Here we go again. Another Rick Perry challenger can’t get his act together. Why has White allowed the issue of when he is going to release his income tax returns to fester? He is going to have to release them, sooner or later. He needs to get the subject off
Kale is one of those ingredients that doesn’t get a lot of face time, likely due to its equation with super-health-food. Is it dark green? Yep. Widely available at health stores? Yessiree. Does it appear in superfood smoothies? Uh-huh. Well, I’m here to say one thing today: Give kale a
The Perry campaign sent this letter to supporters over the name of consultant Dave Carney: Thanks for all of your help during the primary. The primary results are a real testament to the massive amount of support the Governor has across the Texas . Everyone helps in their own way.
I was out of town yesterday, so I didn’t hear exactly what Bill White had to say at the Texas Tribune’s event in response to a question about whether he would rule out a tax increase. Press accounts said that he did not rule them out. This was a difficult
Am I really writing a blog post on the Bacon Takedown at Emo’s in Austin this Sunday? Apparently I lost my mind over the weekend. But something about the idea of an Iron Chef-style, fat-fueled grease-off is utterly irresistible, especially in the city that spawned the
This is the text of an e-mail I received from the Perry camp about the attacks the Perry campaign will use against Bill White: “Bill White as Mayor of Houston: supported gun control; opposed constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage; made Houston a sanctuary city; left Houston with twice as
One observation that I should have made in the post, “Can Democrats win a statewide race?” Jim Sharp is a candidate for Place 3 on the Texas Supreme Court. My belated observation is this: “Sharp” is a pretty good name to have on the Democratic ballot.
Hey, Eileen! Look over from your blog!! The Village Voice, that font of information for everything Texan, has debuted a “Happy Hours” app, available through iTunes. This is so obvious that you have to wonder why no one thought of it till now. It features HH listings
I have expressed my opinion on many occasions that the Democrats don’t have a chance to win a statewide race, aside from Bill White, in this election cycle. But some unexpected developments might prove me wrong. Their best shot is Jeff Weems, who is running for the Railroad Commission. This
As I pondered my order, a surly pitmaster noticed my FCGBBQ T-shirt and made some smart comments about me spying on his joint to get some tips for mine. He didn’t know I was just there to review it, so it was great to talk with him
Dear Family, Friends, Colleagues, Supporters: As you now surely know, last night I was defeated (61% / 39%) in my statewide Republican Primary by my opponent, David Porter. Porter, an unknown, no-campaign, no-qualification CPA from Midland residing in Giddings filed on the last day that he could file while I
Perry’s decisive victory over a sitting United States Senator is going to propel him into national prominence. Republican power brokers will have to take notice of him as a potential presidential candidate, if they haven’t already done so. Who on the Republican side would make a better candidate? Mitt Romney
From their release today: “In one State House race after another, center-right Republicans were defeated by far-right extremists, leaving room for Democrats to attract and win independent voters in the fall.” There are two things wrong with this statement. One is that only two State House Republicans lost, period. “One
This was supposed to be an unpredictable election due to the tea parties and the Medina candidacy. It was supposed to be an election in which angry conservatives rose up and smote incumbents. Nothing remotely like that occurred. Republican congressional candidates, who might have been tainted by Washingtonitis, won with
I will post the latest news I have HERE at the top of the article. CLAYTON DEFEATS MILLER BY 54 VOTES IN SBOE #12 RATLIFF, MCLEROY BATTLE FOR SBOE #9 UPDATED Ratliff 52,747 McLeroy 51,611 Ratliff leads by 1,136...last 2 Hunt County boxes are in and Ratliff gained 5 votes...2
[Uh-oh–my bad. Contrary to my overconfident posting yesterday, the tour leaves from Austin, not Fort Worth. Note to self: Never make a reasonable assumption without first checking it.] How many times have you thought, “THIS weekend, let’s throw the kids and the dog and the cat in the car and
Did you hear that Kay Bailey Hutchison won an Olympic medal in skiing? She went downhill faster than anyone. Sad.
My best guess: Perry 48 Hutchison 32 Medina 20 Three things to be determined: 1. Can Perry win without a runoff? Perry has said yes. That may cause some of his voters to stay home. 2. Can Medina overtake Hutchison to get in a runoff? I don’t think so. 3.
My original post on this subject apparently touched off something of a firestorm involving whether Kelly Hancock had a role in opposing Vicki Truitt and Chuck Hopson. In researching the original post, I had e-mailed the Hopson and Truitt campaigns. I accurately published the response and attributed the information to
A group of Republican House members has injected themselves into Republican primary races in an effort to defeat their own colleagues. In my book, this is bottom-of-the-barrel behavior, but these folks are the type to do it. Those inclined toward eating their own young are Leo Berman, Wayne Christian, Betty
Just before the Gettin’ Sauced event, I stopped in again at Franklin Barbecue to try the ribs and pulled pork. I knew the brisket was stellar from previous visits (I stole a bite or two from the Patron Saint on this trip too), so I wanted to check on the other
A prayer for trust in God’s timing (and the occasional fortune teller).
