Big Jolly Politics

politics in Harris County and Texas

Wendy Davis back in the news

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Wendy Davis, the former Texas state senator known more for filibustering than governing, is back in the news. And her comments on potential gubernatorial candidate Andrew White show how extreme the Democratic Party has become.

‘it would take a lobotomy’

Apparently reporters still think that she is relevant in Texas and continue to bring up her name as a potential candidate against Gov. Abbott next year, even though he trounced her by 20+ points in 2014. Peggy Fikac reports that Davis ‘slammed the door’ on a 2018 run for governor, saying that ‘it would take a lobotomy’ for her to run. Frankly, many of us think she already had one.

Andrew White, the son of former Gov. Mark White, is exploring a run for governor in the Democratic primary.

I’m Andrew White.  I’m an entrepreneur, and I’ve started six businesses.  I think we should run our state more like a business, putting customer needs first, while managing the bottom line.  Math and data can guide us to make better decisions.  Common sense and decency will solve just about everything else.

It’s easy to create division.  It takes a leader to build consensus.  Let’s take a 4-year break from what divides us and come together as Texans to restore our state’s leadership in jobs, education, and prosperity.

I’ve made a bunch of friends – Democrats, Republicans, Libertarians, and Independents. I’m running as a Democrat, but I agree with Republicans and Libertarians on some issues, Independents on others, and Democrats on many.

Let’s forget the labels.  I’ll work everyday with all parties to make real progress.  All credit will go to the Legislators who do right and risk consequences. I’ll take the blame for failures.

I want people from other states to wish they lived here. I want Texas to win in everything. Education. Jobs. Self-driving cars… (that can fly!)

Here is what Wendy Davis thinks about his possible campaign:

Wendy Davis

If you have Facebook, you should click on the picture and read the comments. The very first one says ‘Andrew White is a POS’. Lovely bunch, those Democrats.

Mr. White also said this on Twitter:

More interesting is why he is considered anti-choice. This is from the Women’t Health page on his website:

Roe v Wade is the established law of the land, and has been for decades, and I respect the law.  Personally, I can’t understand when a human life actually begins.  It’s a mystery known only to God, and, as such my faith tells me to protect the beginning of life.  As Governor, that means working on policies to:

  1. Reduce the demand for abortions through education and access to contraceptives
  2. Increase access to pre-natal care
  3. Reduce death due to complications during pregnancy and delivery
  4. Reduce infant mortality

Do I respect the rights of the mother? You bet I do. Do I respect that a woman’s body is private? Absolutely. So, does this mean at times my own views conflict with each other? Yes.

….

Reasonable people want fewer abortions and better health care. There’s common ground here. We should be loving expectant mothers with acts of kindness, while respecting their legal right to choose.

Soon, I’ll be meeting with organizations devoted to women’s health services to learn more. Together, we can increase access to healthcare and make abortion rare. That’s progress.

That is a very articulate, nuanced position to take on abortion. But because Mr. White wants to make abortion rare, he is a POS to Ms. Davis and her friends.

Remember what President Bill Clinton said to the DNC in 1996?

Abortion should not only be safe and legal, it should be rare.

Or when candidate Hillary Clinton said this in 2008?

In her last presidential run in 2008, Clinton said that she thought abortion should be “safe, legal and rare, and by rare, I mean rare.”

Or President Barack Obama in 2010?

The same questioner also asked Obama about regulations on early and late-term abortion, a politically charged issue in the abortion debate.

Obama responded that abortion should be “safe, legal and rare” in America, adding that families — not the government — “should be the ones making the decision.”

Good luck Mr. White. It appears that Texas Democrats have all been lobotomized.

Wendy Davis and friends add clarity to HB21 debate

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When you have two legislative bodies dominated by conservative Texas Republicans fighting over how to finance public schools, it can be challenging to know who to believe. Fortunately, former Texas gubernatorial candidate Wendy Davis and friends stepped in yesterday to provide a bit of clarity. Via Twitter:

Wendy davis twitter hb21

Folks, when Wendy Davis starts cheerleading for one Republican side over the other, it’s time to high tail it to the other.

