Burnt Orange Report

Ajai Raj on his Arrest

By Byron LaMasters

After an email exchange with Ajai Raj I received an official statement regarding his arrest. You can read it in the extended entry. Regarding the post on Urban Grounds, Raj writes:

"The quote they use from that Party Campus article is a fiction. I embellished those stories to make them more interesting- I am not nor have I ever been a drug dealer, but it's more fun to read that way, I think. (I had Party Campus remove just in case something like this happened, but too late I suppose)"

Raj has written an open letter which I have posted in the extended entry.

I’m writing this in response to the spectacle that occurred in the LBJ Library on Tuesday, May 3rd, 2005, when Ann Coulter, a diabolical, ignorant, but nevertheless charismatic right-wing pundit, came to speak at UT. Ms. Coulter- yes, Ms, I’d personally think such a vocal female conservative would be making Bubba a meatloaf instead of addressing a politically-minded collegiate audience, but whatever- is the author of relentlessly mendacious anti-liberal books, such as Slander: Liberal Lies About the American Right and Treason: Liberal Treachery From the Cold War to the War on Terrorism. She’s famous for having an ass that stores so many lies it makes clown-car designers envious. Like her or not (and if you do, I’m surprised you can read) she’s a Big Fucking Deal.

The title of the front-page story covering Ms. Coulter’s in the Texan was “Arrest Made at Coulter Speech”. You could also have caught it on CBS or in the Austin-American Statesman. The general idea is that some jackass made a scene, and Ann Coulter was also there.

I am Ajai Raj, and I am a jackass.

In his article, which I enjoyed and commend him for, Mr. Sampath quoted the former president of the Student Events Center, the organization which arranged the event. He wrote:

"The person had been disruptive the entire event," said Matt Hardigree, former Student Events Center president. "He took the opportunity to say something lewd and offensive and then made masturbatory gestures as he exited."

And what do I have to say in rebuttal? Not a goddamn thing.

Matt Hardigree got it spot-on! From the beginning I was yelling obscenities along with my friends, roaring at Ms. Coulter’s right-wing bullshit festival the way no one else had the balls to. Mr. Sampath writes in his article that (and this is my take) the protestors were told to be good all along. They were told to sit in the back and hold their signs and leave quietly. No wonder hippies get such a bad rap nowadays; protestors today might as well be ornaments on the Rightmobile. When I want someone to know I’m pissed off, I’m going to throw down and give them a good shit-ruining. I wanted to show Ms. Coulter that people are down if she wants to hold a circle-jerk, but we’re not gonna do it her way. Not me, at least.

So yes, the Q&A session came around, and it was pathetic. Her slack-jawed fans got up and licked her face so she could pat them on the head- one schmuck offered to be her bodyguard, and she smiled, doubtlessly making a mental note that she wouldn’t touch his nether regions if she were King Midas; liberal protestors posed well-intentioned but woefully timid questions and got shot down in a hail of ignorant shitfire from the She-Dragon. Standing in line awaiting my turn, I watched her send a moderate Republican, who had questioned the sheer incendiary magnitude of her rhetoric, walk away in tears when she tore him apart for daring to question her.

So yes, I saw my “opportunity to say something lewd and offensive.” And I took it.

She had just said something about gay marriage, the typical rightwing bullshit spiel that is still convincing people that the Bible is really the Constitution. Knowing that taking the time to say something insightful, specific, or even slightly critical would get me a lame comeback and a ticket back to my seat, I realized that the only way to win this battle was to fight fire with fire. Or bullshit with bullshit. So, as reported in yesterday’s Texan, I fired:

"You say that you believe in the sanctity of marriage," said Ajai Raj, an English sophomore. "How do you feel about marriages where the man does nothing but fuck his wife up the ass?"

And the crowd fell silent. Ms. Coulter stood stunned atop her stage, unprepared for a jackass to say something so utterly crude and to the point. Her pompous and mean air is enough to stump questioners into timidity, I wasn’t about to let her stop me. The audience members looked at me with raw disbelief; later, even friends who know me well admitted that they’d been surprised at how vulgar I’d been. The others in line for Q&A, mostly liberals, looked at me like I’d set their cause back forty years.

Did I give a shit? No. If I had a message, it’s that the whole thing was a joke- hell, our whole political scene today is a fucking joke. Everyone’s out to either pat themselves on the back for being right or whine about how they’re being wronged without ever lifting a finger to fight for it.

So rather than dignify anyone else, I “made masturbatory gestures” as I exited. Again, bingo! I danced a jig and set my hand a-jerkin’ at crotch-level, sneering for the crowd and letting them know I was ready to roll. I yelled to my friends that we were gonna split and made for the door.

Two cops approached me. I figured they were going to tell me I had to leave, so I said “You can’t fire me, because I quit!”

“You’re under arrest.”

It was my turn to be shocked. I tried to ask them what for; saying “fuck her in the ass”” at a college isn’t a crime, last time I checked. They apparently mistook my inquiries for aggression, and grabbed me roughly and slammed me into the door. Within seconds the backmost two or three rows was surging forward, following the scene as the cops dragged me out the door. They yelled and chanted; my friends were more outraged than I’d ever seen any of them before. As they pushed me into the car, I heard my good friend Jeffrey Stockwell scream, “THIS ISN’T A JUSTICE SYSTEM! YOU CALL THIS PROTECTING AND SERVING?!” The crowd took up a chant at the UTPD officers: “Shame! Shame! Shame!”

Shame is fucking right. When I asked the cops why they thought I needed cuffing, they told me that they didn’t even see anything that happened, they were just doing as told.

As a good friend pointed out to me, it’s a scary thought that people who are given weapons and the authority to forcibly detain people can act without knowledge of a situation.

I’m writing this at 7:15 A.M. Wednesday, having recouped over a few cigarettes and some coffee after being released from jail around 3 A.M. I had a party waiting for me- twenty or so friends and supporters, who showered me with gifts such as a card, sodas, cigarettes, food, and a Blondie CD (go figure). Several civil rights-interested associations approached me, offering pro bono legal representation and showing their support.

I have no regrets. Was I jackass? Yes. Oh Christ, yes. But here’s the question people ought to ask themselves. Did I deserve to be arrested? Did the cops need to rough me up for saying bad words at what was at least masquerading as an open dialogue? Do the people of Texas- hell, of America- feel that “potty mouth” belongs on the list of punishable crimes along with “aggravated assault” and “armed robbery”?

As stated in the Texan article, I am charged with Disorderly Conduct, which is a Class C Misdemeanor. Other Class C Misdemeanors include DWIs, possession of drug paraphernalia, and speeding tickets. Without getting into the justification for all of those, were my naughty words and crude hand motions as imposing a danger?

This isn’t about politics anymore, however it might have come about. Either you think it’s an absurd outrage or you think swearing is a crime. Trey Parker and Matt Stone are Republicans, for Christ’s sake. Raise your hand if you watch South Park.

This is about drawing a line in the sand. It made me proud to see people standing up and calling bullshit when bullshit needed to be called. All politics aside, people ought to ask themselves, how far should our representatives of “justice” be allowed to go? Do the American people believe in censorship rights for the rich and famous?

I know I didn’t slay the insidious evil that is Ann Coulter, but I did give her pause. She can easily go to another college or hoedown or whatever and spew her tired rhetoric without worrying about me. But I’m not the only one who feels this way. Other people will call her on her shit.

And hey, Ann, don’t come back to UT. We’re better than your bullshit here. And I can think of at least one jackass here who can dish it out better than you.

Filibuster Frist on your campus

By Byron LaMasters

As far as student protests go, I've been absolutely fascinated with the Princeton students protesting Sen. Bill Frist with their Filibuster Frist project. Ann Coulter can yack about how college liberals are dumb, but this is one of the most brilliant protest ideas that I have ever seen. I would encourage our readers to make a donation to their $5000 fundraising goal if you are able (and add $0.01 to it) - I just sent them ten bucks.

