Archive for the ‘Republicans’ Category
Friday, September 20th, 2013
Here’s a Friday LinkSwarm. I have a big piece brewing on the ObamCare battle I may or may not have out on Monday.
Poland seizes half of private retirement funds.
Republicans in the House actually manage to cut something.
On the other hand, if you’re a Republican congressman, and you make $172,000 a year, you don’t get to complain about it. That means you, Rep. Phil Gingrey.
Ted Cruz says the ObamaCare fight is just beginning.
Speaking of Cruz, nothing says class quite like the Communications Director of the Sacramento Democratic Party wishing for the children of a Ted Cruz staffer to die of a horrible disease. If a Republic staffer said that about Obama’s children he’d be gone faster than Domino’s could get there. (Bonus: An extra evidence to Allan Brauer’s extreme classiness, he also refers to a woman as “cumrag.”) Sacramento Democrats have taken down Brauer’s page, but you can still find it on the Wayback Machine.)
“Like your health care plan? Then you can keep it” suck it up and get shoved into an ObamaCare exchange by your employer.
The IRS scandal just keeps getting worse.
Congressional Budget offices says that the deficit is going to get much, much worse.
Biggest story you’re not hearing much about? German elections this weekend. If Angela Merkel’s party should lose, and be replaced with a party less enthused with endless PIIGS bailouts, well, things could get interesting.
Obama official refuses to release information pertaining to a a Freedom of Information Act request. Stonewalling the press and withholding evidence? Obviously he must be bucking for a promotion.
Obama Express busted for paying cash for food stamps.
FEMA grounds UAVs, preventing them from providing mapping of Colorado flood victims for free.
Mainly read this Ann Althouse piece on “lean-in” circles for the catty comments.
Amarillo restaurant closes, evidently pens insulting message to patrons?
Remember China’s “Ghost Cities”? They’re bigger, and emptier, than ever:
Tags:Allan Brauer, Amarillo, China, Colorado, FEMA, Germany, Ghost Cities, Phil Gingrey, PIIGS, Poland, Republicans, Ted Cruz
Posted in Democrats, Media Watch, ObamaCare, Republicans | No Comments »
Friday, September 20th, 2013
An appeals court has not only overturned former House Majority leader Tom DeLay’s money-laundering conviction, it actually rendered judgments of acquittal.
This is not a surprising decision for anyone who watched the case, which was always based on unconstitutional ex post facto prosecution and former Travis County DA Ronnie Earle’s vindictiveness. Also remember that the DoJ spent six years investigating DeLay and found nothing.
Which is not to say that DeLay is free of sin. Indeed, DeLay’s leadership was one of the reasons the Republican House majority went from backing Newt Gingrich’s Contract With America to succumbing to Washington’s usual big-spending, horse-trading, “campaign dollars for access” in less than a decade. It’s just that none of those were crimes in the eyes of Democratic prosecutors. As far as they were concerned, DeLay’s real crime was helping unseat Democratic incumbents, and for that they had to find something, anything to nail him on.
I do wonder what happens to DeLay’s co-defendants who plead guilty to lesser charges to avoid prosecution (one of whom I used to know back in my college days)…
Tags:Republicans, Ronnie Earle, Texas, Tom DeLay, Travis County
Posted in Austin, Republicans, Texas | 1 Comment »
Friday, September 13th, 2013
My schedule is finally close to getting back to normal after Worldcon, so here’s the latest Friday LinkSwarm:
Greek unemployment hits 27.9%. Remember: For all the mentions of “austerity measures,” they’ve never balanced a budget.
Why we were in Benghazi. Short answer: Smuggling arms to Syrian rebels. Remember: No Americans died in Iran-Contra.
Syrian rebels do what they do best: kill women and children.
Obama’s Syrian policy is “is an unmitigated cl*st*rf*ck.” And that’s from his friends at The New Republic.
Charles Krauthammer calls it epic incompetence.
