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All my county documents can
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October 31 - Woo!  Woo! And a Boo!, too.  The FEC is on the warpath. 

The Federal Election Commission (FEC/Commission) announced today that Mitchell Wade and MZM, Inc. will pay a $1,000,000 civil penalty, the second largest penalty ever paid in the 32-year history of the FEC.  The FEC has accepted a conciliation agreement in which Mr. Wade admits to knowingly and willfully violating the Federal Election Campaign Act (the Act) by funneling $78,000 in corporate contributions to two federal candidates.  The Commission unanimously approved the conciliation agreement. 

FEC Chairman Robert Lenhard stated: “There are serious consequences for those who knowingly and willfully try to funnel illegal contributions into federal election campaigns.  The historic civil penalty collected in this case shows that the FEC has a strong and vigorous enforcement program in place.”

     By the way, the contributions were to Katherine Harris and Virgil Goode, two Republicans.  However, there was no evidence that Goode or Harris knew the contributions were illegal.  In fact, there's no evidence that Katherine Harris knows anything.
     Congrats to CREW, who initiated the investigation.

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October 31 - Oh Heaven help us.  Another Republican male is discovered to be a pervert. 

... up in Washington another I'm-Not-Gay-Republican-- yawn-- Washington Rep. Richard Curtis is all caught up in some extortion business with a gay prostitute. KREM, a Spokane TV station, reported that Curtis and the male hooker had "a sexual encounter and were seen together at various spots around the city."

 

     And, to add to the Rudy Giuliani appeal, the guy is a crossdresser.  (The story at this local Washington news site is a little raw, so Momma don't click that link.)

During his visit to the video store Curtis was observed wearing women's lingerie while receiving -- uh, you know what -- from an unidentified man in one of the movie viewing booths inside the store.

     And here's even a PDF copy of the search warrant.  Republican men are starting to scare me in all kinds of ways.

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October 31 - Good on Henry Waxman.  He's asking to see all the White House's documents on Jack Abramoff.  Click here for a PDF file of Waxman's request.

Despite the refusal of key witnesses to provide testimony, the Committee has learned that some senior White House officials had regular contact with Mr. Abramoff.

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October 31 - Republican Congressman Ted Poe has discovered that having your brother as your campaign treasurer may not be such a hot idea.
     You saw it here first, back when Poe was denying any wrongdoing.  Ted Poe was one of the beneficiaries of Tom DeLay evil re-districting for Texas. 
     Poe is the Gulf Coast distributor of sanctimony. I gotta admit that it's fun to see guys like Poe take a fall. 

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October 31 - Thanks to Tony and Happy Halloween!

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October 31 - As Harvey Kronberg points out who says that Rick Perry doesn't have national aspirations?

Perry, slated to field the 2007 Distinguished Citizen Award from the Boy Scouts of America Capitol Area Council in Austin Tuesday night, suggests in remarks written for the occasion that values of faith espoused by the Boy Scouts are increasingly under fire.

He casts his book on scouting as planting his flag in a battle to defend values.

Now, “more than ever,” his prepared remarks state, “scouts and their supporters need all the strength we can get.”

..... Perry describes the Boy Scouts as being a listening post on the perimeter of the front lines in a simmering war on values.

He says of his book: “It is my attempt to clearly state the importance of scouting values and more clearly draw the battle lines in this vital conflict.

     And if "planting a flag in battle" and "perimeter of the front lines" and "simmering war on values" and "battle lines" and "vital conflict" doesn't emphasize his lack of military experience enough, he closes by saying ...

“With it, I hope to let the world know that this conflict isn’t just an intellectual exercise; it is a battle for the very future of our country.

     Goodness sake, he wants to be the First Sergeant in Onward Christian Soldiers. 

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October 30 - Okay, so is this guy running for Congress or trying-out for a spot with the Village People?

 

     This doorknocker was left in Sugar Land last weekend.  Click the little one to see the big one.
     Pete Olson left the military ten years ago, and he apparently hasn't done diddle squat picture-worthy since then. 
     I have this really queasy feeling that he'll be campaigning in bell-bottoms. 
     Olson used to work for Phil Gramm.  Now I feel both queasy and itchy.
 

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October 30 - Forgot your Halloween costume?  Short on time and money?  Well, Granny Geek has the perfect solution!

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October 30 - Heck, I’ve been doing this for years.  Best was when I had a 1966 Mustang.  Here to Austin cooked a rack of pork ribs.

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October 29 - Remember how the Republicans used to say that Democrats hated the military?
     Well, I've decided that Republicans love the military but they hate GIs. 

It is going to take longer than many soldiers hoped to get the benefits they say they deserve.

That was the testimony members of Congress heard Thursday at a House Veteran's Affairs subcommittee hearing.

Part of the hearing included statements by the leader of the Minnesota National Guard, Maj. Gen Larry Shellito, as well as a soldier who was denied Montgomery G.I. Bill education benefits when he came home from Iraq.

     The Republican hold on this country cannot end soon enough.  They are OJ Simpson - they kill you because they love you so much.

Hattan is one of 1,162 members of the Minnesota National Guard who were denied education benefits they say they should have earned under the Montgomery G.I. Bill.

Hattan, who was awarded two purple hearts for his service in Iraq, came home this summer to discover his deployment orders had been written for 729 days - one day short of the 730 days needed to qualify for education benefits potentially worth thousands of dollars.

     The guy did a 729 day deployment.  Cripes.

