#TXLEGE: Lt. Dan continues campaign against scourge of...Mild Relaxation by teenagers

"The wise shall inherit glory,
But shame shall be the legacy of fools."
Proverbs 3:35

Dan Patrick dropped several interim charges yesterday.

[Note: Two hours before Game 7 of the World Series...CLASSY.]

In fairness to Patrick, most of them are fine.  A few of them are relatively good.  Most are fairly minor.

There was, however, this:

Keeping Vaping Devices/E-Cigarettes Out of the Hands of Children: Consider the emerging public safety concerns from the rise in “vaping” and ecigarette use by minors. Study whether current criminal penalties are sufficient to deter individuals from selling these devices and substances used to fill these devices to minors.

Keep in mind, this is the same Texas Senate that thought raising the tobacco age to 21 was a worthwhile endeavor.

Furthermore, we stand by our suspicion that somebody's getting paid.

Bottom Line: Vaping by teenagers might not be good.  But come on.  No, seriously, come on.

Hindman > Sessions

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

Wasn't expecting this:

The race to replace retiring U.S. Congressman Bill Flores (R–Bryan) got a lot more interesting on Tuesday, with the entrance of rocket scientist George Hindman.

A Pflugerville resident and an aerospace engineer and business owner by trade, Hindman says he believes his background uniquely qualifies him to represent Congressional District 17, a central Texas district that encompasses Waco and the Bryan-College Station area, with a portion dipping down into Travis County and Austin.

“As a committed conservative Republican who wants our nation on the right path, I can’t watch from the sidelines while our liberties and values are under attack,” Hindman said in a release on Tuesday. “It shouldn’t take a rocket scientist to fix our national problems. But Washington D.C. is so broken, a rocket scientist might be what we need.”

“Not only am I an aerospace engineer and pilot who has taught astronauts, I’m a successful inventor and entrepreneur. Most importantly, I’m a Christian conservative husband and father who is genuinely concerned with the direction of our nation. Let’s defend our country’s bedrock principles and stand strong for our conservative Republican values,” he added.

Wow.

This website stopped endorsing politicians several cycles ago.  But we endorsed against Pete Sessions in both 2014 and 2016.  By 2018, we knew his corruption would drag him down.  We've already said our piece about 2020.

We've actually known George Hindman for...a whole bunch of years.  Mild-mannered dude.  Definitely a solid conservative.  While we no longer 'vouch' for politicians, Hindman's the type of guy who's more likely to resist the temptations of office.

Hindman is kind of a "fun with gerrymandering" candidacy.  As a Travis County resident, he's previously been the token Republican candidate in several safe Democrat seats.  But, due to how U.S. House districts are drawn, CD-17 is a safe Republican seat.  That being said, for a Waco-based district, we certainly understand if voters choose a Waco candidate.

Bottom Line: The final candidate lineup remains to be seen, but a one-on-one race between George Hindman and Pete Sessions is an easy call.

#atxcouncil: Homelessness and the FASCINATING Political Geography of Abbott's Jurisdiction

"[R]edeeming the time, because the days are evil."
Ephesians 5:16

We've obviously said our piece about Greg Abbott and Austin homelessness.  We think Abbott's talked a lot more than he's acted.  Furthermore, the modest actions coming this week don't really solve anything.

Last night, however, we we discussing all of the above with a friend who lives in North Austin.  We explained why we think there's less to Abbott's announcements than meets the eye.  This person didn't disagree, but then said something we hadn't considered:

You're probably right...but if all Abbott does is use TxDOT to clean out the area under highway overpasses, it'll take care of everywhere [the homeless] congregate in my neighborhood.

[Note: Emphasis added.]

Not a bad point.

The primary place the State of Texas (and thus Abbott) has jurisdiction is highways.
Given that, consider how highways intersect Austin city council districts.  Specifically in North Austin:

• MoPac is entirely within district 10 and the most conservative parts of district 7.

• US-183 snakes through districts 7, 10, and 6.

• Even I-35 gets in on the act in district 7.

Districts 6 and 10 have elected Republicans in recent memory.  District 7 has never been seriously contested.  In the current climate, however, it really ought to be (*).

None of this, of course, is to say that TxDOT moving homeless individuals away from highway overpasses really solves the problem.

But it is to say that it could make a visible difference in the lives of the type of people who are swing voters in local elections.

Maybe even enough to change turnout models...especially for December runoffs.

Bottom Line: Given where everything's located, even underwhelming changes could have an oversize impact.

-------

* - By Republicans AND sane Democrats.

Is Expanding the Scope of CPS really a good thing?!?

"Understand, you senseless among the people;
And you fools, when will you be wise?"
Psalm 94:8

We'd yet to fully articulate it, but were (kinda, sorta) thinking the same thing:




These points are fantastic.  Unintended consequences are a very real possibility.  Doesn't take a genius to see how.