And when the Texas affiliate of the American Federation of Teachers starts shilling for one Republican side over the other, you know you made the right choice to run to the other.

House Emphatically Rejects Senate Voucher “Poison Pill”

The Senate’s attempt to force acceptance of a private-school voucher scheme by inserting it in a House school-finance bill suffered a major setback today. The House voted 134 to 15 against concurrence in the Senate changes to HB 21, the good school-finance bill by Rep. Dan Huberty (R-Houston). Not only that, the House for good measure supported a motion to instruct House negotiators to reject the inclusion of any voucher provision whatsoever if and when a House-Senate conference committee comes to a final agreement on HB 21. The margin on that anti-voucher instruction was 101 for and 45 against. The pro-voucher faction on the House floor tried to reverse that result with an instruction to “consider all methods of educational choice for special-education students,” but their gambit failed on a vote of 47 for, 89 against.

(click here to read the entire shill on TexasAFT.org)

Allowing parent’s of special needs children to make the best choice they can for their child is a “poison pill” in the eyes of ‘a union of professionals’. Amazing.

The fact that my own House representative, Rep. Dennis Paul (R-129) voted with Huberty and Wendy Davis doesn’t make me particularly happy. He explained via text message that he needed to vote for it to try to get it to conference or it would die in the House. Only 15 Republican reps didn’t see it that way and voted against Huberty and Wendy: Biedermann; Cain; Isaac; Keough; Klick; Krause; Lang; Rinaldi; Schaefer; Schofield; Shaheen; Stickland; Swanson; Tinderholt; Zedler. Kudos to you guys for trying.

It is interesting to look at the Fiscal Notes for each version of the bill.

Dan Huberty’s version:

Estimated Two-year Net Impact to General Revenue Related Funds for HB21, As Engrossed: a positive impact of $33,973,419 through the biennium ending August 31, 2019.

Larry Taylor’s version:

Estimated Two-year Net Impact to General Revenue Related Funds for HB21, Committee Report 2nd House, Substituted: a negative impact of ($1,853,351,923) through the biennium ending August 31, 2019.

Wow. Huberty’s version would ADD money to the state General Fund. Taylor’s version would SUBTRACT money from the state General Fund to the tune of $1.8 billion. Huberty must be a magician.

Nah, not a magician. Just using another one of the tricks in his bag of political tricks. Further down in the analysis of Huberty’s version, we find this:

The bill would result in estimated state savings for the Foundation School Program of $34.2 million for the 2018-2019 biennium. Increased state cost for FSP entitlement, including hardship grant awards, is estimated to be $931.7 million in fiscal year 2018 and $909.1 million in fiscal year 2019. This biennial cost of $1,840.8 million would be offset in fiscal year 2019 by one-time savings of $1,875.0 million due to changing the final FSF payment of the biennium from August 2019 to September 2019.

Ah, a little sleight of hand accounting trick. Delay payment by a month, moving it to the next fiscal biennium and call it one-time savings. In Pasadena, we’d call it kicking the can down the road but hey, we ain’t all that sharp, ya know.

Here is what Lt. Dan had to say:

AUSTIN – Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick issued the following statement today following the Texas House rejection of House Bill 21 — the $530 million school funding plan:

“I am appalled that the Texas House turned down an additional half-billion dollars for public schools simply because it included a program that might allow some disabled child somewhere in Texas to attend a private school that his parents believe would be better for him or her. The House members who voted against HB 21 ignored the needs of disabled children to take a stand against school choice, which is supported by a strong majority of Texans in every demographic group and both political parties. Instead of supporting those Texans, those House members buckled under the demands of education bureaucrats.

“Although Texas House leaders have been obstinate and closed-minded on this issue throughout this session, I was hopeful when we put this package together last week that we had found an opening that would break the logjam. I simply did not believe they would vote against both disabled children and a substantial funding increase for public schools.

