Month: December 2021

Off the Kuff: “Texas Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton has been one of former President Donald Trump’s most reliable allies in spreading the myth of widespread voter fraud, particularly in the 2020 election, and frequently boasts that few states are as vigilant. His office’s election integrity unit added two lawyers to the team in the…

AL Political Reporter: “The University of Alabama Faculty Senate has officially passed a resolution stating its opposition to legislation banning critical race theory. The group had previously discussed a resolution by the state school board banning the theory at the K-12 level as well as the potential of legislation in the upcoming session that could impact higher…

TX Tribune: “When the Llano County Library shuts down for three days this week, starting Tuesday, it won’t be for the holidays. Instead, a group of six librarians in this small Central Texas county will be conducting a “thorough review” of every children’s book in the library, at the behest of the Llano County Commissioners…

WaPo: “Virginia Democrats are divided over whether to make an 11th-hour push to strengthen abortion rights in the state as they prepare to hand over control of the Executive Mansion and state House to Republicans. Abortion rights activists and some House Democrats are calling for the General Assembly to gather in special session before Republicans…

North State Journal: “Nine criminal complaints were filed on Nov. 30 with the Wake County Sheriff’s Office over what parents say are obscene and pornographic books in Wake County Public Schools libraries.  The complaints were all filed separately, with one being filed by Julie Anne, the of the Wake County chapter of Moms for Liberty….

NBC News: “Acclaimed author and activist bell hooks died on Wednesday. She was 69. Hooks, whose real name was Gloria Jean Watkins, was born on Sept. 25, 1952, in Hopkinsville, Kentucky. Her first published work, a book of poems titled “And There We Wept,” was released in 1978. She went on to publish her first…

CNN: “Members of the House Select Committee investigating the January 6 attack on the US Capitol believe that former Texas Governor and Trump Energy Secretary Rick Perry was the author of a text message sent to then-White House chief of staff Mark Meadows the day after the 2020 election pushing an “AGRESSIVE (sic) STRATEGY” for three state…

WDRB: “President Joe Biden toured two Kentucky towns Wednesday that were devastated by recent tornadoes, pledging federal aid for the recovery ahead and committing more U.S. government funds for short-term cleanup costs.  Standing in front of shattered homes in Dawson Springs in western Kentucky, Biden said he had authorized the federal government to cover 100%…

Dallas Morning News: “Nearly a quarter of a million people were incarcerated in Texas when the census was taken last year. When lawmakers redrew the state’s voting maps this fall, these inmates were counted in the prison towns where they were locked up, rather than where they lived beforehand. A Dallas Morning News analysis of census and…

WaPo: “Since he was sworn in on Jan. 1, [Jose Garza’s] office has obtained indictments of five Austin police officers, two county deputies, an assistant county attorney and a sheriff on charges including tampering with evidence and murder. His office is also prosecuting three additional officers who were indicted duringthe prior district attorney’s administration. And…