TX Observer: “SB 4, passed in November during a dysfunctional fourth special legislative session, grants unprecedented powers to local and state police, judges, and magistrates. For starters, the bill makes it a state misdemeanor crime for a non-U.S. citizen to improperly enter Texas from another country—say, by rafting across the Rio Grande from Mexico. To avoid prosecution,…
Month: December 2023
“A Texas Case Shows That Abortion Ban Exemptions Are a Sham”
NY Times: “Soon after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade last year, horror stories started emerging of women denied medically urgent abortions for pregnancies gone dangerously awry. In response, the anti-abortion movement developed a sort of conspiracy theory to rationalize away the results of their policies…. Whether this argument stemmed from genuine denial or…
“Texas Supreme Court Rules Against Woman Who Sought Court-Approved Abortion”
NY Times: “The Texas Supreme Court on Monday overturned a lower court order allowing an abortion for a pregnant woman whose fetus was diagnosed with a fatal condition, hours after her lawyers said she had decided to leave Texas for the procedure in the face of the state’s abortion bans. The court ruled that the…
DeSantis Makes Mockery of Campaign Finance Law, Coordinates with SuperPAC
Political Wire: “Multiple people familiar with DeSantis’ political network said that he and his wife had expressed concerns about the messaging of Never Back Down, the largest super PAC supporting the governor’s campaign, in recent months as his Iowa polling numbers stagnated in late summer and autumn…” “DeSantis’ team shared those messaging concerns with members…
Rep. Bishop to Run for NC Atty General
North State Journal: “Republican U.S. Dan Bishop (NC-08) officially filed his paperwork to run for North Carolina attorney general on Friday, Dec. 8. Bishop filed alongside multiple state district attorneys, including Mike Hardin (Hoke/Moore) and Andy Gregson (Randolph). Gregson has been in office since 2017. Hardin is running for a second term. “I’m going to…
“Texas Supreme Court temporarily blocks woman from emergency abortion”
Reuters: “The Texas Supreme Court temporarily blocked a pregnant woman from obtaining an emergency abortion on Friday, shortly after the state’s attorney general requested the block. The legal battle is a major test case since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the nationwide constitutional right to abortion last year, enabling states like Texas to pass near…
“John Whitmire, a Moderate Democrat, Wins Runoff for Houston Mayor”
NY Times: “John Whitmire, a moderate Democrat who has served in the Texas State Senate since 1983, won a runoff election on Saturday to become mayor of Houston, according to The Associated Press, defeating Representative Sheila Jackson Lee, a prominent congressional Democrat, in the nonpartisan race.”
“Indictments dropped against 17 Texas police officers over tactics used during 2020 George Floyd protests”
NBC News: “A Texas prosecutor whose office oversaw indictments against more than 20 Austin police officers for tactics used during the 2020 protests that followed George Floyd’s killing said Monday he was dropping most of the cases and would ask the Justice Department to investigate instead. The announcement is a sharp reversal for Travis County District Attorney Jose Garza, a…
“Kathy Manning Won’t Run for Re-Election”
Political Wire: “Rep. Kathy Manning (D-NC) announced she will not run for re-election after her district was gerrymandered by Republicans.”
“Georgia Prosecutors Predict Jail Sentences”
Political Wire: ““Fulton County prosecutors have signaled they want prison sentences in the Georgia criminal case against Donald Trump and his top allies for allegedly violating the racketeering statute as part of efforts to overturn the 2020 election results, according to exchanges in private emails,” The Guardian reports.”