|
December 7, 2013 8:01 AM
Other endorsements below
Governor-Greg Abbott
Lt. Governor-David Dewhurst
Attorney General-Dan Branch
Comptroller-Glenn Hegar
Land Commissioner-George P. Bush
Railroad Commissioner-Malachi Boyuls
|
|
Copyright December 07, 2013, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved
|
|
|
|
|
|
December 6, 2013 5:36 PM
Examines Nixon’s claim that MQS is citizen advocate rather than lobbyist
Yesterday
we posted a column submitted by attorney Joe
Nixon asserting that the ethics complaints against Michael Quinn Sullivan and Empower Texans were frivolous and
without merit. He argued that Sullivan
was a citizen activist, not a lobbyist and did nothing more than utilize his
constitutionally protected free speech rights.
As
those who have followed this narrative know, Austin attorney and lobbyist Steve Bresnen did much of the original
research upon which the complaints against Sullivan were based. Because the statutes prevent the Texas
Ethics Commission from responding to public claims by Sullivan and his
attorneys, Bresnen has written extensively to rebut what he argues are
misrepresentations of both fact and law by the defendant and his counsel.
Upon
publication of Nixon’s editorial, Bresnen shared a memo he had written to
legislators a few days ago in which he takes issue with virtually everything in
the column.
Most
significantly, Bresnen breaks new ground by linking a deposition given by
Sullivan in a separate case in San Antonio.
To date, it is the only sworn testimony offered by Sullivan. Bresnen says that the sworn deposition
affirms most of the substance of the complaints against Sullivan and Empower
Texans.
The rest of the story, subscribers only
By Harvey Kronberg
|
|
Copyright December 06, 2013, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved
|
|
|
|
|
|
December 6, 2013 5:31 PM
|
|
Copyright December 06, 2013, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved
|
|
|
|
|
|
December 6, 2013 5:28 PM
Sources in Lubbock tell us former Speaker Tom Craddick also in the mix
The story from Fox 34 in Lubbock.
|
|
Copyright December 06, 2013, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved
|
|
|
|
|
|
December 6, 2013 5:28 PM
Republicans fielding two candidates in primary thus far
The Houston Chronicle story is here.
|
|
Copyright December 06, 2013, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved
|
|
|
|
|
|
December 6, 2013 2:44 PM
Davis says "Abbott betrayed Texas taxpayers." Nearly silence from Abbott’s folks
Texas Democrats, including their presumptive nominee for Governor
Sen. Wendy Davis, sought on Friday
to make Attorney General Greg Abbott
feel political heat for an indictment related to the Cancer Prevention and Research
Institute of Texas. As the Statesman first
reported, former executive Jerry Cobbs was indicted in relation to an $11 million grant
that did not go through the agency's proper review process. An agency audit
faulted Cobbs for “improperly” putting the
application of the company in question on a committee agenda.
“The indictment of a former CPRIT official confirms that
Greg Abbott has betrayed Texas taxpayers by failing to show up to even one
CPRIT oversight board meeting,” Sen. Davis said. “Abbott has yet to fully
explain why he failed in his basic oversight responsibilities to Texas
taxpayers.”
The rest of the story, subscribers only
By Scott Braddock
|
|
Copyright December 06, 2013, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved
|
|
|
|
|
|
December 6, 2013 12:32 PM
Jerry Cobbs at the center of an $11 million grant that didn’t go through the proper review process
From the Statesman’s Laylan Copelin:
“A Travis County grand jury has indicted Jerald “Jerry” Cobbs,
an executive at the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas who was
involved in the awarding of an $11 million grant to a Dallas company without
the required scientific and business reviews.
The first-degree felony indictment charges Cobbs with securing execution of a document by deception.
According to the penal code, a person commits an offense if, with the intent to
defraud, he causes another to sign or execute any document affecting the
financial interest of any person.
The cancer agency’s oversight committee approved the
grant to Peloton Therapeutics in
2010 without realizing that the biotech startup had not gone through the review
process.”
Here's the full story from
the Statesman.
