Andrew White came and took it. From Greg Abbott

May 21, 2018

So much for the macho man Abbott. After the Sante Fe Shooting, Andrew White, candidate for Governor, tweeted a picture of Abbott’s raffle of a shotgun for his campaign.


Abbott has since canceled the raffle and will instead give a $250 gift card. From Politico:

“I find this giveaway deeply disturbing for a number of reasons, chiefly among them the fact that Friday’s shooting at Santa Fe HS was carried out with a shotgun,” Jack Kappelman, a student organizer of Austin’s March For Our Lives affiliate, wrote in an email to POLITICO. 


So White came. And he took it.




It's time to treat your gun like your dick.

May 21, 2018
It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out common sense gun ownership:

  1. Close the loop holes. Every gun purchase, every single one, must have a background check performed. If you want to buy your neighbors gun, go to a gun shop, pay for a background check, sell the gun. No exceptions. At all.
  2. Ban devices that can convert weapons into automatic weapons such as bump stocks. Ban the production, the sale, and the ownership of such devices. Anyone who currently has a device must turn it in or risk the severe consequences of owning one. Or…store them at a gun range.
  3. Ban large clips of ammunition. There is no reason to have large capacity clips. If you want a large capacity clip, store it at a gun range not at home or risk the severe consequences. Or….store them at a gun range.
  4. Ban the ownership of assault weapons. I’ve said this before. If you want to own an assault weapon, then store it at a gun range. If you want to shoot it, clean it, or fondle it, go to your gun range. Anyone who currently owns an assault weapon has to either have it shipped to a gun range for storage, or give it up. Anyone who retains their  assault weapon risks the severe consequences of owning one.
  5. Extreme vetting for gun ownership. Background checks must include mental health, family violence, and any other “events” as defined by the police.
  6. Repeal open carry. We live in a modern society. If you want to walk around like a tough guy with a gun strapped to your leg, move to Somalia. No one should be walking in the neighborhood with a loaded assault rifle. This is insanity.
  7. Treat your gun like your dick. Don’t brag about it. Don’t show it off. Don’t pull it out. Don’t wave it around. Don’t point it at anyone. Don’t walk around in public playing with it. And pull it out only when absolutely necessary to protect your life and family.
  8. Change our mindset about guns. Stop this stupidity of “We love our guns”. We love our kids more. We love our families and our friends more than guns. Guns should not be a lifestyle. We need to stop acting like guns are more important to us then our friends and family. If you want a gun for protection, buy one. If you want a gun for fun, store it at the range. We need to put our dicks away.
The vast majority of Americans do not own a firearm, and there are only a small amount of individuals who own assault weapons. Most Americans who own guns are doing so respectfully. Only a small sliver of Americans are gun nuts but these are the people republicans are bowing to. It is time those of us who want common sense reforms take control of this discussion.
There are more of us common sense gun owners than gun nuts. Hopefully we will show them on November 6.

And God Said “I never gave you the right to own a gun"

May 21, 2018
From the Houston Chronicle

Much like Texas Lt Gov, Dan Patrick, I too talked to God and he is pretty pissed off.

Once again a nut with a gun killed a group of students and a teacher, this time right in our own back yard at Santa Fe High School. Our republican elected officials were quick to find a camera and defend the few who own guns and those who shouldn’t own guns. Lt Gov Dan Patrick went even as far as to blame the problem not on our gun nut mentality but on too many doors in the building. Yes, he actually said that. In fact here it is from CNN:

There are too many entrances and too many exits to our over 8,000 campuses.

