Houston City Council Member Amanda Edwards joins the race to unseat Cornyn

July 18, 2019

I heard rumors about Houston City Council Member Amanda Edwards considering a run for US Senate so I googled her resume. It is impressive. From her bio on the City of Houston website:

Amanda’s connection to service is evidenced through her early endeavors. Amanda attended Eisenhower High School in Aldine ISD. She earned a B.A. in Political Science from Emory University, where she served as president of the undergraduate student body and was later inducted into the Emory University Hall of Fame. While in Atlanta, Amanda gained valuable community building and public policy experience working in community development corporations as a Community Building and Social Change Fellow and in the Georgia State Legislature. Amanda’s experiences broadened her perspective about how to effect change through urban policy and collaboration. Soon thereafter, Amanda worked for Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee in Washington, D.C. before earning her degree from Harvard Law School. 

That is just a part of her resume. Very impressive candidate. She will be competing against State Senator Royce West, former Congressman Chris Bell, and MJ Hegar for the position.
Edwards and MJ are my favorites. 

Leave a Comment » | Uncategorized | Tagged: | Permalink
Posted by johncoby

The hoods are off!

July 17, 2019

It was an easy vote against racism but after all but 4 republican Congressmen voted in support of the racist comments made by Trump, it is very clear the hoods are now off. We knew who you were. Now we can see your faces.

Leave a Comment » | Uncategorized | Tagged: , | Permalink
Posted by johncoby

New voting machines. A first look.

July 17, 2019

I was invited to attend a press conference with Harris County Clerk Diane Trautman during the International Association of Government Officials conference. We were allowed to visit with the vendors of new voting machines, all including a paper trail. Here are the highlights of the press conference:

  • Our current machines are over 20 years old
  • New machines are targeted for the 2021 elections
  • It will cost roughly $74 Million to procure about 5000 machines (Very rough estimate)
  • The goal is to make it simple to vote and trustworthy
  • Harris County received a $250,000 grant to educate the county on voting centers
  • Voting centers have been implemented, voting hours have been extended, early voting locations are now voting centers, its easier to vote in Harris County.


 Old Voting Machine Technology
Remember that at one point or another a ballot is scanned and tallied by a machine. 20 years ago the paper ballots (shad ballots) were tallied by a machine but the ballots could be manually recounted if needed. I didn’t hear anyone complaining about those machine being manipulated to skew the vote.

 We then converted to a Hart machine with the strange dial. That machine allowed the voter to make their selections and  the machine would tally the votes. There is no paper trail.

Dominion Voting Machine

New Voting Machine Technology
The new machines will eventually tally the vote just like they did 20 years ago but there will be a paper trail. A touch screen will allow a voter to easily make their selections. Then a ballot is printed for the voter to review. That paper ballot is then scanned, tallied, and securely stored.

 But, there are options. The voter can actually simply print a ballot, color in the dots with a sharpie, then have the machine tally the vote and store the ballot. Or a configuration (one I did not like) would print the ballot and display it behind a glass screen for review before being tallied and stored.

 I found that most of the screens were easy to use, allowing the voter to increase the font size, color, background, and more. They were easy to use. The Hart machines were small. I wasn’t impressed. I found the machines by Dominion Voting to be easy to use. Election Systems and Software was BIG. 

 Trautman has a schedule to bring a new system to the voters in 2021 and will be looking for input from the Harris County community.

This was a rather large voting machine that could show the entire ballot.

This is their version of a paper ballot that would be inserted into a tally machine.

This is the tally machine provided by Dominion Voting. The paper ballot would be scanned, tallied, and stored below.

A blank ballot could be printed and the voter could use a marker to color in the circles, then inert the ballot into the tally machine.

Ballot being inserted into the tally machine.

This is the tally machine for Hart’s voting machines.

Leave a Comment » | Uncategorized | Tagged: | Permalink
Posted by johncoby

Raising Campaign Cash: CD22 Kulkarni out raises Olson

July 17, 2019

My previous post on this fundraising period was incorrect. Let me try this again:

Sri Preston Kulkarni raised $420,824 during the last reporting period. Pete Olson, the incumbent in a once safe red district, raised only $380,317 with $275,412 coming from special interest PACs. 

Olson has $482,712 COH and Kulkarni has $345,421. Nyanza Moore, who is challenging Kulkarni in the primary raised $73,705 with $5,586 COH. There are a couple of fringe candidates that have no idea what they are doing.