The full statement from Lemberg’s
office is here.
|
|
Copyright December 06, 2013, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved
|
|
|
|
|
|
December 6, 2013 11:20 AM
Rep. Dan Branch's father was a noted neurosurgeon in San Antonio
You can see the letter from the Speaker here.
|
|
Copyright December 06, 2013, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved
|
|
|
|
|
|
December 6, 2013 10:46 AM
Ad focuses on his mother and "strong Texas women"
|
|
Copyright December 06, 2013, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved
|
|
|
|
|
|
December 5, 2013 2:40 PM
Says he doesn't see a path to victory
You can read Pauken’s full
announcement here.
|
|
Copyright December 05, 2013, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved
|
|
|
|
|
|
December 5, 2013 2:36 PM
Nixon argues that Sullivan engaged in constitutionally protected speech conducted by emails, not lobbying
In believing the citizens of Texas should be empowered with the most
influence over their elected officials, lobbying used to be a criminal offense
in Texas. When that law changed in 1957, Texas voters lost their voice to
special interests.
Today, however, Michael Quinn
Sullivan and Empower Texans (the people, not the place) are trying to
re-establish the voice of Texas voters as the most influential with elected
officials.
Not surprisingly, an active registered lobbyist with the Texas
Trial Lawyers Association is behind the efforts to try to silence
Sullivan and his group. He had two disgruntled state representatives (one later
defeated in her re-election bid) sign the forms so his role would be obfuscated
for 18 months. In filing the frivolous complaint, the legislators were doing
the bidding of a lobbyist and not the citizens.
As long as common citizens have to register as lobbyists, pay the state a
$750 yearly fee, and fill out monthly forms before they may contact their
representatives on issues facing the state, only the lobby of special interests
will be empowered in the Legislature – not the voters. This is exactly what the
complaints against Sullivan and Empower Texans are about. Are we going to keep
only the lobby empowered, or are we going to empower Texans?
So, what did Sullivan and his group do to cause
these complaints to be filed against them? They graded legislators on the
principal areas of fiscal responsibility and limited government. They told the
public and legislators in emails they would be graded, and on which votes. Then
they sent the report cards to the voters. The rest of Joe Nixon's column can be found in today's R&D Department.
By Joe Nixon
|
|
Copyright December 05, 2013, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved
|
|
|
|
|
|
December 5, 2013 2:33 PM
Many in the GOP are now talking about fixing the law instead
In a move that The Hill on Thursday called
"unthinkable" about a year ago, many Republican candidates are moving
away from "full repeal" rhetoric when it comes to Obamacare
and instead are actually talking about taking a stab at fixing the problematic
portions of the sweeping reform.
From The
Hill’s report:
“Senate Republican
hopefuls in the House, including Reps. Jack Kingston (Ga.), Bill Cassidy (La.),
Paul Broun (Ga.), Shelley Moore Capito (W.Va.) and
Tom Cotton (Ark.), have proposed alternatives or voted to repair the law. Polling
shows a majority of people would rather Congress fix the law than scrap it
entirely, which is clearly playing a role in the Republican pivot. Yet,
offering to fix a law that is reviled by the GOP base is politically tricky.
Some in Republican circles want the law to flop miserably, which would increase
the chances of an eventual repeal.
The rest of the story, subscribers only
By Scott Braddock
|
|
Copyright December 05, 2013, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved
|
|
|
|
|
|
December 5, 2013 7:51 AM
"Friends, Texas is a special place..."
|
|
Copyright December 05, 2013, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved
|
|
|
|
|
|
December 4, 2013 3:24 PM
One of them turns in over 5,000 petition signatures to get on the ballot
A Republican candidate for the seat being vacated by Rep.
Dan Branch, R-Dallas, showed up at
the local party headquarters this week with more than 5,000 petition signatures
to get on the ballot, something Dallas County GOP Chairman Wade Emmert said was “impressive, to say
the least.” Only 500 signatures are needed, Emmert
noted.
Chart Westcott,
a young partner in a private equity firm, said “So many candidates talk about
‘grassroots politics,’ we decided that action speaks louder than words. We’ve been block walking, as well as attending
and organizing dozens of events to meet fellow conservatives and Republicans
for the past several months." His campaign pointed out that in the 2012
election, less than 10,000 voters decided the GOP primary in HD
108, which includes part of downtown Dallas, Highland Park and University
Park.
The rest of the story, subscribers only
By Scott Braddock
|
|
Copyright December 04, 2013, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved
|
|
|
|
|
|
December 4, 2013 3:14 PM
Rural Texans rally around Ag Commissioner candidate
|
|
Copyright December 04, 2013, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved
|
|
|
|
|
|
December 4, 2013 2:53 PM
Immigration politics in the Lite Guv race is the backdrop
Perhaps hoping to beat back criticism from Sen. Dan Patrick, R-Houston, over alleged
weakness on immigration and border security issues, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst on Wednesday rolled out
interim charges that his office said are designed to enhance security along the
Texas-Mexico border. He also sought to highlight successes of measures already
in place including a controversial series of DPS checkpoints along the border.
