Wheat was born in Pasadena and grew up near Cuero. After graduating from college and the Texas Game Warden Training Center, he was stationed in Tyler County for five years before transferring to Ochiltree and Hansford counties in 1996. He lives in Perryton.I credit my dad with my love for
The Biscuit Brothers on teaching kids about music.
Recipe from Nosh Euro Bistro, Dallas.
This message landed in my in-box this morning. It was sent by Robert D. Miller, a lawyer with Locke-Liddell. I would caution readers to consider that this communication could be intended to suppress Democratic turnout on election day. They should also consider that Republicans tended to vote early in this
Evan Smith, writing in the Texas Tribune, suggests that it is San Antonio mayor Julian Castro. I can see the logic of his argument — the most prominent Hispanic politician in the state — but that is all there is to it. Castro is not Henry Cisneros. He doesn’t have
Just before the Texas Monthly Barbecue Festival, I met up with John Morthland at Franklin Barbecue to talk barbecue and get some breakfast. I knew I’d be stuffing myself silly in an hour or so, but I can’t rightly pass a chance to get some of Aaron Franklin’s brisket when I’m
For eighteen years Anthony Graves insisted that he had nothing to do with the gruesome murder of a family in Somerville. That’s exactly how long it took for justice to finally be served.
The very last poll of the election season is the final newspapers’ poll. Perry is +12, 49% to 37%. This is less a reflection of Perry’s and White’s individual strengths and weaknesses than it is a reflection of the generic difference between the parties: 2008 Presidential: McCain 55.45 – Obama
From Patrick’s press release: Senator Dan Patrick is joining with conservative legislators to create a Tea Party Caucus. “The Tea Party has played an important role this year and I want to be sure their voices are heard in Austin long after next Tuesday,” added Patrick. “The power of the
If Abel Gonzales Jr., with his deep-fried butter at the State Fair of Texas, is the king of frying, let’s just say Kate Bellinger, from Kate’s Southern Comfort, on Barton Springs Road, is the, um, duchess. She boasts a fine-looking menu, centered around traditional
He deserved what he got, but I’m not going to celebrate it. Political corruption and scandal rub off on everybody in politics and diminish what little respect the public has. It is particularly cruel when it happens in South Texas, because ordinary people need help from government, but they have
Remember, I’m not the local Chevvy dealer. You get no warranties from me. This just came in from a source who says he got the numbers from a Republican source: Thibaut — dead…behind in a district that Bill White is winning Dunnam — safe, RCCC pulled Flores’ ads, kills Marva
This is my list of vulnerable Democrats and how they might fare, based upon the results of 2008. I am going to say this one time, and it applies to all races, including those not listed here: The combination of an energized Republican base and a demoralized Democratic base, plus
My husband (I can officially call him that now) gives me a hard time about the way I outwardly express my joy when eating something delicious. “It’s like you’re on a poorly-scripted cooking show, and every time you take a bite you have to come up with something amazing to
Several correspondents have commented to ask why I have failed to write about three recent polls in the governor’s race. The reason is this: The election has begun. Early voting is under way. I do not care about polls that take place after actual voting starts. The election is the
The Republicans must think they have congressman Solomon Ortiz on the ropes. They have put a lot of money and manpower into the race.They’re running ads in the lower coastal counties showing Ortiz with Nancy Pelosi. Texas congressman Joe Barton has gone into the district to stump for Ortiz’s Republican
The Washington-based newsletter rates the Edwards-Flores race as “Republican favored,” which basically means the race is not competitive. The Rodriguez race against Quico Canseco is rated as “Leans Democrat,” which means Rodriguez is ahead but the race is competitive. No mention is made of the Ortiz-Farenthold race. I regard the
This comes from Marc Campos’s political blog. He is a Houston political consultant. For readers who are unfamiliar with Houston geography, Kingwood, Clear Lake, Wst Gray, and Tracy Gee are in areas that would be considered strong Republican territory. In 2008, Kingwood was 3.9% of the total (678,312 in person)
