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 else much mattered to me.

The State Legislature is moving into full gear. The Senate passed their first major bill of the Session under the Governor’s emergency call. Voter ID, a requirement that in-person voters provide an official photo ID to vote, passed the Senate late Wednesday evening. Fortunately, they included dollars for public education as it will mean a major retraining of Texas voting behavior. This law will likely pass the House and be in effect for Houston’s 2011 elections.

Meanwhile, the Governor made a comment about women that I’m still pondering. Here is what he said: “I guess they think y’all can’t multi-task…I guess we need to introduce ‘em to some of you ladies, who certainly know how to multitask,” said Perry, speaking at the Lubbock Day Legislative Luncheon.

My Women In Politics students and I will discuss this today. I’m still trying to decide if it was complimentary or insulting.

At City Hall, the Mayor made a presentation on implementation of the controversial Prop 1 proposal. I know someone will get their feathers ruffled because I referred to it as controversial, but it is a much discussed/debated proposal. The voters approved this drainage/street repair fee on the ballot by a very narrow margin. Now, the devil is in the details as City Council works to create the implementation ordinance. Will churches and other governmental entities be required to pay the fee or will Council exempt them? If they are exempted, will the fees for others increase? This will be an on-going discussion and debate.

Finally, I would like to recognize the loss of one of Houston’s civic leaders. Clymer Wright may have single-handedly had more of an impact on Houston elections in the last 20 years than any other individual. He led the fight to create term limits at City Hall. But more than that, he was a leader and a believer in democracy. While I may not have always agreed with him, I respect his commitment as a citizen to dedicate himself to working for the change he believed in so much. He will be missed.