The Veterans' Day Wrangle

The Texas Progressive Alliance honors the service of America's veterans as it brings you this week's roundup.

Off the Kuff analyzed the favorable poll and the unfavorable poll that came out last week.

Texpatriate, while happy that Mayor Annise Parker was re-elected, laments nonetheless that Ben Hall ran one of the worst campaigns in history against her.

Eye On Williamson is still blogging at our temporary home. What kind of message to Democrats need to run on in the Lone Star State? Good question; here are some thoughts on a Democratic message in Texas.

Two polls released last week had good and bad news for Wendy Davis, but it was when President Obama came to Dallas that things got both better and worse for the Democratic gubernatorial candidate. PDiddie at Brains and Eggs broke it down.

People are getting poorer and poorer, just as Republicans and their backers wanted. No one knows poverty more than Brownsville and McAllen. CouldBeTrue of South Texas Chisme says "Lets vow to elect Democrats in 2014".

With such anemic turnout, the 2013 elections were mostly a success. But some issues did still arise, and Texas Leftist was able to share a thorough account of one. If mass confusion is a goal of the Texas voter ID law, then I'd say it's working very well.

With Veterans' Day here, Neil at All People Have Value offered a brief account of views regarding war held by the late Korean War veteran Tony Aquino. All People Have Value is part of NeilAquino.com.

======================

And here are some posts of interest from other Texas blogs.

Greg Wythe gives the unvarnished view of how the new voter ID law actually works in practice.

Grits for Breakfast calls for the implementation of the "Barney Fife Rule" in the McLennan County DA's office.

John Coby has some advice for future candidates.

Better Texas tells the rest of the story on those health insurance cancellations.

Juanita Jean is seeking help getting some non-binding referenda on the Democratic primary ballot.

And finally, this isn't a blog post, but a petition calling on Ted Cruz to give up his own federally subsidized health care plan, or work to support affordable healthcare coverage for all Americans.  It definitely deserves a place here.

Sunday Funnies

Good and bad for Wendy Davis

I'm not talking about the two polls earlier this week, either.  Here's where she did good.

“I am pro-life,” she told a University of Texas at Brownsville crowd on Tuesday. “I care about the life of every child: every child that goes to bed hungry, every child that goes to bed without a proper education, every child that goes to bed without being able to be a part of the Texas dream, every woman and man who worry about their children’s future and their ability to provide for that future. I care about life and I have a record of fighting for people above all else.”

“This isn’t about protecting abortion,” Davis explained in the same appearance. “It’s about protecting women. It’s about trusting women to make good decisions for themselves and empowering them with the tools to do that.”

Conservatives spewing the Abortion Barbie crap and the murdering babies bullshit are really only chasing more moderate Texans away from the TXGOP.  This is not only what they want to do, it's a good thing for every Texan except them.  Even Susan Combs -- whom I have never agreed with about anything -- says so.  So I say: let them keep doing that.

They think theirs is the majority view, and the only thing more wrong than that is the media -- and some Democrats -- are so scared that they also believe it (as noted in the previous).  Redefining "pro-life" is the smartest thing I have seen the Davis campaign do yet.

This, however, was the dumbest.

Hardly unexpected, but state Sen. Wendy Davis is making herself scarce when President Obama comes to Texas on Wednesday. He’ll spend the afternoon and evening in Dallas. The Democrats’ leading hope in next year’s governor’s race will be hundreds of miles south in the Rio Grande Valley.

Her campaign schedule, just released, puts her in Mission in the morning, meeting with educators. And at 6 pm, she’ll be in Pharr, meeting with volunteers and supporters at Poncho’s Mexico Nuevo Restaurant.

We figured as much in today’s Texas Watch column. But choosing to get as Pharr from the president as possible was a nice touch.

Obama shouldn’t be too surprised. The 2010 Democratic nominee for governor, Bill White, headed for West Texas to avoid being seen with him.

I bet more optics like these will convert Republican voters and Republican leaning voters to her campaign in droves. /sarcasm

Now if you click on the link in the excerpted paragraph above, you could read about how Texas millionaires are once again lining up to give tens of thousands of dollars to US Senate campaigns outside Texas.  I wonder how that makes Maxey Scherr feel.  We could ask Barbara Radnofsky or Rick Noriega; I'll bet they know.

The old "Texas as ATM" swindle is already in play.  And that is the secondary outrage here. 

I just can't stand to watch any more Texas Democrats running as far away from Obama as is geographically possible (and everybody knows how I feel about Obama).  This strategy is Blue Dog consultant chickenshit personified.

"Ooooo, Obama is unpopular among Texans, and you need Republicans to vote for you, so run away from Obama as fast and as far as you can".

Davis could have, instead, met the president in Dallas, said forcefully that when she is elected governor she'll expand Medicaid, that Ted Cruz and John Cornyn were wrong in blocking ACA, and that Greg Abbott represents a continuation of Rick Perry's cruel policies that leave millions of Texans sick and dying without healthcare coverage.  And that all of these men have the gall to call themselves pro-life.  And she would have amplified her good messaging  - the recasting of herself as the pro-life candidate -- with a direct assault on the GOP power structure in this state.

And she would not have lost any votes she was never going to win anyway.

Republicans are wrong and mean and stupid, but they don't ever stop fighting, even after they have been beaten down several times (see: government shutdown).  Wendy Davis is getting blame from Republicans about the confusion surrounding the Photo ID law implemented in this week's elections.  There is no shortage of chutzpah from conservatives, and as a Democrat you can either get pummeled or you can fight back.

Here's the deal, my Democratic friends: if Wendy Davis is going to follow the Angles' advice -- worse yet, if it's her natural inclination without needing encouragement --  and run a race like Bill White's except in heels and Mizunos, then she's going to get the same result.

Who's willing to invest in that?  Who wants to work on weekends and late at night for that?

Run as a Democrat or run as a Republican, but don't run as a Democrat pretending to be a Republican.  Because as stupid as people are, they are still smart enough to vote for the real Republican every. single. time.

Update: My other brother from another mother, Socratic Gadfly, expands on this premise.

Why are conservative white men so angry?

Across the pond, from the Guardian.

(Michael Kimmel's new book) strokes a broad, acerbic brush over the white supremacists of the Mason-Dixon Line, the NRA and Tea Party stalwarts of the Bible Belt, the men's rights activists of cyberspace and the high school spree shooters of parental nightmares. The common feature, he argues, is their shared belief that certain degrees of status, privilege and social advantage, perceived to be their natural or god-given rights, have been snatched away by sudden social change. The resulting anger is targeted not at a globalised neoliberal economic system that has declared ordinary people expendable – irrespective of their race, class or gender – but immigration, civil rights and feminism. 