I hardly know what to say about the list put out by a Phoenix-based group called “Southwestern Hispanic Republicans.” SHR has characterized political candidates in various southwestern states as friendly or unfriendly towards the Hispanic community for election year 2010. Quoting from the release: There is a need for Hispanics
All right, you dirty-minded folks. I’m ashamed of you. Yes, there’s a new sausage trailer in town. Yes, it’s headed up by the drummer of Oliver Future, a band whose members are all dudes. So, yes, you might even call it a sausage fest. Well, unlike all you heathens, I’m
Perry’s comment about the TRS internal investigation involving charges in the whistleblower memo by Michael Green was, “That has been fully investigated by an outside group and by the TRS and it was forwarded on to the appropriate audit committee and there is no ‘there’ there.” Perry is right:
The article that follows is two years old. I published it on November 30, 2008, after the Democrats had won 74 seats and the Harper-Brown race was still undecided. It is an analysis of Democratic prospects going forward. The point of this post is that, while Democrats had a lot
These numbers come from an e-mail sent to Harris County Democrats from Hidalgo County Democrats: First day of early voting (Monday) In-person 2010: 6,207 By mail 2010: 667 Total 2010: 6,874 In-person 2006: 1,567 By mail 2006: 213 Total 2006: 1,780 2010 increase over 2006: 5094 Polling places at UT-Pan
I can’t claim ownership of this theory, which comes from a very shrewd Texas Democrat, but it sounds plausible to me. The reason had nothing to do with Bill White not revealing his taxes. It had nothing to do with Perry being afraid to debate White. Perry was never afraid
[This post has been slightly edited from its original version.] There are indications tonight that the Bill White campaign has knowledge of questionable activities at the Teacher Retirement System. At least two memoranda, apparently written by different authors, have been made available to TEXAS MONTHLY, and, I presume, to other
From politicalwire,com: Texas congressional candidate Bill Flores (R) blamed a headache for “a verbal miscue” and has now backed away from comments suggesting he would raise the Social Security retirement age for future recipients, the Dallas Morning News reports. Flores made the comments in a taped interview earlier this week
Bill Hobby will talk about his book, How Things Really Work: Lessons from a Life in Politics, at 4:15 today in the Senate chamber. I will be the moderator for the discussion.
I received a call yesterday from a well connected friend who laid out this scenario: The Chisum forces will seek a meeting of the Republican caucus on Wednesday, November 3, the day after the election. The Cabal and their allies will try to whip the members into an anti-Straus frenzy
This statement appeared in an e-mail sent out by Michael Quinn Sullivan: Texas House Speaker Joe Straus was quoted by the press yesterday as saying the state’s budget must be balanced without new taxes, without taping the “rainy day” fund, and only within the available revenues — that is, by
This article is a two-state comparison between Texas and California. It was published yesterday (Thursday) on the Web site Investors.com. Business Climate: In Texas, the payroll count is back to pre-recession levels. California is nearly 1.5 million jobs in the hole. Why such a difference? Chalk it up to
We have all heard about how great Texas is doing, how it is number one in job creation (true). But that is just one part of the picture. The Web site 24/7 Wall St. published a study on October 4 of “The Best and Worst Run States In America.” These
Questions for the speaker’s race 1. Do members trust Chisum? “You know my trustworthiness,” Chisum wrote in his letters to members. But Chisum (along with Swinford) stabbed Laney in the back in 2003, and he stabbed Craddick in the back in 2009, when he told the Star-Telegram that Craddick only
Ah, Italia. A country with a language so beautiful it can romance even the basest American classics. Casserolderci. Jell-O-tto. Brisketti. Puccia. Wait, that last one? Pronounced poo-chah, it may not be the prettiest word but it’s all real, and an amazing sandwich to boot. First, let’s talk
First, here is Warren Chisum’s letter to colleagues: REPRESENTATIVE WARREN CHISUM Candidate for Speaker of the Texas House October 13, 2010 Dear Colleagues, Today I throw my hat, my experience, and my commitment to the House into the ring for consideration as Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives. Those
