Sunday, November 25, 2018
Wednesday, November 21, 2018
More Turkey, Less Talking
Like every other MFer on the Internet, I'll have something to say about Beto O'Rourke running for President, or Senate -- or both in 2020 -- at some point before the holiday weekend is out. Until then, enjoy your tryptophan coma.
Beware Black Friday at the Renaissance Festival...
Beware Black Friday at the Renaissance Festival...
Monday, November 19, 2018
The Pre-Turkey Day Wrangle
The Texas Progressive Alliance is grateful not to have to wrangle any actual turkeys for its holiday meal in this weather. Wrangling these blog posts and news items -- not all of which are turkeys -- is difficult enough.
Off the Kuff looked at the results of the Congressional races to find some themes about what happened and what we can learn from them.
David Collins also did some Congressional Kuffnering, along with a TX-23 follow-up, and wants you to know that he is down with the MPP (which is not the Marijuana Policy Project).
Progrexas blogs that Texas Republicans and Democrats who barely won their Congressional and Lege contests in 2018 will be the top targets for their opposition in 2020.
Robert Garrett at the Dallas News documents the rapidly-concluded Texas House Speaker's contest and profiled the breakaway victor, Dennis Bonnen.
Texas Standard took note of the first bill filing day for the upcoming Texas legislative session (in January), seeing items regarding public school financing, property taxes, and marijuana policy changes among the flurry.
Better Texas Blog explains the spending cap that the Legislature adheres to.
Houston Justice, reporting from the NAACP Houston chapter's elections, saw the Old Guard prevail over the Young Turks (in the vernacular), a story the Chron and KPRC also had.
Bud Kennedy at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram noticed pastor Ed Young of Houston's Second Baptist Church (also losing CD-7 incumbent John Culberson's church) being so upset about Democratic gains in the wake of the midterms that he condemned the victors as "godless", a passing of judgment echoed by other so-called Christian leaders.
The Catholic Diocese of Brownsville is taking the the Trump administration to court over the location of the proposed southern border wall passing through the historic La Lomita mission site.
Houston Legal has the details of the public reprimand issued by the State Bar of Texas against former Harris County GOP chairman/homophobe Jared Woodfill.
Nonsequiteuse urges Beto O'Rourke to take another run for the Senate in 2020.
Four Texas Libertarian candidates broke records for the number of votes received in the 2018 election, writes the Independent Political Report.
Downwinders at Risk blogs about San Antonio and Houston moving forward with new regional air monitoring networks, while Dallas does not.
TPA charter member Sharon Wilson, now the Texas coordinator for Earthworks, is still fighting the good fight against fracking in the Permian Basin.
Socratic Gadfly remembers the centenary of the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month. Along with indulging in counterfactual history, he says people should stop romancing war in general.
Paradise in Hell tells you more than you cared to know about Trumpy Bear.
Dan Solomon at Texas Monthly is happy that Austin did not get Amazon's HQ2.
Harry Hamid's brother cut his first record album. And Travis Scott's 'Astroworld' music festival defied the trend, collecting a huge and enthusiastic crowd despite uncooperative weather. The rap celebration of the long-gone-but-warmly-remembered theme park capped a breakout year for Scott, who made his star shine in 2018 as much as did Beto O'Rourke.
Off the Kuff looked at the results of the Congressional races to find some themes about what happened and what we can learn from them.
David Collins also did some Congressional Kuffnering, along with a TX-23 follow-up, and wants you to know that he is down with the MPP (which is not the Marijuana Policy Project).
Progrexas blogs that Texas Republicans and Democrats who barely won their Congressional and Lege contests in 2018 will be the top targets for their opposition in 2020.
Robert Garrett at the Dallas News documents the rapidly-concluded Texas House Speaker's contest and profiled the breakaway victor, Dennis Bonnen.
Texas Standard took note of the first bill filing day for the upcoming Texas legislative session (in January), seeing items regarding public school financing, property taxes, and marijuana policy changes among the flurry.
Better Texas Blog explains the spending cap that the Legislature adheres to.
Houston Justice, reporting from the NAACP Houston chapter's elections, saw the Old Guard prevail over the Young Turks (in the vernacular), a story the Chron and KPRC also had.
Bud Kennedy at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram noticed pastor Ed Young of Houston's Second Baptist Church (also losing CD-7 incumbent John Culberson's church) being so upset about Democratic gains in the wake of the midterms that he condemned the victors as "godless", a passing of judgment echoed by other so-called Christian leaders.
About one-fourth of Texas voters this month were white evangelical Christians. According to CNN’s exit poll, Republican U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, a faith-and-values Southern Baptist from Houston, won 81 percent of that vote.
The Catholic Diocese of Brownsville is taking the the Trump administration to court over the location of the proposed southern border wall passing through the historic La Lomita mission site.
Houston Legal has the details of the public reprimand issued by the State Bar of Texas against former Harris County GOP chairman/homophobe Jared Woodfill.
Nonsequiteuse urges Beto O'Rourke to take another run for the Senate in 2020.
