June 20, 2018 2:15 PM Abbott sets July 31 special election to fill unexpired term of Sen. UrestiFiling deadline is 5pm this coming Monday |
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June 20, 2018 2:02 PM Abbott asks Congress to pass a fix for family separations just as Trump reverses course with executive order In a letter to members of Congress, Abbott echoed Trump by saying Democrats are responsible for inaction: “Texans are not fooled by the partisan divide on this issue...they know that even if all Republicans agree, a bill fixing the problem will not pass without Democrat support in the Senate.” Latest
on the president’s moves via the
Washington
Post: President
Trump abruptly reversed course
Wednesday, signing an executive order ending family separations at the
U.S.-Mexico border after a public uproar over the impact of his
administration’s “zero tolerance” immigration policy. The
plan would keep families together in federal custody while awaiting prosecution
for illegal border crossings, potentially violating a 1997 court settlement
limiting the duration of child detentions. “So we're going to have strong, very strong borders, but
we’re going to keep the families together,” Trump said as he signed the order
in the Oval Office. “I didn't like the sight
or the feeling of families being separated.” |
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June 20, 2018 1:57 PM Poll: 79% of fantasy sports players who do not gamble now plan to do so if it is legalized in their state“This research strongly suggests that the value of most fantasy sports companies will rise significantly, even when the companies themselves don't take legal wagers." 79%
of fantasy sports players who do not bet on sports now will plan to do so if sports
betting is legalized in their state, according to a new poll commissioned by
the Fantasy
Sports Trade Association. The
results were unveiled during the trade group’s summer conference in Minnesota. The rest of the story, subscribers only |
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June 19, 2018 5:07 PM HK: GOP Convention opts for small tent RepublicanismThis Convention leaves little doubt it prefers purity over party-building but that has not always been the case You can put a ribbon on the 2018 State
Republican convention now and one thing is clear. The “small tent” Republicans
carried the day. With the
exception of a chairman battle which typically represents
the soul of the party for the next two years, this was more a celebration of Donald Trump and “party unity” than
growing an even more formidable Republican Party of Texas. This year there was more rhetoric about
stopping the blue wave and George Soros
and less about the challenges facing a Party that should never stop its effort
to build its ranks despite its current formidable numerical success. The rest of the story, subscribers only By Harvey Kronberg |
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June 19, 2018 5:05 PM Press Releases: Immigration, child detentions, appointments, and moreClick the Press Releases button above for the latest submissions |
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June 19, 2018 4:24 PM Fort Worth could be the next city on the hot seat for pension reform at the legislatureWithout adjustments to benefits, the pension fund could run out of money within 20 years; the city has been agreeable to increase contributions on its side of the ledger Fort Worth could be the next city on the hot seat for employee pension problems, a problem the Fort Worth City Council has only begun to address. The Texas Pension Review Board has begun round-robin sessions with some of the most problematic pension funds in the state at each meeting. The clock is ticking on Cowtown, which is scrambling to address chronic pension shortfalls before legislative action is needed. “The mayor and council feel very strongly they would like to solve this pension issue locally, as compared to the state level,” said Fort Worth Employee Retirement Fund Executive Director Joelle Mevi. “I believe they are very sincere in that effort.” The rest of the story, subscribers only By Kimberly Reeves |
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June 19, 2018 9:52 AM Speaker Straus asks President Trump to rescind policy causing family separations at the border "It is wrong to use these scared, vulnerable children as a negotiating tool”; meantime Rep Villallba asks Gov. Abbott to provide for family facilities instead of separate ones Saying
children should not be used as a "negotiating tool," Texas
House Speaker Joe Straus on
Tuesday asked President Donald Trump
to rescind his administration's policy causing family separations on the
Texas-Mexico border. In
a letter to Trump dated today, Straus said "There is no federal law
requiring the separation of children and parents." He also cited the fact
that some of the facilities being used to house immigrants right now "have
in recent weeks requested variances to exceed their licensed capacities." The rest of the story, subscribers only |
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June 18, 2018 5:41 PM SB: Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick declares no civil war in the GOP and he may be correctA smaller Texas House GOP caucus could prove more compliant for Patrick and Abbott, the latter usually deferring to Patrick for setting an agenda; Democrats would have to ride a “blue wave,” though, that may never materialize Perhaps