Today is the 20th anniversary of the Oslo Accords, which, as we all know, finally brought long-lasting peace and stability to the Middle East. “Decadal stasis points to the sterility of the Arab-Israeli diplomatic process.”
Mark Steyn on ObamaCare.
Mickey Kaus is worried that Republicans can still snatch amnesty defeat from the jaws of victory.
How often does Defensive gun use occur? “From about 500,000 to more than 3 million per year.”
PPP’s poll data showed Giron was in trouble, but they didn’t release the poll, ostensibly because they didn’t believe it. That may be the case, but their explanation is suspect, given they actually testified in court as part of the effort to get the recall effort thrown out. Also, they didn’t do Giron and the gun-grabber side any favors by suppressing the results (the Liberal Reality Bubble strikes again). Bonus: Pollster Twitter slap fight!
Is the House Republican leadership actually stupid enough to kill the sequester in a deal with Obama? Let’s hope not…
Jihadi rapper killed by fellow jihadis. And you thought Vanilla Ice’s reviews were brutal…
To a visitor from India, America looks like a classless society. “I’ve noticed that most Americans roughly have the same standard of living. Everybody has access to ample food, everybody shops at the same supermarkets, malls, stores, etc. I’ve seen plumbers, construction workers and janitors driving their own sedans, which was quite difficult for me to digest at first since I came from a country where construction workers and plumbers lived hand to mouth.” (Hat tip: Ace.)
How can Newspapers make money these days? How about by selling off their old photo morgues?
UK’s NHS: Now With Added Death.
Million Muslim March falls a mere 999,970 marchers short of their goal.
Rep. Peter King of Long island is running for President. Expect GOP voters to greet his campaign with the same enthusiasm with which they greeted Jon Huntsman’s.
Super-genius astronomer wants to name an asteroid “Trayvon”.
New Jersey police: hate crimes don’t happen to white people.
Police Chief meeting with Sheriff Joe Arpaio on his own time and money? That’s a suspension.
Austin: 13 murders in 8 months. “Otherwise known as a slow weekend in Chicago.”
Holly Hansen takes a look at Williamson County judicial races.
Tags:amnesty, Angela Giron, Austin, Border Controls, Charles Krauthammer, Chicago, Colorado, European Debt Crisis, Foreign Policy, Greece, gun control, Guns, Holly Hansen, Israel, Jihad, Joe Arpaio, LinkSwarm, Mark Steyn, Mickey Kaus, Oslo Accords, Peter King, Syria, Williamson County
Posted in Austin, Border Control, Foreign Policy, Guns, Jihad, Republicans, Texas | 1 Comment »
Wednesday, August 21st, 2013
Is amnesty dead this congressional session? That’s what a lot of observers, on both left and right, are saying this morning.
Mickey Kaus isn’t so sure.
In The Atlantic, Molly Ball claims that amnesty proponents are winning August. And I wouldn’t count on it being dead when the Republican Establishment shows no sign of giving up it’s suicidal longing for it.
In course of discussing why Texas won’t turn blue anytime soon, Nate Cohn in The New Republic gives away the game as to why Amnesty is so vitally important to Democrats, saying the expect 300,000 more Democratic votes from Amnesty in Texas alone. For Democratic strategists, every illegal alien is just an Undocumented Obama Voter.
Whether it’s dead or not, it certainly won’t do any harm to call or write your Representative’s office and remind them that you categorically oppose amnesty in any way, shape or form. And it wouldn’t hurt to mention your support for defunding ObamaCare while you’re at it…
Tags:amnesty, Border Controls, Mickey Kaus, Texas
Posted in Border Control, Republicans, Texas | 1 Comment »
Friday, August 9th, 2013
Time for another quick roundup of statewide race news:
Even left-wing PolitiFact admits that Democrats are lying about Greg Abbott improperly moving funds.
They’re a lot tougher on Lt. Governor candidate Sen. Dan Patrick’s claims that funding for border security was cut in the latest budget.
The Texas Tribune looks at Abbott’s consultant spending.
Abbott, running for a statewide office, refuses to opine on national legislative tactics to defund ObamaCare. Stop the freaking presses!