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October 29 - Okay, I don't want you guys thinking about this too much and I don't want Momma thinking about it at all, but Rudy Giuliani just gave me an image I'll have trouble shaking ---

Touting his accomplishments as mayor Tuesday while on the campaign trail in New Hampshire, Giuliani crowed, "I took a city that was known for pornography and licked it to a large extent, so I have my own set of qualifications."

    He's just creepy.

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October 29 - Our friend Fenway Fran is loving her some dirty water. 
     A friend who loves politics and baseball is hard to find, and I miss her something fierce.  When Boston meets Houston some October, we're buying series tickets, getting airline flights, wearing obnoxious team apparel and pouring beer on each other.  You might want to come along.

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October 29 - The WellCare scandal gets even more interesting.  Not only was our Senator John Cornyn a beneficiary of the crooks in charge of the company, this morning Roll Call (subscription only) reports that the company "is turning to a defensive political operation it has assembled in recent months."

WellCare's rapid assembly of a top-flight lobbying team comes as executives of the embattled company have stepped up their campaign contributions. This year alone, they have delivered a total of more than $70,000 to five Senators, according to figures from the Center for Responsive Politics.

On Feb. 20, company officials wrote checks totaling $15,300 to Sen. George Voinovich (R-Ohio). A month later, on March 28, they contributed $11,000 to Sen. Gordon Smith (R-Ore.), the ranking member on the Aging panel. They gave Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) $9,850 on April 17. Two days later, WellCare officials contributed $12,725 to Finance Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.), giving him an additional $4,000 on May 23.

They favored home-state Sen. Mel Martinez (R), another member of the Aging Committee, with $17,300 on May 30.

     When asked if this doesn't look a little fishy, like maybe WellCare was trying to buy political favor after getting word that maybe the FBI was suspicious, a WellCare official gave the singular most disgusting response I have heard in a long time. 

Of the company's recent burst of political activity, WellCare spokeswoman Alex Knapp said in a statement: "We support likeminded people who share our vision and philosophy of making quality healthcare affordable for the millions of men, women and children who rely on government-sponsored healthcare programs."

     If he said that without gagging, he did better than I did when I read it.

     On the upside, Roll Call also reports that Tom Tancredo will resign at the end of this term. 

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October 28 - Is this isn't living proof that the GOP has made a total mess of our military, I don't know what is.  Six years into this war and we can't even get MRAPs to Iraq on our own.

The Air Force has been forced to use Russian commercial cargo jets to rush mine-resistant ambush-protected vehicles from the U.S. to Iraq because it does not have enough C-5 and C-17 planes to do the job, the service’s top civilian official said recently.

“We are now sharing the mission of flying MRAPs over to Iraq between C-17s and Antonov airplanes,” Wynne said. “Did [we] truly envision that we would fly war supplies with Russian-made airplanes? I don’t know.”

MRAP vehicles are the Defense Department’s top procurement priority, and the department this month ordered an additional 2,400 to help protect American servicemembers from roadside bombs in Iraq. The department has said it needs 15,274 MRAPs for all the services.

     Thank God that Bush wasn't President during WWII.  We'd still be procuring maps of France.

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October 26 - Tell me they're not ripe for the pickin'! 
     Our local GOP can't even agree on getting a newsletter out to themselves.  I suspect they'll be back in court soon, pointing fingers, smirking at each other, and throwing spit-wads. 
     You know, I had dreams of whipping them fair and square at the voting booth.  They're taking all the fun out of the game by committing suicide. 
     Of course, it mimics what's happening on the national level.  Check the Wall Street Journal this morning.  John Fund, who makes me shiver with the creepy-ies, writes of Mike Huckabee ---

Phyllis Schlafly, president of the national Eagle Forum, is even more blunt. "He destroyed the conservative movement in Arkansas, and left the Republican Party a shambles," she says. "Yet some of the same evangelicals who sold us on George W. Bush as a 'compassionate conservative' are now trying to sell us on Mike Huckabee."

     If the Steeple People think an ordained Baptist minister is too liberal, then there ain't no pleasing them. 
     So, all seven or eight branches of the GOP have their heels dug in.  And, come to think of it, Republicans pretty much are heels-dug-in people.

     And right after I posted this, I saw this and had to share it.  My favorite cartoonist, Ben Sargent....

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October 25 - Okay, BIG DARN NEWS - it turns out that this WellCare scandal (and see posting below) is all over the junior Senator from Texas - John Cornyn. 
     (UPDATES will be at the bottom with a time on them.)
 
     It's the usual scandal - take from the poor and give to Republicans - but it has some fun twists and turns.
     The WellCare folks in Florida (yes, the ones raided by the FBI this morning) donated over $11,000 to Cornyn's campaign last month alone.  (You know the drill, click the little one to get the big one.)
     One of the contributions was one of the Bush Pioneers.  Now he's an Federal Investigation Pilgrim.
     Adding to the injury, WellCare stock lost half its value in three hours. 

WellCare Health Plans WCG was on life support after crashing 63.17, or 55%, to 52. Its Tampa, Fla. was raided by state and federal agents Wednesday

     So, already the first class action lawsuit has been filed for the shareholders. 

Kahn Gauthier Swick, LLC ("KGS") announces that it has initiated an investigation into WellCare Health Plans, Inc. ("WellCare" or the "Company") to determine its civil liability under the federal securities laws to shareholders in the wake of recent news that federal authorities raided its Tampa headquarters.

     And then when you think this couldn't get any more sleazy and crooked, along comes this information.  As typical under the Bushes, the fox was watching the henhouse the entire time. 

