TexasTowelie
TexasTowelie's JournalVal Verde County eyeing purchase of controversial property
Val Verde County Commissioners Court has issued a notice of intent to borrow $6 million to buy a large ranch between Del Rio and Laughlin Air Force Base.
“The piece of the property that we’re looking at purchasing is 2,900 acres, called the SE Ranch. I’ve already had constituents call and ask why we are buying all of it, and the reason is, just as I told the owner, it’s to the county’s benefit. Everybody that lives in the county, whether you’re military or school or whatever, it’s to the county’s benefit that we control the destiny of this property,” Val Verde County Judge Lewis G. Owens Jr. said in an interview Wednesday.
The SE Ranch became the center of controversy more than a decade ago when a planned development on the site roused fears that the development would negatively impact Laughlin Air Force Base’s pilot training mission.
Owens said one of the property’s principal owners is San Antonio attorney David Earl.
“In 2007, 2008, he and the city and SE Ranch Holdings sued each other, and that lawsuit cost the city at least $700,000. The county commissioners court looked at this and thought it would be a good piece of property to develop as long as whatever we did there would be compatible with whatever mission Laughlin Air Force Base has,” Owens said.
Read more: http://delrionewsherald.com/news/article_4fce1c90-b4c2-11e9-9c0e-6f360ff5f4f0.html
(subscription required/view page source in browser)
Storytime w/ Hasan Minhaj: Embarrassing Parents
After Round 2, what's next for Texas candidates Beto O'Rourke and Julian Castro?
AUSTIN — With the first two rounds of debates in the rear-view mirror, the immediate challenge for the two Texans seeking the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination is to avoid what political pundits are calling the winnowing process, experts say.
"I think there's going to be a reckoning," said veteran Austin political operative Bill Miller in reference to Texans Julián Castro and Beto O'Rourke. "The field is too large."
And that reckoning could start in Texas. Next month, the third round of Democratic Party-sanctioned debates will be held in Houston — and the bar for qualifying to participate is the highest yet.
To make it to the stage for the Houston events, scheduled Sept. 12-13 on the campus of Texas Southern University, candidates must have at least 130,000 campaign donors and reach at least 2 percent support in four party-approved polls.
Read more: https://www.caller.com/story/news/local/texas/state-bureau/2019/08/01/beto-orourke-julian-castro-look-ahead-next-phase-campaign/1890519001/
(Corpus Christi Caller-Times)
Possum on a gum bush, Bo Duke is coming to Roscoe
Note: I'm not promoting the event and John Schneider's stance about the Confederate flag on the General Lee is dubious, but I couldn't resist posting that thread title.Bound for Roscoe, TV's Bo Duke drives home point about the General Lee
ROSCOE — Can you hazard a guess who's on stage Saturday at The Lumberyard?
Not The Duke. That would make headlines worldwide.
And not Bo Derek. But don't some guys wish.
Try Bo Duke.
John Schneider, who starred in the TV fave "The Dukes of Hazzard" from 1979-85, will perform at the outdoor venue. He has a new single, "Love You Ain't Seen the Last of Me," and promised to do all the classics ("Country Girls," "I've Been Around Enough to Know," "You're the Last Thing I Needed Tonight"
from his hit-making heyday, plus newer material.
Read more: https://www.reporternews.com/story/entertainment/music/2019/07/30/bound-roscoe-tvs-bo-duke-drives-home-point-general-lee/1843386001
(Abilene Reporter-News)
Hamlin hospital closes; clinic, EMS continue operations
HAMLIN – Hamlin Medical Clinic and EMS services continue to operate after Hamlin Memorial Hospital closed its doors at midnight Wednesday.
The closing of the hospital means the end of inpatient, emergency room, physical therapy and Meals on Wheels services, according to a news release from the Hamlin Hospital District board of directors.
"Since 1948, Hamlin Memorial Hospital has had a rich history of involvement in the community, but we couldn’t have done anything without our amazing employees," according to a post Wednesday on the Hamlin Hospital District Facebook page.
