JP see's nothing wrong with favoritism possibilities

republicans have destroyed even the basic appearance of judicial fairness with the Texas Supreme Court and their crony capitalist judges. Why should a JP be any different?

Maybe 17-year-old accused graffiti vandal/marijuana possessor Rodolfo Adan Molina, son of Justice of the Peace Henry Santana's court manager, would have been released on his own recognizance by any other judge. Maybe Santana's decision not to require Molina to post bail wasn't a special favor, as Santana says it wasn't.

But there are no maybe's, outside the confines of Santana's imagination, as to whether his involvement was acceptable. Indeed, Santana's comment to the Caller-Times that he sees no conflict, and that he "was doing the right thing" is the most troubling aspect of this incident.

There also are no maybe's as to whether District Attorney Mark Skurka did the right thing when he decided to dispute Santana. The district attorney's office filed a motion to vacate Santana's decision, asserting that he did not have the authority.

College students to take it in the shorts again

republicans want to kill public education. GOP darling, Rick Santorum, says only snobs send their kids to school.

Texas A&M; University-Corpus Christi students may have to pay more for tuition and fees in the fall to better support instruction and help kick off women's soccer and an expansion of the student union.

Tuition is being proposed to increase by a little more than 4 percent in the fall.

Soon, only the rich kids will be able to afford school. That's the way they want it. Talk about snobs.

File this under 'No sh*t Sherlock'

republicans hate women. Now, lets see the women fight back.

Women seeking abortions at Whole Woman's Health in south Fort Worth often arrive upset or angry about Texas' new sonogram law, which began being fully enforced three weeks ago, a health center official says.

Some are unhappy about the requirement that a physician must describe the fetus during a sonogram. But it's the hardship of having to schedule two appointments -- one for the sonogram and another for the surgery at least 24 hours later -- that draws the most consistent ire.

For many women, that means unnecessarily missing two days of work, paying for two days of child care or arranging extra transportation. Those challenges are common at the Fort Worth center because it serves some rural clients who must travel farther, said Amy Hagstrom Miller, CEO of Whole Woman's Health.

"What we have noticed primarily is absolute outrage that they have to come twice," Hagstrom Miller said. "Many of our clients are already mothers; they know what is on a sonogram. They don't see it and say 'Oh my gosh, I'm pregnant' and change their minds."

Crony capitalism reigns in Corpus Christi

Or, should I say corrupt Christi.

Plans for a Schlitterbahn water park resort on Padre Island are moving forward.

The City Council gave unanimous support Tuesday for a zoning change to transform 112 acres west of Park Road 22 into a proposed development with a 65-acre water park with lodging, golf and restaurants.

The approved change means the land can be developed under a resort commercial district, which would allow for a development like Schlitterbahn or a commercial shopping center. It also means Schlitterbahn can move forward with plans to design and secure financing for the project.

During a meeting last week, Council members David Loeb and Nelda Martinez said they were concerned the zoning change was too open-ended and may not do enough to protect residents of an adjacent neighborhood with about 3,000 homes.

Too bad about those 3,000 families. Who cares about you when a crony like Paul Schexnailder can make money?

Whiff of favoritism in Nueces County JP court exposed

Mark Skurka is a good guy.

The Nueces County District Attorney’s Office plans to file a motion to vacate an order that a justice of the peace granted for his court manager’s son, allowing him to be released from jail without paying bail.

Judge Henry Santana issued the personal recognizance bond for Rodolfo Adan Molina that released him from jail Feb. 21, the day he was arrested.

District Attorney Mark Skurka said the office delivered a motion to vacate Santana’s decision to grant the bond because he didn’t have the authority.

Hidalgo city council wants to remove mayor who resigned

They want him gone NOW!

Unsatisfied with advice from the city attorney, members of the Hidalgo City Council said Tuesday night they’ll seek an opinion from Texas’ attorney general on whether Mayor John David Franz may be removed from office — despite having already resigned.

The political power play came exactly one week after Mayor Franz announced his resignation, but said he’d remain Hidalgo’s top elected official until May 12, when voters elect his replacement. Unsatisfied, his detractors suggested the City Council forcibly remove Mayor Franz from office immediately.

Violent threats alleged in Hidalgo Sheriff's race

Do you ever remember a longer political season?

The race for Hidalgo County’s top law enforcement position is heating up after Sheriff Lupe Treviño sent an internal memo to his officers saying his opponent, Geovani Hernandez, allegedly threatened a reserve deputy with an AK-47.

Armed with three of his political associates, Hernandez cried foul Tuesday morning when he brought the leaked memo to a Monitor reporter. The document appeared in his mailbox Feb. 21 with a note urging him to read it, he said.

“This is dirty politics,” Hernandez said of the officer safety alert that describes a Feb. 10 run-in he allegedly had with a reserve deputy at La Olla Restaurant in Edinburg — a common meeting ground for local politicians and law enforcement officers.

New maps show love for a**hole Blake Farenthold

Tea Party douche bag gets a gift.

It’s out with the old and in with the old, again, for Nueces County under state House and Congressional redistricting maps issued Tuesday by a San Antonio federal court.

The maps again eliminated a minority state House voting district in Corpus Christi and established a Republican-friendly Congressional district anchored in Nueces County for U.S. Rep. Blake Farenthold.