The Florida Agency for Health Care Administration is closely monitoring the situation and will respond appropriately if necessary, according to a statement from Dr. Andrew Agwunobi, AHCA secretary.

Agwunobi also is a former member of the WellCare board of directors, serving from June through December 2006. He stepped down when he was named secretary of AHCA, which administers Florida's $16.6 billion Medicaid program.

     And then comes the cherry on top.  Guess who is WellCare's lobbying firm?  No, guess.  Seriously, guess.
     Okay, here's a hint. Jack Abramoff's old firm - Greenberg Traurig.  No, I am not jacking around with you.  It's true.

     Look, I've been doing this for twenty years and I thought I'd seen everything.  But, when you're worth more to your prescription drug supplier dead than you are alive, there's something real wrong.
     Stay tuned.  Alfredo is all over this like butter on cornbread. 
     John Cornyn: collecting Medicare prescription drug benefits from dead people.  He's gotta be proud of that!

UPDATE:  (3:15) WellCare's PAC also gave $3,000 to Cornyn at the end of September. (pages 662-663)

UPDATE:  (Friday morning) From the Wall Street Journal:

Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal said his office also is investigating WellCare. He said the investigation by his Medicaid and Medicare fraud unit wasn't prompted by the inquiry in Florida and has been in progress "several months." He declined to provide other details.

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October 25 - And John Cornyn is a major beneficiary of these scummy people ---
     Our friend Alfredo says,

I LOVE this story - its got everything and something for everybody regardless of political persuasion: massive greed, incredible fraud, bank accounts in the Cayman Islands, huge amounts of campaign contributions, a Bush Pioneer, George Soros and a former U.S. Senator on the company's Board of Directors!

     Alfredo is right.  All they need is Britney Spears and a Republican Senator in a bathroom stall to be the perfect story.

WellCare's business practices have come under increased criticism over the past several months. Last spring, the company said independent sales agents in Georgia enrolled dead people in Medicare plans. In May and June, WellCare representatives appeared along with other insurance executives at hearings in the Senate and House into aggressive Medicare marketing practices. WellCare and six other insurers subsequently agreed to a temporary halt in marketing one type of Medicare plan, while promising to initiate consumer safeguards. In August, however, Medicare cited WellCare once again for violating several provisions of its Medicare contract, including sales practices.

WellCare, which had earnings of $139.2-million in 2006, gets all of its nearly $4-billion in revenues from state or federal governments. Profits come from the difference between the amount received from the government and the amount spent on overhead and medical care for its members.

     WellCare.  Good grief, they were enrolling dead people in their Medicare Part D program. 

WellCare and its affiliates have given the Republican Party of Florida some $105,000 in contributions this year, according to state election records. They've also given the Florida Democratic Party $5,000 this year. In 2006, WellCare's PAC gave $66,000 to federal candidates, all Republicans.

     And heads-up!  They operate in Texas!  I guess we ought to start looking at campaign finance reports here, too.  For starters, they've given boatloads of money to John Cornyn!
     Honey, if you have WellCare, get the well outta there!

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October 25 - Last night, Bubba and I went to take Momma and her friend Norma to see Rick Noriega speak at the newly formed Spring Branch Democrats.  Momma has lived in Spring Branch for fifty years, and she's got most of them behaving right. 
     First of all, a big ole Boy Howdy! to the Spring Branch Dems and their President, Christina Walsh.  It was only their second meeting and they had a standing room only crowd!  I got so caught up in the spirit that I joined the club, paid my dues, and I don't even live there.  However, I am going to their Christmas party because it's at Otilla's, the best Mexican food in Houston.  Let me know if you want to go, too. 
     The highlight of the evening was a speech by Lt. Col. Rick Noriega, who will beat John Cornyn so badly that we'll have to call him Limpin' John after next year. Rick says it was time that we take back Texas. I say if anybody can lead that effort, it's Rick Noriega.
     Rick's wife, Houston City Councilwoman Melissa Noriega also made a speech.  Melissa was elected to fill Shelley Sekula Gibb's seat when Shelley resigned to run against Nick Lampson.  We got a two-fer on that deal by putting Silly Shelley out of work in both jobs.  Melissa is smarter than a tree full of owls and has done a dandy job. 
     But, most importantly, Momma got her picture taken with Rick and Melissa.  Momma might be 83 years old and all of five foot tall, but, as regular readers here know, she packs a wallop.  She'll be voting a straight Democratic ticket next November, thanks to George Bush and company.  She fussed a little at Rick for not having a yardsign for her yard.  Melissa had one for Momma, so you can guess which Noriega Momma likes best today.
     Yo, Rick, get Momma a bumper sticker!  If Momma says it's Christmas, you better go buy some little twinklin' lights and Momma says you need some bumper stickers, especially on her car which she regularly drives over to the Baptist Church and the grocery store. 

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October 25 - And they want you to dance, too ---

     Thanks to Don Wright.

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October 24 - Brian sends us a priceless You-Tube of Tom DeLay and Christopher Hitchens sitting shoulder to shoulder.
     You have to listen to end when Hitchens describes "theocratic terrorists" in Iraq as "faith-based scumbags," while DeLay says "Amen!" 
     Goodness sake, with DeLay's and Hitchen's  unwavering and teeth-baring support of George Bush's war, you just gotta wonder if Hitchens wasn't describing himself and Tom.  Yep - count 'um, one, two faith-based scumbags.

