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If you say something racist and get to keep your job, you may be a county party chair.
In politics, it’s OK sometimes to compare people to desserts. Maybe Ken Paxton had a rough day and you say he looked like a “sad, melted ice cream sandwich.” Cool. But then there’s Gary O’Connor, the Lamar County Democratic Party chair, calling U.S. Sen. Tim Scott, R-South Carolina, an “Oreo.” Not cool. O’Connor deployed the slur, which means someone who is Black on the outside and white on the inside, in a since-deleted Facebook post after Scott gave the Republican response to President Joe Biden’s address to Congress last week. Scott said that “America is not a racist country,” which prompted outcry from some on the left, including O’Connor’s unintentionally apropos post. The chairman has apologized to the congressman and attempted to resign, but the Lamar County Democratic Party refused to accept his resignation. O’Connor now belongs to the long line of Texas party officials — granted, most of them Republicans — who have kept their job after making an ill-advised racist comment. That’s the way the cookie crumbles in a hyper partisan environment. It was a vulgar moment, nonetheless.
Keep the thought that “America is not a racist country” in mind as you read the following headline: “Texas family praises how officers handled 911 call over kids playing with Nerf guns.” The Reyna family of Texas City was having a birthday celebration with children playing in the front yard when someone called police saying there were gunshots and people fighting, according to KTRK. “They were very frightened, yes — I mean, all of us were,” Adriana Reyna said of the moment when officers showed up. The police quickly assessed the situation and made the kids feel safe, the family said. The Reynas hoped the caller hadn’t intentionally singled them out because they are Latino — and put their lives in danger over some rowdy child’s play. We hope so, too.
Speaking of smart law enforcement, Republican Congressman Troy Nehls, the former sheriff of Fort Bend County, made headlines last week after he approached Biden and said he wanted to help with criminal justice reform. “I want to be part of it. So, I don’t know how to reach out to you, but I have the experience,” he said. “I’ll reach out to you,” the president replied. We thought Nehls was a lost cause after he supported the claim that Biden’s win was tainted by voter fraud, so kudos for showing some bipartisanship and wanting to work on solutions.
There was another sort of bipartisanship in action early Friday as the Texas House approved a slew of amendments by Democrats to the House version of Senate Bill 7 with no objections after hours of negotiations. In what is becoming the norm for these election-related bills, the vote was taken past midnight when few were watching and even fewer could take the time to read what the bill looked like. Still, the proposed legislation moved on with all Republican support. The Democrats made the GOP work for it, and got some assurances their changes will stick, but we’ll believe it when we see it — ideally in the light of day. Democrats and Republicans who wrestled for about seven hours over SB7 have nothing on Troy Lancaster, who outlasted an 876-pound, 121-inch bluefin tuna over the course of a nine-hour skirmish. Ideally, killing such a magnificent sea creature would come with your standard “The Old Man and The Sea” scenario of sacrifice, willpower and futility, but the 50-year-old angler from Port Aransas had a crew along for the ride, according to the Chronicle, and we hear the Christian imagery was kept to a minimum. Still, it’s an impressive feat to land such a large fish and the state record.
While some men dream of the sea, some Houston council members are kept awake by garbage. At least that’s what District K Councilwoman Martha Castex-Tatum memorably told the editorial board two years ago. “Trash keeps me up at night,” she said, referring to illegal dumping. Back then we wondered how she would approach the problem that has plagued part of her district. This week, we got our answer: creatively. Castex-Tatum blocked an $879,000 city contract for a local landscape company after several of its employees were caught on camera allegedly dumping tree waste. “In no good way could I even think about awarding a contract to a contractor that felt the need to dump in the district,” she said. Officials are investigating and may file charges, but if the allegations are true, there’s already some (poetic) justice in the scofflaws getting dumped by the city.
If Darrell Wayne Watson had his way, Castex-Tatum may never sleep again. The Houston man is accused of illegally dumping dozens of 18-wheeler tractor trailer tires. Making the matter worse? It’s a retread. Watson was already on eight years of community supervision after he was convicted of illegally dumping thousands of used tires across the city. The wheels of justice may turn slowly, but prosecutors are getting tired of Watson’s antics. He now faces 10 years in prison if convicted on the charge of commercial dumping. Have a good night, Martha.