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BG Reads 1.24.2024

BG Reads 1.24.2024

🗞️ Bingham Group Reads - January 24, 2024

January 24, 2024

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January 24, 2024

Today's BG Reads include:

✅ Mayoral Election 2024: GAVA (Go Austin/Vamos Austin) leader Carmen Llanes Pulido enters race

✅ BG Podcast Ep. 233 featuring Jack Craver of the Austin Politics Newsletter

✅ Art Acevedo says he won't take job overseeing Austin Police

✅ AG Paxton seeks protective order after courts uphold his deposition

✅ Trump wins New Hampshire primary as rematch with Biden appears likely

Read on!

🎙️ BG Podcast Weekly Recap EP. 233 (Week of 1.15.2024)

On this episode Bingham Group CEO A.J. Bingham and Associate Hannah Garcia wrap up the week of January 15th, 2024 in Austin politics.

Topics include:

✅ Austin Council reaction to Art Acevedo hire

✅ Former Council Member Kathie Tovo running for mayor

✅ A guest feature from Jack Craver of the Austin Politics Newsletter

LISTEN ON: SoundCloud, YouTube, Apple Podcast, Spotify

[AUSTIN METRO NEWS]

Community organizer & GAVA executive director announces a run for Austin mayor (Austin American-Statesman)

Carmen Llanes Pulido, a longtime community organizer and the executive director of the nonprofit GAVA (Go Austin/Vamos Austin), is running for mayor.

Llanes Pulido, a 39-year-old native Austinite, has worked at GAVA in different capacities for about 10 years, she said. She has served as the non-profit's executive director since 2017. Before that, she said she worked at the nonprofit Marathon Kids. She has also served on several city commissions including the independent citizens redistricting commission, the Latino quality of life commission and the city's planning commission.

"I am running for mayor because I feel like we are at an incredibly important crossroads in Austin's history," Llanes Pulido told the American-Statesman, adding that the city is facing, "global challenges like climate change, like growing wealth inequality, income inequality and a housing crisis that is stuck in the middle of that as well as much growth and a need to equitably invest in our critical infrastructure."… (LINK TO FULL STORY)

Austin officials publicly apologize to survivors for city's longtime mishandling of sex crimes cases (Community Impact)

Austin officials on Jan. 23 formally apologized to sexual assault victims who had their cases mishandled by the Austin Police Department and committed to reforms related to the city's response to sex crimes.The public apology was one term of a settlement with survivors who'd sued the city over allegations of systemic failures in the APD's work and mistreatment of victims over the course of many years.“Hear me when I say: I and all members of the Austin Police Department are committed to making sure no other survivors go through something like this or something similar in the future," interim Police Chief Robin Henderson said… (LINK TO FULL STORY)

Art Acevedo says he won't take job overseeing Austin Police (KUT)

Former Austin Police Chief Art Acevedo said he is no longer joining city leadership.

City leaders on Friday announced Acevedo would take on a new role overseeing policing. The decision sparked controversy and came as a surprise to some local officials and social justice advocates. Acevedo served as head of the city's police department from 2007 until 2016, when he left to take a job as police chief in Houston.

In a new statement posted to X, formerly known as Twitter, Acevedo said he has shared his decision not to accept the job with interim City Manager Jesús Garza.

“While I continue to admire and support these leaders of the Austin community, it is clear that this newly created position has become a distraction from the critical work ahead for our city," Acevedo said… (LINK TO FULL STORY)

Seguin launches first economic plan to address the growth headed its way (Austin Business Journal)

Encroachment from San Antonio and Austin has put new pressure on Seguin to ensure it benefits from and is not engulfed by the increasing development activity headed its way.

The city of Seguin and the Seguin Economic Development Corp. are taking a critical step to harness that growth with the launch of the community’s first comprehensive economic development strategy. Seguin is about 40 miles east of downtown San Antonio and 65 miles south of downtown Austin. The city had a population of 33,400 people in 2022, according to U.S. Census Bureau estimates.

The roughly 186-year-old city was at a tipping point, according to Joshua Schneuker, executive director of the Seguin Economic Development Corp.

The strategic plan includes a focus on four target industries: smart systems technology, automotive, advanced manufacturing and select retail. It was developed in part based off data gathered from a set of benchmark cities in Texas including Georgetown, Hutto, New Braunfels and Temple. Like Seguin, they are near much larger markets… (LINK TO FULL STORY)

Click here for this week’s Austin public meeting meeting times and agendas.

[TEXAS NEWS]

Dan Patrick partners with BlackRock on summit after calling for Texas to boycott firm (Dallas Morning News)

After leading the charge for Texas to boycott investment giant BlackRock as hostile to the state’s oil and gas industry, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick is now working with the firm to recruit investors into Texas’ power grid. Patrick and the investment firm are convening a two-day event in Houston next month they are calling the Texas Power Grid Investment Summit. Both Patrick’s office and BlackRock confirmed the Feb. 5 and 6 event. Patrick’s apparent detente with BlackRock comes after the lieutenant governor pressed to pass laws that would require the state to divest any of the company’s funds and bar it from contracting with the state.

A copy of a draft program for the event obtained by The Dallas Morning News showed Patrick scheduled to deliver opening and closing remarks alongside BlackRock CEO Larry Fink.

A BlackRock spokesperson confirmed the event but, saying the program had not been finalized, would not confirm Fink’s presence. The spokesperson described BlackRock’s involvement as assisting with facilitating and convening the event.

