TexasTowelie
TexasTowelie's JournalSt. Louis City Hall Locks Out Alderwomen, Activists
The press conference held by St. Louis: Not for Sale yesterday was pretty tame as far as these things go. No chanting, no marching. Just a half-dozen people concerned about the effort to privatize St. Louis Lambert International Airport, and a half-dozen or so journalists intent on quoting them.
But City Hall was apparently expecting something a bit more rambunctious. Just before the 3 p.m. press event began on the stairs facing Tucker Street, security guards closed the gates for that entrance and a few others. Questioned why, they said only that orders had come from their supervisors.
The action was particularly odd because roughly half the group assembled to criticize the privatization effort consisted of city alderwomen. Alderwoman Annie Rice says she actually left her office inside City Hall to participate in the press conference — only to see the gates soon locked behind her.
"It just seemed baffling," she says.
Koran Addo, a spokesman for the mayor's office, says the decision would have been made by the city marshals, a unit of the police department responsible for security at City Hall. The mayor was not involved, he said.
Read more: https://www.riverfronttimes.com/newsblog/2018/09/14/city-hall-locks-out-alderwomen-activists
Kansas City has its own price-gouging pharmaceutical company
Down in the East Bottoms, at 1800 North Topping Avenue, is a pharmaceutical company called Nostrum Laboratories. This company makes a drug called nitrofurantoin, which is an antibiotic that treats urinary tract infections. Nitrofurantoin is categorized as an essential medicine by the World Health Organization.
Last month, Nostrum’s CEO, a man by the name of Nirmal Mulye, decided to quadruple the price of this drug. It used to be $475 for a bottle of this medication. It now costs $2,300 a bottle.
Why did Mulye do this? Because he believes he has a “moral requirement to sell the product at the highest price.”
That is a direct quote he gave to the Financial Times. A moral requirement to gouge sick people who need the drug he makes.
Read more: https://www.thepitchkc.com/news/article/21022337/nostrum-laboratories-kansas-citys-very-own-pricegouging-pharmaceutical-company
Make sure to read the update at the end of the article.
Judge orders Clean Missouri amendment removed from November ballot
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — A Cole County judge has ordered that the constitutional amendment seeking to overhaul the state’s ethics laws be removed from the November ballot.
On Friday, Judge Daniel Green ruled that the Clean Missouri amendment violates the state’s constitutional prohibition against multiple subjects and amending multiple provisions. Backers of Amendment 1 said they plan to appeal the decision.
“We’ll be appealing immediately. The Secretary of State properly certified the measure so that voters may consider the measure, and voters will have their say on November 6,” said Chuck Hatfield, attorney for the Clean Missouri campaign. “We have always thought that this legal matter would be decided at the Appeals Court level. This is a speed bump, but the law is on our side, the people are on our side, and Amendment 1 will be passed in November to clean up Missouri politics.”
The measure is a proposed constitutional amendment that would impose gift limits for legislators, lower campaign contribution limits, change the length of time required before becoming lobbyists, and change the model for drawing districts.
Read more: https://themissouritimes.com/53919/judge-orders-clean-missouri-amendment-removed-from-november-ballot/
Some Texas GOP members renew push to oust Muslim from top party post
FORT WORTH, Texas—A controversial plan to oust a top Tarrant County, Texas, Republican official because he's Muslim was revived late Thursday.
Republican Dorrie O'Brien proposed that the appointment of Shahid Shafi—who was named vice chairman of the local GOP this summer—be reconsidered in a secret ballot vote at the next party meeting after the Nov. 6 midterm election.
One Republican booed after O'Brien voiced her request during a meeting of local Republican party precinct chairs.
Tarrant County Chair Darl Easton, whose appointment of Shafi was approved by Republicans earlier this year, acknowledged O'Brien's request.
Read more: http://www.texarkanagazette.com/news/texas/story/2018/sep/14/some-texas-gop-members-renew-push-oust-muslim-top-party-post/743416/
ICE detains dozens in Alma factory raid
ALMA, Ark.— The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has detained at least two dozen people suspected of living in the country illegally after raiding a northwestern Arkansas food-processing plant.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents served a search warrant Wednesday morning at the Bryant Preserving Co. in Alma. The warrant was for an existing criminal investigation, but ICE spokesman Bryan Cox wouldn't provide further detail.
Agents took into custody more than two dozen people suspected of living in the U.S. illegally. Cox said Wednesday that he doesn't have a specific number of detained employees because some were still being processed and others had since been released.
"If there is some violation of federal immigration law, we do not turn a blind eye," he said.
Read more: http://www.texarkanagazette.com/news/arkansas/story/2018/sep/14/ice-detains-dozens-factory-raid/743307/
Ex-Arkansas college president sentenced to 3 years in prison for scheme bribing GOP leaders
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark.—The former president of a private Christian college in northwest Arkansas has been sentenced to three years in prison after pleading guilty for his role in a kickback scheme involving former state lawmakers.
Oren Paris III was also ordered to pay $621,500 in restitution. Paris was president of Ecclesia College. He admitted to funneling bribe money to the lawmakers in exchange for state grants.