every column should now start like this: Before you’re done reading, the
president may tweet something that changes almost everything I’m about to say. In
his speech at the RPT convention and again in an email to supporters on Sunday
evening, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick – who
finished about 15 points behind Gov. Greg
Abbott in the primary but remains the spiritual leader of the party –
declared there is no civil war among Republicans. Patrick argued that at this
point, any assertion to the contrary is solely a media creation. “As
we saw clearly in our Primary Election in March, when it comes to the key
issues that are central to the work we are doing in the Legislature in Austin,
we are close to unanimity,” Patrick said, pointing to ballot questions voters answered
about things like toll roads, abortion, and how the speaker should be chosen. Setting
aside the hair pulling and gnashing of teeth in the Texas GOP Chairman’s race
along with the vicious and ineffective attacks lobbed by “conservative” groups
and Gov. Greg Abbott against Texas
House Republicans leading up to the March primary, let’s entertain the
idea that Patrick is correct. The rest of the story, subscribers only By Scott Braddock |
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June 18, 2018 5:39 PM SCOTUS takes another pass on partisan gerrymandering, leave Texas decision aheadGiven the ultimate outcome in the Wisconsin case, the Supreme Court might end up hung up on the jurisdiction issue in the Texas case The U.S. Supreme Court discarded two of the pending redistricting cases this morning, leaving the issue of partisan gerrymandering unresolved and the fate of the Texas maps still murky. The cases for Wisconsin and Maryland were partisan gerrymandering cases, one for each major party. But instead of validating the idea of redistricting, the court punted, sending the Wisconsin case back to the lower court to reconsider standing and deferring to a federal court on the lines drawn in the single district challenged in the Maryland case. The rest of the story, subscribers only By Kimberly Reeves |
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June 18, 2018 11:52 AM Sen. Uresti resigns, asks Abbott to call a special election in November for successor "After 22 years of public service to the great State of Texas - both as the State Representative for District 118 and the State Senator for District 19, I formally announce my resignation as State Senator effective June 21, 2018." |
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June 18, 2018 9:28 AM SCOTUS rules against Wisconsin Democrats over legislative map; leaves open broader issue of partisan districting"It was a technical resolution of what has seemed to hold the promise of being a landmark decision about extreme efforts to give one party advantage over another...." Here’s
the latest via the
Washington
Post. |
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June 18, 2018 8:38 AM Husch Blackwell Strategies Adds Larry Gonzales to Texas Team
"I am honored to join Husch Blackwell Strategies," Larry Gonzales said. "Their success and continued growth across the nation speaks to their ability to serve their clients." Former Chair Gonzales is senior consultant |
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June 18, 2018 7:47 AM One man arrested after suspected arson at Austin Club Minimal damage, police believe the man stole some booze from the building Per
KXAN
TV in Austin:
A
suspect is in custody following a fire at a historic building in downtown
Austin Monday. Austin
police discovered a door to the Austin Club at 110 E. Ninth St. had been pried
open. A man came out before 4:40 a.m. and started running, but an officer was
able to chase him down. While
police were sweeping the building, they found water and smoke and called the
fire department. Crews first arrived and reported smoke on two floors, then
found the fire on the third floor. A sprinkler had gone off and put out the
fire, but firefighters worked to remove the smoke and make sure the fire hadn't
spread. |
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June 17, 2018 4:31 PM Full text of the RPT platform is released
The
full text of the Republican Party of Texas platform
is right here. |
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June 16, 2018 2:04 PM People on the Move Republicans gather in SA, appointments, lobby sightings, swearing in ceremonies, and more SAN
ANTONIO – Good afternoon from the Alamo City, the site of the 2018
Republican Party of Texas Convention, which has been called the “largest political convention in the free world.” In
the exhibit hall, I filled my Kelly Hancock
tote bag with swag from George P. Bush,
Sid Miller, and others while catching
up with the likes of Kevin Moomaw, Sen. Paul
Bettencourt, numerous Texas House members, business lobbyists,
and Mike Hailey (here in his
hometown). In
the sweltering heat, Speaker Joe Straus
actually had his tie loosened a bit at the TFRW
“Margaritas with Senoritas” happy hour but lobbyist Jonathan Saenz had his just as tight as
always at Chairman James Dickey’s
