President visits UT!

Check out this video of the President's visit to our great city!




One of our wonderful Precinct 463 neighbors took pictures of the President's motorcade. Okay, quick disclaimer, the neighbor is my sweet honey. More of his photos can be found on Flickr ...look for Colorado Steve.

Post-convention news

The Brief: Top Texas News for Jun 28, 2010

by David Muto, The Texas Tribune
June 28, 2010

THE BIG CONVERSATION:

Texas Democrats made a stand this weekend — with tongues planted firmly in cheek.

Gubernatorial candidate Bill Whiteset the state Democratic convention ablaze on Friday night, capping off a rare week of political fortune for the party, which saw the White campaign digging in its heels on political messaging at the same time that Republicans nationwide were pushing back against ApologyGate and a poll showed White and Gov. Rick Perry in a virtual tie.

But at an otherwise fairly low-drama event — in contrast to the Republican convention two weeks ago at which internal strife over the party chairmanship dominated the conversation — Democrats compensated by amping up the shenanigans while taking direct aim at Perry: The double-wide trailer that the AFL-CIO offered to Perry made an appearance, as did "Perry's kill coyote beef" (hopefully not actually coyote) and copious amounts of snark, seen in a number of videos bashing the governor (and at one point comparing him to a certain TV villain also, incidentally, associated with cheerleading). Here's a taste:

And, yes, the chicken suit made an appearance, too. (Revisit all the action on the Tribune's liveblog, where reporters Brandi Grissom, Reeve Hamilton and Ben Philpott saw it all — including multiple chicken sightings, in fact — firsthand.)

But the party did take time to address more serious issues, including the "Texas two-step" primary/caucus voting system, which it voted to retain, and the party chairmanship, which expectedly went to incumbent Boyd Richie.

Though, as with any convention, the takeaway is the party's tweaking of the political narrative. And as The Dallas Morning News' Wayne Slaternotes, the story now goes something like this:

For the GOP: Washington is the problem, Bill White is Washington, Bill White is the problem.

For Democrats: Austin is the problem. Rick Perry is Austin. Rick Perry is the problem.

Not bad odds for Democrats, then, it would seem. But in a post-convention daze and with the political winds perhaps only briefly at their backs, do they have what it takes to win?

CULLED:

• Former Texas Gov. Dolph Briscoe Jr., a rancher with a storied political and personal history, died Sunday at 87.

• Bill White wasn't the only rock star at the Democratic convention this weekend.

"Imagine what it will be like to actually have a governor who understands public policy." — Newly re-elected Democratic Party Chairman Boyd Richie

MUST READ:

Dallas County is point man for Democrats — The Dallas Morning News

Texas Democrats seeing a generational shift — Fort Worth Star-Telegram

FBI Investigating Possible DSHS Hacker — The Texas Tribune

More public money used to attract big events to Texas — Austin American-Statesman

Small-business tax break expiring — San Antonio Express-News

Hearings into border deaths sought — El Paso Times

This article originally appeared in The Texas Tribune at http://trib.it/bv5eba.

Asleep at the Wheel?

The Travis County Democratic Convention, March 20th at the Palmer Events Center on Auditorium Shores, will have music to go with all the political business --including, nine-time Grammy Award-winning "Asleep at the Wheel."After the convention, feel free to stay in the area and see more live music at the free SXSW concert on Auditorium Shores.

The County Convention is open to the public and lots of Travis County Democrats will come and be inspired by the music, the exciting speakers and the promise of victory in November. The program will include a rousing Clean Energy Rally, with special appearances by State Senator Kirk Watson and Mayor Lee Leffingwell, as well as our Congressman Lloyd Doggett and Travis County Delegation of State Representatives Elliott Naishtat, Dawnna Dukes, Eddie Rodriguez, Mark Strama, Donna Howard and Valinda Bolton, as well as other invited special guests. We’ll also have a special photo booth so you can commemorate your time with friends and elected officials at the convention.

Registration for the County Convention is from 8am to 9am on March 20.

P.S. – VOLUNTEERS NEEDED for the Convention! CALL the Travis County Democratic Party Office: 477-7500

~Holiday par-tays~

Ah, the holidays. So after Veteran's Day last month, I took a month off from blogging, and wow, has a lot happened since then! Rather than take a look back, let's look ahead to the last few weeks of December 2009!