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October 23 - For you people from foreign states - our utra-rightwing Governor endorsed Rudy.  Thankfully, Nick Anderson couldn't let that be.

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October 23 - John Kelso does some serious damage to Governor Rick Perry.
     Kelso is damn funny.

When asked about which scientists are leaving the global warming bandwagon, Perry's office presented as evidence about two dozen articles that didn't have much to do with the subject of scientists. For example, one article from the Tehran Times (whose motto is, "If Ayatollah Once, Ayatollah a Thousand Times") talked about how Gore doesn't deserve the Nobel Peace Prize because as a senator he voted for the Gulf War.

That's a Crackerjack PR staff Perry's got there, huh? Excuse me for sounding like Mr. Smarty Pants, but if I was in charge of Perry's publicity I don't think I'd pick stuff out of the Iran Daily Bugle. Then again, maybe Perry's staff just couldn't find anything appropriate to clip from the Darfur newspaper. So, as part of my open records request, I guess I'll just have to also ask for those embarrassing photos of Perry drinking tequila shots with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

     Go read the whole thing.  I left out the good stuff.
     (Thanks to Deb for the heads-up.)

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October 23 - Breaking News:  Mikal Watts has withdrawn from the Texas Senate race, leaving the only candidate I have ever endorsed on my website as the sole Democratic candidate for United State Senate from the Great State of Texas. 
     Rick Noriega is simply the best.

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October 23 - Okay, so we get rid of Tom DeLay to save ourselves some embarrassment and then County Judge Bob Hebert steps up to fill the Public Humiliation void. 
     Okay, remember after Katrina when Hebert ordered the county's official website changed to say (on the front page, no less!) that he had given $5,000 to the Red Cross and he encouraged everyone else to, too?  And then we discovered that the $5,000 came from his county vendor-donated campaign account, not his own pocket.  County employees who donated from their own pockets didn't get their names on the front page of the county website, no sirreee. 
     Next, remember when Hebert was the first elected official in Fort Bend County to be censured and fined (link is to a PDF) by the Texas Ethics Commission?  Yep, he tried to pay his wife thousands of dollars from his campaign account.
     Then there was the time the Judicial Conduct Commission almost had to get involved because Hebert was holding himself out to be a real judge (He's not.  He never even attended law school.) on his county website and then endorsing candidates on his political website.
     Well, now he's made the big time Houston media, and you can see Bob Hebert on teevee.  And you can watch him try to lie to a reporter again and get caught - again.
     It seems the big time Houston media finally caught up with the story about Hebert's store-bought PhD.     

     It's worth a watch just to see Hebert squirm.
     Poor guy needs to learn that fibbing to reporters is not nice.  And Bob needs to get a new webmaster to run everything through a Truth-O-Meter before he posts it on Bob's site. 
     (Thanks to Genelle for the heads-up.)

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October 23 - We had heard that the political author book signing party in Washington Dee Cee had been a tremendous flop - with hardly any people showing up to buy books.
     And here's another upside to the story:  The authors were all in the same room. 
     Our new friend Brian lets us know that our very own Tom DeLay was the center of attention ---

He used to be known as the Hammer, for running the House of Representatives with a iron fist. Nowadays, though, former Rep. Tom DeLay (R-Texas) is Mr. Congeniality.

According to folks who were there, DeLay couldn't have been sweeter to his former Democratic enemies at a small political book fair on Capitol Hill this week sponsored by The Hill newspaper. ('Course, being an author and trying to hawk books can turn even the snarliest of partisan pitbulls into a party-blind kitten.)

     Yep, DeLay made nice with all the liberals, and then went home and bit the heads off a few kittens just to stay in practice. 

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October 22 - I've been playing in a new sandbox this weekend. 
     Please feel free to register and comment.  You don't have to live here to play here.

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October 21 - PBS&J is back in the news today with campaign contributions before a grand jury in Orange County, Florida.

Expressway report sealed

The grand jury's presentment does not include indictments. What it contains is not public -- yet.

Orange County Mayor Rich Crotty and others involved with the expressway authority confirmed Thursday that they are named in a sealed grand-jury report criticizing the political fundraising that went on inside the embattled agency.

An Orange County grand jury issued the report last week, six months after allegations that toll-agency consultants were pressured to make campaign contributions. The grand jury, however, did not issue indictments.

Mike Snyder, executive director of the Orlando-Orange County Expressway Authority, also received a copy of the report, along with PBS&J, the agency's longtime general engineering consultant.

     Yep - this is the same PBS&J who is closer than skin on a sausage to our new toll road. 

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October 21 - Okay, sorry I'm not blogging, but autumn has come to the Texas Gulf Coast. 
     And, yes, we do have autumn here.  Last year it was on a Thursday.  I think it's today this year.

     Meanwhile, there's big breaking news - Shelley Sekula Gibbs lost her hyphen.  I don't know this for a fact, but I think Robert Cookie-Talton may have stolen it.

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October 19 - Alfredo give us a heads-up from the Wall Street Journal. 
     In an article about campaign finance fraud, both "PBS&J" and "county commissioners" are mentioned. 
     I wonder if they know something we also know.

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October 19 - E.E. thinks I should let you know there's a Hammer in America.  This one is not evil like the last one.

Sometimes truly American virtues arise in outlaws who — by dint of heroic but questionable endeavors — display the mettle of the national character.

Fear not, fellow Americans! In these dark days of war, pestilence and Paris Hilton, a new hero has arisen. She is none other than 75-year-old Mona "The Hammer" Shaw, who took the aforementioned implement to her local Comcast office to settle a score, and boy, did she ever.

