  Has been since his inauguration.  So be careful out there.)

Whataburger vs. White Castle tonight

In San Antonio, or on your teevee (or laptop, or tablet, or cellphone).

This was to be the third debate in the closely watched race, but the second debate, scheduled for Sept. 30 in Houston, was canceled because of Cruz's participation in the Senate's confirmation process for Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh. While the first debate in Dallas was focused on domestic policy, this one is expected to cover domestic and foreign policy.

All the same advice I gave Beto for Thursday night's CNN townhall solo (so far) applies to this evening's debate.  Whether he takes my advice or not, for the sake of Texas Democratic fortunes down the ballot and across the Lone Star, let's hope he has upped hs game.  This is still too weak, IMO, to cut the mustard.  Don't bring a pillow to a gunfight, Bob.

W/r/t Thursday night ... this message is approved (and maybe even paid for) by Ted Cruz.

In what he is calling the largest single campaign complaint in history, Libertarian U.S. Senate candidate Neal Dikeman is alleging that a planned town hall meeting by CNN amounts to an illegal $10 million in-kind campaign contribution to Democrat Beto O’Rourke.

Dikeman filed a complaint with the Federal Elections Commission on the heels of news last week that O’Rourke shattered fundraising records with a $38.1 million take in the final quarter before the November 6 election. Dikeman alleges in his complaint that a town hall scheduled for Thursday in McAllen violates federal election law because it will give O’Rourke an hour-long prime time forum worth millions of advertising dollars.

“Politics should not be about money, and corporations should not be funding politicians,” Dikeman said in a prepared statement. “Particularly in this race as Congressman O’Rourke is running fundraising campaigns touting his exclusion of special interest money. Excluding a Libertarian nominee from the debates because you think I’ll take more votes from you than the other guy is one thing, politics is politics. But violating campaign finance laws, especially on this scale is much bigger than that. The scope of this violation should give every American pause.”

Neither the O’Rourke or Cruz campaigns responded to a Texas Monthly request for comment.

That's one way to get the publicity you seek.

Third-party nominees being left out of the conversation is, as everyone already knows, a chronic condition in our so-called democracy.  Just can't have the duopoly questioned, challenged, or so much as casually intimidated.  Texas is one of the worst states in the Union at this shitty disenfranchisement game.  Texas Democrats, with a helpful assist from the TXGOP in the state Lege via the Election Code, are the primary reason you don't have any Texas Greens on your ballot this season.  But the corporate media, which is making millions upon millions of dollars in advertising revenue this autumn -- at a time when they cannot lose or squander so much as a dime -- is the two-party systems' partner in these electoral crimes.  If you'd like to suggest some other reasons for the traditional electoral blackout of any party other than the two that can afford wall-to-wall television advertising, I'll advance your premise here or feature it in a follow-up post (your choice).  Because try as I might, I have not been able to come up with any good ones myself.

So best of luck to Mr. Dikeman in his legal challenge.  I suspect it may become moot, as I'm betting Poop Cruz winds up on stage in McAllen Thursday night with Beto and Dana Bash.

Somebody order a bag of White Castles delivered to the debate hall, please?