Paris pleaded guilty to in April to one count of fraud. According to Arkansas Business, Paris said in court Wednesday that he takes full responsibility for his actions and that "there's no one to blame for my current situation other than myself."
Last week, former state Sen. Jon Woods was sentenced to more than 18 years in prison for his role in the scheme.
http://www.texarkanagazette.com/news/arkansas/story/2018/sep/13/ex-arkansas-college-president-sentenced-3-years-prison/743108/
(brief article)
State expects to spend $3.5 billion less on schools, property taxes to fill gap
The Texas Education Agency projects the state will spend $3.5 billion less in general revenue for public education in the coming years because potential local property tax revenue is expected to skyrocket statewide.
Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath confirmed this early projection in front of a state budget panel Wednesday morning as he laid out the state agency’s budget request through 2021. The shift to a greater share of local funding already hit a milestone in Waco this year. For the first time in a Waco Independent School District budget, local taxpayers are providing more funding than the state, officials have said.
“This request from TEA is a smoking gun,” Waco ISD Board President Pat Atkins said Wednesday. “TEA has specifically requested that the state reduce its share of funding because local property taxes will make up the difference.”
The Foundation School Program, the main way of distributing state funds to Texas public schools, includes both state general revenue and local property tax revenue. Local property values are expected to grow by about 6.8 percent each year, and existing statute requires the state to use that money first before factoring in state funding.
Read more: https://www.wacotrib.com/news/education/state-expects-to-spend-billion-less-on-schools-property-taxes/article_f685531d-5593-502f-af2d-2568205ca73a.html
Former Texas Workforce Commission employee charged with embezzlement
LUBBOCK -- A former Texas Workforce Commission employee accused of stealing more than $110,000 from the agency is facing federal charges.
Federal grand jurors this week returned an indictment against Josefina Ramirez, charging her with a felony count of theft of public money.
She is accused of using her position at the Texas Workforce Commission to make fraudulent unemployment insurance claims from 2007 to 2014 for friends and family, according to the federal indictment. She is accused of embezzling $110,276 from the agency, which is under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Department of Labor and the Social Security Administration.
According to court documents in Ramirez’s sister-in-law’s case, Ramirez knew her sister-in-law struggled financially in 2009 after she quit her job to help her special needs sister. Ramirez helped her obtain unemployment insurance benefits by listing her last employer as Ramirez Trucking. Ramirez helped her sister-in-law again in 2014.
Read more: http://www.lubbockonline.com/news/20180914/former-texas-workforce-commission-employee-charged-with-embezzlement
Former Amarillo mayor withdraws $10 million gift to Texas Tech following chancellor's retirement
Former mayor of Amarillo Jerry Hodge said he’s withdrawing his $10 million donation to Texas Tech due to frustration toward the Tech Board of Regents.
Hodge, the founder of Maxor National Pharmacy Services, said over the phone Tuesday he’s been openly frustrated with the board since the apparent ousting of former Tech Chancellor Robert Duncan last month. Hodge said the final straw broke when he was informed the regents were debating his donation in executive session. Unnamed sources said the closed-door discussion was about how the $10 million would be allocated, although Hodge said it was for the veterinary school.
“I have not had one person say anything positive about the five Tech regents, I’ll tell you that,” Hodge said, referring to the majority of Tech regents who - numerous sources have confirmed - expressed no confidence in Duncan during an executive session in August. “We’re all upset. The vet school is something the whole community is behind. I’m a rancher, too, and we need large animal vets.”
The details of the executive session was written about in a recent story published in the Texas Tribune. The debate among the regents, according to the story, was over how Hodge’s donation would be split between the vet school and the pharmacy program.
Read more: http://www.lubbockonline.com/news/20180911/former-amarillo-mayor-withdraws-10-million-gift-to-texas-tech-following-chancellors-retirement
Reagor-Dykes court filings further explain what happened, condemn former CFO
LUBBOCK -- Documents filed this week in response to Ford Motor Credit Co.’s federal lawsuit against Reagor-Dykes Auto Group and its owners shed more light on what happened between the creditor and dealerships.
The defendants had until Friday morning to respond to claims they owe Ford over $113 million and violated contracts by selling vehicles out of trust and failing to pay charges when due. In separate filings, Bart Reagor denied the allegations, as did Rick Dykes, who cited he did not have sufficient information to respond otherwise.
The response filed by counsel for Reagor and the three dealerships states, “Ford Credit’s claims are barred by the doctrine of unclean hands.”
Previous court filings have suggested former Chief Financial Officer Shane Smith should be investigated for what led to the dealerships’ financial and legal issues. Smith made a “stunning disclosure” to Ford, Reagor and Dykes that he provided false financial information to the creditor, according to the response filed by Dykes’ counsel. RDAG promptly fired Smith.
Read more: http://www.lubbockonline.com/news/20180914/reagor-dykes-court-filings-further-explain-what-happened-condemn-former-cfo
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Gender: MaleHometown: South Texas. most of my life I lived in Austin and Dallas
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