Finally, I know that it's final exam time, but you can help filibuster Frist on your campus. Campus Progress has the details. Are the UDems up for it?

University Democrats on the Ann Coulter Event

By Byron LaMasters

There's another Daily Texan story on the Ann Coulter event. Here's what they write on the arrest of Ajai Raj:

Ajai Raj, an English sophomore, was released from Travis County Jail around 3 a.m. Wednesday after being arrested for disorderly conduct during political commentator Ann Coulter's speech at the Lyndon Baines Johnson Library auditorium on Tuesday.

According to the police affidavit written by an arresting officer, Raj was arrested for using "profane and vulgar language" and performing an "obscene gesture." Disorderly conduct is a Class C misdemeanor, which is punishable by a fine of up to $500. Other offenses considered Class C misdemeanors include: minor possession of alcohol, public intoxication, noise violation and simple assault.

Later in the Daily Texan article, the University Democrats Vice President made a statement on the situation which I agree with:

University Democrats Vice President Ali Puente said even though she finds Coulter's speeches offensive, the method Raj used was wrong. However, she felt that the arrest wasn't necessary.

"I'm saddened that actions of a few individuals make people with progressive causes look bad," Puente said. "He could've chosen a more civil method of protest that would've achieved his goal."

I agree with Ali, and the decisions that the UD's made on this matter.

Update: Urban Grounds investigates... and calls me "unhinged". Me? Unhinged? Never!

More: For a history lesson, check out Booman Tribune.

Ann Coulter on Hannity and Colmes

By Byron LaMasters

I've been amused that the post about the arrest made at the Ann Coulter event last night has garnered over 50 comments today (thank you, Wonkette). I had no idea that this story would get so much coverage, but it's emerged as a national story within a day.

My position on this incident is pretty clear. The comment that the student arrested made was entirely inappropriate, and he should have been escorted out of the building because his actions were very disruptive and lewd. That would have been the appropriate response. I'm pleased that the University Democrats chose not to participate in the protest. The question asked only served to make those of us who think that Ann Coulter is a crazy right-wing nutcase look bad.

My problem with arresting the student is that it sets a slippery slope pattern. If someone physically attacks or threatens someone, then I have no problem with them being arrested, but I don't believe that lewd or disruptive comments meet that threashold. It's a slippery slope, because where you draw the line is so subjective and very open to interpretation. Should someone get arrested for saying "f*ck" or should it depend on the context? What about "f*g"? Should you get arrested for saying "a*s", or what about compound explitives?

I've forced myself to turn on Hannity and Colmes on FOX News tonight, because Ann Coulter is set to appear on the show. It should be interesting to watch.

Update: Matt Hardigree adds his thoughts here.

Student Regent Bill Amended

By Byron LaMasters

On Monday, the House Higher Education committee amended the student regent bill, HB 1968. The bill co-authored by Reps. Eliot Naishtat (D-Austin) and Patrick Rose (D-Dripping Springs) would allow for a voting student regent on the boards of regents of public Texas university systems. However, a version of the bill that would only allow a non-voting student member was substituted at the House Higher Education committee. The Daily Texan reports:

House Bill 1968, left pending in the House on Monday, was filed by state Rep. Patrick Rose, D-San Marcos, in late March. The bill originally called for a change in the Texas Constitution to allow a student appointed by the governor to serve one year as a voting member on their university's board of regents. [...]

However, on Monday Rose presented a substitution to the bill that would take away the student regents' power to vote.

Rose said the governor's office and some of his colleagues have been "very hesitant" about having a voting student regent, but with changes under the substitution, Rose said, "I think we have a shot."

Historically in Texas, student regent bills have not passed final legislation. Thirty-nine states currently have students serving as regents, 29 of which are voting members.

Rose said the amended bill has support from everyone on the House Higher Education Committee, whereas the original bill did not.

He said a non-voting student regent is not perfect, but it is "a step in the right direction."

I would agree that something is better than nothing, but a non-voting student regent would have no power to actually influence the board's decisions. Governor Rick Perry still might veto such a bill though:

Former Student Government President Brent Chaney said there was "strong opposition" from the governor's office toward having a voting student regent.

"A regent position is one of the most highly coveted appointment, probably the most coveted, that the governor makes. It became fairly clear from the governor's office that the governor would like to keep it the same [as] it's been done in the past," Chaney said.

Gov. Rick Perry's office could not be reached for comment.

The senate side is also working on a voting student regent as well.

Currently, there are three student regent bills filed in the Texas Legislature.

State Sen. Jeff Wentworth's, R-San Antonio, Senate Bill 934 was identical to Rose's bill prior to the amendments. Wentworth, who previously served a year on the Texas State University System Board of Regents, said he would prefer a voting student regent, but will support the amendments to the bill because it is an improvement to the current system.

State Sen. Elliot Shapleigh, D-El Paso, also filed a student regent bill that would allow a student to serve two years on the board, with the first year serving as a designate member and the second year as a voting member. Shapleigh could not be reached for comment on whether or not he planned to change his bill.

While most of the SG leaders felt this to be an acceptable compromise, the Daily Texan editorialized that the compromise offered little to students:

A non-voting student representative on the UT System Board of Regents is not a student regent. He or she will be little more than an audience member.

The non-voting representative may have more time than the average student to voice concerns and complaints before the board. He or she might be invited to swanky fund-raising events and have the chance to show off his or her new business attire.

But the student will be seen as redundant with the student-advisory mechanisms currently in place at the system level. And, without a vote, regents will not be forced to consider student interest or opinion on contentious issues.

On the UT System Board of Regents, no vote will likely mean no voice. For UT students, this compromise offers little change from the status quo.

Student Arrested at Coulter Speech

By Byron LaMasters

What can I say? Welcome to Austin, Ann. The Daily Texan reports:

Incessant heckling and shouting culminated in an arrest Tuesday night during a speech by Ann Coulter, an extreme right-wing pundit, at the Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum.

Shouts became so pervasive during the question-and-answer session that Coulter informed the organizers she would no longer take questions if the hecklers were not silenced. For a time, the shouts were considerably lessened, until the issue of gay marriage was broached.

Coulter said she supported the definition of marriage as between a man and a woman on the basis that a good woman civilizes and inspires a man to strive for something better, leading to a question that was met with a stunned silence.

"You say that you believe in the sanctity of marriage," said Ajai Raj, an English sophomore. "How do you feel about marriages where the man does nothing but fuck his wife up the ass?"

UT Police officers approached Raj to arrest him, resulting in a mass exodus of protesters chanting, "Let him go."

"The person had been disruptive the entire event," said Matt Hardigree, former Student Events Center president. "He took the opportunity to say something lewd and offensive and then made masturbatory gestures as he exited."

And for those of you wondering how much of our student fees were paid to that b*tch, the Daily Texan has the answer:

The $30,000 event was co-sponsored by the Texas Union Student Events Center and Student Endowed Centennial Lectureship Committee.

Update: There's a Kos Diary on the event.

More: In the Pink Texas blogged the event as well.

And More: The Smoking Gun has the police report.

And another: Some good posts also over at West Campus Insider. The story also made the Drudge Report and Wonkette (thanks for the linkage!)

Finally, Ann Coulter will be on Hannity and Colmes tonight. I'll update on this thread.

TSP Report

By Karl-Thomas Musselman

For those of you here that care about the Daily Texan and whether it's editor remains elected or gets moved to an appointed process, here is a report from the last meeting (even though I don't understand it all, a lot of you Exes and Alumni will). I tend to favor elections personally, but don't really have much of a dog in this fight as of yet. But for now it looks like the decision to move to an appointed editor or not will go up for a student referendum.

What follows is a brief summary of the Board's action at our most recent meeting:

1) The Board voted to ask the UT System to hold off on implementation of the revised Operating Agreement, which was initially intended to be a replacement for the Declaration of Trust. Legal questions regarding the nature of the current document should be resolved over the summer. At that point, we will move forward with either a revised trust instrument or a version of the Operating Agreement.

