El Paso Politics

Those are the questions that entered my mind when I watched the ABC 7 Xtra show last Sunday night with Beto O’rourke. He gave every indication that he is going to run for Congress. He toyed with the idea recently and then chose otherwise at the last minute. His decision to not run for another term, when he has the ability to do so, is probably the clearest indicator that he is going to do it. But I think there are also a fair amount of indicators that he won’t do it. More on that in a minute. But first, let’s talk a little about O’rourke. I am a liberal, so while many might look at Beto as the devil, he is far from it. I can honestly say that there are very few leaders that I have met in my life like Beto O’rourke. He has something that I think too many elected officials lack, the balls to stand up for their convictions, the balls to stand up for minorities, even if it means some public scorn. Most politicians look for the path of least resistance or do what is most politically expedie...

I've been a little quite lately because I am working on a few pieces that are complicated. Here's what I'm trying to get to the bottom of: Two CEO's of Non-Profits in town have been making some interesting decisions. I'll explain what they are and let you make up your mind about the issues. The court house has been called a cesspool by some. I'll explain the irony in that statement. And the last one, why I don't think Beto O'rourke will run for congress after all. Stay tuned...

Texas taxpayers are footing the bill, a bill likely to balloon with Perry's possible presidential bid, for Governor Perry's security detail. There is nothing uncommon about that and its appropriate that given his office he has a security detail assigned to him. But what is raising the eyebrows of many in Texas is the fact that the Republican governor called a special session and one of the issues the Republican majority is undertaking is a bill that actually hides the amount of money taxpayers pay for Governor Perry's security detail FROM taxpayers for an 18-month period. That means, we wouldn't know how much we are paying until after the 2012 election. What area teachers want to know is simple. How many teachers could have been employed with the money tax payers will spend on Perry's security detail. Perry is going to be visiting several states in his ramp up to the presidential run. He's already recently traveled to LA, New York, New Orleans, Colorado, and Nor...

I have to give credit where credit is due. A couple of Republicans are circulating a letter to Texas legislators urging a "no" vote on HB 9. They lay out their argument in a very common-sense manner and are basically making the point that Republicans can't attract Latinos to their party with perceived anti-Latino legislation. The Texas Tribune has a good article about it today. Interestingly, Dee Margo is now on the record as being against the bill. That is, against the bill NOW. He was originally supportive of a much worse bill earlier in the session. There's a good piece in the El Paso Times written by Zahira Torres in which Dee Margo says a couple of very interesting things. First, Dee Margo defends previously voting in favor of the bill that would cost El Paso millions of dollars by saying, "I thought it was a fairly innocuous bill...I didn't think there was a whole lot to it. I thought it was more form than substance, and not one member of the city or...

If you know me, then you know I am a gadget guy. If you are in the market for a new phone, I wanted to pass on a little insight to you because I have used all of the major types of smart phones and I know it can be hard to sort out which one is the best. Blackberry – the innovator of the smart phone world has been passed up by the other smart phone brands over the last year, but at one point, Blackberry was ubiquitous. They were everywhere and everyone had them. They were also addicting, so much so that they earned the nickname Crackberry. They did, and still do, one thing well…email. They are simple and reliable without a lot of frills. They are also without a lot of apps these days. i-Phone – The new “it” gadget for a very long time, and it was basically the Blackberry killer. Faster, better graphics, more memory, more capabilities, and a much sexier look, the i-Phone, with its integration with music, photos, and video quickly rendered the Blackberry obsolete. Android – The “droid” i...

Alright a few days ago I wrote a post in which I presented some data regarding the the American tax dollar and how it was spent. Although this was not the intended focus of the piece, the numbers certainly got it. At this time I, first and foremost, would like to apologize. Looking back, I should have explained the numbers a little better, so in response to all the readers who are insistent the numbers are incorrect and that I am wrong, I will take the time today to explain the numbers in detail and hopefully convince some you out there that the data is correct. Now, before we look at the numbers we have to understand one simple fact, a fact that I think is the main concern behind those whom feel that the data I presented is incorrect. We have all been spoon fed the numbers, numbers like defense is 19% of what we spend and Social Security is another 30% and Medicare/Medicaid taking along another 20%. Now these are just approximations of course but fairly accurate ones. I think someone ...

Check this story out . This kind of thing happens all the time in El Paso and its a story about hard working people doing an honest day's work and are getting screwed and not getting paid. Its yet another example of the complexities of our immigration policies and yet another reason the policies need to be reformed. This is more complex than your typical racist, xenophobic right-wing retorts of this-wouldn't-be-a-problem-if-you-people-would-go-back-to-where-you-come-from....