This will be fun to watch http://trailblazersblog.dallasnews.com/2014/04/abbott-asked-whether-rick-perry-can-legally-bill-taxpayers-for-his-expensive-criminal-lawyer.html/

A Democratic House leader has asked for a legal opinion on how and if Gov. Rick Perry can bill taxpayers for his $450-an-hour criminal lawyer defending him in a grand jury probe.

Perry is under a grand jury investigation on potential bribery and coercion charges after trying to force Travis County District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg to resign last year after she pled guilty to drunk driving.

He hired Austin criminal attorney David Botsford in a contract that runs through October.

Perry has acknowledged that he threatened to veto $7.5 million in state funding for the Public Integrity Unit, administered by Lehmberg’s office, if she did not step down. She did not resign and he vetoed the money.

If Lehmberg, a Democrat, had quit, Perry would have named her replacement. The Public Integrity Unit at the time was investigating the operation of one of Perry’s signature achievements — the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas.

One of CPRIT’s top officers was indicted in December for steering an $11 million award to a company without subjecting it to the standard review process.

Rep. Joe Deshotel, D-Port Arthur, requested that Attorney General Greg Abbott study the issue to see if there are limits on a governor hiring outside counsel at taxpayers expense.

In a 4-page letter, the House Land and Resource Management Committee chairman asks if the governor has taken criminal actions beyond the scope of his official capacity, should the state be obligated to pay for his defense.

Greg Abbott is going to have to take a position on this issue and it will be fun to see the fallout

In February, a federal judge ruled that the Texas ban on same sex marriage was unconstitutional. Today, a state district court judge made the same ruling http://www.bilerico.com/2014/04/second_tx_judge_rules_state_marriage_ban_unconstit.php#ObTqbk1I4WUaHAsL.99

A state district judge has ruled that Texas's 2005 voter-approved marriage discrimination amendment is unconstitutional. The ruling comes two months after a federal judge reached the same conclusion in a separate case.

The Houston Chronicle reports:

Judge Barbara Nellermoe, in a five-page ruling released Tuesday, pinpointed three portions of the Texas Family Code as unconstitutional, as well as Section 32 of the Texas Constitution. Nellermoe wrote that "in a well-reasoned opinion by Judge Orlando Garcia, the federal district court found that a state cannot do what the federal government cannot - that is, it cannot discriminate against same-sex couples."

The latest ruling comes in response to a same-sex divorce lawsuit that was filed in Bexar County in February by Allison Leona Flood Lesh and Kristi Lyn Lesh, who were married in Washington, D.C., in August 2010.

Kristi Lesh became pregnant through artificial insemination during the marriage and gave birth Feb. 19, 2013. Her attorney argued that because Allison Flood Lesh isn't the biological or adoptive parent, Kristi Lesh should retain sole custody. Allison Flood Lesh is seeking to split custody of the child.

Because Texas doesn't recognize same-sex marriages, there's also no legal avenue available to pursue a divorce.

As expected, Greg Abbott -- the state's extremely anti-gay Republican attorney general, who also happens to be running for governor -- plans to appeal the ruling.

Lawyer Emily Hecht-McGowan of the Family Equality Council told the Chronicle that the decision will not apply to same-sex couples across the state unless an appellate court makes a ruling to that effect.

Judge Nellermoe's decision comes just as the Lone Star State is reaching an important milestone on marriage equality: this week, a new independent poll revealed that for the first time, more Texans support same-gender marriage than oppose it. To give you an idea of just how big a deal that is, the state's 2005 constitutional marriage discrimination amendment passed with more than 76% of the vote

I do not trust either the Fifth Circuit or the Texas Supreme Court on this issue but it is harder to ignore two separate courts finding that the law is unconstitutional. There is no formal written opinion but you can read the judgement and the findings of fact and conclusion of law in the link.

In February, a federal judge ruled that the Texas ban on same sex marriage was unconstitutional. Today, a state district court judge made the same ruling http://www.bilerico.com/2014/04/second_tx_judge_rules_state_marriage_ban_unconstit.php#ObTqbk1I4WUaHAsL.99

A state district judge has ruled that Texas's 2005 voter-approved marriage discrimination amendment is unconstitutional. The ruling comes two months after a federal judge reached the same conclusion in a separate case.

