Joe Straus staffer loots Williamson County Taxpayers

"Dishonest scales are an abomination to the Lord,
But a just weight is His delight."
Proverbs 11:1

Great catch from Empower Texans:

A popular political bumper sticker reads, “If you’re not angry, you’re not paying attention.” Citizens of the small, Central Texas town of Taylor now have a reason to do both: Taylor’s City Council has given away over $200,000 in tax money to build a pizza restaurant amusement center. Even worse? They were encouraged to do so by a state university.

The national pizza chain Gatti’s has a number of arcade-style pizza restaurant franchises called “Gattiland” that bill themselves as “eater-tainment” centers.

At the May 22nd Taylor City Council meeting, leaders put their taxpayers on the hook for $200,000 cash and future tax rebates to go toward the “eater-tainment” center.

The new 12,500 square foot complex will be on Taylor’s north main street, less than a half a mile away in both directions from two competing pizza restaurants. Domino’s Pizza is three-tenths of a mile to the north and Pizza Hut is two-tenths of a mile to the south. One can only guess how those franchise owners feel about their tax dollars being used to subsidize their new competition.

....

While these ridiculous incentives might seem surprising, it is probably not surprising that the leadership of Taylor has a close association with reckless spending: Jesse Ancira, Chief of Staff to Texas House Speaker Joe Straus, is the Mayor of Taylor.

Read the whole thing here.

Stop Common Core U.S. History in Texas!!!

"It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones."
Luke 17:2

Donna Garner sends an urgent Action Alert:

Please contact the Texas Attorney General’s office and urge him to stop the AP U. S. History Framework from being implemented this fall.

David Coleman is the lead architect of the Common Core. He then became the president of The College Board and has publicly promised that all College Board products will align with the Common Core.

The new AP U. S. History Framework is illegal according to our state law (HB 462) and the most recent opinion by the Texas Attorney General.

We Texans must alert the TAG that he needs to stop AP U. S. History Framework from being put into place in Texas because not only is it aligned with the Common Core, but it is also not aligned with the required Texas curriculum standards (TEKS).

TAG Phone No. – 512-463-2100

TAG E-mail Address - greg.abbott@texasattorneygeneral.gov

==========

[Please be sure to notice the well-sourced links further on down the page. – Donna Garner]

http://nocompromisepac.ning.com/profiles/blogs/common-core-revealed-ap-u-s-history-test-by-jane-robbins-7-12-14

From: Jane Robbins, American Principles Project

To: Georgia and states across America

Subject: Leftist, slanted version of American History ready to begin this fall in our nation’s schools – AP U. S. History

Date: 7.12.14

The College Board, now led by Common Core "architect" David Coleman, is about to implement a revised Advanced Placement U.S. History course. This course presents a slanted, leftist view of American history that (among other things) doesn't mention the Founding Fathers and barely mentions the Declaration of Independence. We've posted extensive information on this issue here:

http://georgia.stopcommoncore.com/

This AP course -- which will be taken by your best and brightest students -- almost certainly conflicts radically with your state history standards. Thus do unaccountable outsiders increase their reach and control over your students' education.

We need state boards of education to demand that the College Board retract and rewrite this new AP US History course. Time is short -- the course goes into effect this fall.

We hope the Georgia website will give you ideas about how to educate and activate on this front. Feel free to cut and paste. If you don't have time to get this before your state board, you might ask people to call congressmen (we have some national figures, such as Stanley Kurtz and Dick Morris, sounding the alarm about this, and Morris will have Rep. Virginia Fox on his radio program on Monday to discuss), to call the governor, to make it a campaign issue . . . . The College Board needs to hear from us. Especially is this true since the College Board is planning to revise all its AP courses -- and we can surmise they'll do to those courses what they've done to this one.

Here also is the most recent piece from Kurtz: http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/382400/new-war-over-high-school-us-history-stanley-kurtz. This tells some of what is going on in Texas on this issue.

This is the latest, and potentially most dangerous, front in the education wars. If Coleman and Co. can usurp state standards through the AP courses, it won't really matter whether the schools -- even private schools -- have Common Core. Please sound the alarm. Thank you!