Yes, the South is full of these.  Texas is all but consumed by them.  They are much more likely than not to be middle-aged and living no closer to a city than in an exurban belt at least 20 miles out.  They own more than one gun, listen to Rush Limbaugh, and have a broadband Internet connection which they use primarily to post comments on Free Republic, Townhall, Breitbart, and Yahoo (scroll down and click 'view comments').

Thus their POV is represented online to a vastly greater proportion than is actually present in the public discourse.

They're the minority.  Thinking people know this.  But they scream so incessantly and so loudly that people in public office and the media and even those who disagree with everything they say think they're the majority.

Their complaints are heard mostly by those of their creed and social status whom they have elected to represent them in Washington and Austin.  This is a slightly different problem, though, because so many Americans who are not like them have ceded them control over their lives.  This is why I can agree with Russell Brand's message while rejecting his suggestion not to vote.

The answer to the question in the headline?  I don't care.  They just need to be made to understand that they don't call the shots any more.  And the only way to do that without firing any shots is to show up at the polls.

They're not taking the country back.  Well, they won't if we stop them, that is.

Dome's fate punted back to Harris commissioners

The county's voters rejected public debt to fund the proposed convention facility last Tuesday; that was not to be interpreted as "tear down the Dome".

The Houston Astrodome's obituary may have been written when voters rejected a $217 million bond proposal to renovate it, but some Harris County commissioners who will decide its ultimate fate said Wednesday it's possible that burial for the city's landmark structure is still some time away, if it comes at all.

"It's anybody's guess now," Steve Radack, one of the five members of the Harris County Commissioners Court, said.

And a quick decision or start to the demolition of the world's first air-conditioned domed stadium, dubbed the "Eighth Wonder of the World"?

"That's not going to happen," Radack said.

"We will wait to see what the consensus of Commissioners Court is before we decide what to do with the Dome," another commissioner, El Franco Lee, said.

For those of us who want to see the old girl live on, Commissioner Radack has assumed the role of Astrodome protaganist.

Studies in recent years have estimated that the cost of demolishing the Astrodome to be as much as $78 million. Radack said he understood it would cost about $20 million to fill the hole left behind.

"I think the Dome has served its purpose, but I'll say this: I'm not going to support tearing it down and then covering the hole with $20 million in dirt and a parking lot," he said. "If that's all, it can just stand there."

It doesn't have to do that, either.  It can be a revenue-generating public facility and remain an iconic symbol of Houston's past... and future.  My request of the Harris County Commissioners Court is to please consider again the Ryan Slattery (UH architecture student) option.

The Rodeo and the Texans want parking; the Dome sits over a 35-foot-deep hole in the ground with a 9-acre footprint.  There's your parking garage, and it can be two levels.  Eighteen acres' worth of underground parking.  Put a floor down over that (a roof for the garage) and then strip the Dome to its skeleton -- a Texas version of the Eiffel Tower -- and repurpose it as a semi-open air park.

(It probably can't have a crater with a lake and trees as seen here, but it can be nine acres of green space with grass, shallow-rooted indirect sunlight-flourishing shrubbery, pavilions, playgrounds, walking paths, concessions, etc.)

A park like this instantly becomes the crown jewel of the city.  An actual tourist destination for people from around the world ... just like the Eiffel Tower.  A selling point for the Olympics.  Perhaps most importantly of all, a bold symbol of a world-class city that pays tribute to its heritage and shines as brightly as its future.

Let the Rodeo and the Texans collect the fees for the subterranean parking -- your car stays cool in the summer! -- with half of the money collected paying back the taxpayers for the deconstruction and revitalization expenses until the (yes, public) debt is settled.  After that, those greedy bastards can keep it all.

It's the best way -- as far as I can see the only way -- that everybody can get what they want.

This is the plan, commissioners.  Make it happen.

To upsets, and more voting next month

In City Council District A, Councilwoman Helena Brown will face another runoff showdown against Brenda Stardig, whom she unseated in an upset two years ago in the conservative westside district.

Round 2 in Oak Forest should be fun to watch, as it was last time. I think TeaBagger Brown can rally hers better than Barfly Brenda, just like two years ago. But they'll be pulling hair and clawing each other with their fake nails for another month, and that will be the real show.

In District D, Dwight Boykins earned a spot in a runoff with Georgia Provost.

Durrel at New Texas Media missed it on the mayor's race, but called it long ago in D. Once again we see that evaluating the viability of candidates on the basis of fundraising is a fool's errand, as he blew it on Boykins' runoff opponent.  (I don't repeat this over and over because it's incorrect.)  I'm going to trust his instincts in this December rematch, though; find his blog in the right hand sidebar.

In District F, Richard Nguyen ousted incumbent Al Hoang in a close contest.

Very surprising. Nguyen's primary voting history wasn't much less Republican than Hoang's (he skipped the GOP primary in 2012) so his close win suggests some constituent dissatisfaction with the incumbent. Here's Little Saigon Inside with a take.

Al Hoang was elected in 2009 and has a three-term limit of 2 years each. The Vietnamese-American voters voted for him based on his strong anti-communist rhetoric.

After taking office, he immediately wrapped himself in controversy with his open overture to the communist government in Vietnam. He went to Vietnam on "special economic development visits" and met with high officials including the president of Vietnam. His close relationship with various officials at the Vietnam Consulate in Houston is viewed with disdain by the anti-communist groups in Houston. He is also in a legal fight with various factions of the community about his handling of the community's fund designated for Vietnamese-American community center.

To his supporters, Al Hoang visiting Vietnam or dealing with Vietnamese officials are part of his duty on a special economic development committee for Houston. These activities have nothing to do with his view against the communist government in Vietnam. Nevertheless, the extreme anti-communist folks in Houston decided that they had enough of Al Hoang and recruited a political novice, Richard Nguyen, to run against Hoang. Al Hoang was running unopposed until a couple of months ago.

District F has a population of 185,000 people composed of 42% Hispanic, 23% Black, 15% White and 16% Asian. Vietnamese-American population in Houston is about 38,000 people and roughly half live in District F. Historically, in the last two elections (2009 and 2011), there were less than 5,000 people who voted.

So what are Richard Nguyen's chances? The Viet voters' high turnout alone would be close to 5,000 people.

Richard Nguyen is a controversial person himself and the people supporting him are not well-liked by the community. He once campaigned for another city council candidate, Nguyen thai Hoc, who actually lost the race to Al Hoang in 2009.