Buckle up Pete. After voting to support Trump’s racist comments you have a very tough race on your hands. The following is based upon 2 quarters:

Leave a Comment » | Uncategorized | Tagged: | Permalink
Posted by johncoby

City Council Member Dwight Boykins. Up in smoke.

July 17, 2019

Houston City Council Member Dwight Boykins has filed to run for Mayor and has been endorsed by the Houston Fire Fighters Union. He has had a couple of hiccups already, the leaked video addressing young women and his anemic fundraising numbers with only $70K COH. I’ve also noticed he enjoys cigars and has used his donors money to buy them. 

According to his report ending June 30, 2019. He has 14 entries in 4 months for about $3000 worth of “Gift Awards” from Stogies on Westheimer, Heights Cigar Lounge, Cigar Distributors of Houston and Masculino Premium Cigars.

That is a lot of smoke and where there is smoke…..there is a Fire Fighter Union that may want a mulligan on their endorsement of Boykins. $3000 worth of cigars in a 4 month period is a lot of cigars if that is what he is purchasing. It is hard to believe there are that many individuals to give these cigars to as “gifts”.

Over the last ten years I have seen elected officials spend their donors money on fancy custom boots, cattle, vintage cowboy chaps, antique books, and condos. Many have been fined tens of thousands of dollars. Cigar purchases using your donors money is mild to many of the other cases but it is strange.

Leave a Comment » | Uncategorized | Tagged: , | Permalink
Posted by johncoby

Houston City Council Race District E. Martin, Cleveland, Lee

July 16, 2019

District E covers Kingwood and Clear Lake. (go figure) There are three candidates running for the office, only one seems viable. Council Member Dave Martin has raised about $50,000 and has a balance of about $151,000. This is a good amount for a competitive race but this race is anything but competitive.

Sam Cleveland  is a “conservative Republican running for Houston City Council District E. I am an active Houston Police Officer”  has not raised any money. He is having some issues filing his reports but he has said no money has been raised to date and his website is down. He is a Trump supporter.

Ryan Lee is a Houston Fire Fighter Union Trustee. He has been running for months but hasn’t filed an Appointment of Treasurer so he cannot legally raise or spend money. Maybe that is why he does not have a website. He is using his twitter feed (free) and Facebook page (also free) to bash the Mayor even though he is not running for Mayor. He is a very angry tweeter. He has sided with Tony Buzbee, even though his Union has endorsed Boykins. He also supports Trump. Ryan is what we call a UFO.

Unfit For Office.

Leave a Comment » | Uncategorized | Tagged: , | Permalink
Posted by johncoby

Raising Campaign Cash: Houston City Elections. Final. Thoughts

July 16, 2019

I have said it before.

It’s not a game. Running for office is not a game……Don’t cheapen the office by running just for the sake of running and distracting from those who have a clear understanding of what they are doing and are qualified to run.

The deadline for filing has passed. Some individuals should consider dropping out of the race. If you can’t follow the law, you shouldn’t run to make the laws. Sue Lovell may not have an appointed Treasurer so that may be the reason for not filing. Ryan Lee has been running for months but has not appointed a Treasurer. Sam Cleveland has raised $0 and has had some trouble with filing. Woods has filed but the city has had problems with the report.

Anton Dowls
Naoufal Houjami
Sue Lovell
Dementria Smith
Amparo Gasca
Sam Cleveland
Ryan Lee
Michelle Bonton
Georgia Provost
Goku Sankar
Tiko Hausman
Brad Batteau
Ralph Garcia
Ashton Woods 

The amounts raised for candidates for Mayor, Controller, District E and At Large 1-5 are below. These are positions those in the Bay Area would be voting on. 

Mayor. Mayor Turner had a good report. King’s report need to be better. Boykins is not viable at this point. The Fire Fighters Tony Buzbee should quit. Dosls, Houjami, Smith should quit.

Controller. Chris Brown should not be challenged. He is rock solid in his job. Gasca should quit.

District E. Martin had a good report. His challengers haven’t filed and might want to just quit. Lee and Cleveland should quit.

Position 1. Great report by Salhotra and poor showing by the incumbent Knox. Bonton and Provost should quit.

Position 2. Robinson has no competition. He had a great report. Carmouche and Sankar should quit.

Position 3. Kubosh had a poor showing. McClinton had a poor showing. Someone need to seriously challenge Kubosh. 

Position 4. Amand Edwards had a good report. No one else is viable.  Hauman should quit.

Position 5. Sallie Alcorn is killing it. Plummer needs to step it up. The others should step it out. Batteaut, Boone, Garcia, and Woods should quit.