Four Texas Libertarian candidates broke records for the number of votes received in the 2018 election, writes the Independent Political Report.
Downwinders at Risk blogs about San Antonio and Houston moving forward with new regional air monitoring networks, while Dallas does not.
TPA charter member Sharon Wilson, now the Texas coordinator for Earthworks, is still fighting the good fight against fracking in the Permian Basin.
Wilson, an outspoken anti-fracking activist, has advocated for better regulations to rein in the fracking industry, which utilizes horizontal drilling and fluid injections to crack open shale to release oil and gas trapped inside. But she no longer believes regulations are the answer because state and federal governments aren’t prepared to enforce them. “The only way to save the planet from climate change is to stop fracking now.”
Socratic Gadfly remembers the centenary of the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month. Along with indulging in counterfactual history, he says people should stop romancing war in general.
Paradise in Hell tells you more than you cared to know about Trumpy Bear.
Dan Solomon at Texas Monthly is happy that Austin did not get Amazon's HQ2.
Harry Hamid's brother cut his first record album. And Travis Scott's 'Astroworld' music festival defied the trend, collecting a huge and enthusiastic crowd despite uncooperative weather. The rap celebration of the long-gone-but-warmly-remembered theme park capped a breakout year for Scott, who made his star shine in 2018 as much as did Beto O'Rourke.
one of the best nights ever. 🤘🏽#ASTROWORLD pic.twitter.com/1gDNItZmTp— ana (@anathemartinez) November 19, 2018
Sunday, November 18, 2018
Monday, November 12, 2018
The 2018 Post Mortem Wrangle
Everybody's got an opinion the week after the landslide, and the Texas Progressive Alliance rounds up the best (and worst) of them in a ride around the Texblogosphere to celebrate the Democrats' big wins -- and mourn the losses -- from last Tuesday.
It's also the day following the Armistice Centenary, or the celebration of the ending of WWI, a hundred years ago. As Caitlin Johnstone noted, the best way to thank veterans for their service is to not make any more of them.
This synopsis of the US Senate race -- from January of 2017 to last Tuesday -- by Patrick Svitek and Abby Livingston of the Texas Tribune is the best ten-minute read on how the most important election in Texas unfolded.
RG Ratcliffe at Texas Monthly corrected the knobs at Politico about O'Rourke's shunning the use of political consultants as a reason why he lost. RG also had the best morning-after quick takes.
Beto's extremely long coattails for a losing candidate were the focus of many stories: Tarrant County turning purple, Fort Bend and Hays turning blue, the appellate courts flipping, the sweeps in Harris and Dallas Counties.
And as several media outlets predicted going back to September, the cult of Beto grows larger with his defeat as 'O'Rourke 2020' trial balloons are being floated all over the country.
While early voting was under way, Politico also took the liberty of introducing us to the next Ted Cruz, aka Lamar Smith's successor in TX-21, Chip Roy.
Jeff Balke at the Houston Press wants to know if Lizzie Fletcher will do for METROrail what John Culberson refused to do.
There will be another chance for voters in Harris County's East End to cast a ballot before the end of the year: the special election to fill the state Senate seat relinquished by US Rep.-elect Sylvia Garcia was quickly set by Governor Abbott for December 11. Two statehouse representatives, Carol Alvarado and Ana Hernandez, announced their intentions to run for SD-6 way back in March (after Garcia won her CD-29 primary).
A handful of old TPA friends were on the ballot last week: Trey Martinez Fischer goes back to the Lege to represent HD-116, but Nick Lampson came up short in his bid to unseat party-switcher Jeff Branick as Jefferson County Judge. And the Alliance salutes former blogger KT Musselman on his election as Justice of the Peace in Williamson County.
Socratic Gadfly had a three-part election wrap. First, a look at general hot takes, trends, and issues from various races. Second, he observed that conservative writers at centrist political mags were getting out the long knives for Beto, maybe in fear of a 2020 presidential run. Third, noting successful Democratic Socialists of America campaigns, he wondered if they would stay true to ideals once in office and other issues; above all, the use of the word "socialist."
Grits for Breakfast examined the 2018 results through his criminal justice reform lens. Scott Henson followed that up with a wrangle of more CJ news, leading off with a profile of Harris County's Judge-elect, Lina Hidalgo, and her reform platform.
Law and Crime talked to State District Judge-elect Franklin Bynum, one of three DSA members elected in Harris County.
Harris County's new Clerk, Diane Trautman, has plans to replace the county's antiquated eSlate voting machines with new ones that provide a paper trail. The problem, as always, will be finding the money to do so.
Even as Texas House Republicans begin to consolidate support for Rep. Dennis Bonnen as Speaker, a larger Democratic minority will hopefully push the lower chamber -- and the Lege overall -- more toward the political center.
David Collins has three posts on the progressive POV of the election results, all linked at Part I, while Sanford Nowlin at the San Antonio Current has a thirty-second take on how Democrats of a progressive bent hope to build on 2018.
