Runoff Elections 2020: What 2 Watch 4

"For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life."
Galatians 6:8

With runoff elections today, here are some things on which to keep an eye. We don't claim this list is comprehensive. Nevertheless, it's what we'll be watching for.

Democrats:

• U.S. Senate -- We've been meaning to do a longer writeup on this topic for about six months, but haven't gotten around to it.  Nevertheless, MJ Hegar is, easily and by far, the most compelling Democrat to run for statewide office in at least a decade.  Royce West, by contrast, is a rather middling state senator.
  
  Cornyn's 100% safe against West. He's probably about 85% safe against Hegar. In the event, however, that Donald Trump and Greg Abbott continue to run the national/statewide environment into the ground, do NOT underestimate her.

• Travis County County/District Attorney -- While they aren't related, Delia and Jose Garza are running for those respective criminal justice positions on essentially pro-criminal platforms.  Woe unto all of us if either of them wins. Both are favorites.

• Dutton/Lucio -- Two of the more conservative Democrats in the legislature face unexpected runoffs.  Both seem likely to win comfortably...but we would have said that in the first round.  Major implications for next session if either falls short.

Republicans:

• Abbott's coattails -- Honestly, this is the only GOP question that matters right now.  Abbott's made a big show out of endorsing in five races.  In two others he's made endorsements that are essentially gimmes.
  
  Abbott really needs to run the table; if he loses more than one of these races, it's a **MAJOR** embarrassment.

• HD-60 (Francis/Rogers):  Foremost among races where Greg Abbott has run his mouth is this open seat race for an otherwise obscure state rep seat west of Ft. Worth.  Jon Francis is the consensus conservative candidate.  Abbott recently declared war on Francis' family.
  
  Ted Cruz, by contrast, has endorsed Francis.
  
  Abbott really needs his candidate (Glen Rodgers) to clear 60%.

• Morrow's race: Barring a (richly deserved) act of Divine retribution, the latest season of "Robert Morrow torments the Texas GOP" likely ends tonight.
  
  Nevertheless, it's been (really, really, really) funny.
  
  The final margin will still be interesting. Had the GOP handled this situation even remotely competently, Morrow wouldn't clear 10%. If Morrow gets north of 30%, that's an embarrassment for the GOP, no matter how they try to spin it.

Again, this list isn't comprehensive.

[Note: Texas Scorecard has an analysis of both parties Congressional runoffs here.]

Bottom Line: The macro-narratives are "can the Dems seize an opportunity (for once)" vs. "can the GOP avoid utterly, totally, and completely humiliating themselves (all over again)."  We don't pretend to know the answer.  Stay tuned.

GOP Geniuses Goosing Robert Morrow's Name ID (all over again)

"Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap."

Galatians 6:7

Back in March, we wrote the following about Robert Morrow's surprisingly strong primary showing:

In a race where one candidate was getting tons of earned media, and the other candidate only raised $17 grand, the geniuses at the GOP decided to...help the candidate they didn't want to win get even more earned media.

Way to go geniuses.

Imagine an alternative world where, rather than spending the last six weeks helping Robert Morrow build name id, the GOP had poured $100 grand into helping Robert Morrow's strongest opponent build his or her own positive name ID.

You'd probably be looking at a different reality this morning.

Having seen their anti-Morrow strategy backfire spectacularly, one would think the GOP might try something different. But one would be wrong. How pathetic.

To be fair, we have seen some effort to build positive name ID for whatshername, the chick running against Morrow. But those efforts have been super half assed scattershot at best. Instead, we've mostly gotten mailers like the one pictured above. And don't get us started on this dumpster fire of a website.

The great, raging, irony in all of this is that whatshername is a compelling candidate. Had the powers that be chosen to do so, they could have made a strong positive case for her. Had they combined that positive case with saturation level advertising, the powers that be in the GOP could have been sitting pretty. But that ship has sailed and the GOP missed the boat.

Honestly, at this point, we don't care. Our only interest in this race is that we find Robert Morrow's ability to torment the Texas GOP to be really, really, funny. Our only regret is that nobody got Morrow asking Karl Rove about Jeff Gannon on video.

Bottom Line: What is it they say about trying the same thing over and over again expecting a different result?!?

SAEN proves our point about Morrow's campaign

"Also He spoke this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others:"
Luke 18:9

Remember, a month and a half ago, when we pointed out how Robert Morrow's SBOE campaign has ended up serving an unintentionally useful function by forcing the education establishment to line up behind the type of conservative they would otherwise vehemently oppose?!?

