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Lone Star Report Recent Blog Posts
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By William Lutz on
7/30/2010 4:40 PM
Today’s accountability ratings didn’t come from Lake Wobegon, they came from the Texas Education Agency. But they still ranked a substantial majority of campuses and districts above average (officially: exemplary or recognized).
Commissioner of Education Robert Scott unveiled state accountability ratings at a press conference at Texas Education Agency headquarters today. According to the new ratings, 239 Texas School Districts are exemplary and 597 are recognized, while only 298 received an academically acceptable rating and 30 were ranked unacceptable (formerly called low performing).
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By Andy Hogue on
7/30/2010 4:14 PM
Texas consumers may have to pay hundreds of millions of dollars for an energy efficiency program that may not be effective, according to a report released this week by the Texas Public Policy Foundation and the Institute for Energy Research.
The report, “Energy Efficiency: Is Texas Getting Its Money’s Worth?” is on the Foundation’s Web site, www.TexasPolicy.com.
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By Andy Hogue on
7/30/2010 4:11 PM
Bill White, Democratic nominee for governor, accused incumbent Gov. Rick Perry of giving a job creation grant to an investor associated with one of Perry's land deals – and that the particular investor failed to meet job creation goals.
White spoke at a press conference in his downtown Austin campaign headquarters today, calling for an audit of the Texas Enterprise Fund. His staff passed out a report titled "Rick Perry's Cash for Favors Land Deal Scandal," which charged that in 2006 the Governor dispensed with the usual 11-step process in doling out a $2.5 million Texas Enterprise Fund grant to Swearingen Aircraft Corporation of San Antonio. He further charged that most records surrounding the transaction were destroyed.
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By William Lutz on
7/30/2010 10:37 AM
In last week's issue, I wrote an article naming what I believe are the ten most competitive races in Texas (the article is available on the current newsletter page for Lone Star Report subscribers). The first six or so I named were easy – races that obviously would be amongst the most competitive in the state. Beyond that, narrowing down the most competitive 15 or so to 10 is really a judgment call and was very difficult.
Also, I accidentally left the race between Rep. Tim Kleinschmidt (R-Lexington) and Pati Jacobs (D) off my sleeper list. It should have been included on the sleeper list, though as an incumbent, I still think Kleinschmidt will win re-election by a comfortable margin.
Of the races I put on the list, the ones I felt most tentative about were Turner-Zedler, Bolton-Workman, and Herrero-Scott.
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By Andy Hogue on
7/28/2010 2:59 PM
Recently sworn-in Texas Senate member Brian Birdwell (R-Waco) released a statement today denying that he voted in two states on the same general election day.
“There are inaccurate news reports published today which contain false information concerning my voting record," Birdwell said in a press release around noon today. "Let me be crystal clear. I have never, ever voted twice in the same election, and that charge is particularly offensive to a soldier who holds the voting process as honored and sacred."
Without naming a news story in particular, Birdwell said the account claimed he voted in Tarrant County on Nov. 2, 2004, and also in Prince William County, Va., that same day.
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By Andy Hogue on
7/26/2010 4:00 PM
Democratic gubernatorial hopeful Bill White took a high-profile swipe at Rick Perry at the Sheriffs' Association of Texas Annual Training Session today, while the Republican incumbent announced the support of eight Democratic border region sheriffs -- two of whom are also claimed by White.
The White campaign retorted with a press release claiming the support of 10 out of 15 sheriffs "whose county lines touch the border." We take a look at the campaigns' math -- as well as the dual endorsements -- below:
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By Mark Lavergne on
7/26/2010 2:43 PM
Today Atty. Gen. Greg Abbott filed a legal challenge against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's decision to disapprove of Texas' flexible air permitting process, which leaders in Texas including Gov. Rick Perry have said is crucial to Texas' economic success and air quality improvement.
Abbott's petition for review can be viewed here.
The flex permitting program, which has been in place since 1994, allows emitters to allocate emissions on a facility-wide basis rather than by source point, allowing producers to raise emissions in one area of a facility and lower them in others, granting them more flexibility to meet the clean air standards. The EPA rejected the program on July 15, 2010 on the grounds that it did not fit well into the regulatory framework of the federal Clean Air Act.
The AG's office filed today's challenge against the EPA on behalf of TCEQ in "an effort to defend the state's legal rights and challenge improper overreach by the federal government," according to a release from the AG's office. EPA Spokesperson Joe Hubbard issued the following statement to LSR today in response to the AG's action:
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By William Lutz on
7/24/2010 12:37 PM
LAS VEGAS -- Conservative bloggers are more independent than their liberal counterparts. That is a key theme of the Right OnLine conference hosted at the Venetian Hotel by Americans for Prosperity.
Connecting this close to home, Dr. Melissa Clouthier, a Houstonian whose popular twitter handle is @MelissaTweets, led a panel on how to organize conservatives via the Internet. At that panel discussion, several of the speakers noted that Democrats have several donors who are – for all intents and purposes – on campaign payroll, whereas most conservatives bloggers are doing so of their own resources. In other words, internet liberals are about organizing while internet conservatives are about communicating.
A perfect example is Texas’s Burnt Orange Report. The blog basically distributes candidate and party talking points. The folks that run Burnt Orange Report admit on their own website, that they do paid political consulting for campaigns. Read More »
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By William Lutz on
7/24/2010 12:21 PM
LAS VEGAS – Sometimes it’s amazing the power of words. Today’s Americans for Prosperity Right OnLine conference is occurring at the Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas. At the conference’s general session today, delegates heard from Andrew Abboud, vice president of government relations and community development for Las Vegas Sands Corp, the parent company of the Venetian.
Abboud told delegates that when President Barack Obama told the American people last year that businesses taking stimulus funds should not go to Las Vegas, the impact on the hotel was immediate. Abboud told delegates that the Venetian lost $6 million in hotel room revenue due to cancellations occurring in the immediate aftermath of Obama’s speech. He said the lost food and beverage tab came to about $5 million. And that’s just one hotel. Imagine the impact on the whole city of Las Vegas, which is currently experiencing 15 percent unemployment.
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By Mark Lavergne on
7/23/2010 9:32 PM
In a Senate District 22 executive committee meeting called today in Waco by Republican Party of Texas Chairman Steve Munisteri, eight county Republican chairmen from the district unanimously nominated Sen. Brian Birdwell (R-Granbury) as the Republican candidate in the upcoming November election for the seat formerly held by Kip Averitt.
Last month, Birdwell won a runoff against former Sen. David Sibley to finish out Averitt's term.
From a Republican Party of Texas press release:
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