CANDIDATE COH Raised Spent Loans
MAYOR
Sylvester Turner (inc) $3,218,268 $1,698,596 $1,362,879 $0
Kendall Baker $260 $15,810 $15,650 $15,650
Derrick Broze $1,190 $1,379 $188 $0
Dwight Boykins $69,783 $140,174 $93,219 $0
Tony Buzbee $5,140,725 $5,500,000 $1,814,754 $0
Anton Dowls $0 $0 $0 $0
Naoufal Houjami $154 $1,080 $356 $0
Bill King $318,320 $684,842 $580,062 $100,000
Sue Lovell $0 $0 $0 $0
Demetria Smith $0 $0 $0 $0
CONTROLLER
Chris Brown (inc) $234,350 $66,611 $36,522 $75,000
Amparo Gasca $0 $0 $0 $0
District E
Dave Martin (inc) $151,184 $49,450 $18,939 $0
Sam Cleveland $0 $0 $0 $0
Ryan Lee $0 $0 $0 $0
Position 1
Mike Knox (inc) $41,171 $40,295 $45,555 $0
Michelle Bonton $0 $0 $0 $0
Georgia Provost $0 $0 $0 $0
Raj Salhotra $178,536 $220,377 $30,340 $0
Position 2
David Robinson (inc) $262,221 $88,616 $0 $0
Willie Davis $807 $10,250 $3,051 $3,000
Emily Detoto $439 $2,600 $2,660 $500
Position 3
Michael Kubosh (inc) $122,870 $43,875 $20,319 $276,000
Janaeya Carmouche $3,706 $8,950 $5,397 $1,000
Marcel McClinton $8,675 $25,823 $21,739 $0
Goku Sankar $0 $0 $0 $0
Position 4
Amanda Edwards (inc) $192,791 $73,807 $42,179 $0
Christel Bastida $750 $1,103 $51 $200
Tiko Hausman $0 $0 $0 $0
Nick Hellyar $20,501 $37,017 $34,446 $0
Ericka McCrutcheon $2,875 $5,100 $11,625 $5,000
Position 5
Sallie Alcorn $252,366 $204,247 $75,393 $0
Brad Batteau $0 $0 $0 $0
Jamaal Boone $0 $0 $0 $0
Catherine Flowers $3,700 $13,543 $9,918 $75
Ralph Garcia $0 $0 $0 $0
Marvin McNeese $7,206 $23,100 $45,893 $30,000
Giang Nguyen $20,241 $250 $8 $20,000
Letitia Plummer  $43,795 $64,519 $36,356 $0
Sonia Rivera $0 $2,260 $3,895 $1,695
Ashton Woods $0 $0 $0 $0

Leave a Comment » | Uncategorized | Tagged: , | Permalink
Posted by johncoby

Raising Campaign Cash: Houston City Elections. Semi-Finals

July 15, 2019

I have just a few candidates left who have not filed. Most of them are fringe candidates. This update contains the following.

Council Member Boykins raised 140,174 and has $69,782 COH. A pretty poor showing for the Houston Fire Fighters Union endorsed candidate.

Council Member Dave Martin District E raised 49,450 with 151,184 COH. His opponents have not filed.

Council Member Amanda Edwards raised $73,807 with $192,791 COH.

Leticia Plummer for Position 5 raised $64,519 with$43, 795 COH.

Kendall Baker raised $15,810 from his own pocket with $260 COH.

From Previous Posts:

Marcell McClinton for Position 3 raised $25,823 with $8,675 COH.

Christel Bastida for Postion 4 raised $1,103 with $750 COH and a $200 Loan.

Marvin McNeee for Position 5 raised $23,100 with $7,206 COH with a $30,000 Loan.

Sallie Alcorn raised $204,247 with $252,366 COH.

David Robinson raised $88,616 its $262,221 COH.

Mayor Turner raised $1,698,596 with $3,218,268 COH.

WOW! Raj Salhotra had a very strong showing for Position 1 with $220,377 raised compared to the incumbent Mike Knox with only $40,295. Raj has $178,536 COH compared to Knox at $41,171.

Bill King raised $684,842 including a $100,000 loan. He has $318,320 COH.

Chris Brown raised $66,611 with $234,350 COH.

Some people should not be running for office. This isn’t a game. Derrick Brozerunning for Mayor raised $1,379. Not even enough to by yard signs. Giang Nguyen raised $250 with a $20,000 loan. 

Erica McCrutcheon needs to take some training on how to fill out ethics reports. I believe she raised $5100 and has a $5000 loan from The Dunamis Group LLC which she owns.

