#TXLEGE: LOLarson

"and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved."
2 Thessalonians 2:10

GOLD:

[T]here are no discernible reasons [for the Texas Legislature] to continue to meet once every two years, letting important state business languish while we wait for the pages of the calendar to fall.

....

The legislature should meet for 70 days every year beginning in mid-March, finishing in May.

In other words, twice as many opportunities to pass bad bills.

Of course, this sort of gamesmanship is par for Larson's course.

PushJunction has more:

LYLE LARSON is pushing for Texas to have a 70-day annual legislative session. Part of his reasoning includes lamenting that lawmakers weren’t able to follow Rahm Emanuel’s mantra, “never let a crisis go to waste,” to enact gun regulations following recent shootings.

Likewise, Larson's use of the Rahm Emmanuel playbook is nothing new.

Bottom Line: This won't go anywhere, but it's a good insight into how far too many legislators think.

#TXLEGE: Larson's ALWAYS been about Disempowering Citizens

"and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved."
2 Thessalonians 2:10

Over the weekend, Lyle Larson published an op-ed calling for an end to the two party system. There's already been a lot of keyboard strokes spilled over the topic.  PushJunction says it well:

LYLE LARSON, ostensibly a Republican, over the weekend suggested Texas should move away from a two-party system. The maneuver earned him some flack from members of his party, including Dustin Burrows (R-Lubbock).

While major parties may begin to fracture organically, Larson seeding the ground is an intriguing development since, correctly viewed, he’s a Straus puppet.

Moderates/liberal members of the GOP have been systematically undermining the Republican party base for years. The establishment flourishes when there are fewer distinctions and more parity.

In terms of analysis, we don't have a lot to add.

However, some history:

•  2013 -- Larson pushes term limits for the governor...but not the legislature.
  
  
• This would have had the structural effect of empowering committee chairs (which, at the time, were appointed by Joe Straus).
  

•  2017 -- Larson tries to move primaries to January.
  

•  2017 -- Larson tries to unconstitutionally usurp Governor's appointment power.
  
  
• Note: This proposal **might** have merit as a standalone measure.  Especially after Abbott's "reopening Texas committee" debacle.  But, as the rest of this blog post makes clear, Larson's measure wasn't a standalone measure.
  
  
• Note II: Whatever the merits of the proposal, it would require a constitutional amendment.
  

• Earlier in 2020 -- Larson tries to resurrect January primaries.

Bottom Line: None of this is surprising considering who's speaking.

#TXLEGE: Larson Opportunistically Deploys Emmanuel's Old Playbook

"and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved."
2 Thessalonians 2:10

Classic:

Translation: Lyle Larson wants to make Texas' primary election earlier.

But this has nothing to do with presidential politics, and everything to do with protecting liberal incumbents down ballot.

In 2012, the primary in Texas was delayed two months due to meddling by the Obama administration.  It was also, not coincidentally, conservatives' best legislative cycle...pretty much ever.  Two additional months of campaigning allowed grassroots candidates to neutralize incumbents money advantage.

Ever since, the bidness-as-usual crowd has been pushing to make Texas' primary as early as possible.

Larson's been up to this for awhile.  In 2017, he authored HB 3180, which would have moved Texas' primary up to January.  This would have advantaged candidates with deep enough pockets to buy advertising during the Christmas season.  Incumbents, in other words.

That being said, we respect Larson's chutzpah:



Bottom Line: Using presidential politics as a pretext to protect legislative incumbents is a terrible idea.

#TXLEGE: About Larson's "Restore the Rivalry" Bill

"Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right."
Ephesians 6:1

Yesterday, Lyle Larson filed a football bill:

A Texas House member wants to bring back an annual football game between the state's two flagship universities: the University of Texas at Austin and Texas A&M University.

On Tuesday, state Rep. Lyle Larson, a San Antonio Republican who earned a bachelor's degree from A&M, filed House Bill 412, which would require the two teams to "play a nonconference, regular-season football game against one another on the fourth Thursday, Friday, or Saturday of November each year."

We confess mixed feelings, let us explain.

------

Our first reaction was that it's about damn time the legislature reminds the universities who's boss.

