Bio:
I've grown up in Austin my whole life. I've graduated from UT. My thesis was an adaptation of Bob Dylan's album "Highway 61: Revisited" into a play. Something worth noting: if you take me to lunch at Dirty's, I'll write anything you want.
If you need any further proof that the Affordable Care Act is working in Texas, here's a simple compare and contrast between the policies of Texas Governor Rick Perry and those of President Barack Obama. Be sure to check back all week for more on how the Affordable Care Act is working in Texas, and sign our Progress Texas pledge defending the Affordable Care Act.
The key policies contrasted above are:
Current - This is our status quo.
Governor Perry's Plan - If Texas opts out of Medicaid, like Perry wants, 2.55 million more Texans will lose their health care coverage. (Source - Dallas Morning News)
President Obama's Plan - If the policies of the Affordable Care Act are allowed to be set in place, then 91% of the state of Texas is expected to have health care coverage in the coming years. (Source - Houston Chronicle)
Learn more about how the Affordable Care Act is working in Texas below the fold.
The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) is a corporate clearinghouse for the promotion of "model bills" that pad bottom lines of corporations at the public's expense. Over the last few months, Progress Texas has looked at ALEC and their influence on the Texas Legislature. Last week, our ongoing research culminated in the first of a series of reports detailing the influence of ALEC on Texas laws and lawmakers.
The report explains ALEC’s corporate agenda, outlines the money trail from ALEC corporate members to Texas lawmakers, and highlights how legislators take ALEC’s corporate-approved “model” bills and implements them in Texas. From 2001 to 2011, Texas lawmakers have received over $16.2 million from ALEC corporations, which is the second highest total among states. Rick Perry is the largest single recipient of ALEC-related funds nationwide, having received more than $2 million from ALEC corporate members from 2004-2011. The report also describes the cozy relationship between ALEC and the extreme right-wing group the Texas Public Policy Foundation, who regularly partners with ALEC to promote its corporate "model" bills here in Texas.
The Texas Legislature should be a laboratory for democracy, not a corporate clearinghouse for padding bottom lines at the public’s expense. ALEC Exposed in Texas shines light on the corporate lobbyists that craft cookie-cutter laws behind closed doors to put the profits of global corporations over creating better lives for Texans.
$2,651,429.14. That's the estimate of how taxpayer money Texas Governor Rick Perry spent on his 160-day amateur presidential campaign. Here's how we crunched the numbers:
According to records released by the Texas Department of Public Safety and published by the Texas Tribune, we can project Perry’s security costs from the day he officially announced his candidacy (August 13, 2011) to the time he suspended his campaign (January 19, 2012). Here is the total amount of taxpayer dollars spent during the 24-day window for which Texas DPS has released records:
September 5 – September 28 (24 days)
Airfare
$161,786
Baggage fees
$8,140
Food
$50,648.84
Fuel
$6,442.24
Lodging
$112,111.81
Parking
$2,990.26
Rentals
$54,356.65
Other
$1,238.57
TOTAL COSTS
$397,714.37
That gives us one look into the window. But what about the weeks before and after? We can project the costs from August 13 to September 4 and from September 29 to January 19 based on the exact figures we have. Our estimates show Perry’s security costs as follows:
Rick Perry’s Security Travel Costs During his Presidential Campaign
Thankfully, Perry has options: he has nearly 93% of what he owes taxpayers in his state PAC. With $2,471,479.55 in his state account, that means he'd be only $179,949.59 in debt to the taxpayers of Texas -- provided he uses his state account to reimburse the state for his travel, of course. Should Perry run into trouble with the rest of his debt, I'm sure he can tap his new national donor base and the extra money he receives each year from his double-dip of retirement and salary from the job he technically has both retired from and still holds -- Governor of the State of Texas.
With a budget battle looming and conservatives threatening to go through another round of drastic cuts, the $2.65 million Perry owes taxpayers should be repaid immediately.
If I told you a candidate had more than enough money to fully compete, was the darling of the Christian right due to his mastery of Southern Strategy Politics, and that the Republican Primary Calendar was front-loaded with primary voters that overwhelmingly consider themselves very conservative......and the other candidate also had enough money, but was a Mormon from Massachusetts that could barely string two words together when talking about jobs, who would you bet on?
