Wajahat Ali

That amounts to an abandonment or forfeiture of an elected state office. When the Governor calls a Special Session, our Constitution provides that the “Legislature shall meet.” TEX. CONST. art. III, § 5 (emphasis added). It’s not optional. It’s a duty. The absconded Democrat House members were elected to meet and vote on legislation—not to prevent votes that may not go their way. Every session, legislators on both sides of the aisle find themselves on the losing side of a legislative vote. And every session, most of those legislators find a way to disagree agreeably and behave like adults, rather than going AWOL. This truancy ends now. The derelict Democrat House members must return to Texas and be in attendance when the House reconvenes at 3:00 PM on Monday, August 4, 2025. For any member who fails to do so, I will invoke Texas Attorney General Opinion No. KP-0382 to remove the missing Democrats from membership in the Texas House. In that Opinion, the Attorney General considered “whether Texas law allows for a determination that a legislator has vacated office” if they intentionally break quorum. The Attorney General concluded that “whether a specific legislator abandoned his or her office such that a vacancy occurred will be a fact question for a court.” He further concluded that “through a quo warranto action, a district court may determine that a legislator has forfeited his or her office due to abandonment and can remove the legislator from office, thereby creating a vacancy.” That empowers me to swiftly fill vacancies under Article III, Section 13 of the Texas Constitution. In addition to abandoning their offices, these legislators may also have committed felonies. Many absentee Democrats are soliciting funds to evade the fines they will incur under House rules. Any Democrat who “solicits, accepts, or agrees to accept” such funds to assist in the violation of legislative duties or for purposes of skipping a vote may have violated bribery laws. See TEX. PENAL…

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has issued a statement saying he will seek to expel Dems who've left the state from office, adding that he would have the power to fill any vacancies that result.

He's also warning that Dems could face criminal prosecution under TX bribery laws. gov.texas.gov/news/post/go...

i didnt see that people were bullying her, and I just saw your comment. but i deleted the post. thanks.

‘He has trouble completing a thought’: bizarre public appearances again cast doubt on Trump’s mental acuity Joe Biden was hounded for his age-related gaffes, but Trump’s increasingly strange behavior has largely been ignored

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

The 9-year-old has her own skin care routine...

It begins.

Your Sunday evening reminder that Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell trafficked real human beings, many children, explicitly to sexually abuse and rape them.
Also, release the Epstein files.

Trump’s Efforts to Control Information Echo an Authoritarian Playbook

NYT's Peter Baker: "History is filled with examples of leaders seeking to stifle unwelcome information. The Soviets falsified data to make their economy look stronger than it was. The Chinese have long been suspected of doing the same..." www.nytimes.com/2025/08/03/u...

Militarily unnecessary. Indiscriminate.
Disproportionate.
Deliberately cruel.

In other words, criminal.

24 million Americans are about to be priced out of medical care, there’s a famine in Gaza, fewer and fewer people can afford groceries…

…and here’s what corporate media chooses to tell you the “big news” is.

I asked my kids which country they'd want to visit.

My son: Egypt

My daughter: Turkey

My youngest daughter: Taco Bell

My youngest daughter is currently my favorite due to her practical, cost-effective preferences.

I made my wife see the most intense, terrifying scene from 28 YEARS LATER, and she hates horror movies.

"Why? Why did you make me watch this right before sleep? But...it was also fascinating," is what he says.

She is a good, patient woman. 😂

The US is complicit in genocide. Let’s stop pretending otherwise | Mehdi Hasan The US government, enabled by the media, is an active participant in Israel’s atrocities in Gaza

The US is complicit in genocide. Let’s stop pretending otherwise | Mehdi Hasan www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

How pop culture, Hollywood myths, and lies helped create Trump and the current MAGA Fantasy Industrial Complex, and why it's ultimately doomed for failure.

@jysexton.bsky.social and I take the Delorean from the 19th century to now.

thelefthook.substack.com/p/the-failur...

ADL Musk

I spoke with 40+ sources for a look inside the Anti-Defamation League. Here’s some of what I found.

ADL’s gentle response to Elon Musk’s infamous salute was partially driven by his support of Israel. To ADL, that indicated he didn’t have “antisemitic tendencies.” (1/x)

nymag.com/intelligence...