     Momma has been having trouble with her cable company.  I wonder if a box of handtools would help?  Can't you just see Momma going into the cable company saying, "I have a screwdriver and it's loaded."  Bet they'd have that sucker fixed before Tuesday.
     E.E. says he's gonna get a tee-shirt:  I'm Retired and I Have a Hammer.

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October 19 - Max sends us today's fun place to visit ---

Did you see this? 

When I heard that Hastert was resigning, I thought Abramoff, but this will do. I remember you pointing out that Buckham's outfit showed up in the DC madam's book.  Wilkes nephew is telling hot-tub stories. Talk about circling the drain!

     Denny Hastert was hand-picked by Tom DeLay.  You know what I always say:  Where's there's smoke, there's DeLay.

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October 18 - Thank you, Steve Kelly ---

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October 18 - Okay, so I've had days like this.

U.S. woman overheard yelling obscenities at the toilet in her home could get jail time

(AP) - SCRANTON, Pennsylvania-A woman who allegedly shouted profanities at her overflowing toilet within earshot of a neighbor was cited for disorderly conduct, authorities said.

Dawn Herb could face up to 90 days in jail and a fine of up to $300 (€212).

"It doesn't make any sense. I was in my house. It's not like I was outside or drunk," Herb told The Times-Tribune of Scranton. "The toilet was overflowing and leaking down into the kitchen and I was yelling (for my daughter) to get the mop."

Herb does not recall exactly what she said, but she admitted letting more than a few bad words fly near an open bathroom window Thursday night.

Her next-door neighbor, a city police officer who was off-duty at the time, asked her to keep it down, police said. When she continued, the officer called police.

Mary Catherine Roper, an attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union in Philadelphia, took issue with the citation.

"You can't prosecute somebody for swearing at a cop or a toilet," she said.

     Oh Babe, you ought to hear what I called my washing machine one time. 

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October 17 - Okay, one kink down.  You can now register and make snarky / serious / fun / informative / witty / adorable / mean comments on the brand spankin' new Fort Bend Democrats website / blog.

Just click here and get yourself registered over on the left hand side of the page.  We haven't announced the new website to the general public yet, so you'll be the first to give it a spin!

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October 17 - I am here to tell you that the GOP race for Texas 22 is gonna be more fun than recess in heaven.
     The best part is that I have Republican spies.
     Apparently I have lotsa them.
     Candidate Pete Olson, who has a sailor suit, came in second place in fundraising.  However, to hear him tell it, he won!  From a recent email he sent out ---

Following an evaluation of the 3rd quarter fundraising and activities of various candidates competing for the Republican nomination in the 22nd Congressional District, it is clear that Pete Olson has quickly joined the ranks as a frontrunner for this election.

     Yeah, well, I know politicians toot their own horn and that's to be expected, but it gets better.  Much better.
     Olson then proceeds to bash his fellow Republicans.  You're gonna love this.

Dean Hrbacek (former Mayor of Sugar Land - defeated in 2002): Although Hrbacek is the past Mayor of Sugar Land and has campaigned for the TX-22 nomination since June, he has not drawn the strong support from his home county of Fort Bend needed to be competitive long-term. He managed to raise $109,000 from local supporters, loaned himself another $50,000, and is burning money at a rapid pace, leaving him with $119,899 and at least $18,000 in debt. Hrbacek has not developed much of a campaign organization and it appears funding sources may be drying up.

Robert Talton (State Representative-Pasadena): Talton has been working to raise money for this race since early August, yet managed to pull in only $34,700. After spending roughly $6,500 he is left with just over $28,000. This is a very poor showing for someone who has held a state house seat in Texas as long as Talton and suggests his campaign effort will be very limited. Talton has no campaign operation (staff, Website, grassroots organization, office) to speak of.

John Manlove (former Mayor of Pasadena): Having just joined the race, there is not much to evaluate in terms of support or financial information at this point. Manlove has a basic campaign website up and running.

Jim Squier (former Harris County Judge), Alan Steinberg (Sugar Land resident), and Ryan Rowley (Harris County resident): nothing to report from these candidates.

     And another little tidbit.  Tom DeLay's former fundraiser/organizer, Fort Bend's Dana Benoit, is now working for Olson.  She knows where the deep pockets are.

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October 16 - Okay, we haven't got all the kinks worked out yet and the header needs work, but we're ready for you to give it a spin.  Fort Bend Democrats is online and on top.
     As promised, Juanita is back, as is Mark and Hal.  We're joined by David, Ann, Geri, and a whole host of fun folks.
     There's some blog entries on the front page, and you can click BLOGS at the top of the page and see lots more. 
     Get registered and get yakking. 
     By the way, if you encounter technical problems, let us know.  This is still a beta test and we're all learning.

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October 16 - Harvey Kronberg has the story (subscription only) on the CD22 fundraising.  Shelley Sekula Gibbs is leading the Republicans ---

Last quarter, she reported raising $174,353, which was slightly more than the $163,225 reported by former Cornyn chief of staff Pete Olson. Former Sugar Land Mayor Dean Hrbacek raised $109,195.

Sekula-Gibbs also reported a hefty campaign war chest of $465,399, although the bulk of her balance comes from a $240,000 she made to her campaign in late September. She reported $496,000 in debts, which take into account another $250,000 loan made in the summer of 2006 and that has not been repaid.

