Texas Republicans lost a supermajority in the Texas Senate this election, so …. yeah, they want to change the rules.  Lt. Governor Dan Patrick, the man best known for saying he was willing to die of Covid to keep the great Texas economy going and every grandparent should, has a simple solution.

Dan The Tricky Man

Currently, Senate rules say 19 of the chamber’s 31 members — three-fifths — must agree to call up a bill for debate. Patrick said in the statement that he is recommending lowering that threshold to 18 senators, aligning with the size of the GOP majority heading into the legislative session that begins next month.

This is not the first time Lt. Gov Patrick has pulled this stunt. I think they should be consistent and change the rules to say: However many Republicans are in the senate constitutes a supermajority.

Now I’m waiting for New York or some other foreign state to file with the Supreme Court saying that Texas should have to count all the Republicans in the Texas senate as 3/5 a person. Hell, at least that’s been done before.

Thanks to Larry for the heads up.

Years ago, retired Dallas Cowboys Quarterback turned Monday Night Football announcer, Don Meredith, would often sing “The Party’s Over” when a big NFL team had no hope of winning.  To wit:

Welp, I believe I can hear him singing even now.  The Supreme Court just denied to hear Paxton’s idiotic lawsuit to throw out millions of votes in 4 states, subvert democracy and install Trump as dictator.  Paxton, Abbott, Patrick, Cruz, and 17 US representatives from Texas sided with sedition rather than honoring their oaths of office.  SCOTUS said no. Alito, along with Thomas, dissented, of course.  Here’s the order:

Republican Rep. Dick Hinch was sworn in as the New Hampshire House Speaker on December 2.  One week later, Hinch was found dead in his home.  Cause of death?  COVID-19.  The swearing in was performed outdoors, but many Republicans present refused to social distance or wear masks.  Many Republicans in New Hampshire tend to be Libertarian, anti-government, and anti-science.  Democrats are calling for an investigation, and testing of all those present at the ceremony.  Even some Republicans are saying that behavior of many Republican representatives was “childish”.

Another one bites the dust.

Written By Elizabeth Moon.

Wednesday, December 9, the United States distinguished itself once more as the World Wide Leader in Covid-19 deaths, by piercing the daily-death ceiling of 3000 in one day. That is, the officially recorded deaths.  3,053.  Three thousand fifty-three individuals who were alive this time last year, last month, and up until they got Covid. 

We have thirty counties in Texas with a smaller population than 3,053* and 236 of our 254 counties have a smaller population than the US Covid-19 deaths overall, 290,000.*  Had the whole weight of this fallen on a single Texas county, only eighteen of them would’ve had survivors left to tell the tale. So much winning.

Meanwhile, in New Zealand, a former member of our church choir came to our weekly Zoom meeting that same evening to report that her new choir (in Nelson, South Island) was about to have a short rehearsal and choir dinner, and would be performing in the city center twelve times during the holidays. Schools, stores, businesses, churches, are all open…no Covid closures because they don’t have Covid cases now.  Personally, I’d call that winning and our government losers.

Yesterday, over 100 members of Congress signed on to Paxton’s lawsuit seeking to disregard the elections apply for a pardon in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Georgia and hand the WH back to Trump who was soundly defeated in the popular and electoral vote.  In addition to Ted Cruz’s offer to argue the case in the unlikely event that the SCOTUS took up the case, here are the pols from Texas who betrayed their oaths to protect and defend the Constitution, deciding to pledge fealty to Trump instead.  These clowns are safely gerrymandered in, so are not the slightest bit interested in upholding the Constitution or serving their constituents; they are only interested in staying in office.  History will not be kind to these guys.

Rep. Kevin Brady

Rep. Michael C. Burgess

Rep. Michael Cloud

Rep. Mike Conaway

Rep. Dan Crenshaw

Rep. Bill Flores

Rep. Louie Gohmert

Rep. Lance Gooden

Rep. Kenny Marchant

Rep. Randy Weber

Rep. Roger Williams

Rep. Ron Wright

Reason #1:

https://twitter.com/EWErickson/status/1336455009194618881

Reason #2:  

Texas Senator Ted Cruz To Present Pennsylvania Election Lawsuit To Supreme Court If They Take Case https://t.co/8agEhFKlYR pic.twitter.com/JYDrVMUKRf

— Daily Wire (@realDailyWire) December 8, 2020

Reason #3:

Gov. Greg Abbott tells supporters he's considering placing law enforcement for central Austin under state control https://t.co/5gTVWWEAOg via @TexasTribune

— Mark S. Getzfred (@marknyt) December 4, 2020

If you need ten reasons, I can do that, too.