San Antonio Express News editorial this morning:

After a lengthy tenure, Ken Mercer is leaving the state Board of Education. We tepidly recommend Lani Popp in the Republican runoff for this seat. This is mostly because we reject the other candidate, Robert Morrow. After a lengthy tenure, Ken Mercer is leaving the state Board of Education. We tepidly recommend Lani Popp in the Republican runoff for this seat. This is mostly because we reject the other candidate, Robert Morrow. Photo: Michael Minasi /Contributor In the Republican runoff for the District 5 seat on the State Board of Education, we give an extremely tepid recommendation to Lani Popp, a speech pathologist in the Northside Independent School District.

We have major disagreements with Popp on a number of issues, but there really is no choice in this race. Her opponent, Robert Morrow, the former chair of the 2016 Travis County Republican Party, is unqualified for any elected office. A crude provocateur, Morrow has said, if elected to the SBOE, he would advocate that a false conspiracy theory about President John F. Kennedy’s assassination be placed in Texas textbooks.
....

We vehemently disagree with Popp on these statements and viewpoints. Our recommendation of her is really a rejection of Morrow, who has no business serving on the SBOE.

We don't have a lot to add. It's kinda obvious how the SAEN editorial proves our original point. That being said, we find it amusing that the SAEN remains so far up Lyndon Johnson's posterior (48 years after his death), that they hide Morrow's views about what happened in Dallas behind the euphemism "false conspiracy theory."

Bottom Line: Control the options

Robert Morrow, Lani Popp, and the education establishment (It's a little funny)

"Also He spoke this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others:"
Luke 18:9

There's a thought we've been having, off and on, for awhile.  It reoccurred to us yesterday.  We suppose now is as good a time as ever to say it.

 

Under anything remotely resembling normal circumstances, a strong conservative like Lani Popp is the type of State Board of Education candidate the educrat crowd would be desperate to stop.  Normally, they hate conservatives.  This time, however, they have no choice.

Case in point:

Former Republican board member Thomas Ratliff was not alone in his simple summation of the race: “Anybody but Robert Morrow will be fine.”

Facing the reality of a Robert Morrow candidacy, all of a sudden you have Thomas friggin' Ratliff [Hint: This guy] endorsing a conservative.

Lolz.

Bottom Line: Only a prude fails to see the humor in this one.

Inga Cotton and the Utter, Total, and Complete Failure of Murphy Naisica

"For on the one hand there is an annulling of the former commandment because of its weakness and unprofitableness,"
Hebrews 7:18

Last week, a friend was helping this author carry groceries into our apartment when he noticed the leftover Inga Cotton campaign mailers pictured above.  For context, we received those mailers during the final month of the primary.  This friend observed that "Inga Cotton raised [almost] $200 grand for campaign mailers to finish third, while [Robert Morrow] spent zero dollars to finish first."

The more we think about it, the more we realize that that's actually a really good point.

Which gave us a hunch.

Guess who was Cotton's primary campaign consultant:

Rather than doing anything effective, M-N funneled all that money Inga Cotton raised into friendly mail vendors.  And they literally lost to Robert Morrow.  It's pretty funny.

Bottom Line:  Could not happen to a nicer bunch of campaign consultants....

GOP reaps COMPLETELY PREDICTABLE consequences of helping Robert Morrow build Name ID

"Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap."
Galatians 6:7

CLASSIC:

Only one appropriate reaction:



This was so OBVIOUSLY and COMPLETELY Predictable.

It began with that idiotic anti-Robert Morrow resolution the Travis County GOP passed six weeks ago.

At the time, nobody knew Robert Morrow was even running.  By passing that moronic resolution, the Travis county GOP gave Robert Morrow a week and a half of press coverage.  Political consultants have a phrase for that phenomenon: Earned Media.

The Travis county GOP gave Robert Morrow earned media in spades (including this gem).

Where this failure becomes really hilarious, however, is when you consider the fundraising for Robert Morrow's strongest challenger:

In a race where one candidate was getting tons of earned media, and the other candidate only raised $17 grand, the geniuses at the GOP decided to...help the candidate they didn't want to win get even more earned media.

Way to go geniuses.

