Monday, May 28, 2007

140 Days is a long, damn time

Sine Die is today, the final day of the 80th Texas Legislature. Somebody be sure to let me know where the good parties are.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'm not sure there will be parties because everyone is going to be so confused about what just happened there may just be shock and befuddlement. Normally I enjoy watching the Texas political drama, but this year my job at TYC is on the line, so it's personal. I am really very disappointed in every single one of the "elected" officials in this state after this session. I also fear for our Democracy and our Country as these shenanigans become the norm at the state and federal level.

Anonymous said...

Ditts anon's comment. When our elected officials fail to uphold the law and ignore their oath of office, democracy is lost.

Gritsforbreakfast said...

Well, there will certainly be drinking, whether in celebration or in the spirit of a wake! With three new prisons in the budget I may be one crying in my beer, but I'll still want a beer!

That said, though I agree with the fears about democracy lost, I wouldn't say I'm disappointed in "every single one" of the legislators. E.g., if House Corrections Chair Jerry Madden isn't on Texas Monthly's 10 best legislators list, IMO the designations simply will have no meaning. He and quite a few other members came into their own this year, to my mind, as statesmen, elevating their status from mere partisans, even in the face of the Speaker's race fiasco that threatened to consume the session. On criminal justice, the results were a mixed bag, partially because the Criminal Jurisprudence Committee refused to participate in the Whitmire/Madden reforms. But some legislators really showed their true colors, and while that sometimes disappointed me it often led to pleasant surprises.

I love this state and believe its institutions deserve respect even when our representative don't always behave with wisdom or dignity. Being a rep or senator is a damn hard job. No matter what you think of what happened over the last 140 days, it's our government, everyone did their best, and for that reason alone it's worth raising a glass, IMO, to honor the effort, warts and all.

And let's all try to do better next time.

Anonymous said...

I agree: Rep. Madden definitely deserves to be a Ten Best.
To your main question: Tonight's Sine Die party is at the Sheraton (used to be Capitol Marriott), but you have to have a ticket. Hope they have big-screen TVs and betting pools if the House Ultimate Fighting Championship is still going on!! (Putting the "Die" in "Sine Die")

Anonymous said...

It's a damn shame that elections don't take place right after the end of these sessions. We wouldn't have to wait so long to oust some of these worthless wastes of air and time wouldn't fuzz our memories to what some of these jackholes did. Speaker of the house- if you somehow manage to make it to term, do us all a favor and slam that gavel on your nuts the next time a session opens so maybe you'll have other swollen things to think about other than your ego.
But the topper goes to Perry. Perry, you would be at the top of my list to go. I've had enough of you. I've never seen such a self-serving, outright middle-finger-flipping to common sense and civil rights SOB like you. And there's been some pretty bad ones to preceed you, but you take the cake.

Anonymous said...

Sen. Mario Gallegos' notorious sex offender banishment bill didn't even get a hearing. Sorry about his health problems and I wish him well, but that bill would have been a disaster for thousands of Texans, not to mention an affront to the constitution. Even Democrats can make horrendous mistakes; introducing SB 94 was a major lapse of judgment by an otherwise good legislator.

Several states have already learned about the unintended consequences of such poorly thought out legislation. Glad Texas didn't have to learn the hard way. My family and friends thank those who had a hand in burying SB 94.