Donna Garner

Wgarner1@hot.rr.com

=========

7.12.14 – “Common Core David Coleman’s Next Deception: The New AP U. S. History Exam” -- By Dr. Susan Berry --

http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Government/2014/07/11/David-Coleman-s-Second-Deception-After-Common-Core-The-New-AP-U-S-History-Exam

7.11.14 -- “Texans, Stop AP U. S. History Tests from Being Implemented – Illegal in Texas”

By Donna Garner -- http://www.educationviews.org/texans-stop-ap-u-s-history-tests-implemented-illegal-texas/

7.10.14 – “New War Over High School U.S. History” – by Stanley Kurtz – National Review --

http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/382400/new-war-over-high-school-us-history-stanley-kurtz

7.7.14 –“Dinesh D’Souza’s America and Our Schools” – by Stanley Kurtz – National Review --

http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/382097/dsouzas-america-and-our-schools-stanley-kurtz

6.24.14 -- “David Coleman Attacks Students’ Love of America” -- by Donna Garner --

http://www.educationviews.org/david-coleman-attacks-students-love-america/

6.22.14 – “Urgent: AP US History Framework Tied to Common Core – Illegal in Texas” – by Donna Garner -- http://www.educationviews.org/ap-history-framework-tied-common-core-illegal-texas/

Our KVUE Appearence

"Do not remove the ancient landmark
Which your fathers have set."
Proverbs 22:28

During President Obama's visit the other day, we were interviewed on KVUE, full segment below:



Highlights:

• "He thinks it's O.K. to come down to Texas to fundraise with some rich fat-cat donors and Hollywood types, yet he doesn't have time to seek out answers or learn first hand about what's going on in terms of the humanitarian and national security crisis on our border."

• "I would like to see him personally remove a lot of the bureaucratic restrictions on our border patrol agents, get them out there so they're not just doing this gigantic catch and release program,"

Cigarroa's Real Play

"Or what king, going to make war against another king, does not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? Or else, while the other is still a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks conditions of peace."
Luke 14:31-32

The good news is that Bill Powers' reign of terror will soon end:

AUSTIN, Texas--After three years of deteriorating relations with his employers on the University of Texas Board of Regents and a growing scandal involving legislators allegedly using their clout to get friends and family admitted without proper qualifications, UT president Bill Powers on Wednesday offered his resignation effective June 2015.

 The bad news is that Powers gets another year to entrench the culture of mediocrity at UT.

When this website first saw Kay Bailout's spin we almost bought it:

Post by Texas Exes.

But here's the thing: prior to Michael's article last week, the conventional wisdom was that Powers would remain indefinitely.  Five days later, with a deadline for public humiliation in place, Powers 'voluntarily' resigned.  This website has a funny feeling the original leak to Michael was Cigarroa's gambit to 'lead' Powers to the result UT-Reformers wanted.

'Rejection then retreat' appears frequently in sales:

This technique is often applied. You request something greater to get a smaller thing done. Let’s imagine that you sell dining tables. You could take your customer to the cheapest table in the hope that he will buy that, at least. Or you could take him to the most expensive, which he will probably reject and then move to cheaper ones. Not really surprisingly the second approach works far better. However, it is surprising that your customer will also be more satisfied because you retreated. [Emphasis Added]

Of course, BOR took the bait:

In the end, Bill Powers' resignation effective June 2, 2015 -- submitted and accepted by lame-duck UT System Chancellor Francisco Cigarroa in advance of today's meeting -- was the least-bad option possible in the situation. [Emphasis Added]

Texas Monthly also drank the kool-aid:

Powers was the winner, and Rick Perry was the loser.

Whatever the ex post facto spin, the business as usual crowd cannot deny that ten days ago it was widely assumed Powers was safe.

Bottom Line: Powers is leaving.  Instead of Rick Perry, Dan Patrick gets to influence the hiring of the next U.T. President.  That's not a bad place for U.T. reformers to sit.

#HookEm!!!

Steve Toth Defends Homeschooling from Local Tyrants

"And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord."
Ephesians 6:4

"Daytime curfews" are a common tactic local fascists use to threaten homeschooling, Steve Toth isn't having it:

While that meeting was going on, the city council of Magnolia was also meeting. Home schoolers and other concerned parents came to this meeting in response to a THSC e-blast about the city’s effort to adopt or readopt a daytime curfew. In addition to the e-blast, we also wrote a letter and delivered it to Magnolia city officials prior to that city council meeting. The room was filled to overflowing with citizens who, according to the city attorney, were the largest and most well-behaved opposition to any ordinance that he had ever seen in his practice of representing multiple cities. He also commended the well-reasoned arguments against the ordinance.

