Scott Walker Not Connecting in Texas

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Scott Walker has yet to tap into the incredible cache of money held by wealthy conservative Texans desperate to elect another Republican President.  Mother Jones reports that Walker has made no inroads in Texas and conservative power brokers are being snatched up by other better-financed candidates.

The union-busting Wisconsin governor may be a conservative darling, but he’s way behind the curve when it comes to courting Texas’ biggest money men. Bill Miller, a top Texas lobbyist who regularly advises megadonors on their contributions, says he’s heard almost no buzz from the donor class about Walker. In the past, Miller has worked with major political benefactors including the late Bob Perry, a Texas home builder who gave more than $70 million to conservative causes over the years and was the major funder behind the 2004 Swiftboat Veterans for Truth group. This year Miller says he’s talked to clients about many of the Republican candidates, but not Walker.

“No one is asking about him,” Miller says. “None of our clients. We have a huge client base. It’s oddly quiet for a guy that’s supposedly top three among the potential nominees.”

According to Miller, almost all of the top-tier candidates—including Jeb Bush, Marco Rubio, and Rand Paul—have come knocking on the doors of Texas donors. But Walker has not had much of a presence in the state.

“Among all those guys who are acknowledged at the top, he’s the one guy who is nowhere. Even Chris Christie has had more resonance here,” Miller says.

Jade Helm 15 Update

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On the first day of Jade Helm 15 – the not so covert operation where Obama (the Kenyan Muslim Socialist Terrorist Sympathizing duly elected President) is coming to take away our wives, children and most importantly guns – the sneaky jack-booted thugs of the U.S. military confounded the Tea Party whack jobs by failing to round up any wives or children or confiscate any guns.  The Guardian (a notorious leftist rag) played into Obama’s hands by noting that absolutely nothing had happened in Bastrop (the epicenter of the conspiracy) on the first day of the exercise which will ultimately spell doom for our democracy and the American way of life as we know it.

A “Come and Take It” flag, one of Texas’s favourite symbols of defiant independence, flew proudly on a pole outside a ranch near Bastrop on Wednesday.

But on the  first day of Jade Helm 15, no one appeared to be coming, let alone taking anything.

A small town near Austin with a quaint Victorian downtown, Bastrop is supposed to be a hub of the vast US military training exercise that spans seven states and runs until September 15.  But Wednesday seemed to be a day like any other in Bastrop – which is to say not much was happening.

Jade Helm still has more than eight weeks to run. But none of President Obama’s jackbooted minions had mounted an assault on the Simply Sweet cupcake store on Bastrop’s main street, as of Wednesday afternoon. No Humvees were parked outside The Best Lil’ Hairhouse in Texas, which was still styling customers. A poster in the window of the tourist information centre promoted a seniors’ quilt raffle.

It’s the calm before the storm.  Bury your guns now.  Bury your wife and children at your own risk.

Today in Texas History – July 16

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From the Annals of the Border Wars –  In 1931, the “Red River Bridge War” reached a new level of confrontation when Gov. Ross Sterling ordered a detachment of Texas Rangers to prevent use of a newly constructed free bridge over the Red River.  The bridge which had been built by Texas and Oklahoma connected Denison and Durant, Oklahoma.  The problem arose when the Red River Bridge Company, which operating a toll bridge running next to the new bridge, filed suit in U.S. District Court seeking an injunction preventing the Texas Highway Commission from opening the bridge. The RRBC claimed breach of an agreement by the THC to purchase the toll bridge and damages for its unexpired contract as a condition for opening the new bridge.  The court granted a temporary injunction Sterling had barricades erected preventing access to the bridge from the Texas side.  Oklahoma Governor William (Alfalfa Bill) Murray claimed that Oklahoma’s “half” of the bridge ran lengthwise north and south across the Red River, that Oklahoma held title to both sides of the river from the Louisiana Purchase treaty of 1803, and that the state of Oklahoma was not named in the injunction. On July 16, Oklahoma highway crews crossed the bridge and took down the Texas barricades.  Sterling responded by ordering The Texas Rangers to rebuild the barricades and protect Texas Highway Department employees charged with enforcing the injunction.  In response, Murray ordered Oklahoma highway crews to tear up the northern approaches to the still-operating toll bridge closing traffic over the river.   The Texas Legislature resolved the controversy by  passing a bill granting the RRBC permission to sue the state in order to recover its damages.   This allowed the injunction to be dissolved and  the free bridge was opened to traffic, but not before some additional grandstanding by Murray who had declared martial law on both sides of the bridge.  The controversy ended with no shots fired and no injuries.

Photo from heralddemocrat.com

Jade Helm 15 is Here – Run

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Well today is the day that the right-wing conspiracy theory Tea Party whackos have been waiting for.  The Feds are finally here to round up your women, children and most importantly guns.  That is, if they just don’t kill you right off the bat and haul your carcass away in a Blue Bell Ice Cream truck.  Yep, that’s the latest theory.  The Army will be using the obviously underutilized refrigerated trucks to transport bodies of those on the “Red List” to other undisclosed sites for – well it’s not really clear what for.  Or the whole thing is a cover up to put troops in place for the giant asteroid that is going to strike the southwest in September.  Or the gurus of Russian mind control are going to convert everyone into a Democrat.  Or maybe the Army is going to use the Russian troops spotted in Tennessee to do the dirty work of rounding up and killing the real patriots of the Tea Party.  Or after the jack-booted troops establish control, Obama is going to fly into Phoenix, personally pistol whip Jan Brewer and declare himself Emperor for Life.  Or maybe it’s just an Army training exercise.

