Texas Grand Ole Docket

Josh Marshall of Talking Points Memo, has started a great new feature, TPM Grand Ole Docket. Here I've highlighted those in the docket with a Texas Connection. Click throught to Josh's site to see how the GOP in Ohio and California are in it deep, and unfortunately a couple of Dems in Louisiana. Josh writes:

The Grand Ole Docket tracks trial dates, court appearances and sentencing hearings for players in the current array of national political scandals. But not just any crook can make it on the Docket - it only tracks perps who've been named by prosecutors in indictments or plea agreements.



Be sure to check back periodically as the investigations continue.

And here is the Texas Hall of Shame, and what a lovely bunch they are.




Click here to go to Blue Texas to see the Texas Hall of Shame. The code wouldn't play well with blogger.

Off the Kuff: Raising taxes on college students

Off the Kuff: Raising taxes on college students: "Rep. Chet Edwards has some bad news for college students and their parents: A massive cut in student financial aid is buried in a reconciliation bill that could be voted on in the House as soon as Wednesday. Take a look at what's coming, and call your Congress member if you think this is as bad an idea as it sounds."

I think the GOP has forgotten that the middle class does vote.

DeLay focuses on re-election, swipes at critics - Politics - MSNBC.com

DeLay focuses on re-election, swipes at critics - Politics - MSNBC.com: "Confident of his chances in a tough November re-election race, former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay blasted the “runaway prosecutor,” dismissed fallout from a disgraced lobbyist and said he remains focused on pushing a conservative agenda in Congress.

“We've had an 11-year run of a Republican majority doing things that I’m incredibly proud of — cutting taxes, strong national defense, welfare reform, balancing the budget, paying down on the debt. I mean, one thing after another, we've been effective on it and the Democrats don't like it,” DeLay said in an interview on “Hardball with Chris Matthews.”"

I'm sure Tweety Bird Mathews threw Delay a softball set of interview question. And Matthews has his own ties to Abramoff. But how does any reporter keep his job when he just ignores flat out lies like the bit high-lighted in red above. This needs to be pointed out to Lampson. I see a campaign commercial here. I'm glad I live in the reality-based community, where I can spot the GOP's up is downism for what it is.

News 8 Austin | 24 Hour Local News | HEADLINES | District 48's unexpected election results

District 48's unexpected election results: "


Donna Howard's near victory in the special election earlier this month was stunning.

It's a district designed to elect a Republican. Todd Baxter's resignation and the immediate special election were designed to help a Republican. Other Republicans were discouraged from getting in the race to avoid confusing the voters.

Yet when the smoke cleared, Ben Bentzin scored a lower percentage than when running against Senator Gonzalo Barrientos in a decidedly more Democratic Senate district three years ago.

The Bentzin campaign explains that Howard dropped five mail pieces linking their candidate to Tom DeLay. Other Republicans in the district complain that the mechanics of getting out the Republican vote were poorly executed.

That is all no doubt true, but it misses a bigger point."

Read the rest for the details, but here's the bigger point.

:...the story of the first election wasn't exclusively about Donna Howard and the Democrats. It was also about Republicans crossing over because they wanted someone to represent them, not Craddick."

Burnt Orange Report - Texas Dem Congressional Delegation Calls for Cancellation of State Lobbying Contract

Burnt Orange Report - Texas Dem Congressional Delegation Calls for Cancellation of State Lobbying Contract: "Surprise, surprise, there seems to be a connection between the K Street Project and the Governor's mansion. The K Street Project is/was a DeLay/Abramoff scheme to get the lobbying companies that populates Washington's K street to only do business with Congressional Republicans.

In today's Statesman, the Texas Democratic Congressional delegation called on Gov. Perry to cancel a contract with Todd Boulanger and his firm. It has come to light that the state has awarded a $330,000 contract to represent the states interest on legislation. Todd Boulanger is a close contact of Jack Abramoff, who has plead guilty to charges that he defrauded clients."

The roots of this scandal run really deep, and the Dems need to keep shoveling until the GOP tree of corruption withers and dies.

THE WAR WITHIN

THE WAR WITHIN:



"BATTLE SCARS: The photo of the ‘Marlboro Man’ in Fallujah became a symbol of the Iraq conflict when it ran in newspapers across America in 2004. Now the soldier has returned home to Kentucky,where he battles the demons of post-traumatic stress
The photograph hit the world on Nov. 10, 2004: a close-cropped shot of a U.S. Marine in Iraq, his face smeared with blood and dirt, a cigarette dangling from his lips, smoke curling across weary eyes.

It was an instant icon, with Dan Rather calling it 'the best war photograph in recent years.' About 100 newspapers ran the photo, dubbing the anonymous warrior the 'Marlboro Man.'

The man in the photograph is James Blake Miller, now 21, and he is an icon, although in ways Rather probably never imagined.

He's quieter now -- easier to anger. He turns to fight at the sound of a backfire, can't look at fireworks without thinking of fire raining down on a city. He has trouble sleeping, and when he does, his fingers twitch on invisible triggers.

The diagnosis: post-traumatic stress disorder."

Pair fight to show Dems can win Texas

Denton Record-Chronicle | News for Denton, Texas | Texas/Southwest

They might be fighting for the right to come in third – or even fourth – in the race for Texas governor, but that doesn't mean Chris Bell and Bob Gammage are going through the motions.

Rather, they're scrambling to convince voters that the race can be won by a Democrat – if not by the other guy.

They take similar positions on school finance, taxes and social issues. But that's where the similarities end.

Mr. Bell, a former congressman, pitches himself as the "candidate of the future" who has plans to lower school dropout rates and make college more affordable.

AP

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Bob Gammage (left) answers questions during the first stop of his campaign tour in Sugar Land.

Mr. Gammage says he's "a messenger" about a state government that's in bed again with big political donors.

Mr. Bell is almost professorial in his approach, reading from handwritten notes on school-binder paper at the Alamo last week. (He has two sons in grade school.) In five minutes, he was through.

He believes he'll win because Democrats appreciate his courage for jumping into the race last February.

"I was the only one out there carrying the message about the need to continue the fight, not to give up just because 2004 wasn't a banner year for Democrats," he said.

Mr. Gammage is a dynamic speaker who says he felt compelled to run after recognizing there was no Democrat in the race with a "fire in the belly and energy in their blood."

That fervor won over at least one voter last week in Corpus Christi for the former state Supreme Court justice.

Anybody have a horse in this race yet. I haven't decided.

Burnt Orange Report - Weekend Governor's Race Round Up

Burnt Orange Report - Weekend Governor's Race Round Up: "Mexican-American Democrats of Texas Endorse Bell
The El Paso Times reports today that Chris Bell has picked up his first endorsement going into the Democratic Primary. The Mexican-American Democrats of Texas endorsed Bell for governor of Texas. The endorsements are starting to pile up in the Chris Bell camp. After looking at the Gammage website, the only endorsement I could find was from Rep. Jim Dunnam of Waco."

The interesting part of this post is the comments. The liberal blogosphere that reads Burnt Orange seems to be strongly behind Gammage.

