Good morning,
Having had some experience with unjust courts, I spent some time recently thinking about the most consequential case of judicial abuse in history.
But first, here is today's Texas Minute.
– Michael Quinn Sullivan
• With a population of 28.9 million, Texas has had 70 fatalities from the Chinese coronavirus,
as of 12 noon yesterday.
• Republican congressional candidate Kathaleen Wall released a television ad accusing the Chinese government of being complicit in the spread of the virus. As
Cary Cheshire reports, her point was buttressed this week by U.S. intelligence officials who concluded China has lied about the infection rate and lethality of the disease. Wall is seeking the open Congressional District 22 seat in the Houston area, and has vowed to make sure China faces repercussions.
• “China is a criminal enterprise masquerading as a sovereign nation.†– Kathaleen Wall
• Perhaps more devastating than the coronavirus to the world economy has been the mostly-ignored fight between Russia and Saudi Arabia over oil production. The two countries have been flooding the market for weeks, driving down the price of oil in an attempt to break the other’s financial back.
• President Trump
told CNBC yesterday he spoke with the leaders of Russia and Saudi Arabia, who agreed to scale back oil production. His action, and their response, caused an immediate rally on the stock market and the price of oil.
• While the state’s primary runoffs have been delayed by the public health threat of the coronavirus, and local governments have been given permission to push their elections to November, some are refusing to do so. One such entity is Barbers Hill ISD, which wants nearly $300 million in new debt spending. Not everyone is impressed.
Brandon Waltens has the details. • “With Texans facing layoffs or pay cuts in recent weeks, all while being forced to stay at home, local governments should not be passing more debt while we tackle this outbreak.†– State Rep. Briscoe Cain (R-Deer Park)
• I guess using a pandemic to suppress voter turnout is one way to pass new bond debt.
• Meanwhile, several city governments in South Texas’ Rio Grande Valley have begun setting up police checkpoints to enforce coronavirus-prompted stay-at-home orders. In Port Isabel, no one under the age of 14 is allowed to enter grocery stores.
David Vasquez has the full story.
• It’s
now a crime in Laredo, Texas, to enter a building that isn’t your home without wearing a mask, punishable by a fine of $1,000.
• Remember when the cause du jour was banning single-use plastic bags? Remember how right-thinking people said reusable bags were unsanitary and disease factories? Remember how those concerns were so casually dismissed? I give you
Politico’s report on how San Francisco – the Austin of California – is reversing course... and banning reusable bags.
Today in History On April 3, 1944, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled the Texas Democrats’ “white primary†unconstitutional.
Quote-Unquote“I am in politics because of the conflict between good and evil, and I believe that in the end good will triumph.â€
– Margaret Thatcher
