We're learning a bit more about the scndaal involving Speaker Joe Straus. We now know the name of the individual identified aswith re-districting if they did not support Straus:Rep. Larry Phillips, R-Sherman, has been identified as the Texas legislator who threatened colleagues if they didnâ??t support House Speaker Joe Straus, R-San Antonio.Any hoped for transparency will not be forthcoming:The House General Investigating and Ethics Committee has now retreated behind close doors to determine appropriate action. Phillips, vice chair of the committee, has recused himself.There are two reasons why Phillips recused himself. One is obvious, the other is that he recived $5000 in donations from Straus. But if you recall , there's one other guy on the Ethics Committee now meeting behind closed doors who has received more.The chairman of an internal investigating committee meeting Tuesday to discuss allegations of intimidation and retribution by House Speaker Joe Straus received campaign donations totaling $42,000 from Straus and a political action committee he helped found.The Joe R. Straus III campaign account and the Texas House Leadership Fund made four donations between February and September to the campaign of Chuck Hopson, R-Jacksonville, who Straus appointed in February of 2009 to chair the House General Investigating and Ethics Committee, according to records kept by the Texas Ethics Commission. The Straus and Leadership funds also made two donations totaling $5,000 to the vice-chairman of the committee, Larry Phillips, R-Sherman, the Ethics Commission records showed.The Young Conservatives of Texas, who support Ken Paxton, have called for Hopson to recuse himself. Others have called for an open meeting. What we got is the number 2 guy in the Ethics committee alledgedly threatening other members using unethical conduct, and a guy who was a Democrat until November of last year, who has also recived $42K from the guy who would have benefitted from the unethical conduct running a closed door meeting.Nah.This doesn't look like any kind of back door smoke filled room old style politics of the kind we voted to get rid of three weeks ago.This is a bunch of guys we want to keep in Leadership.Saying anything else is nonsensical.

by Cris 07:45:14 PM 2013.10.24

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