U.S. Ally Georgia Turns to Iran for Gas

International News Source for USA, Europe, Middle East, Asia, Africa and Egypt - U.S. Ally Georgia Turns to Iran for Gas: "Georgia struck a deal with Iran for emergency natural gas supplies Friday, as the tiny U.S.-ally suffered through its worst energy crisis in years and government officials accused Russia of waging an energy blockade.
Dawn-to-dusk lines persisted in the capital Tbilisi for a second day, as desperate Georgians queued up for kerosene and firewood to heat their homes amid the largest snowfall in years. Many from the former Soviet republic, from President Mikhail Saakashvili down to those shivering in below-freezing temperatures in the capital, struck a note of defiance.

'It's an energy blockade. That's what it is,' said 58-year-old Bichiko Gveseladze, who waited six hours along at least 500 other people for government-subsidized kerosene. 'Russia is doing it because they don't want Georgia to be fully independent.'

Why is this a Texas Politics story? Because Texas is about to see a boom in energy production jobs. The headlines have been full of stories about the new wind turbine farms coming to Texas. And while our oil and gas fields are in decline, there's still lot's of opportunity when the price of a barrel of oil tops $100. Of course, we may have to build some pipelines to bring in drinking water.

Nearly a week after explosions shut down a gas pipeline in a Russian border region and nearly two days after winter weather downed a major electric transmission line, Georgian officials announced a deal that sees Tehran supplying 71 million cubic feet of gas a day via Azerbaijan pipelines."

Google "peak oil" and find out just exactly how safe our Prez has made us in this new millenium.

Most Americans want Bush to reveal lobbyist ties: poll - Yahoo! News

Most Americans want Bush to reveal lobbyist ties: poll - Yahoo! News: "Three in four Americans want
President George W. Bush to disclose his aides' links with disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff, a demand the White House has rejected so far, according to a poll published on Saturday.

The Washington Post said the demand was supported by clear majorities of both Republicans and Democrats in the Washington Post-ABC News poll conducted between January 23 and January 26.

Abramoff pleaded guilty to fraud charges this month and agreed to help U.S. prosecutors in a corruption probe that has sparked calls for reform of the Washington practice of lobbying lawmakers with donations and favors to influence legislation.

If he won't reveal the records, the only reason I can think of is he's hiding something. Something big. Something impeachable. That's why he's running scared. The way all cowards and bullies run scared. Liars and thieves. Traitors. Two-bit despots. Texas deserves better. America deserves better. If we can't convict them, at least we can vote the runts out.

At a White House news conference on Thursday, Bush said he did not know Abramoff and would not release photographs in which the two appeared together.

He said the release of the photographs would be used for 'pure political purposes' by Democrats.

The Washington Post said 76 percent of those surveyed said Bush should release lists of all meetings between his aides and Abramoff. Eighteen percent disagreed.

'Two in three Republicans joined with eight in 10 Democrats and political independents in favoring disclosure,' the paper said."

DriveDemocracy.Org - Democalypse Blog » Education, Health and living wages are the problem

DriveDemocracy.Org - Democalypse Blog » Education, Health and living wages are the problem: "t turns out that education, health and enough money to live on are the problem, not the solution. A sound body, a good mind, and hard work are, according to the extreme right, enemies of the magical free market. That’s according to Michael Quinn Sullivan as quoted in the Austin American Statesman.
The story is about the widening income gap in the U.S. It’s not often the knuckleheads just come out and honestly admit their agenda. This guy Sullivan is an alum of Cybercast and the Conservative News Service. He’s now communications director for the Texas Public Policy Foundation. The TPPF is the creation of right wing money bag Jim Leininger, who along with Houston builder Bob Perry has purchased the Texas Legislature, the governor’s mansion, and much of Congress.

Just look at the quote. Education, health care and a minimum wage “exacerbate the problem.”"

So I guess the Rethug solution is to eliminate public education, publically financed health care, and the minimum wage. Why are they afraid to run on their beliefs. Cowards and bullies, liars and thieves. Texas deserves better.

Is Norquist still the man? | Blue Texas

Is Norquist still the man? | Blue Texas

From the Houston Chronicle

THE Texas Supreme Court has ordered Gov. Rick Perry and the Legislature to come up with a new school funding plan before June 1.

When Perry calls a special session to do that after the March primary, we will learn something important about Texas:

Whether Grover Norquist is still in charge. Norquist's name has come up recently in connection with the Abramoff/Reed/DeLay Gang and their dealings with Indian casinos, but the Washington-based tax fighter became notable in Austin before that.

You may recall that in 2004, before the last regular legislative session, Gov. Perry flew to the Bahamas for three days of serious discussion of school finance and reform.

Voucher advocate and San Antonio hospital bed magnate Dr. James Leininger and Houston businessman Bobby Nau sponsored the trip, which also included Perry's wife and several of his aides.

But the other key guest was Norquist.

Abramoff is toast. Delay's goose is in the oven. But if we truly want to destroy the cesspool of corruption that has overtaken the GOP, then we need to bring down Norquist and Ralph Reed.

And for those of you in the know, I'd also like to know how much this trip had to do with school finance, and how much it had to do with Perry's wife and her plans.

Texas House Races | Blue Texas

Texas House Races | Blue Texas

1st Congressional District--The incumbent, Gohmert, is a 1st term Republican who won with 61.5%. Cook Political Report considers this district solid Republican. On the Blue side we have contractor Roger L. Owen

2nd Congressional Distict--The incumbent, Poe, is a 1st term Republican who won with 55.5%. Cook Political Report considers this district solid Republican. On the Blue side we have environmental services consultant Gary E. Binderim (D)

3rd Congressional Distict--The incumbent, Johnson, is an 8tht term Republican who won with 85.6%. Cook Political Report considers this district solid Republican. On the Blue side we have retired USAF officer / sales director Dan Dodd (D)

4th Congressional Distict--The incumbent, Hall, is a 13th term Republican who won with 68.4%. Cook Political Report considers this district solid Republican. On the Blue side we have professor Glenn Melancon (D), and restaurant manager '04 Libertarian nominee Kevin D. Anderson (D)

5th Congressional Distict--The incumbent, Hensarling, is a 2nd term Republican who won with 64.5%. Cook Political Report considers this district solid Republican. On the Blue side we have businessman Charlie Thompson (D)

6th Congressional Distict--The incumbent, Barton, is a 11th term Republican who won with 66.0%. Cook Political Report considers this district solid Republican. On the Blue side we have veteran David T. Harris (D)

7th Congressional Distict--The incumbent, Culberson, is a 3rd term Republican who won with 64.1%. Cook Political Report considers this district solid Republican. On the Blue side we have school teacher James "Jim" Henley (D), and attorney David Murff (D)?

8th Congressional Distict--The incumbent, Brady, is a 5th term Republican who won with 68.9%. Cook Political Report considers this district solid Republican. On the Blue side we have '04 nominee James "Jim" Wright (D)

9th Congressional Distict--The incumbent, Green, is a 1st term Democrat who won with 72.2%. Cook Political Report considers this district solid Democrat. On the Red side no one had the guts to run.

