Thursday Roundup: Few Changes in Senate

While George and I were out protecting and fostering democracy yesterday, the Senate was wrapping up The Great Debate Sleepover, and obstructionist Republicans kicked and screamed and hemmed and hawwed until they got their way — Reid eventually ended up pulling the bill after failing to get the 60 votes they would need procedurally to overcome any attempts at a GOP filibuster, which I'm sure was in offing.

The Washington Post points out a decision of interest by Reid, in which he prevented votes on any other measures on the Iraq War including the one put forward for consideration at the all-nighter. This prevented Republicans from trotting out the legion of alternative measures that would allow them to get on TV and say "I pressured the President against this war," even if the pressure amounted to a non-binding resolution to write a sternly-worded letter to the President on the subject. With the Congressional vacation looming, this plan might push the next serious debate on Iraq to September, even though Republicans are already waffling and shifting that date, too.

In case you were concerned that the government had forgotten about Texas for a few days, fear not: Michael Chertoff tells the Houston Chronicle that construction on the Texas-Mexico border fence will likely get started by the end of September. In a statement sure to make conservatives everywhere feel conflicted way down deep inside, Chertoff also said that eminent domain may be necessary to procure some land for the fence in Texas. I'm willing to bet most people that are in favor of a boondoggle like the fence because they are just so very anti-immigration might not be crazy about the idea of government seizure of private property.

Perry is still taking heat for his veto of funding to community colleges. His latest advertorial has shifted tone, however, and now he is saying that Texas community colleges have to follow the rules like everyone else, which sort of makes the veto sound like a punishment for a petulant child. Which I'm sure will make the officials at these colleges feel like his decision was right, and that they should clam up and get back to work figuring out how to mitigate the damage done by the veto.

Statesman also has a nice counterpoint from Stephen Kinslow, the ACC President and CEO, in which he makes the very salient point that not only do community colleges have to raise property taxes and tuition as an immediate response to Perry's veto, but those increases and cuts to community college programs will make education less affordable in general, and the result will be a social backslide in which unemployment will rise when companies jump ship and then taxes will rise due to an increased dependence on social services. I don't think it will make Perry engage in a Very Merry Unveto, but it hits hard in language Perry's base can understand.

Scott Henson is All Up In Your Grits lately with some great ongoing commentary and coverage on TYC. We haven't talked about it much recently, and everyone should probably be paying more attention to it as an indicator of how state agencies are being handled by current state leadership.

We also haven't talked much about the Law and Order candidate in the last week or so, mainly because he isn't really running for president yet. The Hill has it that Fred Thompson's people are getting tired of him not actually running for president. The predicted July 4th announcement didn't come and now even the most dedicated among his supporters (who, may I point out, paid real money they could have spent on other things procuring the domain FredHeads.com) are starting to get a little antsy.

Lastly, Charles Kuffner points to some good coverage from Texas Lawyer on Mike Engelhart, who is running for 151st District Court in Harris County. The overall reach of the Texas Lawyer story is about whether what happened in Dallas in 2006's Democratic Judicial Surge™ is possible in Harris County. The Republicans say no, which they are politically required to, but they are also making it clear that they don't intend to be taken by surprise, and are getting into a lot of action pretty early if they are actually worry-free.