Texas Lege Update

Here's the visual:

The House Democrats didn't like Voter ID so badly, they killed a slew of other legislation in the process through "chubbing", a form of filibuster. The (led by Jim Dunham) Dunham D's have now revived the tradition of the "Ardmore Chicken D's" (heck, they are mostly the same people) of stubbornly refusing to let anything get done, since getting something done would actually mean the center-right majority in Texas would get their way.

Aside from being a partisan let-down from the Strausian 'run-to-the-center', the Dunham D's ended up creating lots of collateral damage. All to kill Voter ID. (70% of Texans support voter ID.)

At Burka Blog, Patricia Hart is upset that CHIP fell in the 'genocidal slaughter':

If CHIP dies, there’s plenty of blame to go around for killing the best opportunity in years to do something about Texas’ uninsured. ... As for the House Democrats, they chose badly when they decided blocking Voter ID was more important than CHIP, insurance reform, needle exchange, renewable energy incentives, and on and on.

Michael Sullivan tweaks her allegiance to liberal ideas:

"Patricia Kilday Hart unabashedly advocates for the expansion of the “Children’s Health Insurance Program” and other left-leaning causes, then suggested supporting such measures would get lawmakers on the ten-best list."

She replies:

"I mean that these ideas are important to Democrats and they blew it by not taking their successes this session across the finish line. ... Nowhere do I say that it was a good idea to do what the House Democrats did."

That last item I can agree with. We missed opportunities for good bills. On the other hand, a do-nothing lege will at least have done no harm, hippocratic oath-wise.