“I was wrong. House Bill 21 is now dead.”

House Bill 21 contained the following components:

  • $200 million for ASATR
  • $200 million new money for the Foundation School Program
  • $100 million for fast growth schools and charter schools for facility funding.
  • The bill included Education Savings Accounts for children with disabilities.
  • Upon passage by the House, the official start date for A through F would be pushed back until 2019, making the 2018 scores another sample year.

Once again, Wendy Davis’ friends try to come to Huberty’s rescue. This time in the form of Clay Robison, once a biased liberal reporter for the Houston Chronicle, now the paid shill for the Texas State Teachers Association. Mr. Robison had this to say:

Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick waxed sanctimonious after the final defeat of the House’s effort to improve school funding but don’t be misled by his demagoguery. The blame for the school finance failure rests squarely with Patrick.

Speaker Joe Straus and the House majority tried to enact legislation to improve state funding for public schools and take an important first step toward real school finance reform. But Patrick was all about snooping in school bathrooms and trying to force the House into wasting tax dollars on private school vouchers, even after it was clear that a bipartisan House majority was adamantly opposed to vouchers. At the eleventh hour, Patrick had the Senate majority remove funding from the House’s version of HB21, the school finance bill, and attach a special education voucher instead. Then he blamed the House for killing school finance when House members called his bluff.

“I simply did not believe they (the House) would vote against both disabled children and a substantial funding increase for public schools,” he said. Hogwash.

Patrick’s “funding increase” claim was actually a billion dollar cut from the $1.6 billion the House had proposed. And his special education voucher amendment would have been useless for most special education kids because private schools don’t have to provide special education services and those that do are exempt from federal standards designed to make sure the services provided are appropriate.

The House actually had tried to improve funding for disabled kids and all other students by approving additional funding for public schools, but Patrick and the Senate majority killed that effort. That means public schools, including special education classrooms, will remain under-funded, and the burden on local school property taxpayers will continue to increase.

Whenever Dan Patrick opens his mouth about public education and property tax “relief,” he has absolutely no credibility. And the school children of Texas – all the school children of Texas – will be better off if their parents quit believing him.

Someone is waxing sanctimoniously, Mr. Robison, but it ain’t who you say it is. You might want to look in the mirror. I’m reminded of Mr. Robison’s words in his farewell in the Houston Chronicle:

I offer an observation to bloggers, whose presence in the political arena is expanding as the ranks of traditional news reporters thin. There is a difference between reporting and spinning. I have done both for a long time, and reporting is a lot harder.

(click here to read the entire farewell on Chron.com)

Looks like Mr. Robison got tired of the hard work and decided to get paid to do the easy stuff. Hey, it happens.

So, I’ll repeat what I said earlier: Folks, when Wendy Davis starts cheerleading for one Republican side over the other, it’s time to high tail it to the other. To get the complete picture, throw in the teacher’s unions and virtually all paid Texas media as well.

I’d suggest that Republican voters high tail it as fast as they can to the other side and support Sen. Larry Taylor (my senator by the way). If you live in my district, HD129, you might want to let Rep. Dennis Paul know what you think.

Wendy Davis thinks this is disgusting?

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Whoa, I was browsing Facebook and this popped up:

Wendy Davis Facebook Ad
Wendy Davis Facebook Ad

Okay, nevermind the fact that Allen Blakemore, general consultant to Sen. Dan Patrick likes this. Yuk.

Let me ask you to think about this: Wendy Davis thinks that this depiction of her as “Abortion Barbie” is disgusting.

I mean, yeah, I don’t think that this is the best way for Republicans to defeat her in November.

But…disgusting? Really? Just what the heck does she think about late term abortions? You know, her signature issue? A poster is “disgusting” but the reality of ripping babies apart in the womb because they are “only” five months old is….what?

Who in their right mind would vote for this woman?

