POSSIBLE TOPICS: Voting info;  What is the status of the Astrodome?; Volunteers make progress restoring Black cemetery in Conroe; TX Dems have failed to pass voter access legislation for years – COVID may change that; Last whistleblower fired from TX AG Ken Paxton’s office days after suing for retaliation; Trump considering kicking off 2024 run during Biden’s inauguration: report; Biden eyeing Cindy McCain for UK ambassador position; AOC and Ilhan Omar want to block Biden’s former chief of staff; Biden looks to career officials to restore trust, morale in government agencies; A Fight Over Agriculture Secretary Could Decide the Direction of Hunger Policy; More.

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1. Make sure you are registered to vote!
   1. VoteTexas.GOV – Texas Voter Information
      1. HarrisVotes.COM­ – Countywide Voting Centers, (Election Information Line (713) 755-6965), Harris County Clerk
      2. Fort bend County Elections/Voter Registration Machine takes you to the proper link
      3. GalvestonVotes.org (Galveston County, TX)
      4. LibertyElections.com (Liberty County, TX)
      5. Montgomery County (TX) Elections
      6. Brazoria County (TX) Clerk Election Information
      7. Waller County (TX) Elections
      8. Chambers County (TX) ElectionsFor personalized, nonpartisan voter guides and information,
      9. Consider visiting Vote.ORG.  Ballotpedia.com and Texas League of Women Voters are also good places to get election info.
      10. If you are denied your right to vote any place at any time at any polling place for any reason, ask for (or demand) a provisional ballot rather than lose your vote.
      11. HarrisVotes.com – Countywide Voting Centers
          1. HARRIS CTY – IDENTIFICATION REQUIRED FOR VOTING: Do not possess and cannot reasonably obtain one of these IDs?
             1. Fill out a declaration at the polls describing a reasonable impediment to obtaining it, and show a copy or original of one of the following supporting forms of ID:
             2. A government document that shows your name and an address, including your voter registration certificate
             3. Current utility bill
             4. Bank statement
             5. Government check
             6. Paycheck
             7. A certified domestic (from a U.S. state or territory) birth certificate or (b) a document confirming birth admissible in a court of law which establishes your identity (which may include a foreign birth document)
          2. You may vote early by-mail if:
             1. You are registered to vote and meet one of the following criteria:
             2. Away from the county of residence on Election Day and during the early voting period;
             3. Sick or disabled;
             4. 65 years of age or older on Election Day; or
             5. Confined in jail, but eligible to vote.
          3. Make sure you are registered:
          4. Ann Harris Bennett, Tax Assessor-Collector & Voter Registrar
          5. CHECK REGISTRATION STATUS HERE
          6. CLICK How to register to vote in Texas
          7. Outside Texas, try Vote.org.
2. What is the status of the Astrodome?; click2houston.com/news | 11/19/2020
   1. In 2018, Harris County Commissioners voted to renovate the “Eighth Wonder of the World” as a multipurpose sports and events center and a parking garage, allocating $105 million for the project. …
   2. However, according to The Washington Post [ 24, 2019] plans for renovation came to a halt last year. Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo said in 2019 that she wants the county to focus on criminal justice reform and flood control.
   3. The status of the project remains in “demo” mode and no other updates have been posted at this time.
3. Volunteers make progress restoring historic Black cemetery in Conroe; By Eva Vigh | COMMUNITYIMPACT.COM/HOUSTON | Nov 26, 2020 CST, 12:20 PM
   1. A group of 38 volunteers gathered Nov. 22 at the Conroe Community Cemetery, a historic Black cemetery on North 10th Street, to clear brush and leaves from the tombstones. The cemetery, which was neglected for years, is the burial ground for numerous Black civilians and community leaders, including Luther Dorsey, the only known Buffalo Solider to be buried in Montgomery County, and Mittie J. Turner Campbell, the first principal of the first Conroe ISD school for African American students.
   2. The cleanup effort, spearheaded by Jon Edens, has grown over the years and is now a fully-fledged nonprofit called the Conroe Community Cemetery Restoration Project. Volunteers [include] members from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and the Boy Scouts of America …
   3. The last cleanup of the cemetery this year will be Dec. 5 from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. at 439 N. 10th St., Conroe. More information can be found at https://cccrp.org.
4. Texas Democrats have failed to pass voter access legislation for years. The pandemic may change that – More than 60 election-related bills have been filed in the House and Senate in the three weeks since the election. About half of them are aimed at increasing voter access, which lawmakers said became a more urgent issue during the pandemic. by Karen Brooks Harper | TEXASTRIBUNE.ORG | Nov. 27, 20205 AM
   1. … Lawmakers and voting rights groups have been fighting over updates to Texas’ election systems for years, but issues heightened by the coronavirus pandemic have launched a new conversation over voter access.