Don't miss their wrapup, either. (I corrected some of the grammar in the above, as it is written by an ESL writer, but that shouldn't detract from the insights into the too-often-overlooked Vietnamese community in Houston.)

In the hotly contested District I, which has no incumbent, Graci Garcés earned a spot in a runoff with Robert Gallegos, who bested Ben Mendez by a mere 20 votes in complete but unofficial returns.

Expect more crowing about this race from Campos. Nothing as this publishes; he must be sleeping off a hangover.

I summarized AL 2 and AL 3 last night, so let's sample Kuff here for some analysis.

In At Large #3, Michael Kubosh led the field with 28% in Harris and a 42% plurality in Fort Bend. He will square off against Roy Morales, who snuck his way into the runoff ahead of Jenifer Pool and Rogene Calvert, who had about the same number of votes each. The four Democratic candidates combined for 54% of the vote in this race, but the distribution was sufficiently tight that it allowed the two Republicans to finish in the money, not unlike District C in 2005.

Democrats: Stop doing this.  It's costing you seats on council.

Parker up, Dome down

A $217 million bond measure to fund a massive Astrodome renovation failed by several percentage points, a decision expected to doom it to the wrecking ball.

[...]

"We're going to have to do something quick," County Judge Ed Emmett said afterward. "We can't allow the once-proud Dome to sit like a rusting ship in the middle of a parking lot."

He called it "an interesting evening to say the least" and added, "We have an electorate that is for whatever reason anti-bond."

The news came as a blow to representatives of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

"There's no disputing this building is an icon," said the Trust's Beth Wiedower. "Its legacy will live on even if it doesn't. It seems like its fate is sealed; obviously we are disappointed in the outcome."

The other Harris County bond referendum on the ballot, a $70 million initiative to fund part of a city-county inmate processing center, narrowly passed in complete but unofficial returns. The vote will let the city shutter its two aging jails.

It's not hard to say that turnout was driven by the Dome proposal. But since the margin of victory for the "Nos" was about 16,500 votes ... and 19,685 voters -- out of nearly 260,000 -- did not pick either 'for' or 'against', what to think about that?

Compare this to the Houston mayor's race, where Parker won with 57% of 169,549, and just 4800 undervotes. That tells me that a hundred thousand people in unincorporated Harris County (or incorporated in another municipality) made their way to the polls -- or mailed in a ballot -- but at least four times as many of those voters made no choice about the life or death of the Astrodome.

That is just weird.

In other news, Ben Hall wiped himself out as expected.

Mayor Annise Parker swept to a third term Tuesday night, beating back a crowded field led by former City Attorney Ben Hall.

News of Hall's concession call was greeted with a burst of applause at Parker's Election Night event at the George R. Brown Convention Center. The mayor took the confetti-strewn stage right at 9 p.m.

"I love this city," she told supporters. "Tonight I feel it loves me back."

Of the race with Hall, she added, "This was not a limping across the finish line. This was a decisive victory."  Indeed, Hall conceded about 90 minutes after polls closed.

"We may not have enough votes to be the mayor of Houston. But it does not end our journey," he told supporters.

Despite the early Election Night exit, Hall said his campaign awakened City Hall to some of the criticisms and needs of Houston residents. Issues like the poor quality of roads and reducing crime were brought before voters, he said, as a result of a hearty campaign.

Some supporters just wished it last a little longer, applauding Hall for his gentlemanly campaign. Alvin Zimmerman, Hall's campaign chairman, called Hall's efforts "upstanding and righteous, as opposed to what he faced."

That last quote is the weirdest thing I have seen or heard regarding the mayoral contest yet.

Hall's supporters -- many of them Republicans to be sure, but also many evangelical African Americans who have historically voted D -- all seem to be as delusional as Hall himself is.  It's just Tea Party, alternate reality psychosis.

And as for this biannual municipal coalition of Republicans and conservative blacks who think they can build a winner together... stop kidding yourselves, hate mongers.

More about city council races next.

Harris County Election Returns

Updates as we go through the night.

These returns are for EV votes cast prior to Election Day, and flashed to the harrisvotes.com website after 7 p.m.  The first Election Day tallies were posted at 8:30 p.m and only the closest races below have been updated, with the early numbers appearing now as a strike-through.

Update: Latest numbers as of 9:00 9:30 10 p.m. with 36% 66% 97% of the county's precincts reporting.

State propositions 1-9:

1.  86% For, 13% Against
2.  81 -18
3.  56-43
4.  86-14
5.  63-37
6.  78-22
7.  75-25
8.  69-31
9.  84-16

The water bill had some late objections from the left, but it looks as if it will carry.  At 8 p.m., the Associated Press called all statewide propositions as having passed.

Harris County propositions:

1.  51% For, 49% Against. 50.97- 49.03 50.59 - 49.41 50.09 - 49.91

At 9 p.m., about 3000 votes separated ayes from nays. This proposition, for the detention holding facility, is hanging by a thread; at 9:30 p.m. it's about 2100 votes.  At 10 p.m it's less than 400 votes.

At 11 p.m. and with all boxes in,  the detention facility measure passes by 456 votes.

2.  46-54 46.43 - 53.57% 46.61 - 53.39 46.55 - 53.35

The Dome is in trouble.  At 9 p.m., and with 36% of the vote counted, the 'Fors' are trailing by 10,000 votes.  At 9:30 p.m the gap widens to about 13,300 votes.

At 9:37 p.m. the Houston Chronicle called the proposal defeated.

-- Houston Mayor (in ballot order, contested races only):

Eric Dick - 11%
Annise Parker (inc.) - 57%
Ben Hall - 28%
All others - less than 1% each

Not much mystery left here.  There are 1,044 early votes from Fort Bend County that are unlikely to tip the mayor's race, but, unlike Harris, Hall (63%) leads Parker (33%).

At 8:45 p.m., Parker's campaign reports that Ben Hall has called the mayor to concede.

-- Houston City Council District A:

Amy Peck - 7%
Brenda Stardig - 30% 29.7%
Rhonda Hale - 5%
Helena Brown (inc.) - 38% 38.5%
Mike Knox -19%

A runoff between the incumbent and the previous incumbent looks likely.

-- District B:

Kathy Blueford Daniels - 21% 22%
Kenneth Perkins - 8% 9.5%
James Joseph - 6% 7.5%
Jerry Davis (inc.)- 65% 61%

-- District D:

Travis McGee - 6%
Keith Caldwell - 2%
Christina Sanders -5%
Demetria Smith - 2%
Assata Richards - 9% 10%
Dwight Boykins - 47% 43.97%
Lana Edwards - 4%
Larry McKinzie - 2%
Anthony Robinson- 4%
Georgia Provost- 15%
Kirk White - 1%

Boykins and Provost will square off in December.