It's not a secret that this author has been advocating for many years for the legislature to shorten the leash on which the universities are kept.  Honestly, we've been at it so long that we've lost interest in the topic.  One can only be proven right so many times.

If football can be the topic that rouses the legislature to exercise its atrophied oversight authority, maybe that's the start of something good.

Lord knows, the two teams should certainly play each other.

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That being said, for Lyle friggin' Larson to be the one filing this bill...is quite something.

Never forget: Lyle Larson was on the Wallace Hall impeachment committee.

This was a committee that spent a year and a half claiming that constitutional oversight of the higher ed. bureaucracy was "micromanaging."

Larson might be right on the substance.  The legislature has authority.  Still, for Lyle Larson to involve himself in football scheduling, when he turned a blind eye to criminal financial mismanagement is...ironic at best.

[Note: We could say the same thing about Larson's "Save Muny" bill from last session.]

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Bottom Line: We don't have a problem with the substance of the bill, but the bill author's chutzpah is a sight to behold....

#TXLEGE: Why nothing ever changes in Government (in 3 pictures)

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

RPT Convention -- One of the interesting foibles of the San Antonio convention center is that, at the Westernmost entrance, there are a series of plaques celebrating former San Antonio City Council members who helped funnel taxpayer dollars into the convention center.

Check out the first:

Here's the second:

In other words, you have a current committee chairman in the Texas house and a Texas Senator who were both previous members of the San Antonio City Council when the city council worked to expand the convention center.

Bottom Line: There's nothing quite like seeing it with your own eyes....

#TXLEGE: Parker, Huberty illustrate Good Ol' Boy network's Entrenched Mendacity

"While they promise them liberty, they themselves are slaves of corruption; for by whom a person is overcome, by him also he is brought into bondage."
2 Peter 2:19

From Empower Texans:

The Texas House Republican Caucus is using its financial muscle to defend liberal lawmakers opposed by grassroots conservatives and the governor.

On Monday, the Texas House GOP tweeted its support for pro-abortion State Rep. Sarah Davis (R–West University Place) as well as State Rep. Wayne Faircloth (R–Galveston), two incumbents with anti-taxpayer voting records during their time in Austin. Both Davis and Faircloth have earned failing grades on the Fiscal Responsibility Index with Davis performing worse than two Texas Democrats.

Both are facing conservative challengers in the Republican Primary. Businessman Mayes Middleton is squaring off against Faircloth while Davis is opposed by conservative attorney Susanna Dokupil. Both challengers are gaining grassroots support and working to retire the incumbents from the Texas Legislature in the upcoming primary election on March 6th.

Both challengers also received a substantial boost earlier this year when Gov. Greg Abbott endorsed them.

....

But despite Abbott’s endorsements against the two incumbents, the House Republican Caucus, which is chaired by State Rep. Tan Parker (R–Flower Mound) and for whom State Rep. Dan Huberty (R–Kingwood) serves as PAC treasurer, took to Twitter to support the liberal lawmakers.

....

“I think it’s dumb for Tan Parker to thumb his nose at our grassroots supporters and our governor, both of whom have decided that Sarah Davis and Wayne Faircloth need to be removed from the Texas Legislature,” said Stickland. “I’ve reached out to Chairman Parker and asked that he rescind these remarks that he’s offered without consent from the caucus.”

Neither Huberty, Parker, nor the House Republican Caucus responded to requests for comment.

This is rich.

For every bad incumbent Abbott has endorsed against, he's endorsed in favor of (at least) one.   Yet they still passive-aggressively tweet at him.  But they don't put their names behind it.

To be certain: Abbott's activity is welcome in the Susanna Dokupil (v. Sarah Davis)/Chris Fails (v. Lyle Larson)/ Mayes Middleton (v. Wayne Faircloth) races.  But Abbott is leaving plenty of opportunities on the table.  That's still not good enough for the good ol' boys.

The past few years have been so difficult because we're going up against a century and a half old good ol' boy network that never received a real challenge prior to 2010.  Thus they throw tantrums anytime anyone challenges them.  Yesterday's activity on Twitter is the latest example.

It's so pathetic.

Bottom Line: To feel so-entitled to political power that you passive-aggressively tweet against the Governor when he modestly challenges it is, simultaneously, sad and revealing.

