Texas Progressives, Part 2: the rest of the story

For the second time in a month, this corner of the Texas Progressives decided to split the weekly Roundup into two parts.

I wanted to keep coronavirus postings separate from everything else. And so, they're in part 1.

With that, let's jump into the rest of what's happening.


Texas politics

David Bruce Collins reports from precinct-level Green Party conventioning in Houston that Dario Hunter was the presidential favorite. Now in California, eh? Is he carpetbagging? Dunno why he left the Rust Belt. And ... if they were using approval voting, as it sounds? Since DBC says Hunter had 10 approvals of 11 voters? Yes, that is near unanimous. That said, Howie Hawkins' 7 of 11 is a two-thirds.

DBC is still planning to run as the Green nominee for Senate. Thank doorknob I won't have to undervote in a race that would otherwise feature John Cornyn against either one-time Libertarian gun nut MJ Hegar or grifting Legiscritter Royce West.

Texas Observer interviews elections expert Richard Hasen about his new book and how it relates to recent Texas voting problems.

Stephen Young picks the worst candidates to emerge from primaries.

Off the Kuff welcomes our lady judge overlords. (Overladies?)


Texana

Texas is one of the states most at risk of more rural hospital closures.


Oil, etc

The Texas economy is probably fixing to implode, with the oil slump part of it likely to be at least as bad as 2014, if not coming halfway close to the end of the Great Recession in 2009-10. And, once again, the lack of an every-year Lege in the Banana Republic of Texas will exacerbate the problem.

Helltown (as usual) ain't ready for the latest oil bust. That said, Evan Mintz's piece still is in part an attempt to put a lipstick on a pig. He notes oil prices fell nearly by half in 2014. Problem? That was from over $110/bbl to $70. There was room to cut, painful as it was, at that price. There's no room to cut in the $30s. Meanwhile, scratch the surface, and the city looks more dysfunctional than Big D. Some oil companies are still halfway whistling in the dark. Others are going radio silent. And an alleged energy expert at the U wants an oil tariff, ignoring both that that's probably illegal under WTO rules, and that the light-ass half-condensate coming out of the the Permian needs to be mixed with heavier grades for best refining. (Hirs would let in other North American oil, which would surely violate WTO rules. Mexico probably doesn't have enough heavier-grade oil, and Canada's tar sands are a loss leader at $60, let alone $35.) If Annise Parker is right that Houston WILL pass Chicago in population, it likely will be a helluva dysfunctional place, maybe even more so than the Windy City itself.

Meanwhile, Harris County and Houston city government's  possible overreaction on coronavirus is sure to finish pushing the city into recession.


Dallas

In one of his best takedown pieces in a long time, Jim Schutze kicks ass on Our Man Downtown, John Wiley Price, for his ultimate role in primary voting problems in Dallas County.

Developers are pocketing city money in TIFs that is supposed to be used to build affordable housing.


National

Socratic Gadfly saw the story about Hobby Lobby's supposed Dead Sea Scrolls being confirmed as fakes, and recognized a name from the past. He talks about his personal academic connection to this story.

The Gadfly offers one thought on the Dem Debate, via Twitter:

This. I thought this back in 2016 as well. The lack of a killer instinct in debates or whatever is a Bernie Sanders problem. https://t.co/wbTCNP1pAi

— American Exceptionalism, meet coronavirus 🚩🌻 (@AFCC_Esq) March 16, 2020

That's part of why Bernie lost 2016's nomination, conspiracy theories about the DNC aside, and it's part of why he'll likely lose again this year.

Well, no, I'll add one other thing. Our Revolution may not technically be a super PAC, per the letter of one Sanders response in the debate. But, it formed a PAC, and whether that's a "super PAC" or not, it takes dark money. Sanders Institute? Let me know if it's moved beyond being a hotbed of nepotism.

Brains said something stupid and so I didn't link to him. (Hey, Brains, if you drop by? Kuff is on my blogroll in part as a rectal irritant to you.)

World

Bibi is out in Israel, or so it seems.