County Clerk Refuses to Follow Law – Offers No Explanation

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Off the Kuff report that Irion County Clerk Molly Criner is refusing to issue marriage licenses to same sex couples.  Her only explanation appears to be “I can’t do that.”

Criner, clad in a hot magenta knee-length skirt, white long-sleeve shirt and brown hair flowing loosely around her shoulders, extended her hand as she walked in and asked for the women’s names.

“We just need a marriage license,” one of the women repeated.

“Ok,” Criner sighed, “well, I can’t do that. But the clerk’s office in San Angelo is only 25 miles [away] and they’d be happy to issue one. I just can’t.”

For minutes the dialogue continued, the women questioning Criner as to why she was refusing and whether she had the paperwork and authorization. She responded that she does have the paperwork and is authorized, but repeated that she “just can’t do it.”

Referencing her staff, all of whom she said have issued marriage licenses to heterosexual couples in the past, Criner explained that no same-sex certificates would be coming out of her office. “I have not delegated my authority to them to do it, so they don’t have a choice,” Criner said. “You know, we all believe very strongly in what we believe, and I admire you for that. I really highly recommend 25 miles down the road, where you can get a license in Tom Green County.”

What Ms. Kriner can’t do is perform one of the essential functions of her office which is following the law that she took an oath to uphold.  What Kriner can do is resign if she cannot perform the job she was elected to do.

Today in Texas History – July 15

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From the Annals of the Indian Wars –   In 1839, the main battle of the Cherokee War was fought a few miles west of Tyler.  The Battle of the Neches was the culmination of a genocidal campaign that began when President Mirabeau B. Lamar announced that the time had come for an “exterminating war” on Texas Indians. Lamar and his administration refused to recognize earlier treaties with the Cherokees in East Texas.  To foment war, Lamar accused Cherokees and their the Kickapoos, Delawares and Shawnee of planning to join Mexico in an insurrection.  Texan troops under the command of General Thomas Rusk were sent to remove the Indians from their recognized lands. Under pressure, Chief Duwali (aka Chief Bowl or Bowles) led an evacuation of their main town.  But that did not satisfy the Texans who attacked the Indians at dusk on July 15. The first day’s battle proved indecisive, but on July 16, Texas troops led by Rusk and Edward Burleson routed the Cherokees and their allies near the headwaters of the Neches River in Van Zandt County. Chief Duwali was on horseback but was dismounted and wounded.  He continued the fight on foot but was hit again. As he sat wounded on the battlefield a Texan soldier executed him with a shot to the head. Reports were that 100 Indians were killed in the attack.  Texans claimed only 5 dead and 28 wounded.  The survivors fled to the Indian Territory. This was the end of any major Indian presence in East Texas.

Drawing of Chief Duwali from http://texas-history-page.blogspot.com/2015_03_01_archive.html

Quote for the Day

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“Ken Paxton is an ethics dumpster fire that might be spreading.  Governor Abbott and state regulators failed to take action to enforce the law, and Texans deserve to know why.  Governor Abbott should stop hiding from the Paxton scandal hoping it will go away.”  

Lone Star Project Director Matt Angle.

Not sure what an “ethics dumpster fire” is but it sure sounds bad.

Profiles in Courage – However Misguided

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Rusk County Clerk Joyce Lewis-Kugle resigned her office rather than have to comply with the U.S. Supreme Court decision legalizing gay marriage by issuing marriage licenses to same sex couples.  Lewis-Kugle who was first elected in 2006 explained her reasons in her resignation letter to County Judge Joel Hale.

“Before taking office, I was required to take an oath to uphold the laws of this State and the United States. Due to the recent decision by the Supreme Court, the laws I swore to have now changed.”

I disagree with her views, but Lewis-Kugle did the honorable thing by resigning her office rather than complaining or engaging in grandstanding like some other Texas county clerks.

Of course, Red is also willing to bet that Lewis-Kugle will attempt to leverage her resignation into a run for another office as she will undoubtably be viewed as a Tea Party martyr.

Birthright Citizenship Under Fire in Texas

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The Texas Observer reports that undocumented parents are increasingly unable to obtain birth certificates for their children born in the U.S.

For nearly 150 years, the United States, under the 14th Amendment, has recognized people born here as citizens, regardless of whether their parents were citizens.

But Texas has other plans. In the last year, the state has refused to issue birth certificates to children who were born in Texas to undocumented parents. In May, four women filed a civil rights lawsuit against the Texas Department of State Health Services alleging constitutional discrimination and interference in the federal government’s authority over immigration.

Jennifer Harbury, a lawyer with Texas RioGrande Legal Aid, who is representing the women, said the deluge of birth certificate refusals began last winter. “I’ve never seen such a large number of women with this problem,” she says. “In the past someone might be turned away, but it was always resolved. This is something altogether new.”

Today in Texas History – July 14

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From the Annals of the Aviation Pioneers – In 1938, Howard Hughes and a four-man crew landed their specially equipped Lockheed 14 in New York City, having circled the globe in three days, nineteen hours, and seventeen minutes. Hughes, a Houston native, was wealthy from the age of 18 as he inherited a fortune when orphaned.  He first sought fame in Hollywood in the 1920s producing and then directing movies such as Hell’s Angels (1930) and Scarface (1932).  Hughes had been fascinated with flying since his youth and used part of his incredible fortune to form the Hughes Aircraft Company in the 1930s as a division of Hughes Tool Company.  Hughes was a talented and daring pilot and set two speed records. In the 1940s, Hughes Aircraft landed several contracts to produce military aircraft, but with mixed results, as in the case of the famous HK-1 flying boat (the “Spruce Goose”).