10th Congressional Distict--The incumbent, McCaul, is a 1st term Republican who won with 78,6%. Cook Political Report considers this district solid Republican. On the Blue side we have ex-EPA official Ted Ankrum (D), Paul Foreman (D), attorney / ex-police officer Kyle Kincaid (D), Elsie "Pat" Mynatt, R.N. (D), and Sid Smith (D)

11th Congressional Distict--The incumbent, Conaway, is a 1st term Republican who won with 76.8%. Cook Political Report considers this district solid Republican. On the Blue side we didn't field a Blue candidate.

12th Congressional Distict--The incumbent, Granger, is a 5th term Republican who won with 72.3%. Cook Political Report considers this district solid Republican. On the Blue side we have John R. Morris (D)

13th Congressional Distict--The incumbent, Thornberry, is a 6th term Republican who won with 92.3%. Cook Political Report considers this district solid Republican. On the Blue side we have lay preacher Roger J. Waun (D)

14th Congressional Distict--The incumbent, Paul, is an 8th term Republican who was unopposed in '04. Cook Political Report considers this district solid Republican. On the Blue side we have ex-Texas Cattleman Assoc. Exec. Dir. Shane R. Sklar (D)

15th Congressional Distict--The incumbent, Rubén Hinojosa (D), is a 5th term Democrat who won with 57.8%. Cook Political Report considers this district solid Democrat. On the Red side ex-St. Rep. Paul B. Haring (R), salesperson Eddie Zamora (R),

16th Congressional Distict--The incumbent, Silvestre Reyes (D), is a 5th term Republican who won with 55.5%. Cook Political Report considers this district solid Democrat. On the Blue side no Republican had the guts to run.

17th Congressional Distict--The incumbent, Chet Edwards (D), is an 8th term Democrat who won with 51.2%. Rothenberg Political Report: Competitive Race, Cook Political Report: Toss Up Larry Sabato's Crystal Ball: Leans Democratic. On the Red side we have Attorney & Ex-Congressional Aide C. Tucker Anderson (R), and Iraqi veteran Van Taylor (R),

18th Congressional Distict--The incumbent, Sheila Jackson Lee, is a 6th term Democrat who won with 88.9%. Cook Political Report considers this district solid Democrat. On the Red side we have Ahmad Hassan (R)

19th Congressional Distict--The incumbent, Neugebauer, is a 2nd term Republican who won with 58.4%. Cook Political Report considers this district solid Republican. On the Blue side we have Robert Ricketts (D). This is my district, stolen from Charlie Stenholm due to Delay's criminal redistricting. If we can bury them here, we can bury them everywhere.

20th Congressional Distict--The incumbent, Charlie A. Gonzalez (D), is a 4th term Democrat who won with 65.5%. Cook Political Report considers this district solid Democrat. On the Blue side we have no Republican with the guts to run.

22nd Congressional Distict--The incumbent, The "Bug Man" Delay, is an 11th term Republican who won with 55.2%. Rothenberg Political Report: Competitive Race, Cook Political Report: Likely Republican, Larry Sabato's Crystal Ball: Leans Republican. On the Blue side we have Rothenberg Political Report: Competitive Race, Cook Political Report: Likely Republican, Larry Sabato's Crystal Ball: Leans Republican. This is the must win race. If we win this, not only will we make gains, but we might just take back the house. It's time to exterminate the Bug Man Delay.

23rd Congressional Distict--The incumbent, Bonilla, is a 7th term Republican who won with 69.3%. Cook Political Report considers this district solid Republican. On the Blue side we have Vietnam Vet Rick Bolaños (D)

24th Congressional Distict--The incumbent, Marcahnt, is a 1st term Republican who won with 64.0%. Cook Political Report considers this district solid Republican. On the Blue side we have programmer / '04 nominee Gary R. Page (D)

25th Congressional Distict--The incumbent, Lloyd Doggett (D), is a 6th term Democrat who won with 67.6%. Cook Political Report considers this district solid Democrat. On the Red side we have no Republican with the guts to run.

26th Congressional Distict--The incumbent, Burgess, is a 2nd term Republican who won with 65.8%. Cook Political Report considers this district solid Republican. On the Blue side we have Tim Barnwell (D)

27th Congressional Distict--The incumbent, Solomon P. Ortiz (D), is a 12th term Democrat who won with 55.5%, but who might retire, according to DC Political Report. Cook Political Report considers this district solid Democrat. On the Red side we have marine surveyor / businessman / ex-Ingleside Mayor '04 nominee William "Willie" Vaden (R),

28th Congressional Distict--The incumbent, Henry Cuellar (D) is a 1st term Democrat who won with 59.0%. Faces primary challenges from ex-U.S. Rep. Ciro D. Rodriguez (D), teacher / 1996 Senate nominee / 1998 Congressional nominee / '02 Senate candidate Victor M. Morales (D). Cook Political Report considers this district solid Democrat. On the Red side no Republican had the guts to run.

29th Congressional Distict--The incumbent, Gene Green (D) is a 7th term Democrat who won with 93.0%. Cook Political Report considers this district solid Democrat. On the Red side we have minister Eric Story (R)

30th Congressional Distict--The incumbent, Eddie Bernice Johnson (D), is a 7th term Democrat who won with 93.0%. Cook Political Report considers this district solid Democrat. On the Red side we have attorney Wilson Aurbach (R), entrepreneur Amir Omar (R), IT Manager Fred A. Wood (R),

31st Congressional Distict--The incumbent, Carter, is a 2nd term Republican who won with 64.8%. Cook Political Report considers this district solid Republican. On the Blue side we have attorney Mary Beth Harrell (D)

32nd Congressional Distict--The incumbent, Sessions, is a 5th term Republican who won with 54.3%. Cook Political Report considers this district solid Republican. On the Blue side we have arbitrator Will Pryor (D)

mikecable's blog | Blue Texas

mikecable's blog | Blue Texas


I cross-posted this over at Blue Texas.

DeLay Isn't A "Regular Guy"

Submitted by mikecable on Fri, 2006-01-27 13:07.

Nice catch from Eye on Williamson County.

Doesn't this, DeLay appearance cost Fox $14,000, run contrary to media attempts to make Tom DeLay out to be a "regular guy":

Four days after U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay's stunning indictment last September in Travis County, the political talk show "Fox News Sunday" trumpeted an exclusive interview with the combative Texas Republican.

Unsaid, but revealed in documents DeLay later filed in the U.S. House, was that DeLay's Oct. 2 appearance cost Fox News $14,000.

The money rented a private jet to ferry DeLay from a small airport near his Sugar Land home to Fox studios in Washington. The next day, after engaging in a give and take with host Chris Wallace, DeLay and his Capitol Police security detail were flown back to suburban Houston.

Education system is broken - Opinion

Education system is broken - Opinion

The debate over school finance that has gripped the Legislature's neverending special sessions is a mere sideshow to the grim reality of Texas education. In truth, the system is broken and no matter how much money our government dumps into the abyss, things will remain awry without substantive reform.