Dewhurst is asking the Senate Committee on Agriculture,
Rural Affairs & Homeland Security to look into effective security
measures as well as comprehensive reporting of the results of those measures.
The rest of the story, subscribers only
By Scott Braddock
|
|
Copyright December 04, 2013, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved
|
|
|
|
|
|
December 4, 2013 12:01 PM
Some will be unable to open or pay online recently received emailed invoices until Tuesday, December 10
We
are in the process of migrating Quorum Report to a new server.
We were unaware until today that In the course of the migration, our
Security Certificate was applied to the new
server. However, the new server will not be fully operational until next
Tuesday, December 10th.
Due
to the unfinished computer upgrade, many subscribers will not be able to open
or pay their recently received invoices online until then.
Subscribers
can:
---Call in to get a PDF of their invoice
emailed and pay with a credit card over the phone
---Call in to get a PDF of your invoice
and pay by check
---Wait until next Tuesday when we
resend all unpaid invoices and try again
Cathy
will be happy to help and answer questions at 512.292.8191
|
|
Copyright December 04, 2013, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved
|
|
|
|
|
|
December 3, 2013 4:52 PM
|
|
Copyright December 03, 2013, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved
|
|
|
|
|
|
December 3, 2013 4:23 PM
Fear of Tea Party challenges has the Speaker holding off for now, sources say
An aggressive timeline for passing comprehensive
immigration reform may become a reality based on two significant developments
on Capitol Hill.
One of them is that House Speaker John Boehner has hired an Immigration Policy Director who has deep
experience in overhaul efforts. The other is that in recent weeks, various Texas
business interests have told Quorum Report that Boehner has been
telling them that he will start holding immigration votes not long after the
filing deadline has passed. This, of course, runs counter to conventional wisdom
that says immigration votes in the House will have to wait until 2014.
The rest of the story, subscribers only
By Scott Braddock
|
|
Copyright December 03, 2013, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved
|
|
|
|
|
|
December 3, 2013 3:46 PM
Post Trayvon Martin controversy, ALEC seeks to lure back sponsors; considers adding 501c(4) structure
A
story in today’s Guardian outlines
the toll taken on the ALEC (American Legislative Exchange Council)
by both corporate and membership defections in the wake of the Trayvon Martin shooting and the
subsequent controversy over the origin of Stand Your Ground Laws.
Documents
obtained by the Guardian report that financial shortfalls at ALEC could total
$1.4 million out of its expected revenues of $1.4m. In addition it has lost roughly 400 legislator
members dropping its total to 2,200.
The rest of the story, subscribers only
By Harvey Kronberg
|
|
Copyright December 03, 2013, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved
|
|
|
|
|
|
December 3, 2013 2:50 PM
Ethics reform proposals porous; plus silencing public school advocates that don’t acquiesce to “reforms”?
Whatever
suspense there may once have been about Greg
Abbott’s anointment to the Republican nomination for Governor has long
since evaporated. Sure lightning can
strike, but not often. With a broad
range of policy announcements in his “We the People” manifesto,
Abbott has segued into a general election campaign mode, throwing out a little
red meat but generally leaving any rush to the hard right to the down ballot
candidates struggling for attention (“Open Carry” might be the exception). Whether or not his proposals have any
legislative legs, the campaign narrative is about building a fabric of
conservative positions that satisfy the base while leaving some room in the center
in case the Wendy Davis challenge
crystallizes.
So
everything gets taken with a campaign flavored grain of salt.
But
while some of Abbott’s ethics reforms proposals deserve serious consideration
and even drew modest but surprising accolades from Texans for Public Justice,
there remain a few ignored reforms that fundamentally undermine some of his
proposals and there is one that would substantially trample on free speech
rights.
But
let’s start with a simple question. Does candidate Abbott support even current
lobby registration laws? After all, as the
state’s chief legal officer, he has welcomed the endorsement of the state’s
leading ethics scofflaw in the midst of an extended Ethics Commission investigation
going so far as to host Michael Quinn
Sullivan on his campaign website to “discuss” Abbott’s economic proposals.
Does
Abbott stand with Sullivan or the lobby registration law?