#TXLEGE: Sarah Davis does what she does

"Her feet go down to death,
Her steps lay hold of hell."
Proverbs 5:5

What can you say about Sarah Davis?!?  We attended this morning's Trib event...and it didn't break new ground.  She's who she is.

Evan Smith did a thorough job discussing the numerous policy differences between Davis and the majority of her party (including the Governor).  Topics included Abortion, Property Taxes, Hurricane Harvey, and Davis' welfare expansion bill from last year's special session.  This ground is well-tread, and everybody knows where everybody stands.

During Q&A, we asked Davis about the debacle on the Coaching Staff for the U of H football team.  Davis replied that she was "saddened" by the decision and didn't try to defend U of H's decision in any way, shape, or form.  We were satisfied by Davis' answer.

View the event for yourself below:



Highlights:

• Abbott letting lots of other's who opposed him off the hook.
• Note: See here and here.

• Plays the feminist card: "I'm a woman [Abbott] can't control."

• Argues semantics over late-term abortions: "We're not allowed to have thoughtful or nuanced positions."

• "I'm not pro-death."
• Evan Smith: "if you're explaining, you're losing."

• Has an obvious chip on her shoulder against Jonathan Stickland.

• Doesn't disclose who she voted for for President.
• Evan Smith: "Not disclosing is disclosing."

• Inside baseball crosstalk re: Spending and Ethics.

• Endorses Larson's unconstitutional bill to restrict the Governor's appointment powers.

• Long discussion of her welfare expansion bill from the special session.
• Sob Stories....

• Evan Smith makes several points about how Abbott has been talking out of both sides of his mouth on numerous issues.

• Uses the same cliches as Jen Sarver.

• "I think I'm necessary" in the legislature.

• Refuses to commit re: Speaker's race.
• "I adore Dr. Zerwas."

• In response to our question about the Kendal Briles hire: "Saddened by that decision."

#TXLEGE: Lyle Larson's cute little "Water" stunt....

"They are deeply corrupted,
As in the days of Gibeah.
He will remember their iniquity;
He will punish their sins."
Hosea 9:9

Well, at least some bills are moving in the house.

As part of house leadership's extended middle finger to Governor Abbott's special session agenda, today house natural resources committee chairman Lyle Larson heard several of his own bills related to water that Governor Abbott vetoed following the regular session.  Then the committee voted all of them out.  You read that correctly: Larson heard and voted out several bills that the Governor just vetoed; the embedded disrespect is deliberate.

When discussing water policy in Texas, it's important to remember that the whole thing is a corrupt bureaucratic morass.  Disgraced former state representative Jim Keffer was a master at this (see more here and here).  While we've never confirmed it, we've also heard rumors over the years that Larson and Todd Hunter have business interests related to water infrastructure...which makes the fact that a major desalination project in Hunter's district just secured funding last week all the more interesting.

As to the bills themselves, a couple of them (HB 26, HB 228) might have a certain amount of value on the merits.  But this is not the appropriate venue to discuss them.  According to a comment from Trent Ashby during the hearing, the house will probably attempt to push them through creative interpretation of the expedited permitting and the property rights sections of the special session charge [Note: They're probably on solid ground with a couple and nowhere near it on the rest].

In addition, the committee heard testimony on the water development slush fund they passed in 2013 (which, unfortunately, the voters subsequently ratified).  Apparently, they've issued a few billion in various forms over the past couple of years (mostly with multi-decade maturities), are planning to issue another $5.6 billion before 2025, and yet somehow still have almost all of the original $2 billion they were originally allocated in the bank.  Don't ask us how that math works.

Larson closed the hearing with an soliloquy about how "Texas will rue the day" it failed to spend a lot of money on water infrastructure when the next big drought hits.  On the one hand, we're all for prudent planning (and made the point several years ago that if Texas is serious about "infrastructure investment" there were other parts of the budget where they could find the money).  On the other hand, we've learned from experience that when politicians start screaming at the top of their lungs they frequently have something to hide.

Bottom Line: On a certain level, we're impressed by the chutzpah.

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Note: That being said, there was one slide shown during the hearing that highlights the biggest problem with water policy in of Texas:

Agriculture consumes over 60% of the water in this state despite the fact that a tiny fraction of the population works in the industry, while all municipal use (ie. residential and commercial) is only 27%.

In other words: STOP GROWING COTTON IN THE PANHANDLE!!!

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.

#TXLEGE: "Save MUNY" bill refuses to die....

We apologize for the blurry picture, but that's actually a good metaphor for the revival of this bill.

"Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with my own things? Or is your eye evil because I am good?!?"
Matthew 20:15

[Note: The hearing can be viewed here, our testimony is just after the one hour mark.]

It's not often we testify in a committee hearing on the same side of an issue as Greg Fenves and the Texas Exes, but such is the nature of an obscure land dispute in West Austin in which the legislature has inexplicably chosen to involve itself.  We had thought this one was dead.  But late yesterday afternoon, the House Land and Resource management committee announced a hearing on short notice.

We outlined the reasons for our opposition to SB 822 when it was heard in the Senate back in March.  The short version is that UT is sitting on an extraordinarily valuable tract of land in West Austin, which UT has occasionally considered selling to residential/mixed use developers.  In a city with a chronic housing shortage, keeping this option on the table seems prudent; unfortunately, that prudence exists alongside some dirty local Austin politics.

At this morning's hearing, UT and their representatives (led by Fenves) testified that it was in the interest of everyone involved to respect the wishes of the original donor.  Furthermore, they testified that this could lead to remittance clauses being inserted into all future gifts, but not just gifts to them.  Thus, there could be unintended consequences in any number of areas where a future legislature might invent a future jurisdictional claim.  But here's the thing [Note: we can't believe we're about to say this]: UT's argument isn't entirely crazy.  Who's to say how a future legislature in 10 or 20 years would interpret this action?!?  Does the legislature really want to create this precedent?!?  Tread carefully....

As to our personal testimony: we gave the same schpiel we give any time the "Save MUNY" issue comes up.  In a city with a chronic housing shortage, it strikes us as absurd to place artificial restrictions on prime real estate that presently hosts a golf course.  If UT wants to sell this particular tract of land to developers...that would be a good thing!

Rep. Ernest Bailes attempted to obfuscate by asking a straw-man question about whether we would apply the same logic to Central Park in New York City.  While Bailes question was a curveball we didn't expect, we replied that midtown Manhattan doesn't have the 6000-square foot lot size requirements that Central Austin has, and that his question was irrelevant as long as that distinction applies.  That being said, having had a few hours to digest Rep. Bailes question, if we were offered the deal of leaving the Muny tract alone in exchange for upzoning the surrounding neighborhood...we would take it.

Making matters worse: Lyle Larson (who's carrying the bill in the House), used his closing argument as an opportunity to throw Wallace Hall under the bus.  Rather than addressing the issues, Larson reminded the committee of his role in the Wallace Hall impeachment and reminded the room "I have been sued by a UT regent."  If there weren't already enough reasons to shoot this bill down on the merits, hearing the bill sponsor cite his role in that disgraceful fiasco makes us oppose it all the more.

Bottom Line: We hope this bill dies....

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Note: During the Senate hearing, we criticized the Texas Exes for their lack of attention to this issue; giving credit where it's due, they had a significant presence at today's hearing.

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#TXLEGE: House leadership attempting late session attack against Sid Miller

“Thus let all Your enemies perish, O Lord!
But let those who love Him be like the sun
When it comes out in full strength.”
So the land had rest for forty years.
Judges 5:31

Update: It gets better, check out Sections 5 and 6 of the bill:

SECTION 5. (a) The term of office of the commissioner of agriculture expires on the effective date of this Act.

(b) As soon as practicable on or after the effective date of this Act, the governor shall appoint a person to the office of commissioner of agriculture in the manner provided by Section 11.004, Agriculture Code, as amended by this Act.

SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017.

We've always enjoyed the ability of Ag. Commissioner Sid Miller to use social media to drive the left INSANE.  It's certainly fun, and Miller has adeptly used the platform to gain a national following.  But he's also been accused of abusing his office in the past.

We've never investigated the accusations against Miller (though we're skeptical).  We've had off the record conversations with members of leadership about Miller, and were struck by the degree of their unhinged hatred towards him.  Thus, we were confident they would run a candidate against Miller in the next election, and that there would be plenty of time to litigate the accusations then.