Consider the state of affairs in two of the largest school districts in Texas: Dallas ISD and Houston ISD.

In the 2000-01 school year, there were 14,566 freshman attending Dallas public high schools. Four years later at the graduation ceremonies for the class of 2004, there were only 6,696 graduates. This means that in Dallas ISD only 45.97 percent of the students even graduate from high school, let alone go on to something better.

Head south to Houston and things actually get worse. In the 2000-01 school year, there were 20,187 students in the high school freshman class in Houston ISD. Four years later when these students were scheduled to don the cap and gown, only 8,354 of them were eligible. Statistically speaking, if your child attends a Houston high school, he or she has only a 41.38 percent chance of actually graduating.

From the Daily Texan. Read the rest--the numbers are frightening.

Slashdot | Politicians Catch on to Blogging

Slashdot | Politicians Catch on to Blogging

Jason Jardine wrote to mention a C|Net report on an increase in the use of blogs by politicians in the U.S. capitol. From the article: "Just a year ago, a DailyKos posting from someone like John Kerry would have been all but unheard of, and blogging of any kind by members of Congress was almost nonexistent. But now that dynamic is starting to change, and slowly, members of the House of Representatives and the Senate are beginning to appreciate the value of blogs. 'When I reach out to the blog community, it gives me an opportunity to begin a dialogue with an extremely politically sophisticated and active community that I otherwise might not be able to reach,' Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., wrote in an e-mail to CNET News.com."

They're finally catching on.

Sheriff demands probe of Mexican military incursions

World Peace Herald

A Texas border sheriff yesterday demanded that the U.S. and Mexican governments investigate incursions into the United States by heavily armed drug escorts dressed in Mexican military uniforms "before someone gets killed."

Zapata County Sheriff Sigifredo Gonzalez Jr., who heads the Texas Sheriff's Border Coalition, said a growing number of suspected incursions and violence aimed at the area's law-enforcement officers is making the border "a pretty dangerous place."

"We have tried everything we know to make the federal government aware of the problems at the border and how they have affected us," said Sheriff Gonzalez, who has fewer than two dozen deputies to patrol 1,000 square miles, including 60 miles of Texas-Mexico border.

"It appears our government is covering this thing up because it just doesn't want to admit there is a problem," he said. "Trade between the United States and Mexico may be more important to Washington than human lives."

We need to hammer Perry with this.

More questions surround Texas' D.C. lobbyist

More questions surround Texas' D.C. lobbyist: "When the state first approved hiring a new lobbying firm with close ties to lobbyist Jack Abramoff in 2004, it rejected competing bids that met more of the state's selection criteria and cost less, according to documents obtained by the Austin American-Statesman.

What the winning firm, Cassidy & Associates, did have was access — all the way to presidential aide Karl Rove, according to memos and e-mails that were obtained through a Texas Open Records Request.

And despite the lower marks the firm received when state officials first reviewed the bids, staff members from Texas' state agencies tapped to choose a new lobbyist eventually awarded the firm a $15,000-a-month contract to lobby Congress."

Read the rest.

Border incident sparks outrage

Dallas Morning News | News for Dallas, Texas | Latest News: "Border incident sparks outrage"

A West Texas standoff along the Rio Grande between U.S. law enforcement officers and heavily armed Mexican drug smugglers in military-style clothing prompted congressional demands Tuesday for an international investigation and a call for deployment of U.S. troops to the border.

The incident, which occurred Monday on U.S. soil at an isolated river crossing about 50 miles east of El Paso, is the latest involving armed incursions along the U.S. border with Mexico.

And it comes less than a week after Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff called a California newspaper's account of such border incursions "overblown."

Shouldn't Perry be concentrating on our own border, instead of jetting off to Iraq.

Ralph Reed, Abramoff, and the Texas Christian Coalition--All Mobbed Up

Mathaba.Net News Links

Evidence is mounting that former Christian Coalition leader Ralph Reed Jr., along with a former leader of the Texas Christian Coalition, may have illegally lobbied Texas state officials on behalf of crooked federal lobbyist Jack Abramoff and his clients.

Three Austin-based reform groups—Common Cause Texas, Public Citizen Texas, and Texans For Public Justice, the latter of which employs the author of this article—urged Travis County prosecutors last December to investigate whether Reed violated Texas’ lobby-registration laws four years ago. Correspondence between Abramoff and Reed—the ex-Christian Coalition leader now running for lieutenant governor of Georgia—suggests that Reed lobbied Texas officials on behalf of Abramoff’s Indian gambling clients without registering as a Texas lobbyist. The $5 million in gambling money that Abramoff reportedly paid Reed for his services would make it one of the largest lobby contracts ever made public in Texas.

The Reed campaign, which did not respond to three requests for comment for this story, previously issued a statement saying that Texas’ lobby registration law does not cover the kind of “grassroots” organizing that Reed’s firm conducted in Texas. Travis County Attorney David Escamilla told the Observer at press time that his office was still investigating the complaint.

Perry makes surprise visit to Iraq

Dallas Morning News | News for Dallas, Texas | Latest News: "Gov. Rick Perry has traveled to Iraq with three other governors in a surprise visit to troops from their states.

Perry joined Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle and Wyoming Gov. Dave Freudenthal, Huckabee spokeswoman Alice Stewart said Tuesday morning. They left for Iraq on Sunday after receiving classified briefings at the Pentagon, she said.

'The Department of Defense set this trip up for the purpose of making these governors aware of the global war on terror,' Stewart said. 'It's important for the governors to be on the ground and visit with the troops.'"

Earle Subpoenas Former DeLay Campaign Aide

Earle Subpoenas Former DeLay Campaign Aide: "A former campaign manager of Rep. Tom DeLay who also ran an organization linked to disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff was subpoenaed by a Texas prosecutor Monday.

Travis County District Attorney Ronnie Earle filed documents in Austin seeking records from Robert G. Mills in connection with a probe of DeLay, who is awaiting trial in Texas on money laundering charges.


Earle wants information about a $500,000 political contribution made in 1999 by the National Republican Congressional Committee to the U.S. Family Network, a now-disbanded nonprofit advocacy group for conservative ideas. Mills, DeLay's 1996 campaign manager, was president of the U.S. Family Network.

The Washington Post reported that donations to U.S. Family Network came from clients of Abramoff, who has pleaded guilty to federal charges in a congressional corruption investigation."

Right now we're seeing drips and drops of information. But as the pieces start to come together we're going to witness a tidal wave.

A CAPITOL BLOG: Politiqueras Gone Wild!

A CAPITOL BLOG: Politiqueras Gone Wild!: "Former Rep. Steve Wolens liked to call them vote-harvesters. Down in deep, deep South Texas however they are called 'politiqueras.' Not always, but generarally, ladies involved in get out the vote efforts, who it is alleged, sometimes cross the line with aggressive, at times improper, tactics in doing their job."

This is fascintating part of South Texas politics I wasn't aware of. Thanks to Rep. Pena for pointing out this story.

