Tuesday, September 8, 2015

Updated: Women Governors by Time in Office

Update: Kate Brown has been Governor of Oregon for a little over 6 months so let's update list.  If the rumor mills in Alabama are true, we may see another woman become governor.
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It's International Women's Day.  So let's look at the women in the U.S.  Namely Governors.  The idea for a unique way of looking at the women who have served as governors came from BC Iconoclast in Canada.

First, a look at the 37 women who served as governor by their time in office through today.  Bold are currently serving:

Governor State Time in Office
Ruth Ann Minner Delaware 2940 Days
Christine Gregoire Washington 2927 Days
Linda Lingle Hawaii 2927 Days
Jennifer Granholm Michigan 2923 Days
Christine Todd Whitman New Jersey 2571 Days
M. Jodi Rell Connecticut 2380 Days
Kathleen Sebelius Kansas 2298 Days
Janet Napolitano Arizona 2208 Days
Madeleine Kunin Vermont 2192 Days
Jeanne Shaheen New Hampshire 2192 Days
Ella Grasso Connecticut 2185 Days
Jan Brewer Arizona 2176 Days
Jane Dee Hull Arizona 1950 Days
Susana Martinez New Mexico 1712 Days
Mary Fallin Oklahoma 1703 Days
Nikki Haley South Carolina 1701 Days
Kathleen Blanco Louisiana 1464 Days
Judy Martz Montana 1464 Days
Dixy Lee Ray Washington 1464 Days
Ann Richards Texas 1464 Days
Kay Orr Nebraska 1462 Days
Martha Layne Collins Kentucky 1457 Days
Miriam Ferguson Texas 1457 Days
Joan Finney Kansas 1457 Days
Barbara Roberts Oregon 1457 Days
Beverly Perdue North Carolina 1457 Days
Rose Mofford Arizona 1123 Days
Maggie Hassan New Hampshire 979 Days
Sarah Palin Alaska 966 Days
Nellie Tayloe Ross Wyoming 729 Days
Jane Swift Massachusetts 633 Days
Lurleen Wallace Alabama 478 Days
Olene Smith Walker Utah 426 Days
Gina Raimondo Rhode Island 246 Days
Kate Brown Oregon 203 Days
Nancy Hollister Ohio 12 Days
Vesta Roy New Hampshire 8 Days

Looking at just how many days someone served doesn't tell the whole story.  Ruth Ann Minner may have been the longest serving governor, but how does serving as governor of Delaware compare with serving as governor of Michigan or Texas?

Another way we can look at this list is by their population when they took office multiplied by their days in office through today.  Those in bold are currently serving.

Governor State Total Governing Pop. Time in Office
Jennifer Granholm Michigan 29,463,796,155 2923 Days
Ann Richards Texas 24,868,250,640 1464 Days
Christine Todd Whitman New Jersey 20,359,224,516 2571 Days
Christine Gregoire Washington 18,404,270,593 2927 Days
Jan Brewer Arizona 14,352,412,928 2176 Days
Beverly Perdue North Carolina 13,667,947,988 1457 Days
Janet Napolitano Arizona 12,322,430,688 2208 Days
Jane Dee Hull Arizona 8,876,803,650 1950 Days
M. Jodi Rell Connecticut 8,338,577,520 2380 Days
Miriam Ferguson Texas 8,265,902,000 1457 Days
Nikki Haley South Carolina 7,867,778,184 1701 Days
Ella Grasso Connecticut 6,735,262,500 2185 Days
Kathleen Blanco Louisana 6,611,087,280 1464 Days
Mary Fallin Oklahoma 3855753 1703 Days
Kathleen Sebelius Kansas 6,258,619,086 2298 Days
Dixy Lee Ray Washington 5,528,137,200 1464 Days
Martha Layne Collins Kentucky 5,382,863,188 1457 Days
Barbara Roberts Oregon 4,141,261,697 1457 Days
Rose Mofford Arizona 3,970,010,509 1123 Days
Jane Swift Massachusetts 3,808,397,025 633 Days
Linda Lingle Hawaii 3,643,816,446 2927 Days
Joan Finney Kansas 3,609,825,318 1457 Days
Susana Martinez New Mexico 3,525,314,448 1712 Days
Jeanne Shaheen New Hampshire 2,571,739,888 2192 Days
Ruth Ann Minner Delaware 2,303,784,000 2940 Days
Kay Orr Nebraska 2,290,291,714 1462 Days
Lurleen Wallace Alabama 1,652,924,000 478 Days
Judy Martz Montana 1,320,813,480 1464 Days
Maggie Hassan New Hampshire 1,290,511,926 979 Days
Madeleine Kunin Vermont 1,161,836,720 2192 Days
Olene Smith Walker Utah 1,001,724,942 426 Days
Kate Brown Oregon 805,958,517 203 Days
Sarah Palin Alaska 647,271,198 966 Days
Gina Raimondo Rhode Island 259,572,558 246 Days
Nellie Tayloe Ross Wyoming 157,464,000 729 Days
Nancy Hollister Ohio 134,853,024 12 Days
Vesta Roy New Hampshire 7,581,752 8 Days

Some interesting things when broken down by population and time in office.  Ann Richards is #14 for time in office, but #2 when you factor in population.  Ruth Ann Minner is the longest serving but drops to #24 with the population factor.  Maggie Hassan has been governor for about 3 months, but look how far she has to go to overtake Nancy Hollister.

The population factor at the very least shows us that not all states are created equal.  Let's remember there are essentially 50 different economies.  Larger states are likely to have larger economies.

Just as an FYI, if Ann Richards had won re-election she would have easily taken the top spot when population is factored in, blowing past Jennifer Granholm with a population of 49,719,514,770.

Saturday, August 15, 2015

A Mini-H-E-B Rant

Let me start off with the fact that I love H-E-B...BUT...

There is something that annoys me about not just H-E-B, but numerous other stores with the exact same problem.  It just so happens that this particular time, this incident occurred at H-E-B.

Anyone could probably guess my problem if all I said as "X items or fewer."

My problem is what is the point of these 10, 15, or 20 items or fewer checkout lanes if H-E-B (as well as other stores) are just going to let anyone checkout through them.

I had the unfortunate pleasure to be behind a customer in the 15 items or fewer lane and this person had 2 bags of groceries amounting to at least 25 items.  I'll be honest, I lost count past 20.

It offends me that H-E-B and other stores allow customers to go through these without telling them, politely, that, "I'm sorry, but this is the X items or fewer lane, you have too many items, you have to use one of the other lanes."

For anyone who says, "Well what about those people who only have 16 or 17 items?"

To those I respond with this, "What's the point of having these maximum item lanes if you're not going to abide by the rules?  And where does it stop? It's only a few items over.  It's only 5 items over.  It's only 10 items over, etc. etc."

Either 15 items or fewer means 15 items or fewer or else it means nothing and you might as well take out those lanes altogether.

I happen to think they really mean nothing.  Why?  Let me recount this little tale that I was a witness to...

A customer in front of me checked out of the 15 items or fewer lane with a basket full of groceries, at least 50 items.  The checkout girl politely told the woman that this was the 15 items or fewer lane. The customer rudely replied, "Well, I've already taken them out of the basket."  Said customer then went and complained to the manager.  The manager then came over the to checkout girl and told her not to refuse to checkout anyone.  (Essentially, it doesn't matter that it said 15 items or fewer, you can't stop them.)

After checking out, I went over to the manager and explained to her that in fact it was not the checkout girl who was rude, it was the customer.  I also complained that I don't appreciate that I follow the rules and get stuck behind these customers (and I'm thinking jackasses and assholes) who decide they just use whichever checkout lane they damn well please.

To conclude, either 15 items or fewer means 15 items or fewer or there's not point whatsoever to having those lanes and they should be removed. Checkout people should be able to tell customers, "No you have too many items and need to checkout at another lane" and then be secure in the knowledge that their managers will back them up.

If H-E-B is too afraid to tell people no, then I have an idea.  Why not invent a checkout machine that only will checkout X number of items or fewer?  After that checkout person scans in item #15 that machine stops accepting items and the customer has to pay.  And if someone comes up there with too many items, too bad.  They were warned ahead of time when it says X items or fewer.

Monday, August 3, 2015

Updated: Texas House 2017

Updated: We're now up to 12 House Reps not running for re-election. 3 Democrats and 8 Republicans.

Below is a Seniority listing of the House. Strikethroughs have passed on re-election.


Craddick Tom
Thompson Senfronia
Dutton, Jr. Harold
Smithee John
Oliveira Rene
Turner Sylvester
Naishtat Elliott
Coleman Garnet
Davis Yvonne
Giddings Helen
Farrar Jessica
Elkins Gary
Pickett Joe
Dukes Dawnna
Raymond Richard
McClendon Ruth Jones
Bonnen Dennis
Keffer Jim
King Tracy
Deshotel Joe
King Phil
Morrison Geanie
Alonzo Roberto
Crownover Myra
Geren Charlie
Martinez Fischer Trey
Hunter Todd
Riddle Debbie
Guillen Ryan
Smith Wayne
Flynn Dan
Hughes Bryan
Bohac Dwayne
Laubenberg Jodie
Cook Byron
Rodriguez Eddie
Phillips Larry
Allen Alma
Vo Hubert
Martinez Armando
Anderson Charles
Anchia Rafael
Otto John
Zedler Bill
Straus Joe
Hernandez Ana
Howard Donna
Farias Joe
King Susan
Zerwas John
Lucio, III Eddie
Aycock Jimmie Don
Parker Tan
Harless Patricia
Darby Drew
Herrero Abel
Gutierrez Roland
Walle Armando
Miller Doug
Alvarado Carol
Button Angie Chen
Fletcher Allen
Marquez Marisa
Murphy Jim
Miles Borris
Johnson Eric
Frullo John
Kuempel John
Huberty Dan
Sheets Kenneth
Workman Paul
Lozano J.M.
Price Four
White James
Munoz, Jr. Sergio
Davis Sarah
Isaac Jason
Simpson David
Larson Lyle
Burkett Cindy
Gonzales Larry
Reynolds Ron
Moody Joe
Turner Chris
Raney John
Guerra Bobby
Krause Matt
Gonzalez Mary
Sanford Scott
Bell, Jr. Cecil
Wu Gene
Schaefer Matt
Stickland Jonathan
Dale Tony
Thompson Ed
Turner Scott
Collier Nicole
Miller Rick
Springer Drew
Sheffield J.D.
Leach Jeff
Paddie Chris
Rodriguez Justin
Farney Marsha
Fallon Pat
Longoria Oscar
Stephenson Phil
Ashby Trent
Bonnen Greg
Capriglione Giovanni
Simmons Ron
Clardy Travis
Rose Toni
Goldman Craig
King Ken
Canales Terry
Nevarez Poncho
Frank James
Klick Stephanie
Kacal Kyle
Villalba Jason
Anderson Rodney
Israel Celia
Metcalf Will
Phelan Dade
Galindo Rick
Wray John
Schofield Mike
VanDeaver Gary
Keough Mark
Murr Andrew
Shaheen Matt
Rinaldi Matt
Landgraf Brooks
Spitzer Stuart
Koop Linda
Meyer Morgan
Pena Gilbert
White Molly
Blanco Cesar
Faircloth Wayne
Paul Dennis
Burrows Dustin
Tinderholt Tony
Romero, Jr. Ramon
Burns DeWayne
Bernal Diego
Schubert Leighton
Cyrier John
Minjarez Ina

Thursday, July 30, 2015

Long Campaign?

It's almost August.  There are about 66 weeks until the 2016 election.  There's going to be a presidential debate next week.  The media has us in the full throws of a presidential election.

I had to laugh when I read about our neighbors to the north: A lengthy 11-week federal election campaign could give the Conservatives, armed with a significant war chest, a marked edge over their political rivals. 

You read that correctly.  They're about to have a "lengthy" 11 week federal election in Canada.

Would that our campaigns in the United States were only 11 lengthy weeks.

Wednesday, July 15, 2015

Game Show Network Hosts Republican Debates

I think the Game Show Network is really missing out on a great opportunity.  With so many Republican candidates, what about some debates game show style.

Imagine it....


Instead of Whammy! (the new version of Press Your Luck) they could change it up for Donald Trump and create Minority!  As contestants they have Donald Trump and whoever the other 2 most conservative Republicans are on the issue of immigration.  Picture it instead of Trump saying, "No Whammies, no whammies, no whammies, stop!"  instead he says, "No Mexicans, no Mexicans, No Mexicans, stop border crossing!"  As host, I suggest Iowa Congressman Steve King or former Colorado Congressman Tom Tancredo.

Or how about this...


Match Game 2015.  6 Republican candidates.  Just think of the questions.  "Johnny was so conservative." (Audience says, "How conservative was he?") "He was so conservative, that instead of firing bullets out of his gun, he fired _____________ (blank)."

Wouldn't you love to see them try to out-conservative each other trying to figure out an answer?

"Tammy was so anti-abortion." (How anti-abortion was she?) "She was so anti-abortion, that each time she went to Planned Parenthood she _________________ (blanked)."

Here's another...


Instead of Hollywood Squares, we have Conservative Squares.  I'm thinking Ted Cruz or Donald Trump as the center square.

Try this one...


Republican Family Feud.  Governors vs. Senators? Or establishment versus outsiders?

Governors vs Senators
Imagine a Republican Family Feud with on one side some combination of Bush, Christie, Gilmore, Huckabee, Jindal, Kasich, Pataki, Perry, and Walker.  And on the other Cruz, Graham, Paul, Rubio, and Santorum.

Establishment vs Outsiders
On one side Bush, Walker, Rubio, Huckabee, Perry.  On the other side, Carson, Christie, Cruz, Fiorina, Trump.

Friday, June 19, 2015

Texas Senate 2017

We already have 2 Senators who will not be returning for the 85th Legislative Session: Kevin Eltife & Troy Fraser.

Who knows, we may end up seeing a few more retirements.  Either by a Senator's own choosing, or by the voters choosing.

One of the factors when it comes to retirements is age. Of the 14 Senators still running for re-election in 2016, 7 are over the age of 60.

69 - Judith Zaffirini (D), Eddie Lucio (D), Juan Hinojosa (D)
67 - Jose Rodriguez (D)
64 - Sylvia Garcia (D)
63 - Jane Nelson (R)
61 - Rodney Ellis (D)
55 - Larry Taylor (R)
53 - Brian Birdwell (R), Charles Perry (R)
51 - Carlos Uresti (D)
50 - Lois Kolkhorst (R)
46 - Jose Menendez (D)
44 - Brandon Creighton (R)

Another factor to consider is Seniority.  Even though Democrats haven't been in the majority for a long time, Democratic Senators have stuck around for a while. You have to wonder though, with Lite Gov. Dan Patrick trying to relegate Democrats to an afterthought, how much longer some Democrats will want to stick around.  In any case, in terms of Seniority this is how it breaks down (Senators up for re-election in 2016 colored):

1. John Whitmire (D)
2. Judith Zaffirini (D)
3. Rodney Ellis (D)
4. Eddie Lucio (D)
5. Jane Nelson (R)
6. Royce West (D)
7. Troy Fraser (R)
8. Craig Estes (R)
9. Juan Hinojosa (D)
10. Kevin Eltife (R)
11. Kel Seliger (R)
12. Carlos Uresti (D)
13. Robert Nichols (R)
14. Kirk Watson (D)
15. Joan Huffman (R)
16. Brian Birdwell (R)
17. Jose Rodriguez (D)
18. Donna Campbell (R)
19. Kelly Hancock (R)
20. Larry Taylor (R)
21. Charles Schwertner (R)
22. Sylvia Garcia (D)
23. Brandon Creighton (R)
24. Charles Perry (R)
25. Lois Kolkhorst (R)
26. Don Huffines (R)
27. Van Taylor (R)
28. Bob Hall (R)
29. Paul Bettencourt (R)
30. Konni Burton (R)
31. Jose Menendez (D)

Who'll be the next Senator to pull the rip cord? It's anyone's guess.

Friday, February 6, 2015

Texas State Senate: Higher Education Committee


The map above shows the districts of the Senators who are on the Senate Higher Education Committee.  The dark red is the district of the Committee Chair.  The lighter reds and blues are the districts of the committee members.

Out of curiosity, which higher ed institutions did the committee members graduate from?

Chair, Kel Seliger - Dartmouth College
Vice Chair, Royce West - UT-Arlington, University of Houston
Paul Bettencourt - Texas A&M
Konni Burton - UNT
Charles Perry - Texas Tech
Leticia Van de Putte - UT-Austin
Kirk Watson - Baylor

Monday, February 2, 2015

Updated: Dallas Cowboys Politics

Updated:  Another season under a Republican Governor and the Cowboys missed going to the Super Bowl.

Maybe the Texas Democratic Party can target a new type of voter in future elections: Dallas Cowboys fans.
___________________________________________________________________________

First, a word analogy:

Dallas Cowboys is to Super Bowl as _____________ are to Texas.

A) Democrats
B) Republicans
C) Independents

2015 TX Legislature: Hope for the Best, Expect the Worst

With the removal of the 2/3rds rule in the Texas Senate, I think this legislative session can easily be summed up as this: Hope for the Best, Expect the Worst.


Thursday, January 22, 2015

Updated: Minority Governors by Time in Office

Update: With the 2014 elections, came a new addition to the list: David Ige of Hawaii.  The elections also saw Deval Patrick finish out his term.
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We've previously looked (and will continue to look) at women governors and their time in office.  What about minority governors?  There have been only 22 minority governors.  First let's take a look by days in office.  Those in bold are currently serving.

Governor State Time in Office
George Ariyoshi Hawaii 4384 Days
Miguel Antonio Otero New Mexico 3114 Days
Deval Patrick Massachusetts 2927 Days
Bill Richardson New Mexico 2923 Days
Ben Cayetano Hawaii 2923 Days
John Waihee Hawaii 2923 Days
Gary Locke Washington 2920 Days
Bobby Jindal Louisiana 2566 Days
John Sununu New Hampshire 2191 Days
Susana Martinez New Mexico 1483 Days
Brian Sandoval Nevada 1481 Days
Nikki Haley South Carolina 1472 Days
Bob Martinez Florida 1464 Days
Douglas Wilder Virginia 1463 Days
Toney Anaya New Mexico 1462 Days
Jerry Apodaca New Mexico 1462 Days
David Paterson New York 1020 Days
Raul Castro Arizona 1019 Days
Octaviano Ambrisio Larrazolo New Mexico 732 Days
Romualdo Pacheco California 286 Days
David Ige Hawaii 53 Days
Ezequiel Cabeza de Baca New Mexico 49 Days
P.B.S. Pinchback Louisiana 36 Days

Looking at just how many days someone served doesn't tell the whole story.  As noted with our women governors, Ruth Ann Minner may have been the longest serving woman governor, but how does serving as governor of Delaware compare with serving as governor of Michigan or Texas?

Another way we can look at this list is by their population when they took office multiplied by their days in office through today.  Those in bold are currently serving.

Governor State Total Governing Pop. Time in Office
David Paterson New York 19,596,684,720 1020 Days
Deval Patrick Massachusetts 18,825,173,193 2927 Days
Bob Martinez Florida 17,564,022,312 1464 Days
Gary Locke Washington 16,570,261,240 2920 Days
Bobby Jindal Louisiana 11,318,102,536 2566 Days
Douglas Wilder Virginia 9,052,104,754 1463 Days
Nikki Haley South Carolina 6,808,565,248 1472 Days
Bill Richardson New Mexico 5,479,496,722 2923 Days
Brian Sandoval Nevada 4,033,239,882 1481 Days
George Ariyoshi Hawaii 3,805,215,552 4384 Days
Ben Cayetano Hawaii 3,741,167,728 2923 Days
John Waihee Hawaii 3,074,300,326 2923 Days
Susana Martinez New Mexico 3,053,762,457 1483 Days
Raul Castro Arizona 2,328,259,093 1019 Days
John Sununu New Hampshire 2,099,271,594 2191 Days
Toney Anaya New Mexico 2,038,555,782 1462 Days
Jerry Apodaca New Mexico 1,695,838,128 1462 Days
Miguel Antonio Otero New Mexico 608,195,340 3114 Days
Octaviano Ambrisio Larrazolo New Mexico 264,984,000 732 Days
Romualdo Pacheco California 160,230,642 286 Days
David Ige Hawaii 75,236,733 53 Days
P.B.S. Pinchback Louisiana 26,168,940 36 Days
Ezequiel Cabeza de Baca New Mexico 17,689,000 49 Days

One thing that probably stands out are 2 states. Hawaii and New Mexico dominate this list.  Of the 23 minority governors, 11 come from those 2 states. 7 from New Mexico and 4 from Hawaii.