CPS in Texas has been highly problematic.  The governor just gave them a new area of jurisdiction.  That expanded jurisdiction will stick around long after this specific case is resolved.

Does anyone think Abbott will monitor CPS over the long run?!?

Bottom Line: The phrase "cure might be worse than the disease" comes to mind.

"The Texan" proves its chops

"Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; therefore hear a word from My mouth, and give them warning from Me:"
Ezekiel 3:17

In the past few days, we've seen movement in both the Prado Family CPS case and the "Save James Younger" case.  Both remain works in progress.  But the past week has been less than completely terrible.  Considering that we're discussing government...that's progress.

That we're even aware of such cases, however, is a testament to one news outlet: The Texan.

Over the past several months, they've covered each story at a time when others lacked either a) bandwidth or b) interest.

This isn't necessarily bashing the traditional media.  They do some things well.  For all of their flaws, we're better off with them than we would be without them.  But it is to say important stories fall through the cracks.

For a media ecosystem to thrive, we need lots of outlets.  Competition and all that.  Right now, there's a void in Texas.  This past week demonstrates that the Texan can fill a rather significant chunk of that void.

Subscribe here.

Bottom Line: Without them, this past week could have looked very different....

#TXLEGE: "Save James" case proves longstanding hypothesis about Governor FoxNews

"And He answered and said to them, 'Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning ‘made them male and female,’"
Matthew 19:4

[Note: We've been discussing this case with Capitol sources all day.  There's a lot that we can't publish.  Suffice to say, the so-called "Big 3" are a bunch of frickin' tyrants.]

Well, well, well:

FYI the matter of 7 year old James Younger is being looked into by the Texas Attorney General’s Office and the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services. #JamesYounger

— Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) October 23, 2019

So nice of you to show up.

Late > never etc.

This case has been in the public domain since January.  Since then, any number of folks have worked it doggedly.  Recollections vary, but Abbott's staff was told no later than the second week of February.  Almost immediately, they stopped returning phone calls.

It's impossible to know if Greg Abbott was personally informed.  But the boss sets the organizational tone.  If Greg Abbott's staff kept this information from Greg Abbott personally, it's because they knew Greg Abbott didn't want to hear it.

So the case festered until the verdict earlier this week (aka. seven months later).  Luckily, the verdict happened to go viral.  And the verdict happened to go viral on a slow news day for national conservative media.

Thus:

• Steve Deace - A Texas jury just told a father he cannot prevent his son from being mutilated. It is past time for Christians to act.

• Matt Walsh - Court Rules That A Mom Can ‘Transition’ Son Into Girl Against His Dad’s Wishes. This Is Evil, Insane Child Abuse.

Finally, because this is Greg Abbott we're discussing, the most important outlet:

• Fox News - James Younger, 7, to have Texas judge decide fate amid parents' gender transition battle.

Once Fox picked up the story, Abbott no longer had a choice.  The story became too hot to ignore.  So he tweeted.

Of course, none of this is surprising.  We've been arguing for years that Greg Abbott cares far more about national conservative media than the grassroots of his own party.  That's why we started calling him Governor FoxNews in the first place.

But it's always been more of a hypothesis than anything.  It's difficult to prove.  It's impossible to test.

Until this week:

1. Abbott ignores issue for over seven months.
   
2. Out of nowhere, national conservative media becomes very interested.
   
3. Abbott at least pretends to do something.

If scientists had designed it in a lab, you couldn't have had a much better test of the "Governor FoxNews" hypothesis.

Greg Abbott behaved exactly how that hypothesis would predict.

Bottom Line: James Younger got lucky.  But the whims of social media and the national news cycle are no way to govern a self-respecting republic.  Even if it worked this one time.

--------

Note: If you work for a national conservative media outlet who covered this story this week, thank you!  You made more of a difference than you know.  Thank You.

#TXLEGE: Apparently, Planned Parenthood Supports Prop. 6

"You also took up the tabernacle of Moloch,
And the star of your god Remphan,
Images which you made to worship;
And I will carry you away beyond Babylon.’"
Acts 7:43

The things you see scrolling through Twitter:

Join PPTV at @CheerUpCharlies to get out the vote!

It's only fitting that, in honor of #BreastCancerAwarenessMonth, we're getting the word out about #Prop6 in order to prevent more Texans from losing their lives to cancer.

Early voting is happening now through Nov. 1. #TxLege pic.twitter.com/EuAotwykzp

— Planned Parenthood Texas Votes (@PPTXVotes) October 22, 2019

YOWZA.

Obviously, we've opposed Prop. 6 since we first heard about it. CIPRIT has been scandal plagued for years.  They don't need an additional $3 Billion.

But we didn't expect Planned Parenthood to get in on the act.

Then again, we never expected NARAL and Wendy Davis to show up here.

Bottom Line: We already thought Prop. 6 was a boondoggle, but this is all the more reason to oppose it....