Burnt Orange Report - Emails Show Workings Of Gov's Office During Katrina

Burnt Orange Report - Emails Show Workings Of Gov's Office During Katrina: "If you haven't read the Houston Chronicle story on how e-mails from Rick Perry's staff show what was 'really' going on during the Katrina disaster, I urge you to do so. It's a real eye-opener."

Burnt Orange Report has a real find here. Read on.

Grits for Breakfast-- Blog activism: How it's supposed to work

Grits for Breakfast

This Grits post about how Texas state mental hospitals are full in part because of "criminal commitments" (meaning defendants sent there by a judge until they're declared competent to stand trial) provides a fun example of useful blog activism, I think. Consider:

• On Wednesday, an anonymous attorney left a story about a client in the comments to an unrelated Grits post.
• I forwarded the comment to another Texas blogger who specializes in health issues to ask her opinion.
• She sent the comment to someone she knew in the Department of State Health Services, who said she'd look into it.
• I received an email from the head of the state hospital system inviting me to call him for an explanation, which I did.
• I wrote a blog post on the topic relaying what I'd learned.
• A reader forwarded the post to an attorney from Advocacy Inc., a nonprofit legal group that works on these types of cases, who wrote in Grits' comments asking the first attorney to contact her.
• I learned last night they hooked up by phone on Friday, less than 24 hours after I'd posted on the topic.

That's pretty darn cool - an anonymous blog comment results in advocates taking an issue on they didn't know about before. That's how it's supposed to work. Maybe something positive can come out of the telling of this grim tale.

I'm posting this one in full, because it is how it's supposed to work. Kudos to Grits for Breakfast.

TIME.com: When George Met Jack -- Jan. 30, 2006 -- Page 1

TIME.com: When George Met Jack -- Jan. 30, 2006 -- Page 1: "As details poured out about the illegal and unseemly activities of Republican lobbyist Jack Abramoff, White House officials sought to portray the scandal as a Capitol Hill affair with little relevance to them. Peppered for days with questions about Abramoff's visits to the White House, press secretary Scott McClellan said the now disgraced lobbyist had attended two huge holiday receptions and a few 'staff-level meetings' that were not worth describing further. 'The President does not know him, nor does the President recall ever meeting him,' McClellan said.

The President's memory may soon be unhappily refreshed. TIME has seen five photographs of Abramoff and the President that suggest a level of contact between them that Bush's aides have downplayed. While TIME's source refused to provide the pictures for publication, they are likely to see the light of day eventually because celebrity tabloids are on the prowl for them. And that has been a fear of the Bush team's for the past several months: that a picture of the President with the admitted felon could become the iconic image of direct presidential involvement in a burgeoning corruption scandal like the shots of President Bill Clinton at White House coffees for campaign contributors in the mid-1990s."



In the words of Law and Order, it look like Bush is mobbed up.

Revised anti-DeLay ad to air today (with video)

Chron.com | Revised anti-DeLay ad to air today (with video): "A controversial ad linking Rep. Tom DeLay to former lobbyist Jack Abramoff will hit the airwaves in Houston today after local television stations had declined to show an earlier ad.

The revised ad calling for DeLay to resign his congressional post is set to air on KPRC-NBC (Channel 2) and KRIV-FOX (Channel 26), according to Campaign for America's Future, one of two liberal public interest groups that joined forces last week to run the ad."

Delay's legal gambit failed miserably.

Libby's Lawyers Want to Subpoena Reporters - Yahoo! News

Libby's Lawyers Want to Subpoena Reporters - Yahoo! News: "Lawyers for a former top aide to Vice President
Dick Cheney told a federal judge Friday they want to subpoena journalists and news organizations for documents they may have related to the leak of a
CIA operative's name.

In a joint filing with prosecutors, lawyers for I. Lewis 'Scooter' Libby, 55, warned U.S. District Judge Reggie B. Walton that a trial likely will be delayed because of their strategy to seek more subpoenas of reporters' notes and other records.

Libby was indicted last year on charges that he lied to
FBI agents and a federal grand jury about how he learned CIA operative
Valerie Plame's identity and when he subsequently told reporters.

Plame's identity was revealed in July 2003 by columnist Robert Novak after her husband, former U.S. Ambassador Joseph Wilson, accused the Bush administration of twisting intelligence about
Iraq's efforts to buy uranium 'yellowcake' in Niger. The year before, the CIA had sent Wilson to Africa to determine the accuracy of the uranium reports; he concluded they were untrue."

Libby's lawyers are a bunch of whores who will twist the 1st amendment anyway that might benefit their clients clause. Sort of like the entire administration. Clinton got his for free. I can't support a government of pimps. The Dems need to stand up and call them on this.

Gubernatorial candidate ejected from race over bad check

Gubernatorial candidate ejected from race over bad check: "A Fort Worth Democrat who hoped to run for governor will not be on the primary ballot because the check for his filing fee bounced, a Democratic party leader said.

Felix Alvarado wrote a check to the Texas Democratic Party for the $3,750 filing fee without sufficient funds to cover it, said Charles Soechting, the party's state chairman.

``The position I would have to take is, the filing fee wasn't paid,'' Soechting said. ``It's sad. I hate to see that happen to anybody.''

Alvarado, a middle school administrator and the only Hispanic to seek the governor's seat, confirmed that he submitted the check without having enough money.

``I take full responsibility for that. That's my mea culpa. I overplayed my hand,'' he said. ``I'm disappointed.''"

It won't make a difference in this race, but I do feel sorry for the guy.

Free drug plans end; headaches begin

Dallas Morning News | News for Dallas, Texas | Latest News: "Ed and Patricia Weymouth get 10 medications free from pharmaceutical companies, but that help will end in May.

The Dallas couple blames Medicare's new drug coverage.

'A Medicare benefit that's supposed to help seniors will penalize us,' Mr. Weymouth said.

He's shopped for Medicare drug plans for him and his wife but has found the cheapest ones will add $216 a month to their drug costs.

This can't be making the GOP happy.

'It was drugs or food for us before we heard of these pharmaceutical company assistance programs,' he said. 'Will we have to make that choice again?'

Hundreds of thousands of seniors may be asking the same question.

As Medicare's drug coverage takes effect, the pharmaceutical industry has started scaling down its patient assistance programs. Two companies will no longer take applications from people over 65; others will help only seniors who don't enroll in the drug program."

KRIV to air ad targeting DeLay

Chron.com | KRIV to air ad targeting DeLay: "At least one Houston television station has agreed to air a reworked television ad linking Rep. Tom DeLay to disgraced former lobbyist Jack Abramoff after refusing to air the first version of the commercial made by two liberal groups last week.

Fox station KRIV (Channel 26) has agreed to air the spot, though Vice President and General Manager D'Artagnan Bebel declined to explain the decision."

A FOX station stands up--who'd a thunk it.

Signs of De-alignment - January 20, 2006 - The New York Sun - NY Newspaper

Signs of De-alignment - January 20, 2006 - The New York Sun - NY Newspaper: "By the 2004 election, the Internet was a decade old, but there were only a handful of centrist sites. Today, the political blog aggregator punditdrome.com lists 35 centrist blogs as opposed to 40 conservatives and 42 liberals. That's just one measure; others list far more centrist sites.