Imagine an alternative world where, rather than spending the last six weeks helping Robert Morrow build name id, the GOP had poured $100 grand into helping Robert Morrow's strongest opponent build his or her own positive name ID.

You'd probably be looking at a different reality this morning.

[Note: We don't really want to get into it...but maybe, just maybe, Robert Morrow is the just desserts for 57 years of the Texas establishment's refusal to discuss the biggest open secret in the history of this corrupt state.]

[Note II: Just sayin'.]

Bottom Line: This was so completely preventable...but for the GOP to completely fail to prevent it is likewise completely hilarious.

About that New Yorker anti-Texas Hatchet Job

"Therefore, laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking,"
1 Peter 2:1

Today, the New Yorker put out a looooooooooong article about the Texas legislature.  It would be easy to pander for clicks and dismiss the whole thing as "fake news," but it's more accurate to say that it uses half-truths to cast wildly a misleading impression (very similar to how the Austin Chronicle operates).  This is not intended as a comprehensive take-down, but to give a more accurate accounting of several claims made in the article.

• The claim: "The state is as politically divided as the rest of the nation. One can drive across it and be in two different states at the same time: FM Texas and AM Texas. FM Texas is the silky voice of city dwellers, the kingdom of NPR. It is progressive, blue, reasonable, secular, and smug—almost like California. AM Texas speaks to the suburbs and the rural areas: Trumpland."
  
  Reality: This is stupid.  On the occasions we listen to terrestrial radio, we switch back and forth between AM and FM depending on the content.  Everyone we know does the same thing.

• The claim: "The eleventh largest [city in the U.S., population wise] is Austin, the capital, where I live. For the past five years, it has been one of the fastest-growing large cities in America; it now has nearly a million people, dwarfing the college town I fell in love with almost forty years ago."
  
  Reality: Austin has been one of the fastest growing cities in the country for at least a quarter century.

• The claim: "The state was always culturally conservative, religious, and militaristic, but a strain of pragmatism kept it from being fully swept up in racism and right-wing ideology."
  
  Reality: Setting aside the cheap shots embedded in the use of the words "militaristic" and "racism," the phrase "strain of pragmatism" is a euphemism for the corrupt good ol' boy network (ie. the Austin lobby) mixing business and government to protect incumbent industries from competition and put together shady real estate deals.

• The claim: "While George W. Bush was governor, between 1995 and 2000, a cordial détente between the political parties prevailed."
  
  Reality: Everyone's campaign contributors got paid...thank you very much Karl Rove.

• The claim: "In January, 2003, the Republicans finally took over the Texas legislature, and Laney lost the speakership to Tom Craddick, an ultraconservative Republican from Midland, the oil capital.
  
  Reality: LOL, Tom Craddick "ultra-conservative."  Consider the following Empower Texans scores for Tom Craddick since he left the speakers chair.  2015: 81, 2013: 61, 2011: B+.  While that puts Craddick among the more conservative half of the GOP conference, that's hardly "ultra conservative" (Note: While Empower is holding the 2017 index until after the special session, it's worth pointing out that Craddick fell into the bottom half of the GOP conference in the Mark Jones index).

• The claim: "When he entered the House, [Craddick] was twenty-five—the youngest member. “Back then, most of the other members were retired, and they ran for office as a civic duty,” he said. Now, at seventy-three, he is the longest-serving legislator in Texas history."
  
  Reality: That's an accurate statement, but we find it notable that the author doesn't have a problem with the fact that Tom Craddick has been in public office for nearly five decades.

• The claim: "Another Republican congressman, Lamar Smith, lives in San Antonio, but his district includes—and neutralizes—the liberal area surrounding the University of Texas at Austin. Smith, a member of the Tea Party Caucus, in Washington, denies that human activity affects global warming."
  
  Reality: LOL, Lamar Smith "Tea Party."  We said our piece about Lamar Smith's record during the 2012 campaign.  Our full archive on Lamar Smith can be viewed here.

• The claim: "In March, 2016, a man named Robert Morrow was elected the Republican Party chairman of Travis County, which contains Austin. Like many reporters in Texas, I received wild e-mails from Morrow for several years. He once claimed that George H. W. Bush was “a seriously addicted homosexual pedophile” who was also involved in a C.I.A. drug-smuggling ring with the Clintons. In 2011, Morrow took out a full-page ad in a local newspaper:

  HAVE YOU EVER HAD SEX WITH RICK PERRY?

