Free Republic

RINO Hutchinson does it again…LIES about her vote for the filibuster and votes with the Democrats to accelerate a vote on Obamacare.

Former DA Earle running for Lt. Gov. By Kate Alexander | Friday, December 18, 2009, 06:36 PM Former Travis County District Attorney Ronnie Earle is running for lieutenant governor of Texas. Earle, who retired last year after more than three decades as district attorney, filed paperwork with the Texas Democratic Party late Friday to seek the party’s nomination for the statewide office. The winner of the Democratic primary in March will probably face the Republican incumbent David Dewhurst next fall. At this point, Earle is the sole filer for the party’s nomination, but Austin deli owner Marc Katz is...

A 16-year-old former juvenile detainee is accused of stabbing a high school teacher to death with a butcher knife. Another teen was convicted of killing a roofer during a 30-minute robbery spree. Both were released by the Texas Youth Commission because the agency wasn't equipped to treat their mental illnesses and had to let them go under the law. The cases highlight what some juvenile justice experts say is a loophole in the way Texas treats underage offenders with severe psychiatric issues... the commission has released more than 200 offenders because of mental health issues in the last five years...

Dear Texas, I don't know much about you. I don't live there. I know it takes about two days to drive through your vast tracts of land in an aging Mazda RX-7. That drive really sucks. Even when listening to Stephen Hawking's "A Brief History of Time" on tape. I know that most of your nasty collectivist hippies have been confined to Austin, like cells of tuberculosis encrusted in calcium. They are harmless and if the chips were down, you could drive them out to live in some refugee camp on the Louisiana border. They could live there for decades,...

OYSTER CREEK, Texas—Officials are on the lookout for a Bengal tiger in Brazoria County. No joke. Police say a man recently reported spotting a tiger near the Buc-ee’s at FM 523 and Highway 332. That’s close to the town of Oyster Creek. Game wardens with Texas Parks and Wildlife have been searching the area, even using special goggles equipped with night vision in a bid to find the big cat. Authorities said they haven’t actually spotted the animal, nor have they found any tracks or other signs of it. Still, the chief of police in Oyster Creek wants his officers...

Note: The following text is a quote: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEThursday, December 17, 2009 Guyanese National Charged with Smuggling Indian Nationals to the United States A Guyanese national has been indicted on charges of conspiracy and alien smuggling in connection with her role in the smuggling or attempted smuggling of four Indian nationals to the United States. Annita Devi Gerald, aka Annita Rampersad, 52, was charged in a nine-count indictment returned yesterday by a federal grand jury in the Southern District of Texas. Gerald was arrested by ICE special agents in Houston on Nov. 17, 2009, and has been held without...

Rick Perry, where are you? In Texas, and across the Nation, we are watching the inexorable advance of unconstitutional federal legislation across our borders. What recourse do Texas citizens have when the federal checks and balances established by our Founding Fathers are overrun? We will be looking as we vote for our next Governor for strong, principled leadership.

Kay Bailey Hutchison votes with Democrats to speed up process to healthcare vote.

A short-sleeved squabble ended suddenly Thursday when Town East Mall security raided a kiosk and seized a stash of T-shirts that had southeast Dallas business owners up in arms. Half an hour after the raid, a half-dozen Pleasant Grove business owners gathered at the Southeast Dallas Chamber of Commerce and celebrated a medium-sized victory. In the center of the room, draped across the back of a chair like a pelt, was one of the vanquished T-shirts: "Welcome to Pleasant Grove," it read – below a silkscreen image of a man tossing a body into the trunk of an old Buick....

Kay Bailey Hutchison, much maligned for campaigning in Texas during the health care debate, boldly announced that she would go to Washington and stay there to fight health care and kill it dead. Instead, today she accelerated it getting to the Senate floor in a bit of Senate gamesmanship.