Wendy Davis voted FOR William J. White

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That’s right, the one made famous by wearing pink tennis shoes in her quest to eliminate restrictions on late term abortions voted FOR the man she is now saying should resign from his position as Chair of the Texas Finance Commission.

Let’s reset. There has been a lot of noise lately from the Texas political media about “predatory” lenders. You know, the people that charge high rates of interest to give people high risk loans. Oh, the shame. I suppose they are “predatory” because the “enlightened” media would never, ever borrow money at high interest rates in an emergency. And if YOU think it is worthwhile to borrow money at a high interest rate to keep your electricity on until payday, THEY think you are stupid and shouldn’t be allowed to do so.

That’s where pink shoe’d Wendy Davis comes in. She is quoted saying that the guy in charge of the Texas Finance Commission should step down from his post because he works for Cash America, one of those “predatory” lenders that the intelligentsia despises so much. From the article in the El Paso Times by Marty Schladen:

In a statement, Davis said White’s comments were beyond the pale.

“Texans are tired of back-room deals and dishonesty in Austin,” Davis said.

“William White can’t protect Texas consumers while he represents a predatory lending company on the side. Mr. White should resign from his post — and if he won’t, Governor Perry should remove him.”

…

Davis has been critical of Texas’ payday lending rules and of White’s appointment. Since 2009, she’s filed bills intended to reform industry practices and in 2011, she called White’s appointment as chairman of the finance commission “the classic fox in the henhouse,” her statement said.

“Backroom deals” and “fox in the henhouse” eh?

Well, let’s see about that. After all, Wendy Davis is a State Senator. And State Senators confirm appointments made by Texas Governors. Did Sen. Wendy Davis put on her pink tennis shoes and filibuster the ol’ fox in the henhouse when it came time to approve him as Chair of the Finance Commission?

No, she did not. In fact, she voted FOR William J. White as Chair of the Finance Commission. Don’t believe me? Read it for yourself in the Texas Senate Journal dated May 11, 2011. Yeas 30, Nays 0, 1 Present, Not Voting (Kirk Watson-D). And that was after Sen. Wendy Davis called William J. White a “fox in the henhouse” on January 20, 2011. Backroom deals? Hmmm.

You would think that a reporter as good as Marty Schladen would have bothered to look that up. Or a guy like Scott Braddock of the Quorum Report before he jumped in . Or a fine editor like Erica Grieder of Texas Monthly before she jumped in.

Nope. It took a redneck blogger from Pasa-git-down-dena to bother to look up the facts.

Vote for Wendy Davis! She’s against you before she’s for you before she’s against you!

 

Wendy Davis – poster child for lazy media

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Wendy DavisGood grief it is going to be a long, long year waiting for Greg Abbott to put Wendy Davis into the boneyard littered with former great liberal hopes for the Texas Democratic Party. The constant cheerleading by the Texas media is already sickening, so can you imagine how we’re going to feel a year from now?

The latest episode has the press fawning over her because when she went to vote, the ID she used was not an exact match for the name on her voter registration card. Because of that, she had to take two seconds to sign an affidavit stating that she was the person on the list of registered voters. The press had a field day with that one, using it to point out how “bad” the Texas Voter ID law is.

The problem is that it didn’t point out anything except exactly how lazy the Texas media is. Because if they had performed about 2 seconds of research as to why the abortion queen had to sign the affidavit, they would have discovered that the queen herself was responsible for that particular clause in the law.

From the Senate Journal for January 26, 2011:

Senator Davis offered the following amendment to the bill:

Floor Amendment No. 41

Amend SB 14 in SECTION 7 of the bill, in amended Section 63.001(c), Election Code (page 4, line 6), by adding after the period “If in determining whether a voter’s name is on the list of registered voters the election officer determines that the voter’s name on the documentation is substantially similar but does not match exactly the name on the list, the voter shall be accepted for voting as otherwise required by this section if the voter submits an affidavit stating that the voter is the person on the list of registered voters.”

