Raising Campaign Cash: State Senator “Money” Mayes Middleton (running for AG)

July 16, 2025

(You can find Campaign Finance Reports at the Texas Ethics Commission’s website.)

This is getting old. He bought his House seat. He bought his Senate seat. Now he is trying to buy the Attorney General seat. He is the Oligarch of Texas politics.

Bay Area’s Senator Money Mayes Middleton is running for Texas Attorney General and he is doing exactly what he did to win his State Representative seat and his State Senate seat, self funding his campaign. According to his report Middleton has a $10 MILLION loan to himself along with a meager fundraising total of $166,308.

When he ran for his Senate seat he raised $1,685,523 with $1.6 MILLION coming from Money Mayes himself leaving just over $35,000 coming from political suckers or those who are trying to suck up to Mayes for favors. When he ran for the House he raised $3.2 MILLION, with $2.4 MILLION coming from his own pocket. He won 56-43. His opponent raised $4000. Now he vowed to use $10 MILLION of his money to buy the AGs office.

$140,662 of the remainder of his fundraising totaling $166,308 came from 15 individuals/PACs giving $5000 or more. You can see the list below.

And you wonder why I call him “Money”?

Contributor NameAmount
0.00
Elswick ,Roger20,000.00
Hankamer ,Emerson10,331.00
McGill ,John10,331.00
Del Papa ,Larry10,000.00
Gore ,Rex10,000.00
Gore ,Rex10,000.00
Hock ,Stacy10,000.00
Lonsdale ,Joe10,000.00
Popolo ,Joe10,000.00
Texans for Lawsuit Reform PAC10,000.00
Gulf States Toyota Inc State PAC10,000.00
Eltife Campaig ,Kevin5,000.00
HARDEMAN ,Joy5,000.00
Von Schmidt ,Charles5,000.00
Weekley ,Richard5,000.00

Raising Campaign Cash: Dennis Paul of Clear Lake

July 15, 2025

After 10 years sitting on the Insurance Committee in the Texas House Dennis Paul is moving on to run for the Texas Senate. Like his fundraising for State Representative his fundraising for State Senate isn’t impressive. His acceptance of $5000 from the PAC of Independent Insurance Agents of TX is troubling.

During this last period Paul raised $132,300, most of it coming from out of the district. 92% of all his donations, $121,750, came from out of the district including $12,000 from California, Washington DC and Georgia leaving only 8% coming from his constituents. 58% of his donations, $76,250, came from PACs. His largest contribution, $25,000, came from the Texans for Lawsuit Reform PAC which works to limit the rights of consumers. The complete list of donors are below:

Texans for Lawsuit Reform25,000.00
Richard Weekley12,500.00
Elswick ,Roger11,000.00
Granite Construction Employees PAC10,000.00
Alvia ,Steven  D.10,000.00
Texas Association of Health Plans5,000.00
TALHI Life Insurance PAC5,000.00
PAC of Indepedent Insurance Agents of TX5,000.00
Galveston Pilots for Good Government5,000.00
Tomlinson ,Richard5,000.00
Texans United for a Conservative Majority5,000.00
James B Frank Campaign5,000.00
Capital Leadership Fund2,500.00
The Beer Alliance of Texas PAC2,500.00
Wilson ,Kirk2,500.00
Centerpoint Energy PAC2,500.00
Briggs ,Mark2,000.00
Thomas ,Suchmor2,000.00
Howard ,Jay1,500.00
Wholesale Beer Distributors PAC1,500.00
Bristol Myers Squibb PAC1,000.00
Troutman Pepper Locke1,000.00
Longbow Partners1,000.00
HOMEPAC of Texas1,000.00
ACEC Consulting Engineering PAC1,000.00
Insuring Texas PAC1,000.00
Delisi Communications PAC1,000.00
HILLCO PAC1,000.00
Wong ,Daniel1,000.00
Gunderson ,Samuel1,000.00
Bowen ,Scott500.00
Holzheauser ,Craig300.00
Moak Casey PAC250.00
Grace & McEwan Consulting LLC250.00
Casselberry ,Craig200.00
Dixon ,Lee Anne200.00
Kerkhoff ,Craig50.00
Russo ,Christopher50.00

Raising Campaign Cash: Scott Bowen

July 15, 2025

Not a very good start.

