Random Friday Morning Thoughts

• Back in November, Lt. Gov's Dan Patrick's son was defeated in an election in Harris County and thrown out as a district judge. Yesterday, Trump appointed him as U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Texas. Patrick is Trump's Texas campaign manager. I knew something like this would happen as I wrote in November of last year but I just didn't think big enough: 
  
• There were a bunch of stories of a worker being "stuck" behind a Bank of America ATM and sliding notes out of it to customers in order to be saved. Anyone else skeptical? Every story sure does prominently display the Bank of America name. Publicity stunt? 
  
• Crazy story out of Pennsylvania: Four young guys go missing this week. They are eventually found dead with the help of the murderer after prosecutors cut a deal with the him to take the death penalty "off the table."  (Regarding the accused: "[P]rosecutors said he had been diagnosed with schizophrenia. He also suffered a head injury in an ATV accident a year ago.")
• It was a great moment seeing President Clinton and President Bush together in Dallas yesterday. I miss them both. And this was a great moment as Bush poked fun at himself: 
  
• And the meeting gave rise to a fantastic picture:
  
• Both Greg Abbott and Dan Patrick are proposing mandatory salary increases and bonuses for teachers. This makes teachers love them. This makes administrators and school boards cringe because, by and large, the local districts have to come up with the money. Patrick's explanation yesterday:  Districts "have to be better about how they spend the money. They have to put more focus on teachers." (Related note: The Update reports Boyd ISD might be facing a deficit.)
• New New Yorker cover:
  
• I'm don't know if it will happen, but there's a sentencing this morning in the Wise County District Court for a woman who allegedly stole over $200,000 from one of Karl Klement's businesses. If I'm reading the docket notes correctly, she pled guilty earlier this year, waived a jury, and chose to go to the judge for sentencing. At the time, the judge was John Fostel who has since passed away. Now she'll face a visiting judge. The uncertainty would make me very nervous.
• NBC News with a scoop this morning. Probably not a bombshell but just proof there will be more and more coming. There was someone else at the Trump Jr. meeting: 
  
• That inflatable marijuana thingy is funny: 
  
• The Houston Chronicle has now picked up the Bridgeport cop-almost-hit-by-alleged-drunk-driver story, and refers to his "fancy foot work" as saving his life. 
• How many times did every Republican Representative and Senator vote to completely repeal Obamacare when they knew the vote didn't matter because Obama would veto any bill trying to do so? And how many of them made a campaign promise of "I will vote to repeal Obamacare!"