     Robert Talton had shockingly poor showing with $34,700 raised, and James Squier brought in $13,400.
     The clear leader, however, is Democratic incumbent Nick Lampson with $324,918 raised this reporting period. 
     Oddly, Pasadena Mayor John Manlove hasn't filed with the FEC yet.  Maybe he's trying to explain the Conservative Club's joint fundraiser with a 501(c)3 to the IRS. 

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October 16 - Sad news for locals. 

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October 16 - TK says this is what everybody in Fort Bend County wants for Christmas. 
     Not me.
     I already have one.

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October 15 - Judge Susan Criss.  As we say in Texas, she can stand without hitchin'.  
     Read what she has to say about Sharon Keller and then say, "Amen." 

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October 15 - Okay, this is seriously funny.  Stephen Colbert wrote Maureen Dowd's column. 

I’d like to thank Maureen Dowd for permitting/begging me to write her column today. As I type this, she’s watching from an overstuffed divan, petting her prize Abyssinian and sipping a Dirty Cosmotinijito. Which reminds me: Before I get started, I have to take care of one other bit of business:

Bad things are happening in countries you shouldn’t have to think about. It’s all George Bush’s fault, the vice president is Satan, and God is gay.

There. Now I’ve written Frank Rich’s column too.

     Do you think Bill O'Reilly and his dittos know how funny they are?
     And speaking of Frank Rich, he wrote a stunning piece this week.

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October 15 - I’m beginning to think that Nick Lampson willy-nilly votes with the Republicans half the time just so he can say he’s bi-partisan. No, seriously.  I think he’s standing there in Congress thinking, “Okay, so I voted with the Democrats twice last week so I have to vote with the Republicans twice this week, so whatever comes up next, I’ll vote with Smokin’ Joe Barton.  Maybe he'll let me smoke.”
     There were four votes in Congress last week.  Lampson voted with the Democrats on two of them and the Republicans on … do the math.  Tell me the man ain’t flipping a coin. 
     I mean, it doesn’t make sense.  First he says he’s for a middle class tax cut, and then he votes with the Republicans for the Paris Hilton Tax Exemption.  Paris needs a tax break; that’s hot.
     Then for no apparent reason whatsoever he votes with the Republicans on privatizing IRS collection.  Oh that’s a tough call.  Give some dude in a call room in India your social security number and all your used-to-be private information.  Yep – bolt from the Party that opposes that sucker. 
     I mean, what does Lampson say when he gets home, “Hi, Honey, I’m home.  I voted to give Paris a tax break and your social security number to some dude somewhere.  What a great day to be a bi-partisan American!” 
     Cripes.   

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October 15 - Rats in the water!  Rats in the water!

Rep. David Hobson, a nine-term Republican from Ohio, announced plans to retire Sunday, the 12th member of his party to do so since the beginning of the year.

     Okay, so somebody do the math.  At this rate, how long will it take to clear out the Republicans?  Answer?  Not soon enough!

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October 14 - Tony sent us something so witty that you need to find some time to play with it.
     From the New York Times - Regrets Only.

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October 14 - So PBS&J leaves a total mess in Florida and relocates to Fort Bend County to play the game here with our greedy boys on commissioner's court.
     Grab your wallets because the boys are here to play --

A big wheel in Florida’s growth machine is slipping — badly.

In the past three months, three executives with the engineering-consulting firm PBS&J have been convicted of campaign-finance violations, including mail fraud, using “strawmen” to make illegal contributions and making false statements to the Federal Elections Commission.

The latest to fall, former PBS&J Chairman Richard Wickett, pleaded guilty this week to felony charges involving a long-running scheme to use campaign funds to win government contracts. He faces up to five years in prison.

It’s backroom deals like these that give Floridians a justifiably jaundiced view of politics and development in the Sunshine State.

And here’s another dot to connect: The chairman of the state Chamber of Commerce’s campaign to derail the Florida Hometown Democracy citizen initiative is — you guessed it — another PBS&J exec.

     Go read the rest of the article for the PBS&J game plan in Florida and see if it doesn't sound familiar here.

     And our county judge, Bob Hebert, tells us to sit back and wait while the fellas in the backroom work out the details.  Yeah, right.

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October 13 - Okay, Believers in the Power of People Demanding Answers From Their Government, bookmark this page.  Amazing things are going to happen here.
     Tollroad, meet Speedbumps.
     They held a public forum to oppose the toll road and 400 people showed up.  Oddly, Tom Stavinoha, the county commissioner in the precinct where the toll road is being built, showed up but hid in the audience and refused to take questions.  Hey, at least he's smart enough to know he's dumb.
     This PBS&J boondoggle is meeting citizens who've had enough, and aren't buying Hebert's mantra of "just wait."  We've been tricked by that one too many times.
     Their website just went up and it's not fully functional yet, but stay tuned because this group is impressive.

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October 12 - This is just my opinion, but if Ann Coulter thinks everyone should convert to Christianity, she should have to be the first to do so.
     I dunno, could be just me, but when Coulter gets her mouth going, Sweet Jesus' words are the last thing I think about.

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October 12 - You gotta watch them lawyers, Honey.  They are one sneaky bunch.

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October 11 - Okay, Bush Administration folks, hurry up and hire your criminal defense lawyer before all the good ones are gone!
     Guess who's enriching the criminal bar now ----

Former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales has hired a high-powered Washington lawyer to represent him in investigations of mismanagement of the Justice Department. George Terwilliger, a white-collar crime defense attorney and the second-ranking Justice official in the early 1990s, was on the White House's short list last month to replace Gonzales.