After 6 years of controversy on the CCISD School Board ending in a much deserved ass kicking, Bowen has filed to run for State Representative for the Bay Area. Today was his first campaign finance report for this seat.

Bowen raised $30,182, spent $6,605, has a Cash on Hand of $48,576. As with his CCISD campaign he loaned himself $25,000. Of the $30,182 raised, $18,664 was donated by just 10 people giving $1000 or more. Of the $30,182, $26,592 came from outside of the district.

Some notable donations include $2,500 from League City Mayor Nick Long, failed candidate for State Representative Thomas McNutt gave $5,000. McNutt lives in Corsicana. Christopher Russo gave $1041.02. As was posted before:

Chris Russo. (More on Chris below) Director of Texans for Strong Borders. Was seen chauffeuring Fuentes to and from the meeting at Pale Horse Strategies this month. Multiple people, who asked not to be named to avoid drawing the attention of white nationalists, told the Tribune that Russo has ties to Fuentes’ so-called “groyper” movement. 

Missing from his list of donors is Senator Money Mayes Middleton. Here is a list of all his donations for this period:

Contributor NameAmount
Agnew ,Walker208.20
Ariza ,Michael52.05
Armstrong, MD ,Robin104.10
Baucum ,John52.05
Bishop ,Bruce20.00
Bowen ,James500.00
Bruce ,Robert1,000.00
Bujnoch ,Marsha52.05
Campbell ,Christine52.05
Carroll ,Don2,000.00
Chambers ,Ruth2,000.00
Cheshire ,Cary500.00
Cheshire ,Robert10.41
Cravens ,Felicia104.10
Crisp ,Cullen520.51
Cruz ,Vergel50.00
Davis ,Dan260.25
Dawson ,Misty520.51
DeVine ,Gaylyn100.00
Dorsey ,Robert10.41
Elswick ,Roger2,000.00
Estis ,William250.00
Fields ,Jess100.00
Fite ,Deborah250.00
Fite ,Ralph500.00
French ,Hannah20.82
Garcia ,Rolando104.10
Garza ,Alan520.51
Glass ,Tom25.00
Gomez ,Katie50.00
Gratvol ,David187.38
Hale ,Paul104.10
Harris ,Aaron104.10
Harris ,Heather26.03
Hernandez ,Adrian104.10
Higginbotham ,Scott520.51
Inman ,Dale50.00
Jenkinson ,Glenn520.51
Joy ,Rohit25.00
Knerr ,Melissa26.03
Koebele ,Stephen260.25
Long ,Nicholas2,500.00
Luce ,Austin100.00
Marinov ,Samuel104.10
May ,Steve100.00
McDonald ,Dawn104.10
McNutt ,Thomas5,000.00
Mitchell ,Aaron1,041.02
Mitchell ,Aaron52.05
Money ,Brent156.15
Orlando ,Luke52.05
Perez ,John260.25
Plante ,Karen50.00
Platts ,Shilo26.03
Platts ,Shilo26.03
Proler ,Benjamin100.00
Ramsey ,Mark100.00
Rasco ,Jaclyn104.10
Ratisseau ,Connie52.05
Rigoulot ,David260.25
Rowell ,Melissa57.26
Runco ,Carl10.41
Russo ,Christopher1,041.02
Simmons ,James500.00
Slocum ,Tommy26.03
Sonka ,David1,041.03
Sonka ,David50.00
Sparks ,Matthew104.10
Spencer ,James1,041.02
Stroumpos ,Robert520.51
Swanson ,Valoree104.10
Ticzkus ,Matt26.03
Vasut ,Cody500.00
Ward ,Rhonda104.10
Weller ,Anna100.00
Wheeler ,Terry520.51
Wilson ,Derrick52.05
Wolfe ,Michael50.00
Woolsey ,Chris104.10
Woolsey ,Chris104.10
Wyssbrod ,Paul26.03

Yet Another La Marque Controversy Coming Up

July 15, 2025

This could get painful.

