Sick pleasure alert! Those goony GOPers are at it again, and Austinist is in the thick of it with a enough snark to choke…well…an elephant. This time around, we're camped out on the back patio at The Dog and Duck Pub, so if you wanna come out and pound a few pints, we'd be happy to see ya.
The fun starts at 6:30PM. If you make it out to the D'n'D, just look for our laptops and hunker down. The secret password is "GINGRICH/PAUL 2012!!!"
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Sick pleasure alert! Those goony GOPers are at it again, and Austinist is in the thick of it with a enough snark to choke…well…an elephant. This time around, we're camped out on the back patio at The Dog and Duck Pub, so if you wanna come out and pound a few pints, we'd be happy to see ya. The fun starts at 6:30PM. If you make it out to the D'n'D, just look for our laptops and hunker down. The secret password is "GINGRICH/PAUL 2012!!!" more ›

The day began like every other day. The dawn rose and with it Rick Perry. He woke up, kicked off his down comforter and un-rolled the curls from his hair. But as he sat at his vanity, brushing his hair and thinking of breakfast, he caught a chill, a chill he wasn't able to shake. It was like someone walked across his grave. more ›

The Obama 2012 campaign feels like it's been given an early Christmas present by the Rick Perry campaign that any politician would love. When Perry announced his candidacy for President in August, he was catapulted into the lead and stayed there for almost two months. That allowed him to raise large donations from both big-money donors and small dollar contributors across the country. Now with $15 million on hand and virtually no chance for the nomination, his campaign can only benefit Obama. more ›

Rick Perry's presidential bid is quickly fading just two months after it started. In the NBC/WSJ poll released last night, Herman Cain leads Mitt Romney 27 percent to 23 percent, with Perry coming in a dismal 16 percent, down more than 15 points since August and unlikely to climb back to front runner status in part due to his sudden similarities to the former governor Bush. more ›

Rumors continue to fly about a Rick Perry 2012 presidential run. Governor Perry and his hair have been denying any interest in running for higher executive office since 2007. But recent events have kindled interest to a more fevered pitch than ever before. more ›

One of the side effects of the Census is that states get to rearrange current congressional (and state House/Senate) districts based on population changes. The Texas House has given initial approval (92-52) to State Rep. Burt Solomons' plan for House redistricting (with some changes), but it seems to be assumed that whatever plan is finally chosen will lead to eventual court battles. more ›

• AZ Rep. Giffords on her way to Houston for further treatment/future rehab.
• Ronald Barber remembers the shootings in Tucson vividly, except for Judge Roll's attempts to save him.
• Abortion: the GOP's next target.

Tom DeLay was sentenced to three years in prison this afternoon by Texas state court judge Pat Priest. The three years were for the charge of conspiring to launder money; for the money laundering itself DeLay received ten years' probation. DeLay was taken into custody immediately after the sentencing. He is expected to post bond of $10,000 and appeal the conviction. His attorney, Dick DeGuerin, has said that he may argue that the Texas law under which DeLay was convicted is unconstitutional because of the Supreme Court's decision of 2010. [New York Times] more ›

The many planks and legislative priorities produced at the 2010 GOP convention (developed over a week ago) have been making their way 'round the internets. Recurring themes involved State's Rights, limited government, anti-gay legislation, bans on gambling, and a sure crowd-pleaser in the 82nd Texas legislative session: voter ID. more ›

On Monday an Austin election-law expert called the move illegal. On Wednesday the Secretary of State gave it a thumbs-up. Today, the Democrats have decided to sue. Is it any surprise that in the biggest shakeup in the governor's race to date, the road leads back to Arizona? more ›

First the Austin City Council passed a measure to boycott Arizona, prohibiting its members from expensing trips there. Now it looks as though the city may reap the whirlwind—or at least some strong breezes. more ›

• Congress: Deepwater Horizon blowout preventer faulty.
• New UK coalition government holds first cabinet meeting.
• Iraq violence set to delay US troop withdrawal.