Not good news for private prison

Why are prisons a 'for profit' enterprise? Because cronies love their puppet politicians.

The warden at Hidalgo County’s only privately owned detention center has been suspended with pay amid a federal investigation into criminal allegations.

Elberto E. Bravo, 52, was suspended with pay from his post at the East Hidalgo Detention Center late last week amid a federal inquiry into fraud, bribery and theft allegations, a law enforcement official familiar with the situation said.

republicans making money from detaining Mexicans. What could be better? Just flat out making them slaves so we can bring back the 'glory' days of the deep south.

It's time for the TPA blog roundup!

The Texas Progressive Alliance is rolling out the red carpet with this week's blog roundup.

Off the Kuff conducted interviews with Democratic Senate hopefuls Paul Sadler and Sean Hubbard.

BossKitty at TruthHugger is appalled at the disinformation and outright lies that the oil and gas industry pays advertisers and politicians to use, in order to mislead voters. Voters depend on main stream media to be objective when reporting about drilling and injection consequences. Other voters depend on their religious leaders to put a theological spin on their vote. So, the result is, The Earth is Flat and Fracking is Safe. BossKitty is really alarmed at the infiltration of the US Military by extremists. US Military Infiltrated By Christian Crusaders Desecrate Toward Apocalypse

BlueBloggin is appalled that Newt Gingrich has gotten away with condemning the US President for not making excuses for the childish vandalism of Holy Books. Gingrich and other GOP candidates are pandering to the most extreme Dominionist element of people who call themselves Christian. GOP Presidential Candidate nut case, encourages Holy War

As we wait for the Texas primary to be set, WCNews at Eye On Williamson, reminds us that there's still time for candidates to enter races.

The long delay in determining the new redistricted parameters affects not only Democrats and Republicans but also the other political parties, who can't begin to collect petition signatures until after the primary elections. PDiddie at Brains and Eggs has that and more third-party news in this update.

Bay Area Houston updates the sage on Michael Berry, the right wing talk show hypocrite caught in a gay bar.

Neil at Texas Liberal took a look at some homemade fliers for shows from back in his punk rock days, and was reminded yet again that taking action is up to each of us.

At TexasKaos, Libby Shaw warns us that if you "...angry about the rising cost of gas? If you are, whatever you do, don't ask a Republican politician to tell you the truth about why prices are increasing. For the Party of right wing mullahs has psycho based issues with women's rights. The pre-historic neanderthal cave dwellers will just lie to you and blame the rising prices on Obama." Read the rest: GOP Scamming People on High Gas Prices.

CouldBeTrue of South Texas Chisme joins the chorus screaming Texas Republicans really, really hate women.

Corpus Christi Time Warner Cable battle with stations setting a record

That's not a good thing.

The broadcast blackout affecting about 80,000 Corpus Christi-area households apparently is the longest ever to affect Time Warner Cable customers in Texas, company spokesman Jon Gary Herrera said.

It is now the only local blackout for Time Warner nationwide, as customers demanding to watch New York Knicks point guard Jeremy Lin in action helped pressure the company and the Madison Square Garden Network to shake hands.

Four stations — NBC affiliate KRIS, Telemundo affiliate KAJA, CW South Texas and independent station KDF — have been off the air since the cable company and Cordillera Communications failed to reach a retransmission agreement, giving the cable company permission to carry the stations' signals and how much it will pay to do so.

Getting HD off the air is not too bad, if you're close enough to get a signal. But, then, why do you need TWC?

Billionaire puppet master gets caught giving illegal campaign donations

How can that be, you say. Aren't billionaire puppet masters allowed to do just anything they want to? Yes, in today's republican dystopia they can indeed.

The political action committee of Dallas billionaire waste magnate Harold Simmons admitted today that it messed up when it illegally donated $65,000 to candidates' campaigns in 2011. Based on recommendations of the Texas Ethics Commission, WCS-Texas Solutions PAC is calling all 18 lawmakers who received funds and asking them to give the money back.

"We are working with the Ethics Commission now to get into full compliance,” said PAC treasurer William Lindquist. He said the oversight that resulted in the violation was his responsibility.

The admission came Thursday after Texans for Public Justice filed a formal complaint with the Texas Ethics Commission alleging that the PAC illegally donated to 18 different Texas lawmakers last year. The violation, the group said, was that the PAC was funded by Simmons alone.

No problem. Damage to democracy already accomplished.

Texas republicans poised to terminate women's health programs

We have literal state mandated rape and figurative state mandated rape of women. That's how republicans roll.

State health officials will soon have to decide which is more important: Providing health care to poor Texas women or punishing Planned Parenthood?

The answer to that question will determine the fate of the Women’s Health Program, which uses Medicaid money to provide Pap smears, birth control and cancer screenings to tens of thousands of low-income women in Texas each year.

We know the answer to this question. republicans don't give a rat's ass about health care for other people. Women? Let'em drop dead.

Why isn't Texas getting grief for state mandated rape?

Because everyone already knows what a bunch of idiots are running our state - republicans. Thanks Rick Perry.

State-Sanctioned Rape: Trans-Vaginal Ultrasound Laws in Virginia, Texas, and Iowa

Under the Texas penal code penetration of a woman’s vagina without her consent is sexual assault. In other words, it is rape — which is punishable by imprisonment.