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2011 – Page 9 of 23

Business|
September 30, 2011

Mina Thornton, Ropa Usada Dealer

Thornton opened Tres Hermanos Ropa Usada thirteen years ago in Hidalgo. As president of the 25-employee business, she buys ropa usada, or used clothing, from around the country and resells it in South Texas and throughout Mexico.People always ask, “Does this color look good on me?” I never ask. There’s

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Energy|
September 30, 2011

Here’s the Drill

As hydraulic fracturing (a.k.a. fracking) has unlocked untold reserves of natural gas, it has also unleashed a wave of concerns about pollution and, for one family in the Barnett Shale, a long nightmare.

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The Culture|
September 30, 2011

Neighborhood Association

Why would anybody take a charming place like Highland Park, tear down the nice old homes, build new fortresses, gradually drain the neighborly spirit, and call that progress? Don’t ask me. I don’t get it either.

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Feature|
September 30, 2011

Non-Prophet

When Warren Jeffs fired his attorneys and decided to represent himself in his sexual assault trial, many predicted, accurately, that he would fail miserably. Few realized just what a wild show he would put on.

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Politics & Policy|
September 26, 2011

CNN: Perry 28, Romney 21

A lot of people are writing Perry off after his awful performance in the Florida debate, but this poll was taken AFTER the disastrous debate. Perry is not a good debater. He is no match for his rivals, who know federal issues better than he does, and are much

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Politics & Policy|
September 26, 2011

Blood and irony

Does anybody else find it ironic that Perry is faltering because of the rare good deeds that he has done, such as the Dream Act and the HPV mandate? The guy spends ten years being a total hardline conservative with a couple of exceptions, and suddenly his own party is

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Politics & Policy|
September 26, 2011

Raising Cain

Could Rick Perry’s stunning loss of the Florida straw poll have been averted? Possibly. The question here is whether the Perry camp was so overconfident that it scheduled him to go to a similar straw poll in Michigan without addressing the delegates in Florida. At the times, Perry and

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Politics & Policy|
September 24, 2011

The bush leagues II

I wrote a post yesterday under the headline, “The bush leagues,” in which I said that one reason for Perry’s poor performance in the current campaign is that he has had it too easy in Texas during the last ten years–that he has gotten away with ducking debates and dodging

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Politics & Policy|
September 24, 2011

Sullivan blames lawmakers for Perry’s wasteful program

Self-appointed fiscal watchdog Michael Quinn Sullivan blasted legislators  yesterday (9/23) for a spending program that allows the state to attract and subsidize Hollywood filmmakers who wish to make movies in Texas. I find myself in rare agreement with Mr. Sullivan on this point. When I wrote a story about cutting

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Politics & Policy|
September 23, 2011

The bush leagues

We like to think that Texas politics is as rough as it gets, but it really isn't. This has been a one-party state since W. defeated Ann in 1994. Perry has had a lot of money spent against him, but he has never been in danger of losing a race

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Politics & Policy|
September 22, 2011

Did Perry use the “s” word?

The matter of whether Rick Perry has advocated secession arose on Fox News last night. He insisted that he has never used the s-word, except to refer to signs at tea party rallies that say "SECEDE." As far as I know, he is right. Here is what Perry did

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Politics & Policy|
September 20, 2011

T(ea) is for trouble

The Texas tea party's revolt over Rick Perry's immigration stand is, well, revolting. I seldom agree with Perry, but he is right this time--right in a moral sense, but wrong politically. Building a wall will not make Texas a better state. Denying scholarships to the children of immigrants will not

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Politics & Policy|
September 20, 2011

DOJ’s unpreclearance

Critics of the Justice Department’s refusal to grant preclearance to the Texas House and congressional redistricting maps will no doubt attribute DOJ’s action to politics. And no doubt politics had something to do with it. But I never thought that DOJ would approve a map that ignored the demographic facts,

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Politics & Policy|
September 17, 2011

Recent polls

New York Times/CBS News (most recent poll) Perry 23 Romney 16 Connecticut GOP primary Quinnipiac U. Romney 37 Perry 19 California GOP Primary Field Poll Romney 28 Perry 20 Virginia General Election Obama 44 Perry 42 Virginia GOP Primary Perry 25 Undecided 20 R0mney 19 President Public Policy Polling Obama

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Politics & Policy|
September 15, 2011

Bloomberg poll: Perry 26%, Romney 22%

UPDATE: Note to readers:  Below, I wrote, "I don't see any mystery in these results. Romney figured to gain after Perry's lackluster performance in the Tampa debate." In fact, the poll was taken during the period Sept. 9-12, BEFORE the debate. So Perry's performance in the Tampa debate had no

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Politics & Policy|
September 14, 2011

What is Palin up to?