Off the Kuff had some fun with the Harris County Republican Party and its ridiculous whining about straight-ticket voting.
Funnier still were the accusations of 'Communist' by HCGOP leaders against a losing county commissioner candidate. Jef Rouner at the HP:
In the lousiest political take/least progressive category, we have Blue Dog Democrat consultant Colin Strother making the case for Speaker Nancy Pelosi, 2.0. Sample:
AHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHA
Therese Odell at Foolish Watcher vents about the Saturday Night Live/Dan Crenshaw apology.
Paradise in Hell interprets the presidential appointment-making process.
And Harry Hamid is in a time machine at the end of the hall.
It's also the day following the Armistice Centenary, or the celebration of the ending of WWI, a hundred years ago. As Caitlin Johnstone noted, the best way to thank veterans for their service is to not make any more of them.
This synopsis of the US Senate race -- from January of 2017 to last Tuesday -- by Patrick Svitek and Abby Livingston of the Texas Tribune is the best ten-minute read on how the most important election in Texas unfolded.
RG Ratcliffe at Texas Monthly corrected the knobs at Politico about O'Rourke's shunning the use of political consultants as a reason why he lost. RG also had the best morning-after quick takes.
Beto's extremely long coattails for a losing candidate were the focus of many stories: Tarrant County turning purple, Fort Bend and Hays turning blue, the appellate courts flipping, the sweeps in Harris and Dallas Counties.
And as several media outlets predicted going back to September, the cult of Beto grows larger with his defeat as 'O'Rourke 2020' trial balloons are being floated all over the country.
Jeff Balke at the Houston Press wants to know if Lizzie Fletcher will do for METROrail what John Culberson refused to do.
There will be another chance for voters in Harris County's East End to cast a ballot before the end of the year: the special election to fill the state Senate seat relinquished by US Rep.-elect Sylvia Garcia was quickly set by Governor Abbott for December 11. Two statehouse representatives, Carol Alvarado and Ana Hernandez, announced their intentions to run for SD-6 way back in March (after Garcia won her CD-29 primary).
A handful of old TPA friends were on the ballot last week: Trey Martinez Fischer goes back to the Lege to represent HD-116, but Nick Lampson came up short in his bid to unseat party-switcher Jeff Branick as Jefferson County Judge. And the Alliance salutes former blogger KT Musselman on his election as Justice of the Peace in Williamson County.
Socratic Gadfly had a three-part election wrap. First, a look at general hot takes, trends, and issues from various races. Second, he observed that conservative writers at centrist political mags were getting out the long knives for Beto, maybe in fear of a 2020 presidential run. Third, noting successful Democratic Socialists of America campaigns, he wondered if they would stay true to ideals once in office and other issues; above all, the use of the word "socialist."
Grits for Breakfast examined the 2018 results through his criminal justice reform lens. Scott Henson followed that up with a wrangle of more CJ news, leading off with a profile of Harris County's Judge-elect, Lina Hidalgo, and her reform platform.
For more background: Charles Kuffner interviewed Hidalgo before the election, and here's a profile and slideshow the Chronicle ran this week. Also related, from the Texas Observer: "The midterms triggered a seismic shift in Harris County courts."
Law and Crime talked to State District Judge-elect Franklin Bynum, one of three DSA members elected in Harris County.
Harris County's new Clerk, Diane Trautman, has plans to replace the county's antiquated eSlate voting machines with new ones that provide a paper trail. The problem, as always, will be finding the money to do so.
Even as Texas House Republicans begin to consolidate support for Rep. Dennis Bonnen as Speaker, a larger Democratic minority will hopefully push the lower chamber -- and the Lege overall -- more toward the political center.
David Collins has three posts on the progressive POV of the election results, all linked at Part I, while Sanford Nowlin at the San Antonio Current has a thirty-second take on how Democrats of a progressive bent hope to build on 2018.
Off the Kuff had some fun with the Harris County Republican Party and its ridiculous whining about straight-ticket voting.
Funnier still were the accusations of 'Communist' by HCGOP leaders against a losing county commissioner candidate. Jef Rouner at the HP:
The idea that Penny Shaw, who ran against (incumbent Republican Jack) Cagle, is a Communist appears to be a right-wing conspiracy theory. There is no evidence that Shaw, a Democrat, is a member of the Communist Party of Texas. The idea seems to be based on Shaw's attendance at events the Houston Communist Party attends, such as the state Democratic convention this past summer. Sources "proving" her link to communism are either broken or do not actually contain the quotes that some alt-wiki authors contend they do.
In the lousiest political take/least progressive category, we have Blue Dog Democrat consultant Colin Strother making the case for Speaker Nancy Pelosi, 2.0. Sample:
Unlike many politicians, Pelosi doesn’t have an ego.
AHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHA
Therese Odell at Foolish Watcher vents about the Saturday Night Live/Dan Crenshaw apology.
Paradise in Hell interprets the presidential appointment-making process.
And Harry Hamid is in a time machine at the end of the hall.
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