Category Archives for Dan Patrick

Lt. Gov’s Advisory Panel Says Gov’s Pre-K Plans Will Lead Texas Kids to Godless Socialism

For another indication of just how much the paranoid, right-wing political fringe has become embedded in Texas government, check out what Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick’s “Grassroots Advisory Board” is up to. Today the panel of Tea Party activists released a letter criticizing Gov. Greg Abbott’s plans to expand pre-K programs in the state. Those programs, the advisory board insists, will undermine parental […]

Also posted in 2015 Texas Legislature, education, TFN | 15 Comments

Reports: Thuggish Dan Patrick Supporters Confront Texas Reporters

So are we now seeing the new face of Texas following the right-wing sweep on election day last Tuesday? According to various media outlets, a television reporter says he was assaulted as he tried to cover the election night victory party for state Sen. Dan Patrick, R-Houston, last Tuesday. Patrick’s right-wing supporters were celebrating an election that will make […]

Also posted in 2014 Elections, TFNEF | 8 Comments

Anti-CSCOPE Witch Hunt Fizzles: Will Teachers Get an Apology?

For well over a year, right-wing activists and pandering politicians like Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst and state Sen. Dan Patrick have loudly and recklessly complained that a popular curriculum tool used in hundreds of Texas schools is filled with anti-American, Marxist and pro-Islamic bias. Now a formal review of lessons from the CSCOPE curriculum program confirms […]

Also posted in CSCOPE, David Dewhurst, Greg Abbott, TFNEF | 3 Comments

GOP Candidates in Texas Lieutenant Governor Race Cynically Repeat Calls to Teach Creationism in Public Schools

Each of the four candidates seeking the Republican nomination for Texas lieutenant governor raced as far to the extreme right as they could during their debate Monday night. Each one, for example, expressed support for banning abortion even in cases of rape or incest. Each one insisted that government should intrude into the end-of-life decisions families […]

Also posted in 2014 Elections, creationism, David Dewhurst, evolution, intelligent design, Jerry Patterson, TFN, Todd Staples | 17 Comments

Texas Sen. Dan Patrick Thinks God Speaks Through Duck Dynasty Star

Texas state Sen. Dan Patrick, one of three Republicans trying to unseat David Dewhurst as lieutenant governor next year, thinks he knows what God wants people to hear. Lone Star Q reports that Patrick was a guest Thursday on The Chad Hasty Show, a radio program on KFYO in Lubbock. Patrick weighed in on recent controversial comments […]

Also posted in TFN | 39 Comments

GOP Candidates for Texas Lieutenant Governor Advocate Teaching Creationism in Public Schools

During a debate in Waco on Thursday, candidates for the Republican nomination for Texas lieutenant governor said they support teaching biblical creationism in the state’s public schools. The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that teaching creationism in public school science classrooms violates the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Incumbent Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst and two […]

Also posted in creationism, David Dewhurst, evolution, Jerry Patterson, TFNEF, Todd Staples | 19 Comments

Sen. Dan Patrick Admits He Hasn’t Read CSCOPE Lessons He Wants to Ban Teachers from Using

This very short clip from last weekend’s debate between State Board of Education Vice Chairman Thomas Ratliff, R-Mount Pleasant, and state Sen. Dan Patrick, R-Houston, highlights how the manufactured “controversy” over CSCOPE eventually oozed out of the right-wing fever swamps. Tea party and other political activists (including a for-profit political consulting company) have absurdly claimed that the […]

Also posted in CSCOPE, TFNEF, Thomas Ratliff | 23 Comments

Full CSCOPE Debate Now Online

If you missed last Saturday’s CSCOPE debate between State Board of Education vice chair Thomas Ratliff, R-Mt. Pleasant, and state Sen. Dan Patrick, R-Houston, here it is in its entirety. On one side, you had an SBOE member who showed up with facts. On the other, you had an ambitious politician running for higher office […]

Also posted in CSCOPE, Thomas Ratliff | 10 Comments

Lt. Gov. Dewhurst Denounces Politicizing CSCOPE at Press Conference With Political Activists Denouncing CSCOPE

Monday afternoon Texas Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst performed a feat only politicians seem able to do on a regular basis, at least with a straight face. He denounced politicizing an issue that he was holding a press conference to politicize: “This issue is about teaching Texas children. I personally have a problem with any effort […]

Also posted in CSCOPE, David Dewhurst, Steve Toth, TFNEF | 6 Comments

CSCOPE Issue Takes Hypocrisy-Fueled Leap Back into the Spotlight

The absurd, manufactured controversy over CSCOPE in Texas is leaping back into the spotlight. And that spotlight is illuminating just how hypocritical some of the curriculum tool’s political critics really are. On Friday State Board of Education Vice Chair Thomas Ratliff, R-Mount Pleasant, and state Senate Education Committee Chair Dan Patrick, R-Houston, announced that they have agreed […]

Also posted in CSCOPE, David Dewhurst, TFNEF, Thomas Ratliff | 9 Comments