5.26.2023

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

at 2:30 PM

Random Friday Morning Thoughts



In this criminal justice corruption case that didn't get near enough publicity in our next of woods, he would get convicted and later be sentenced to 13 yeas.

  • This is glorious. The judge was100% spot on with his remarks. 


    • Side note: When your lawyer shows up at your sentencing hearing wearing a white suit, you might want to rethink your life decisions. 

  • In an earth shaking and historical event in Texas politics, a joint committee voted last night to return Article of Impeachment against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. This, on any other day, would be the lead bullet point. This is big. This is huge. Stay with me here . . . 

     
    • Make no mistake, the filing of the Articles of Impeachment isn't the action of just some rogue committee acting on its own. This is a planned-behind-the-scenes orchestration by Republican powerbrokers to (justifiably) take down Paxton. The committee, in my opinion, would never have recommended impeachment without  Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and Gov. Greg Abbott not having already signed off on this. 

    • Yesterday morning, I bet someone that there was no way Paxton would be impeached. I didn't even think we would get this committee vote. I was 100% wrong.  This is moving fast and furious. Impeachment, at least in the Texas House, seems like a done deal. 
    • Texas law has a wild twist: Just like the impeachment process of the President of the United States, the House will first vote on whether to "impeach" Paxton and then the Senate will vote on whether to "convict and remove" him.   But there is one huge difference: If the House votes to impeach Paxton, he will be immediately suspended and the governor will appoint a replacement. 

    • So, technically, once the House votes to impeach, the Senate could drag its feet forever and Paxton is still out. But the Senate might vote on it right away anyway. I'll say it again, this has to be all pre-planned. And Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who runs the Senate, certainly didn't signal that he was against impeachment last night. 

    • But here's a fun fact: Paxton's wife is an elected state senator and she gets a vote. 

      • Since one of the articles of impeachment accuses Paxton of having a "mistress" who got hired as a bribe by Paxton's buddy, Nate Paul, who was in legal trouble, I propose this plot twist: She votes to impeach and then immediately files for divorce. (Doubtful since she's know about the affair for months.)


      • Remember that Ken Paxton and his wife were on stage for Trump's January 6th rally right before the Insurrection. Yesterday was a perfect circle.

    • It is now very clear why Paxton went scorched earth against House Speaker Dan Phelan two days ago accusing him, with no firm evidence, of being drunk.  Paxton knew the impeachment articles were coming. His only shot was to try to cut off the head of the beast. 

    • Now here's where it might get a little wild. Paxton is a MAGA stormtrooper and borderline QAnon. Those nutcases in the Republican Party love him, and they are not pleased.  
      • Will they fight back? You bet. Take this example: Rep. David Spiller from Jacksboro was one of the five members on the Committee voting to return the Articles of Impeachment.  I consider him a "normal Republican" although he's taken some very troubling far right wing positions since he became a politician and went big time. Anyway,  here's video of the five members voting last night. 

      • So why do I bring up Spiller? Well, he got verbally attacked last night by the spokesperson and administrator for the powerful West Texas oilmen PAC -- Defend Texas Liberty. Oh, my.

      • I'm not sure why he singled out Eastland County. Spiller's district has 12 counties in it, and he lives in Jack County. But Stickland is a dumb as a box of rocks so that could explain it. 
    • Finally, here is a pic of the Articles Of Impeachment being handed out last night on the House floor. It was quite the scene.  That lady in the pink pants was busy last night. 

  • Quick hit unrelated to Paxton:

  • And I've got to mention that Luka got a haircut. 

  • Time which has passed since the Wise County Sheriff's Office, despite having a full male DNA profile, has failed to solve the murder of Lauren Whitener in her home at Lake Bridgeport: 3 years, 324 days.

at 8:31 AM

5.25.2023

Random Thursday Morning Thoughts






These, and brown suits, were the type of controversies President Obama was involved in.

  • The Ron DeSantis / Elon Musk bro-brother rollout of DeSantis' presidential announcement turned out to be worse than anticipated. The most important event in your life -- an event that you have years to plan for in every detail -- finally happened, and all everyone can talk about are technical meltdowns. 


    • Trump immediately made fun of the rollout with this post which I don't even remotely understand. Red button? And what does Kim Jung Un have to do with this? This is weird even by Trump standards.  