'Centrist and independent blogs have grown enormously over the past two years,' says Joe Gandelman, author of themoderatevoice.com. 'What's most notable is that an increasing number of people want to be identified as centrists, independents or moderates. That's the big shift. A lot of people don't want to be identified as partisans anymore.'"

I'm not sure I agree, but the piece brings up some point that haven't been addressed much.

DeLay's prosecutors dig deeper into California

DeLay's prosecutors dig deeper into California: "It was the fall of 2002, and Texans for a Republican Majority was scouring for corporate money when it found an unlikely donor — a California defense technology firm willing to send part of its $40,000 startup money to help U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay's political committee.

PerfectWave Technologies, a San Diego-area firm, gave DeLay's committee $15,000 to help elect Republicans to the Texas Legislature. It sent the rest of the $40,000 to a gala tribute to Randy 'Duke' Cunningham, the San Diego-area congressman who resigned after pleading guilty last year to taking bribes from military contractors."

On Thursday, Travis County prosecutors dug deeper into the Southern California connections to DeLay and Texans for a Republican Majority political action committee, subpoenaing a second round of records of any "negotiations or agreements" that prompted the donation. They also asked for any communications about pending federal legislation that would have affected the firm.

Deeper and deeper. Read the rest.

U.S. Holds Going-Out-Of-Business Sale | The Onion - America's Finest News Source

U.S. Holds Going-Out-Of-Business Sale | The Onion - America's Finest News Source

WASHINGTON, DC—In an address broadcast on late-night television Tuesday, President Bush announced that the federal government will liquidate its holdings in a going-out-of-business sale scheduled to begin Friday.

Enlarge Image

After 200-plus years of service, the U.S. government is closing its doors.

"The U.S. government, America's place for law and order since 1776, has lost its lease, and everything must go, go, go," Bush said. "But our loss is your gain, and make no mistake: You, the people, would be crazy to miss out on these amazing closeout bargains."

The Washington-based government, which hasn't shown a profit in five years and carries the highest debt in its history, was ultimately driven out of business by costly overhead and cheap foreign competitors. As a result, Bush said, everything—from flag stands and Capitol cafeteria flatware to legislation dating from the early days of the republic—will be marked down 30 to 90 percent.

The sad fact is it doesn't sound like satire.

Texas independent runs strong - Nation/Politics - The Washington Times, America's Newspaper

Texas independent runs strong - Nation/Politics - The Washington Times, America's Newspaper: "Kinky Friedman, the mystery novelist and singer/songwriter running for Texas governor as an independent, has raised three times as much campaign money as the top two Democratic candidates combined.
According to finance records filed yesterday in Austin, former U.S. Rep. Chris Bell and former state Supreme Court Justice Bob Gammage -- the main Democratic contenders -- have collected $355,000 and $67,000, respectively, in the past six months.
Mr. Friedman is running his first statewide campaign. He reported receiving more than $1.5 million during the July-to-December period.
'I think it speaks volumes how lost the Democratic Party has become in Texas and how dispirited Democrats have become,' said Dean Barkley, Mr. Friedman's campaign manager. The biggest single cash donation went to Mr. Friedman, who received $250,000 from shampoo manufacturer John McCall of Spicewood, his campaign treasurer. "

I have to respectfully disagree with Barkley. I doubt much of the Kinkster's fund-raising came from Democratic donors. Instead, I bet it came from true independents and disaffected Republicans.

"You May Not Believe It, But Campaign Finance Reform Targets the Blogosphere" by Brian C. Anderson

"You May Not Believe It, But Campaign Finance Reform Targets the Blogosphere" by Brian C. Anderson: "This is an excerpt from an article in City Journal covering all of the aspects of campaign finance reform. This except covers the blogosphere portion.

The rise of alternative media—political talk radio in the eighties, cable news in the nineties, and the blogosphere in the new millennium—has broken the liberal monopoly over news and opinion outlets. The Left understands acutely the implications of this revolution, blaming much of the Democratic Party’s current electoral trouble on the influence of the new media’s vigorous conservative voices. Instead of fighting back with ideas, however, today’s liberals quietly, relentlessly, and illiberally are working to smother this flourishing universe of political discourse under a tangle of campaign-finance and media regulations. Their campaign represents the most sustained attack on free political speech in the United States since the 1798 Alien and Sedition Acts. Though Republicans have the most to lose in the short run, all Americans who care about our most fundamental rights and the civic health of our democracy need to understand what’s going on—and resist it."

Scary implications for bloggers and blog readers.

The Austin Chronicle: News: 2006 State Races

The Austin Chronicle: News: 2006 State Races: "Here's a sampling of some of the livelier contests taking shape for the March 7 party primaries and the general election in November."

Worth checking out.

Chron.com | Critics question lobbyist's donations to GOP

Chron.com | Critics question lobbyist's donations to GOP: "A legislative Democratic leader Wednesday accused a state lobbyist of serving as a conduit to convert taxpayer dollars into Republican campaign contributions.

House Democratic Chairman Jim Dunnam said lobbyist Drew Maloney had made $250 in political donations before Gov. Rick Perry hired Maloney's Federalist Group for $180,000 a year to lobby Congress for the state.

Dunnam said that since that time, Maloney has given $75,000 to Republican congressional committees — including $750 meant to help defeat an incumbent Texas congressman."

How corrupt can they get? Surely this has to be against the law.

Unconfirmedsources.com

Unconfirmedsources.com: "Police arrested and later released disgraced Texas representative Tom Delay yesterday, accusing him of trying to fake his own death to avoid prosecution."

Read the rest.

DeLay Rankings main page

DeLay Rankings main page: "Former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay has been indicted for money laundering and conspiracy. He's the face of big money corruption. But to his colleagues in Congress, he's a true sugar daddy. Everybody 'owes Mr. DeLay for something—a job, a piece of legislation, or a large campaign contribution,' says The New York Times. We've created a ranking based on how often they vote the way DeLay does, how much DeLay's PAC contributed to them, how much they've contributed to DeLay's legal defense fund, and so on."

Great site. Here are the Texas stats.