Evan Smith started out addressing her as "Honorable," but the Texas Tribune editor had some difficult questions for Ambassador and former Bush adviser Karen Hughes this Thursday morning. Luckily, Hughes brought some statistical ammunition. more ›

The posters are up on the UT Campus. A protest is already being organized. So why isn't there anything on the web about Karl Rove appearing at UT on Monday? more ›

Kay Bailey Hutchison has just announced that she will remain in the Senate until her term expires in 2012. This means that the special election predicted for May will be canceled, and that Rick Perry won't be hand-picking a successor to serve in the interim. more ›

A question about Rick Perry on Wednesday brought out the political animal in former Secretary of State James Baker. In Austin for a public conversation with Evan Smith of the Texas Tribune, Baker offered a candid and largely positive view of recent foreign policy decisions by the current administration. When Smith asked him about the Texas elections, however, Baker turned coy. more ›

Governor Perry may no longer seek funds from Washington because he truly believes that Washington D.C. demands too much while irresponsibly increasing federal debt. Like Gov. Perry says, “Washington is Broken”; however, this does not explain why the federal debt in 2005, 2006, 2007, and 2008 wasn’t irresponsible while he actively sought and accepted federal funds. Or why the mandates for Medicaid, education and transportation funds that the Governor accepted in those same years had acceptable strings attached, but now, the demands are too stringent. more ›

Remember Operation Chaos in 2008? That's when Rush Limbaugh urged Republican voters to take advantage of the open primary rules in Texas and several other swing states and vote for Hillary Clinton in order to prolong Democratic infighting. Fast-forward two years and the shoe is on the other foot: White looks like a lock for the Texas Dems, while Palin pick Rick Perry could still end up in a runoff with old-guard conservative Kay Bailey Hutchison if Debra Medina can peel off enough Tea Party votes. more ›

Common knowledge says that the race should be close: a popular Republican Senator running against a Republican Governor who only received 39% of the vote in 2006. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison is running against Governor Perry after all, the guy who brought on the TransTexas Corridor, the mandatory HPV vaccine order, and anything TxDOT. But federal decisions from the last decade had put the federal government, economy, and foreign relations in a free-for-all, and Senator Hutchison supported most of them. more ›

Members of Governor Perry's re-election campaign are in a huff after the web video feed broadcasting his live speech was hijacked by hackers. more ›

Kill Bill star found dead in Bangkok. Obama attempts to heal relationship with Muslim world: "America and Islam are not exclusive." New York thief given gifts of compassion by store owner. Trial begins in North Korea for two American journalists. Still no answers for Flight 447. Texas GOP making us proud once again. So much for credit card reform. more ›

• R.N.C. chairman Steele kisses Limbaugh's shoes.
• Obama sends S.W.A.K. letter to Russia, never hears back.
• Obama snubs Brown, favors Boy Scouts?

• So, the Qur'an is written in "Islamic" huh?
• Several GOP governors (including our own) are considering rejecting any money from the stimulus package that just passed.
• Hate and ignorance incarnate in Utah State Senator Chris Buttars.

Two items of note regarding Texas Republicans have come out this week. First off, current Texas House Speaker Craddick faces an ethics complaint about payments to and insurance coverage for his adult daughter. A Houston man points out that Craddick has his daughter Christi on campaign payroll (at $12,000 a month), yet claims her as a dependent so that she is covered by his state health insurance. Another member of the GOP, current Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, today filed paperwork towards her expected run for governor in 2010. She's still in the exploratory stages, it seems, and the paperwork filed today set up an exploratory committee and campaign treasurer. more ›

Republican Market, a Florida-based website devoted to all things GOP, was recently spotted at the Republican State Convention in Houston with a booth offering the latest round of politically shallow and morally irresponsible pins declaring "If Obama is President...will we still call it the White House?" more ›

During the State Republican convention, Sen. Cornyn's folks put together a little something-something to show the convention attendees: this laugh-out-loud introduction/refresher on "Big John" Cornyn. Only in about 15 seconds of the video is Cornyn shown without a cowboy hat, while a man with a deep bass voice tells us that John "is doing the Lord's work for Texas" (oh, God was against the updated GI Bill?) and a choir keeps singing in the background, "Big Johhhhhn." more ›

State Education Commissioner announces that Johnston High will be closed down. Texas Court of Criminal Appeals announces the creation of an integrity unit that will deal with issues in the criminal justice system. Yesterday, that same Court of Criminal Appeals blocked the execution of Derrick Sonnier. It's been a year since the death of Kevin Brown. more ›

Primary results from national/state/local races: So even though it seems that Hillary won the Texas primary (it's interesting that Obama led in statewide early voting), Obama may beat her in delegate numbers. In the GOP race, McCain is now the GOP candidate as Huckabee gives up the ghost. In Travis County, Ron Paul won 17% of the vote . . . more ›