  Are you a stripper, an escort, or just a “young hottie” impressed by an arrogant, entitled governor of Texas?

  Nothing came of the ad, which, Morrow said, was designed to expose Perry as “a Christian-buzzwords-spouting, ‘family values’ hypocrite and fraud.”
  Morrow, a fifty-three-year-old Princeton graduate with an M.B.A. from the University of Texas, describes himself as an independent investor. In 2015, he wrote a book with Roger Stone, the political operative and occasional adviser to Donald Trump, called “The Clintons’ War on Women.” The Austin American-Statesman noted that it appeared “to be serving as a playbook for Trump” in his attacks on Hillary Clinton. (Upon its publication, Trump tweeted, “The latest book on Hillary—Wow, a really tough one!”) Mainstream Party officials were mortified when Morrow won the Travis County election, with fifty-six per cent of the vote. They promised to “explore every single option that exists” to remove him from office. Morrow responded, “They can go fuck themselves.” In June, he tweeted, “Top priority for Travis GOP: beautiful Big Titty women!!”
  
  Reality: It's not a secret that Robert Morrow is a personal friend of this author, but for Robert Morrow to receive more discussion in this piece than Ted Cruz tells you everything you need to know.
  
  (As to the claims about George Bush 41, see here).

• We don't want to waste your time making you read it, but there's a seven paragraph ode to Ann Richards about 30% of the way through the piece.

• The claim: "Another emergency item on the Governor’s list for the 2017 session was ethics reform, but many legislators saw the move as hypocritical. Lyle Larson, a centrist Republican state representative from San Antonio, told me, “Some of the most egregious violations are in the governor’s office. It’s well known that pay-for-play has been going on in that office for years. For you to be on the Parks and Wildlife board, for instance, or to be a regent at the university, you have to make significant contributions”—to Abbott’s campaign fund."
  
  Reality: Empower Texans addressed the substance of Larson's claims here, but for the purposes of this piece we will simply note that the author accepted Larson's claim at face value.

• The Claim: "Since [Dan] Patrick became lieutenant governor, one of his signature accomplishments has been the passage of the open-carry gun law; he also successfully pushed to legalize the carrying of concealed weapons on public-college campuses."
  
  Reality: LOLOLOL.  For as much as we appreciate Dan Patrick's political savvy in terms of knowing just how far and where he can push the political envelope given the cast of Senators he has to work with, the Second Amendment has easily been the issue where the Texas Senate's performance has fallen short(est).  The only reason open carry and campus carry passed (Note: two sessions ago; the lege didn't do anything noteworthy on 2A this past regular session) was because groups like Open Carry Texas and Lone Star Gun Rights made the issue too hot to ignore.

• The Claim: "Patrick’s extremism is often countered by Joe Straus, the speaker of the House, a centrist, business-oriented conservative from San Antonio. Whereas the lieutenant governor is elected by the voters of the state, the speaker is chosen by the members. That makes a crucial difference in the way that Patrick and Straus govern."
  
  Reality: Given the extended discussion of Craddick earlier in the piece, one would think a mention of how Straus unseated Craddick might be relevant.  But for some reason, it doesn't appear.  Strange.

• The Claim: "[T]here was no actual evidence of voter fraud."
  
  Reality: LOL; see here, and here, and here, and here (we could go on).

• The Claim: "The business community in Texas fiercely opposed S.B. 6, and produced a report suggesting that its passage could cost the state up to eight and a half billion dollars. (PolitiFact determined that this figure was hyperbolic.)"
  
  Reality: The study in question was so laughably bad that it was instantly discredited; while we're on the subject, we find it notable that the author fails to discuss Kelly Hancock's brutal cross examination of the head of the Texas Association of Business.

• The Claim: "On March 2nd, I returned to the capitol to have lunch with the speaker of the House, Joe Straus....[W]e sat down to plates of delicious crab cakes."
  
  Reality: It's a minor quibble, but we find it notable that, on Texas Independence day, Joe Straus was eating crab cakes instead of brisket.

• The Claim: "[Straus'] speakership has focussed [sic] on providing the workforce and the infrastructure that Texas businesses need, by protecting public education, building roads, establishing more top-tier universities, and expanding job training. Perhaps his biggest victory was in 2013: in the middle of a devastating drought, he ushered through a two-billion-dollar revolving loan fund for state water projects.
  
  Reality: We said our piece about that monstrosity at the time.