2) The Board voted to formally ask the UT System Office of General Counsel for an opinion regarding the viability of the Declaration of Trust. In the case that the document is considered to constitute a trust, we would want to know if certain provisions (including prior review and the elected editor) are conditions of the trust or merely amendable provisions of the document. We would also ask who the beneficiaries of the trust are: students or TSP entities?

3) The Board voted to ask for UT's approval to hire outside counsel to consider these issues as well.

4) Per my recommendation last month, the Board voted to rescind its March 4 vote regarding the elected editor. Though the Texas Open Meetings Act does not adhere to most actions of TSP, we want to be as open as possible in conducting our business. We rescinded this vote because some people believed that the March 4 agenda was not sufficiently clear to indicate that the editor selection process was under consideration.

5) The Board voted to continue to study the editor selection issue and to pursue a student referendum to determine how students at large feel about appointing the Texan editor. We are currently discussing the implementation of this process. The Board itself took no position regarding whether the editor should be elected or appointed. The issue will, however, be picked up again in the Fall.

6) The Board voted to ask the University to cease its practice of prior review.

For those of you Attending the Ann Coulter Event

By Byron LaMasters

I'm not particularly interested in listening to that b*tch, but for those of you attending, come armed to force her to defend some of her more outlandish statements.

If anyone attending the event would like to write a guest post about it to post on BOR, please email me at: Byron AT BurntOrangeReport DOT com.

"If you don't hate Clinton and the people who labored to keep him in office, you don't love your country." - George, July 1999.

"Liberals become indignant when you question their patriotism, but simultaneously work overtime to give terrorists a cushion for the next attack and laugh at dumb Americans who love their country and hate the enemy." - Liberalism And Terrorism, May 26, 2004.

Phil Donahue: "I just want to make sure we got this right. Liberals hate America. They hate all religions except Islam. Liberals love Islam, hate all other religions."
Ann Coulter: "Post 9/11."
Donahue: "Well, good for you." - The Phil Donahue Show, MSNBC, July 19, 2002.

"When contemplating college liberals, you really regret once again that John Walker is not getting the death penalty. We need to execute people like John Walker in order to physically intimidate liberals, by making them realize that they can be killed, too. Otherwise, they will turn out to be outright traitors." - address before the Conservative Political Action Conference, Jan. 2002

“Even Islamic terrorists don't hate America like liberals do. Even Islamic terrorists don't hate America like liberals do. They don't have the energy. If they had that much energy, they'd have indoor plumbing by now." - Slander, p. 6.

"I think there should be a literacy test and a poll tax for people to vote." - Hannity and Colmes, Aug. 17, 1999.

"I think [women] should be armed but should not [be allowed to] vote. No, they all have to give up their vote, not just, you know, the lady clapping and me. The problem with women voting -- and your Communists will back me up on this -- is that, you know, women have no capacity to understand how money is earned. They have a lot of ideas on how to spend it. And when they take these polls, it's always more money on education, more money on child care, more money on day care." - Politically Incorrect, Feb. 26, 2001.

"We should invade their countries, kill their leaders and convert them to Christianity. We weren't punctilious about locating and punishing only Hitler and his top officers. We carpet-bombed German cities; we killed civilians. That's war. And this is war." - September 13, 2001, National Review Online.

"Liberals become indignant when you question their patriotism, but simultaneously work overtime to give terrorists a cushion for the next attack and laugh at dumb Americans who love their country and hate the enemy." - July 3, 2002.

Sources: AntiCoulter and Dkosopedia.

UT Los Alamos Forum

By Karl-Thomas Musselman

Wednesday, May 4th
5:30-7PM
ART 1.120

Come join President Faulkner, Chancellor Yudof, Chairman Huffines and others in a question-and-answer style information session on UT and Los Alamos National Laboratory. The forum will be moderated by SG President Omar Ochoa. An informal reception with refreshments will follow the event.

Panelists include:
Dr. Robert Barnhill,
Vice Chancellor for Research and Technology Transfer, UT System

Dr. Charles Sorber,
Special Engineering Advisor to the Chancellor, UT System

Dr. Juan Sanchez,
UT Vice President for Research

Dr. Roy Schwitters,
Sid W. Richardson Foundation Regents Chair In Physics #4

Dominique Cambou,
UT Watch member

Katie Naranjo,
BOR Reporter!

Ann Coulter and the Socialists

By Karl-Thomas Musselman

Ann Coulter is doing her little shindig tonight on campus (you'd need a pass to get in which are out now). University Democrats has agreed not to protest because it serves us little purpose to do so. In most cases, after the reporting is said and done, it hurts the protesting organization's credibility and the firing lines in the campus paper are not kind.

Of course, even with our efforts to limit any disruptive action, leave it to the International Socialists on campus to create some. An e-mail follows...

As most of you know, Ann Coulter will be speaking tomorrow, May 3rd, in the LBJ School Auditorium on UT Campus. Ann Coulter is a notorious right-winger who is intent on purging the US of all immigrants, Arabs, and the left in general. We, as progressives and leftists, need to be there to counter her racist lies and make it known she is unwelcome at UT or in Austin. The plan for the protest is as follows:

Meet at 6:45pm at the fountain just south of the LBJ Library (see this map)
The ISO will bring signs and banners, but feel free to bring whatever signs or displays you wish.

Protest outside the entrance to the LBJ Auditorium from roughly 7:00 to 7:45, we will be chanting and trying to engage possible supporters and bring them into the protest.

We want to get as large a crowd as possible, so please tell any friends or organizations you are involved in or have contacts with. This is a golden opportunity to stand up to the right and make a statement for peace, justice, and equality.

In solidarity,
Matt K. and Jon B.
International Socialist Organization

PS: For more information e-mail mattkorn@gmail.com or bougiej@gmail.com; or call Matt at 914-9226 or Jon at 799-3861.

Some of Coulter's gems...

-- Her anti-Muslim rant after September 11:

"We should invade their countries, kill their leaders and
convert them to Christianity. We weren't punctilious about
locating and punishing only Hitler and his top officers. We
carpet-bombed German cities; we killed civilians. That's war.
And this is war."

-- Her admiration of McCarthyism and her call for a new round
of intimidation against liberals and the left:

"The myth of "McCarthyism" is the greatest Orwellian fraud of
our times. Liberals are fanatical liars, then as now. . .
McCarthy was not tilting at windmills. He was tilting at an
authentic communist conspiracy that had been laughed off by the
Democratic Party."

"When contemplating college liberals, you really regret once
again that John Walker is not getting the death penalty. We
need to execute people like John Walker in order to physically
intimidate liberals, by making them realize that they can be
killed, too. Otherwise, they will turn out to be outright
traitors."

Her call for more racial profiling:

"Like many of you, I carefully reviewed the lawsuits against
the airlines in order to determine which airlines had engaged
in the most egregious discrimination, so I could fly only that
airline. But oddly, rather than bragging about the charges, the
airlines heatedly denied discriminating against Middle Eastern
passengers. What a wasted marketing opportunity! Imagine the
great slogans the airlines could use:

"Now Frisking All Arabs -- Twice!"
"More Civil-Rights Lawsuits Brought by Arabs Than
Any Other Airline!"
"The Friendly Skies -- Unless You're an Arab"
"You Are Now Free to Move About the Cabin -- Not So
Fast, Mohammed!"

--Her immigrant bashing (characterizing the INS as too
lenient):

"Foreigners were relentlessly staging raids on our border,
which was defended by a hapless bunch of incompetents[LINK] at
the Immigration and Naturalization Service."

--Her threats against everyone who disagrees with her
politically (beyond the fact that anyone who considers the NY
Times to be a raging leftist paper has got some serious
issues):

"My only regret with Timothy McVeigh is he did not go to the
New York Times Building."