-- District F:

Richard Nguyen - 52% 51% 51.32% 51.47% 51.60%
Al Hoang (inc.) - 48% 49% 48.68% 48.53% 48.40%

The incumbent is surprisingly trailing.  This contest will be decided late in precinct returns from the far west.  At 9:30 p.m. Nguyen clings to a 165-vote lead out of 5,600 cast.  At 10 p.m., and with a 200-vote lead and 6124 district votes counted, Nguyen will hold on to defeat Hoang.

-- District G:

Brian Taef - 18%
Oliver Pennington (inc.) - 82%

-- District I:

Leticia Ablaza - 20% 21% 22.39% 22.87%
Robert Gallegos - 25% 25.34% 25.90% 25.01%
Graci Garces - 30% 29% 26.88% 27.51%
Ben Mendez - 24% 25.02% 24.83% 24.6%

Still anybody's ballgame.  At 9:30 p.m. Gallegos leads Mendez by 29 votes for the right to face Garces in the runoff. At 10 p.m Gallegos still has a 21-vote margin over Mendez.

At 11 p.m., with 100% of precincts reporting, Gallegos holds on to that 20-vote lead and will run off with Garces next month.

-- Houston City Council At Large 1:

Stephen Costello (inc.) - 63% 61%
Griff Griffin - 37% 38%

-- At Large 2:

David Robinson - 40% 39.89% 40.11% 40.55%
Moe Rivera - 14%
Andrew Burks (inc.) - 41% 40.48% 39.24% 37.94%
Trebor Gordon - 6%

A horse race tonight, and in December.  Challenger Robinson caught and has gradually pulled ahead of incumbent Burks, and will be the favorite to defeat him in December.

-- At Large 3:

Brad Batteau - 9%
Roland Chavez - 11% 12.17%
Rogene Calvert - 17.2% 17.26% 16.85% 16.59%
Michael Kubosh - 29% 28.73% 28.55% 28.33%
Jenifer Rene Pool - 16.9% 16.95% 16.85% 16.87%
Roy Morales - 17.1% 17.27% 17.63% 17.66%

The evening's most interesting development will be who will face Kubosh in the runoff. At 8:30 p.m., exactly two votes separated Calvert and Morales. At 9 p.m. Morales pulls slightly ahead of Calvert and Pool, by 675 votes.

At 9:30 p.m., Morales now leads Pool by over 800 votes and Calvert by more than 1100.  The two Republicans will face each other in December's second round.

-- At Large 4:

CO Bradford (inc.) - 83%
Issa Dadoush - 16%

-- At Large 5:

Jack Christie (inc.) - 56%
Carolyn Evans-Shabazz - 32%
James Horwitz - 12%

-- Houston City Controller:

Bill Frazer - 47% 47.89% 48.28% 49.02% 48.86%
Ronald Green (inc.) - 53% 52.11% 51.72% 50.98% 51.14%

The incumbent may yet hold off the Republican challenger, but late returns will tell the tale. At 9:00 p.m., Election Day results continue to narrow the gap for Frazer.

At 9:30 p.m., just 2200 votes out of 110,000 cast separate the two.  But the real news is the 30,500 undervotes in this race.  At 10 p.m. Green gets a little breathing room, leading now by 3000 votes.

At 10:20 p.m., when the votes from Fort Bend and Montgomery are added, Controller Green has a 5,062 vote lead.  He has narrowly avoided being upset. 38,134 Harris County voters did not vote in this race.

More about these results -- and voter turnout, which came in at 259,000 votes across the county, and 174,000 in the mayor's race -- tomorrow morning.

Election Day

-- For those opening their polling places this morning, this account by Greg Wythe about his experience as an EV clerk -- and how the "substantially similar" business is being handled -- is timely and valuable.  Just know that your mileage may vary depending on how your election judge interprets the law.  And that it will probably be revised in its application in the future.  All of which suggests that the photo ID law is not meant to "true the vote" but to stifle it.  To cause confusion, uncertainty, and irritation, especially among infrequent voters.

-- I'll refer you back to my earlier prognostications regarding electoral outcomes today.  I am not yet released from my EVBB duty, so commenting on anything on the ballot remains verboten.  I will say that the most important result to me personally is Prop 2, the fate of the Dome.  Anecdotal reports have lately suggested it might not pass; hope I'm wrong about that.

Durrel at New Media Texas has some predictions on video of mayoral, council, and education board races.

-- Turnout for early voting was to my eye massive, but Charles seems convinced that after we see the numbers for today that it will not have predicated a large increase in total votes over previous municipal cycles.

My guess is that Houston’s final turnout will resemble the 50% early scenario, with between 130,000 and 150,000 votes total in the city.

Let's see how close he comes to that.  Here's his list of watch parties for tonight.

Update: And if you're really OCD about today's election, follow the Chron's all-day-long liveblog (or the Twitter hashtag #houvote).

Texas Tribune poll has Abbott leading Davis by 5 percentage points

And twenty percent still undecided.

Attorney General Greg Abbott, the leading candidate for the Republican nomination for Texas governor, holds a single-digit lead over the likely Democratic nominee, state Sen. Wendy Davis of Fort Worth, according to the latest University of Texas/Texas Tribune Poll.

[...]

“What you’ve got is a race in which, for the first time in a long time, the Democrat is as well-known as the Republican at the outset of the race,” said poll co-director Daron Shaw, a professor of government at the University of Texas at Austin.

I have thrown many rocks at the TexTrib's polling since its inception, but I have to say that this feels about right.  It may, however, just be one of those reinforcing-one's-existing-beliefs kind of data points.

“These numbers are not evidence that the underlying fundamentals are changing in Texas,” said Jim Henson, who co-directs the poll and heads the Texas Politics Project at UT-Austin. “We have not seen a big change in party identification, and we don’t see any large-scale shifts in the underlying attitudes that are forming.”

That also feels right.

So is Abbott's woeful 40% figure just another a polling error?  Could it be an oversampling of a Davis demographic... or could it be Abbott fatigue?  If Republicans generically aren't losing support, then why isn't Abbott pulling something in the traditional 55-40 range?  Or at least 50%?  I don't think "too early" explains his sagging result.

This should be enough to get Democrats enthusiastic (not to mention getting your e-mail inbox filled with Davis financial solicitations).  There's more interesting poll results at the Trib's link, including "Don't Know" leading David Dewhurst in the GOP LG primary by 46-26 with Dan Patrick at just 13%.