The Houston Chronicle reports:

Judge Barbara Nellermoe, in a five-page ruling released Tuesday, pinpointed three portions of the Texas Family Code as unconstitutional, as well as Section 32 of the Texas Constitution. Nellermoe wrote that "in a well-reasoned opinion by Judge Orlando Garcia, the federal district court found that a state cannot do what the federal government cannot - that is, it cannot discriminate against same-sex couples."

The latest ruling comes in response to a same-sex divorce lawsuit that was filed in Bexar County in February by Allison Leona Flood Lesh and Kristi Lyn Lesh, who were married in Washington, D.C., in August 2010.

Kristi Lesh became pregnant through artificial insemination during the marriage and gave birth Feb. 19, 2013. Her attorney argued that because Allison Flood Lesh isn't the biological or adoptive parent, Kristi Lesh should retain sole custody. Allison Flood Lesh is seeking to split custody of the child.

Because Texas doesn't recognize same-sex marriages, there's also no legal avenue available to pursue a divorce.

As expected, Greg Abbott -- the state's extremely anti-gay Republican attorney general, who also happens to be running for governor -- plans to appeal the ruling.

Lawyer Emily Hecht-McGowan of the Family Equality Council told the Chronicle that the decision will not apply to same-sex couples across the state unless an appellate court makes a ruling to that effect.

Judge Nellermoe's decision comes just as the Lone Star State is reaching an important milestone on marriage equality: this week, a new independent poll revealed that for the first time, more Texans support same-gender marriage than oppose it. To give you an idea of just how big a deal that is, the state's 2005 constitutional marriage discrimination amendment passed with more than 76% of the vote

I do not trust either the Fifth Circuit or the Texas Supreme Court on this issue but it is harder to ignore two separate courts finding that the law is unconstitutional. There is no formal written opinion but you can read the judgement and the findings of fact and conclusion of law in the link.

Source: The Belerico Project

A state district judge has ruled that Texas's 2005 voter-approved marriage discrimination amendment is unconstitutional. The ruling comes two months after a federal judge reached the same conclusion in a separate case.

The Houston Chronicle reports:

Judge Barbara Nellermoe, in a five-page ruling released Tuesday, pinpointed three portions of the Texas Family Code as unconstitutional, as well as Section 32 of the Texas Constitution. Nellermoe wrote that "in a well-reasoned opinion by Judge Orlando Garcia, the federal district court found that a state cannot do what the federal government cannot - that is, it cannot discriminate against same-sex couples."

The latest ruling comes in response to a same-sex divorce lawsuit that was filed in Bexar County in February by Allison Leona Flood Lesh and Kristi Lyn Lesh, who were married in Washington, D.C., in August 2010.....

As expected, Greg Abbott -- the state's extremely anti-gay Republican attorney general, who also happens to be running for governor -- plans to appeal the ruling.

Read more at http://www.bilerico.com/2014/04/second_tx_judge_rules_state_marriage_ban_unconstit.php#ObTqbk1I4WUaHAsL.99

Read more: http://www.bilerico.com/2014/02/breaking_federal_judge_strikes_down_texas_marriage.php

I met Leticia van de Putte at an event a couple of weeks ago. I think that she may have a better chance than Wendy Davis to win in November in large part because the likely GOP nominee for Lt Governor is a racist nut case. Here is a good CNN article on Leticia http://www.cnn.com/2014/04/22/politics/van-de-putte-texas/index.html?sr=sharebar_twitter

Her Republican opponent could be one of two people who are currently engaged in a runoff for the Republican nomination. One is current Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst. The other is state Sen. Dan Patrick.

While Dewhurst has the support of establishment Republicans, as he did in his unsuccessful primary against now-Sen. Ted Cruz in 2010, he is shifting his policies further to the right, trying to overtake Patrick, the front-runner. Patrick is running to the far right, making immigration and his self-described "illegal invasion" a central tenet of his campaign.

"As a Latino, we're over it," Ramiro Cavazos, president and CEO of the San Antonio Chamber of Commerce, said of the Republican candidates' platforms. "I think it's a very backward approach."

Van de Putte called Patrick's campaign "entertaining" and decried the use of immigration as a wedge issue to divide the Republican base and suppress Democratic, especially Latino, turnout.

At the event I attended, we had two or three Hispanic republicans attend. There are large number of Hispanic republicans who think that Dan Patrick is a racist and that should help Leticia.

