Tag Archives: Greg Abbott

Greg Abbott Wastes More of Your Money

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Texas will be forking over more than $2.7 million to draw in WrestleMania next year.  This absurd waste of taxpayer dollars stands in direct contrast to Abbott’s campaign pledge regarding the use of such funds. Apparently, that notion flew out the window once Abbott got his hands on Events Trust Fund.  The Texas Tribune has the full story.

Gov. Greg Abbott has agreed to spend up to $2.7 million in taxpayer funds to bring the barrage of blood, sweat and spandex that is WrestleMania to Texas next year.

During his 2014 campaign for governor, Abbott expressed discomfort with such taxpayer-funded economic incentives, saying he wanted to get government “out of the business of picking winners and losers.” 

But last week, his office signed off on the award from the state’s Events Trust Fund, state records show, one of 20 such awards approved since September. That’s when the governor’s office took the reins of a few incentive programs designed to strengthen Texas’ hand in vying for large sporting events and conferences from the state comptroller’s office.

Texas Sues the Federal Government to Stop Syrian Refugee Resettlement

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Gov. Greg Abbott (TP-Texas) has authorized the Texas Dep’t of Health and Human Services to sue the US, Sec. of State John Kerry and others to prevent the resettlement of Syrian refugees into Texas.  The suit seeks to immediately stop any such resettlement efforts and claims, as legally required, that Texas will suffer irreparable harm if a couple of Syrian families (who already have relatives in Texas) are placed in the Dallas area.  The suit quotes the FBI Director and others who have expressed some concerns about the ability to vet the Syrian refugees who are applying for status in the U.S.  The suit also quotes the Director National Intelligence as saying, “We don’t put it past the likes of ISIL to infiltrate operatives among these refugees.”

Whether those concerns create the prospect of irreparable harm (a required showing for the temporary relief sought) is perhaps questionable.  What is not questionable is the complete and total authority of the federal government over immigration including matters relating to resettlement of refugees.  There is no likelihood of success on the merits (another required showing to obtain temporary relief) here because Texas cannot and will never have any authority over immigration matters.

This lawsuit is a complete waste of time and taxpayer resources and clearly does nothing other than to burnish Abbott’s already glowing Tea Party credentials.  The Dallas Morning News has the petition filed by the State for your reading pleasure.

Non-Profit Defies Bogus Order from Gov. Abbott

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The fight over the right to resettle Syrian refugees in Texas is heating up.  Gov. Greg Abbott (TP-Texas) previously declared that Texas will not accept Syrian refugees despite having no authority whatsoever over the matter and in apparent violation of legal protections against discrimination based on national origin or religion.  Abbott then threatened non-profits who are doing the hard work of creating conditions for a better life in the U.S. for these refugees with legal action if they did not kowtow to his demands.  Well, at least one such non-profit is fighting back against Abbott’s baseless blustering.  The Texas Tribune has the details.

The New York-based International Rescue Committee said in a Monday letter to Texas health and human services chief Chris Traylor that its Dallas affiliate would continue to provide resettlement assistance to all refugees “who have been admitted lawfully to the United States.”

The nonprofit had received a letter earlier on Monday from Traylor urging the International Rescue Committee’s Dallas branch to discontinue resettling Syrian refugees or risk losing its state contract “and other legal action.” The International Rescue Committee — one of about 20 nonprofits that have a state contract to resettle refugees in Texas — had previously informed the state that it would resettle two families in the Dallas area in early December. Both families have relatives in North Texas, the nonprofit said.

The federal Office of Refugee Resettlement last week warned Abbott and other governors that they do not have the power to reject Syrian refugees, telling them they would be breaking the law if they denied benefits or services to refugees based on their country of origin or religion. States that defy the law could face suspension or termination of their refugee resettlement programs, according to a letter signed by Robert Carey, director of the office.

Abbott has insisted he has the legal authority to refuse to accept Syrian refugees, citing a specific part of federal law requiring resettlement nonprofits to work “in close cooperation and advance consultation” with the state.

Abbott is a well-versed constitutional lawyer who should know better than to put forth absurd claims of authority  based on statutory language that does not actually give the state any power to control the resettlement of refugees.  But that wouldn’t play well with his Tea Party base – now would it?

 

Gov. Abbott Visits Cuba – For Dinner and a Floor Show

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Gov. Greg Abbott (TP-Texas) embarked on a supposed trade mission to Cuba and apparently accomplished little other than having a nice dinner and taking in a floor show.  According to the pool report filed by a Texas reporter traveling with Abbott, the governor dined and watched a concert at a high-end private restaurant in the Miramar section of Havana on Monday evening.