Update: Harvey Kronberg thinks there's bigger news than Wendy Davis barely outside the margin of error.

The stunner in today’s Texas Tribune poll was not that Wendy Davis is within shouting distance of Greg Abbott in a general election, but that with all his money and name ID among Republican primary voters, he just hits 50%. One wobble and he could be in an unpredictable and volatile runoff where anything could happen.

Update II (11/5): So much for this being a close race early.  PPP, a polling outfit with a much better track record, released its most recent survey of Texans at lunchtime on Election Day and it has Abbott up 15, at 50-35.

The Weekly Wrangle

The Texas Progressive Alliance falls back once a year, but is always moving forward as it brings you this week's roundup.

Off the Kuff gives an update on the 2014 Democratic lineup so far.

Horwitz & Sophia at Texpatriate published a featured article that examines Houston mayoral candidate Ben Hall's time as city attorney as well as his messy transition back into the private sector.

As the see-saw court battle over the Texas abortion restrictions law moved through the courts, both sides could claim victory in the past week. PDiddie at Brains and Eggs knows that -- besides having the SCOTUS rule in their favor sometime in 2015 -- the only way to guarantee women's reproductive freedom is for Democrats to turn out the 2014 vote.

CouldBeTrue of South Texas Chisme doesn't know whether to laugh or cry at the prospect of la la fantasy man David Barton running against the rapist enabler John Cornyn.

Eye On Williamson, still blogging at their temporary home, has Greg Abbott thinking that the Lege will cede him more power. He's either ignorant or naive about how the Texas Legislature actually works, in Follow-up on Greg Abbott's "economic" plan.

Neil at All People Have Value said that Houston mayoral candidate Ben Hall is a lousy guy who does not support the freedom of all people. All People Have Value is part of NeilAquino.com.

=========================

And here are some posts of interest from other Texas blogs.

Equality Texas guest poster Melanie Pang documents why she supports Wendy Davis.

PTA Mom Kim Burkett is equally effusive about Sen. Davis.

Better Texas Blog sets the record straight about pre- and post-ACA rates.

The Lunch Tray explored the ethics and dilemmas of Halloween candy.

Texas Watch calls on the Texas Department of Insurance to adopt some much-needed reforms for auto insurance.

TFN Insider has some good news about science textbooks in Texas, but warns that politics remains an obstacle.

BOR laments the millions of Texans that will be hurt by the cut to food stamps.

Blog con Queso celebrates Dia de Lost Muertos, and no, that's not a typo.

Sunday Daylight Saving Funnies

Posts with words -- opinions, predictions, you know, the usual stuff -- to resume eventually.  In the meantime I shouldn't have to remind you that this is Fall Back Sunday, and that you don't have to turn your clocks backward an hour, because we all have those magic 21st-century timepieces that do so automatically.  Right?

Enlarge (by clicking upon) and enjoy.

Just one last thing to add

Halloween Funnies

I need a laugh.  How about you?

Looks more like Steve Stockman to me.

Earl W. Dorrell 1929 - 2013

That's my Dad, whom I have referenced here a time or two.

USN Seabees, 1947

In the past few weeks, complications from end-stage dementia worsened his suffering, and so his peaceful passage this morning is, truly, a blessing.

Date and age uncertain, but a little before the first one.

After he and my mother divorced when I was 16 years old, Dad went on to remarry a woman from his church, June Davis, who had her own children our ages -- we had all gone to school together -- and they traveled the country in their "fifth wheel" in retirement.  They also made a couple of trips overseas, one to the Holy Land.

My stepmother passed away peacefully at home in December of 2011, and after that my father and mother enjoyed a reconciliation.  They had lunch often and other visits to look at old photos and remember and laugh about the good times on several occasions over the past year-and-a-half.  Here's a photo we all took at Mom's 87th birthday celebration this past June.

Requiescat in pace, Pop.

Some personal updates

-- This Ben Hall business is not something I can post about as long as I am serving on the Early Voting Ballot Board. I have an opinion about it, of course, but I won't be sharing it.

-- Besides my electoral responsibilities, my father's health has taken a grave turn and so, as a consequence, you should anticipate light blogging here in the days ahead.

Thanks for everyone's good thoughts.

Federal judge rules Texas abortion restrictions unconstitutional, Abbott appeals - Update: And wins stay

It ain't over, though, until it gets to the 5th Circuit -- or the Supremes, and there's really no reason to celebrate.  First, today's developments and then the analysis.

Attorney General Greg Abbott has filed an appeal to Monday’s ruling striking down a key provision of Texas’s new abortion law, according to a new court filing in the case.

U.S. District Judge Lee Yeakel ruled Monday that a provision to require abortion providers to have admitting privileges at nearby hospitals is unconstitutional.

Yeakel also partially blocked new restrictions on pregnancy-ending drugs, saying they “may not be enforced against any physician who determines, in appropriate medical judgment, to perform a medication-abortion using the off-label protocol for the preservation of the life or health of the mother.” New regulations for abortion-inducing drugs are set to kick in at midnight, except in cases when women have medical conditions that can make surgical abortion “extremely difficult or impossible,” according to the ruling.

[...]

Abbott filed the appeal about an hour after the ruling was made public Monday afternoon.

That he had it all ready to go tells you everything.

"The court upheld part of the law and enjoined part of the law," Abbott spokesman Lauren Bean said in a statement. "The State has already appealed the court’s ruling. We appreciate the trial court’s attention in this matter. As everyone – including the trial court judge – has acknowledged, this is a matter that will ultimately be resolved by the appellate courts or the U.S. Supreme Court."

Thanks, Captain Obvious Bean.  Now to the judge, GW Bush appointee Yeakel.  The excerpt below is from the second link at the top.

An equally important section of Yeakel’s opinion, however, offers less welcome news for women seeking abortions. In brief, the Food and Drug Administration approved a particular method of terminating a pregnancy via medication in 2000. Since then, doctors developed an alternative method that is endorsed by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), but has not yet been approved by the FDA. This alternative method requires lower doses than the FDA-approved method, and it also enables the woman to make fewer visits to the doctor’s office. Notably, because one of the drugs used in medical abortions “triggers almost immediate bleeding and cramping,” the alternative method allows women to administer the drugs at home — rather than have to undergo the uncomfort caused by the drugs in an unfamiliar clinical setting.

Texas’ law permits doctors to prescribe the reduced doses used by the alternative method, but Yeakel reads the Texas law to “not allow the physician to follow the administration or route portions of the off-label protocol.” Among other things, this forces women into a cold clinical setting while they are enduring the effects of the abortion drugs.