City Councilman Mike Knox reports only $41,171 raised. I would have expected much more.

Emily Detoto raised only$2600 with a $500 loan.

Buzbee is self financing putting $5.5 MILLION of his own money into his account.

Michael Kubosh has reported raising only $43,000 with a $276,000 outstanding loan. $10,000 came from the FireFighters PAC.

CANDIDATE COH Raised Spent Loans
MAYOR
Sylvester Turner (inc) $3,218,268 $1,698,596 $1,362,879 $0
Kendall Baker $260 $15,810 $15,650 $0
Derrick Broze $1,190 $1,379 $188 $0
Dwight Boykins $69,783 $140,174 $93,219 $0
Tony Buzbee $5,140,725 $5,500,000 $1,814,754 $0
Anton Dowls
Naoufal Houjami
Bill King $318,320 $684,842 $580,062 $100,000
Sue Lovell
Demetria Smith
CONTROLLER
Chris Brown (inc) $234,350 $66,611 $36,522 $75,000
Amparo Gasca
District E
Dave Martin (inc) $151,184 $49,450 $18,939 $0
Sam Cleveland
Ryan Lee
Position 1
Mike Knox (inc) $41,171 $40,295 $45,555 $0
Michelle Bonton
Joe McElligott (withdrawn)
Georgia Provost
Raj Salhotra $178,536 $220,377 $30,340 $0
Position 2
David Robinson (inc) $262,221 $88,616 $0 $0
Willie Davis $807 $10,250 $3,051 $3,000
Emily Detoto $439 $2,600 $2,660 $500
Position 3
Michael Kubosh (inc) $122,870 $43,875 $20,319 $276,000
Janaeya Carmouche
Marcel McClinton $8,675 $25,823 $21,739 $0
William Dave Martin (withdrawn)
Goku Sankar
Position 4
Amanda Edwards (inc) $192,791 $73,807 $42,179 $0
Christel Bastida $750 $1,103 $51 $200
Tiko Hausman
Ericka McCrutcheon $2,875 $5,100 $11,625 $5,000
Position 5
Sallie Alcorn $252,366 $204,247 $75,393 $0
Brad Batteau
Paul Bishop (withdrawn)
Jamaal Boone
Catherine Flowers
Ralph Garcia
Marvin McNeese $7,206 $23,100 $45,893 $30,000
Giang Nguyen $20,241 $250 $8 $20,000
Letitia Plummer  $43,795 $64,519 $36,356 $0
Sonia Rivera $0 $2,260 $3,895 $1,695
Ashton Woods

Leave a Comment » | Uncategorized | Tagged: , | Permalink
Posted by johncoby

Raising Campaign Cash: Houston City Elections. Update 4

July 15, 2019

Marcell McClinton for Position 3 raised $25,823 with $8,675 COH.

Christel Bastida for Postion 4 raised $1,103 with $750 COH and a $200 Loan.

Marvin McNeee for Position 5 raised $23,100 with $7,206 COH with a $30,000 Loan.

Sallie Alcorn raised $204,247 with $252,366 COH.

David Robinson raised $88,616 its $262,221 COH.

Mayor Turner raised $1,698,596 with $3,218,268 COH.

WOW! Raj Salhotra had a very strong showing for Position 1 with $220,377 raised compared to the incumbent Mike Knox with only $40,295. Raj has $178,536 COH compared to Knox at $41,171.

Bill King raised $684,842 including a $100,000 loan. He has $318,320 COH.

Chris Brown raised $66,611 with $234,350 COH.

Some people should not be running for office. This isn’t a game. Derrick Broze running for Mayor raised $1,379. Not even enough to by yard signs. Giang Nguyen raised $250 with a $20,000 loan. 


From Previous Updates:
Erica McCrutcheon needs to take some training on how to fill out ethics reports. I believe she raised $5100 and has a $5000 loan from The Dunamis Group LLC which she owns.

City Councilman Mike Knox reports only $41,171 raised. I would have expected much more.

Emily Detoto raised only$2600 with a $500 loan.

Buzbee is self financing putting $5.5 MILLION of his own money into his account. 

Michael Kubosh has reported raising only $43,000 with a $276,000 outstanding loan. $10,000 came from the FireFighters PAC.