Texas continues to fare better than the rest of the nation and even noted a decline in its seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate for the month of November, the Texas Workforce Commission said in a new report. The Texas unemployment rate dropped from 8.3 percent to 8 percent in November as total non-agricultural employment in the state grew by 17,300 positions. In the past two months, the state has added close to 70,000 jobs, the commission said. Compared to the rest of the nation, Texas unemployment figures are sitting in more optimistic territory.

FORT WORTH -- Good riddance? We can’t recall the last time a company promoted the end of a product. Did Ford extol the Edsel? Coke the New Coke? Yet we have Whataburger buying little ads, setting up toll-free hot lines and Web sites, then paying PR people to call attention to the withdrawal of what is easily the Corpus Christi-based chain’s unhealthiest menu item: The A1 Thick and Hearty Burger. The burger has lost its pizzazz, said a PR person with SPM Communications of Dallas, who is not authorized to be quoted by name, Wednesday night, a North Texas hairstylist...

The Bexar County Democratic Party is missing $200,000. Carla Vela, outgoing party chairwoman, said at a hastily called press conference Wednesday that more than $200,000 of the party's money is missing from at least two accounts. Vela said that she first found out about the missing money on Monday afternoon, nearly five months after she first heard rumors that a $100,000 check she wrote in July as a partial payment of the 2008 primary had bounced... Vela said that she never looked into the issue further after treasurer Dwayne Adams repeatedly reassured her that it was a mistake... Vela said...

Strayhorn continues to explore Democratic bid for comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn, who was twice elected comptroller as a Republican and then ran a losing gubernatorial campaign as an independent, called Democratic Party Chairman Boyd Richie on Tuesday to discuss seeking the party’s nomination for comptroller. Democratic Party spokeswoman Kirsten Gray confirmed the conversation, which Strayhorn initiated. We don’t know much about what was said. When I asked Gray whether the party would welcome Strayhorn as a candidate, she replied, “We will rely on our voters to consider each candidate’s record and decide if they have the Democratic credentials they...

AUSTIN – Two-thirds of Texas businesses will pay nearly triple the unemployment-benefits tax next year than they paid this year, the Texas Workforce Commission announced Tuesday. Next year's tax rates are the highest since an oil-price and real estate bust stalled the state economy Across the board, unemployment taxes will roughly double next year.

While we argue amongst ourselves as to whether there really is an Islamic threat in America, Muslims remain focused and continue to push forward with their agenda. Group distributes Qur’ans to front doors By Khalil AlHajal DEARBORN — Many Dearborn residents have been wondering about the source of paperback Qur’ans found hanging from doorknobs throughout the city in recent months. The group distributing free copies of an English translation of the Muslim holy book hopes to create better perceptions of Islam by simply making the scripture available.

Mysterious Group Buys Building Next to Ground Zero For Mosque Wednesday, December 16, 2009 Jim Hoft A mysterous Muslim group with unknown sponsors has purchased a building steps away from Ground Zero. Hudson New York reported: An identified group with unknown sponsors has purchased building steps away from where the WorldTrade Center once stood — to turn it into potentially one of the largest New York City mosques. At the moment the building, the old Burlington Coat Factory, already serves as a mini-mosque: an iron grill lifts every Friday afternoon for a little known Imam leading prayers a few yards...

Even Saban knows who will win.

Some University of Texas faculty question whether football coach Mack Brown is worth $5 million annually when the school faces tough budget choices. University system regents last week decided Brown deserved more money, raising his annual pay from $3 million. The Longhorns will face fellow unbeaten Alabama in the Citi BCS National Championship Game on Jan. 7.

...Friedman's departure left outgoing Houston Mayor Bill White and hair-care millionaire Farouk Shami as the two main contenders for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination and lessened the chances of the race going to a runoff. While it does not clear the field for White, it gives him the advantage over a less-known and less experienced opponent. White has a track record in office and proof he can win elections. Shami says he will spend $10 million of his own money to win the nomination with his rags-to-riches life story, but he still will have to answer the ultimate question: Is Texas...