Judge Yeakel, however, finds nothing constitutionally wrong with Texas forcing women to endure such unnecessary hardship in order to obtain an abortion. Quoting the Supreme Court’s decision in Planned Parenthood v. Casey, Yeakel holds that “the incidental effect of making it more difficult or more expensive to procure an abortion cannot be enough to invalidate” the Texas law. When “reasonable alternative procedure[s]” are available, a state’s decision to ban one particular procedure is not unconstitutional, even if that is the least painful, least time-consuming or least demeaning procedure available to the woman. “Individuals do not have a constitutional right to a preferred medical option, so long as a safe, medically accepted, and actual alternative exists.”

So the upshot of Yeakel’s opinion is that Texas cannot ban abortion. Nor can they create entire swaths of their state where abortions are nearly impossible to obtain. But they can effectively punish women by making them endure unnecessary pain, hardship or invasiveness before they can exercise their right to choose. Should Yeakel’s decision stand, it is practically an invitation for lawmakers to impose needless pain on women seeking abortions.

This law is traveling a path to the SCOTUS, where they may strike down some of the freedoms granted in Roe v. Wade forty years ago.  That's what conservatives have been praying for all along.

But there's a long way to go before this legislation meets its fate and makes its history.  In the meantime, Texas voters -- along with those in the other states who suffer under Republican state governance -- can get started turning back the tide by voting out these goddamned Austin Republican misogynists in 2014.

(T)he Democrats must also begin to overcome GOP dominance of the state legislatures. 2020 is the crucial date. If the Democrats fail to retake a substantial number of these state chambers by then, the Republicans will be able to continue the 2011 gerrymandering in 2021. We can likely expect far more state conservative legislation against voting rights, reproductive rights, unions and more. Given the Tea Party's influence within the GOP and its many billionaire backers, gridlock could also continue in Congress — even if the Democrats win every presidential election or the Senate for years to come.

And it's going take a lot more people than this to get it done.

Update: Dahlia Lithwick, the country's pre-eminent Supreme Court observer IMO, points out that the ruling gives a victory to pro-choicers and a even minor one to pro-lifers, but settles nothing.  And disregard completely the spin of political consultants like these -- and the media that consults them, and the word-parsing that precedes and follows -- which is emanating like gas from a swamp.

Update (10/31): Happy Halloween...

In its 20-page ruling, the appeals court panel acknowledged that the provision "may increase the cost of accessing an abortion provider and decrease the number of physicians available to perform abortions." However, the panel said that the U.S. Supreme Court has held that having "the incidental effect of making it more difficult or more expensive to procure an abortion cannot be enough to invalidate" a law that serves a valid purpose, "one not designed to strike at the right itself."

Harris County's swollen EV turnout

Early voting totals remain at historically high levels.  Whether this portends a wave election will have to wait for election day turnout, as both Kuff and Greg in the comments suggest that it's not liable to be as big as it may seem.  A bit from the end of that post is worth repeating.

Note the huge shift in 2008 to majority early voting, which has continued in the two subsequent elections. You may recall that this shift was perceived at the time to be a portent of things to come, which led to some irrationally exuberant predictions about final turnout. Turnout was up from the previous Presidential election, but not nearly as much as many of us thought it would be. The vast majority of the early voters were the old reliables, and the net effect was that by Election Day itself, we’d run short of people who still needed to vote.

Do I know this for sure? No, of course not. I do expect turnout will be up from 2011, but I don’t believe we’re seeing anything unexpected. One other piece of evidence I have for this belief comes from the analyses that Kyle Johnston does on the early vote rosters. Here’s the 2009 version, and the version from the first five days of 2013 EV. The first thing that stands out to me is that in 2009, 92% of the early vote overall was cast by people who had voted in at least 2 of the last 3 municipal election. For the first five EV days of 2013, it’s 90%. In other words, it’s the old reliables voting. They’re just voting earlier.

... Other useful tidbits from Johnston’s analysis is that so far about 70% of the total Harris County vote has come from City of Houston voters; in 2009, the figure was 72% for all early votes. In other words, non-Houston voting is up a smidge, perhaps thanks to the Astrodome, but not much. The racial breakdown of the vote has some people talking about runoff prospects in the Mayor’s race. I’ll just say that unlike city/county and past voting history, racial data is not directly available but must be derived inferentially. Doesn’t mean it’s inaccurate, just inexact.

As for Johnston, he might be accurate about the rest, but I just can't place any faith in his analysis -- in fact I wouldn't even call it that -- of guessing voters' ethnicity based on name.

Projecting that, and then their voting inclination, is frankly nothing but a SWAG.  Anecdotally there's all kinds of evidence that easily refutes the premise; my brother Neil Aquino is no Latino and city council candidate David Robinson isn't quite African American, for two examples.  My wife is Cuban but nothing about her name gives that away.  But the main problem with his data, as Johnston himself notes, is that redistricting changed ... well, pretty much everything.

Today, as early polls opened on the 12-hour cycle for the final week, we finally began to see the far-flung suburban areas (read: Republican) start to pick up the pace.  I am much more comfortable projecting voting patterns based on geography than anything else.

Voting in this year's municipal election is up, it may be way up, and whether that is behavior modification or something else is a question we'll just have to wait until the end of Election Day to answer.  The real news is that the photo ID requirement has possibly energized early turnout, and for that we may very well have Greg Abbott and the rest of the GOP to thank.

What a kick in the head that will be if it goes against them.

The Frightful Wrangle

The Texas Progressive Alliance has its Halloween costume ready -- can you guess what it is? -- as it bring you this weeks' roundup.

Off the Kuff examines the recent R to D party switches in Bexar County.

Horwitz at Texpatriate discusses the recent shakeups in statewide races.

Two more Democrats announced their intentions to run statewide, for the US Senate and the lieutenant governorship, over the weekend. PDiddie at Brains and Eggs has the details.

Eye On Williamson is still blogging at our temporary home. The corporate toll road experiment is not going well in Texas because TxDOT can't pave roads in South Texas, but they can erect signs, do marketing and subsidies, and provide welfare for a corporate toll road: The road to nowhere.

Looking to stay the right course on a new effort after 6 years writing Texas Liberal, Neil at All People Have Value updated his blog throughout the last week. All People Have Value is part of NeilAquino.com.

CouldBeTrue of South Texas Chisme updates one of the TPA's moldy oldies, Tom DeLay, and his latest effort to get to the engine of the Republican crazy train.

======================================

And here are some other Texas blog posts of interest.

Mark Bennett offers a "revenge porn" statute that might pass constitutional muster.

