Alberto Gonzales testifies before the Senate today, and this Washington Post story indicates that if it weren't for his eons of loyal service to Bush, he would already be gone. Instead, because he is so totally a hardcore Bushie, as it were, he has been given a chance to fix everything by way of his testimony today. Since Gonzales is a pro, I doubt anything incredibly interesting will shake out of his appearance, but you never know.

The news is out that the Supreme Court upheld a controversial ban on what the right-wing politicos like to call "partial-birth" abortion today, in a 5-4 decision. Justice Kennedy wrote the majority decision, and the dissenting opinion was written by Justice Ginsburg. The major Democratic candidates for President have issued statements concerning the ruling, and they can be found after the jump.

Imagine the horror. It is like something out of a Stephen King novel: politicos and press members all discover at the end of a news-heavy Tuesday that their Blackberries don't work. The truth is even worse — they still don't, and the Blackberry customer service line simply informs you that they are having some problems.

So the Texas Observer explains it all — they provide a simple form from the ACLU that you can email to the Office of the Governor to find out if you're considered to be a threat. I reproduce the form letter for cutting-and-pasting purposes after the jump, and have just submitted the form myself. I'll keep you posted as to what reply I get; you guys do the same.

We learned today that the 2nd TexVAC Rayburn Johnson Dinner on April 28, 2007 will feature former Texas Governor Dolph Briscoe, former Texas Lt. Governor Bill Hobby, former Congressman Martin Frost, and Waco businessman and philanthropist Bernard Rapoport. The keynote speaker will be Paul Begala, whom you all know from the campaigns of a man named Bill. General Wes Clark will be attending and speaking on behalf of Dallas businessman Jess Hay, the dinner's honoree.

We had a little bit of news yesterday about the growing TDEx scandal, and just a few minutes ago I received a press release from Representative Richard Raymond's office concerning some legislative action. Rep. David Swinford, the chair of State Affairs, accepted Raymond's HB 4108 as an amendment to a general Homeland Security bill, HB 13. The transfer of TDEx to the DPS is at the very least going to the floor, and if Perry and Dewhurst's inability to control the Lege as of late is any indication, it will probably pass.

SB 583, introduced by Senator Dan Patrick, would change the mandatory waiting time before finalizing a divorce. Currently, the waiting period is 60 days. This legislation would increase the waiting period to 180 days. In a strange exception, couples that go to 10 hours of counseling would only have to wait 90 days. The bill was left pending in committee.

The lead story yesterday is the lead story today and will probably be the lead story tomorrow. The rampage at Virginia Tech was the worst of its kind in United States history, and yesterday was the first in a series of painful days for family members and friends, a series of days so painful as to be unimaginable for most of us. It is terrible, and we are sorry to observe it.

What is happening in Hays County is or will be occurring as well in other Texas counties.

The citizens of the city of Farmers Branch, Texas have become further divided on the issue of illegal immigration. Flyers and yard signs are doing most of the talking as the May 12 election on the proposed illegal immigration reform draws closer.