The amendment to SB 14 was read and was adopted by the following vote: Yeas 30, Nays 0.
Absent-excused: Uresti

So basically we have a fake blonde moment here. “I had to sign an affidavit saying that I was Wendy Davis!” “Oh, I put that amendment in? Ooopsie!”

Peggy Fikac of the Houston Chronicle pushed the story out and then had to issue an update. But her update is very misleading:

UPDATE: Sen. Davis offered the amendment to the Voter ID law that provided for the affidavit when the measure was approved in the Senate in 2011.

The amendment reads, “If in determining whether a voter’s name is on the list of registered voters the election officer determines that the voter’sname on the documentation is substantially similar but does not match exactly the name on the list, the voter shall be accepted for voting as otherwise required by this section if the voter submits an affidavit stating that the voter is the person on the list of registered voters.”

Davis voted against the measure.

So, she put forth the amendment and then voted against it? No, she voted for it. She voted against the ultimate bill but she owns this amendment. Details, details. But hey, anything to push a far left Democratic nutcase, right Peggy?

 

Abortion Barbie gets spread in Vogue

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Texas’ own Wendy “Abortion Barbie” Davis is featured in Vogue magazine.

Wendy "Abortion Barbie" Davis filibusters
Wendy “Abortion Barbie” Davis filibusters

Amazing what pink tennis shoes, a catheter, and a passion for late-term abortions will do for you in the liberal world.

Davis has to run for governor

I agree with Scrambled Brains and Lobotomized Eggs:

We’re past the point of no return. For there to be any kind of immediate future for Texas Democrats, she can’t take a pass. Davis bears the weight of the entire Texas Democratic Party, some of the burden of other beleaguered Democrats in southern states, and by extension a small portion of the national party’s 2014 electoral prospects. That is one heavy lift.

Well, except for that hyperventilating stuff about the D’s national electoral prospects anyway.

I have mixed feelings about Davis running for governor. The good news is that Republicans will pick up a seat in the Senate, making it easier to pass good legislation. The bad news is that it increases the likelihood that down ballot Republicans in Harris County next year will lose. I’ve already warned you (over and over and over again) that it is likely to happen anyway but this will just strengthen that case. If I were a Republican candidate spending hundreds of hours and thousands of dollars to win a primary contest for a down ballot position in Harris County, I’d be working just as hard to change the Harris County Republican Party leadership.

Abortion Barbie defended by Burnt Orange Report

Of course, you can’t call her Abortion Barbie without getting screamed at by the usual suspects. From Burnt Orange Report:

“Abortion Barbie” is entering the conservative lexicon as an appropriate thing to say. That is not acceptable, and we–not just Democrats, not just Republicans, not just women, but we as people who believe that the world is better when we respect others as humans–should not let it happen.

That right there is downright funny coming from the same blog that supports abortion because to limit it is to reduce a dude’s chance of getting laid. Kids. What can you say?

Davis given advice by Dallas Morning News editorial writer

Davis already has editorial writers for the Dallas Morning News giving her advice on how to win against Greg Abbott. This from Mike Hashimoto:

Here’s what she could have said:

I stand here proudly with these pilots, flight attendants, gate agents and mechanics from one of our state’s most important companies. These are the people who made personal and professional sacrifices to help save their airline. I represent many of them as their state senator. They know, as I know, that this merger is American Airlines’ best hope for a thriving future. These are the people I support, and I stand with them today.

Together, we ask Eric Holder and, most importantly, Greg Abbott to explain why they are taking legal action to subvert a free-market deal between two willing parties and, ultimately, sticking a knife in the back of this great airline and almost certainly killing off an engine of growth and prosperity for an entire region of Texas.

A Wendy Davis who needs broaden her portfolio beyond abortion and her appeal beyond a certain segment of Texas voter could have used video like that.

Isn’t that special? I’ll bet the editorial writers at the Houston Chronicle are angry they didn’t think of it first. Nah, no media bias in Texas.