Friday News Roundup: Immigration and Other Indictments

Today we have a new article from staff writer Betsy Parchem, resident of Farmers Branch and reluctant witness to the English-only ordinance hijinx currently underway in that city. In a bizarre twist, Rick Perry actually came out in favor of tuition breaks for illegal immigrants, saying the current law which provides for such a thing "serves a good purpose." This only strengthens my previous argument that immigration is a many-headed hydra of an issue. Don't think he's getting all soft, though - Perry is also kicking around the idea of capital punishment for repeat child molesters.

Speaking of Perry, he's begun assuring people that he has no interest in being Vice President. I'm sure news like that makes Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison grind her teeth, who's been playing the waiting game for the governorship for some time now. The answers Perry gives and the national buzz makes me think that he of course would very much like to be Vice President. Romney / Perry, coming to a town near you.

State Senator Mario Gallegos needs a liver, and he'll be out of town for most of the session. The implications of such a thing are that the 2/3's rule that Dan Patrick tried to do away with earlier in the week no longer applies, and that 20 votes gets it done. That diminishes the power of state senate Democrats, as they can no longer band together and enforce their will, or stop proceedings.

I'm not sure why we even bother having a spending cap if the immediate response of the Lege is to try and find a way around it. This is another example of politicians promising things before they figure out how to pay for it. If efforts to circumvent the cap fail, I'm sure the first thing on the block will be food for kids, or hugs.

Senator Jane Nelson would like you to know that faith-based initiatives deserve expanded governmental access and dollars. This bill would get God all up in Health and Human Services Commission, the Attorney General's office, the Texas Education Agency, the Texas Workforce Commission, and "other state agencies as appropriate." After all, the story of Saint Peter, the Book, and the Pearly Gates shows us that nothing abides faith better than bureaucracy.

Finally, I'd like to point everyone to the revamped Texas Observer blog, headed up by Matthew C. Wright. Give 'em hell, guys.