Texas Governor to send one thousand more National Guard troops to the US-Mexico border

(June 25)On Friday Greg Abbott the governor of Texas announced that he will be sending another 1,000 National Guard troops to the US-Mexico border. Abbott accused the US government of not taking action on the increasing humanitarian crisis at the border.

How the new Guard members will be used

At a press conference with Republican leaders as well as Major General Tracy Norris, Abbott said that the Guards would assist at new detention facilities in the Rio Grande Valley and El Paso, as well as ports of entry. The total number of National Guard members is now at over 2,000 according to Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick. There are also 1,400 active duty soldiers who are at the border according to a spokesperson for the Army.

There is a severe staff shortage at the border and poor conditions for migrants

Abbott was quite critical of the Federal government saying: "My message to them is Congress is a group of reprobates for not addressing a crisis on our border and we're not going to stand idly by and endanger the lives and safety of the state of Texas because Congress is refusing to do its job."

Patrick Shanahan, Acting Defense Secretary, admitted that Homeland Security officials are thousands of people short of what they need at the border. Abbott said the federal government would fully fund the additional National Guards sent to the border. House Democrats released a $4.5 billion measure just as Abbot made his announcement.

A recent article notes: "The Republican leaders scolded Congress over reports that a Texas border facility is neglecting migrant children. Doctors and attorneys said hundreds of young people are living under inhumane conditions at a border control station in Clint, Texas. They said they found about 250 infants, children and teens locked up for weeks without adequate food, water and sanitation."

Texas Democrats were critical of the new deployment of National Guard calling it reckless, not necessary, and a waste of taxpayer dollars. Texas Senate Democratic leader Jose Rodriguez said: "Deploying more National Guard to the border is a fool's errand and a waste of millions of taxpayer dollars... This latest action will not help to alleviate the humanitarian crisis at our southern border."

Texas has been using National Guard at the border since way back in 2014 when then-Governor Rick Perry first deployed 1,000 members. Texas has spent billions on border security over the last decade. This has included assigning more state troopers to the southern border region.

Regular active duty troops are limited by law as to what they can do at the border

Donald Trump sent more than 5,200 active duty troops to the border with Mexico, but they are limited in what they can do as federal law prohibits them from law enforcement on US territory.

Texas court rules that anti-BDS contracts are unconstitutional

A US federal court has ruled that a Texas law requiring government contractors to certify that they are not engaged in boycotts of Israel or companies that do business with Israel is unconstitutional.

Texas Governor Abbot's statement on the law

The law was passed and signed into law in May of 2017 and was praised by Governor Greg Abbot in a news release: "I am proud to have commemorated Israel’s Independence Day by signing into law Anti-BDS legislation in Texas. As Israel's number one trading partner in the United States, Texas is proud to reaffirm its support for the people of Israel and we will continue to build on our historic partnership. Anti-Israel policies are anti-Texas policies, and we will not tolerate such actions against an important ally."

The original suit against the law

Edgar Saldivar, senior staff attorney to the Texas ACLU said: “This lawsuit is about fundamental First Amendment rights, which protect us all from having the government use its power to force us to choose one side or another in a public debate. Whatever you may think about boycotts of Israel, the bottom line is that political boycotts are a legitimate form of nonviolent protest. The state cannot use the contracting process as an ideological litmus test or to tell people what kind of causes they may or may not support.”

There four people for whom the suit was launched by the ACLU. John Pluecker is a freelance writer who lost two service contracts with University of Houston due to the law. George Hale a reporter for KETR who sing the certification against his will in order to keep his job. Obinna Dennar a Ph.D. candidate at Rice University. Dennar was forced to forfeit payment for judging at a debate tournament as he refused to sign the certification. Finally there was Zachary Abdelhadi, a student at Texas State University who had to forgo chances to judge high school debate tournaments.

Brian Hauss, an attorney at the ACLU's Speech, Privacy, and Technology project said the law was misguided and sought to undermine a type of protected expression that been part of US constitutional tradition since the country was founded.

Anti-BDS Texas law violates First Amendment of US Constitution

The judge ruled that HB89, the law, which came into effect in 2017 violates the First Amendment protection against government interference with political speech and expression. Tommy Buser-Clancy a staff attorney for the Texas ACLU who argued the motion to block the law in court said: “Today’s ruling is a victory for the free speech rights of all Texans. The right to boycott is deeply ingrained in American tradition, from our nation’s founding to today. The state cannot dictate the views of its own citizens on the Israel/Palestine conflict – or any issue – by preventing them from exercising their First Amendment right to boycott.”