Ann Coulter to Speak at UT

By Byron LaMasters

This should certainly provide some fireworks on campus. I'm not particularly pleased that my student fees are being spent to bring this lunatic to campus, but then again, I'm sure that many conservative students felt the same way about Michael Moore. If anyone has an idea on how progressives on campus should respond, leave your thoughts in comments:

ANN COULTER TO SPEAK AT UT AUSTIN

The Student Endowed Centennial Lectureship (SECL) and the Student Events Center Distinguished Speakers Committee (DSC) are pleased to invite UT Austin students, faculty, and staff to a lecture with Ann Coulter, political columnist and best-selling author. Ms. Coulter will speak on Tuesday, May 3, 2005, at 7:30 p.m. in the LBJ Auditorium. Passes are free and will be available on a first-come, first-served basis to those with a valid UT ID (students, faculty and staff) beginning at 8 a.m. Monday, May 2 at the Student Events Center front desk, located at the north end of the 4th level of the Texas Union (UNB 4.300).

Passes do NOT guarantee admission. For the sake of gaining quick and easy admission to the LBJ Auditorium, please arrive early. Be advised, all bags are prohibited and, to maintain a safe environment, all persons are subject to search.

Coulter is the legal correspondent for Human Events and writes a popular syndicated column for Universal Press Syndicate. She is a frequent guest on many TV shows, including Hannity and Colmes, Wolf Blitzer Reports, HBO's Real Time with Bill Maher, The O'Reilly Factor, Good Morning America and has been profiled in numerous publications, including Time, the Guardian (UK), the New York Observer, and National Journal.

Coulter clerked for the United States Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals and was an attorney in the Department of Justice Honors Program for outstanding law school graduates.

After practicing law for a firm in New York City, Coulter worked for the United States Senate Judiciary Committee. Following her tenure with the Senate, she became a litigator with the Center for Individual Rights in Washington, DC, a public interest law firm dedicated to the defense of individual rights with particular emphasis on freedom of speech, civil rights, and the free exercise of religion.

A Connecticut native, Coulter graduated with honors from Cornell University School of Arts & Sciences, and received her J.D. from University of Michigan Law School, where she was an editor of The Michigan Law Review.

For questions about passes, please telephone the Student Events Center at 512-475-6630.

Texan: Dems should act like Dems

By Karl-Thomas Musselman

The Daily Texan takes some shots at the state Democratic Party in today's editorial. Some of the choice lines...

The only surprise is that 18 Democrats voted for the ban; 16 didn't vote at all. Less than half of the state's Democratic reps actually voted against the gay marriage ban, an appalling statistic.

Monday's vote underscores the fact that Texas has no liberal party. The state's Democratic party is centrist, at best. They just look liberal compared to state's overly conservative population.

The "yes" vote from Patrick Rose, D-Dripping Springs, is particularly distressing. Rose, 26, went to UT Law School. If you can't count on a young Democrat from UT to support gay marriage, who can you count on?

In addition, in a separate story, the Texan seems to like me as after yesterday's front page photo, I get this quote in today.

Karl-Thomas Musselman, a government junior and representative with the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender and Allies Affairs Agency in Student Government, said there were more important things for the state to worry about than maintaining the status quo and preserving “the second-class-citizen standing of a group of people.”

“This legislation was created out of fear,” Musselman said. “This regulation is completely unnecessary to the function of the state.”

Texas Union not my Friend

By Karl-Thomas Musselman

I'm not happy with the Texas Union right now. University Democrats was there tonight working on making some T-shirts for our silent protest of HJR 6 (join us in the gallery Monday morning at 10 AM, look for the shirts that say "Hate is not a Texas Value" on them, and come wear one). Some manager person came over and asked us to please removed our pizza boxes, because we had ordered some from Austin's Pizza for the volunteers.

Why did we have to remove them? Because the Union apparently has some contract with Mustachio Pete's (also not a Union vendor) and can only allow their pizza to be eaten in their common dining area. We could eat it, the man said, if we ripped the tops of the boxes off with the competitor's labels on them. It was about the most ridiculous reason I can possibly think of to kick us out of the Union. Mr. Union Board Representative James Burnham has a blog, so if this is an issue or policy that he might have any control over, I'll be sure to let him know about this entry. So leave your comments. I hope it isn't against the rules to drink Starbucks or eat dorm food, or anything else that I might be eating while working on homework, socializing with friends, or meeting non-UT people for any particular reason. So much for a Student Union.

Kinky Comes to Campus

By Byron LaMasters

Kinky Friedman was on campus yesterday, yet for some reason I didn't notice.

Two bits of the Daily Texan article caught my eye:

Friedman said problems in education are linked to uncaring legislators who know little about education. [...]

Friedman fielded questions from students on city-wide smoking bans (which he opposes), education reform (which he encourages) and tuition deregulation (which he heard about for the first time yesterday).

Ok, so Friedman blames our problems in education on legislators who know little about education, yet he admits ignorance to one of the most important higher education issues in this state. Ok.... next.

Burnt Orange Report from the Floor

By Karl-Thomas Musselman

Agenda Here

Major Bills this Week:

AB1: The Election Improvement Act of 2005
AB2: Election Reform
AB3: Improving Student Government Operations
AB4: Internal Rules

7:15- This week we are in the Gregory Games room, in an attempt to appear "Open" and more Connected to students. Of course this happens every year so unless this is repeated more than once or twice, I'm not going to sound the bells for free and open government quite yet. The fact that KVR-News (new awesome website!) is here broadcasting the meeting and taping it for later in the week if far more productive to open government in my opinion. Though granted there are a few more non-SG people in the audience tonight, meaning more than Tim Allen (liveblogging), Director Kennedy, and the people who lost their way to the Vending Machine and stumbled in.

7:22- I'm so loving the rolling rrr's by El Presidenta Omar Ochoa of representative's names. Rrrrowwrrr!

7:23- The KVR camera gal behind me keeps talking on her headset and is upsetting many of us trying to listen to the President's Report.

7:29- Woot, Vice President's Report. Brummett rocks the house but kills the mood by mentioning the dreaded phrase "sign-up sheet". It gives me shudders every time.

7:30- Business Rep. Grant Stanis is just loving the cameras. I can't imagine how much more annoying it will be this meeting because of that. Maybe cameras are a bad idea after all, and to think that he has legislation up tonight, good grief!

7:40- Lots of cheering about SG getting a slot in the Orientation session over the summer. Are they mad?! More exposure, and to freshman... that should be helpful for building earlier ties to next year's SG campaigns.

Honestly I have a hard time blogging anything in the Exec reports. Especially considering I'm SOOOOO hungry.

7:43- Mmmm, Rep. Stanis suspends the rules! I'm sure that freaked out some of the KVR viewers that don't know it's standard procedure to do most anything. Of course, that would assumer there are people watching this (which would include me, Tim, and Director Kennedy if we weren't here).

Now up for approval to 2 Year at Large is Morgan Rucker. She's a freshman, coordinated the Jester dorm GOTV effort for Connect, lists Executive Director Dan Paschal as her reference, and just got approved without opjection or debate. Because asking questions, any questions might not look good on camera. Though I just realized that in SG elections, freshman drive the vote, but in reality are totally getting used by the upper-classmen that actually are on the ballot. A point to ponder.

7:52- Reps at the Mic. Smile for the cameras! E. Brummett sure is...

8:08- So I just got finished speaking at the mic, giving one of my few reports of the year. Plus I'm just a media whore like 80% of the people in the room. I hear I was subdued, though it's really just because I got the look from E-Brum (my new nickname for the VP) who I think was watching the clock. Hey at least mine wasn't as long as Elliott Reep's.

On to AB 1. As Tim has already noted, SEC has requested that the Union Board office be separated issue is now out of the bill. Rep. Stanis has an amendement to change wording related to solve the stacking issue that happens to fill the end of tickets. It's quite confusing to me so I'm not going to think about it.

Well, they tabled it for 20, so yay for getting that out of my mind.

8:35- I've been talking with Jennifer Harris (University policy Director, one of the new positions created by Omar) by aim, because we committee and agency chairs are totally about flouting the unwritten rule about AIM in the meetings. I'm glad to have helped her out with extending her battery life as she attempts to survive this meeting. I would support a resolution to have more plugs available for all of SG during meetings. Tracking down the best plugs are about the only reason I show up early most of the time.