Yes, Rick Perry is still likely to beat Mitt Romney. No amount of mush-mouthed debate flubbing is going to change that. After all, just look at what Mitt Romney did less than three weeks ago when he laid out his jobs plan:
I've thoroughly enjoyed watching everyone pile on Rick Perry as much as the next person. The "conservative pundit class" certainly seems to have enjoyed it, as well -- over the last four days, it's all they have talked about. So much so that Perry has them right where he wants them, for these simple reasons:
Nothing helps a front-runner like lowering the bar for success
Money talks far more than debates, and Perry may be about to announce a boatload
The difference between a Christian vs. a Mormon in the Republican primary is like the difference between a Democrat and a Republican in the Democrat primary
The Republican Primary Calendar gives Perry lots of reasons to be hopeful
I'll go into these four issues -- especially the Republican Primary Calendar one -- in the coming days. For now, though, Rick Perry had a bad week. Everyone has bad week's. But one bad week does not a campaign make, and Mitt Romney hasn't yet received "The Hutchison Treatment" from the Perry team.
Enjoy his stumbles from last week, Democrats. But keep your guard up.
After serving almost 24 years in the U.S. House of Representatives, Congressman Ron Paul told The Facts exclusively this morning he will not be seeking another term for the District 14 seat. Paul, 75, will instead focus on his quest for the presidency in 2012. “I felt it was better that I concentrate on one election,” Paul said. “It’s about that time when I should change tactics.” His announcement will give enough time for anyone with aspirations for his seat to think about running, he said. Paul didn’t want to wait for filing in the 2012 primary to let people know he wasn’t seeking reelection.
With Paul's retirement, two key questions immediately come to mind: who is going to replace him, and how serious is he going to commit to running for President? Is a potential third party candidacy in the cards, because that would make things really, really interesting...
On who could replace him, lots of names immediately came to mind. Quorum Report, State Representatives and Senators with a "sizable" chunk in the newly drawn Congressional District 14 include Rep. Ritter (R), Rep. Deshotel (D), Rep. Eiland (D), Rep. Larry Taylor (R), Rep. Bonnen (R), Rep. Weber (R), Sen. Jackson (R), Sen. Williams (R) & Sen. Huffman (R). Galveston Mayor Joe Jaworski, a Democrat, is also someone who could be looking at the race.
Lightseeker takes us on a quick tour of the Perry prayer tactic over the last 10 years to make a point: when you discuss his upcoming Prayer Summit, don't fall into the trap of yelling "church and state", at least not only and not first. Check it out: Talking Back to Perry's Prayer Summit.
The Three Stooges -- Susan Combs, Todd Staples, and Jerry Patterson -- staged an eye-poking, face-slapping, hair-pulling pie fight as the Battle for Texas Lieutenant Governor in 2014 broke out early. PDiddie at Brains and Eggs reports from the front lines.
Off the Kuff looks at the opening arguments of the lawsuit over the sonogram bill, which didn't go in the direction people expected it to go.
This week on Left of College Station, Teddy returns after taking a hiatus from blogging to take a look at Governor Rick Perry's far right radical social conservative appointment to the Texas State Board of Education.
Neil at Texas Liberal wrote about two books of New Deal Era Texas art that show Texans working together and respecting the land. This stands in sharp contrast to the current reality of Texas where greed, anger at people who are different, and exploiting public resources with no concern for the future are the order of the day. There are resources out there---in addition to your imagination and hard work---that offer Texans a path to a more hopeful way of everyday living.
To be upfront, I recognize that it can be troublesome to compare apples and oranges. Unless Congressman Lloyd Doggett and Rep. Joaquin Castro are casting the same votes, how can you truly compare their voting records? This is, obviously, a problem, but the concerns raised thus far on BOR about the progressiveness of Rep. Castro and Cong. Doggett don't seem to be about any one issue. Instead, the focus appears to just be on how "progressive" each person is. The comments below, from when I first wrote about the potential race in the newly drawn CD-35, provide a good insight into what I'm talking about:
I think Castro may be too quiescent and cooperative with the radical republicans currently in place. Maybe I'm wrong and he'll be just as fierce an advocate and defender as Doggett has been. That would be great. Unfortunately, I'd rather just vote for the original. I'm advocating real leadership and persuasion rather than the current phony bipartisanship and equanimity. - Mcblogger
The wise thing for progressive Democrats to do is to leave a proven, effective US Congressman, with seniority, in office working for all Texans. - ssuits
Lloyd Doggett has been by far the best member of the Texas Congressional Delegation and I say that without hesitation. He has been there for us when quite frankly, there have been Texas Democrats who have not walked the walk. And so I'm going to be there for him. For that reason, I strongly support Lloyd Doggett. He has done the job and will continue to the job the way he has always done. - v2aggie2
That left me wondering - how progressive are the two likely candidates for the newly drawn CD-35? The result may surprise you.
How Progressive Are Congressman Doggett and Representative Castro?