The hospital district was created in 1973. A new 25-bed Hamlin hospital that cost $1.8 million opened April 27, 1980, according to Abilene Reporter-News files. A fund-raising drive netted $140,000 to purchase equipment for the 16,000-square-foot facility.
Read more: https://www.reporternews.com/story/news/2019/08/01/hamlin-hospital-closes-clinic-ems-continue-operations/1888013001/
(Abilene Reporter-News)
So... how'd Beto do?
Quotes from an O'Rourke campaign email.
Donald Trump Jr.
Mike Huckabee
Ann Coulter
Bill O'Reilly
@TrumpWarRoom
Looks like it went pretty well!
So... how'd Beto do?
Quotes from an O'Rourke campaign email.
Donald Trump Jr.
Mike Huckabee
Ann Coulter
Bill O'Reilly
@TrumpWarRoom
Looks like it went pretty well!
E-cigarette giant Juul's campaign donations favor Democrats
WASHINGTON (AP) — E-cigarette giant Juul Labs gave nearly $100,000 to members of Congress during the first half of 2019 as the company faced the bulk of the blame for a surge of underage vaping and calls for tighter government regulation of the industry.
The donations from Juul's political action committee represent a sharp increase over last year's total, according to a Federal Election Commission report released Thursday that shows most of the money went to Democrats.
The boost in contributions is the latest sign of the company's expanding influence operation in Washington and around the country. An explosion of underage vaping has put Juul in the crosshairs of a number of Democrats, who have charged the company's early advertising and marketing led to the current wave of vaping by American teens.
Juul is ramping up its political giving as Congress considers legislation to raise the minimum age to purchase all tobacco and vaping products from 18 to 21.
Read more: https://www.wacotrib.com/news/ap_nation/politics/e-cigarette-giant-juul-s-campaign-donations-favor-democrats/article_b565c805-f5be-5556-b434-ff8603c6b0da.html
US Rep. Mike Conaway Announces Retirement At The End of His Term In 2020
In a Midland office building, surrounded by greenery and statues of a giraffe and an elephant, U.S. Rep. Conaway, R-Midland, told a crowd of constituents, staffers and reporters that he was stepping away from politics—joining a number of GOP lawmakers that have announced they won’t be seeking reelection next year.
“This chapter in our lives has been more fulfilling that I could ever imagine,” said Conaway, who was joined by his wife Suzanne. “But all things come to an end and my eighth term in congress will be my endpoint. “
Conaway said he’s thought about the decision over the last year. Part of his reason to retire is he’s term-limited from continuing his leadership role on the Agriculture Committee and didn’t see other leadership opportunities in the near future, so he opted to step away from politics.
“One of the things I’ve told folks all along — when I’m no longer in a leadership position, I’m coming home,” said Conaway.
Read more: https://marfapublicradio.org/blog/u-s-rep-mike-conaway-announces-retirement-at-the-end-of-his-term-in-2020/
Texans' Donations To Democratic Presidential Candidates Top $6 Million
Texans are donating more money to Democratic presidential candidates – a lot more.
The Houston Chronicle’s Jeremy Wallace has been reporting on the trend. He says donations to Democrats running for president have tripled over what they were during the 2016 cycle.
“It’s amazing how many people are interested in giving donations to presidential candidates this year than we were talking about even four years ago,” Wallace says.
Wallace says 8,500 Texas donors have contributed to Democratic candidates this year, as compared to 1,400 four years ago. So far, those donors have given $6 million to announced candidates.
Wallace says contributions have gone to the two leading Texans in the race, former Congressman Beto O’Rourke and former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julián Castro. O’Rourke got $3.1 million from Texans. But other candidates have seen significant Texas support, too.
Read more: https://www.texasstandard.org/stories/texans-donations-to-democratic-presidential-candidates-top-6-million/
Profile Information
Gender: MaleHometown: South Texas. most of my life I lived in Austin and Dallas
Home country: United States
Current location: Bryan, Texas
Member since: Sun Aug 14, 2011, 03:57 AM
Number of posts: 112,177