party at the Menger Hotel. It’s okay to cut loose a little,
Jonathan. There was free ice cream, after all. The rest of the story, subscribers only By Scott Braddock |
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June 16, 2018 2:00 PM Smith: Silence of the WolvesQR’s Liberal Columnist Glenn W. Smith argues Texas GOP leaders are ignoring Trump’s kidnapping of children in Texas and should be condemned “But whoso shall offend
one of these little ones which believe in me, it were
better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were
drowned in the depth of the sea.” Jesus said that. Gov. Greg Abbott and his fellow Republicans should listen to the advice. As the world knows – and
as religious leaders of all faiths have rightly condemned – Donald Trump has begun a policy of
kidnapping immigrant children from their mothers and fathers and placing them
in internment camps. In Texas. The full column by Glenn W. Smith is in the R&D
Department. By Glenn W. Smith |
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June 15, 2018 5:11 PM Dickey elected RPT Chairman 65% to 35%
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June 15, 2018 4:40 PM RPT Convention grinds to a halt during chairman race Dickey winning in SD caucuses; Asche forces floor fight and accuses Dickey of lying about party finances, cites abrupt resignation of longtime party accountant SAN
ANTONIO – The Republican Party of Texas convention screeched to a halt Friday
afternoon when Chairman James Dickey’s challenger, Cincy Asche, and her
supporters demanded a floor vote on the question of who will lead the party
going forward. Amid
nasty accusations that he has been cooking the books when it comes to party finances,
Chairman Dickey said the party is seeing days of “amazing unity” despite what
has been a challenging year. The rest of the story, subscribers only By Scott Braddock |
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June 15, 2018 4:00 PM In the middle of the RPT convention, the party's accountant quits Chair challenger Cindy Asche says the accountant, first hired by Cathy Adams, claims Chairman Dickey is manipulating the party's finances; no comment from Dickey just yet |
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June 15, 2018 11:55 AM RPT Chair race update: SDs won by Dickey, 22 SDs won by Asche: 9That's from the Official State Nominations Committee Report, per Matt Mackowiak speaking for the RPT |
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June 15, 2018 11:11 AM ICYMI: Lt. Gov. Patrick considers bathroom bill fight over, settled “We won,” Gov Patrick told reporters at the RPT convention in San Antonio, going further than he has in previous comments: “This issue is settled.” |
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June 15, 2018 9:42 AM RPT Chair race: Dickey leads Asche in senate district conventions this morning at GOP convention Incomplete results via Matt Mackowiak: With 23 SDs reporting, James Dickey's won 19 and Cindy Asche has won 4. Nominees need to win 3 SDs to be a nominee for the floor vote |
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June 14, 2018 7:22 PM Texas GOP chair candidates make their pitch to delegates, begin final push before Friday vote Chair Dickey stresses his past fight with an employer’s PAC’s practice of supporting Democrats; Asche argues “we need to make the Republican Party of Texas better and stronger than it is today” SAN
ANTONIO – Delegates to the Republican Party of Texas convention
on Thursday gave warm reactions to both candidates running to preside over the
majority party in this state. It’s
a race that, unlike some in the past, seems to have very little if any involvement
from business groups while certain sponsors of the RPT have either pulled back
their financial support or eliminated it altogether, as is the case with
powerhouse contributor AT&T. Still,
Chairman James Dickey told the crowd
during a short speech that despite certain challenges, “We are on track to have
the largest self-funded convention on record.” The rest of the story, subscribers only By Scott Braddock |
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June 14, 2018 7:16 PM Advocates petition to throw out Texas legislature's abortion restrictionsPaxton spokesman Rylander says a “radical pro-abortion agenda” would sacrifice women’s health; Democrats counter “These are all thinly veiled efforts to disenfranchise women from exercising their constitutional right to bodily autonomy and choice.” Attorney
General Ken Paxton’s office is once again defending the state’s statutes
on abortion as a coalition of abortion advocates sued Texas in federal court today
to roll back layers of abortion-related laws passed over multiple sessions. Paxton,
and conservatives who have backed Texas’ expansion of abortion restrictions,
calls the passage of recent abortion-related bills to be an expression of the state’s
constitutional right to protect women’s health. Paxton
spokesman Marc Rylander said the U.S.
Supreme Court has affirmed the right of Texas to safeguard women’s
health and protect unborn life. The rest of the story, subscribers only By Kimberly Reeves |
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Copyright June 20, 2018, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved 