- Opinion: COVID-19 and Texas’ fiscal day of reckoning
- Perryman: State budget shortfalls
- Those defying Gov. Abbott’s emergency order draw citations, warnings – and a few cheers
- Dear politicians, life must go on
- Abbott Names Chair, Vice Chair And Reappoints 11 To Governor’s Commission for Women
- Abbott Appoints Three To Texas Board of Chiropractic Examiners
- Abbott Appoints Six To Texas Animal Health Commission
- Abbott Appoints Seymour’s Habert To 50th Judicial District Court
- AG Paxton Joins Amicus Brief Calling for Clarity in the Rules Governing Appellate Review of Remand Orders
- Paxton declines to drop appeal, blocking new trial for Austin babysitter
- 70% of Texas prisoners tested have the coronavirus. Experts say it’s time for more testing and fewer inmates. – anything to let folk out of jail.
- War of words heats up over prisoners who contracted coronavirus housed in Fort Bend County
- “Between 0 and 100%”: Texas schools weigh the odds of students returning this fall – schools need to be going now.
- In Twitter rant, Speaker Bonnen takes issue with big box stores as they implement Abbott’s reopening plan
- New UT campaign school aims to get more Texas women to run for office – taxpayer money used to recruit Democrats.
- Texas GOP’s Dickey Says Democrats Have Been Playing Politics With Coronavirus
- Left: Covid response shows vulnerability of Texas’ part-time legislature – really?
- Trump, Biden locked in dead heat for Texas, DMN-UT-Tyler polls finds; Most support voting by mails – the voting by mail issue is extremely dangerous.
- Standards for Absentee Ballots and All-Mail Elections: Doing It Right…and Doing It Wrong
- AG Paxton Warns Against Expanded Adoption of Mail-In Ballots, May Constitute Election Fraud
- TX21: Restaurants open, and Congressman Chip Roy takes his family for Tex-Mex
- TX17: Pete Sessions incurs legal bills — and opponent’s criticism — in campaign to return to Congress-
- HD2 Runoff Review: Incumbent Dan Flynn Faces Bryan Slaton Head-To-Head
- HD25 Runoff Review: Garrett and Vasut Compete for Bonnen’s Seat
- William Dominguez new State Chairman for Young Conservatives of Texas – Red Raider
- SD14: Austin Council member Greg Casar opts out of running for Texas Senate
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- Coronavirus related
- Let’s Not Pretend This Is Constitutional
- COVID-19 mitigation is a weighing of harms
- Comparing the Wuhan virus with the 1968 Hong Kong flu, more
- Texas COVID-19 situation report for 5/4/2020 (pdf) – 886 deaths in Q1 plus April, a third of Q2. Official Texas 2018/19 flu season deaths were 9249 by end of July last year, over 10,000 for the year. Should our rights have been scuttled for that? Only 8% of the 390,560 tested have tested positive.
- Texas coronavirus death toll rises to 884 – only 1,500+ in hospital and yet the entire mobilization was to keep from overwhelming hospitals. This is over a third of the year and yet we’ve not even reached 10% of Texas’ annual deaths ascribed to influenza.
- Symptom-Based Strategy to Discontinue Isolation for Persons with COVID-19
- Health officials wasted time on the speculative, didn’t harden the known
- 7 Pearland nursing home residents, 1 employee test positive
- Texas emergency task force visiting Hereford nursing home after residents, staff test positive for COVID-19
- Faced with 20,000 dead, care homes seek shield from lawsuits
- Midland Medical Lodge residents with coronavirus being moved to hospital
- Administrator: Midland Medical Lodge activates ‘rapid response team’ – just now!!!!???? Proving my points on nursing homes and local health departments.
- ‘Our patients are dropping like flies’: 16,000 dead from COVID-19 in U.S. nursing homes – odd how long it has taken for the press to catch up on this.
- Editorial: End the secrecy on virus deaths at nursing homes
- States ordered nursing homes to take COVID-19 residents and thousands died
- Understanding why mask wearing is little more than virtue signaling
- Do face masks work?
- Oklahoma city backs off mask mandate after threats, as officials struggle to enforce public health rules
- Andrew Cuomo Backs Fines for New Yorkers Not Wearing Masks
- Dr. John Lee: Could the lockdown have side-effects no one has considered?
- Podcast: Pratt on Texas Interview with Dr. Stephen Balch AUDIO
- COVID-19 task force is being sent to Amarillo to help with the rise in cases – “We’re going to see testing increase tremendously, we may even double our testing numbers in one week. So when we double our testing number the number of positive cases is also going to go up so prepare yourselves,” said Mayor Nelson. More testing, more recorded cases.
- Amarillo area COVID-19 cases reach 1097 as of Sunday, May 3rd – but only 12 deaths between Potter and Randall counties.
- Lubbock health official “nervous” about business opening up – Dr. Cook, worry more about your health agency that failed to harden nursing homes in Lubbock which lead to many deaths and were major outbreak centers.
- Texas Farm Offers Equine-Assisted Counseling During Pandemic
- NY funeral directors: Government is padding Wuhan flu deaths
- Smart or Lucky? How Florida Dodged the Worst of Coronavirus
- As Texas reopens, citizens are split between going out and staying in – real easy to stay home when you are getting paid and it doesn’t ruin your life.
- COVID-19 creates major revenue losses for Midland Memorial Hospital
- Third Medical Centery Hospital (Odessa) staff member tests positive
- Social Distancing? Photos show crowded Texas beaches
- Inmate cases add to growth in San Antonio cases
- Haskell Co. detention officials report 20 new COVID-19 cases just one day after 3 detainees test positive
- Robertson Unit reports COVID-19 related death
- USPS taking necessary precautions in response to coronavirus
- ‘We are not past this’: Mayor Adler to extend Austin-Travis County stay-home order – tyrant. Time for open rebellion?
- Seventy-one negative test results Monday are from Rambler Solar Project in Tom Green Co.
- Buffalo Springs Lake Announces Closure Of All Beaches VIDEO
- West Texas is open, whether cities are in good position or not – paper working to rehabilitate Lubbock mayor’s image? So says one local politico.
- Under House Arrest as a Result of a Crime Committed by the CDC VIDEO
- Those defying Gov. Abbott’s emergency order draw citations, warnings – and a few cheers
- Harris County’s stay-at-home order extended through May 20, residents encouraged to report violators – encouraging snitches!!!!
- Dear politicians, life must go on
- Oregon governor extends coronavirus state of emergency to July 6
- Confessions of a Stuck-At-Home School Teacher
- Pompeo: ‘Strong evidence’ that the coronavirus outbreak began in Wuhan lab
- Are hospitals ‘gaming the system’ on COVID cases?
- Sex traffickers at massage parlors are evading shelter-in-place orders – a lesson in how many will not obey any law so passing a law isn’t usually the answer.
- Austin Officials Reiterate ‘Stay Home’ Orders Still in Effect – tell ’em to jump in Lady Bird Lake.
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- Federal/DC related to Texas
- Sen. Cruz: A blueprint for our economic recovery
- Ted Cruz Aims to Limit DOD Support for Hollywood Studios Censoring Movies in China
- Sen. Cruz on Fox News: We’ve Got to Treat China Like the Threat It Is VIDEO
- W.H.O. Continues to Obey China, Ignores Taiwan Coronavirus Success
- Sen. Romney proposes $12 per hour raise for essential workers – does he have even one conservative bone in his body?
- Could President Trump lose the oil war?
- Texas Congressman Vicente Gonzalez fractures lower back in 12-foot fall at home – I guess staying home isn’t so “safe” after all.
- Senate returns to D.C., House still at home but top Republicans are ready to return
- Barr and State Lockdowns, Again
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- Presidential race / national politics
- Donald Trump Releases ‘American Comeback’ Coronavirus Campaign Ad VIDEO
- Trump Ridicules George W. Bush Appeal for Bipartisanship amid Coronavirus
- CNN admits they can’t keep up with Trump
- Poll: Donald Trump, Joe Biden Tied in Texas, more – registered voters, not likely voters.
- New York Times Op-ed: Dump Biden over Tara Reade Allegations
- The Story Behind Joe Biden’s “Amtrak Joe” Nickname
- Joe Biden and LULAC spotlight coronavirus outbreaks at meatpacking plants, blame Trump
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- Border / immigration
- Bush Center Slams Trump: We Want More Migration – disgusting, if business wants illegal aliens to have things those employers should supply it not taxpayers
- With No Federal Aid, [Illegal] Immigrant Families, Students Lean on Local Support
- Guns, Cash Seized at Outbound Texas Border Crossing
- 15 Miles of Additional Border Wall Completed in California
- Military Kills 7 Los Zetas Gunmen During Nuevo Laredo Shootout
- Mexican Health Officials Stop Sharing Coronavirus Case Estimates
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- Business
- Texas Tops 2 Million Unemployment Claims During Outbreak
- SpaceX successfully completes Dragon parachute tests
- Walmart Pays Hourly Workers Almost $180 Million in Bonuses
- Carnival announces first cruise date for select cities, including Galveston
- Oil Producer Halliburton Shutters Two Texas Facilities After $1 Billion First Quarter Loss
- American scales back inflight catering as part of ongoing coronavirus response – another reason to screw the customer at AA, common.
- United Airlines may change route map post-coronavirus, says no hub is ‘sacred’
- Bicycle sales peak during COVID-19 pandemic
- Coronavirus takes steam out of home buying season but sales, prices should rebound
- Local filmmaker, actor to give update on production of ‘Marfa’
- Dallas-based hotel group to return $76 million in disaster loans meant for small businesses
- Mayor Says Help Coming as Cases Climb Near Texas Meat Plants
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- Crime & general news of Texas
- Houston PD officer killed, pilot injured in helicopter crash in north Houston
- Governor Abbott Statement On Houston Police Helicopter Crash
- Pilot injured in HPD helicopter crash was a hero during Hurricane Harvey
- Austin’s Communist May Day Protesters Arrested for Blocking I-35
- Arkansas Boy Drowns While Swimming at Texas Beach
- Dallas-Area Man Offers Grief Support After Loved Ones Die
- California Harassment Suit Prohibits Man from Hiring SMU Students
- Vehicle ripped apart in deadly crash on Houston’s Southwest Freeway
- Accused Embassy Gunman From Texas Said He Feared Cuban Organized Crime – which is the government in Cuba.
- Teenager charged with robbing two Odessa gas stations at gunpoint
- WF police arrest man for unlawful firearm possession, Austin warrant
- Three men charged in Archer County murder
- Woman with 18 previous theft charges arrested after she allegedly tried to steal toy bear
- Man doing donuts in store parking lot arrested after pulling a gun
- Woman robbed at gunpoint in Abilene Residence Inn by Marriot room
- Abilene man arrested for evading police, attempting to choke officer, grabbing taser
- Man arrested for kidnapping his mother at knife point
- Levelland: One arrested in fatal shooting Saturday night, Man Turns Himself Into Levelland Police After Deadly Shooting
- Police Respond To Shots Fired In North Lubbock Monday, Teen dies in early AM shooting near E 2nd and Zenith
- Rabbit Hemorragic Disease Virus 2 has been found in Lubbock and Hockley counties
- Disgraced Judge Rudy Delgado Requests Early Release From Prison
- 17-year-old boy is second to be fatally shot by accident at East Houston home
- Multi-vehicle crash leaves one dead in south Houston
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- Local government
- Texas Mayors, Municipal Officials’ Terms Extended to November After May Election Postponed
- Ector County ISD set to expand to Prekindergarten, 2020-2021 school year
- Ector County 2020 appraisals average 4.5% increase – and yet oil business is in the tank. Demonstrating how off is Gov. Abbott.
- Williamson County home appraisals reflect pre-coronavirus growth – Again, Demonstrating how off is Gov. Abbott.
- Higher Property Tax Bills for Tarrant Taxpayers: School Districts
- Energy values fall 51% across Montague County
- Bowie mayor resigns; tells TV ‘ongoing tensions’ to blame
- Lubbock: Several City Departments on First Floor of Citizens Tower Now Open
- From New York to Houston, municipal finances in tatters
- Dallas rental assistance program opens
- “Between 0 and 100%”: Texas schools weigh the odds of students returning this fall – schools need to be going now.
- June Austin police cadet class delayed amid ongoing racism, discrimination probes
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- Colleges & universities
- How Health Schools Can Help Meet the Challenge of COVID-19
- TTUHSC to increase VTM capacity in response to Gov. Abbott’s request
- Texas Tech School Of Law Crowned ABA Competitions Champion – again!
- TTU Fine Arts Doctoral Student Provides Lifeline For Educators During Pandemic
- Red Raiders Will See A Different Campus This Fall – silly
- Texas College in Tyler listed among Worst Colleges in America
- New UT campaign school aims to get more Texas women to run for office – taxpayer money used to recruit Democrats.
- US Dept. of Ed requests UT records with Wuhan lab, Zoom CEO
- ACU faculty honor 50 graduates as University Scholars
- Hardin-Simmons Hosts Virtual Emerging Leadership Conference
- WBU Will Open for Classes in the Fall
- Lubbock Christian University names The United Family as Community Partner of the Year
- UT-Arlington selects provost to serve as interim president, puts long-term search on hold
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- Military
- US Air Force sends B-1 bombers back to Guam (from Dyess AFB) on temporary deployment
- Blue Angels to salute Houston area frontline workers with a flyover on Wednesday
- US awards 29 Purple Hearts for brain injuries in Iran attack
- Abilene sea stories for Navy Week
Pratt’s post for 5/4/2020
May 4, 2020 by Leave a Comment
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