Critics Trash Trump’s ‘Parking Lot’ Rose Garden Makeover “Trump killed the roses like he’s killing everything else that made America great.”

Trump’s long-awaited makeover of the White House Rose Garden left much to be desired for online social media commentators.

Opinion | Dead Athletes. Empty Stands. Why Are We Paying Billions to Keep This Sport Alive?

There have been more than 1,700 horse deaths in New York since 2009, according to the @timesunion.com

And remember, this is a sport propped up by your tax dollars.

www.nytimes.com/2025/02/28/o...

Ms. Rachel grew up on Mister Rogers. Now she’s carrying on his legacy. The YouTube star wants her audiences — adults and children alike — to see the humanity of all people.

How sick that being against genocide gets you labeled anti-semite by certain pro-Israel groups.

www.washingtonpost.com/parenting/in...

I thought THE NAKED GUN was so blissfully stupid and ridiculous. It made me laugh out loud 3 times.

Let me know what you all think after you see it.

Why Was Ghislaine Maxwell Moved to a Cushy Prison Camp, and What is Trump Hiding?

Zev Shalev and Lev Parnas join me to connect the dots & name the players that will provide answers as to Trump's long-standing relationship with Ghislaine Maxwell and Epstein.

open.substack.com/pub/thelefth...

With @davidcorn.bsky.social and @muellershewrote.com on Trump firing Erika McEntarfer, his Epstein coverup, the bullying of the Smithsonian to re-write history, and how white nationalists are entering the Trump Administration.

Trump Going Full Authoritarian As Jobs Report Exposes His Failed Policies and Presidency Trump is shooting messengers instead of facing the reality that his disastrous trade war & tariffs are pushing America towards a recession. Instead of accountability, there will be authoritarianism.

"Trump Going Full Authoritarian As Jobs Report Exposes His Failed Policies and Presidency"

I stepped in for the Mighty @maryltrump.bsky.social today for her daily live show. Brown Mary tried to keep on burning and rolling.

Check us out.

open.substack.com/pub/thelefth...

Trump and right-wing media's attempt to rehabilitate Ghislaine Maxwell and ignore the Epstein files is not going to end well. It's because they have spent a decade radicalizing their own MAGA base that won't forget or let it go.

Casar: "If Donald Trump succeeds in ending the protections of the Voting Rights Act for people of color here in Austin, then pretty soon he could succeed in ending those protections for people across America."

It’s fucked up that everyone on the right accused everyone on the left of being pedophiles for over a decade — only to end up defending their cult leader when he transferred the world’s most notorious convicted pedophile into a luxury prison.

a rainbow and a star with the words " make you know " on it ALT: a rainbow and a star with the words " make you know " on it

Hope everyone had a great Friday.

Trump was impeached, twice.

Trump Going Full Authoritarian As Jobs Report Exposes His Failed Policies and Presidency Trump is shooting messengers instead of facing the reality that his disastrous trade war & tariffs are pushing America towards a recession. Instead of accountability, there will be authoritarianism.

"Trump Going Full Authoritarian As Jobs Report Exposes His Failed Policies and Presidency"

I stepped in for the Mighty @maryltrump.bsky.social today for her daily live show. Brown Mary tried to keep on burning and rolling.

Check us out.

open.substack.com/pub/thelefth...

With @davidcorn.bsky.social and @muellershewrote.com on Trump firing Erika McEntarfer, his Epstein coverup, the bullying of the Smithsonian to re-write history, and how white nationalists are entering the Trump Administration.

This is what dictators do.

The Trump Cover-Up Commands You to Ignore The Evidence of Your Eyes and Ears

Like authoritarians of the past, Trump is attempting to gaslight the public & distract them with lies about his relationship with Epstein, his terrible economy, & his criminality.

open.substack.com/pub/thelefth...

Why Was Ghislaine Maxwell Moved to a Cushy Prison Camp, and What is Trump Hiding?

Zev Shalev and Lev Parnas join me to connect the dots & name the players that will provide answers as to Trump's long-standing relationship with Ghislaine Maxwell and Epstein.

open.substack.com/pub/thelefth...