Patrick appearing with Fink would be a sharp change for the lieutenant governor, who about two years ago called on Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar to place BlackRock at the top of the list of companies that boycott Texas oil and gas. In a public letter, Patrick criticized Fink for creating climate-sensitive investment products and directing the company to decrease investment in fossil fuels. Fink had on multiple occasions said he was steering the financial giant from investing in fossil fuel companies as part of a sustainability strategy. Patrick responded by calling for legislation in 2021 to bar Texas from doing business with companies that do not invest in oil and gas as a strategy.

Patrick’s office also confirmed the event Monday after The News sent an open records request seeking information last week. In a statement on X acknowledging his work for Texas to boycott BlackRock, Patrick said he has had two meetings with Fink… (LINK TO FULL STORY)

AG Paxton seeks protective order after courts uphold his deposition in whistleblower suit (Austin American-Statesman)

Embattled Attorney General Ken Paxton is seeking a protective order to quash his upcoming deposition and those of his former high-ranking deputies in the wrongful termination lawsuit brought by the four ex-aides, who say they were unjustly fired for complaining to federal authorities about Paxton's possible misconduct in helping a friend. Paxton has sought to block his deposition in the case, but after the 3rd Court of Appeals and the Texas Supreme Court both affirmed a lower court's order compelling him to testify under oath, the attorney general on Thursday filed a motion in Travis County state District Court announcing his intent to accept a final ruling in the case. However, state District Judge Jan Soifer on Friday kept in place an earlier mandate requiring Paxton's deposition to occur by Feb. 9. In December, Soifer issued a ruling ordering Paxton and high-ranking officials in his office to testify under oath about the situation that led to the former top aides' exit.

They had complained to the FBI that they believed Paxton was misusing his office to help a friend and campaign donor, Austin real estate developer Nate Paul, then the target of a separate federal financial crimes investigation. In response to Soifer continuing to seek the attorney general's deposition, Paxton on Friday filed a motion in state District Court seeking a protective order to quash the depositions and to stop the whistleblowers from seeking any further discovery in the case. In the motion, Paxton's attorney, Bill Helfand, argues that the materials being sought through subpoenas and depositions are privileged or have been previously disclosed. Helfand said the whistleblowers' deposition requests are "overbroad" and no longer necessary on account of Paxton's willingness to accept a verdict… (LINK TO FULL STORY)

Two House Republicans repent for voting to impeach Ken Paxton (Texas Tribune)

As Ken Paxton’s impeachment animates the Texas primary season, most state House Republicans have defended their vote to impeach the attorney general.

But two GOP members have stood out for going in a different direction, publicly expressing regret over their role in the process.

They are Reps. JM Lozano of Kingsville and Gary Gates of Richmond — and Gates has especially reaped the political benefits. After publishing a statement earlier this month denouncing the impeachment, Paxton endorsed him in his contested primary.

But even earlier in the election cycle, Gates was working to smooth over things with Paxton as the attorney general launched a political revenge tour. Gates apologized to Paxton in person and has donated at least $25,000 to his campaign since the end of the impeachment trial… (LINK TO FULL STORY)

Chip Roy: Texas should ignore Supreme Court’s border razor wire ruling (The Hill)

Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) called on Texas officials to ignore the recent Supreme Court ruling declaring the federal government could remove razor wire on the U.S.-Mexico border.

“They have a duty under the Constitution … and every other norm of leadership of any sovereign state, to protect your citizens, period, full stop. There is no exception to that,” Roy told Fox News Digital on Tuesday.

“And if the Supreme Court wants to ignore that truth, which a slim majority did, Texas still had the duty, Texas leaders still have the duty, to defend their people.”… (LINK TO FULL STORY)

[US/WORLD NEWS]

Trump wins New Hampshire primary as rematch with Biden appears increasingly likely (Associated Press)

Former President Donald Trump easily won New Hampshire’s primary on Tuesday, seizing command of the race for the Republican nomination and making a November rematch against President Joe Biden feel all the more inevitable.

The result was a setback for former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, who finished second despite investing significant time and financial resources in a state famous for its independent streak. She’s the last major challenger after Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis ended his presidential bid over the weekend, allowing her to campaign as the sole alternative to Trump.

Trump’s allies ramped up pressure on Haley to leave the race before the polls had closed, but Haley vowed after the results were announced to continue her campaign. Speaking to supporters, she intensified her criticism of the former president, questioning his mental acuity and pitching herself as a unifying candidate who would usher in generational change... (LINK TO FULL STORY)

Biden wins the New Hampshire primary after Democrats write him on the ballot (NPR)

President Biden won the New Hampshire Democratic primary on Tuesday, an unusual race that he skipped after his party changed its rules in favor of seeing South Carolina hold the first nominating contest of the year.

As a result, Biden wasn't on the printed ballot. But Biden won regardless, according to a race call by The Associated Press.

The victory comes after a grassroots campaign urged Democrats to write in his name and a super PAC raised about $1.5 million to back the effort… (LINK TO FULL STORY)

Moscow mocks CIA for new bid to recruit Russian spies (Politico)

The Kremlin has laughed off an attempt by the CIA to recruit spies from Russia via social media.

“Somebody should tell the CIA that VKontakte is much more popular here than the banned X [formerly Twitter] and that VKontakte has a much larger audience,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Tuesday, according to state-run news agency TASS, referring to the Russian social media platform.

The video which the CIA posted on various social media channels shows “a fictionalized Russian making the difficult but important decision to secretly contact CIA,” according to the American intelligence agency’s YouTube channel… (LINK TO FULL STORY)