It's Friday. Let's Get Out Of Here.

That's probably Mr. USA's girlfriend who will be in the ER later.

Not a bad idea.

Loved that game as a kid. Saw that happen several times as a kid.

New Age Cat

Same look as every girl who takes her 

first shot of tequila.

Speaking of a drinking from a straw and McDonald's

Sean Hannity's Show: His Definition Of Humor

In case you missed it here is @w_terrence's last word for tonight #Hannity pic.twitter.com/WTF7r0M7l9

— Sean Hannity (@seanhannity) July 14, 2017

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!"

Trump Is In France

WATCH: POTUS to Mrs. Macron: "You're in such good shape. She's in such good physical shape. Beautiful." pic.twitter.com/DvJPF6aT5l

— Yashar Ali (@yashar) July 13, 2017

Surprised It Doesn't Happen More Often

Here's a clip of some take-offs and landings.

New From Austin This Morning

BREAKING: Car falls five to seven floors from downtown Austin parking garage https://t.co/frmw72JDaP pic.twitter.com/xorA8HRHuG

— Austin Statesman (@statesman) July 13, 2017

Random Thursday Morning Thoughts

• Kind of reminds me of Marlon Brando in Apocalypse Now:
  
  
• When you can't have a "flaming cocktail" in the middle of a Tuesday afternoon in Highland Park without being badly burned.
• Gov. Greg Abbott will seek re-election which caused me to realize I actually miss Rick Perry. Abbott, who has lived his life off of a lawsuit and tax dollars, is the worst panderer to Texans in my lifetime. 
• Mrs. LL has discovered Blue Apron which pretty much means I've discovered Blue Apron.
• Man, there is a lot of "Whataboutism" going on by the Right these days.
• There was quite the heated debate between two people in the comments yesterday. The most fascinating comment was from a Trump defender who made it clear it's not about Trump. Basically, he didn't like the direction the country had been going and his only goal was to protect his family and his family's future. Because of that, he didn't care what Trump did, even if illegal, so long as he can fulfill that dream. It was incredibly honest. And, although also incredibly shocking, I respect that more than trying to justify the current and future Trump scandals. 
• I bet there are a ton of people who believe like the commentor does. Trump's approval rating is around 39% and I doubt it will ever be lower that that because 39% of the country probably feel that way. Even moreso around here. 
• Someone asked me this at the courthouse: She changed home insurance coverage and her old company sent her a check for about $750 in unused (?) premiums which someone told her to apply it to her escrow account on her next mortgage payment. I told her I agreed and gave her an explanation as to why. But now I'm not exactly sure I truly understand all of the accounting. Someone explain this. 
• Missed this: The song "Make America Great Again" was performed by musicians from First Baptist Church of Dallas.
• San Francisco cop pushes downhill skater boy into cop car. (I've watched this video 100 times. The thud, the guy yelling "ooooh",  and the other skateboarder in the foreground hitting the pavement are nice touches.)
  
• I finally had to graph out all the players in Game of Thrones since it is so confusing. 
• I'm sure there's nothing to worry about Antarctic breaking up:
  

Things That Make You Do A Doubletake

This just happened on Hannity..... pic.twitter.com/nOYn7Th2aL

— Yashar Ali (@yashar) July 13, 2017

Bridgeport Makes Fox News

And that is from the national Fox News, not the local affiliate.

I'm trying to figure out where in Bridgeport that was. I can't make out the landmarks.

(I think the guy is still in jail if the Liberally Lean Crack Research Team is correct.)

This Happened Yesterday

Please join us in covering POTUS and VPOTUS with prayer https://t.co/M5cvKPlcxf

— Jack Graham (@jackngraham) July 12, 2017

Jack Graham is pastor at Prestonwood Baptist.

I can't find Robert Jeffress in the picture. He's going to be mad if he was left out.

That Caption Made Me Laugh

Ugly bunny fracas is swiftly broken up by the chicken police. pic.twitter.com/kTxMODYsGa

— Dick King-Smith HQ (@DickKingSmith) July 10, 2017

Above The Fold

Random Wednesday Morning Thoughts

• A Southwest flight had to return to Austin yesterday when two passengers got into a fight. I haven't seen a video of it yet. There's a lot of aggression out there. 
  