Just before both meetings started I got a call from State Representative Steve Toth, who is a home school dad and a candidate in a runoff for the State Senate District 4 seat—the district that includes Magnolia. Steve told me he was going to the meeting and asked me for details and talking points. He went as a state legislator and gave testimony against the ordinance about why this curfew was a bad idea for the community and families. It became clear that there was overwhelming opposition to the daytime curfew, and when he and others pointed out that the same problems existed with the city’s nighttime curfew, the council decided to kill both.

Representative Toth also explained to the council that Montgomery County commissioners have the same kind of ordinance in effect and that THSC will work with him and other leaders to address this issue to the commissioners and seek to have that ordinance removed as well.

While this was a great victory for freedom and parental rights, it is also instructive in terms of what voters should look for in elected officials. THSC Association has endorsed Steve Toth in his election bid for the State Senate because he has proven, in this situation and in many others, that he is willing and able to be an advocate for home schooling and parental rights, which is what we need in the Texas Legislature. While his opponent is a conservative and says he supports home schooling and parental rights, he did not get involved in this matter and has not been an advocate for home schooling and parental rights in the Texas Legislature.

We will be working on this issue as it moves forward in Montgomery County, but I hope all liberty-loving supporters of parental rights in Senate District 4 will support Steve Toth in the August 5 special election, because this situation proved again that Steve is the right man for the job.

Greg Abbott Preempts Barack Obama

"Consider the work of God;
For who can make straight what He has made crooked?"
Ecclesiastes 7:13

Greg Abbott preempted Obama's speech in Austin today; his remarks in full below:



Highlights:

• "While he's here [Obama], hopefully he will learn why Texas is the best state in the nation to create Jobs."

• Women are a huge part of Texas' economic success.

• Texas is #1: "Not because of Barack Obama's policies, but in spite of them."

-----

Another good summary from KVUE:

#HAILSATANTX: Texas Democrats Flee Obama

"Though his hatred is covered by deceit,
His wickedness will be revealed before the assembly."
Proverbs 26:26

[Standard Statesman Disclosure: Unfortunately, the original article is behind the paywall; quotes in this post transcribed by hand from a paper copy.]

About that whole "Turn Texas Blue" notion:

Democrats Keep Distance from President

Barack Obama's unpopularity, border issues cast shadow over Texas visit

....

[F]or Texas Democrats, struggling to make this a different kind of year for their statewide ticket, Obama's two-day visit to Texas, which begins Wednesday with stops in Dallas and Austin, is somewhere between a drag and a distraction.

Obama is very unpopular in Texas. Nearly half of all Texas voters strongly disapprove of his performance, and only 17 percent strongly approve, according to the most recent University of Texas/Texas Tribune poll in June.

And the timing of his visit -- planned long in advance for national Democratic [sic] party fundraisers in Dallas and Austin -- turned out to be particularly poor. It comes as a tide of unaccompanied minors, mostly from Central America, crossing the Rio Grande into Texas, also crossed a threshold from local problem to "national crisis," with all the attendant media attention and political finger-pointing.

....

Immigration might in the long term be in Democratic [sic] interests -- the more brown Texas becomes, the thinking goes, the more likely it is to turn blue. But in the short term, the issue is one that mostly rouses Republicans, who have moved to a harder-line stance on immigration in recent years, and that stance doesn't necessarily arouse as much of a backlash from Hispanic Texas -- at least those who vote -- as Democrats might hope. [Emphasis added]

....

The poll found that two thirds of registered Hispanic voters also think more should be done to limit entry into the U.S., and 38 percent support the immediate deportation of immigrants who are living in the country without legal authorization. [Emphasis, again, added]

 Then the coup de grace:

Meanwhile, state Sen. Wendy Davis, the Democratic [sic] candidate for governor, and state Sen. Leticia van de Putte, the party's candidate for lieutenant governor, will be speaking Thursday to the summit of the Association of Texas Professional Educators at the Austin Convention Center, just ahead of the President's speech at the Paramount [theater], a few blocks away.  But neither candidate will cross paths with the President during his two-day visit.

OUCH!!!