The rest of the story, subscribers only
By Harvey Kronberg
|
|
Copyright December 03, 2013, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved
|
|
|
|
|
|
December 3, 2013 11:28 AM
Incumbent's campaign asks: "Who made it possible for Texas to rise to the top?"
|
|
Copyright December 03, 2013, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved
|
|
|
|
|
|
December 3, 2013 9:22 AM
GOP AG candidate says he's needed to defend Voter ID law; points to prayer in school as a win over "activist" federal judges.
|
|
Copyright December 03, 2013, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved
|
|
|
|
|
|
December 2, 2013 4:54 PM
|
|
Copyright December 02, 2013, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved
|
|
|
|
|
|
December 2, 2013 4:33 PM
TEC required more information and Ratliff isn't backing down
After the Texas Ethics Commission recently
informed the State Board of Education’s Vice Chairman that the agency would
need more information before it could move forward with a complaint he made
about a very vocal and seemingly well-financed critic of his, Thomas Ratliff on Monday said he will
refile that complaint this week. Ratliff has said he's concerned about the
activities of Alice Linahan
– a Tea Party entrepreneur from North Texas – in relation to her protests of
the CSCOPE
lesson plans that that some have complained are filled with errors and contain anti-American
biases.
"I have spoken with the Ethics Commission and have
made adjustments to the complaint. At some point the Ethics Commission will
have to determine if there is enough evidence to merit asking Mrs. Linahan for her financial records to determine if she is in
fact being compensated for her efforts," Ratliff told QR, adding that he
understands the need for the TEC to guard against frivolous complaints.
The rest of the story, subscribers only
By Scott Braddock
|
|
Copyright December 02, 2013, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved
|
|
|
|
|
|
December 2, 2013 4:10 PM
Uvalde Mayor J. Allen Carnes is asking people with ties to farming and ranching to send in their stories in video format.
|
|
Copyright December 02, 2013, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved
|
|
|
|
|
|
December 2, 2013 11:44 AM
Riddle and Burnam will have to do battle for their seats
With the filing deadline drawing close, two Texas
House members who could not be more different in their politics have
drawn primary challengers as of Monday morning. Rep. Debbie Riddle, R-Tomball, and Rep. Lon Burnam, D-Ft. Worth, can both look
forward to fighting for their seats even though the districts they represent
are drawn to ensure the general election is a cakewalk for the nominee of their
respective parties.
The man who has now filed to challenge Riddle in
Northwest Harris County, Tony Noun, is
a Lebanese immigrant who says on his website
that he got into business in 1996 in the automotive industry. He is a member of
the Cherry
Tree Republicans, The Greater Houston Pachyderm Club and
the Downtown
Pachyderm Club. He’s also a member of the Northwest Houston Chamber of
Commerce as well as the Spring-Klein Chamber of Commerce.
Noun’s announcement was met with sharp criticism from
Rep. Patricia Harless, a Republican who represents nearby Spring. “It's disappointing when
someone that isn’t a very reputable guy files to run against you,” Harless said and asked people to donate to Riddle. There was
no immediate comment from Noun’s campaign about that.
The rest of the story, subscribers only
By Scott Braddock
|
|
Copyright December 02, 2013, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved
|
|
|
|
|
|
December 2, 2013 10:46 AM
Keough says he would bring a “wealth of business experience” to Austin
Another Republican has thrown his hat in the ring to
succeed Rep. Steve Toth,
R-The Woodlands, who is battling it out with Rep. Brandon Creighton, R-Conroe, to replace former Sen. Tommy Williams. The former Senator from The Woodlands, as you
know, resigned after the session to take a job with the Texas A&M
System.
Mark Keough, a pastor and businessman, announced Monday that
he’s entering the race for House District 15 in Montgomery County. Keough spent 26 years in the auto industry and is the
founder of Mark Keough Ministries, which
includes Pathfinders Fellowship in the Woodlands. “There’s a real need
for Legislators in Austin who are there to serve the people, and not
themselves. Too often, we fall into the habit of spending money like
Washington, threatening the prosperity we have in Texas,” Keough
said. Here’s his website.
The other candidate running to replace Toth is former Conroe ISD School Board Trustee Bruce Tough.
Tough was first elected to The Woodlands Township Board of
Directors in 2008, and is currently serving in his third year as
Chairman, which is equivalent to the Mayor.
He has also served on the The
Woodlands Community Association (the precursor to The Woodlands
Township) for eleven years, including five years as President.
|
|
Copyright December 02, 2013, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved
|
|
|
|
|
|
December 1, 2013 10:08 AM
Arrangements for services of former head of Texas Historical Commission to follow
|
|
Copyright December 01, 2013, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved
|
|
|
|
|
|
November 30, 2013 9:52 AM
Compares the Dallas Republican to a 20-year-old computer
|
|
Copyright November 30, 2013, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