CANDIDATE COH Raised Spent Loans
MAYOR
Sylvester Turner (inc) $3,218,268 $1,698,596 $1,362,879 $0
Kendall Baker
Derrick Broze $1,190 $1,379 $188 $0
Dwight Boykins
Tony Buzbee $5,140,725 $5,500,000 $1,814,754 $0
Anton Dowls
Naoufal Houjami
Bill King $318,320 $684,842 $580,062 $100,000
Sue Lovell
Demetria Smith
CONTROLLER
Chris Brown (inc) $234,350 $66,611 $36,522 $75,000
Amparo Gasca
District E
Dave Martin (inc)
Sam Cleveland
Ryan Lee
Position 1
Mike Knox (inc) $41,171 $40,295 $45,555 $0
Michelle Bonton
Joe McElligott (withdrawn)
Georgia Provost
Raj Salhotra $178,536 $220,377 $30,340 $0
Position 2
David Robinson (inc) $262,221 $88,616 $0 $0
Willie Davis
Emily Detoto $439 $2,600 $2,660 $500
Position 3
Michael Kubosh (inc) $122,870 $43,875 $20,319 $276,000
Janaeya Carmouche
Marcel McClinton $8,675 $25,823 $21,739 $0
William Dave Martin (withdrawn)
Goku Sankar
Position 4
Amanda Edwards (inc)
Christel Bastida $750 $1,103 $51 $200
Tiko Hausman
Ericka McCrutcheon $2,875 $5,100 $11,625 $5,000
Position 5
Sallie Alcorn $252,366 $204,247 $75,393 $0
Brad Batteau
Paul Bishop (withdrawn)
Jamaal Boone
Catherine Flowers
Ralph Garcia
Marvin McNeese $7,206 $23,100 $45,893 $30,000
Giang Nguyen $20,241 $250 $8 $20,000
Letitia Plummer 
Sonia Rivera
Ashton Woods

Leave a Comment » | Uncategorized | Tagged: , | Permalink
Posted by johncoby

Tx Congressman Chip Roy (R): I'm not a racist……but….

July 15, 2019

Texas Congressman Chip Roy (R) in attempt to condemn the president’s racist tweet towards 4 Congressional women of color, stepped into the “I’m not a racist….but…” trap that many racists fall into. It truly shows Roy’s colors.

Chippy was doing just great until he got to the “but”. It’s not hard to call out a racist. He could have just said “POTUS was wrong to say any American citizen, whether in Congress or not has any ‘home’ besides the U.S. This is a racist statement and he should immediately apologize.” 
Instead he pivots into an unrelated, also racist, issue. BTW Someone pointed out that Roy didn’t direct this tweet toward @POTUS for fear he might read it.
Racists are cowards too.

Leave a Comment » | Uncategorized | Tagged: , | Permalink
Posted by johncoby

What the (R) stands for

July 15, 2019

Racist. It stands for Racist, as in, Donald Trump (R).

The president of the United States Donald Trump is a racist. Everyone who will stoop to vote for him is a racist. You cannot support a racist and say “I’m not a racist…but”. No more. Either stand proudly with the republican party or step up and vote his racist ass out of the country.

Leave a Comment » | Uncategorized | Tagged: | Permalink
Posted by johncoby

Raising Campaign Cash: Houston City Elections. Update 3

July 14, 2019

Erica McCrutcheon needs to take some training on how to fill out their ethics reports. I believe she raised $5100 and has a $5000 loan from The Dunamis Group LLC which she owns.

From Previous Updates:

City Councilman Mike Knox reports only $41,171 raised. I would have expected much more.

Emily Detoto raised only$2600 with a $500 loan.

Buzbee is self financing putting $5.5 MILLION of his own money into his account. 

Michael Kubosh has reported raising only $43,000 with a $276,000 outstanding loan. $10,000 came from the FireFighters PAC.

CANDIDATE COH Raised Spent Loans
MAYOR
Sylvester Turner (inc)
Kendall Baker
Derrick Broze
Dwight Boykins
Tony Buzbee $5,140,725 $5,500,000 $1,814,754
Anton Dowls
Naoufal Houjami
Bill King
Sue Lovell
Demetria Smith
CONTROLLER
Chris Brown (inc)
Amparo Gasca
District E
Dave Martin (inc)
Sam Cleveland
Ryan Lee
Position 1
Mike Knox (inc) $41,171 $40,295 $45,555
Michelle Bonton
Joe McElligott (withdrawn)
Georgia Provost
Raj Salhotra
Position 2
David Robinson (inc)
Willie Davis
Emily Detoto $439 $2,600 $2,660 $500
Position 3
Michael Kubosh (inc) $122,870 $43,875 $20,319 $276,000
Janaeya Carmouche
Marcel McClinton
William Dave Martin (withdrawn)
Goku Sankar
Position 4
Amanda Edwards (inc)
Christel Bastida
Tiko Hausman
Ericka McCrutcheon $2,875 $5,100 $11,625 $5,000
Position 5
Sallie Alcorn
Brad Batteau
Paul Bishop (withdrawn)
Jamaal Boone
Catherine Flowers
Ralph Garcia
Marvin McNeese
Giang Nguyen
Letitia Plummer 
Sonia Rivera
Ashton Woods

Leave a Comment » | Uncategorized | Tagged: | Permalink
Posted by johncoby

Raising Campaign Cash: Houston City Elections. Update 2

July 13, 2019

City Councilman Mike Knox reports only $41,171 raised. I would have expected much more. Emily Detoto raised only$2600 with a $500 loan.

