Spending your campaign donation to Houston City Council Member Greg Travis

You might get the idea that I do not like Houston City Council Member Greg Travis. I don't.

Back in 2008 a couple of us reviewed the spending habits of State Representative John Davis. We found he had spent tens of thousand of dollars of his campaign donations on personal items including a pair of $1500 custom made boots. He eventually had to pay a hefty fine and refund the donations to his campaign. He was one of many we found. (MANY!)

So, I was interested in what Greg Travis was spending his donors money on. In his end of year report for 2020 he spent $11,833. What was interesting was his $2000 donation to Trump/Pence campaign. So for those who are donating to Travis just be aware who your money might be going to.

What should the GOP do with Trump in 2019?

The big question for 2019 for the remaining Republicans in Congress is "What do we do with Trump now?". What will the GOP do to minimize their upcoming loses in 2020? The voters in 2018 spoke loudly with the GOP losing 40 seats in Congress. In Texas there was an 180% increase in voting from the last midterm election causing a huge blue wave to wash across every part of the state. All indications show the 2020 elections will be worse unless they take swift, decisive action. Here is a suggested threee part plan for the floundering party of conservatives.

Phase 1. Pass a bill to fund the remaining parts of the Government with funds for the Department of Homeland Security but no wall. Trump has already says he would accept a fence. Give him $1.8 Billion for DHS and let them rebuild or repair the existing fence with a “steel slat barrier”. Trump will declare victory or he will be shamed by the right wing media and veto the bill. Congress will have to override his veto knowing that once they turn on the president they lose the 35% Trump base. At this point it’s either face the 35% in the primary or the 65% in the general election. 

Phase 2. Remove Trump from office. Pence is a right wing, religious, zealot but he isn't nuts! He isn't politically ignorant. He knows how to run a government. Pence would bring stability to the country and world. He would have a hard time explaining why he will overturn the policies he has supported while VP but he can and must do it. The only people at this point who would not accept Pence are the extreme right wing trump supporters. Our country needs Pence. The stock market needs Pence. Our allies need Pence. The GOP desperately needs Pence. 

Trump can be removed by impeachment but the republicans should be forced to file the articles of impeachment and carry the ball. Trump is their problem. They created him and allowed him to fester by not performing their duties as the third part of government. The Senate would not have to remove him. He would quit and blame it on everyone except himself. 

Phase 3. Continue to the probe into Trump and his family. The GOP must wash this stained out of their party. Continue the probe and demand the rule of law to applied. At least look like the GOP is the party of “Law and Order” upholding the rule of law, for once, instead of applying the law based upon who rules.

If the GOP wants to survive the upcoming elections they will need to grow a pair or lose them in 2020. At this point I would gladly accept Pence as President.

Who shouldn't run for the Democratic Party nomination for President

It's always good to have a competition between a number of good, qualified, Democratic candidates for President, but let's be honest about who shouldn't run. We have some excellent candidates with the necessary qualifications to lead the nation that we should focus on. We do not need the second tier candidates to muddle up the primary. For starters:

Bernie Sanders. He will never receive the nomination. Ever. Democrats say "If he is the nominee, I will vote for him." but that isn't enough votes. The nominee requires votes from the middle to win in the general. They are the ones that will swing the election. Sanders can't and has never had to reach out to them over the last 35 years he has been in office. The middle will never support a socialist like Bernie. Besides the fact he can't win, he still isn't a Democrat and once a real Democrat like Beto O'Rouke runs, his supporters will be gone.

Elizabeth Warren. Senator Warren has a great reputation for tackling Wall Street, providing some much needed consumer protection for Americans. She should keep doing that. I believe the DNA test she performed is her email issue. She will never get over that. Could she be President? Sure but once again she needs the middle not just the far left.

Richard Ojeda. From CNBC: "The latest politician to join the list of President Donald Trump’s potential challengers is Richard Ojeda, who lost the race to represent West Virginia’s 3rd Congressional District on Tuesday night. He also voted for Trump in 2016". Enough said. Ojeda is a loose cannon. Let's thank him for his military service then move on.

Michael Avenatti. The politically ignorant loudmouth has no business running for this office. We already have one in the White House we don't need another. He is nothing but a shiny penny with his tough talk but not worth a cent as a political candidate.

Oprah Winfrey. Another politically ignorant individual who could use her talent to help drive out the vote for our candidate. Being popular is not enough. This isn't a damn game. 

Hawaii Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard. Not a chance. Despite having a great resume Gabbard has some extreme positions on civil rights enough to completely disqualify herself from running in the Democratic Party. She is a non starter. Also, she is a Bernie Bro.