    • And then Trump got even stranger by posting this mocking fake re-creation of DeSantis' announcement -- complete with fake attendees, including Hitler and the Devil.  (In case you had any question about whether we have entered Idiocracy, we have arrived.)

  • Sentencing is today. The government wants 25 years. Rhodes' lawyer has asked for 16 months with credit for time served.


    • Related: Now would be a good time to remind you of this.

  • We now know why Texas AG Paxton went on a bizarre attack accusing the House Speaker of being drunk on duty. It was right out of the create-a-distraction political playbook. He knew that yesterday a Republican committee would hold a hearing to announce that he has engaged in corruption for years. 


    • The revelations by the committee were actually old news since they have been in plain daylight for over two years. And these are the same allegations revealed by Paxton's assistants who he now has to pay $3.3 million for firing them because of their whistleblowing. This headline was from 2021:  

    • Paxton is a snake, has been under indictment for seven years for even different charges, but you guys keep electing him, 

  • The Messenger has a crazy story today (buried way too deep in the paper, by the way) about a Paradise sophomore who actually qualified for the state track meet in the high jump, but who didn't go to Austin because no one told her that she had won a regional tie-breaker held by . . .  a UIL coin flip. Her name was actually called out over the PA system at the state meet to take her jump, but she was innocently and obliviously sitting at home. 

  • You don't see this every day: The school superintendent-elect for Arlington ISD turned the school district down. Her current employer, the Gregory-Portland school board, offered her $265,000 annually to stay. She took it and will stand pat.  The outgoing superintendent for Arlington made $230,000. 

  • New charges? In federal court no less? Why bother? He's not getting out of the hoosegow on the murder conviction.

  • Call me crazy, but considering that Southlake has 65 full time police officers, it might be wise to cock an eyebrow over his number of DWI arrests.
  • I don't follow hockey but, from afar, Jamie Benn's sleepy, non-apologetic, cap-on-backwards, press conference yesterday was a pathetic attempt to make amends for his inexcusable penalty on Tuesday night.  We hate to bother you and all, but could you at least fake a little remorse?

  • Messenger: Above the Fold

at 8:30 AM

5.24.2023

Random Wednesday Morning Thoughts




A cartel hit in broad daylight on a lawyer in the Southlake Town Square happened on May 22, 2013.

  • Mommy and daddy are fighting in Austin! Seriously, this is very, very weird. Texas AG Ken Paxton came off the top rope yesterday and demanded the House Speaker Dade Phelan resign because of this video which shows something momentarily "wrong" with Phelan. Paxton alleges he was intoxicated. Incidentally, Paxton has wanted the legislature to pay for his $3.3 million settlement for firing whistleblowers who reported his past misconduct. Phelan has balked.

    • Here's the over-the-stop statement from Paxton but note that he only says it was "apparent" that Phelan was intoxicated.

    • But then in a letter to the General Investigations Committee, he said Phelan was "obviously" intoxicated. There's a huge difference between apparent and obvious. Words have meaning. Paxton is the State's "top lawyer." And a bad one. 

  • The Dallas Morning News has a feature story on this $14.24 million home for sale "just north" of . . . Decatur! Listing is here.

  • Trump was "in" court yesterday on his criminal case in New York. A trial date was set for March 25th, 2024.  Don't bet on it happening that day.

  • As a widely recognized political expert, I think announcing a presidential bid on Twitter "Spaces", alongside a guy who has been propping up Nazis lately, probably isn't the best way to appeal to a mass general audience.


  • Today marks the day. 
    "The Sound Of Children Screaming Has Been Removed."
     
    The aftermath cluster was as bad as law enforcement's response. 

  • We live in the dumbest of times. We've already gone from book banning to poem banning. 

    The actual complaint.

  • Will watch.

  • I almost feel like there are pitchfork carrying crowds wandering the streets looking at who they will go after next.  Bud Light, Target, and next?  But don't call if Cancel Culture. 

  • "Warehouses, people! See ya next week!™" This warehouse is already fully leased to Amazon which kind of surprises me because I thought Amazon owned all of their warehouses.

  • I'm hearing things didn't go to well last night.

  • No team is going to sign Zeke Elliott, right? 

at 8:31 AM
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