• The Claim: "With each session, Straus has watched the Republican Party drift farther away from the “compassionate conservatism” of the Governor Bush era and become increasingly dominated by Christian ideologues, such as Patrick, for whom economic issues are secondary."
  
  Reality: REALLY?!?  Who's the guy pushing property tax limits, tighter spending caps and a higher ed. tuition freeze?!?

• The Claim: “I can only do so much to keep the focus on fiscal issues and away from the divisive stuff,” [Straus] told me.
  
  Reality: Then why did you kill the afore mentioned property tax limits, tighter spending caps, and higher ed. tuition freeze?!?

• The Claim: "Unlike Patrick, who decides which bills come to the floor in the Senate, Straus has to exercise influence by artfully appointing committee members, who can dull the fangs of fearsome bills (or let them languish until there’s no time to consider them)."
  
  Reality: That's completely true, they just normally don't say it out loud.

• The Claim: "Meanwhile, [Straus] was pressing his own legislative agenda, which included securing additional funds for public schools"
  
  Reality: MOAR MONEY FOR SOCIALIZED EDUCATION!!!  Why didn't anyone think of that before?!?

• The Claim: "Dr. John Zerwas, a Republican anesthesiologist from Richmond, Texas, is the chair of the Appropriations Committee. A business conservative in the Straus mold, he is deeply respected in the legislature, and Straus selected him to craft the House version of the budget."
  
  Reality: Only liberals respect John Zerwas.

• The Claim: "Stickland is plump, with an imposing beard, narrow-set brown eyes, and an occasional broad smile revealing beautiful teeth."
  
  Reality: LOL; we've never paid attention to Jonathan Stickland's teeth, so we can't comment one way or the other.

• The Claim: "As usual, the Texas legislature passed anti-abortion bills. One bans the safest and most common procedure for second-trimester abortions: dilation and evacuation. Supporters of the legislation call this a “dismemberment abortion.” "
  
  Reality: If you can stand to see it, learn more about dismemberment abortion here.

• The Claim: "[A]s Texas’s liberal cities have burgeoned, the state has grown markedly less red."
  
  Reality: Texas has grown significantly redder over the past decade; while it's an open question whether that trend will continue with a Republican president, it doesn't change the facts of recent history.

• The Claim: "On May 20th, Tom Mechler, the chairman of the state Republican Party, resigned, citing personal reasons. He issued a letter pleading for party unity. “A party that is fractured by anger and backbiting is a party that will not succeed,” he said. He also warned that the Republican Party had failed to attract voters outside the white demographic, and was therefore destined for electoral oblivion. “If we do not continue to make efforts to engage in the diverse communities across Texas, our state will turn blue,” he warned. He urged the next chairman to reshape the Party in the image of modern Texas.
  
  
  Soon after Mechler’s resignation, Rob Morrow—the former Travis County Republican Party chairman with the motley-fool hat—announced his candidacy for the statewide position.
  
  Reality: Another discussion of Robert Morrow, yet the author fails to mention James Dickey; odd.
  [Note: We wonder if the author attempted to speak to James Dickey at all?!?]

• The Claim: "Drew Springer, the representative from North Texas who killed Stickland’s anti-hog-abatement amendment, pleaded for H.B. 810, which would fund experimental stem-cell treatments. He spoke on behalf of his wife, who is in a wheelchair. Such treatments “might give somebody like my wife a chance to walk,” he said, between sobs. “I’d trade every one of my bills I’ve passed, every single one, to get the chance to hear H.B. 810.” The Freedom Caucus gave in on this one, and it passed."
  
  Reality: We discussed Springer's stupid little speech at the time, we only bring it up because if you follow the link to the post from May we also included a list of issues Springer considered more pressing than his wife's alleged ability to walk.

• The Claim: "The session concluded this year on Memorial Day, and so fallen soldiers were honored. Legislators said goodbye to colleagues with whom they had endured a hundred and forty of the most intense days of their lives.
  
  
  Meanwhile, buses began arriving at the capitol. Hundreds of protesters, some from distant states, burst through the doors, filling all four levels of the rotunda and spilling into the House gallery. They unfurled banners (“see you in court!”) and chanted, “S.B. 4 has got to go!” One of the protest organizers, Stephanie Gharakhanian, explained to reporters, “We wanted to make sure we gave them the sendoff they deserve.”
  