I thought Perry and Palin were buddies. She came to Texas to endorse him against Bill White in December 09. But her “crony capitalism” attack on Perry was an indication that she sees an opening for her to be the nominee. If she can weaken Perry, and he falters, the

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BBQ Joint Reviews|
September 13, 2011

Franklin Barbecue

The music was blaring, and my regard for the speed limit was waning. I’d just finished a hearty breakfast of brisket and brisket at Snow’s in Lexington, and I was racing time to get a spot in line at Franklin Barbecue on a Saturday morning. I’d heard from the Twitterverse

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Politics & Policy|
September 13, 2011

The Washington Post’s take on the debate

(The author of the following excerpt is Dana Milbank.) The applause identified Rick Perry as the crowd favorite when he took the stage in Tampa for Monday night’s Tea Party debate,  greeting his lesser rivals as “fellas.” But two hours later, those fellas – and a gal from Minnesota –

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Politics & Policy|
September 12, 2011

Not Rick Perry’s night

Perry was clearly off his game during the tea party debate. He looked uncomfortable, his face was strained, his combativeness was muted. He looked to me like a man with back pain. I wondered  if he were wearing a brace. I've had back surgery, and it hurt to watch him.

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Politics & Policy|
September 12, 2011

Dewhurst attacks EPA over anti-coal rule

I am amending this post after making some calls and finding out more about the EPA's rule. I guess this is one of those cases where we're paranoid because they really are after us. Dewhurst's statement follows: AUSTIN—Today, Lt. Governor David Dewhurst issued the following statement regarding the detrimental effects of

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Politics & Policy|
September 10, 2011

Yahoo! columnist criticizes Perry’s Medicaid record

Joe Conason's article contains nothing that is new to those who follow Texas government. It focuses on the Accenture contract and the attempt to save money by privatizing the health care bureaucracy, a scheme that was the brainchild of Arlene Wohlgemuth in the Medicaid legislation of 2003. I thought

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Eat My Words|
September 9, 2011

Ten Years After: Tom Perini’s 9/11 at the White House

(The famous Perini Ranch mesquite-smoked peppered beef tenderloin. Photo by Pat Sharpe)Editor's Note: This guest post is by longtime Texan Jim Shahin, now a resident of Washington, D.C.... and "craving Central Texas barbecue almost every minute of every day," he says. The "Smoke Signals" columnist for the Washingon Post,

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Politics & Policy|
September 8, 2011

Mark his words: Cuban on the Big XII

Mavericks' owner Mark Cuban has a very smart blog on what the Big Twelve should do if A&M leaves. It was published several days ago and has been picked up by other sports blogs. * * * * Here is some unsolicited advice to the Big 12. As you

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Politics & Policy|
September 8, 2011

Perry holds up under fire…sort of

Who won the Republican debate? According to Jennifer Rubin, who writes the "Right Turn" conservative blog for the Washington Post, it was Karl Rove and Dick Cheney: Neither was on the stage, but Karl Rove and Dick Cheney put the Social Security issue front and center. Earlier in the day,

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Eat My Words|
September 7, 2011

BBQ Snob: Dallas Enjoys a BBQ Renaissance

Editor's Note: Daniel Vaughn, writing under the name BBQ Snob, runs the Full Custom Gospel BBQ blog and will also be writing about barbecue for Texas Monthly. This is his first column. Texas barbecue is having a moment. It seems like every time I turned around this

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Politics & Policy|
September 7, 2011

What to expect in the GOP debate

I expect Perry to be seen as the winner. All he has to do is just repeat his prepackaged zingers, and he will come off well. Anyway, it won’t be the comments that win the debate; it will be Perry’s TV appearance and persona. As his media guru, David Weeks,

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Politics & Policy|
September 6, 2011

Bob Gates to become chancellor at William & Mary

He will succeed retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor. There was no realistic chance that Gates would return to Texas A&M, where he served with great distinction as president before leaving to become Secretary of Defense. Perry never liked Gates. He wanted Phil Gramm over Gates (shudder), but the

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Politics & Policy|
September 6, 2011

Gallego opts for Congress

Pete Gallego’s decision not to seek reelection to the Texas House is a true loss for the body. Gallego has been a great member who has grown in stature during the years of Republican domination. His deep voice was instantly recognizable and his calm demeanor helped soothe some difficult moments.

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Politics & Policy|
September 4, 2011

ESPN speculates UT, OU, OSU, Tech to the PAC 10

The importance of locating in the right superconference trumps concerns about the Longhorn Network? Assuming that this comes to pass, that has to be the story line. This is the first mention of the PAC 10, but no one should be surprised. It was clear that UT president Bill Powers

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Politics & Policy|
September 4, 2011

Perry as debater

All the papers are running stories today about the upcoming Republican debate at the Reagan Library, which will be Perry's first test. What kind of a debater is he? He was involved in debates against Tony Sanchez in 2002, against Chris Bell, Carole Strayhorn, and Kinky Friedman in 2006, and

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Politics & Policy|
September 2, 2011

South Dakota decision could impact Tx sonogram case

From HuffingtonPost: South Dakota can require doctors to tell women who seek abortions that they have an “existing relationship” with their fetus that is protected by law and that they can’t be forced to undergo the procedure, a federal appeals court ruled Friday. The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of

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Politics & Policy|
September 2, 2011

Taylor opts for the Senate

The pending departure of the chair of the House Republican caucus removes someone who was well positioned to challenge Straus for speaker. It will also touch off a scramble for a successor. I thought the most likely challengers to Straus would be Taylor and Hancock, but both have their sights

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