There will be others to defend the few with guns saying “It’s my god given right to own a gun”. Newflash for you buds, God didn’t give you that right. So quick saying it. As you probably know the right to own a gun comes from the 2nd Amendment of the Constitution, written by a group of men. So what man giveth, man can surely taketh away. So quit your g—damn whining about how you have a god given right to own a gun. It’s about as intelligent as saying you have a god given right to own a chicken. (But not in the city limits)

Houston Police Chief has been one of a growing list of elected officials who have had it with the gun violence and the inaction by the republicans as he wrote on his Facebook page, again from CNN:

This isn’t a time for prayers, and study and inaction its a time for prayers, action and the asking of God’s foregiveness for our inaction (especially the elected officials that ran to the cameras today, acted in a solemn manner, called for prayers, and will once again do absolutely nothing)

He was talking to Trump, Ted Cruz. Greg Abbott. Dan Patrick. And every nra owned republican who have done nothing since Columbine, Sandy Hook, Orlando, Vegas, Southland, Parkland, and now Santa Fe.

God also has a message for them:

You stood in front of cameras after a sick individual with an assault weapon killed 26 of my young innocent children and their teachers. You stood in silence as my children in Orlando, Vegas, Southland, Parkland, were gunned down using military weapons I never gave you a right to have. You did nothing. You offered thoughts and prayers as if that would stop the next bullet. You had the responsibility to take action to ban assualt rifles, bump stocks, require background checks, and to change this gun nut mentality to one of common sense. You deliberately failed. You deliberately failed to follow my word. The blood on your hands from my children will forever stain you as long as you walk my earth. It will also serve as your God given pass into hell.

I damn you.

Note: I don’t claim to talk to God. Anyone who claims they do are lying, are hearing voices and shouldn’t own a gun.


When you run for office know the laws about campaign finance reporting

May 16, 2018

The laws vary depending upon the office you run for.

As an example, if you are running for a position within Harris County you must file with Harris County  Clerk at http://www.ethics.cclerk.hctx.net. The website has a link to the filing schedule hosted at the Texas Ethics Commission. This schedule for County races shows who must file and when.

There are a number of reasons to understand the laws concerning financing of a campaign. One, it is the law. If you miss a report, you will be called out for it and fined. And two, if you do not follow the law by missing reporting requirements or not filling out your reports correctly, this information could be used against you in your campaign. Don’t give your opponent the opportunity to say “If you can’t follow the law, how can you make the law?”.

It’s a good point. Know the law. Follow the law.


Port of Port Lavaca hires deadbeat Congressman as a lobbyist #NoPlaceButTexas

May 15, 2018

Harris County Commissioner, Jerry Eversole was hired as a lobbyist for the Harris County Department of Education after pleading guilty to lying to the FBI.

Deadbeat Congressman, Blake Farenthold, who owns the country $84,000 and resigned in disgrace over a sexual harassment allegation has now been hired as a lobbyist for the Port of Port Lavaca. From the Texas Tribune

Farenthold will earn an annual salary of $160,000, a slight decrease in pay from his Congressional salary of $164,000, the Associated Press reported.

Farenthold used $84,000 from a tax payer slush fund set up by the House to pay off a secret settlement concerning a sexual harassment lawsuit against him. Farenthold vowed to complete his term but abruptly left after the House was to post details about the allegations. He also promised to repay the $84,000 to the taxpayers saying:

 “Tomorrow I’m will write a personal check and deliver it to Speaker Ryan [chuckle]”. 

Yea right. The Texas Republican Party is now looking to hire Roy Moore as their young voter outreach. #NoPlaceButTexas



If you are a conservative, you're not a republican

May 14, 2018

There is nothing conservative about the republic Party.

Conservatives do not mock the disabled.
They don’t create massive out of control deficits.
They don’t make jokes about those dying of cancer.
They don’t violate or ignore the laws of our country.
They don’t tolerate sexual abuse.
They don’t tolerate family violence.
They don’t interrupt people while talking.
They don’t call people names.
They don’t say racist things.
They don’t refer to Native Americans as “Pocahontas”
They don’t make fun of other peoples language.
They don’t call people of color “rapists”.
They don’t call Muslims “terrorists”.
They don’t endorse hate groups, the KKK, or white supremacy.
They don’t disrespect elected officials even those they disagree with.
They don’t lie. Every. Single. Day.
They don’t walk around with loaded assault weapons in public.

And they don’t tolerate those who do. Those who say they are “conservative” either do not know what conservative means or they are just like the republic Party and Donald trump.