Police Find Body of Unborn Baby Killed in Abortion in Christmas Gift Box Mission, TX -- In a bizarre case that is beginning to draw national attention, police in a city in south Texas say they have found the remains of an unborn baby victimized by abortion placed in a Christmas gift box. The incident took place in this city near McAllen, on the Texas side of the Mexican border. http://www.LifeNews.com/state4645.html

If you want action on climate change, don't go to Copenhagen – try Irving, Texas instead. Copenhagen is home, temporarily, to 192 countries trying to agree the environmental future on paper, but Irving is home to Exxon Mobil which has spent $41bn on its view of what constitutes a low carbon tomorrow. What the world's energy giants do with their immense financial resources will be as important as what the world's politicians do. Given the way Copenhagen is going, however, it will probably be what the politicians don't agree to do which will be the UN summit's legacy. Anyway, while...

A south Texas couple put an aborted 7-month-old fetus in a gift box under a Christmas tree after they were unable to flush the remains down a toilet, authorities allege. Ruby Lee Medina, 31, and Javier Gonzalez, 37, of Mission, were charged on Monday with abuse of a corpse and tampering with evidence. Their bonds were set at $US20,000 ($A21,820) each. San Juan Police Chief Juan Gonzalez said police found the fetus inside the woman's trailer home on Thursday after getting an anonymous tip. Autopsy results are pending but Gonzalez said police believe the woman used pills to induce an...

After five years of inspecting vehicles, Dallas mechanic Robert Garcia has seen cars with everything from whisper-thin tire treads to brakes ready to fall off. Garcia – like many insurers, legislators and safety advocates – can't imagine how bad the disrepair would be without Texas' yearly required safety inspections. "It would cause a big dilemma on the road," said Garcia, who works at Adkison Tire and Service on Irving Boulevard. But some states have dropped the basic safety review after driver complaints that they were annoying and unnecessary. And some automobile experts in Texas and across the country say more...

In protest of being booted off of the KERA TV debate for Gubernatorial candidates, Debra Medina has launched a new TV spot taking Rick Perry to task for refusing to debate if Medina were allowed to participate.

HOUSTON – The first openly gay person to be elected mayor of Houston says she hopes her victory in Saturday's election will change how the world views the city. Houston is the nation's fourth-largest city and the biggest to elect an openly gay mayor. Mayor-elect Annise Parker spoke Sunday at a press conference after defeating former city attorney Gene Locke with 53.6 percent of the vote in the hotly contested runoff election.

The southern city of Houston has become the largest US metropolis to elect an openly gay mayor when Annise Parker, an open lesbian, claimed a solid victory over her rival. "I know what this win means to many of us who thought we could never achieve high office," she said in her victory speech, at which she introduced her partner Kathy and their three children, according to the Houston Chronicle. "I understand, because I feel it, too. But now, from this moment, let us join as one community," said Parker, 53. According to local election data, Democrat Parker won about...

Each campaign, expecting turnout surge among casual Republican voters, hammers away at conservative credentials. By Jason EmbryAMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF Sunday, December 13, 2009 Recent statements and strategy decisions have made clear that U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison believes it is Republicans — and not independents or Democrats, as some others have suggested — who can lift her to victory over Gov. Rick Perry in the March GOP primary.Hutchison's campaign expects a surge of voters who support Republicans but do not regularly vote in Republican primaries. And to appeal to those voters, she has in recent weeks stressed her support from...

Houston, Texas has become the largest city in the United States to elect an openly gay mayor after City Controller Annise Parker was declared the winner of a runoff election tonight. Social conservatives fought her election, funding a campaign aimed at turning out likeminded voters to support her opponent, former city attorney Gene Locke. But Parker's endorsements from labor, police, women's, gay rights and other groups were echoed by the Houston Chronicle, the area's major daily newspaper, and her campaign ran a superior get-out-the-vote effort.

ALTON - Angela Gutierrez says she had to do something when she saw a police officer being attacked. "Nobody wants to be in that situation," she says. Gutierrez, who is nine months pregnant, was driving down the road with her husband and child, when she saw a group of teens attack a police officer. The Alton officer was called to the scene to break up a fight. Before arriving he already knew he would need help and called for backup. The teens the officer spotted refused to cooperate. Instead, they attacked. Dashcam video recorded sounds of the teens beating the...