With that longwinded introduction out of the way, check out this bill that's up in House State Affairs this Wednesday:

HB 3646       Larson                  
Relating to the appointment of the commissioner of agriculture.

Here's the most important section of the bill:

Sec. 11.004.  APPOINTMENT [ELECTION] AND TERM OF COMMISSIONER.  (a)  The governor shall appoint the commissioner with the advice and consent of the senate [is elected for a term of four years].

In other words, in their hatred of Sid Miller, House leadership wants to convert the position of Ag. Commissioner to an appointed position.

[Note: That Miller was a vocal Straus supporter six years ago tells you everything you need to know about the degree to which loyalty with Team Straus is a one-way street; see here as well (or here).]

Eliminating the Agriculture department entirely might be a discussion worth having, but for as long as it continues to exist, there's no reason to remove the commissioner as an elected position.  If anything, transferring appointment authority to the Governor can only strengthen the influence of the Austin lobby over the department.  Elections are a highly imperfect mechanism, but they at least offer a vehicle for public accountability.

Bottom Line: This bill won't pass, but good grief is it revealing.

Straus' BIZARRE non-endorsement in HD-118

"Therefore by their fruits you will know them."
Matthew 7:20

For those unaware, there's a special election currently underway for a Texas House seat in Bexar County.  We noticed about a week ago that Straus was the only Republican in Bexar County who handn't endorsed the Republican candidate.  We'd been planning to write about it when we received the following e-mail about an hour ago:

SREC members: Why Hasn’t Joe Straus Endorsed John Lujan

 
Today, a number of members of the State Republican Executive Committee of the Texas Republican Party are asking Joe Straus why he refuses to endorse a popular Hispanic Republican in his own county.
 
John Lujan is a strong candidate for the GOP to pick up House District 118.  He is a solid, conservative, Christian, Hispanic entrepreneur and former firefighter.  Most local conservative and even moderate Republican officials have endorsed Lujan, including Senator Donna Campbell, Congressman Lamar Smith, State Rep. Lyle Larson, and County Commissioner Kevin Wolff as well as one of the Speaker’s Republican primary opponents – Jeff Judson.
 
But noticeably absent from this list is Joe Straus, who has refused to endorse Lujan.  Endorsing a fellow Republican who might pick up a seat from the Democrats is the bread and butter of politics.  It’s a no brainer. 
 
We are scratching our heads as to why this is so hard for Joe.  What is Joe’s real agenda?
 
Is it because Joe needs all the Democrat votes he can get to be reelected Speaker and actually favors Tomas Uresti, the Democrat?  If such is the case, he is willing to forego the interests and principles of his Party in order to maintain his power and allegiance with Democrats. 
 
Please Joe – be a leader for Republicans -- not just for Democrats! We believe Republican principles help people prosper.  What do you believe Joe?
 
SREC members endorsing this statement include:
 
Sue Evenwell – SD 1
Tom Roller SD - 31
Vicki Slaton – SD 2
Marvin Clede SD - 17
John Beckmeyer SD - 28
Karl Voigtsberger SD - 8
Mark Ramsey SD- 7
Jeff Judson SD - 25
Alma Perez Jackson SD - 26
Tanya Robertson – SD 11
Terri DuBose SD - 19

Texas Senate Democrats More Conservative than House Republicans

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

[Author's Note: Senate D's are in Blue; House R's are in Red.]

Fun with Empower Texans' scorecard:

• Sen. Eddie Lucio (60). (***)

• Rep. Marsha Farney (59).

• Rep. John Kuempel (59). (*)

• Rep. Lyle Larson (59).

• Rep. Geanie Morrison (58). (*)

• Rep. Gilbert Pena (58).

• Rep. Jimmie Don Aycock (57). (*)

• Rep. Drew Darby (57). (*)

• Rep. Ken King (56).

• Sen. Chuy Hinojosa (55).

• Rep. J.M. Lozano (53). (*)

• Rep. Sarah Davis (52). (**)

• Rep. J.D. Sheffield (51).

• Sen. Carlos Uresti (50).

-----

* -- Straus Committee Chair

(**) -- Sarah Davis chaired a Subcomittee of the Appropriations committee; furthermore, Straus appointed her to the budget conference committee.