A bunch of assh*les.


Vote Tuesday then have lunch!

May 14, 2018

Come and join some Democrats in the Clear Lake area and early vote and have lunch on Tuesday May 15, 11:45 AM at the Freeman Memorial Library. Our candidate for Congress, Dayna Steele, and her staff will be joining us. After we vote we will be having lunch at a local restaurant. 

Our endorsed candidates:

U.S. Representative District 22:  Sri Preston Kulkarni
Harris County District Clerk:  Marilyn Burgess
Harris County Clerk:  Diane Trautman
Governor: Andrew White or Lupe Valdez
County Treasurer: Dylan Osborne
County School Trustee: Josh Wallenstein

History of White House scandals by the numbers

May 11, 2018

After just 1 year Mike Pence has “respectfully” suggested to Special Counsel Mueller to “wrap it up” concerning the investigation into Russian collusion with the Trump Campaign. Mueller has responded to Pence with a “Yeah. Right”. Let’s look at other scandals over the last few decades.

Watergate. The scandal began from a break in to the Democratic National Committee and resulted in a cover up conspiracy. Senate Watergate Committee was formed in August of 1973. Just 1 year later Nixon resigned. The Watergate scandal resulted in 69 government officials being charged and 48 being found guilty.

Iran/Contra Affair. Senior administration officials secretly facilitated the sale of arms to Iran, which was the subject of an arms embargo. November 25, 1986 the Tower Commission was created to investigate. Within a year there were at least 16 indictments including 16 felony counts against Oliver North.

Whitewater. Whitewater initially was an investigation into the real estate investments of Bill and Hillary Clinton. Ken Star was appointed to continue the investigate which started in 1994. 4 years later Clinton was impeached for an unrelated issue lying about a BJ.

Benghazi. The republican House investigated the Benghazi incident or over 4 years resulting in no action or indictments.

Email scandal. The republican House investigated the use of a private email server by then Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for over a year resulting in no action or indictments. The baseless investigation played a role in the 2016 election, as designed.

Russia Collusion. Special Prosecutor Robert Mueller was appointed in May of 2017 just 5 months after Trump’s poorly attended inauguration. (snipe) After just over 1 year, Mueller’s investigation has resulted in the following:

  • Indictments on multiple counts of Paul Manafort, former campaign manager of Trump.
  • Indictments against Rick Gates, Manaforts business partner.
  • Indictments and guilty plea by General Flynn, Trumps National Security Advisor
  • Indictments and guilty plea by George Papadopoulos, Trump’s campaign advisor
  • Indictment and guilty plea by Richard Pinedo
  • Indictment and guilty plea by Dutch attorney Alex van der Zwaan (now serving jail time)
  • Indictments against 13 Russian nationals and three Russian organizations.
Everyday there are new revelations and evidence. So Pence do us a favor and just shut the hell up until you are indicted.

Trump proposes cuts to NASA employee benefits

May 10, 2018

Someone has to pay for the tax cuts.

These cuts have been talked about for over a year but now there is growing concern and distain for government employees that may make these cuts real. Also the great tax cut for the rich has created a huge $1Trillion deficit with no end in sight. Somebody has to pay for this and it looks like Federal employees (NASA included) may end up donating $143.5 Billion to the cause. Trump justified his cuts:

“Everyone knows government employees are lazy, some are incompetent, and we can’t fire them. They do half the work the private sector does for twice as much money. They have golden retirement pensions, months of free vacation, and free health care that we all pay for. And what do we have? Nothing. It’s a disgrace. Believe me.”