• "The new home market is booming once again in the sprawling Northwest school district, prompting officials to purchase land for six new schools, including two high schools." It is amazing to believe that Northwest ISD was once a tiny little thing with one high school in the UIL district of Decatur and Bridgeport. 
• Although it has not hit 100 degrees, this summer feels hotter than any in the last decade. It's sauna-like out there.
• I can't decide if I like the Miami baseball park where the All-Star Game was played last night or not. It is so ridiculous that I lean towards like.
  
• For those interested in Texas county government and criminal law: Travis County just voted to spend a bunch of money for the DA's office to appeal a case to the U.S. Supreme Court. The case involves law which I have never heard of before. An Austin officer, but who was part of a joint Federal/State task force, killed a guy in the course of duty but the DA's office thought it was manslaughter. They indicted him in state court.  Using a federal law which is new to me, the officer was able to stop the prosecution and remove the case to federal court where it was dismissed by a federal district judge because there's a weird immunity statute that applies to criminal prosecution under the statute. After the Fifth Circuit affirmed the dismissal, the money was approved to hire an outside counsel to help the DA's office with the appeal. But get this: They hired a former Texas Supreme Court judge (which means he has qualifications of being able to get elected and specializing in Texas civil law) to help with the case which, once again, involves nothing but federal law. And how much will he be paid? $30,000 plus $900 an hour. Keep in mind the DA's office has an army of appellate lawyers who are paid by taxpayers to handle appeals.
• The Ticket's signal was horrible yesterday and they said the station's tower was in Decatur. I didn't know that. (I think it is actually north of Decatur.) 
• I had a random call out of the blue from an old friend who is an avid Blog reader. He also is part owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers. I hadn't heard from him in 20 years, but he just wanted to say hi. 
• Not a peep from the White House that the New York Times is "fake news" yesterday after the stories from the New York Times turned to be deadly accurately. Then this morning Trump is at it again. Probably something else is about to drop:
  
• The pastor of the First Baptist of Dallas has not pulled his support for Trump as evidenced yesterday: 
  
• It's a bad sign for the country when the talking heads on radio and TV are arguing about the definition of "Treason." But this going around yesterday at least made me smile for a bit: 
  
• BagOfNothing turned me on to a Twitter account that focuses on the ridiculous signs that would pop up in the old Batman TV show. Here, a bad guy has stolen the Batmobile and has taken it to, uh, a run down factory.
  
• This Floyd Mayweather and Conor McGregor fight will be promoted with ridiculous events like yesterday and then the fight will turn out to be a flop. (However, before you buy the pay-per-view, you better think about the possibility of how the fight might be tricked up and scripted so that something crazy will happen, thus, insuring a rematch for another huge payday.)
• s

I'm Sure This Is Just Fake News*

Does anybody think you get something from Russia for free??? pic.twitter.com/mykrMhrnsl

— Jane McGarry (@TheJaneMcGarry) July 11, 2017

The New York Times announced this morning it actually had a copy of Trump Jr's email. Trump Jr goes into damage control and amazingly releases them - here and here. (I guess under the theory of "It looks better coming from me than the Times.")

He's also running to the friendly arms of Sean Hannity tonight for a softball nationally televised interview. (Unless his lawyer gets to him and tells him he's out of his mind.)

This is amazing.

By the way, the "Crown Prosecutor" mentioned in the email is the top judicial official in Russia and appointed by Putin himself.
_______
* And by that I mean, "Holy, crap!!!"

Want To See An Attorney War?

This is really amazing. It's a free speech lawyer vs. the lawyer who had his job offer revoked by the Victoria County DA.

Random Tuesday Morning Thoughts

• An assistant DA in Dallas was arrested for DWI after a one car crash near White Rock Lake. It sounds like it was right out of Dukes of Hazzard as one of her tires was ripped off.
• I saw an argument this weekend on Lake Bridgeport between guys in two bass boats after a fishing etiquette violation. That was a first. 
• A Lockheed Martin made KC-130, used as a refueling tanker, crashed in Mississippi yesterday killing 16 Marines. 
  