(***) -- Eddie Lucio is one of only two D committee chairs in the Senate.

Straus Lieutenants Continue to Attempt Witness Intimidation

"He who is often rebuked, and hardens his neck,
Will suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy."
Proverbs 29:1

First, Lyle Larson:

Larson witness intimidation letter -- 9/18

Next, Frank Ferdinand Fischer:

TMF witness intimidation letter

(h/t Watchdog)

U.T. Admissions: Straus lieutenants attempting witness intimidation

"He who is often rebuked, and hardens his neck,
Will suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy."
Proverbs 29:1

Ummmm, excuse me?!?

Legislators want to sit in on UT admissions investigation

Two state representatives from San Antonio who have been assigned to monitor the University of Texas System are taking their role seriously. Apparently more seriously than system officials would like.

Reps. Trey Martinez Fischer, a Democrat, and Lyle Larson, a Republican, told UT System Board of Regents Chairman Paul Foster this week that they “plan on attending or otherwise monitoring all interviews” conducted by Kroll Associates Inc. in connection with its investigation into admissions at the University of Texas at Austin. The investigation was prompted in part by accusations that candidates who are recommended by state lawmakers and other influential people receive favoritism.

In a letter to Foster, the two legislators offered to have the interviews conducted at the Capitol, “which would have the added advantage of audio and video equipment to record and preserve the interviews.”

....

System Chancellor Francisco Cigarroa said in June that he was commissioning the outside investigation in light of a new complaint about the “integrity” of the admissions process. That was a reversal of his decision to forgo further review after an earlier inquiry by the system reached mixed conclusions.

The system found that applicants recommended by legislators were accepted to the School of Law and undergraduate programs at much higher rates than their counterparts who didn’t get such backing. But the system also found no “evidence of a quid pro quo for admissions decisions, or other wrongdoing.”

 Read the whole thing here.
Read Lyle Larson and Trey Martinez Fischer's letter in full:

9.8.14 Ltr From Rep. Lyle Larson Rep. Try Martinez Fischer

Matt Beebe Faces the Lions

San Antonio, TX -- In front of a room that was two thirds full, and an establishment leaning crowd, the campaigns for Texas House district 121 made their final pitch.  Matt Beebe spoke to the myriad shortcomings of the Texas House under current Republican leadership.  Standing in for speaker Joe Straus, Representative Lyle Larson (last seen embarrassing himself at the Wallace Hall impeachment hearing) made a number of far-fetched claims.

Larson opened by lauding Straus for "balancing three straight budgets unlike Washington D.C."  In doing so, Larson ignored the fact that the Texas constitution requires a balanced budget.  Larson lauded Straus for not raising taxes, which is a low bar for a Republican in Texas to clear.  In the most telling line, Larson called Straus a "Five decade Republican in Bexar County."  Of course, it was exactly five decades ago that George Bush 41 first ran for the United States Senate.

Beebe opened by quoting the Wall St. Journal about profligacy in the 83rd Texas Legislature.  He disputed Team Straus' ex post facto celebration of last summer's abortion legislation, describing how the law passed in spite of Straus.  Beebe also illustrated how Straus hasn't led on school finance.

In the Q and A section on education, Beebe called for greater local control and a "student centered funding model."  Larson promoted HB 5, a dubious bill the legislature passed in 2013.  Larson also claimed condescendingly that Beebe "doesn't understand local government."

During the section on immigration, Larson cited state level efforts. Beebe discussed recent favorable comments Straus has made regarding Paul Ryan and immigration.  Beebe called for an end to illegal immigration magnets like in-state tuition.

The candidates also discussed transportation.  Beebe called himself "absolutely anti-toll road" and cited an old Larson campaign mailer to prove his point.  Larson was speechless.

Today's forum highlighted the well known differences between Matt Beebe and Joe Straus.  Unlike Joe Straus, Matt Beebe isn't beholden to Democrats.  From the state budget, to school finance, to transportation, the choice for conservative leadership in Texas House district 121 is clear.

-----

Read our endorsement for Matt here; donate to his campaign here.

Joe Straus Committee Chairs: Worse than Barbie!!!

"Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord."
Ephesians 5:22

On Friday, Morgan Willamson of Empower Texans made a shrewd observation:

[M]any might be shocked to know that on the Fiscal Responsibility Index for the 83rd Texas Legislative Session, Senator Wendy Davis actually out-performed a number of House Republicans when it came to taxpayer issues.

Which motivated us to cross-check Morgan's list against Joe Straus Committee Chairs.

You guessed it.

TEN ELEVEN!!!

Here's the Damage:

• Byron Cook, 42.0, State Affairs.
• Diane Patrick, 36.7, Higher Ed.
• Drew Darby, 35.7, Redistricting.
• John Otto, 35.5, Ways and Means (Vice-Chair).
• Jim Keffer, 35.3, Energy Resources.
• Lyle Larson, 39.0, Local and Consent.
• Charlie Geren, 37.0, House Administration. (Yeah, THAT Charlie Geren)
• Jimmie Don Aycock, 36.2, Public Education.
• John Zerwas, 25.3, General Investigating and Ethics.
• Bill Callegari, 39.0, Pensions.
• Jim Pitts, 29.7, Appropriations. (Yeah, THAT Jim Pitts)

That ten eleven Joe Straus committee chairs are to the left of Wendy Davis tells you everything you need to know about Joe Straus' callow, submissive leadership....

UT Chancellor Admits Wallace Hall inquiry Legitimate

[Full Disclosure: Cahnman's Musings assisted Agendawise with their livestream of the Wallace Hall impeachment hearing today; views expressed in this forum are ours and ours alone.]

At 1:38 pm, University of Texas chancellor Francisco Cigarroa admitted that regent Wallace Hall "raised valid concerns" in his inquiry; the Texas House committee on Transparency in state agency operations spent the remaining seven hours and fifty nine minutes of today's eight hour hearing creating a rhetorical haystack under which to bury that needle.

[Author's Note: Trust me, we understand the irony of a 'transparency' committee spending eight hours attempting to obfuscate the truth.]

This exchange happened during questioning from Texas Rep. Charles Perry (R - Lubbock).  Cigarroa admitted that "some good things have come out of" Hall's inquiry.  Cigarroa specifically listed technology transfer, transparency, and questions surrounding admissions/fundraising at the University law school.  Cigarroa further admitted that the University has implemented several of Hall's recommendations.  Representative Perry thanked Cigarroa for his forthrightness.

The hearing began with Chairman Dan Flynn (R - Canton) and co-chair Carol Alvarado (D - Houston) throwing a temper-tantrum.  Hall declined to testify unless the committee subpoenaed him.  Hall's reason for doing so was that, absent a subpoena, he could have opened himself up to a civil lawsuit.  Flynn called Hall's valid concern "a slap in the face of this committee."  Alvarado explained "invited guests don't get to set the terms on which they appear."

Next up, two former regents testified about standard practices for University regents.  Their complaint about Hall stemmed from the fact that he went outside the chain of command.  Going behind the board and the UT President is 'inappropriate.'

After lunch, following the interaction between Chancellor Cigarroa and Rep. Perry detailed above, Rep. Trey Martinez Fischer (D - San Antonio) exposed his inner buffoon.  Fischer browbeat Cigarroa for an hour over a variety of petty topics, including details of preferential treatment for retiring Rep. Jim Pitts' son at UT Law School.  Fischer's attempt to set Governor Perry up as the bad guy fell flat.

The other noteworthy clown from today's hearing was (Joe Straus lieutenant) Rep. Lyle Larson (R - San Antonio).  Larson was upset because Hall's inquiry "created a lot of disruption" at UT.  Larson also took multiple cheap shots at Governor Perry.

Bill Powers' testimony was surprisingly anticlimatic.  He wasn't sworn in until after Cigarroa, six hours into the hearing.  Powers detailed his concern that Hall's inquiry has hurt recruiting and retention.  Powers also feels that Hall's inquiry poses "significant harm to our academic reputation."  Powers explained that, in his opinion, the $200 million software donation scandal was a case where reasonable people could disagree.

Wallace Hall is the Ted Cruz of Higher Education in Texas.  Because he's a threat to business as usual, he rubs a lot of people the wrong way.  But the University of Texas Chancellor has admitted his inquiry is legit, and that's the only major takeaway from today's hearing.