  A few of the Democrats in the chamber looked up at the chanting protesters and began to applaud. State troopers cleared the gallery and broke up the protest, but by that time some of the Republicans on the floor had taken offense. Matt Rinaldi, a member of the Freedom Caucus from Dallas County, who is sometimes rated the most conservative member of the House, later told Fox Business Network that he noticed several banners bearing the message “i am undocumented and here to stay.”
  
  Reality: This isn't a Rinaldi claim, there's video

Read the whole thing here.

For the Record: James Dickey for TCRP....(and #NEVERTRUMP)

"When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice;
But when a wicked man rules, the people groan."
Proverbs 29:2

We haven't commented upon the TCRP vacancy.  Largely, that's because we don't support the deranged cretin the Republican party nominated for president.  It's also because we're not a member of the executive committee and thus don't have a vote.

That being said, a number of people have inquired as to our thoughts, and it's probably time to say publicly what we've been saying privately for two weeks: to the extent that we care, we fully support James Dickey.

In February, when we endorsed James in the primary, we wrote: "Since James Dickey became county chairman two years ago, the Travis County Republican party helped put the first two conservatives EVER on the Austin City Council. The Travis County Republican party has a DA candidate on the ballot for the first time since we've lived here....Why mess with a good thing?!?"  To the extent that we care about the Republican party, those sentiments still apply.

Events of the ensuing months have revealed James' character and leadership skills.  While we view the Robert Morrow interregnum as delightfully good fun and the two party system's just desserts, it nevertheless produced unique and unprecedented challenges for the organization.  James' grace, humility, and wisdom during this period were obvious to anyone paying even casual attention.  If anything, the fact that Robert Morrow and Matt Mackowiak have both endorsed James tells you everything you need to know.

Here's the thing: Deranged cretin notwithstanding, there are several strong Republican candidates running in Travis county this cycle.  Maura Phelan is the only choice to introduce integrity (and basic competence) in the District Attorney's office.  Joe Martinez, running for sheriff, is a champion for the rule of law.  Gabriel Nila is doing the Lord's work in HD-46.  Deke Pierce is a credible constable candidate.  In western Travis County, while we didn't support him in the primary, a mediocre incumbent like Gerald Daugherty (Commissioner's court, precinct 3) still sucks less than whatever hack the D's are running against him.  And James helped recruit every single one of them (except Gerald).

Looking to 2018, James is the only person in this race we trust to recruit a credible candidate for Travis County Judge.

Bottom Line:  At this point, it's impossible to forecast the deranged cretin's impact.  That being said, there's a lot one can accomplish at the local level regardless of the details of how this ongoing national bi-partisan dumpster fire unfolds.  On that note, if anyone can salvage something from the Republican party, it's James Dickey.

TCRP makes Lemonade....

"In the day of prosperity be joyful,
But in the day of adversity consider:
Surely God has appointed the one as well as the other,
So that man can find out nothing that will come after him."
Ecclesiastes 7:14

For obvious reasons, we've refrained from discussing the Robert Morrow/TCRP situation; that being said, we attended Morrow's swearing in ceremony and the subsequent business meeting and we think they've handled the whole situation about as well as they could have.

The most important takeaway is that the executive committee approved changes to the party bylaws that remove all powers from the chairman that can be removed under state law.  The executive committee created a new "executive vice chairman" position to oversee the party's day-to-day operations.  They also elected a steering committee to assist the executive vice chairman.

As for Robert Morrow: Morrow was Morrow.  During his 27 minute inaugural address, he outlined the crimes of which he accuses the past half century of senior American political leadership.  He specifically discussed Lyndon Johnson's role in the Kennedy assassination and George Bush 41's pedophilia.

That being said, following his inaugural address, Morrow called the meeting to order and presided over the bylaw changes without incident.

Truthfully, this incident reveals a shortcoming in state law.  Regardless of how we got here, it's absurd that there is no path for a county party's executive committee to remove a chairman for cause.  The legislature really should act next session.

We spoke last night with steering committee member T.J. Scott who asked "for every precinct chair to pray over how they could best serve their party"; T.J. called the current situation an "all hands on deck" moment.

Bottom Line: This too shall pass....