Whereas, the Comptroller of the Currency of the United States of America (“Comptroller”), through his national bank examiners and other staff of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (“OCC”), has conducted an examination of Woodforest National Bank, The Woodlands, Texas (“Bank” or “Woodforest”), and has identified deficiencies in
A spokesman for the bank objects to my characterization that the bank was hit by a $33 million “fine” for overdraft charges by the federal Office of the Controller of the Currency. The spokesman says that Woodforest entered into a “civil agreement” to pay a $1 million civil pentalty and
From the Statesman’s First Reading blog: In an e-mail update to supporters Monday, new Republican Party of Texas Chairman Steve Munisteri made a brief mention of his desire to see Texas play a larger role in the 2012 presidential primaries. Recapping a report that Republican National Committeeman Bill Crocker
[The headline of this story has been edited by changing the word “fined” to the more legally precise “penalized.”] The trade publication American Banker reported today that the federal Office of the Comptroller of the Currency assessed a $33 million penalty against Woodforest National Bank in The Woodlands for unfair
Like any good harbinger of changing seasons, the arrival of butternut squash at the farmers market signals that it’s time to start doing something different in the kitchen. Crank up the heat, folks, let’s get some casseroles on the table. Butternut squash has, in the last year, quickly trumped broccoli
The longtime Corpus Christi Democratic congressman and political boss is facing a stiff challenge from Republican Blake Farenthold. He is the step-grandson of Sissy Farenthold, the onetime leader of the Dirty Thirty in the Texas House of Representatives during the 1971 Sharpstown Scandal, who finished second (to Dolph Briscoe) in
The race has clearly turned in Perry’s favor in recent polls. At 53%, Perry’s lead is close to impregnable. Even if it the race were closer, White has shown no ability move the numbers in his direction. I think Rasmussen has lost some lustre in this election cycle, but he
You could say that the “Pac-Man” in vegan trailer Counter Culture‘s Pac-Man Caesar salad refers to all the good nutrients packed in such a simple salad: chopped kale, carrot rounds, and a light, nutty dressing somehow reminiscent of Parmesan. Or you could say it means that upon
To all who have read my previous post about annual budget sessions: I mangled the post by confusing legislative calendars (which begin in odd-numbered years, the next one being 2013) with fiscal calendars (which begin in even-numbered years–2012 in the case of the next budget). Contrary to what I posted
Another regular session is approaching, and most people involved in writing the state budget have no idea about the size of the shortfall. Yet, orders have gone out from Perry, Dewhurst, and Straus for state agencies to cut their budgets by 10%, with another 15% yet to come. All this
I encourage readers to look at Scott McCown’s criticism and proposals concerning my article on balancing the state budget. McCown is the executive director of the Center for Public Policy Priorities. To access McCown’s article, clickHERE.I am going to respond to some of the points McCown makes:I.McCown: We cannot
It has been apparent for some time that the only thing that can ruin Rick Perry’s prospects for reelection is a scandal. What is on display in the Morning News’ revelations about Perry’s donors benefiting from grants from the Emerging Technology Fund is Perry’s longstanding penchant for rewarding his friends.
Perry Pulls Away in Texas A new Public Strategies poll in Texas finds Gov. Rick Perry (R) has his largest lead over challenger Bill White (D) thus far in the race for governor, 50% to 36%. Notes pollster David Iannelli: “Perry starts out his campaign with a big advantage. That
Nate Silver’s analysis of the Pennsylvania Senate race between Pat Toomey (R) and Joe Sestak (D) in the September 30 New York Times is applicable to the Texas governor’s race. Silver’s thesis is that even a small lead in the polls usually translates into solid victory in an election
Once upon a time there was a little culinary college in San Antonio. Then a local gazillionaire and philanthropist gave it $35 million. The little school proceeded to merge with the exalted CIA (Culinary Institute of America, the most prestigious cooking academy in America, headquartered in Hyde Park, New
Your unofficial playbook for watching college football in Texas during the weekend of October 16.
