The Texan Podcast - Daily Rundown - September 13, 2024

Starting point is 00:00:00 Howdy folks, today is Friday, September 13th, and you're listening to the Texans Daily Rundown. I'm the Texans Assistant Editor Rob Lausches, and here is the rundown of today's news in Texas politics. First up, the Supreme Court of Texas took up oral arguments in a case involving Texas' first assistant attorney general Brent Webster, who was challenging sanctions issued against him by the state bar. The case started with Webster and Attorney General Ken Paxton launching the 2020 election challenge Texas v. Pennsylvania. The pair were joined by 17 other states, alleging that multiple states had, quote, suffered from significant and unconstitutional irregularities, end quote, during the 2020 election. Texas v. Pennsylvania was submitted to the U.S. Supreme Court, which declined to accept the case. The Texas State Bar's

Starting point is 00:00:57 Commission on Lawyer Discipline, or CLD, filed a complaint against both Webster and Paxton, alleging they made material misrepresentations in legal pleadings related to the election challenge. The bar seeks sanctions on their law licenses, arguing that the election claims they raised lacked credible evidence, including accusations that illegal votes were cast and voting machines were manipulated. Paxton and Webster were also accused of not disclosing that courts had previously rejected these allegations. Paxton and Webster contested the sanctions in court, with Webster initially winning at the trial court level. However, an intermediate appeals court issued a split decision, which revived questions about whether the bar's actions violated the Texas Constitution. The Office of the Attorney

Starting point is 00:01:46 General appealed to the Supreme Court of Texas, arguing that the bar's actions infringe on the OAG's constitutional duties, particularly its authority to represent state actors. The OAG also claims Paxton and Webster are protected by sovereign immunity when acting in their official capacities. In other news, after failing to approve the early voting locations at last week's meeting, today the Tarrant County Commissioner's Court approved the same list of locations, plus one. Last week, the 50 locations for early voting failed when County Judge Tim O'Hare and Commissioner Gary Fickus voted against the list. Elections Administrator Clinton Ludwig came back to the court with additional options that addressed some of the concerns raised at last week's meeting.

Starting point is 00:02:33 He provided an option that removed the five locations with lower voter turnout than another location within 1.5 miles. This option removed locations at the University of Texas at Arlington, Southwestern Baptist Seminary, and the Tarrant Community College's South and Northeast campuses. Ludwig also provided a list that removed the five lowest turnout locations countywide and a list that equalized the number of early voting locations in each of the four county precincts to 12. Commissioner Manny Ramirez, who was absent from last week's meeting, moved to approve the list of 50 locations presented at the prior meeting while including a newly added location in the Pantigo-Dow Worthington Gardens

Starting point is 00:03:18 area. The meeting drew over 100 speakers who wished to comment on the early voting locations. Many spoke in favor of keeping the college campus locations, especially the one at UT Arlington, arguing that removing it would be a kind of voter suppression. They urged the county to find more early voting sites and not reduce the number. Last but not least, Texas Comptroller Glenn Hagar released a comprehensive study on housing affordability in Texas, finding a number of contributing factors, including the simplicity of supply and demand. The study's executive summary begins with the statement, quote, At the center of the housing affordability issue is a small supply of housing at price points available to the middle and lower income earners. Median home prices have risen by 40% between 2019 and

Starting point is 00:04:07 2023, driven by increased domestic migration and limited housing supply. According to research at the Texas Real Estate Research Center, Texas' median home price rose 1.4% month-over-month month in July 2024 from almost $333,000 to over $337,000. A shortage of homes available for middle-income buyers, exacerbated by regulatory and interest rate pressures, has left Texas short by 306,000 homes in 2023, the Comptroller's report explains. It has been further impacted by underinvestment since the 2008 financial crisis. While there is bipartisan support to improve affordability through federal and local reforms, the executive summary continues, factors such as rising homeowner insurance rates and zoning restrictions continue to hinder progress. Thanks for listening. To

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The Texan Podcast - Daily Rundown - September 13, 2024

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