BG Reads | News You Need to Know (October 13, 2020)
[BINGHAM GROUP]
Early voting in Travis County begins today through Friday, October 30 (Monday-Saturday, 7:00 AM-7:00 PM, Sunday 12-6 PM). Find early voting locations here (Travis County only).
***NEW*** BG Blog: What is a County Judge (Article Link)
BG Podcast Episode 109: Q4 2020 Update with Veronica Briseño, Chief Economic Recovery Officer, City of Austin (SHOW LINK)
[AUSTIN METRO]
Three candidates challenge Flannigan in District 6 race (Austin Monitor)
Council Member Jimmy Flannigan is facing three challengers – Jennifer Mushtaler, Mackenzie Kelly and Dee Harrison – to serve on Austin City Council’s District 6, which represents swaths of Northwest Austin.
Flannigan has represented District 6 since 2017, when he defeated Council Member Don Zimmerman in the 2016 election. Flannigan said he was elected by a district whose primary concerns were “traffic, traffic, traffic.”
“I’ve spent the first three years of my term focused on getting new projects in the district, focusing attention at a regional level to these challenges and getting stuff added into plans and funded – and we’ve done that,” Flannigan said in an interview, pointing at roadway improvements to U.S. Highway 183 and in the Four Points area.
Flannigan said he wasn’t necessarily supportive of Project Connect “from day one,” but he’s worked hard to ensure that the final proposal will enhance regional mobility, particularly with improvements to the Red Line serving District 6.
“The plan is great, and when is the last time in Austin transportation politics can you say that that’s true?” Flannigan asked. “It is a comprehensive multi-generational investment that will outlast the pandemic and is the type of service that is critical for our essential workers.”
Flannigan also defended Council’s recent changes to the Austin Police Department budget, such as cutting some funds and diverting other functions away from the police. He pointed to a police budget that’s grown faster than the city’s population over the past decade.
“You have an unsustainable fiscal reality and that is the thing I am trying to solve for,” Flannigan said. “There are also elements of racial justice and systemic inequities that are also a part of this work, but the lens that I most frequently look through is one of fiscal responsibility.”… (LINK TO STORY)
Crowded field competes for District 10 seat (Austin Monitor)
District 10 voters will have no shortage of options for Austin City Council this fall.
City Council Member Alison Alter is facing five challengers to represent West Austin’s District 10: Pooja Sethi, Robert Thomas, Jennifer Virden, Belinda Greene and Ben Easton. With six total candidates on the ballot, it’s the most crowded field of this year’s five Council elections.
Alter, who was first elected in 2016 after defeating Sheri Gallo in a runoff, is now running as the incumbent.
“Covid creates challenges for reaching out to people, but because I’ve developed such deep connections over the last four years working with so many neighborhood leaders and with different associations … it’s going very smoothly,” Alter said in an interview.
Alter said she “fought for neighborhoods” against CodeNEXT and the subsequent Land Development Code rewrite, arguing that density should be concentrated along major corridors and not “deep into the neighborhoods.”
She’s also been active on working with residents on proposed development projects in the district, such as the Camelback and Brackenridge tracts.
“I have been a champion for managing growth responsibly,” she said.
Alter touted her role in getting the Office of Police Oversight created and said she’s made sustainability and combating climate change one of her top priorities. “I’ve been the leader on Council pushing us to be prepared and to prevent wildfires.”
Alter supports the role of Proposition A in reaching the goals of the Austin Strategic Mobility Plan.
“Getting to a 50-50 mode shift is going to require the investments in Project Connect to get us to that goal,” she said.
She also defended her votes in favor of last summer’s camping ordinance changes, as well as the public safety budget changes this summer.
“In both cases, we have to demonstrate that we can make progress that ensures everyone’s safety and roots out racism,” she said.