On Tuesday, Abbott visited Cuba’s new Mariel port and free trade zone.  Abbott’s group was told by Cuban officials that the U.S. trade embargo – which Congress has refused to lift despite normalization of relations between the two countries – meant there was no opportunity for U.S. businesses to invest there.

Abbott told the officials that “Texas has an abundance of (rice and other commodities) and a very easy ability to export from Texas to Cuba,” according to the pool report.   The Cuban officials indicated that the island nation would continue to buy rice from other sources until the U.S. allowed the country to buy on credit, a measure currently prohibited by the embargo.

Despite the bad news, sources tell Red that the excellent flan and expresso Abbott was served after his fancy meal made the entire trip worthwhile and a really good deal for Texas taxpayers.

Greg Abbott to Terrorists – “You Win.”

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Gov. Greg Abbott (TP-Texas) continues to posture on the issue of allowing Syrian refugees into Texas.  Abbott must know that he is powerless to stop legitimately admitted refugees into the State, but that message would not play well with his Tea Party base.  So instead, Abbott grandstands making spurious claims about his authority.  But under the Refugee Act of 1980, a state governor cannot legally block refugees. Each state has a refugee coordinator, which is funded by the federal government.  The coordinator works with relief agencies and directs federal funds for refugees. So while Abbott may be able to throw a wrench or two into the works, there is absolutely nothing he can do to prevent Syrian refugees from coming to Texas.

What our poor idiot governor is really doing is playing into the hands of ISIS.  ISIS and the ongoing civil war in Syria have resulted in a flood of refugees overwhelming Europe.  ISIS has seemed essentially powerless to stop this incredible population drain.  That is until now.  It seems clear to Red that ISIS intended the latest attacks in Paris to provoke the exact response we are seeing.  Cut off the willingness of Europe, the US and others to accept refugees out of the fear that a few jihadists might slip through, and you will begin to see the end of people fleeing from ISIS because there is nowhere to go.  ISIS wins.   And that is to say nothing of the moral bankruptcy of abandoning thousands of families who are suffering because of the aftermath of W. Bush’s foolish Iraq warmongering.

Maybe the rise of ISIS was not exactly foreseeable, but that Iraq would descend into chaos unless we kept a major, major military presence there was inevitable.  If Red hears, “The Surge worked and Obama lost the war,” one more time his head might explode.  The Surge working only because, the die-hard Iraqis were smart enough to realize that they could wait us out and that there was no way the US was ready for a decades long occupation of Iraq.  What has happened was more or less inevitable, but was also  greatly aided by the civil war in Syria.  And as much as we might like to, we cannot simply wash our hands of this mess.  Taking legitimate refugees is a part of American tradition and responsibility that we cannot now turn our backs on.  Unless, of course, you want ISIS to win.

Forget About Syrian Refugees, We Must Protect Ourselves from the Insidious Dangers of the “Stealth Dorm”

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While Gov. Greg Abbott (TP- Texas) frets over Syrian refugees and boldly states that Texas will accept none (Red wonders exactly how that is going to work), our Poor Idiot Governor is ignoring the real crisis facing our state – the specter of the Stealth Dorm (ominous music plays).

It’s a good thing the Austin and Fort Worth City Councils are on the job, because they have recently passed anti-Stealth Dorm ordinances to deal with problems allegedly created by TCU and UT students cohabitating in willy-nilly fashion. The FW ordinance prohibits more than five unrelated people from occupying a single-family home, no matter how large it is, while the Austin ordinance puts the limit at four for new construction. The ordinances are allegedly justified as an attempt to preserve single family neighborhoods and avoid an end-around of municipal zoning laws.  The allegedly awful consequence of allowing people to decide where and how to live include increased traffic, parking problems, noise and “overflowing sewers.”  Red can see possible problems with the first three, but fails to see how 5 college students tax the sewer lines any more than a houseful of teenagers who are all related in some form or fashion.  The hubbub has caught the attention of the Business Insider which you can peruse if you want to know more.

Abbott Wants Fed Money for Healthcare

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Gov. Greg Abbott has adamantly refused to expand Medicaid even though it would provide billions in federal dollars and provide health insurance for many of the millions of Texans who are still uninsured.  The negative economic impact on the Texas economy is estimated to be at least $66 billion in lost funding – money that would create jobs and keep workers and their families healthy.

Abbott, who must be seen doing everything he can to oppose “Obamacare”, hasn’t been shy about attempting to hang onto another source of critical funding for Texas hospitals.  The federal government provides a huge amount of money to Texas hospitals through the uncompensated care pool. For four years, the feds have reimbursed Texas’ safety-net hospitals for care they provide to people who cannot afford to pay because Texas refuses to embrace Medicaid expansion.  Now that the feds are threatening to cut off this funding, Abbott is up in arms and has his administration attacking those who are arguing for Medicaid expansion.  The Texas Tribune has the whole sordid story of Abbott’s duplicity, his attempt to smear his opponents and his refusal to turn over the emails that show his role.