• We had a rare sighting of the Texas Law Hawk in the Wise County Courthouse yesterday. 
• When Drudge turns on the Administration, things are getting seriously ramped up.
  
• Ok, here's the skinny on the breaking news that caused Drudge to go into red alert last night. (1) What has been admitted: Donald Trump Jr., the president's son-in-law Kushner, and Trump's then campaign manager Paul Manafort met with a Russian lawyer right at the time of Trump getting the Repubican Nomination.  The purpose of the meeting, and this is admitted, was that the lawyer might have some dirt on Hillary. The meeting was arranged by publicist  Rob Goldstone who has connections to Russia via Trump's Miss Universe pageant. (2) Now here's the email bombshell: The New York Times reported last night that before that meeting, Goldstone emailed Trump Jr. and told him the meeting was "part of a Russian government effort to aid his father's candidacy."  (3) Why is that important other than the obvious? If true, the "there is no evidence of collusion" argument dies and Trump Jr. met with a foreign government rep in an effort to impact the American election. (4) What to watch for today: Does the Trump Administration deny the existence of the email and start screaming "Fake News!"? Trump ignored the entire controversy on Twitter this morning. In any event, there will be calls for subpoenas and testimony today.  Secondly, what do ranking Republicans do? Will they start distancing from Trump or come running to his defense?
• And now the firing of Comey looks much, much worse. 
• Possible human bones have been found in Southlake just south of 114.
• The NFL no longer has Viagra and Cialis as major sponsors. Our long national and uncomfortable nightmare is over. 
• "U.S. Customs and Border Protection Officer and Two Others Plead Guilty to Roles in Marihuana Distribution Conspiracy."

Random Wimbledon Post

Earlier today, Rafael Nadal was ramping himself up before his match and . . . . "Ouch!!!!"

Ow. pic.twitter.com/NdHEEdZGWD

— Deadspin (@Deadspin) July 10, 2017

He then went out and lost much later.

Hay Bale vs. Guy: Who Ya Got?

Virgin Atlantic Posted This On Their Facebook Page

I'm saying its a staged publicity stunt. (Which, I guess, I just contributed to.)

Story.

Random Monday Morning Thoughts

• Trump is disrupting my weekends by firing off craziness: 
  
• The guy is under constant attack for conspiring with Russia to hack the election so he tweets that? And when he gets stunned by blow back from everyone (especially Republicans), he tries to cover his tracks hours later: 
  
• Did you know those cheap plastic hooks with three extended prongs used on hanging plant baskets aren't for sale separately at Lowe's? 
• "The Texas Supreme Court on Friday sidelined a Texas justice of the peace who admitted to using drugs and trading sexts with the bailiff in her court." It was in Harris County.
• Please note that our Governor, Lieutenant Governor and legislature have been roundly criticized for ignoring public education this year. Other things seem more important -- such as foreced annexation: 
  
• Wise County is getting a new Chief Deputy, a sitting Justice of the Peace, after the current Chief Deputy announces his plans to retire. This seems a bit curious. 
• Nothing to see here: 
  
• Mountain lions in Jack County:
  
• Pete Delkus warned us over the weekend that if we see bad weather it is probably bad weather: 
  
• But he can predict the location of random pop-up showers!
  
• A pretty moving blog post from a Houston criminal defense attorney. 
• I can guess what the results will be as Texas DPS picks a former cop to do an investigation into racial profiling at a ridiculous cost.   (The guy is actually a professor at UNT and lists "former police officer" on his resume, but I can't find out where or for how long.): 
  
• One year after the tragedy they will turn over their investigation to the DA. Why? There is no prosecution to be had:
  
• There was a Klan rally in Charlottesville, VA over the weekend. The leader wears Ray Ban's. And I have that exact same pair. 
  
• In case you missed Rick Perry's wanting to school us on economics while visiting a coal plant: "Here's a little economics lesson: supply and demand. You put the supply out there and the demand will follow."