8:49- Still not paying attention. This is why I wanted to just get rid of tickets, less talk about this kinda crap. I'm going to grab some food instead.

9:01 Yay for voting down moving the iPod raffle forward. People should have to suffer 5 hours of this if they really want it. Plus maybe no one will stay and SG can keep it and thus, make money off of it for having had not to give it away. And then give it to me.

9:45- And Tim and I are back from JCL to get food. The body was in the same debate as when we left, a motiong by Rep. Stanis to strike Section 3 from the Bill (which eliminated ticket labels from just the ballot). That of course, after all that debate we missed, failed.

Then the vote on AB 1 was up, and it passed 22-15. Hooray for watered down election reform. There was little fanfare.

AB 2 was withdrawn. AB 3 is now in debate. Why, I have no idea. But Director Chris Kennedy (ITECH) is not looking thrilled.

10:05- AB 3 passes. There was much rejoicing. I think because we got another piece of legislation behind us.

Talking now about the TSP resolution which is going to be tabled according to the author? I'm confused. Oh well, no matter.

Announcements time. This is the point where everyone talks but nobody listens. Compared to the meeting where everyone listens, but nobody cares.

I think the best part of tonight were the various attempts to move the iPod drawing to the next item on the agenda! The only remaining announcement will be the iPod winner which I will make in comment form.

10:20- I thought there would be nothing better, but someone is bringing up the fact that they might bring up a resolution next week complaining about the word "Blacklist" in the webmail system and that it should be changed to a more acceptable word like "Block". I know that here at BOR we use MT-Blacklist to deal with spam and you know what, it does a hell of a good job and you know what, it has nothing to do with blacks or negative connotations. Taking PC too far methinks.

The iPod. First went to Grant Cohen who wasn't here. Then it went to James Burnham, Connect's Union Board Rep which caused a bit of consternation and led me to motion that the UB people not be eligible which was denied I guess for not having a clue what kind of motion it was. Sorry, but it was far too much fun to argue about.

John Lewis at UT

By Byron LaMasters

Civil Rights leader, U.S. Rep. John Lewis (D-Georgia) will be at UT next week. Here's the info:

U.S. Rep. John Lewis, (D-Ga.) will be the featured speaker at the 19th annual Heman Sweatt Symposium on Civil Rights, which celebrates the 40th anniversary of the 1965 Voting Rights Act.

The symposium, April 25-29, will feature a week of activities at The University of Texas at Austin and is free and open to the public. Lewis’ keynote address will be given at 7 p.m., Friday, April 29 in the Lyndon Baines Johnson Auditorium, 2315 Red River St.

Preceding the talk, Lewis will sign his book, “Walking with the Wind,” at 6:15 p.m.

Ivy League Grad Students Strike

By Andrew Dobbs

I don't know how many Ivy Leaguer's read our website (my guess, very few), but I wanted to show our solidarity with striking teaching assistants and all other workers seeking to organize in a union.

One line in the story gave me pause:

University administrators say the strikes should have minimal effect on classes. The number of strikers was not immediately available because graduate students teach classes at different times throughout the day.

"All the classes and sections scheduled today appear to be covered, either because the grad student involved is not participating in the strike or because the faculty have made other arrangements," Yale spokesman Tom Conroy said.

Many Ivy Leaguers probably grew up in a family without union member parents. My father was a representative of something pretty close- he was the spokesman for the Richardson Police Officers Association (which could not strike). A reminder of strike ettiquette is in order. Unless you are a big fan of the Bush Administration, whose anti-union National Labor Relations Board refused to recognize the union last year, you should refuse to attend any scab-taught classes. Also, you should never cross a picket line. These are the basic rules of showing support for striking workers.

And a message to any scab TAs at an Ivy League college- you are among the lowest scum in my opinion. Your colleagues are putting their livelihoods on the line in order to fight for better benefits and pay for you. When you refuse to join them, and in fact side with an administration that is fighting to keep your wages low ($18,000 a year in Boston doesn't go very far) and to deny your family members health care, you are demonstrating your lack of courage and self-respect. Undergraduates should stand tall with striking TAs by declining to be taught by pusilanimous scabs.

Just thought I'd throw my two cents out there-- the University of Texas and Burnt Orange Report stands in solidarity with striking grad students.

(BTW- I haven't talked to our other authors, but we are all pretty strong union supporters, so I can't imagine that they'd differ. If you all do, let me know)

Liveblogging Kerry at UT

By Byron LaMasters

John Kerry is at UT today, and we have several thousand people packed into the Rec Sports center for his town hall meeting. I'm sitting next to Jim in the press section, and we'll be taking pictures and writing on the event. Sightings so far include U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-Austin), State Rep. Elliott Naishtat (D-Austin) and the Margot Clarke campaign greeted everyone with Margot flyers. Just what I need...

10:17: God I feel like it's Fall of 2004 again. Bruce Springstein is on in the background. It's kind of sad, actually. Back in the days when I actually believed that John Kerry would be the next president of the United States.... *sigh*

Jim takes over the keyboard

10:36: Sightings of city council candidates Jennifer Kim, Lee Leffingwell, 2002 state rep. candidates Jim Sylvester and Lulu Flores, and Sheriff Greg Hamilton.

10:38: And Bruce Elfant.

10:38: Looks like it's game time...

10:42: Senator Kerry gets a wild reception. A salmon tie? With polka dots. Boldness.

10:45: Rep. Doggett gets a few words in about this democracy thing.

10:47: Doggett does introductions. Notices Reps. Naishtat and Dunnam (Byron: "I thought I saw Jim Dunnam"), constable Elfant, family, etc. etc.

10:48: Lloyd: "Austin to Boston connection". Introduces Kerry in full.

10:48: Kerry: "I kinda expected I'd be in Washington and Bush would be back here in Texas..."

10:52: A few well-phrased swipes on Tom DeLay and the theocons = crowd goes wild!

Byron takes back his laptop

11:02: Kerry took a brief shot at Tom DeLay, and there was more wild applause. Wow, we're all on message, we're running against the Tom DeLay congress in 2006.

Kerry noted that he won won almost half a million more votes in Texas than Al Gore? I didn’t know that. Let's do some research here:

2004:

George W. Bush/ Dick Cheney(I) - 4,526,917 - 61.08%
John F. Kerry/ John Edwards - 2,832,704 - 38.22%

2000:
George W. Bush /Dick Cheney - 3,799,639 - 59.29%
Al Gore /Joe Lieberman - 2,433,746 - 37.98%

Ok, more like 400,000 votes more than Gore (not mentioning that Bush increased his Texas vote by over 700,000).

Ok, moving on. Kerry notes the disgrace that 11 Million kids are without health insurance in this county (one of four children in America). He talks about values and that Republicans value millionaires more than they value children.

Back to Jim

11:15: Dr. Garcia from down the street is talking about the lack of access to medical care for children without health insurance. It's a familiar tale, but one which bears repetition.

11:16: Kerry: "You see how personal it gets..." And it's true!

11:17: Kerry is opening up the floor for questions...

11:18: "On my campaign we never required anyone to sign in." (apparently, a swipe at the heavily-scripted Repulican 2004 campaign).

11:19: Takes a question from an Iraqi immigrant and former Massachusettian about missing money from CPA Iraqi Reconstruction.

11:20: Kerry: Will try to get Armed Services committee to look into it. Says a few words about Iraq. Says goal is to get American troops home.

11:22: Takes a question about Wal-Mart not providing health care to its employees. Incidentally, you can tell the Senator is from Massachusetts when he says "Wal-Maaaht." Talks about small businesses.

11:24: Takes a question from a woman who doesn't think she has health care insurance. Asks what can be done for middle class people. Kerry: "Great question!" Mentions guest who, ironically, could not be here because her child was sick. "The middle class in America is constantly under siege."

11:27: Kerry makes mention about Pell grants going down. Actually, I have a few thoughts about that. Will post later.