The Washington Post offers up five facts about Abbott. For a change, they’re even accurate.
Abbot takes south Texas votes seriously.
Lt. Governor David Dewhurst shakes up his re-election team with new hires, including Ryan Hecker of FreedomWorks and Eliza Vielma (AKA Twitter’s @misslizaface) will be handling social media. Given how poorly Dewhurst performed in social media in the Senate race, that’s probably a good move.
Lt. Governor candidate and Agricultural Commissioner Todd Staples takes a swing at Dewhurst’s leadership in a fundraising letter.
But Staples, like all three of Dewhurst’s challengers in the Lt. Governor’s race, endorsed Dewhurst over Ted Cruz in last year’s Senate runoff.
Patrick has a new ad out. He looks sleepy. He may need to consider ptosis surgery.
Attorney General candidate Dan Branch defends defense of marriage. Unlike Tom Leppert, Branch doesn’t seem to have played footsie with Dallas’ gay rights community, and indeed was an (unsuccessful) target for them to defeat in 2008.
Speaking of Branch, Facebook briefly yanked, then restored, one of his campaign videos. This one I think:
Which strikes me as well-produced, but pretty generic. Can’t see why any reasonable person would find it even remotely objectionable.
Sources tell me that Rep. Brandon Creighton gets into the Agricultural Commissioner’s race today.
And speaking of the Agricultural Commissioner’s race, Eric Opiela is evidently not only Joe Straus’ lawyer, but also managed (through some ill-advised emails) to hurt Republican redistricting efforts by making them easier to challenge in 2012.
On the Democratic side, Abortion Barbie inches closer to declaring her intention to lose to Abbott.
Tags:2014 Attorney General's Race, 2014 Election, 2014 Governor's Race, 2014 Lt. Governor's Race, Border Controls, Brandon Creighton, Dan Branch, Dan Patrick, David Dewhurst, Elections, Eliza Vielma, Eric Opiela, Greg Abbott, Joe Straus, Media Watch, Republicans, Ryan Hecker, Texas, Todd Staples, video, Wendy Davis
Posted in Border Control, Elections, Media Watch, Republicans, Texas, video | No Comments »
Monday, August 5th, 2013
In the better-late-than-never-reporting department, last week State Senator Ken Paxton made his run for attorney general official. Paxton is probably most famous for running against Rep. Joe Straus for Speaker of the House back when he was a state Rep.
Paxton also touted numerous endorsements of Kelly Shackelford of the Liberty Institute, Cathie Adams of the Texas Eagle Forum, Peggy Venable of Americans for Prosperity, state Reps. Tony Dale, Bryan Hughes, Jodie Laubenberg, Scott Turner, Giovanni Capriglione, Jeff Leach of Plano, Scott Sanford, Van Taylor (who’s already announced a bid to replace Paxton in the Senate) and Bill Zedler.
One tiny snag: Paxton initially touted the endorsement of Empower Texans’ Michael Quinn Sullivan. Only problem: Sullivan hadn’t endorsed him. Oops.
Rep. Dan Branch and Railroad Commissioner Barry Smitherman are already in the race.
Tags:2014 Attorney General's Race, 2014 Election, Ken Paxton, Michael Quinn Sullivan, Republicans, Texas, Tony Dale
Posted in Republicans, Texas | No Comments »
Wednesday, July 31st, 2013
Travis McCormick notes that exactly one year ago, Ted Cruz beat David Dewhurst in the 2012 Republican Senate runoff. (He also demolished a number of myths in the process.) And pretty much every day Ted Cruz has been in Washington, he’s confirmed that Texas voters made the right decision.
Can anyone imagine Dewhurst leading the fight against illegal alien amnesty? Or schooling Dianne Feinstein on gun control? (I can imagine Dewhurst voting against gun control, but not leading the fight against it.) Or holding the feet of other Republicans to the fire on conservative principles? (As I said then, “We sent Cruz to Washington to shame Republicans into acting like Republicans.”)