Terri Burke, the executive director of the Texas ACLU said: “We applaud this decision, though nothing about it surprises us; in its decision the court has affirmed its understanding that this law was intended to chill the expression of personal opinion. By any name, that’s free speech and free speech is the north star of our democracy. It’s foundational, and this decision underlines that no issue of importance can be addressed if the speech about it is stymied, or worse, silenced.”

The suit was filed on behalf of four Texans who were forced to choose between signing away their right to boycott or losing job opportunities or income. One plaintiff John Pluecker said that the ruling goes beyond the plaintiffs in that all Texans need to know that their jobs will not be threatened by the state simply due to their political positions.

The entire decision can be found here. Similar laws have been blocked in Kansas and Arizona.

Previously published in the Digital Journal

In contrast to most developed countries maternal mortality rates are rising in the U.S.

The rate of women dying from complications resulting from pregnancy or childbirth rose by 27 percent from 2000 to 2014. This increase is in contrast to other developed countries.

A study to be published this September in Obstetrics and Gynecology showed that 157 other countries reported a decrease in their maternal mortality rates. Maternal mortality is defined as a death while pregnant or within 42 days afterward due to causes related to the pregnancy.

The study covered 50 states plus the District of Columbia. The study encountered difficulties gathering data as the United States stopped publishing official data on maternal mortality rates in 2007. The researchers described the lack of comprehensive data on maternal mortality as an "international embarrassment". The lead researcher, pointed to a lack of funding as a reason for delays in compiling the data but the report was clear: "There is a need to redouble efforts to prevent maternal deaths and improve maternity care for the 4 million U.S. women giving birth each year."

Texas showed the most surprising increases. From 2006 to 2010 the rate was about 18 deaths per 100,000 births but in 2011 the rate increased to 33 and then to 35.8 in 2014. While the reasons for the sudden increase are not known they may be due in part to changes in women's health care within the system such as the closing of several women's health clinics.

In September of 2011 the state family planning budget was cut by fully two-thirds. Clinics providing abortion services were not funded. In 2013 an anti-abortion bill also restricted funding that caused many clinics to close.

One of the UN Millennium Development Goals was to cut the maternal mortality rate by three quarters between 1990 and 2015. The rate has been cut by about half, with 157 of 183 nations reporting decreases. From 2000 to 2014 in the United States the rate rose from 18.8 per 100,000 live births in 2000 to 25.8 in 2014. The only state without an increase was California. Of 31 countries in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development the U.S. ranked 30th in maternal mortality rates, beating out only Mexico.

California has made strenuous efforts to reduce it maternal mortality rates. In 2006 it carried out a statewide review of pregnancy-associated mortality. It also contracted with the California Maternal Quality Care Collaborative to investigate the causes of maternal death. The result was to develop tool kits to prevent two of the most causes of maternal death and also measures to improve care quality throughout the state.

Santa Claus arrested for public mischief for writing on sidewalk

Santa Claus, or at least a man dressed as Santa Claus, was arrested on the grounds of the State Capitol building in Austin Texas. Santa was charged with mischief after writing with chalk on the sidewalk.

Occupy Austin members quickly uploaded a video showing the incident. A video of the incident is appended. Lainie Duro a member of the Occupy group who witnessed the arrest said:

"Today I saw the jolly red elf at the Capitol, cheerfully requesting that children write their wishes for a better world in chalk on the sidewalk. Santa said his favorite word was 'Community.' Various children wrote words like 'Peace,' 'Friendship,' and 'Grace'."

The man has been identified by the American-Statesman as James Peterson. Although officers claim he was the only one writing on the sidewalk, bystanders said that other adults and children were doing so as well. This seems a case of discriminating against Santa Claus. Peterson has not only been charged with criminal mischief but also with evading arrest. Apparently he tried to escape down a chimney ;) after failing to locate his sleigh and reindeer. No doubt the children were not happy when Santa was put into the back of a police car.

A Texas State Preservation Board employee apparently asked Peterson to stop defacing the grounds but he refused. Apparently another person was also arrested for criminal mischief. No children were taken into custody I gather. Occupy Austin “believes that the use of washable sidewalk chalk is constitutionally protected free speech." Members of the group gathered at the Travis County Courthouse on Friday night to protest the arrests.

I just hope that Santa is let out on parole, after all this is Xmas Eve. Merry Xmas everyone! Occupy Austin members are tending to Santa's reindeer pending his release. Rudolph was so upset his red nose went completely dark