Alito Flag Day
Election Day is tomorrow. Go vote in the Harris Central Appraisal District (HCAD) Board of Directors runoff election, please.
_____
Today is Flag Day in the USA. I wonder if Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito, Jr. is flying the flag in the featured photo.
_____
Well, this is kind of surprising. Not all the HISD Board of Managers supported the 2024-2025 HISD budget last night. See this from the Houston Landing:
In their most divided vote taken to date, members of Houston ISD’s state-appointed school board on Thursday narrowly approved a $2.1 billion budget that slashes hundreds of millions of dollars in spending in 2024-25.
The unexpected 5-4 split on the district’s annual budget — one of the most important votes taken by a school board each year — marks a rare public disagreement between some board members and HISD Superintendent Mike Miles. The nine-member board and Miles, which were appointed to run the district in June 2023 as part of state sanctions against HISD, have generally moved in lockstep while dramatically overhauling Texas’ largest school district.
None of the four board members who voted against the budget proposal — Cassandra Auzenne Bandy, Michelle Cruz Arnold, Rolando Martinez and Adam Rivon — detailed their opposition during Thursday’s meeting. Of the four, only Rivon spoke during the budget discussion, requesting that Miles present the board with more data in the future about which components of HISD’s overhaul model are having the most impact.
Cruz Arnold said she was surprised by the 5-4 result. She said she voted no because Miles did not present the board with enough evidence justifying his plans or possible ways to adjust his spending proposal.
“I asked some questions of the administration in advance of the first budget workshop and then in advance of the second one that went unanswered,” Cruz Arnold said. “I’m a processor, and without that information … I just had to vote no.”
Here is the entire read: HISD board backs $2.1 billion budget in surprisingly close 5-4 vote (houstonlanding.org).
5 to 4. I guess it is good to see this. Hopefully we see more of this.
_____
This tweet on the posting of a Chron job opening to report on local education issues is from Jen Rice who covers the Harris County Courthouse for the Chron:
not to be dramatic but this has to be the best open job in journalism right now. cover houston’s school district, which has 184,000 students, was taken over by the state last year & is completely on fire
On fire!
_____
Uh oh or oh my! I don’t think I have met this fella. I am sure he has a lot of explaining to his supporters and fellow Democrats in Fort Bend County. See this from ABC 13:
FORT BEND COUNTY, Texas (KTRK) — The Democratic challenger for Fort Bend County Precinct 3 commissioner is facing charges for allegedly creating a fake social media account to post racist comments directed at himself after the Republican incumbent requested an investigation last year.
According to arrest warrant documents, Pct. 3 Commissioner Andy Meyers requested the Fort Bend County District Attorney’s Office begin an investigation in October regarding the source behind several social media posts directed at his opponent, Taral Patel.
This came after Patel, 30, issued a statement on his social media accounts with a collage of racist posts that he claimed were directed at him. Although many of the usernames were concealed, Meyers told investigators he recognized an account that went by the name “Antonio Scalywag” as someone who had attacked him before.
Investigators found that the fake account used a profile photo that belonged to someone else. The DA’s office issued a subpoena to Facebook and Google, which allowed them to obtain account data that matched Patel’s address, phone number, Texas driver’s license number, bank card number, and other personal information.
On Wednesday, the Texas Rangers arrested Patel on a third-degree felony charge for online impersonation and a Class A misdemeanor charge for misrepresentation of identity, which is found under the Texas Election Code. A spokesperson with the Fort Bend County District Attorney’s Office said this is the first time their agency has charged someone with an election-related offense.
Patel previously served as chief of staff for Fort Bend County Judge KP George from 2018 to 2021, according to his LinkedIn. In a statement to ABC13, George wrote:
“As a public official, I address the recent events involving a former employee with a deep sense of concern. Recognizing the gravity of the situation, I emphasize the vital importance of upholding the principles of due process and impartial investigation. I trust that this matter will be examined without prejudice. While awaiting additional information, I reaffirm my commitment to ensuring justice and accountability. I look forward to gaining a complete understanding of the circumstances surrounding this unfortunate incident.”