11:27: "Things didn't stop on November 2nd!"

11:29: Kerry talks about tax fairness, minimum wage, job creation. Hmm...

11:31: Fields a question about childhood obesity. Kerry: "soda pop machines in schools are crazy." And back to child immunizations.

Trying hard to keep the focus on health care.

11:32: Kerry says he's writing a book, "wants to change the language on the environment." Starts going off on a Lakoffian rant about framing of air quality issues, etc.

(HAHAHAHA, I'm sure Greg'll just love that!)

11:34: Kerry says parents can't take kids fishing in 28 states (or parts of 28 states?) because of poor water quality?!?! America is doomed.

11:35: Kerry talks about deductibles and co-payments, mechanics of the Kids First bill. Minus 20 points for excessive wonkery in a public forum (wink).

Byron Again

11:42: Kerry, “if it weren’t for the unconstitutional redistricting in Texas, we would have won” seats in Congress in 2004. Although he stretched things a bit by blaming retirements for the Senate losses, and noting gains in Colorado, New Hampshire and Montana as reason for hope. Ok, I guess it got someone energized, though. My friend in the row behind me started stomping his feet rather loudly in the bleachers as Kerry got another standing ovation.

11:43: Gosh, I never saw this one coming... questioner, "how can we help"? Kerry, "visit JohnKerry.com". Well, Kerry at least learned on thing from the campaign. Direct people to your website, and do it right. As long as no politician ever sends people to the wrong fact check website again...

11:48: Kerry calls on the guy in the Boston Red Sox cap. Someone came prepared.

Jim takes the keys

11:50: Questions about mental health parity, and the bankruptcy bill.

11:53 Byron, "There's Katy Hubener", HD 106 Democratic nominee in 2004.

11:56 Back to Congressman Doggett... Thanks Kerry for "inspiring thoughtful leadership."

11:57 Kerry takes his last question about health care for illegal immigrants. This is not sitting well with a lot of people. Managing to keep the hall togeher, Kerry says immigration system is "broken" and it needs to be compassionate. "We're a country of laws." Says we need "comprehensive reform" and "earned legalization." Diplomatic response with a dash of artful dodging maintains peace between pro- and anti- immigration attendees. Feel the love, America.

Burnt Orange Report from the Floor

By Karl-Thomas Musselman

Live, from the basement of the SSB, it's Burnt Orange Report from the Floor! Updates rolling on this exciting Student Government coverage in the extended entry as always... Tim Allen is liveblogging as well.

Oh, and if anyone wants to bring me food down here, leave me a comment or IM me at howarddean13.

The mood in the room is a bit chipper today, though it's still a bit empty as many of the appointments havn't been made yet for the Agency and Committee side of the room.

As Tim has already mentioned, Deputy to the President: Dr. Charles Roeckle is here, meaning it's a good time to take a nap, considering I had 2 hours of sleep last night. And by the way, he is soooo going over his 2 minute speaking limit for Open Forum if I remember correctly. (ed. 10 min now, thanks for reminding me Tim) BORFTF continues to wait for Vice President Elizabeth Brummett to entertain a motion to extend his speaking time.

7:30- Now Daily Texan Editor Ben Heath *swoon* is up to give an update about the propsal to remove Texan Editor Elections. I wish there was more to report at this point, but I think the big show would be the actual TSM board meeting where this would be discussed/voted on. Though it's interesting that no one in the Assembly really had questions, issues, stances on this that they want to question Ben about, beyond Director Chris Kennedy.

7:42- VP Brummett-"I'm entertaining and you can motion." You bet you're entertaining Ms. Brummett! You can entertain my motions at any time. Suspend the rules! Move appointments to the next Agenda item! Suspend the rules again! Move AB 1 to the next item! AB 1 is "In Support of Free and Open Source Software Awards" which was written by someone outside of the Assembly, Vlad Codrea, and is totally awesome! How often do you here "Mozilla Firefox Web-browser" in an SG meeting? So in that spirit, go download it (and Thunderbird for an e-mail client).

Just read the bill, it's awesome.

Whereas the use of Free and Open Source Software has already saved money for individuals, private businesses, and governmental agencies such as the cities of Munich, Germany and Bergen, Norway.

Whereas the governments of several third world countries including Brazil are switching from costly Non-Free Proprietary systems to Free and Open Source systems in order to provide disadvantaged children and low-income families with wider access to computers.

Approved by acclamation.

7:51- Henna Tayyeb, last's week's nominee for Internal Financial Director, is back up for a second time aften being rejected last week. Omar's looking on from the Exec table nodding as she notes "so long as Omar keeps bringing me back for appointment...because I know I can do this job". She had a largely pre-written speech answering point by point the charges leveled against her last week. I seriously hope that Reps continue to question her this week, as I personally don't know how much has changed.

Henna Money quote in response to Rep. Jack Waite's question..."No, I personally havn't taken any accounting classes, ...but I love Excel!"

I sense blood in the water though, which should make the actual debate period interesting in my opinion. Whoops, it seems that there will be no debate. Ok, that was really sad, voice vote. (Though Mr. President was certainly smiling.) Well, this should be a fun year. I'll hope for the bet, but I'm already missing the old Exec.

8:11- More appointments. Here is the list, if there is anything exciting, I'll mention it.

Alumni Relations Director – Jennifer McCook
Community Messages – Clayton Falls, Elgene Hernandez

8:20- VP Brummett is being snarky with her speaking power.

Student Forum Agency – John Norton, Amanda Johnson

8:25- John says, "Getting it done, snap, snap, snap." This has to be one of the more entertaining candidates. And Amanda Johnson is of course just awesome. *should be in the Assembly, cough, cough*

Underrepresented Recruitment and Retention Agency – Devin Fletcher, Yvette Garza

8:30- I find it a bit ironic that these people were not here, I daresay, they were 'underrepresented'.

Member Coordination Agency – George Hinchey, Nancy Almanza

8:34- Love Fest time! Approved.

Campus Safety – Elliott Reep, Bethany Huddleston

8:44- Rep. Grant Stannis attempted to amaze us with his Parlimentary skills (or by proxy prove how much larger a penis he has than the rest of the Assembly). He accomplished one of them, he did prove that he was a being a big dick. =) Love ya, Grant.

Bethany was being all "Oh I love Student Government, I'm so excited" like. I give that about two meetings before her soul is crushed.

Oh, the Underrepresented Appointees have now arrived (as has more snarkier commentary on my behalf).

Historical Research – Danny MacDonald

-not here

On and Off Campus Housing Agency – Madhavi Kasbekar, Colton Brugger

8:55- BORFTF Awards tonight for best hairdo/outerwear acessorizing go to Madhavi and Colton.

It should be noted at this time that I have completed my salad and am still quite hungry. I feel that I need more food...

Students with Disabilities – Lee Bagan
Student Services Agency – Steven Hargis, Amanda Surman
Student Services Fee Committee – Grant Stanis

9:27- Now we get to debate Stanis being on the SSFC. If I was president (which I'm very much not) I would not consider appointing conservatives to the most powerful committee in regards to student funds. *sigh* There is a lot of questioning, and it just reminds me how awful a Stanis Presidency would be in SG. I would totally resign.

Thanks to Director Kennedy and Former Arch. Rep. Mary Donaldson for asking Grant about his waltz-out last month, which didn't square with other comments he made. I personally worry that Stanis is going to represent himself, maybe the business school, and not really the rest of the student body when it comes to funding. It's a thing we always worry about in the Hill Country for local office, "personal agendas".

Oooo, it looks like we might move back out into debate after getting "this" close to voting. After some people learned this appointment only needed majority approval, not 2/3, they may have thought it was possibly to kill it. *Thanks to whomever was thinking that*

Grant attempted to appeal the ruling of the VP to send him out of the room during debate of his appointment. It failed. Now he's giving a very long winded speech. Sidenote, why do we seem to keep awarding people who walked out of the Assembly, with appointments? Two of them are on Exec, one of them (Grant) is now up for SSFC.