Grits for Breakfast asks if police shootings of mentally ill folks are on the rise.

The Makeshift Academic wrapped up a four-part analysis of the progressive nature of Obamacare taxation.

Nonsequiteuse wants to know why encouraging condom usage isn't compatible with the principles of demonstrating courtesy and encouraging responsible behavior.

The TSTA blog criticizes merit pay bonuses for teachers.

Texas Vox regrets a missed opportunity for cleaner air in Texas.

Jessica Luther reminds us that Wendy Davis was far from alone during her filibuster.

And Juanita Jean suggests a campaign slogan for Ted Nugent.

Sunday Funnies

Texas Dems pick up two more statewide candidates

At last night's Harris County Democratic fundraiser, the Johnson Rayburn Richards dinner, a young attorney from El Paso introduced herself as the forthcoming Democratic nominee for United States Senate from the Great State.

Her name is Maxey Scherr. You can learn more about her for now at her law firm's website (scroll down) where there's this video.



Scherr was escorted around in part by former US Senate Democratic nominee Barbara Radnofsky at last night's gala. Here's another picture of her with Meyerland Dem president Art Pronin.

Formal announcement and campaign promotion to follow shortly. The Dems will have another woman running at the top of the ticket, as Maria Luisa Alvarado -- the 2006 nominee -- has again thrown her hat into the ring for lieutenant governor.  She defeated two men in the primary that year (Gene Kelly and Ben Grant) but went on to lose to David Dewhurst to the tune of 58-37, with the Libertarian in the race pulling about 4%.

With this slate as it stands, Texas Dems are obviously going to mobilize the female vote, about which much has been written already.  If the turnout in Harris County for the municipal elections is any determinant, then the future looks bright (as high voter turnout is usually to the benefit of the Democrats).

Reaction to these developments from other quarters will be added to this post later.

Update: Here's the Alvarado campaign's press release.  Excerpt:

At Starbucks in Arlington earlier this week, Alvarado encouraged friends to continue collecting petition signatures for her. She stated that she will continue what she began in 2006. “I am determined that every citizen in Texas deserves the same thing – fairness, opportunity, good education, affordable healthcare, jobs that pay a decent wage and offer rewards for excellence. All Texans deserve a level playing field in the political process; to be heard by their elected representatives.”

She also stated that she "has never stopped working to engage the one million additional citizens who currently have not voted." Maria Luisa said: "These are the folks we must have for a Democrat to win a general election. I’m going after those who aren't at Democratic club meetings, who are not listed in the VAN with voting histories. I’m going for those who think their vote doesn't make enough difference for them to show up. I’m saying that every Texan is necessary for us to make our communities better and to improve things for everyone in Texas."

Riding your bike to the revolution

-- Critical Mass, the monthly flashmob on bicycles, is happening again this evening.  If you're not a fan of anarchy in action, then steer your car away from it.  Don't be like Ken Hoffman or even my friend Neil and whine about it.

It's just another component of the disruptor society we live in now.  Adapt.

-- There's some polling out that suggests that politicians are missing the boat on the issue that is at the forefront of Americans' minds...

If only the politicians would listen to the polls. Yes, you read that right. What is happening in Washington symbolizes a dangerous disconnect between the priorities of the voters and those of their elected leaders.

An ABC News/Washington Post poll this week found that 75 percent of all Americans consider the economy to be in “not so good” or “poor” condition. The 2 percent in the poll who pronounce the economy to be in “excellent” shape presumably work on Wall Street.

The voters get it. “I have done a lot of focus groups in the last few years,” says Republican strategist David Winston, who advises the House and Senate GOP leadership. “And there’s one number that people know — and that’s the unemployment rate. And they’re sophisticated about it. They know that the unemployment rate understates things because of people leaving the workforce.”

Every poll tells the same story about what animates voters. A mid-September CBS News/New York Times poll, conducted before the government shutdown, found that 34 percent of Americans call the economy and jobs “the most important problem facing this country today.” In contrast, only 8 percent highlighted health care and a paltry 6 percent singled out the budget deficit and the national debt.

...but apparently not Texans' minds, and certainly not in the minds of Houstonians. 

Political analysts said economic development is an important policy discussion, but a less useful political one. A recent poll showed 12 percent of voters chose jobs and the economy as the city's most important problem, behind crime, roads and traffic; two years ago, 43 percent chose jobs and the economy.

I would suggest, obviously, that this is because the Houston and Texas economy are booming.  This irony seems to be another part of the Lone Star disconnect previously mentioned.

-- Speaking of revolution...

The British left weekly New Statesman has taken a chance on an up-and-coming rogue editor, but the actor-comedian and newly welcomed progressive-minded firebrand Russell Brand seems so far to be a brilliant and elegant choice.

Tapped to guest-edit the magazine's 'Revolution' issue this week, Brand is making waves both for his feature-length essay on the topic but also with a televised interview that aired Wednesday night on the BBC with veteran Newsnight anchor Jeremy Paxman. In the ten-minute interview, the 38-year-old Brand points at the futility of voting in a corrupt democratic system determined to serve the interests of the ruling class and not only predicts, but guarantees, that the "disenfranchised, disillusioned underclass" created by the current economic and political system—both in the UK and worldwide—will rise up in popular revolution against the failings of the current corporate-controlled paradigm.

Paxman questioned why a comedian such as Brand, especially one who doesn't vote, should be trusted to offer his views on the political system.

"I don't get my authority from this preexisting paradigm which is quite narrow and only serves a few people," Russell responded, himself questioning why voting or not voting in a corrupt lopsided system should provide moral or intellectual authority. "I look elsewhere for alternatives that might be of service to humanity."

In response to Paxman asking if he saw any reason for hope, Brand jumped at the question "Yeah, totally. There's going to be a revolution. It's totally going to happen," he said. "I ain't got a flicker of doubt. This is the end—it's time to wake up."

Russell Brand is my kind of leftist.  However he rejects participating in the political system by not voting -- the premise being that voting lends an air of authenticity to a system too corrupt to change with just votes -- which I do not agree with.

Early voting results locally seem to suggest that a tide may be turning in this regard... yet another contradiction here in Deep-In-The-Hearta.

I think I need to pump up the tires on my bicycle.  You know, just in case.

EV turnout in Harris County doubles

Here are the totals from Wednesday (October 23). For a listing of all early voting locations countywide and their hours of operation, click here.

[...]

So far, 27,628 people have voted in person or by mail. That compares to 11,280 through three days in 2011, 15,192 through three days in 2009, and 8,278 through three days in 2007.