The closings of bookstores in San Antonio and Laredo leave a void that can’t be filled with a Kindle.
Recipe from Chef Rusty Winkstern, Monument Cafe, Georgetown
From her hometown of Lake Jackson to the Big Apple, Kalyn Hemphill, the winner of Models of the Runway, takes it all in stride.
On (and off) Route 66, Amarillo.
Recipe from David Grossman, Branch Water Tavern, Houston
Nate Blakeslee, Dan Cosgrove, and Lauren Greenfield
After picking up the mail and happily opening Christmas cards, I looked down and saw Tom DeLay on the cover of texas monthly [January 2010]. I almost threw up. But as I read that it was time for the Bum Steer Awards, I just thought, “What a great choice.”
Willie’s done it seven times. So has George W. Bush. Ross Perot and Troy Aikman have each done it four times. Kinky Friedman has done it three times (twice dressed as a woman). Lance Armstrong, Ann Richards, Rick Perry, and Selena have also done it three times (and pssst:
Tillman’s Roadhouse Fort Worth and Canopy Houston
Houston
The 69-year-old San Antonio keyboardist used his Vox organ to bridge the gap between sixties psychedelia and Tex-Mex and gave the Sir Douglas Quintet its signature sound. In 1990 he and his Quintet bandmate Doug Sahm joined Freddy Fender and Flaco Jiménez to launch the Texas Tornados, a band that
Contemporary blues is a bit of a wasteland, yet those chanting the “blues is dead” mantra should check out Guitar Shorty. Though his time in the state was brief, the seventy-year-old Houston-born, Florida-raised guitarist and singer (real name: David Kearney) was an early proponent of the kind of explosive,
Their 2009 debut album was the ultimate in hipster fodder, but Austin’s the Strange Boys instantly stood out from the garage-rock-revivalist hordes. Sure, they and their peers all dug the same sixties records and vintage gear, but The Strange Boys and Girls Club wasn’t slavishly derivative. It aspired to
The author of Texas Tough on the state's criminal justice system.
In 1929 Dallas teenager Virginia Thompson fell into a fevered sleep for 180 days. Eighty years later that familial legend helped inspire granddaughter Molly Caldwell Crosby’s book Asleep, an investigation into the baffling disease known as sleeping sickness (technically, encephalitis lethargica). The affliction’s symptoms are unnerving to contemplate:
James Hynes’s unsettling fifth novel, Next, captures eight hours in the life of “melancholy middle-aged” Kevin Quinn as he sneaks away from Ann Arbor to Austin for a clandestine job interview. Quinn is a bundle of neuroses—he’s worried about a recent spate of terrorist bombings, stalled in his
Four filmmakers to watch in 2010.
Michael Hsu’s garage.
Espinosa, a lifetime Houstonian, has been serving legal papers—summonses, subpoenas, complaints, writs—to people facing court action for the past sixteen years. He is an owner and the director of civil process at Court Record Research.I kind of fell into this. Around 1989, I had picked up a job with a
Annise Parker, the newly elected mayor of Houston, is ready to discuss any of the challenges facing her city. That will happen as soon as everyone else is ready to stop talking about her sexuality.
Who can challenge Republicans on the State Board of Education? A different kind of Republican.
The Longhorns may have lost the BCS National Championship on the hallowed field of the Rose Bowl, but they gained something almost as important: a long-lost fan.
63 things that all Texans must do before they die.
The following article first appeared in Lone Star Report. I am publishing it with the permission of Will Lutz. This is his take on the Todd Smith-Jeff Cason Republican primary battle race and the involvement of Citizen Leader PAC. * * * * What started as a local race between
The El Paso Times is reporting today the results of a new poll in the HD 76 race between incumbent Norma Chavez and attorney Naomi Gonzalez. Chavez’s eleven point lead in a previous poll (41.6%-30%) has melted away. The latest poll by The Reuel Group has Chavez with 38% of
The reference is to the speaker’s race. What speaker’s race? The story that is going around is that Chisum has been inviting members to his ranch. He has emerged as the most likely candidate of the hardline conservatives, if they decide to put up a fight, but the problem is
A source close to the Perry campaign e-mailed me that Perry raised $1.2 million in a 24-hour Internet fundraising effort yesterday. The campaign continues to circulate the rumor that the Hutchison treasury is running out of money.
My mouth is watering so much I may have to stop at the dry cleaner’s on my way home: I just read Hudson’s on the Bend prixe fixe menu for Austin Restaurant Week, which starts this Sunday: They’re offering chipotle lobster bisque, hot and crunchy trout on mango-jalapeno