Alter said some of her second-term priorities would include advancing economic resiliency efforts from Covid-19, boosting broadband infrastructure and continuing negotiations over the Brackenridge tract… (LINK TO STORY)
Q&A: Leader of Austin Hispanic Chamber sees opportunity amid challenges (Austin American-Statesman)
When Diana Maldonado was named CEO of the Greater Austin Hispanic Chamber of Commerce in July, chamber officials cited her policy experience, longstanding relationships in the community and the ability to help lead the region’s Latino businesses to new stages of growth.
Maldonado’s resume includes working as a financial adviser for Morgan Stanley, one term in the Texas Legislature as a Democrat representing parts of Williamson County and more than 20 years in the Texas comptroller’s office.
“I’ve seen firsthand the integral part the chamber provides for the Latino business community,” Maldonado said. “Now more than ever, it’s imperative to champion the progress and opportunities that bring a voice and presence to the 51,000 Latino-owned businesses in our area.”
Today, as many of those businesses struggle to recover from the blow delivered by the coronavirus outbreak, the chamber’s mission is more crucial than ever, Maldonado said.
“We are all looking for how to pivot and reinvent and come out stronger than before,” she said.
The American-Statesman talked with Maldonado about the role Austin’s Hispanic business community plays in Central Texas and how the chamber is working to assist Hispanic business owners and workers as they navigate the pandemic. The interview has been edited for brevity and clarity… (LINK TO STORY)
Anger over ‘The Eyes of Texas’ threatens to engulf the Longhorns’ entire season (Austin American-Statesman)
Things have somehow reached a point where Texas coach Tom Herman started his weekly press conference Monday by reading a statement about the school song. It’s a nuclear bomb that nobody at UT can disarm.
“I do want to address something I know that continues to be a point of conversation out there, which is ‘The Eyes of Texas,’” Herman said.
Fan anger about the players’ desire to get rid of the “The Eyes” was already boiling. The pot spilled over Saturday when quarterback Sam Ehlinger was standing front and center, all by himself, with his Horns up after a four-overtime loss to Oklahoma.
The fact that Herman led his press conference with “The Eyes” shows it trumps anything to do with his 2-2, unranked football team. Going forward, Herman will “encourage” players to stay on the field after games but it will not be mandatory.
A few other players remained on the field Saturday. But dozens of photos taken from the stands posted online show only one — the senior who accounted for six touchdowns in a five-hour loss — standing up for school pride. The rest of the team had already left the Cotton Bowl field.
“There are very strong emotions on both sides,” Herman said. “And this is something we’ve been working through since our campus initiatives were announced back in July.” … (LINK TO STORY)
[TEXAS]
Paxton fought $300 hourly rate for attorneys prosecuting him, but OKs it for “rookie” lawyer in donor’s case (Texas Tribune)
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has argued that $300 an hour is too much to pay the two special prosecutors appointed to take him to trial in a long-running felony securities fraud case — but that’s the rate his agency is paying the inexperienced attorney Paxton hired last month to investigate a complaint by a political donor.
Paxton was indicted in 2015 on allegations that he solicited investors without disclosing that he stood to be compensated, but has maintained his innocence and never gone to trial as his attorneys bicker with prosecutors over issues of venue and how much the prosecutors should be paid.
That second issue — still being disputed at a trial court in Harris County — came back to haunt Paxton this past week following revelations that he had hired Brandon Cammack, an inexperienced defense attorney, to investigate a complaint made by one of his political donors. Paxton personally signed off on paying Cammack $300 an hour — exactly the rate promised to the two attorneys appointed to take Paxton to trial, who have not been paid since 2016 as Paxton’s political allies and defense attorneys call that figure exorbitant.
The prosecutors, Brian Wice and Kent Schaffer, pointed out that irony in a spirited filing Friday before Harris County District Judge Jason Luong, asking that they be compensated at the same rate as Cammack, whom they dismissed as “an untested and unqualified rookie.”… (LINK TO STORY)
Donor threatens to sue embattled Texas AG over dropped case (Associated Press)
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is already facing calls to resign and accusations of crimes by his own staff over an investigation sought by one of his wealthy donors. Now, the Republican’s office is contending with a threat of possible legal action from that donor.