From Update 1:

Buzbee is self financing putting $5.5 MILLION of his own money into his account. 

Michael Kubosh has reported raising only $43,000 with a $276,000 outstanding loan. $10,000 came from the FireFighters PAC.

CANDIDATE COH Raised Spent
MAYOR
Sylvester Turner (inc)
Kendall Baker
Derrick Broze
Dwight Boykins
Tony Buzbee $5,140,725 $5,500,000 $1,814,754
Anton Dowls
Naoufal Houjami
Bill King
Sue Lovell
Demetria Smith
CONTROLLER
Chris Brown (inc)
Amparo Gasca
District E
Dave Martin (inc)
Sam Cleveland
Ryan Lee
Position 1
Mike Knox (inc) $41,171 $40,295 $45,555
Michelle Bonton
Joe McElligott (withdrawn)
Georgia Provost
Raj Salhotra
Position 2
David Robinson (inc)
Willie Davis
Emily Detoto $439 $2,600 $2,660
Position 3
Michael Kubosh (inc) $122,870 $43,875 $20,319
Janaeya Carmouche
Marcel McClinton
William Dave Martin (withdrawn)
Goku Sankar
Position 4
Amanda Edwards (inc)
Christel Bastida
Tiko Hausman
Ericka McCrutcheon
Position 5
Sallie Alcorn
Brad Batteau
Paul Bishop (withdrawn)
Jamaal Boone
Catherine Flowers
Ralph Garcia
Marvin McNeese
Giang Nguyen
Letitia Plummer 
Sonia Rivera
Ashton Woods

Leave a Comment » | Uncategorized | Tagged: | Permalink
Posted by johncoby

Returning to the Moon, safely, is not an option.

July 12, 2019

I have a theory about this. 

William Gerstenmaier, the longtime associate administrator for human exploration at NASA, has been reassigned to a new role as special adviser to NASA’s deputy administrator. The move signifies something of a demotion for Gerstenmaier at the agency. As head of the human exploration division, Gerstenmaier has overseen many of NASA’s biggest projects for human spaceflight, such as the operations on the International Space Station; the development of NASA’s next big rocket, the Space Launch System; and the Commercial Crew program, an initiative to launch astronauts to the ISS using commercial spacecraft.


Going from managing billions in project assets and hundreds of employees to an “advisor” means something wasn’t right. Gerstenmaier was the modern day “Right Stuff”. He knew what he was doing and was well respected. And he probably told the truth about a trip to the Moon by 2024.

Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX), who chairs the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee said it very well. 

The Trump Administration’s ill-defined crash program to land astronauts on the Moon in 2024 was going to be challenging enough to achieve under the best of circumstances. Removing experienced engineering leadership from that effort and the rest of the nation’s human spaceflight programs at such a crucial point in time seems misguided at best. 

I will be more blunt. Going to the Moon by 2024 is not safe. We do not have a lander. We do not have a heavy lift vehicle. We do not have a service module. We don’t even have a completed Command Module. Going to the Moon with that schedule and the current resources means cutting corners and it’s not safe.

Gerstenmaier has been replaced with a yes man. That isn’t safe either. Returning to the moon safely is not an option. It is the mission.

Leave a Comment » | Uncategorized | Tagged: | Permalink
Posted by johncoby

Raising Campaign Cash: Houston City Elections. Update 1

July 12, 2019

It is official. Tony Buzbee plans to use his personal wealth to buy a Mayoral race. Much like Texas Representative out of Galveston “Money” Mays Middleton who spent over $2 Million of his own money to buy his seat, Buzbee has now donated a total of $7,500,000 to his campaign. $7,500,000.

Hopefully he will become like his other republican buddy, Kathaleen Wall who spent over $6,000,000 and lost in the primary. Buzbee is trying to be another Trump. He is loud, politically ignorant, rich, and an asshole. Just. Like. Trump.