Texas' COMPROMISED Elections

"You shall not steal, nor deal falsely, nor lie to one another."
Leviticus 19:11

From Senator Hall:

Texas election laws are not being followed in many counties. Without this consistency, and with the "it's the way we do it" attitude, this has greatly opened the door to fraud. The true intent of the Legislature was to ensure voter integrity at the highest expectation is achieved. Unwarranted waivers allowing election officials to ignore law that was intended to protect the integrity of elections and a blatant disregard for the intent of the legislature is creating unprecedented opportunity for voting fraud in Texas.

Because current Texas election practices and procedures are inconsistent, it is not possible to truthfully validate any election result or conduct a legally sufficient ballot recount in the Texas counties where “electronic” voting, without a paper trail, is being allowed. The procedures for assuring vote integrity, which are clearly stated in the Texas Constitution and Texas Election Code are not being followed.

Texas election laws mandate a system of checks and balances that include paper and electronic tabulation of election results when the polls open and close to prevent fraud and corruption of votes cast electronically. Specifically, Chapters 65 and 66 of the Texas Election Code provide that when polls close, precinct election returns (Results/Tally tapes) are to be printed, signed, and distributed into official election envelopes at the polling location, prior to the equipment leaving the building.

....

Currently, there are at least four different procedures being followed throughout Texas with regard to retention of paper backup election records for electronic voting. Many counties conduct precinct level voting.

Some of these counties print the tapes and some do not. Likewise, there are counties using countywide voting locations. Some of them print tapes and some do not. Without the printed tapes there is no way to validate the computerized election results. These inconsistencies in election record retention are breeding ground for election fraud and is an unacceptable practice for anyone who believes in the rule of law. Unfortunately many of these inconsistencies are driven by waiver letters, which direct counties to ignore the above election laws. These waivers are being provided by the Texas Secretary of State’s Election Division Office.

....

Regardless if Texas counties use precinct voting locations or countywide voting locations, all Texas counties should consistently instruct their election judges to a) print and sign Zero Tapes when the polls open for early voting and on election day, and b) print and sign precinct returns (audit tapes/Tally/Results tapes) directly when the polls close at the polling location, when the polls close for early voting and on election day.

In addition, the Secretary of State’s office should cease issuing waivers that instruct county election officials to operate elections unlawfully and in an inconsistent manner across the state. Vote integrity is one of the most sacred responsibilities of our government. Without integrity, we have no legitimate government.

Read the whole thing here.

Attempting to further unpack screwy election results....

"Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth!"
Psalms 46:10

[Author's Note: This report incorrectly lists the date of the runoff as May 7th.  May 7th is the date LOCAL elections are held. The correct date for the primary runoff  is May 24th.]

KVUE had a excellent report Wednesday night detailing some of the strange results from this latest primary:



Highlights:

• TCRP denounces Morrow.

• Brent Webster came in second to Richard Walker, who was listed on the ballot as "Scott Walker."

• "Statistics favor the first name on a list of two unknowns."
• Can be worth as much as four points.

Beginning to unpack last Tuesday's screwy results....

"When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice;
But when a wicked man rules, the people groan."
Proverbs 29:2

Obviously, Tuesday night was a good night for Team Straus and other establishment Republicans down ballot.  On the other hand, Ted Cruz turned in a surprisingly strong performance at the presidential level, and obviously Cruz supporters weren't voting for Joe Straus lieutenants.  So, what gives?!?

We have a hypothesis, though we can't test it without substantially more detailed data: based on a preliminary examination of county level results cross referenced against individual races, it looks like Donald Trump's presence at the Presidential level was good for down-ballot incumbents.

It seems like Cruz supporters voted for conservatives.  Rubio and Kasich supporters voted for establishment candidates.  Trump supporters, meanwhile, voted with the incumbent regardless of which side of the conservative/establishment fence that particular incumbent came down upon.

For example: In Joe Straus' and Pete Sessions' races, the challenger candidates' vote totals seemed to mirror the countywide result for Ted Cruz in Bexar and Dallas counties.  On the other hand, Jonathan Stickland, Matt Rinaldi, and Tony Tinderholt clearly outperformed Cruz.  This is, admittedly, an imprecise measure, but a correlation does seem to hold across across a fairly wide geographical area.

One thing we know for a fact: with turnout off the charts, and massive numbers of new people voting, name recognition was at a premium.  For a number of reasons, incumbents have vastly higher name recognition most of the time.  So there you have it.

Bottom Line: For whatever reason, Tuesday was a good night to be running as an incumbent in a down-ballot race; it certainly appears that Donald Trump bringing record numbers of low-information voters into the process was a big part of that reason.