The Economic Development Corporation (EDC) of La Marque will have a joint meeting with City Council on June 28. Once posted, the agenda and other files can be found here. There isn’t much information about the purpose of the EDC. It seems, based upon the title, they are an advisory committee to the Council providing input on the issues affecting the economy of La Marque. (duh) One of the roles of the EDC was to distribute COVID money from the Federal Government and now this is under scrutiny.

Last month a former City Council Member spoke at the Council meeting concerning the money (about $1 Million) that was distributed to various companies. According to the rules for applicants, companies must be within the City of La Marque, the address could not be a home, and the company had less than 50 employees. Seems pretty easy. After reviewing some of the applications there have been questions about the screening process for applicants and some may not have qualified.

The EDC has the authority to demand repayment from any company that provided incorrect information on their application or did not actually meet the requirements for the COVID money. It is believed this joint meeting will begin the review of all applicants. There is no doubt that COVID hit the economy extremely hard and many were looking for a hand out from the Feds but there were rules to be followed.

Or maybe not. You can read about the application process below. The meeting will be available online.


Republican “Christians” Flock to the F*cker, Ken Paxton

July 12, 2025

LOL. Just like Ken Paxton and his mistress, I nailed it.

Yesterday I said “if anyone thinks his divorce, or his mistress, or his impeachment, or his indictments make him unfit for his office or for the nomination for Senate they need to think. Again” and sure enough from the Houston Chronicle this morning a comment from the former Texas Republic Party Chair:

“I’m a Catholic and I don’t believe in divorce,” Rinaldi said. “But I think the political climate we’re in right now is one where Christians, conservatives believe they’re in an existential battle for their country, and I think in this battle, they’re choosing the candidates time and time again that will help them win this fight for the values of America.”

He continued “As a devout conservative Catholic I must put aside my christian values concerning adultery, f*cking a porn star, paying her off, and being convicted for it, stealing secret documents, stealing from veterans, lying, cheating, dehumanizing Mexicans, separating children from their mothers, mocking the disabled, making racist comments, inciting a riot on our Capitol, pardoning those who stormed our Capitol, spreading false information about COVID, ignoring judges orders, and pardoning child sex offenders.”

Ok, that last part he didn’t say out loud. Republican “Christians” are truly fucked up people. They will flock to the fucker and nominate him to represent the State of Texas in the United States Senate. This is who they are.


Ken Paxton Closer to Republican Nomination After Served With Divorce Papers

July 10, 2025

You simply can’t make this stuff up.

“As a conservative republican I think Paxton getting a divorce because he was caught screwing a hot blonde chick makes him even more worthy of my vote.”

Ok. I made that up but if anyone thinks his divorce, or his mistress, or his impeachment, or his indictments make him unfit for his office or for the nomination for Senate they need to think. Again. Republicans consider these to be badges of honor. Paxton is just following the values set by Trump and his party and he will be rewarded in March 2026.

Senator John Cornyn was direct in his criticism of the situation: “The sanctity of marriage is a pillar of our republican conservative values. Anyone who violates this should never be considered for higher office.”

LOL. I made that shit up also. Cornyn is screwed.


Gov Hot Wheels Fumbles Yet Another Disaster

July 10, 2025

I absolutely despise this man.

Greg Abbott used a football analogy when shifting blame away from his party’s responsibilities for keeping Texans safe. He compared the Kerr County flood, which may end up taking over 200 lives, to halftime of a football game. What he actually said isn’t important. Go google it if you want to watch him. What is important is that he fumbled, again, but has vowed action at the next special session he has called.

Abbott and the entire Republican Party is like the guy at work who screws up your project, then gets an award for fixing the problems they actually created.

And Abbott has a lot of awards. Kerr County. Hurricane Beryl. Winter Storm Uri. Santa Fe. El Paso. Killeen. Uvalde. Sutherland Church. Abbott isn’t expected to stop weather events but his lack of planning and focus on keeping us safe has resulted in massive drownings, people freezing to death or trying to live in sweltering heat, kids being killed at school, and even god praying Christians being shot dead at church.