Michael Kubosh has reported raising only $43,000 with a $276,000 outstanding loan. $10,000 came from the FireFighters PAC.

CANDIDATE COH Raised Spent
MAYOR
Sylvester Turner (inc)
Kendall Baker
Derrick Broze
Dwight Boykins
Tony Buzbee $5,140,725 $5,500,000 $1,814,754
Anton Dowls
Naoufal Houjami
Bill King
Sue Lovell
Demetria Smith
CONTROLLER
Chris Brown (inc)
Amparo Gasca
District E
Dave Martin (inc)
Sam Cleveland
Ryan Lee
Position 1
Mike Knox (inc)
Michelle Bonton
Joe McElligott (withdrawn)
Georgia Provost
Raj Salhotra
Position 2
David Robinson (inc)
Willie Davis
Emily Detoto
Position 3
Michael Kubosh (inc) $122,870 $43,875 $20,319
Janaeya Carmouche
Marcel McClinton
William Dave Martin (withdrawn)
Goku Sankar
Position 4
Amanda Edwards (inc)
Christel Bastida
Tiko Hausman
Ericka McCrutcheon
Position 5
Sallie Alcorn
Brad Batteau
Paul Bishop (withdrawn)
Jamaal Boone
Catherine Flowers
Ralph Garcia
Marvin McNeese
Giang Nguyen
Letitia Plummer 
Sonia Rivera
Ashton Woods

Leave a Comment » | Uncategorized | Tagged: | Permalink
Posted by johncoby

If you can't hear you can't be Hurd.

July 9, 2019


Texas Congressman William Hurd CD 23 seems to have forgotten that under the Obama administration Iran agreed to stop enrichment of nuclear material. 

According to the joint statement in Switzerland, the P5+1 countries and Iran agreed on a framework for a deal. According to this framework, Iran would redesign, convert, and reduce its nuclear facilities and accept the Additional Protocol (with provisional application) in order to lift all nuclear-related economic sanctions, freeing up tens of billions of dollars in oil revenue and frozen assets.


Trump, with Hurd’s backing, pulled the United States out of the deal without having negotiating a new one. Now Hurd is complaining that Iran is, once again, starting up their nuclear development. Duh! This is a problem Trump created, once again. He has no idea or capability to make any kind of international deal. Instead of having an international agreement we have nothing. And nothing is better than anything Trump can negotiate. Literally.

Hurd can’t hear the laughter of the international community. Or us.

Leave a Comment » | Uncategorized | Tagged: | Permalink
Posted by johncoby

Raising Campaign Cash: Houston City Elections. Part I

July 3, 2019

Campaign finance reports for Houston City Council candidates will be available soon. They are due by July 15th and most will wait till that day to make them available online. Some will issue press releases to show their strength. Others who are not viable will simply wait till the due date.

Watch this blog. I will be focusing on the race for Mayor, Comptroller, District E and the At Large seats. I will post Part II as soon as the following status changes:

CANDIDATE COH Raised Spent
MAYOR
Sylvester Turner (inc)
Kendall Baker
Derrick Broze
Dwight Boykins
Tony Buzbee
Anton Dowls
Naoufal Houjami
Bill King
Sue Lovell
Demetria Smith
CONTROLLER
Chris Brown (inc)
Amparo Gasca
District E
Dave Martin (inc)
Sam Cleveland
Ryan Lee
Position 1
Mike Knox (inc)
Michelle Bonton
Joe McElligott (withdrawn)
Georgia Provost
Raj Salhotra
Position 2
David Robinson (inc)
Willie Davis
Emily Detoto
Position 3
Michael Kubosh (inc)
Janaeya Carmouche
Marcel McClinton
William Dave Martin (withdrawn)
Goku Sankar
Position 4
Amanda Edwards (inc)
Christel Bastida
Tiko Hausman
Ericka McCrutcheon
Position 5
Sallie Alcorn
Brad Batteau
Paul Bishop (withdrawn)
Jamaal Boone
Catherine Flowers
Ralph Garcia
Marvin McNeese
Giang Nguyen
Letitia Plummer 
Sonia Rivera
Ashton Woods

Leave a Comment » | Uncategorized | Tagged: | Permalink
Posted by johncoby

Shawn Terry. Why are you running in Texas HD 108?

July 2, 2019

In 2018 Joanna Cattanach ran in Texas House District 108, in the Dallas area. She lost by only 200 votes. She immediately declared she intended to run again. And she should.  