Actually he didn’t say that but he will. Believe me. In typical trump fashion he will demonize federal employees and turn the public against them to justify his cuts. The proposed cuts will affect current employees, future employees as well as those who have retired. From the Washington Post:

  • Eliminating supplements for Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) annuitants who retire before being eligible for Social Security benefits. [affects early retirees]
  • Reducing federal pensions by basing them on workers’ basic pay five-year averages instead of three years. [less pension]
  • Increasing employee retirement contributions with no increase in benefits. The plan would sharply boost the 0.8 percent of basic pay most FERS employees contribute. The letter makes the impact on federal retirees clear. “Under this proposal, FERS employee deduction rates will increase by 1 percent per year until they reach 7.25 percent of basic pay. … This proposal would require FERS employees to fund a greater portion of their retirement benefit.” [7.25 cut in pay with less pension]
  • Reducing or eliminating retirement cost-of-living adjustments. The administration plans “to reduce the cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs) under the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) by one half of one percent and to eliminate COLAs under the Federal Employees’ Retirement System (PERS) for current and future retirees.” [no COLA for retirees]
So think of it as a 7.25% reduction in pay to fund the retirement system with no added benefits once retired. No cost of living increase for retirees so the pension will not increase over your retirement years which could be 20+ years. Other cuts to federal employee benefits that have been discussed include:
  • Reduction in sick leave
  • Reduction in vacation days
  • End of flex days
And yet NASA employees will continue to vote for republicans. You have to wonder how we will ever get back to the moon.

Spending Campaign Cash: Former Commissioner Jerry Eversole

May 9, 2018
From the Houston Chronicle

NOTE: If you steal from a bank wouldn’t it be nice if you could use that money you stole to pay your legal bills for the crime of stealing money from a bank? Here is a quick update on former Harris County Commissioner Jerry Eversole. Lions, and tigers, and bear with me.

Back in 2009 an ethics complaint was filed with the Texas Ethics Commission against Jerry Eversole for converting campaign donations to personal use including purchases for antique books, antique western wear, golf, and a steady stream of coffee from Starbucks for a total of about $250,000. The complaint was reviewed, accepted, and an order was issued fining Eversole $75,000 and ordering him to repay his account over $40,000 from personal funds. From the Texas Ethics Commission, complaints SC-2712236 AND SC-2712237  :

After considering the seriousness of the violations described under Sections III and IV, including the nature, circumstances, and consequences of the violations, and after considering the sanction necessary to deter future violations, the commission imposes a $75,000 civil penalty, contingent upon the respondent reimbursing $41,357.10 to his political funds by July 9, 2009. Any reimbursements to political funds made pursuant to this order and agreed resolution shall be made from the respondent’s personal funds and shall be reported on Schedule G (used for reporting political expenditures from personal funds) of the respondent’s campaign finance reports and indicate that no reimbursement is intended. The respondent must provide sufficient evidence that the reimbursements have been made in accordance with this order.


Besides using his donor’s money for personal use, Eversole was under investigation by the FBI and plead guilty to lying. After his probation period was over he became a lobbyist. From the Houston Chronicle:,

Accused of taking $100,000 in cash and gifts from friend and real estate developer Mike Surface in exchange for steering county contracts and appointments to Surface and his companies, Eversole resigned his office in October 2011 and pleaded guilty to lying to FBI agents, a felony.


He is now a paid lobbyist for the Harris County Department of Education. Go figure. From the ABC13:


HOUSTON — Did you know your tax dollars will help pay the salary of a convicted felon? And it’s not just any convicted felon. Just one year after a federal plea deal forced long-time Harris County Commissioner Jerry Eversole to resign, we have news that he will again serve the Harris County Department of Education as a paid lobbyist.


Go figure. But…back to the bank. In July of 2009 Eversole had about $1.6 Million in his campaign account. Elected officials who leave office cannot convert their remaining balance to personal funds. Instead they can donate to other campaigns, charities, pay off campaign debt, or pay legal bills. This is what Eversole did.

Eversole paid $75,000 to the Ethics Commission (using his donors money. He paid his legal counsel, Rusty Hardin & Associates, over $1.2 Million for his legal bills stemming from the FBI investigation. He also paid Haynes and Boone over $92,000.

On top of pleading guilty to lying to the FBI, paying his legal bills with his donors money, using your tax money for his lobbying effort, and probably retaining his County pension and health care benefits, Eversole is seeking a presidential pardon.

#NoPlaceButTexas and Harris County.



Bay Area Houston

Hard hitting political commentary always full of wit in Houston Texas.

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