Charles has covered this already, and these are significant increases in early voting numbers for a municipal election.  Both EVIP and mailed ballots are about two times what they were two years ago, and similarly above recent municipal cycles.

For an election season fairly devoid of significant developments (at least for me), this is impressive.  Harris County Clerk Stan Stanart thinks it's due to the extra attention the photo ID requirement received from the media.

"I also believe this campaign to notify people to bring their photo ID to the polls has actually raised the public awareness that there's an election."

That's as good a reason as any.  I cast my ballot Tuesday at one of the city's heaviest boxes, the Fiesta on Kirby, and there was no waiting.  Pundits will try to divine some meaning from this data, but I'm comfortable watching the trend play out a bit more before hazarding a guess.  I will say that it does not look like a red wave election at this early point.

In the meantime, do your civic duty (and make sure you have your ID on you when you do).

Update (10/25): Day 4 totals are highest yet...

The top four early-voting locations have been consistent (though swapping positions) through four days: Metropolitan Multi-Service Center on West Gray (478 in-person voters), followed by Trini Mendenhall Sosa Community Center in the Spring Branch area (325), Bayland Park Community Center in southwest Houston (321), and the Fiesta Mart at Kirby and the South Loop (301).

So far, 34,415 people have voted in person or by mail. That compares to 14,641 through four days in 2011, 18,578 through four days in 2009, and 11,206 through four days in 2007.

No Joel Burns in the race to replace Wendy Davis

Fort Worth council member Joel Burns said today he won’t try to replace Wendy Davis in the Texas Senate.

“The mere prospect of serving in the Texas Senate is an incredible honor. And I am humbled that so many of you have entertained the prospect with me,” Burns said in a letter to supporters. “But in evaluating what I want to do next, I have come to the realization that I have the job I want — to serve the people of Fort Worth and Council District 9.”

Burns had been considered a top contender to replace Davis on the Democratic ticket. The open seat has already attracted several GOP contenders.

This is unfortunate, because the odds were long enough for Dems to hold the seat with the man who replaced Wendy Davis on Fort Worth city council choosing to follow her again. The Texas Senate's Republicans would hold* be one vote shy of a two-thirds majority in that chamber if they can capture SD-10.

Now Democrats must find a strong candidate or risk losing the seat. The Fort Worth-based district leans Republican.

“Some decisions are being made and we will have a strong candidate in the Senate District 10 race,” said Democratic strategist Matt Angle, who in 2008 helped recruit Davis for the seat.

I'm sure Angle will keep us informed as soon as he fleshes things out.  He's the kingmaker -- and queenmaker -- for the Texas Democratic Party at this point.

*Update: Texpate corrects my math in the comments.

Cornyn Tweets a little bigotry, draws a Latina challenger

Big John does the wrong thing on the wrong day.

Texas Republican Sen. John Cornyn is defending a social media post about President Obama's health care program that's drawing calls of racism and insensitivity:

"POTUS sez you can get O-care questions answered in 150 different languages - is English one of them?" 

Cornyn's press office defends this post as a legitimate policy question, but two Texas political experts say it is not.

"There are a lot of smart, useful questions that could be asked about the health care program. This is not one of them," said Cal Jillson, an SMU political science professor. "This is snide and demeaning. There's no reason for it."

No policy reason, maybe, but Jillson said there is a political reason.

"He's talking to the tea party,” Jillson said.

Never a good day to Tweet that out, but particularly not a good day to do so on the day you get a primary challenge from a Houston immigration attorney named Linda Vega.

During a Tuesday announcement five months ahead of the March primaries, Vega said she will push for limited government and the fight against excessive government spending.

“Washington, D.C., needs a red-state model on education and economic growth, that of low taxes and pro-business,” she said.

And she said there are "politicians from our own state who feel so entitled to their political position that one week they tell you they are for something, but the following week they are against the same thing they previously supported."

It sounds to me as if she slots in to his left, and not his right.

Her practice is focused on immigration and labor law, according to a biography on her campaign website. Vega is also a founding member of Latinos Ready to Vote, a conservative political advocacy group that promotes voter registration and participation among Latinos.

Vega describes herself as supportive of immigration reform but warns against a system that penalizes businesses.

"In Texas, we believe that the power comes from the individual, from hard work and the private sector," Vega said. "Small businesses are often the first start to the road of prosperity for many immigrants who come here in search of the American dream."

In her announcement, Vega said she admires Gov. Rick Perry. She has also previously lent her support to Attorney General Greg Abbott in his bid for governor, calling his outreach to the Latino community “positive conservatism.”

Frankly she would have made bigger news if she followed Judge Carlo Key's lead.  I'm not sure if Vega alone has what it takes to knock off Senator Box Turtle.  If a right-winger joins the fray then I think he stands a good chance of being pushed into a runoff.

If he ignores Vega, refuses to debate, Tweets out some more racism, then we might have something to talk about while we wait for a Democrat to decide to run.

Update: Big Jolly likes Vega's bid.  I still can't discern if this is a good thing or a bad thing, but I do enjoy the way he cracks on "Cardboard" Cornyn.

What the problems really are

Like Greg, I have some election-related things to do that will preclude both the advocacy and the acidity of the blogging here for a few days.  I'll be dumping some links in (because I'll still have time to read), but alas, you'll have to draw your own conclusions.  Mostly.

How Obamacare Will Save The Federal Government $190 Billion

The only presidents who have reduced the debt in the past 68 years all happened to be Democrats, and they worked mostly with Democratic Congresses.  If the Tea Party were really concerned about deficits, they wouldn't be voting for Republicans.

Their complaints aren't actually about debt or deficits, as we all know.  We don't have a spending problem.  America is not going broke.

We're being robbed.

If Corporate Profits Are at an All-Time High, Why Are Corporate Taxes Near a 60-Year Low?

Business profits are escaping U.S. corporate income taxes in three big ways. First, business is literally moving away from the U.S., as multinational companies have expanded abroad. Second, large companies are wise to the tricks they can use to move income through foreign subsidiaries that avoid America's high statutory rate. Third, smaller companies are finding ways to avoid corporate taxes, altogether.

Tied together, right before our eyes, is the concern Americans -- but not Congress -- have about both jobs and deficits.  And if Republicans wanted to cut "entitlements" (sic), then they could make those same corporate buddies give everybody at the bottom a raise.

Half of Fast Food Workers Need Public Aid

Minimum Wage: Lowest in 50 Years

Paying working folks a livable wage helps everyone, but it's been nine years -- and nine Congressional pay raises -- since the minimum wage was last increased.

Thankfully, people are starting to wake up to the fact that the Congress is the problem.