In a letter sent Sunday, a lawyer for Austin real estate developer Nate Paul wrote that Paxton’s staff was always hostile to the probe. The letter does not specifically say Paul will sue, but it is styled as a “litigation hold” demanding the preservation of all related documents. It also questions the legitimacy of the announcement last week closing the investigation.
The letter adds to the confusion surrounding investigations and legal disputes that came to public attention this month when seven top lawyers in Paxton’s office accused him of bribery, abuse of office and other crimes. The unspecified accusations stem from the attorney general hiring an outside lawyer to look into Paul’s claims of wrongdoing by state and federal law enforcement.
Paul’s attorney, Michael Wynne, said he learned from media reports late Friday that the investigation was closed.
“We were never contacted by the OAG regarding this apparently pressured decision, and as such question whether this was in fact an accurate and a legitimate communication from your office,” Wynne said.
Paxton’s office did not respond to a request for comment on the letter. Wynne released it to reporters Sunday night but has not said if Paul will actually sue.
The attorney general’s office announced Friday that the investigation was closed after prosecutors in Austin expressed unease. Paxton has denied wrongdoing and cast blame on “rogue employees and their false allegations.”… (LINK TO STORY)
Biden would be good for oil sector, Goldman Sachs says (Houston Chronicle)
With his $2 trillion plan to cut greenhouse gas emissions, Joe Biden might seem a far from ideal president for the Texas oil and gas industry. But new analysis by Goldman Sachs says that compared with a second term of the Trump administration, a Biden presidency could be a positive for U.S. oil and gas drillers because tougher regulations on hydraulic fracturing would likely reduce production, raising crude prices. "We do not expect the upcoming U.S. elections to derail our bullish forecasts for oil and gas prices, with a Blue Wave likely to be in fact a positive catalyst,” analysts at Goldman Sachs wrote in a research note Sunday, according to CNBC. "Headwinds to U.S. oil and gas production would rise further under a Joe Biden administration, even if the candidate has struck a centrist tone."
In the thick of a coronavirus pandemic that has decimated global oil demand, West Texas Intermediate, the U.S. benchmark, was trading around $40 per barrel Monday. Without a sharp rise in economic activity or a cut in global supply, prices could remain low for many months, if not years, to come. That has prompted some in Texas to raise the prospect that the state's Railroad Commission could regulate production again — something it has not done since the 1970s — to limit a massive crude glut coming out of the Permian Basin. Biden's move to toughen rules on oil and gas drilling could have a similar effect, by raising the costs of production and pushing out less efficient drillers. Democrats in Texas are already jumping on the analysis, sending an email blast to supporters and media Monday.
"To save Texas energy, we must elect Democrats in November," Texas Democratic Party Communications Director Abhi Rahman said in a statement. "Texas Democrats believe in an ‘all of the above’ energy approach. Both our oil and gas and renewable energy sectors will make sure Texas remains one of the world’s greatest energy producers." President Donald Trump has made growing the U.S. oil and gas industry a priority in his first term, loosening environmental regulations that industry at-large has long complained about. But the impact of such policies is likely to be, "modest at best" over the next four years, Goldman analysts wrote, "given the more powerful shift in investor focus" away from fossil fuels… (LINK TO STORY)
Homeless camps spread to parks during coronavirus lockdown. Now Dallas is clearing them (Dallas Morning News)
As the coronavirus pandemic raged, homeless encampments gradually grew across Dallas. And when people finally emerged from their homes for the outdoors, they were shocked to find the camps in their parks and trails. Complaints flooded into City Hall, and Dallas geared up to restart its annual and controversial camp cleanups. That led several City Council members to add money in the new budget for parks and other departments to boost cleanup efforts.