Texas

• took $196,167 from ARMPAC
• took $5,000 from DeLay Campaign Fund
• gave $66,000 to DeLay Defense Fund
• 9 votes for the DeLay Rule

Rank	Full Name	Dist	Party	$ from DeLay		$ to DeLay (legal fund)	Vote %	DeLay Rankings
				(ARMPAC)	Campaign
145	Louis B Gohmert Jr	1	R	$10,000	$0	$0	93.63%	4.87
196	Ted Poe	2	R	$5,000	$0	$0	93.14%	3.36
103	Sam Johnson	3	R	$545	$0	$6,000	95.43%	5.41
110	Ralph M Hall	4	R	$10,000	$0	$0	94.12%	5.38
30	Jeb Hensarling	5	R	$20,000	$0	$5,000	96.46%	7.43
111	Joe Barton	6	R	$20	$4,000	$0	93.46%	5.37
54	John Culberson	7	R	$5,000	$0	$5,000	98.04%	6.46
73	Kevin Brady	8	R	$10,000	$0	$0	95.93%	5.92
328	Al Green	9	D	$0	$0	$0	14.84%	0.30
144	Michael McCaul	10	R	$10,000	$0	$0	93.82%	4.88
128	Mike Conaway	11	R	$10,000	$0	$0	97.05%	4.94
59	Kay Granger	12	R	$4,982	$0	$5,000	94.99%	6.40
181	Mac Thornberry	13	R	$14	$0	$0	95.80%	3.42
178	Ron Paul	14	R	$6,000	$0	$0	73.56%	3.97
283	Ruben Hinojosa	15	D	$0	$0	$0	22.11%	0.44
267	Silvestre Reyes	16	D	$0	$0	$0	25.01%	0.50
248	Chet Edwards	17	D	$0	$0	$0	31.91%	0.64
348	Sheila Jackson Lee	18	D	$0	$0	$0	13.01%	0.26
102	Randy Neugebauer	19	R	$15,000	$0	$0	97.13%	5.44
300	Charlie A Gonzalez	20	D	$0	$0	$0	18.59%	0.37
59	Lamar Smith	21	R	$20	$0	$10,000	94.85%	6.40
5	Henry Bonilla	23	R	$22,942	$1,000	$15,000	94.01%	8.88
34	Kenny Ewell Marchant	24	R	$10,000	$0	$5,000	97.49%	6.95
348	Lloyd Doggett	25	D	$0	$0	$0	12.91%	0.26
36	Michael Burgess	26	R	$15,000	$0	$5,000	97.03%	6.94
245	Solomon P Ortiz	27	D	$0	$0	$0	33.63%	0.67
238	Henry Cuellar	28	D	$0	$0	$0	37.74%	0.75
277	Gene Green	29	D	$0	$0	$0	23.55%	0.47
341	Eddie Bernice Johnson	30	D	$0	$0	$0	13.56%	0.27
12	John Carter	31	R	$20,000	$0	$5,000	98.64%	7.97
14	Pete Sessions	32	R	$21,644	$0	$5,000	96.84%	7.94

Lone Star Times » Chron/Murray poll story has legs

Lone Star Times » Chron/Murray poll story has legs: "Serious methodological doubts have already been raised on other right-leaning local blogs regarding Professor Richard Murray’s recent 'Tom DeLay poll' on behalf of the Houston Chronicle."

Rethug bloggers, who supposedly don't even believe in polls, since the Shrub doesn't believe in them, desperately try to debunk the Houston Chronicle poll that shows Delay is in trouble. But my previous post shows that even Faux News is taking the numbers seriously. Stick a fork in the Bugman--he's done.

FOXNews.com - Politics - DeLay's Future in Limbo From Scandals, Court Case

FOXNews.com - Politics - DeLay's Future in Limbo From Scandals, Court Case: "Rep. Tom DeLay's House seat is no longer safe as Washington scandals and a lawsuit back home gnaw at his support, say election watchers keeping a close eye on the Texas Republican's fading popularity."

When the folks at Faux News join the bandwagon you know the Bugman is in deep doo-doo.

Grits for Breakfast: More info on how to file open records requests

Grits for Breakfast: More info on how to file open records requests: "For more information about requesting information under Texas' open records laws (or how to respond to open records requests, for that matter, as a representative of a government agency in Texas), consult the comprehensive manual from the Texas Attorney General, which has recently been updated to include changes from the 79th (2005) Legislature. It'll tell you what's public, what's not, how to ask for information and when agencies have to respond - a great resource, as is the rest of their website."

This is information important to all activists. Click thru so you can check out the links.

The Red State: Wesley Clark kicks off Juan Garcia's campaign

The Red State: Wesley Clark kicks off Juan Garcia's campaign


Gen. Wesley Clark, former presidential candidate and NATO's Supreme Allied Commander, Europe, will be in Corpus Christi, TX on January 26, 2006 to announce his support for Juan Garcia's race (campaign website) for Texas House District 32.

A nice coup for Garcia. Can anyone tell me if this race is competitive? I bet it's a little more so now.

The WitList

The WitList: "That Abramoff!
That Abramoff!
I do not like that Abramoff!

'Would you like to play some golf?'

I do not want to play some golf.
I do not want to, Abramoff.

'We could fly you there for free.
Off to Scotland, by the sea.'

I do not want to fly for free.
I don't like Scotland by the sea.
I do not want to play some golf.
I do not want to, Abramoff.

'Would you, could you, take this bribe?
Could you, would you, for the tribe?'

I would not, could not, take this bribe.
I could not, would not, for the tribe.

'If we strong armed corporations
Into giving you donations?
They'd be funnelled to your PAC.
Would you then cut us some slack?'"


Follow the link and read the rest. Good stuff.

Lobbyist for state tied to Abramoff

Chron.com | Lobbyist for state tied to Abramoff: "Todd Boulanger, who once worked closely with confessed influence peddler Jack Abramoff, now heads a group lobbying Congress for Texas under a $330,000 state contract.

Boulanger and his firm, Cassidy & Associates, were hired by the Texas Office of State-Federal Relations under a contract approved by Gov. Rick Perry, House Speaker Tom Craddick and Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst.

This is the second time the state has hired as a congressional lobbyist someone with connections to the lobbying controversies surrounding former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Sugar Land.

The state's Washington office previously had hired former DeLay chief of staff Drew Maloney, the Houston Chronicle first reported last year. Maloney has not been connected to Abramoff's activities, but he was a key figure in 2002 fundraising that brought DeLay a reprimand from the House Ethics Committee."

They just don't get it.

Union Leader - Robert D. Novak: Delaying DeLay’s successor - Saturday, Jan. 14, 2006

Union Leader - Robert D. Novak: Delaying DeLay’s successor - Saturday, Jan. 14, 2006: "HOUSE SPEAKER Dennis Hastert turned down a White House request to elect a permanent successor to Tom DeLay as majority leader in advance of President Bush’s State of the Union address on Jan. 31. Republican House members simply did not want to return early to Washington after their winter vacation.

Bush’s aides wanted an early vote, perhaps on Monday Jan. 30, so that speculation over DeLay’s successor and a possibly bitter internal campaign would not distract from the President’s speech. But Hastert set the voting for Feb. 2 after GOP members objected to changing plans for getting back to work.

A footnote: Both of the principal contenders to succeed DeLay, Acting Majority Leader Roy Blunt and Rep. John Boehner, appeared to have peaked short of a majority last week. Each side started to leak negative opposition research."

The poor GOP just can't play well with others.

Chron.com | Foe sees DeLay as being beatable

Chron.com | Foe sees DeLay as being beatable: "'The numbers I saw were encouraging,' Lampson said. 'They show that the people of this district want a representative who will make headlines for the right reasons, like improving homeland security, fiscal discipline and education.

'There is a long time between now and Election Day, and we're going to continue working hard for every vote.'"

Run, Nick, Run.

Chron.com | Is TV afraid of gavel, or the Hammer?