So why in the world would someone roll out of bed and decide to challenge her in the Democratic Primary? That is a question that voters in HD108 should be asking Shawn Terry. According to the Dallas Morning News Terry has entered the race and claims to have a great start to fundraising:

AUSTIN — A new Democratic challenger to Dallas Rep. Morgan Meyer says he’s raised $235,000 in the past five months, setting up a potentially well-funded effort against the three-term GOP incumbent.

On Monday, Shawn Terry, an investment banker from Uptown, announced his campaign for House District 108, which is anchored in the Park Cities and also includes downtown, the Arts District and East Dallas.

Terry would be only the 2nd openly gay legislator if elected. His voting record will be looked at closely as well as his campaign finance reports due July 15. It just bothers the shit out of me that someone would jump into a race when we had a very successful and promising campaign in 2018 with a promising candidate. Why pick this race? Why make the candidate raise and spend money in a primary instead of supporting the Democrat in the general?

Ego and possibly republican backing might be the reason.

Leave a Comment » | Uncategorized | Tagged: | Permalink
Posted by johncoby

Houston Firefighters Union might want a mulligan on Boykins

July 1, 2019
From CigarSnobMag.com

Oh. My. Gawd. This isn’t going to end well.

Just 2 days after entering the race for Mayor the Houston Fire Fighters Union endorsed City Councilman Dwight Boykins over Tony Buzbee. They might want to take a mulligan after Boykins performance at a Youth Advocacy Summit organized by OCA Asian Pacific American Advocates and Mi Familia Vota. As reported by ABC 13:

“He was telling us we should keep our legs closed, that we shouldn’t taint ourselves,” said 16-year-old Khloe. “In a way, saying that we should stay pure because otherwise, in the future, other men won’t want us.”

And it got worse. And there is a video. I’m not a fan of Boykins for Mayor. I feel he tried to jump on the Pay Parity issue for the Fire Fighters for political gain. The Union prematurely endorsed him because of their disdain for Mayor Turner. This was a real bad performance by Boykins. He did issue an apology:

Over the course of my career, I have always been plain-spoken and have always spoke from my heart, especially where it involves laying a positive path forward for our youth. That was my sole objective recently when I was asked to speak to a group of students about their future hopes and dreams. During the discussion, I shared my perspective on life and the importance of staying focused while avoiding some of the pitfalls that far too often plague many of our youth, a message I have delivered to groups around the city. My words were met to inspire and I deeply regret the extent to which they caused anyone hurt or discomfort. That was never my intention, and to anyone who may have taken offense by what I said, I apologize.

Leave a Comment » | Uncategorized | Tagged: | Permalink
Posted by johncoby

Boo Birds for Buzbee

July 1, 2019

That didn’t end well. Let’s give the Democrats a thumbs up for a job well done!

Tony Buzbee is just like Donald Trump. He is a politically ignorant candidate running for political office. He isn’t doing very well so far. He courted the Houston Fire Fighters Union for months only to be passed over for City Councilman Dwight Boykins just 2 days after he entered the race. On Saturday Buzbee should have known that his appearance at the Harris County Democratic Party Executive Committee meeting would not end well. It didn’t and he got his feelings hurt. Hundreds of Democrats representing the party gave Buzbee the respect he deserves.

Buzbee has been a major contributor to Trump and republicans. From a previous post:

In 2016 Buzbee gave the Trump Victory Fund $250,000. He held a fundraiser for Trump at his home in River Oaks. He donated $35,000 to Trump’s PAC and $165,000 to the RNC. He then donated $500,000 to Trump’s inauguration. 

But that is not all. Since 2015 Buzbee has become the sugar daddy of a number of state parties donating $110,000 to the Republican Party in 11 different states. He has donated over $1,000,000 to various candidates including $308,000 to Greg Abbott and $80,000 to Rick Perry.He is clearly running a loud mouth, in your face, type of campaign, again just like Trump.

So his attendance at the CEC meeting was appropriately welcomed with loud boos and was heckled on his way out.
Buzbee tucked tail and ran to his Facebook page to whine about the event. It was almost like he didn’t understand why he wouldn’t be welcomed. Maybe he ought to try attending the Republican Party CEC meeting after bankrolling the Democrats successful effort to wipe out their judges.

On the Democratic side Buzbee helped the party wipe out the Republican judges in Harris County with his $90,000 donation to the Harris County Democratic Party not including the $20,000 to their Federal PAC in 2018. He also donated $176,178 to Democratic Judicial Candidates. Every one of them won.

Leave a Comment » | Uncategorized | Tagged: | Permalink
Posted by johncoby

« Previous Entries
Next Entries »

Bay Area Houston

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

Skip to content ↓