On May 3, Leticia will be in my county for a Cinco de Mayo event. It should be a great event

I met Leticia van de Putte at an event a couple of weeks ago. I think that she may have a better chance than Wendy Davis to win in November in large part because the likely GOP nominee for Lt Governor is a racist nut case. Here is a good CNN article on Leticia http://www.cnn.com/2014/04/22/politics/van-de-putte-texas/index.html?sr=sharebar_twitter

Her Republican opponent could be one of two people who are currently engaged in a runoff for the Republican nomination. One is current Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst. The other is state Sen. Dan Patrick.

While Dewhurst has the support of establishment Republicans, as he did in his unsuccessful primary against now-Sen. Ted Cruz in 2010, he is shifting his policies further to the right, trying to overtake Patrick, the front-runner. Patrick is running to the far right, making immigration and his self-described "illegal invasion" a central tenet of his campaign.

"As a Latino, we're over it," Ramiro Cavazos, president and CEO of the San Antonio Chamber of Commerce, said of the Republican candidates' platforms. "I think it's a very backward approach."

Van de Putte called Patrick's campaign "entertaining" and decried the use of immigration as a wedge issue to divide the Republican base and suppress Democratic, especially Latino, turnout.

At the event I attended, we had two or three Hispanic republicans attend. There are large number of Hispanic republicans who think that Dan Patrick is a racist and that should help Leticia.

Perry is getting some bad press

Today is a great day for Texans. A grand jury is being empaneled and Perry is lawyering up. http://www.politicususa.com/2014/04/14/republican-rick-perry-focus-criminal-investigation.html

Texas Gov. Rick Perry has lawyered up as the criminal investigation into whether he illegally withheld money from a district attorney’s office is gaining steam.

According to the American-Statesman:

Gov. Rick Perry has retained a high-profile Austin defense lawyer to represent him in a criminal investigation into whether he illegally withheld money from the Travis County district attorney’s office, the American-Statesman and KVUE-TV confirmed Sunday.

See also http://www.chron.com/news/politics/texas/article/Grand-jury-to-be-seated-to-hear-case-against-Perry-5400998.php?cmpid=hpbn

AUSTIN – A judge on Monday is expected to seat a grand jury to begin looking into the threat that Gov. Rick Perry carried out to veto funding for the Public Integrity Unit under Travis County District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg.

Perry last year said he would veto money for the unit, which prosecutes wrongdoing by public officials, unless Lehmberg resigned in the wake of a drunken-driving arrest.

There is a saying that a good prosecutor can get a grand jury to indict a ham sandwich. There is not a great deal of difference between Perry and a ham sandwich.

Today is a great day for Texans. A grand jury is being empaneled and Perry is lawyering up. http://www.politicususa.com/2014/04/14/republican-rick-perry-focus-criminal-investigation.html

Texas Gov. Rick Perry has lawyered up as the criminal investigation into whether he illegally withheld money from a district attorney’s office is gaining steam.

According to the American-Statesman:

Gov. Rick Perry has retained a high-profile Austin defense lawyer to represent him in a criminal investigation into whether he illegally withheld money from the Travis County district attorney’s office, the American-Statesman and KVUE-TV confirmed Sunday.

See also http://www.chron.com/news/politics/texas/article/Grand-jury-to-be-seated-to-hear-case-against-Perry-5400998.php?cmpid=hpbn

AUSTIN – A judge on Monday is expected to seat a grand jury to begin looking into the threat that Gov. Rick Perry carried out to veto funding for the Public Integrity Unit under Travis County District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg.

Perry last year said he would veto money for the unit, which prosecutes wrongdoing by public officials, unless Lehmberg resigned in the wake of a drunken-driving arrest.

There is a saying that a good prosecutor can get a grand jury to indict a ham sandwich. There is not a great deal of difference between Perry and a ham sandwich.

I liked Bill White when he ran for Governor but I was very disappointed when he snubbed President Obama during the 2010 race. Greg Abbott has only surfaced from his hiding place briefly to challenge Wendy Davis to meet with President Obama. That was really very silly on Greg's part because Senator Davis has been scheduled to meet with President Obama for a while. That meeting took place today http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/04/10/obama-wendy-davis_n_5127973.html?utm_hp_ref=politics

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — President Barack Obama has met with Texas state Sen. Wendy Davis, the Democratic nominee for governor.

The White House says Obama visited briefly with Davis on Thursday at the LBJ Presidential Library in the state capital of Austin. That's where Obama delivered a speech commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act.

The White House isn't saying what Obama or Davis discussed.

Greg is running a really bad campaign.