Time for debate!

11:07- And boy was there debate, there is a very good chance that the Assembly could knock this down. But after a short recess, Grant motioned to move to the next appointment, to allow some of his friends from Business Council to come. So we did, and moved back to allow them to speak. Unfortunatly the first speaker made some very true statements, that also brought up some of the very point why people would vote against Grant, i.e. representing the Business Council sooo well, and is always there for the Business School, and is against Flat rate tuition, and etc. The issue many people have is that as an appointment to a body where he would be representing the entire student body, he would still be only representing himself or the Business Council.

I must say this, I'm a bit startled by, and proud of, the Assembly's willingness to bite into some of these appointments (because we havn't gotten to bills yet so this is all I have to go on). Real debate is a nice change, though I am beginning to miss some of the personalities of the old Assembly. But I think that would happen next year as well.

And the Assembly passed it 19-14-1. I think I may be going home soon. I don't really have much of a reason to stay. I'm not sure if it will be worth it to try to hang out for the Reform Bills for discussion.

Survey Research Agency – Regina Dombkowski
Transportation Agency – Jim Kachelmeyer
External Appointments Director – Lauren Gilstrap
Freshman Leadership Organization – Seth Hayes
Transfer Student Agency – Taryn Dusek, Weston Carls
Outreach Agency – Christie Mechler, Carina Sahni
Faculty Council – Clare Richardson
Texas Student Media Board – Brandon Chicotsky
International Education Fee Scholarship – Lindsay Fitzpatrick
Medical Services Fee Advisory Committee – Sapan Shukla, Nicole Capriles
Student Health Center Advisory Committee – Clay Barnett, Saranya Chinnappan
Study Abroad Committee – Katy Castleberry, Charrisa Grubbs
UTSEES- Katherine Fillmore
VSLC Liaison – Alexandra Baer

SG Expanding?

By Karl-Thomas Musselman

A very interesting post over at the West Campus Insider, the blog run by James Burnham, (Daily Texan columnist, Union Board Representative from the Connect Ticket). Seems that the SG president needs an assistant. My own side question is whether this will be a paid spot or not? Let's hope there aren't any blue dresses around as well.

Rumor has it that new SG President Omar Ochoa has created the new position of "personal assistant." Apparently, there has never before been a need for the SG president to have his own personal assistant until this year, sort of a curious manuever. Perhaps I underestimate the tremendous workload of the student body president but it seems that a personal assistant is a tad excessive.

Also sort of amusing, the few people I know who have been approached about filling this (undoubtedly vital) role are all pretty attractive girls. I guess SG president has perks beyond getting to hobnob with UT bigwigs and being the biggest dog at the SSB.

UDems Webcam

By Karl-Thomas Musselman

This University Democrats have built a shack on campus for the Habitat for Humanity Shack-a-Thon and it survived tonight's rainstorm (since it's made of plastic campaign signs and wood. They also have a webcam out there so you can see what is happening, a project that we may expand to meetings and beyond.

View Webcam here.

Burnt Orange Report from the Floor

By Karl-Thomas Musselman

Picture of me kayaking on Town Lake after the UDems Endorsement Meeting. Now, on to the report....

It's the first meeting of the new Assembly. After a short open forum, it's appointment time. (Updates continuous, keep refreshing the extended entry). Tim Allen, SG fly on the wall, is also liveblogging here. It's his birthday!)

First up is Executive Director: Nominee is Dan Pascal, the External Financial Director on the last Exec. The Reps seem fairly quiet (timid) as far as wanting to ask questions or ask many real questions. Let's not kid ourselves here, Dan was the major campaign manager for Connect and this appointment to me smells a bit like a political favor. Props to 2 year at large Rep. Matt Ross (one of the primary proponents of the Election Reform bill) for asking some real questions. It's as if everyone here knows what people are trying to ask but no one wants to do that. Approved by acclamation.

2 Year at Large (Omar's now open seat): Danielle Rugoff! The queen of the at large reps on Ignite, she represents to me why the electoral system at UT is broken. She belonged in SG to begin with, and it's sad that this is the route she ended up having to go to be seated. Approved by acclamation.

Internal Financial Director: Henna Tayheb, one of the current 2 year at large reps. This will open up another Rep seat. Question from Rep. Hart on whether this position lets students down that voted for her last year as a 2 year Rep. Rumor had it that she was asked not to run on Connect in exchange for an Exec spot... surprise, surprise, look who's up for approval !!! And as an Agency whose budget is controlled by her, I'm going to keep the following statement in mind: "I don't think we should cut funding from Committee & Agency budgets at all..." At least the questioning is getting a bit more aggressive. Hart is asking that since she was a Rep last year, why didn't she get involved with the appropriations process when the last IFD put out the call.

More below the fold, continual updates.

Ooo! We are actually going to debate this one, there is a line of people on the No side, Rep. Hart, grad Rep. Pekker, 2 year at large Rep. Ross, 2 year Rep. Rodrigo Interiano. On the yes side was Director Chris Kennedy, and amazingly, Omar Ochoa (plus others). We now have members of the Assembly asking the outgoing Internal Financial Director how much experience plays into a successful term as the manager of all monies for Student Government; Jessica Rice doesn't answer directly, but intimates that she had taken all steps possible to gain the experience necessary to carry out her task. She also answers in the negative when asked whether or not the applicant ever contacted her or asked to meet with her to discuss the position and the responsibilities it entails.

(Elliott Reep Reporting: People from the floor begin to ask who else applied for the position, without a response. Representatives Heart and Ross state that this will significantly influence their vote. One new rep speaks from the floor to the affect that if anyone has a doubt that Henna is not the best person at this University for the job, then they should not vote for her. Advocates counter with examples of Henna's exemplary service in the MIC, her sorority, and other organizations. However, these still do not counter the arguments that when it come to experience for THIS position (which controls roughly 80,000 dollars for next years SG, plus all of the Committee and Agency money) Henna has not demonstrated in the past the same enthusiasm for this position that she claims to at this time. Henna is a wonderful person, but she does not seem to be as well prepared for the position of Internal Financial Director as the current holder of that office was when she applied a year ago. There seems to be a significant concern among a least a small portion of the assembly to this effect.)

Personally, I love the fact that this is being debated. The sooner the Assembly starts thinking for itself, the better for SG. A 3 minute recess was called and we reconvened for roll call. 2/3 majority needed (29 votes).

FAILED! 21-14-1 (Yes, No, Abstain). This is the first time I've ever seen the Assembly vote down a nomination (though there have been no votes cast before in the case of Brian Ferguson's appointment last year to TSP Board). I find it interesting that a lot of the no votes were holdovers from the last assembly, 2 year at larges, or the 9 member of the Ignite ticket. And Jessica Hart and Courtney Livingston (one of the Ticket Splitters) have gained a few points in my book for having the chutzpah to question appointments.

Moved out of business to talk about AR 1. It's voted on next week. Back into the flow to talk about appointment for Secretary which is Stephanie Weaver, an outsider to SG who's on top of her game according to Rep. Livingston. Secretary doesn't need to be close to SG (like IFD should be). Approved by acclamation.

Clayton Stewart, former Liberal Arts Rep. (and Ticket Splitter) is up for External Financial Director. I missed some of the discussion; it seems to be about Ring Sales and whether he knew the people in charge (i.e. Wes Carpenter who is in the room). Although there are some questions here, I'm not all that sure there will be any opposition for this. (Clayton reminds me of Dan in style, think southern drawl and a cowboy hat, if that was SG dress code...)

But wait, Rep. Matt Ross asked the hard question about him leaving last week, which presented a bit of discussion from the other people that walked out. But everyone voted to approve him anyways.

Communications Director: Nominee Stacey Torres, from the Multicultural Information Center. My first gut reaction, political payoff to the MIC/Latino community which basically elected President Ochoa's ticket. Of course, she seems qualified as well so I don't have a problem with it. But the Exec board, like in any year, is usually made up of political appointees, part of my personal complaints of the Ticket system. I'm going to ask her a question about her thoughts on an SG blog.