Libertarian-leaning Medina is long shot for GOP nomination but could prompt runoff. In case of danger, Republican gubernatorial hopeful Debra Medina legally totes a 9 mm pistol (with a 16-round magazine) in a zippered case in her car.But she doesn't want a license to carry it elsewhere. The Wharton businesswoman favors repealing the Texas concealed handgun law, saying it shouldn't be government's job to license and regulate guns.This protégé of libertarian-leaning U.S. Rep. Ron Paul is no sheep.She told me that decriminalizing marijuana deserves a look. The mother of two home-schooled children, now grown, also sounded skeptical of the...

The rising call to “Clean House” in the 2010 federal elections has been heard before and gave rise to a Congress no less arrogant or restrained than the one that preceded it. Democrats traditionally create agencies or programs with unconstitutional powers and Republicans reform them. A reformed illegal agency or program is still illegal. Replacing 435 Representatives and one-third of the Senate oligarchs with new oligarchs won’t change a corrupted federal government or its corrupting influence on the politicians that seek to run it. Concentrating power in the hands of a small group of aristocrats who then seize more power...

Texans for Accountable Government (TAG) have formally endorsed Republican Debra Medina as their candidate for the 2010 Texas Gubernatorial Primary. According to John Bush, Executive Director of Texans for Accountable Government, “Texans for Accountable Government PAC is proud to announce our endorsement of Debra Medina in the 2010 Gubernatorial Republican Primary! Debra is a fine human being who deserves the support of We Texans. She has fought tirelessly for years now against corruption and injustice. Recently she led the struggle against the dishonest party leadership who sought to shut Ron Paul supporters out of the 2008 GOP convention process.

Texas Declaration of Non-DependenceWe, the citizens of the great state of Texas, reassert that Texas and our people are free. In order to guarantee this freedom for future generations, we hereby petition the federal government to acknowledge and act upon its legal obligation to uphold the Constitution which binds the federal government by: limiting the powers of the federal government to enumerated powers (Article 1, Section 8); and designating all other powers to the states and the people  (10th Amendment).In recent times, the federal government has proposed new laws that seek powers not authorized by the Constitution. These desired powers...

PASADENA, Texas -- A huge explosion rocked a plant in Pasadena Wednesday. It happened before 9 a.m. at American Acryl, located in the 12100 block of Port Road at Highway 146. A thick, black cloud of smoke was visible for miles over the area, and reports from the scene indicated the plant was still burning at 9:20 a.m. A shelter-in-place was issued for Seabrook via an automated message from city officials.

Something big just blew up in baytown texas

California: While Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger worries about rising seas, his state sinks below the waves. Don't mess with Texas, they say. But California and the nation could follow its lead. Last Wednesday, Gov. Schwarzenegger released a new report based on research compiled by the California Energy Commission claiming that by 2100 San Francisco Bay would be more bay than San Francisco, with Fisherman's Wharf and Treasure Island under the rising waters of climate change. His show-and-tell, which included a new Google Earth application the commission spent $150,000 to help develop, goes a long way toward explaining the once-Golden State's slide...

Hutchison officially in the race By Jason Embry | Monday, December 7, 2009, 09:29 AM U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison filed to run for governor this morning at state Republican Party headquarters. So for any doubters out there, we now know that we really are going to see the long-awaited showdown between the two biggest names in Texas politics: Hutchison and Gov. Rick Perry, her fellow Republican. Hutchison rattled off a familiar list of issues she’s stressing in her campaign: protecting private-property rights, reforming the Texas Department of Transportation, protecting the borders, improving schools. She again criticized Perry for...

Howdy, Please FReep this poll for FReeper and Conservative Candidate Timothy Delasandro. Thank you. http://www.TimothyForCongress.com

The Big 12 Championship game is finally here and Longhorn fans have made the trek to the Dallas Cowboy’s Stadium in Arlington to witness the game firsthand. Fans are looking forward to a win and a trip to Pasadena.