Chron.com | Is TV afraid of gavel, or the Hammer?: "Rep. Tom DeLay took a chance when he unleashed his lawyers on local television stations, hinting at lawsuits if they ran a 30-second anti-DeLay spot.

Preventing exposure of something is a sure way to draw attention to it.

A politician should do such a thing only when he has his back to the wall. But as today's Chronicle poll shows, DeLay does."

Delay brought more attention to the ad by fighting it. I can't wait for the next round of poll numbers.

USATODAY.com - Will McGraw toss his hat into the ring?

USATODAY.com - Will McGraw toss his hat into the ring?

Tim McGraw says he and his wife, Faith Hill, might be another celebrity couple hitting the political campaign trail.

		Tim McGraw, who has spoken openly of his political ambitions, poses with wife Faith Hill in at November's American Music Awards.
		AP photo

"I think it's something I'd do well," McGraw, who is a Democrat, tells the February issue of Esquire magazine (on stands Monday). He announced his plans to run for governor of Tennessee someday. "I just think as governor of the state, there would be a lot more opportunities to make some decisions and change some things."

Not really Texas news, as McGraw is from Louisiana, and now lives in Tennessee. But I think he'd stand a far better chance than the Kinkster, and this will drive Sean Hannity nuts.

Tom DeLay Quotes - Stupid Quotes by Tom DeLay

Tom DeLay Quotes - Stupid Quotes by Tom DeLay: "1) 'I AM the federal government.' –Tom DeLay, to the owner of Ruth's Chris Steak House, after being told to put out his cigar because of federal government regulations banning smoking in the building, May 14, 2003 (Source)

2) 'So many minority youths had volunteered…that there was literally no room for patriotic folks like myself.' --Tom DeLay, explaining at the 1988 GOP convention why he and vice presidential nominee Dan Quayle did not fight in the Vietnam War"

Click the link for 8 more examples of Delay's mind-numbing stupidity. How did he ever get to Congress in the first place. He's obviously inhaled to much bug killing fumes.

Houston Chronicle Survey of Registered Voters in the Texas 22nd Congressional District

Chron.com |: "Complete text of questions asked in the survey of registered voters in the 22nd Congressional District, in the order in which they were asked, along with the breakdown of responses."

There has been a lot of great analysis of this poll and how Delay stands, including Kuff here, and DelayvsWorld here. I'll let you make up your own minds based on the complete polling data in this story. I will say that thing don't look good for the Bugman.

Blue Texas - Factcheck.org: Nothing Strictly False About Rejected Delay Ad

My latest post on Blue Texas

Blue Texas - New Posts: "Rep. Aaron Pena points out this important story on his Capitol Blog. And by the way, Rep. Pena has one of the best blogs out there.

Remember how Tom Delay and his lawyer threatened three television stations into not allowing a group to run anti-Delay commercials. Remember how the three stations cowered in fear and refused to be a part of the public debate. Their excuse was blown out of the water today by FactCheck.org who says their is nothing false in the ads."

True Blue Liberal » Connecting the Dots: Abramoff and Rove

True Blue Liberal » Connecting the Dots: Abramoff and Rove

Did you know that Jack Abramoff and Karl Rove shared an executive assistant?

In 2001, Karl Rove needed a Gal Friday, someone to help oversee the “strategic planning, political affairs, public liaison, and intergovernmental affairs efforts of the White House.”

He chose Susan Ralston, who came highly recommended from a friend: Jack Abramoff. Ralston performed similar duties for the Don of K Street—that is until Abramoff realized she’d be far more useful embedded in the West Wing. (Ralston had also previous worked for Abramoff and Rove’s fellow College Republican crony Ralph Reed.)

True Blue Liberal » Connecting the Dots: Abramoff and Rove

True Blue Liberal » Connecting the Dots: Abramoff and Rove

Did you know that Jack Abramoff and Karl Rove shared an executive assistant?

In 2001, Karl Rove needed a Gal Friday, someone to help oversee the “strategic planning, political affairs, public liaison, and intergovernmental affairs efforts of the White House.”

He chose Susan Ralston, who came highly recommended from a friend: Jack Abramoff. Ralston performed similar duties for the Don of K Street—that is until Abramoff realized she’d be far more useful embedded in the West Wing. (Ralston had also previous worked for Abramoff and Rove’s fellow College Republican crony Ralph Reed.)

True Blue Liberal » Connecting the Dots: Abramoff and Rove

True Blue Liberal » Connecting the Dots: Abramoff and Rove: "Did you know that Jack Abramoff and Karl Rove shared an executive assistant?

In 2001, Karl Rove needed a Gal Friday, someone to help oversee the “strategic planning, political affairs, public liaison, and intergovernmental affairs efforts of the White House.”

He chose Susan Ralston, who came highly recommended from a friend: Jack Abramoff. Ralston performed similar duties for the Don of K Street—that is until Abramoff realized she’d be far more useful embedded in the West Wing. (Ralston had also previous worked for Abramoff and Rove’s fellow College Republican crony Ralph Reed.)"

I have no doubt that the "GOP culture of corruption" extends all the way to the White House. Impeach now.

Perry's Poll Numbers not so Good

The Austin Chronicle: News: Naked City: "Even with the odds in his favor to win the governor's race in November, GOP Gov. Rick Perry pulled just 40% of the statewide vote in the latest pulse taken by Rasmussen Reports, a public opinion research firm. The poll showed independent challenger Carole Keeton Strayhorn earning 21%, followed by Democrat Chris Bell with 14%, and independent Kinky Friedman with 12%. Rasmussen Reports concluded that Perry is in no better shape today than he was when state Comptroller Strayhorn was running as a Republican. Strayhorn declared her independence Jan. 2. The polling firm will include Democratic candidate and former Supreme Court Justice Bob Gammage in its next poll. A separate survey of voters showed U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas, with a comfortable 65% lead over Democratic challenger Barbara Ann Radnofsky, who netted 25%. "

I think Bell or Gammage could sneak a win with about 40% of the vote.

Blue Texas--If we can beat mob, we can fight DeLay-style politics

Blue Texas: "Atrios pointed out this excellent editorial written by Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., the Senate minority leader. It appeared in Delay's hometown paper, The Houston Chronicle.

In 1977, I was appointed chairman of the Nevada Gaming Commission. It was a difficult time for the gaming industry and Las Vegas, which were being overrun by organized crime. To that point in my life, I had served in the Nevada Assembly and even as lieutenant governor, but nothing prepared me for my fight with the mob.

Over the next few years, there would be threats on my life, bribes, FBI stings and even a car bomb placed in my family's station wagon. It was a terrifying experience, but at the end of the day, we cleaned up Las Vegas and ushered in a new era of responsibility.

My term on the gaming commission came to an end in 1981, and when it did, I thought I had seen such corruption for the last time. Unfortunately, that has not been the case. It is not quite the mafia of Las Vegas in the 1970s, but what is happening today in Washington is every bit as corrupt and the consequences for our country have been severe.

Our nation's capital has been overrun by organized crime — Tom DeLay-style."