No wonder Cruz is getting buzz as a 2016 Presidential candidate. I don’t see anyone else better on the horizon…
Tags:2012 Election, David Dewhurst, Elections, Republicans, runoff, Ted Cruz, Texas, Texas Senate Race, Travis McCormick
Posted in Elections, Republicans, Texas | 1 Comment »
Tuesday, July 30th, 2013
Still getting up to speed, so expect these updates to be a bit random for, oh, the next five weeks or so.
Abbott: The Obama Administration’s Voting Rights Act lawsuit is purely political.
The administration’s approach reveals the Democrats‘ fear that Republican candidates were making inroads with Hispanic voters. Democrats could never “turn Texas blue” if that trend continued, so they got the courts to draw district lines that guarantee Democratic victory in predominantly Hispanic areas.
Instead of allowing the Voting Rights Act to work in a way the Constitution allows, the Obama administration is sowing racial divide to score cheap political points. The president is using the legal system as a sword to wage partisan battles rather than a shield to protect voting rights. This overreaching action undermines the Voting Rights Act and the rule of law. Texas will not tolerate it. So far, neither will the Supreme Court.
Abbot also appeared on Lou Dobbs to discuss voter ID:
He also appeared on the Mike Huckabee show:
And the Mike Gallagher Show:
And Trey Ware’s show on KTSA:
Huckabee, who last endorsed David Dewhurst in the Senate race, endorses Dan Patrick in the Lt. Governor’s race. I’m sure the endorsement had nothing to do with Huckabee’s son doing work for a consulting firm hired by Patrick…
Former state Rep. Ray Keller is running for the Railroad Commission.
Interview with Barry Smitherman
The Houston Chronicle tackles the Lt. Governor’s race by…comparing Twitter statistics for Jerry Patterson and Dan Patrick. I feel dumber merely by having linked to that.
Texas Sparkle endorses Todd Staples for Lt. Governor.
Eric Opiela is running for Agricultural Commissioner. I sort of like his ad featuring a Prius-driving EPA official:
Malachi Boyuls is running for the railroad commission. You don’t see many Malachis in public office these days…
Democrat Mike Mjetland is considering running for Governor.
Tags:2014 Election, 2014 Governor's Race, 2014 Lt. Governor's Race, Barry Smitherman, Dan Patrick, Elections, EPA, Eric Opiela, Greg Abbott, Jerry Patterson, Malachi Boyuls, Mike Huckabee, Mike Mjetland, Ray Keller, Republicans, Texas, Todd Staples, video, Voter ID
Posted in Elections, Republicans, Texas, video | 1 Comment »
Friday, July 26th, 2013
A little bird has been telling me a few tidbits about the Attorney General’s race, namely:
Ken Paxton is indeed going to run for AG, and will announce his run next week. You might think this is deep insider knowledge, but given this Facebook posting by Paxton…eh, not so much.
By contrast, the manifest lack of enthusiasm for Dan Branch’s Attorney General run among Texas conservatives is palpable. And when the Dallas Morning News labels you “a close confidant of House Speaker Joe Straus,” you’re already starting off on the wrong foot to win over conservative activists.
Tags:2014 Attorney General's Race, 2014 Election, Dan Branch, Elections, Joe Straus, Ken Paxton, Republicans, Texas
Posted in Elections, Republicans, Texas | No Comments »
Tuesday, July 23rd, 2013
State Rep Dan Branch has made his Attorney General bid official. With $4 million on hand he already has a formidable warchest. His primary opponent right now is Railroad Commissioner Barry Smitherman, who has just over $1 million on hand. I keep hearing murmurs of Ken Paxton possibly getting in, but so far he hasn’t made any definitive moves in that direction.
Both Branch and Smitherman are running as conservatives (duh; they’re running as Republicans in Texas).
Tags:2014 Attorney General's Race, 2014 Election, Barry Smitherman, Dan Branch, Elections, Republicans, Texas
Posted in Elections, Republicans, Texas | No Comments »