Holiday Par-tays
How many holiday parties have you been to so far? Well, here's a few more for you to add to your calendar!

• What: Amy Clark Meachum Fundraiser & Children Book Drive
• When: Monday, December 14th from 5 to 6 PM
• Where: The Austin Club, 110 East 9th Street, 3rd Floor
• Why: Amy Clark Meachum has been a long time supporter of children's literacy programs like Reach Out and Read, and Reading is Fundamental, and is a current board member of Booksprings. Amy is running for 353rd Civil District Court, and this event will be a great time to get to know more about her, donate to her campaign and/or donate to the book drive.

• 
• What: H.O.P.E. for the Holidays - Grassroots (casual dress) Gala
  
• When: Tuesday, December 15th from 6 to 8 PM
  
• Where: Jovita's at 1617 South 1st Street
  
• Why: Share some hope for the holidays and join Texans for Obama, Organizing for America, and Travis County Democratic Party for this fun and festive event! Find out more about the event by visiting www.AustinHopeForTheHolidays.com. Pick a gift from the list and bring your wrapped donation in-tow on Tuesday.
  

Last minute holiday gift shopping solution!
It's par for the course for me to do my Christmas shopping two weekends before Christmas. So, I'm right on schedule, because I checked most of the items off my fam & friend gift list today. I picked up toys from Terra Toys and a few gift certificates from local joints. All I need is to figure out what I'm going to wrap or put these gifts in.

If you're running behind and not sure where to find cool, local gifts for your loved ones, then you've got to run over to Lincoln Village and check out this year's Blue Genie Art Bazaar!








Wishing you all a healthy, safe, and joyous holiday season!

So easy a caveman can...,well you know

When I woke up this morning (at 2, 3, 4, 5, and finally 6 AM) I was feeling achy, tired, and queasy. In the delirium of the early AM hours, I thought "do I have the flying pig disease?" But as the sun began to shine through the blinds, I was determined to recover fast so I could check out the "How Will You Vote" event facilitated by David Kobierowski, TCDP Precinct 262 Chair and all-around dedicated Dem.

Thankfully, some fresh air, time with my dogs, a couple of over-the-counter meds, and lots of liquids had me feelin' back to 85%.

Constitutional Amendments Decoded












Today's Public Affairs Forum of Austin and League of Women Voters Forum was held at the First Unitarian Universalist Church (off of 47th and Burnet). It started at 11:30 and promptly ended at 12:30 --including 20 minutes of Q&A.

Senator Watson did a fantastic job of translating the propositions and fielding voters' questions. Rather than reinvent the wheel (and, because I'm still feeling under the weather), the following is an edited version of the descriptions from the last week's Watson Wire.

Proposition 1 would permit the Texas Legislature to let cities/counties acquire buffer areas next to military installations. *There're legal nuances to the way cities/counties can acquire such areas.

Proposition 2 makes it clear that Texans' homes can be appraised ONLY as a home. Right now a home could be valued as what it *could* be, say, if it could be turned into an office space -think gentrification.

Proposition 3 strengthens state oversight of a property appraisal board’s practices and procedures. Would reduce wide swinging variation.

Proposition 4 would use money we already have to help existing universities (e.g. University of Houston, Texas Tech, UT-Arlington, UT-El Paso, and others) become "tier-one" public research universities. UT and A&M are tier-one.

Want more info about this prop? The Center for Public Policy Priorities (CPPP) explains why the passage of Prop 4 is important for Texas -click brief.

And Proposition 5 allows adjoining appraisal districts or similar entities to consolidate their review board functions so they can be more efficient.

Proposition 6 would let the Veterans’ Land Board issue additional $ to help Texas veterans acquire land or get a mortgage loan.

Proposition 7 would clarify that members of the Texas State Guard (or similar groups) could hold civil offices such as justice of the peace or county commissioner.

Proposition 8 would clarify that the state can contribute money, property or other resources for a veteran’s hospital.

Most immediately, this would allow the state to help build a veterans hospital in the Rio Grande Valley, as required by a law that took effect earlier this year.

