Real City Watchdog
This Sunday, October 20 is Vice President Kamala Harris’s 60th birthday. Don’t forget to wish her a happy birthday and tell her yes, she can and when we fight, we win.
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Early Voting in Person starts on Monday.
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I have some thoughts about the news that came out of H-Town City Hall yesterday. It looks like H-Town Mayor John Whitmire snatched the City Watchdog title away from the City Controller. See this from the Chron:
Mayor John Whitmire said he has initiated an ethics investigation into Controller Chris Hollins’ decision to solicit sponsorships for a financial conference the controller’s office is hosting next week, questioning whether the practice is an example of “pay to play.”
The Houston Annual Investor Conference is now in its ninth year, but Tuesday’s event – Hollins’ first as city controller – is the first for which sponsorships have been sought, Whitmire wrote in a letter, dated Thursday, to conference participants.
A pamphlet on the conference website lists sponsorships from $10,000 up to $100,000, with increasing perks for top donors.
The conference homepage shows Loop Capital, an investment bank, gave $50,000 to become a “platinum sponsor,” securing the firm a list of promotional opportunities at the conference. A “platinum” sponsorship also secured donors a “private dinner with the controller” in an earlier version of the sponsorship pamphlet Whitmire distributed at his Thursday press conference.
That perk is no longer listed as available for “platinum” sponsors, only for $100,000 “title” sponsors. No firms are listed as contributing at that level.
A local representative with Loop Capital directed questions to its corporate office, which could not be reached. Hollins, in a press conference Thursday afternoon, did not address the change to the sponsorship packet, but said that he viewed the proposed dinner as a nice gesture that might encourage firms to make a “meaningful” charitable contribution. Any financial institution that has asked for a meeting during his tenure, he added, has gotten one.
Three companies gave $25,000 to become “gold” sponsors, and nine people or firms contributed at the $10,000 “silver” level, including Hollins and his wife.
Whitmire said at a Thursday morning press conference he called on the topic that he started getting calls from banks that received the sponsorship packet two weeks ago.
“They said it was the appearance of pay to play, and they were seeking advice,” he said. “‘If we don’t contribute at the level of our competitors, can we still get city business? If we don’t, what are the repercussions for keeping city business?’”
Whitmire said he has asked the city’s Office of Inspector General to look into whether any city ordinances had been violated by the sponsorship solicitation. He said he won’t attend the Tuesday conference at the Hilton Americas-Houston and called on Hollins to cancel it.
“It really doesn’t need much explanation,” he said, “other than it needs to stop. It needs to be exposed.”
Hollins, in a rebuttal press conference Thursday, dismissed Whitmire’s criticisms, calling them “highly hypocritical” and “a huge nothing burger that is meant to distract from the mayor’s failed leadership on fiscal responsibility at the city,” namely the “bloating spending and debt the city has taken on with no plan to offset that with revenue.”
Whitmire is “a walking conflict of interest,” Hollins said, pointing to the huge settlement he passed for the firefighters union, which had endorsed his campaign last year.
The mayor’s State of the City address also is sponsored by dozens of companies with city contracts, Hollins noted, and is hosted by HoustonFirst, whose board is appointed by the mayor. And, as all mayors do, Whitmire takes campaign contributions from numerous firms with interests at City Hall, Hollins said.
“This is silly. This is a waste of everybody’s time,” Hollins said. “Now, it’s not particularly surprising, because I think each of us knows that the mayor is a ‘ready, fire, aim’ kind of guy, but it’s still disappointing.”
Whitmire’s letter to conference participants also questioned how the donated sponsorship funds would be used and who would oversee that spending, noting the sponsorship pamphlet did not make clear where the money was going.
“As we talk, I understand it’s being altered,” Whitmire said. “I’d like to think someone finally is using good judgment.”
And this:
Andrew Cates, an attorney and ethics expert, said Whitmire is right to flag the solicitation of a sponsorship from potential or current city financial vendors who could then pitch the controller in private over dinner.
“If no one is there to police this, the public doesn’t know what’s going on behind those closed doors, and that would be my concern,” Cates said.
Such a dinner could also constitute lobbying activity, Cates added, which is subject to its own city and state regulations.
“If somebody is being paid to speak to the controller about a potential issue that could be voted on at the city level,” Cates said, “that’s pretty much the definition of lobbying.”
Here is the entire read: Houston Mayor Whitmire launches ‘pay to play’ ethics investigations (houstonchronicle.com).
On the Mayor and the firefighters, the Mayor made it pretty clear during his campaign last year that he was going to get a deal done with the firefighters. He was very open about that.
Last I heard, nobody gets promised a private dinner with the Mayor for sponsoring the State of the City event. I think State of the City sponsors get to attend a VIP reception with other sponsors about 45 minutes before the event begins.
It looks like the City Controller and his folks were a tad tone deaf on how they organized this event. To compare this to raising money for political campaign coffers really misses the point. Not even close.
The Mayor of the City of H-Town has every right to point out a potential ethics issue at City Hall. We can’t always wait for Amy Davis and the H-Town investigative reporters to do this job.
Looks like the Mayor is the real City Watchdog. See the featured photo.
Here is from KPRC Channel 2 News:
KPRC 2 Investigates has learned federal law enforcement has been asking questions focused on the controllers office and those doing business with it.
Here is the Channel 2 story: ‘I’m disappointed:’ Houston Mayor John Whitmire calls out Controller Chris Hollins for suspected ‘pay to play’ conflicts (click2houston.com).
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It is on. Commentary is talking about the Christmas flicks in full swing between now and the end of the year on the Hallmark and Hallmark Mystery channels.
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The Astros sent me this yesterday:
The Astros 2024 season was one that was highlighted by resiliency and relentlessness among a long list of memorable moments and records. In a year that saw the 5,000th win in franchise history, the Astros had the second-best record in the Majors post April 27 en route to taking the American League West Division title for the fourth consecutive season and they made their eighth consecutive Postseason appearance.
Houston led the American League in hits (1448) and batting average (.262), while ranking second in OBP (.322). A pair of players took home weekly and monthly awards as AL Player of the Week Awards went to RHP Ronel Blanco (April 6) and LF Yordan Alvarez (August 10) while LHP Josh Hader claimed AL Reliever of the Month (August) and RHP Spencer Arrighetti earned AL Rookie of the Month honors (August).
April 1st marked the 17th no-hitter in franchise history thrown by RHP Ronel Blanco while DH Yordan Alvarez hit for the 10th cycle in franchise history on July 21st against Seattle and followed up with a three-homer game on August 28th against Philadelphia.
Off the field and a first of its kind, the May 13th home and road telecast both featured female play-by-play announcers in Julia Morales (Astros) and Jenny Cavnar (Oakland).
The Astros went 9-0 in the first nine starts made by LHP Yusei Kikuchi, marking the first time in club history for the Astros to win the first nine starts by any pitcher new to the franchise. Houston also retains the Silver Boot after finishing with a 7-6 record against the Texas Rangers this past season. It marks eight straight seasons and in those eight years, the Astros are 86-45 against their intrastate rivals.
Emerging as the Astros everyday catcher, Yainer Diaz set single-season club records by a catcher in hits (175), runs (70) and RBI (84). Among AL players this season Diaz ranked tied for third in three-plus hit games (17), fifth in batting average and tied for sixth in multi-hit games (50). Astros second baseman, Jose Altuve, finished the season with 20 homers and 22 steals, giving him his third career 20/20 season. Altuve was one of 19 players to post a 20/20 season in 2024.
Got it.