Investigators are look into allegations that Gonzales lied to lawmakers and illegally allowed politics to influence hiring and firing at the department.

     Republicans:  Keeping criminal defense lawyers employed!

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October 11 - Thank you, Signe Wilkinson!

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October 10 - Our friend Sam in Pearland tells us the story of their local school board fight about, of course, prayer.  What else is there worth fighting about in Brazoria County?
     The Super-DeLux Brand Christians on the school contend that the Bible tells them to be in “constant prayer,” which is why they have to pray out loud real loud at school board meetings and football games. 
     I commented to Sam that I suspect these Super DeLux Brand Christians haven’t read the 6^th chapter of St. Matthew, which speaks directly to hypocrites. 

And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites [are]: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward

But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.

     Sam, being a real smartpatoot, answered, “I guess that’s why we see so many Republicans are coming out of the closet lately.”
 

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October 10 - I usually try to save these things for Friday, but in honor of hump day ---

Hillbilly How-to: Practical uses for your old computer pieces

     Being as how I'm half-hillbilly on my Momma's side, I really enjoyed that link.

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October 10 - Uh oh, is everybody holding on to the seat of their britches?
     The Hill (subscription only) is reporting that the roller coaster is fixin' to head downhill.  Wheeee....

Federal investigators are hinting that a fresh wave of campaign-related theft and corruption investigations of Members of Congress are moving through the pipeline, signaling that indictments may be on the horizon.

According to multiple sources and independent confirmation from agency officials, the Justice Department currently is honing in on the possible misuse of campaign money by Members and political candidates for personal country club dues, health club fees, non-campaign-related travel costs and other expenses that candidates are prohibited from paying out of their campaign war chests.

     Wonder if Tom DeLay's name is being considered, or are they saving him for the Feds? 

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October 10 - I do not hate to say I told you so.  In fact, in this case, I love it. 
     Bud "Lite" Childers removed himself from hearing the Needville case certifying a student who set fire to the school as an adult.
     Why did he do that, you ask?
     Because he's got the legal experience of a toad.

County Court At Law No. 1 Judge Ben W. "Bud" Childers of Fort Bend County asked that a visiting judge hear the case after receiving numerous letters and messages urging him to certify the youth as an adult.

"The reason I requested another judge was because of the efforts of the people in Needville to bias the court and coerce the court into a decision based on their emotional input on this case," Childers said.

     When a judge gets a call from a citizen trying to influence him about a case, that's illegal.  If Childers had even one day as a lawyer in a courtroom, he would have known to hang up the phone and/or instruct the caller to stop immediately.
     But, nooooo .....
     Just like when he was county attorney and outsourced all the legal work, he's going to outsource his judicial duties.  Hey, you're paying for his ignorance.
     Well, now at least Bud's campaign literature is funny for something other than bad grammar.  "Do it right," my patootie.  He has no idea what to do.

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October 9 - Well, lookie here, the PBS&J dudes are facing the music ----

...defendant Richard A. Wickett pled guilty to violations resulting from a long-term scheme to violate campaign finance laws during his employment with PBSJ Corp. Sentencing has been scheduled for January 18, 2008 at 1:30 p.m. before U.S. District Court Judge Ursula Ungaro-Benages.

Wickett pled guilty to charges regarding unlawfully disguised and reimbursed contributions to federal candidates and various candidates for state office.

     You would think that information like that would cause our county commissioners to back-off taking campaign donations from PBS&J.  And, you would think wrong.
     However, with this guilty plea I think its fair to say that all PBS&J contributions to all federal, state and local candidates prior to 2006 were illegal.  It's a cute little scam they had going there.
    So the Commish Boys might want to start writing some refund checks. 

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October 9 - Thank you, Steve Sack.

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October 9 - Evelyn sent us this really cool PDF which breaks down the cost of the war for Texans by congressional district. 
     In Texas CD22, the war has cost us 1.67 billion dollars so far.  That's billion with a big ole B.  In just our own congressional district.  We sure could have used that money for something else. 
     For one thing, it would have come close to paying Commissioner Andy Meyer's travel expenses.

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October 8 - Now I know you people in Sugar Land think you're all that, what with your Chico's, your Macy's, your BMW dealership, and whatnot.
     But have you ever considered what you'd do if you ever needed Big Pimping Shoes?
     Ah ha, probably not, huh?

     Well, you'd have to come to Richmond, and beg on your knees for big pimping service.
     If you're wondering why it's pimping with a g instead of pimpin', that's because it's all incorporated and all. 
     And they appreciate your business.

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October 8 - In case you missed it, Channel 11 in Houston did a story about the incompetence in our District Attorney's office.
     What ADA Mike Elliott and DA John Healey have done to these men is unforgivable.  It could have just as easily been you if you had hacked-off one of Mike Elliott's friends.
     (Personal aside to Mike Elliott:  if you want to call and threaten to sue me over what I write, don't bother.  Threats just make me meaner.  It's like handing Medusa a can of hairspray.  Don't threaten, just go ahead and do it so I can counter-sue.)

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October 8 - You know the PBS&J company that our county commissioners want to use to build the toll road and several other projects in the county? 
     You know the PBS&J that has more legal problems than OJ Simpson for ripping off taxpayers all over the country, us included?
     You know the PBS&J who gives large campaign donations to our commissioners, and is always there to help Commissioner James Patterson's favorite charities so Patterson can look good?
     Well, come to find out, that to make up for their overcharging, embezzlement, and violation of campaign finance laws, they almost do almost acceptable work ---

If your children attend a Broward County school, they may be learning in unsafe classrooms.