Here is the entire ABC 13 story: Fort Bend County Precinct 3 candidate Taral Patel charged for allegedly faking racist social media attacks against himself – ABC13 Houston.
This fella has a lot of prominent local Democrats supporting him. Ouch.
_____
Folks know a bit how Commentary feels about college sports and the money thing. It might get greener as in green dollars. See this from ABC 13 News:
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — Some monumental news in college athletics could produce an enormous payout.
According to ESPN, ABC13’s sister network, the Big 12 Conference is exploring selling the league’s naming rights to a title sponsor. The branding, poised to be worth hundreds of millions of dollars, would potentially take the name “Big” out of Big 12 and replace it with the sponsor’s name.
So, the University of Houston, Baylor, Texas Tech, and TCU could potentially play in “The Disney 12” after the deal is signed.
Houston Cougars head men’s basketball coach Kelvin Sampson salutes Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark for thinking outside the box regarding revenue.
“Just like the schools are going to be held accountable for finding new dollars out there, so is Brett Yormark,” Sampson said Thursday via Zoom. “He’s the commissioner of the Big 12, and he is going to have his plate full. It’s not easy in this day and age. That’s one of the reasons I feel good about the Big 12. We have a guy in Brett Yormark who thinks outside of the box. He’s coming up with new ideas to keep us competitive. We can’t let the SEC and the Big 10 get too far away from us. We have to find a way to stay competitive.”
And this:
Additionally, as CBS Sports first reported, the Big 12 has been in discussions with private equity firm CVC Capital Partners for a stake in the league between 15% and 20%, sources confirmed to ESPN. That could give the Big 12 up to a $1 billion cash infusion and would be the first known large-scale private equity investment in college sports.
Hope the athletes get a good piece of the action.
_____
From the sour grapes department, see this from the Chron:
With the Astros seven games below .500 and sitting near the cellar with the fourth-worst record in the American League, fans all want to know one thing: What the heck is going on?
Gina Luhnow thinks she has the answer and the wife of former Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow blasted it on social media Thursday.
“Simple answer: Jim Crane fired Jeff Luhnow. Karma sucks,” Gina wrote on Twitter in response to a fan asking how the Astros could go from seven straight American League Championship Series to the current state of affairs.
Astros owner Jim Crane hired Jeff Luhnow as his general manager after buying the team in 2011. Luhnow put the organization through a complete rebuild, which helped the club land stars in the draft like Carlos Correa, Lance McCullers, Alex Bregman and Kyle Tucker and eventually win the the franchise’s first World Series title in 2017. That was the start of the current streak of seven straight trips to the ALCS, which includes another championship in 2022. However, Crane fired Luhnow and manager A.J. Hinch in 2020 when the Astros’ sign-stealing scandal came to light.
Luhnow denied knowing about the Astros’ illegally stealing signs and sued the Astros claiming he was made to be the “scapegoat” in the scandal. That lawsuit was dismissed in 2021 after both parties “resolved their differences.”
When a fan pointed out that the Astros still had success even after Luhnow’s dismissal, Gina responded, “Who do you think set them up for years of success? The well finally ran dry and there’s no one there to tell them how to fill it back up.”
Here is the entire read: Jeff Luhnow’s wife Gina blasts Astros owner Jim Crane on social media (houstonchronicle.com).
It was under Luhnow’s watch that the cheating scandal happened. He oversaw baseball operations. We ended up losing valuable top draft picks as part of the team’s punishment from MLB. Oh, well.
A.J. Hinch and the Tigers are in town this weekend. I wonder if A.J. will get a media question or two on the Gina Luhnow tweet. I hope so.
_____
Have a safe and happy Father’s Day weekend.