Rep. Castro's rating is based on an analysis compiled by Mark Jones of Rice University, who evaluated "nearly 1,000 votes" to come up with his numbers. Congressman Doggett's rating is based on an analysis by National Journal, which creates individual scores on economic, social, and foreign policy votes and then generates one composite score. (Update: To compare among Democrats w/in their respective chambers, Rep. Castro ranked 12th out of 49 Democrats - putting him in the top 24% among Democrats in the Texas House, while Congressman Doggett ranked 147th out of 256 Democrats - putting him in the top 57% among Democrats in the U.S. House.)
Throughout the campaign, both Congressman Doggett and Representative Castro will have to -- and should -- answer lots of questions about policies, past and future, and where they stand. I expect Congressman Doggett to have a much greater understanding of federal issues, given how long he's been in office. But, at least on its face, these numbers should put to rest concerns that Rep. Joaquin Castro would not be a progressive enough member of Congress for Austin.
Yesterday, Rep. Joaquin Castro had an event at Juan in a Million for his campaign for Congress. Rep. Castro is running for the newly drawn CD-35 seat, an open seat that runs from southeastern Austin to San Antonio. I, along with several other BOR writers past and present, attended the event. The most notable person in the 125-person crowd (approximate) was former Austin Senator Gonzalo Barrientos, who came in and was immediately welcomed with enthusiasm by those in attendance.
State Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-San Antonio, brought his message Thursday to a gathering at Juan in a Million, a popular East Austin restaurant and frequent stop for politicians. More than 100 people turned out for the first campaign event in the race.
Castro is running to represent District 35, a newly drawn district that runs from Austin to San Antonio.
U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett, an Austin Democrat who has served for nearly 17 years in Congress, said he will run for re-election if officials sign off on the district's constitutionality.
Doggett could have an uphill climb. District 35's population would tilt toward San Antonio, and about 58 percent of the district's voting-age population is Latino.
Castro said Thursday that the country needs a sound health care system and improved education.
He also talked about fighting congressional Republicans and bolstering business opportunities - such as clean energy - along the corridor between Austin and San Antonio.
Rep. Castro was asked what differentiates him from Congressman Lloyd Doggett, and whether or not he would be a progressive voice for Austin. This is a concern/argument I've heard raised by many in Austin, especially those touting Congressman Doggett's candidacy in the newly drawn district. Rep. Castro noted that since he was elected in 2003, he's often been ranked as one of the most liberal/progressive members in the Texas House. He also discussed how he has maintained that record while also working with Republicans, pointing out that he successfully passed two spending amendments onto the Republican-crafted Texas budget - a claim few, if any, other Democrats in the Texas House can make.
Who else went to the event? What were your thoughts and impressions?
U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett, the nine-term, liberal Austin congressman, foiled Republicans’ efforts to redistrict him out of office in 2003 and intends to do it again in 2012, living “in a Winnebago, if that’s what it takes,” to vie for a newly-drawn district that encompasses San Antonio’s most Democratic and Hispanic neighborhoods and spreads up to southern Travis County.
The Republican Legislature drew him a bad map again this year, and getting through March's Democratic primary could be a doozy. At a minimum, Doggett will face State Rep. Joaquin Castro, a 36-year-old rising star in his party who has politics in his DNA - his identical twin brother Julián is San Antonio's mayor - and grew up in one of the San Antonio neighborhoods central to the new district.
Under the proposed Congressional map that "gerrymanders more than nine million Latinos in Texas to make sure that we have no more electoral opportunity than we did in 1991," Travis County, nor the Austin area, contains a Congressional District solely represented by a Democrat. Many in the Austin area, and Travis County community, want to ensure that a Democrat that lives in Austin represents them in Congress, and I expect many who read Burnt Orange Report will strongly favor Congressman Doggett. The congressional district was drawn with the express purpose of removing Congressman Lloyd Doggett from office.
But Representative Joaquin Castro is a great elected official, one who is an excellent spokesperson for the American Dream and the future of our country. As the Tribune story above notes, the district is weighted to favor an Hispanic from San Antonio, and the financial advantages Congressman Doggett currently possesses are leveled out, at least initially, by the numbers of the district.
It will be an interesting race, and one I hope Burnt Orange Report will cover closely in the weeks and months to come.
Here in Texas, news organizations like the Texas Tribune can barely hold their breath about how much they want to see Rick Perry run. Too many in Texas have seen Perry win -- forgetting all the many mistakes his campaigns have made -- and think he could easily run in a national Presidential race.
Well, Rachel Maddow did an amazing job destroyong the biggest bubble Perry loves to tout -- his economic record. Here it is below:
