Texans will soon be asked to transfer money from Texas’ Permanent Higher Education Fund to a new National Research University Fund. But voters should reject this constitutional amendment, Proposition 4, and reject the transfer of money. If anything, we should demand that lawmakers instead transfer a fair share of these funds to other colleges and universities throughout Texas.

Dr. Rosemary Edwards, chairman of the Travis County Republican Party, has an op-ed in today’s Austin American-Statesman that you might find interesting, concerning the city’s recent mandate on GreenChoice energy.

Because of a backlog on processing foodstamp applications, the Legislative Budget Board (LBB) recently "approved hiring up to 250 of the 650 workers and directed the commission to immediately fill 400 vacant jobs." Well enough. It’s too much for now to go into whys and hows the Health and Human Services Commission inched its way into this problem.

I’ve held back on this because I wanted to give readers a chance to read the initial analysis of Proposition 4. There are a lot of arguments out there in favor of it (the Fort Worth Star-Telegram has their endorsement here).

There are 11 state constitutional amendments on the November 3 ballot. Early voting begins on Monday, October 19. If you are voting by mail (absentee voting), the last day to submit your mail-in ballot is Tuesday, October 27.

It’s hard to believe just how out-of-control the federal “International Boundary and Water Commission” is, if whistle-blower accounts and media reports are to believed. It’s apparent the commission had very little oversight and too much power.

Regarding the ruling by a Dallas judge that Texas’ definition of marriage is unconstitutional, a listener wrote, “I must say that civil unions between two consenting adults (male or female, whatever combination as long as the number is two) SHOULD be legal in Texas. That IS equal protection. Our country, Texas included, needs to get away from this “marriage” thing – that should be up to churches to decide, marriage is a religious thing. I thought we had separation of church and state?”

It was 174 years ago, on Oct. 2, 1835, that the first battle in Texas’ war of independence was fought in Gonzales, appropriately over the possession of a cannon.

On whichever side of the Rick vs. Kay (or is it Kay vs. Rick?) divide you stand, it’s Texas’ taxpayers who may benefit most from the jousting. Both have strongly endorsed, indeed made centerpieces of, taxpayer protection and relief.

There are many who still believe U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison will again bailout of the race for Texas governor as she did four years ago. The question has been: How does she do so while saving face, or more importantly, while maintaining a big political ego?