And I'm happy with her answer. Better online communication is my big issue with any Comm. Director and I hope that we can work to integrate that into the SG website. Approved.

Matt Stolhandske just came in and officially submitted his resignation from International Student Affairs. Matt's tried to work for reform in SG and I think is tired of being beaten back. I am proud to call him a friend and will be sad to see him leave.

University Policy Director: Jennifer Harris. Hasn't missed a single SG meeting in the last 2 years. Rep. Stanis brought up the question of whether we can just make up this office out of thin air and appoint someone to it without adding it to the SG bylaws yet. It's ok apparently. (but let's not forget to add it in later people). Approved.

Associate Communication Director: Jamie Baker. If talking a long time was a qualification, he should be the Director, not the Associate. Oh, he just mentioned the GLBTAAA! Approved.

Legislative Relations Agency Co-Directors: Daniel Becka and Sam Laine. Folks, I'm getting to the point where I don't have much to write about the nominees, so if I can't think of anything, I might just write who they are, pardon me. Approved.

Election Supervisory Board: Danforth Dougherty, a friend of mine from Liberal Arts Honors, and a current member of the Board (as well as a member of Tejas, which has lots of people in SG, including the past ESB chair and President Chaney, though that is a discussion for a different time.) Publicly against abolishing Tickets, and so called "impartiality" may be one reason he was selected before Ali Puente, who was the legal representative for Ignite to the ESB. Approved.

Campus Fusion: Bradforth Howard, Alyson Parchman. Approved.

Judicial Commission: Ali Puente. I'm so proud of her. Approved without objection! Sweet justice. Sweeter if it had been ESB Chair, but nonetheless, sweet.

Points of Interest: 15 Senators on board for the Student on the Board of Regents bill. I've heard that Tax Free textbooks is more of a dud issue now that the fiscal note on that increased by about $10 million.

Props for VP Brummet for running a really good meeting. The return of smooth parlimentary procedure makes me happy.

New Comm Director says the Assembly should go to Players afterwards. A University Democrats tradition for the last year or two, (going to Players) so I rose to make a comment about it, as well as say they cold join the "save players" facebook group, as it has been said that it will be knocked down to make way for the new UT Alumni Hotel.

Left-Wing Academics, etc.

By Jim Dallas

There's been much fuss about the supposed left-wing takeover of academia, which would be slightly amusing if it wasn't such a threat to academic freedom.

As I understand it, there's two premises which critics have. The first is that "the left" has taken over college campuses. The second is that this is somehow bad because it warps young minds.

For decades, college graduates have, in fact, been atleast as conservative than the general population for decades (which is a simple fact which has been shown over and over again, and not just for those baccalaurates who have grown up and "learned about the real world," although the effect gets amplified the older people get), which ought to disprove both points. Moreover, the liberality of post-grad degree holders has held statistically steady for decades, and possibly fallen. Both facts, I think, disprove at least one if not both of these premises. Crosstabs below the fold.

Ratio of Liberals to Conservatives among Young People
(18-30 year olds)

Source: General Social Survey. Cross-tabulation of POLVIEWS and DEGREE, controlled for black oversamples, selection filters are AGE(18-30) and YEAR([decade]), except for all, which is just a cross of POLVIEWS. Ratio is number of respondants slightly to extremely liberal over the number of respondants slightly to extremely conservative.

N is number of persons. The share of self-described moderates (2002,1992,1982) was 0.26,.21, 0.23 for post-grads; .21, .28, .28 for college grads, and .39, .40, and .38 for all 18-30 year olds. Incidentally, I do not find it a coincidence that college grads and graduate students are more ideologically polarized than their peers; ideological awareness and rigidity positively correlates with education. Consistently, about 5 percent of those with a high school diploma didn't know where they fit on a seven point scale. Only about 1 percent of college graduates could not do so. (Again, something we all knew already, I am sure.)

As I noted a few weeks ago, the overall population has not drifted towards conservatism, but it's clear that 18-30 year olds did - in a big way - in the 1980s, and hasn't really shifted back.

SG Special Session: A Bust

By Karl-Thomas Musselman

In yet another abdication of duty, a number of Student Government Voting Representatives did not show up for today's special session to discuss the three remaining bills that were on the Table for this Assembly to deal with. 17 Reps did show, though 26 were needed for a quorum.

Tim has a mini-liveblog record of the event here.

Your President-Elect Omar Ochoa waltzed in after the meeting was over, and I have yet to hear if VP-elect Elizabeth Brummet showed at all. Both are also current Reps. Grant Stannis, lead quorum buster, wasn't there either. Luckily, Rep. Laura Gladney-Lemon asked for a roll call of those that were there, so as soon as I have my hands on that I can do a better post. It's sad, because this means that election reform is most likely dead. The next assembly isn't interested as far as I know. I can't wait to read Monday's Daily Texan which should have a nice piece on this with a twist, since the new Assembly is seating on Tuesday (and sworn in tomorrow if I'm correct).

Ticket Splitters: Go to a Vote

By Karl-Thomas Musselman

List of E-mails of All Reps

Normally Ticket Splitting is a good thing in reference to SG. But a fellow Burnt Oranger here came up with a good name for the 5 people who purposefully left this Tuesday's meeting in order to kill any possible vote on Election Reform bills AB 18, 19, and 20.

The Splitters are-

Grant Stanis- Business Rep.- Grant.Stanis@mail.utexas.edu
Courtney Livingston- Lib. Arts Rep.- livingston@mail.utexas.edu
Henna Tayyeb- Two Year at Large- hennat@mail.utexas.edu
Clayton Stewart- Lib. Arts Rep.- cstewart@mail.utexas.edu
Jason Smith- Lib. Arts Rep.- Jsmith@mail.utexas.edu

Three of those are Liberal Arts reps, even though the other three Lib Arts Reps stayed to represent their college. Arguements were made by Clayton that the input he heard, from the Liberal Arts Council, was that they didn't like it. I'm sorry to say, but the LAC is not the Liberal Arts College at large. I'm in Liberal Arts, Ali Puente is in Liberal Arts, quite a few of the actual speakers at Tuesday's meeting were in Liberal Arts, most of the people I've talked to that are in favor were from Liberal Arts.

I'm sorry Clayton, Livingston, and Smith, but leaving without voting disables you from representing me or anyone else you claim to be representing. Though your vote no for the sake of the LAC seems misguided in my mind, your absence on Tuesday (and any absence on Saturday) is more than misguided, it's a mistake.

I encourage everyone that is a student to drop them a line along the theme of "Go to a Vote".

Here is the Daily Texan Op-Ed piece. My letter is below the fold.

List of E-mails of All Your Reps

Dear SG Representatives,

Karl-Thomas Musselman
Student
College of Liberal Arts

SG Meeting Called for Saturday

By Karl-Thomas Musselman

Here is the e-mail from President Brent Chaney calling a special session of SG for this Saturday at 8 am to hopefully discuss and vote on the election reform bills. This is from the "secretive insider listservs" that I think some have claimed in the Texan, meaning, the representatives and committee/agency listservs.

Dear Student Government Members,

After watching our assembly debate last night for over six hours I do not personally agree that our assembly and Student Government members have all of the information needed to vote, but I will never be the one to stop a vote from taking place. Therefore, I am calling a Special Session for this Saturday at 8 AM in a location that will be sent out very soon (Glen Maloney Room, basement of the SSB as always).

I need every Representative to do more research until the meeting. It is obvious from the e-mails and calls I have received there are many different points of view among our student body. Many of them believe we are rushing this through at the last second. Student Government took one of the worst PR blows I can remember today. Everyone is responsible.

In comparison to most bills in the Assembly, it had more time for members to find out about it, do research, attend forums, etc. than other bills they complain are rushed. Is there any bill in the Assembly that has some level of controversy that isn't decried as being 'rushed'? If Brent went to more than one meeting on the Bi