Greg Abbott has one job, to keep us safe and he has failed miserably. He brags about the lack oversight of our power grid and industries in Texas. It’s his selling point for the “Texas Miracle”, the land of less regulations, guns for everyone, and lots of people getting hurt.

In November 2026 the voters of Texas should stop giving Abbott awards and kick his sorry ass out of office.


Update: La Marque City Manager Resigns

July 8, 2025

I don’t think this is over.

La Marque City Manager, JP Pritchett, submitted a letter of resignation to the Council which the Council accepted. The letter can be read below. I45Now has more details.

As I mentioned earlier the JP sent a cease and desist letter to the City, Council Member Lowry, and Police Chief Aragon claiming the city had failed to provide a safe work environment and harassment by Lowry and Aragon. He mentioned that again in his resignation letter. He is currently under investigation concerning providing false information on his employment application specifically that he graduated from college and served in the military. I45Now has details. These are misdemeanor charges.

I think this sends a message to anyone in La Marque that falsifying a city document might get you investigated and indicted. Luckily Sheriff Fullen does not live in La Marque or he would have been gone by now. The District Attorney might want to step lightly if they jump in on the La Marque investigation.

League City Council had this to say about the situation “Thank god for La Marque!” (LOL. They didnt actually say that but I bet they are thinking it)


More Drama in La Marque

July 7, 2025

It’s been a couple of busy weeks in La Marque.

JP Pritchett
Today at 3:00PM the La Marque City Council will have a special meeting. According to the agenda: “To deliberate the appointment, employment, evaluation, reassignment, duties, discipline, or dismissal of a public officer or employee: City Manager”, that being JP Pritchett. JP has been a source of controversy, at least in the eyes of Councilman Joseph Lowry. Lowry has made a number of claims against JP. I am assuming these allegations are being discussed this afternoon and Lowry will have to recuse himself.

A few weeks ago JP issued a cease and desist order against Lowry for a number of issues including demanding that Lowry cease and desist from making any further false statements, harassment, threats, and stalking of Mr. Pritchett. They ask for the City to take immediate action to prevent Lowry from accessing city facilities where Mr. Pritchett works and to prevent any further release of private or confidential information. Based upon this cease and desist letter I wonder if Lowry will be allowed in the same room with JP or if he would have to attend the meeting via zoom.

Councilman Lowry
A month ago an intent to recall Councilman Lowry was submitted to the City. According to the requirements for a recall in District C the petitioner needed about 190 valid signatures. They obtained 268. The County has 10 days to verify the signature before a recall election can be approved.

Police Chief Randall Aragon
The Police Chief was also mentioned in the cease and desist letter. After a bit of googling Aragon has an interesting past as far back as 2015 in Alaska:

The City of Fairbanks’ police chief apologized Wednesday for comments he made about the state’s legal settlement with the Fairbanks Four. Chief Randall Aragon also committed to further investigation of the case.

In 2016:

Fairbanks Mayor Jim Matherly has accepted the resignation of Police Chief Randall Aragon, according to the city’s human resources department.

Again in 2017:

Former Fairbanks police Chief Randall Aragon’s secondary job as a private security consultant was in conflict with his public position, and he personally profited from information gleaned as a law enforcement officer, an investigation has found.

Film at 11.


Governor Hot Wheels calls for a day of prayer

July 6, 2025

Death toll from the Texas floods is at 51 with 27 children from the Christian camp still unaccounted for.

Yesterday Abbott said that “prayers worked” claiming that those who were rescued were praying. He obviously forgot about the 27 kids at the Christian camp that are still missing. It’s an incredibly stupid and tone deaf comment to make but for Abbott it is all about the delivery.

So today he has called for a day of prayer. Take some time and join Abbott by sitting on your ass, bowing your head, and praying so you can claim “prayers work” when one or more victims are found alive then continue your day knowing that you actually did something. Remember praying is the least you can do.

Literally.


Bay Area Houston

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

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