A 2007 audit shows the school district is allowing hundreds of students to study in almost 500 new classrooms that either failed inspection or were cleared by unlicensed inspectors.

The firm in charge of the inspections, Post, Buckley, Schuh & Jernigan, has been temporarily suspended by the school district until the classrooms throughout the county are re-inspected and certified safe.

     Hey, I'm just saying we need to hope there's no bridges involved in their plans for us.

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October 7 - Okay, just so you can be ready, there's now a Fort Bend Conservative Club. 
     They've filed a designation of treasurer at the Texas Ethics Commission but they haven't file any reports yet.  Albert Kaleta appears to be the treasurer. 
     Although they claim to be non-partisan, you can bet your best pair of pink boots who they will be endorsing for the Texas 22nd Congressional District.  Check this picture from Fort Bend Lifestyles Magazine.

     And then there's a whole article, written by David Wallace Hisownself, about the event. 
     Well, well, well, so Manlove's got his own PAC going.  It's a danged shame they couldn't work the words "freedom, justice, and the American way" into the name of it.
     Fort Bend Conservatives, my big blue butt.  There is nothing conservative about any of these free-spending guys.

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October 6 - Oh, the schadenfreude!

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October 5 - From our friends Tony and Chris --

"I made my arguments and went down in flames. History will prove me right." -- Texas Rangers owner George W. Bush after voting against realignment and a new wild-card system during a Major League Baseball owners meeting in September 1993. Bush was the lone dissenter in a 27-1 vote.

Is he ever right about anything?

The telling thing is this is exactly what he's saying about Iraq! 

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October 5 - Heads up Richmond, Rosenberg, New Territory, and everybody who likes clean air and stars at night.  Here comes TxDOT with money they said they didn't have.
     They're paving over the 4 lane divided US90A from Highway 6 to the courthouse doorstep with an 8 lane raised median highway.  That's 6.8 miles of solid concrete.
     I give it six months to become a tollroad.
     You can request a public hearing on it.  It probably won't do any good, but you can sure holler and shout a little.

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October 5 - Granny's got a good joke.
 

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October 4 - And you thought YOU had something to brag about. 

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October 4 - Dean Hrbacek sent his announcement letter today.  (The real, exact letter in PDF format.)
     He says the war and terrorism are major issues we're facing, but doesn't say how he stands on them.  He doesn't like Mexicans or women having control of their bodies, but he loves guns so that makes up for it.
     And, he obviously doesn't understand the job of county tax assessor-collector because he makes a tortured bumper sticker out of Nick Lampson's former job. 
     He also fails to mention his electoral defeat and whole Elite Skating School thing.  I mean, not that I blame him.  His last couple of years in office were a laugh-a-thon.
     Yep - he's goofy and he doesn't have a uniform.
     And, by the way, for you outta towners, his name is pronounced Herr-bad-czech.

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October 4 - The hooter toters over at Tennessee Guerilla Women are having more fun with Fred Thompson than is legally allowed in most states.
     And they've even got a dirty song.  (Momma Alert:  Momma, do not go listen to the song.  It's very unladylike.  Very.)

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October 4 - Reason # 529 why I will never vote for a Republican again.
     County Judge Bob Hebert. 
     After giving developers anything they wanted, Hebert now announces that's there's not enough money left to build roads for all the new development.
     That alone makes my head spin so much that Bubba had to call a priest to do an exorcism. 
     Now add Bob Hebert's solution:  let private companies build the roads and be "paid back by TxDOT over a period of years." 
     Borrow and spend: the new mantra of the GOP. 
     Is all that tax-free windfall money Hebert gets from developers and PBS&J gonna offset the interest on that loan when payment time come due?  Oh, no siree. 
     Look, the reason TxDOT doesn't have any money is because Republican Governor Rick Perry and his Republican Lege, who also spend money like drunken sailors, took 35 cents of the gasoline tax that was supposed to be used for roads and diverted it to the general fund so they could continue to spend wildly without raising taxes.  How's them apples? 
     I don't get it.  We can't build roads but we can pay Andy Meyers mileage to come to the courthouse to work? 
    Ya know, when you go on fancy trips at taxpayer expense, waste a wagon load of money on substandard voting machines, are itching to build a pure-dee fancy "Law Palace" we don't need, pick your friends for county contracts instead of the low bidder (and that's just over the past couple of months), then take your bull somewhere else, because we sold our cow.      

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October 3 - Oh boy, I betcha Dean Hrbacek is getting a little nervous.  Dean doesn't have a sailor suit. 
     The GOP race for the nomination in CD22 (Tom DeLay's old district) is gonna look like a goat rodeo.

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October 3 - Just in case you were wondering, Rush Limbaugh can kiss my big blue butt.
     But, he'll probably have to go through General Wesley Clark first.

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October 3 - Remember how all the Republicans told us that if we'd pass tort reform our insurance rates would drop dramatically?
     Well, not so much.

AUSTIN ­ Attorneys for Allstate Insurance asked a state judge Tuesday to issue a court order allowing the company to increase its homeowner rates and blocking a move by the Texas Department of Insurance to cancel the average 5.9 percent rate increase. State District Judge Margaret Cooper took the case under advisement, giving no indication when she would rule on the request for a permanent injunction against the state.

     I gotta tell you something.  From now on, if a Republican stands before me and describes what he's wearing, I wouldn't believe him even if my eyes did.