Make up your mind, Gov. Abbott.  Either you are for or against the federal government funding health care in Texas.

What’s Geg Abbott Hiding?

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The Texas Tribune reports extensively on Gov. Greg Abbott’s penchant for secrecy and obfuscation in the release of his emails.  Abbott has repeatedly sought the help of embattle Attorney General Ken Paxton in this attempts to keep the public from knowing what he is up to.  Abbott has used a private email for official communications and has argued that he is a “member of the public” and that the Governor’s office is a “competitor” in the private market place in his so-far successful attempts to prevent the public from knowing what is going on with their Governor.

In his objections to releasing various records to the Tribune, Abbott cited exceptions available under increasingly weak state transparency laws — from attorney client privilege to broad protections given to lawmaking deliberations — so it’s hard in many instances to tell which legal provisions triggered each redaction, or what types of records his office is refusing to provide.

The two objections drawing the most criticism from transparency advocates relate to Abbott’s email address and his successful attempt to avoid scrutiny of his use of taxpayer money to encourage business relocation or expansion in Texas.

On the email address issue, the Republican governor cites an exemption that was written into the law to protect the privacy of regular citizens who correspond with state and local government officials. Under that provision, authorities are forbidden from giving out “an email address of a member of the public that is provided for the purpose of communicating electronically with a governmental body.”

That’s the exemption Abbott cited when his office unilaterally chose to block out identifying information in the address fields on emails provided by the governor’s office. Without that information included — or some explanation from the governor’s office — it’s impossible to say for sure if it was the governor himself who promised a top donor some last-minute assistance on a lawsuit-restriction bill that was stuck in committee last May. Somebody in his office did, albeit unsuccessfully.

Several government transparency experts say the provision Abbott cites was never intended to protect the email addresses of public officials who are discussing state business inside the government.

“I can’t see how a governmental official’s email address that he or she uses to conduct official business can be redacted,” said Joe Larsen, an open government attorney who also serves on the Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas.

Larsen said the email address, like the body of the email itself, becomes a public record the minute it’s used for public business.

“He’s not communicating with the government,” said former Travis County Judge Bill Aleshire, a Democrat.  “He’s communicating within the government — with other government officials. And that email address ought not be confidential.”

Aleshire, an open records expert and attorney, is awaiting a decision on that very question in a lawsuit pitting an Austin watchdog publication, the Austin Bulldog, against the former Austin mayor and members of the City Council who have tried to withhold their email addresses using the same exemption. Aleshire is representing the Austin Bulldog. 

Ken Paxton Indicted and Friendless?

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Attorney General Ken Paxton has been indicted on felony charges related to securities fraud.  Many commentators are wondering where are the GOP office holders and hordes of Tea Party loyalists coming to Paxton’s defense.  Noted Paxton supporters such as Sen. Ted Cruz (TP – Texas) and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick are nowhere to be heard or seen in defense of Paxton.

Meanwhile, the Dallas Morning News speculates on what the indictment and possible conviction means for Paxton’s political future.

What is different for Paxton is that there is no case to be made that he is a victim of dirty politics, said Southern Methodist University political science professor Cal Jillson.

“Even when you are offering a political defense, you have to keep one foot on the base — you have to make claims that are rooted in some plausibility,” Jillson said.

Paxton’s case was heard in Collin County “which is a red, red, red belt of Texas conservatism,” Jillson said, and the evidence was obtained by the Texas Rangers. The charges stem from investment deals with business partners who are under investigation by state and federal authorities, he said.

Paxton, once a small-town lawyer, already has been shown in news reports to have become involved with land flips and about 30 businesses once he got into the Legislature, Jillson said.

“It’s complicated and delicate for an attorney general, more so than for a governor or a senator, because you are the top elected legal official in the state,” Jillson said. “As the top legal officer, to find yourself under felony indictment is beyond awkward.”

Paxton can remain in office while under indictment. If he were convicted of a felony, his law license would automatically be suspended and he would be unable to serve.

Gov. Greg Abbott would name a replacement, who would face confirmation by the Senate.

During the legal fight, it is likely Paxton will keep a low political profile but try to make as many professional appearances as possible to deflect attention from his legal problems and reinforce the idea that he is tending to state business, Miller said.

Attacking the process is unlikely to help him either legally or politically, he said.

“It’s all courtroom,” Miller said. “Game on.”

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.