“It’s really key that our residents have a safe and clean environment to use our parks,” council member Lee Kleinman said during a budget meeting last month. The pandemic and concerns over park encampments have highlighted Dallas' chronic homelessness problem as well as the need for more permanent housing solutions. City officials say they want to do more than just clear them away, a cosmetic fix frowned upon by homeless advocates. The city is looking for longer-term solutions, like placing people in hotels. M. Renee Johnson, a Park and Recreation assistant maintenance director, said homeless encampments in city parks are up about 30% from last year. They are spread throughout the city’s roughly 395 parks. Some camps are so large and hazardous due to waste, the department has to hire contractors for the messy job, she said… (LINK TO STORY)
[NATION]
Amy Coney Barrett push papers over rift between Trump and GOP (Politico)
Just about the only thing holding the Republican Party together right now is Amy Coney Barrett.
President Donald Trump’s sinking poll numbers are putting once-safe Senate seats in play and threatening deeper losses in the House. Republicans are unenthusiastic about defending Trump’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic or commenting on his latest string of Twitter rants.
And the Senate GOP is painfully at odds with Trump and top administration officials over their attempts to reach an expensive Covid relief deal with Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Republican senators savaged the outlines of a White House proposal in a conference call over the weekend, although few Republicans are willing to openly break with Trump just yet.
Fear of Trump remains high in GOP circles, and Republicans know that their fate is inexorably tied to the president’s own results. Yet at the moment, it’s not clear Trump has the juice within his party to cut a big spending deal with Democrats.
Meanwhile, there is near unanimous support for Barrett, the type of Supreme Court nominee that Senate Republicans would have confirmed for a President Rubio or a President Cruz. So some in the GOP say they should take the win in front of them and wait until after the election to pass a coronavirus relief package that would split the party — even if it could boost both Trump’s flailing re-election campaign and the GOP battle to keep the Senate… (LINK TO STORY)
Graham lays groundwork for committee vote on Supreme Court pick (The Hill)
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) is laying the groundwork for the panel to vote later this month on Judge Amy Coney Barrett's Supreme Court nomination.
On Monday, as the panel began Barrett's confirmation hearing, Graham formally scheduled a committee meeting for Thursday, where her nomination will be on the agenda.
The committee won't actually vote on Barrett's nomination on Thursday, but the move to place Barrett on the agenda for the first time this week will allow Graham to meet his stated timeline of holding a committee vote the following Thursday, Oct. 22.
Under committee rules, any senator can request that a nomination be held over for a week the first time it is on the agenda. Democrats are expected to request that Barrett's nomination be held over, and Graham has said he will honor that request.
"My goal is to complete that Wednesday at some kind of reasonable hour in the evening. Thursday we'll begin the markup. I intend to hold it over and bring the committee back on the 22nd to vote on the nomination," Graham said on Monday during the first day of the committee's hearing on Barrett's nomination… (LINK TO STORY)
Trump hits the trail with Florida rally, a week after COVID-19 hospital stay (NPR)
resident Trump was back on the campaign trail on Monday, telling a packed outdoor rally in Florida that he feels "powerful" after his bout with the coronavirus.
Trump spoke for about an hour to an enthusiastic crowd, at an event that his campaign billed as the start of a breakneck stretch of travel leading up to the Nov. 3 election.
Trump stuck to much of his usual stump speech, but he did touch on the illness that led to him being hospitalized just over a week ago. He said he's feeling good now.
"I feel so powerful. I'll walk into that audience. I'll walk in there, I'll kiss everyone in that audience," Trump said.
In a memo released shortly after Trump left Washington, White House physician Sean Conley said the president had tested negative for the coronavirus on consecutive days. Conley said those negative results, combined with data that White House doctors have collected from other various tests, show that Trump is not infectious.
Like many of his recent rallies, the Florida event was held outside. But, as usual, there was no social distancing and many in the audience did not wear masks… (LINK TO STORY)