Proposition 9 would strengthen the state’s open beaches law by putting it in the constitution and clarifying that the public has the unrestricted right to use, and get to and from, public beaches.

Proposition 10 would lengthen the term of emergency services district board members from two to four years.

Finally, Proposition 11 builds on a current law limiting the ability of the state, or any other jurisdiction, to condemn and acquire property for economic development purposes through the use of eminent domain.

If you're left scratching your head as to which way to vote on these propositions, there's an easy to digest Voter's Guide (PDF) prepared by the League of Women Voters. As for me, after today's event I'm confident that voting yes on these props is the right way to go.

Like to be extra prepared? Get a sneak peak of the ballot.

Soo...now what?
As the title of this blog implies, voting early is oh-so-easy!

From Blogger Pictures

Find a polling place by accessing this interactive search feature on the Secretary of State's website. Travis County has a list of all the early polling locations.

Do you have unanswered questions about voting? Visit Travis County's voter and November 3rd election Q&A page.

Hope you can make it out to an early polling place!

After Halloween, there's voting!

Some of you may know that I graduated in August from UT's Master of Science in Social Work program. I can't tell you what a relief it is to not have to squeeze life in between work, school, and internship responsibilities. My time is mine again, and it has been wonderful!! The thing is, though, that I enjoy procrastinating with my time...sometimes. :0)

Why do I bring this up? Well, Halloween and the November 3rd election are around the corner and I still haven't bought any candy, have no clue how I'm going to dec-out the garage for neighbors, and haven't posted anything about the Constitutional amendments that'll be on the ballot. (Okay, so, the last one may not be as fun as getting the garage "halloween-y" but it's probably more important.)

November 3rd Ballot?
Now if you're asking yourself, "November 3rd ballot, huh?" Then we're both lucky! Because the Secretary of State website has a sample ballot and a downloadable PDF of the amendments. Plus, I recently learned that our very own Senator Kirk Watson will be leading a "How Will You Vote" meeting on Sunday, October 18th from 11:30 AM to 12:30 PM. I'll be tweeting from there and snapping a few pix for the blog. Hope to see ya' out there!

I still have it on my list to devote a blog to the what's on the ballot. But tonight, as I get ready to fly out to Harlingen at 6:50 AM tomorrow for work, I am pooped and ready to hit the hay.

State Board of Education
Another topic for a future blog is Texas' education system. Specifically, the knuckle-headed approach that has been taken by the Rs on the State Board of Education. I'll be posting soon about what the board has been doing and which board candidates to keep an eye on.

Health Care Reform Made Simply? Kinda' Sorta' Maybe Not Entirely
And, what would a post from yours truly be without something about health care?

The Kaiser Family foundation has new Side-by-Side Comparison tools, including a breakdown of the health care reform proposals before Congress.

The Commonwealth Fund has created an interactive US map you can use to view state-specific rankings and results of their 2009 health system State-by-State Scorecard. Texas moved up from 48th place in 2008 to 46th. Check out their website for details on what goes into the scoring matrix.

'K, nighty-night.

Mark your calendar: Events happening on 6/16 and 6/18!

Texans for Obama (TFO) Event on Tuesday, June 16th!


If you're on Facebook and connected with other TFO members, you may have already seen information about Tuesday's "Meet John Sharp, Candidate for U.S. Senate."

• Time: 6:00pm - 7:00pm
• Location: Scholz Garten
• 1607 San Jacinto Blvd, Austin, TX

John Sharp is the former Comptroller of Texas, and he's running for the U.S. Senate being vacated by Kay Bailey Hutchison. Learn more about his campaign at: www.johnsharp.com

I plan to post some photos, and possibly Tweet, from the event! Hope you can make it out!
The above image is from www.johnsharp.com.

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Also happening this week, is...United Way Capital Area's VIVIR UNIDOS event on Thursday!

Again, I'll be there and will try to Tweet updates from the event. I'm really looking forward to hearing how we can all Live United/Vivir Unidos!
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Date: 6/18/09
Sorry I wasn't able to post Tweets from Tuesday's or Today's event. Tuesday I had a flat -big screw in my tire and I couldn't make it to the 6 PM meeting. Today my iPhone died -no photos, no tweets. :(