Andrew McCarthy at NRO has ferreted out this incredible story about an instructor the Pentagon sent to Fort Hood to teach our soldiers about Islam who has ties to the notorious terrorist financing outfit ISNA (Islamic Society of North America) - an unindicted co-conspirator in the Holy Land Foundation trial. It's been brought to my attention by several reliable sources that the Defense Department has brought Louay Safi to Fort Hood as an instructor, and that he has been lecturing on Islam to our troops in Fort Hood who are about to deploy to Afghanistan. Safi is a top official...

Mayor Bill White will formally enter the race for governor today, instantly becoming the Democrats' best hope of winning a statewide office in seven years. White, a three-term mayor who is balding and known for something of a bland personality, is expected use self-deprecating humor to tell a Hilton Americas crowd of supporters that he knows he is not a “perfect candidate” but is someone who can get things done. White has said he wants to end “strident partisanship” in Austin. He will tell supporters he wants to improve high school graduation rates and slow the rising costs of...

...if and when Texas makes the move to secede, after a majority vote by its people, the federal government will send troops in and keep us from following through. Does anyone else find this a little strange; that those opposed to secession are opposed because they fear the federal government? I don’t know about the rest of you, but I am for secession because I fear the federal government. I don’t necessarily fear them because I think they will march into Texas and impose martial law, but because if we don’t do something to stop what they are doing to...

Video just doesn't get any better than this. Apparently at a meeting, Dallas County Commissioner John Wiley Price was not one too happy regarding money spent on a legal case. From there, it just becomes really, really entertaining. There is yelling, swearing and fist banging. Just. Wow.

The Montana Firearm Freedom Act was signed into law in October of this year. Here is a recent update: http://www.montanasnewsstation.com/Global/story.asp?S=11610180. So how does this apply to Texas right now and in the near future?One of the strategic goals of the 10th amendment movement is the passage of a firearms bill in as many states as possible. The “Firearm Freedom Act” bills state that firearms manufactured in a state that are not sold or transferred across state lines are not subject to federal gun laws. In general, federal guns laws are based on the “commerce” clause in the Constitution. This means...

Are you excited about Sarah Palin's North Texas appearance? Absolutely. This is Palin Country. (27%, 101 votes) 27% You betcha. And I've got a ticket to Friday's signing, too. (0%, 1 votes) 0% Yes. I admire her values. (16%, 61 votes) 16% Not at all. She's a divisive figure, and quit on Alaska to boot. (51%, 192 votes) 51% Is she running for governor of Texas? (6%, 23 votes) 6% Total votes: 378

An upper level storm system will be digging south-southeastward out of Colorado and into eastern Texas during the next 24-hours. You can see the storm system spinning on this water vapor image.

He now will be challenging the 8-year incumbent party chair, who is seeking a fifth term in the wake of the defeat suffered by the local GOP in the 2008 elections, and amid lingering questions about the recent management of the county party.

The Essence and Future of Texas vs. California by Tory Gattis 11/21/2009 I know there have been a lot of articles and references to Texas vs. California recently in this blog, but, well, there's a new one with some genuinely new contributions to the argument ("America's Future: California vs. Texas", Trends magazine, hat tip to Jeff). And it says some nice things about Houston too, so how can I pass on it? The beginning of the article is here - including an overview of both states' situations - but here are some key additional excerpts: ...Both the Brookings Institution and...

Perry makes it official, files for third full term Gov. Rick Perry already holds the record for the longest serving governor in state history, but today he filed to paperwork to officially become a Republican candidate for an unprecedented third term in office. Of course, Republican U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison and activist Debra Medina hope to stop Perry in his tracks in the March 2 GOP primary. Hutchison is expected to formally file for the race Friday shortly before Houston Mayor Bill White jumps into the Democratic gubernatorial contest. Perry became governor in December 2000 when then-Gov. George...