Texas Progressives: Voting shenanigans, Seth Rich news, more

Lots, lots of stuff related to elections, Texana, Trump Train snowflakes melting in the heat, Royce West kicking MJ Hegar, and more.

We've got regional, statewide and national political and non-political news both, in fact, so let's dig in.

North Texas

SocraticGadfly asks if the Sunday morning programming of Dallas' WRR, entering its centennial year, violates the First Amendment.

Let's hope Flower Mound's Jason Lata pays through the ass on the civil side, and police find more charges on the criminal side.

What, Oncor lie about environmentalism?

Houston

The Houston Chronicle and The Root give Monica Roberts a suitable eulogy. 

John Coby is puzzled by the Harris County Republican Party's latest campaign finance report.

The Texas Civil Rights Project reports how Fort Bend ISD helped gets its 18-year-old students registered to vote.

Texas-non election

Meet Nate Paul, the man behind who a bunch of (presumably now former) friends of Texas AG Ken Paxton have asked for both state and federal investigations of him.

Off the Kuff hardly knows where to begin when there's three years' worth of news in a single week, but start here and then follow the other links to get an intro and somewhat deep dive into the burgeoning new Ken Paxton scandal.

Meet Shaun Lucas, whose egregious fatal shooting of Jonathan Price was so bad the Rangers recommended a murder charge. More on Price, the incident and Wolfe City here.

Grits for Breakfast highlights the extremely politicized nature of Greg Abbott's complaints about local police funding.

Texas-elections

This is about exactly the date I expected for the SD30 runoff. Abbott buried it on Dec. 19, hoping to bury Shelley Luther enthusiasm, no doubt.

Rethugs are challenging curbside / drive-through early voting lanes. Given the state Supremes said earlier this summer that "don't ask, don't tell" was the constitutionally correct stance for county clerks and election offices on people claiming a medical reason for an early ballot, if rightly ruled, the Rethugs will lose this one. What's also funny is that you have SoS Ruth Hughs having already OKed this before Kenny Boy Paxton decided to try to bigfoot it.

Speaking of lose? A three-judge panel of the Fifth Circuit, at the federal level, upheld a district judge in ruling SB8, Texas' attempt last year to severely restrict second-trimester abortion, is unconstitutional.

A big regular election Texas Senate battle shapes up in SD19, as Dems hope to reclaim a seat they long have held.

Combine Lupe Valdez' mismanagement at Lew Sterrett in Dallas County with some of the wingnuttery, and wingnut-pedestaling, of Joe Arpaio, and you have Tarrant County Sheriff Bill Weybourn.

Without Green David Bruce Collins and without Libertarian Kerry McKennon, I didn't watch the Texas Senate debate between former Libertarian voter MJ Hegar, representing ConservaDems, and Ted Cruz' lapdog, John Cornyn.

And, speaking of speaking of? Royce West said he wasn't voting for her, in part because she is "crazy" (hey, Royce, she's a former Libertarian) and because she didn't ask for his endorsement. That led to this WHOPPER level lie by her:

"She has never reached out and it is what is with her and I’m not voting for her, I’m not voting in that race," West told the Statesman. ...

At the debate, Hegar said she hadn't reached out to West because it was not her style to seek such endorsements. "Personal endorsements tend to come with quid pro quo that I believe are a big part of what's broken in politics," Hegar said. 

She added that she believes "Sen. West is supporting me, because I know that we’re on the same page and we share so many of the same values."

Hegar? My newspaper email inbox has been full of endorsements you have touted. I'm sure you went hunting for them, and know they have strings attached.

Matt Angle compares our current moment in state politics to the 80s, when Texas went from Democratic to Republican.

Texana

The Monthly previews a pending Willie Nelson special issue.

Tom Hanks' new Western movie is due out at Christmastime. Assume you'll be watching it at home on pay-to-stream rather than in a theater.

Hispanic racism (as in BY, not against) remains on display in El Paso. The part about the Klan — and Gutzon Borglund — having connections to the Oñate statue is new to me; the rest of the history, to this person who grew up in New Mexico, is not.

Meet Dr. Marcellus Cooper, Texas' first black dentist, finally getting historically recognized.

National-non election

Twitter has until Oct. 20 to reveal information about who's behind the account @whyspertech, which created a fake alleged FBI document that was a major factor in fueling the Seth Rich conspiracy theory. It's about damned time. Note also my extensively updated post on Ed Butowsky and Ty Clevenger.

"Murder, They Say." Pro Publica reports that feds in Portland — including and primarily local and state law enforcement deputized by the feds — did not identify themselves before fatally shooting Michael Forest Reinoehl. (That said, and not excusing feds' behavior, this doesn't whitewash the fact that he was kind of a lefty wingnut.)

The Overton Window is real. Contra Politico, Rob Portman is not a "moderate."

"Nice" to see Orthodox Jews fully uphold being part of the Religious Right, including on being anti-mask coronavirus conspiracy theorists.

Between age and now, apparently, age-driven dementia, plus that she's never been that pergressuve, Sen. Betty Crocker, I mean Diane Feinstein, is a poster child for what's wrong with national Democrats in general, and even more, California Democrats in particular.

Silicon Valley? Hucksterman's pro-winger leanings are not an anomaly.

George Floyd's uncle lives in Gettysburg, S.D., which for JUST 11 of its 137 years, has incorporated the Confederate battle flag in its city logo until he called it out. The wingnuts, in a town settled in part by Civil War Union vets, went ballistic. Then, as an ex-Missouri Synod Lutheran, is this unsurprising bit.

Pastor David Otten of the local Emmanuel Lutheran Church declined to address the conflict. He issued broad guidance: “When you post something on Facebook, are you building the person up or are you tearing them down? We’re supposed to be building people up.”

The denomination says its officially got anti-racism initiatives, but this is more its reality.

In addition, that patch? Goes back to the old "reconciliation" meeting at Gettysburg of Union and Confederate veterans which had no Black involvement. The reunion, in 1913, got Woodrow Wilson's official whitewash imprimatur, and, we all know about Wilson's long racist history even before becoming president. So, the chief at the time saying "no harm" was meant? Either a liar or an idiot.

And, contra the wingnuts, other than one lone flyer, no, Confederate veterans were NOT involved with the settlement.

Mark Pitcavage provides a bit of background on that Michigan terrorist attempt to kidnap Governor Gretchen Whitmer.

National-election

Your political laugh for the week: "Navajos for Trump."

Your political non-laugh for the week: The Dallas FBI office has warned about an election-based breakout of far-right extremism.

Havana Ted Cruz is worried about a national "bloodbath of Watergate proportions" for the GOP.

With the town hall debate cancelled, what are the odds that, due to more petulance by Trump, the final one is cancelled as well? And, if you're tired of both duopoly candidates, won't you be glad?