Discussions about the legislature, state agencies, governance, and politics
The Texas Legislature is deeply immersed in a struggle to balance the state’s budget with less revenue and more demand. They are spending hours poring over departmental expenditures and determining how they can “cut the fat” and still meet basic needs. There are no sacred cows this Legislative Session. Education, higher education, the arts, DPS, […]
Continue reading →Today, March 2, is the 175th anniversary of the Republic of Texas. We still recognize this as an important day in our state. When I was young, Texas Independence Day was even a school holiday. We were the Republic of Texas from 1836-1846, after winning a revolution with Mexico. People who have lived in Texas […]
Continue reading →“I want my cake and to eat it too!” So proclaimed Texans in a poll conducted by the University of Texas and the Texas Tribune. A quick “spin of the wheel” on public opinion illustrates that Texans are in full “reality show” mode while not facing actual harsh realities. The poll clearly reflects that we […]
Continue reading →We last discussed “Reality Show” voting and the way voters have become very fickle over the last few years. Today, let’s analyze “reality show” governing. Contestants arrive at the prescribed location and are psyched to win. They are pumped up. After months of talking “smack”, or in this case, promoting their platform to the roars […]
Continue reading →This week, a conservative think tank decided that Texas History curriculum is too far-fetched, even for their standards. Click here to read the Chronicle’s coverage of the story. As most of you may know, I teach Women in Politics at the University of Houston. I like to call the first portion of the class “Her” […]
Continue reading →Governor Perry presented his State of the State address to the Texas Legislature yesterday, followed by the submission of his version of the state budget. The Governor discussed the need to keep our business climate friendly. He believes that attracting new business to the state will cure our economic woes. Well, not exactly. He doesn’t […]
Continue reading →The Texas Senate passed the first bill of the Session late last week. They debated long hours and worked like it was March or April of the 140 day governance session. The Senate passed the Voter ID bill – a recommended law that will mandate that citizens, between the ages of 18 – 70, present […]
Continue reading →This has been a whirlwind week for Ponderings. Politics and governing are in their prime season. The State of the Union address was Tuesday. The pundits are all going crazy dissecting the comments and the Republican responses. I was just so excited to see that Republicans and Democrats could sit next to each other, nothing […]
Continue reading →Inaugural “Buzz” and Budget The Governor and Lt. Governor were sworn in to office yesterday. There really wasn’t much new or exciting about the whole thing. The same people returned to the same offices. Due to the economic conditions, the ceremonies themselves were “toned-down”. I don’t fault anyone for celebrating their re-election victory with the […]
Continue reading →State and local politics are dominating the week. The Legislature convenes, the Houston City Council debates ethics, the new Commissioners Court convened and Tom Delay was sentenced to 3 years in prison. What more could a political junkie want? It’s just so overwhelming, I can’t decide which topic to focus on or write about. Thus, […]
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