   2. This January, primarily Democratic lawmakers heading into the next legislative session are honing in on problems like backlogs in processing voter registrations, an unprecedented flood of mail-in ballots and applications that overwhelmed some elections offices, and a lack of viable alternatives to voting in person. …
   3. But the pandemic-era challenges combined with strong Republican performance at the polls — which may have been boosted by record-breaking voter turnout across the state — has some lawmakers and political operatives believing there’s potential for conservatives to warm up to voting legislation that could improve accessibility.
   4. A main reason is that voters of all political camps experienced some of these new ideas when they were introduced during the pandemic — things like drive-thru voting pilot programs, multiple ballot drop-off sites, turning in mail ballots during early voting and extended early voting — or realized that others, like online registration, would have made voting in the pandemic easier.
   5. “My guess is [lawmakers are] going to hear from their Republican voters that they like to do this, and there will start to be Republicans championing these things, and they’re championing them from a majority point of view,” said Trey Grayson, a former Republican Kentucky secretary of state who was previously director of the Institute of Politics at Harvard University. “I would be shocked in five years if Texas didn’t have more of these reforms in place.” …
   6. The idea of moving registration online is worth considering, given that some 41 other states have already implemented it, said Justin Till, chief of staff and general counsel for Republican state Greg Bonnen, R-Friendswood, who sponsored the 2019 bill that eliminated mobile polling sites and who has filed election fraud legislation to be considered this session.
   7. “I don’t think it would be a problem if we were to transition. I know a lot of people are still hung up on the IT security part of it, which I get.” Till said. “So long as it’s a sound system, it will work fine and the other states that have implemented it thoughtfully have done so successfully.”
   8. Till said Bonnen’s office would consider measures that could ease or expand access during early voting and eliminate long travel and wait times, such as extending the early voting period to three weeks and allowing counties to keep polling sites open beyond the state required minimum.
   9. “If you can achieve that satisfaction point where everyone gets an opportunity to vote as quickly and as easily as they can, then you’re good,” Till said. …
   10. [T]he historic turnout in the election and the success of Republicans in Texas also indicate that the GOP can still win when election systems that increase voter participation are in place. The idea that high turnout only helps Democrats is one of the biggest hills to climb for changes like online voter registration — but that may change after this year, said Grayson, who advocates for automatic voter registration programs for one of his firm’s clients.
5. Last whistleblower fired from Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s office days after suing for retaliation – Ryan Vassar, who had served as the deputy attorney general for legal counsel, was one of eight senior aides who told authorities they believed Paxton was breaking the law — a report that has sparked an FBI investigation. by Emma Platoff | TEXASTRIBUNE.ORG | Nov. 24, 20204 PM
   1. The Texas attorney general’s office has fired the last remaining whistleblower who alleged Ken Paxton broke the law in doing favors for a political donor — just days after aides had sued the agency alleging they suffered retaliation for making the report.
   2. Deputy Attorney General for Legal Counsel Ryan Vassar — who had already been placed on paid leave — was fired Nov. 17, according to internal personnel documents obtained by The Texas Tribune, making him the fifth whistleblower to be fired from the agency in less than a month. The three others who reported Paxton to law enforcement have resigned.
   3. On Nov. 12, Vassar and three of his former colleagues filed a whistleblower lawsuit against the Texas attorney general’s office, claiming they had suffered retaliation after they told law enforcement they believed Paxton broke the law by using the agency to serve the interests of a political donor and friend, Nate Paul. …
   4. The FBI is investigating Paxton over the allegations of the eight whistleblowers, who were all senior aides, the Associated Press reported earlier this month.
   5. Paxton has dismissed the whistleblowers as “rogue employees” and said their allegations are “false.” …
6. Trump considering kicking off 2024 run during Biden’s inauguration: report; By Jordan Williams | thehill.com | 11/28/20 11:10 AM EST
   1. President Trump is reportedly considering kicking off his 2024 campaign during President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration, The Daily Beast
   2. Three people familiar with the conversations told the news outlet that the president has been discussing the specifics of a campaign launch with close advisers and confidants. 
   3. Two sources said that Trump has floated the idea of a 2024-related event during Biden’s inauguration week, possibly on Inauguration Day, if his legal efforts to overturn the 2020 election fail. …
   4. One poll from Seven Letter Insightfound that 66 percent of Republican voters would support the president running in 2024. A separate Morning Consult-Politico poll found that 54 percent would vote for the president in a 2024 primary. … 
7. Biden eyeing Cindy McCain for UK ambassador position: report; By Jordan Williams | COM |11/28/20 10:21 AM EST
   1. President-elect Joe Biden is reportedly eyeing Cindy McCain to serve as ambassador to the U.K.,  according to multiple reports citing The Times of London. 
   2. McCain, the widow of the late Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), has been a vocal critic of President Trump and endorsed Biden during his campaign. She is a known Anglophile, the Independent noted, and is thought to be a front-runner in return for helping Biden flip Arizona. …
   3. Some Democrats say it was endorsements from McCain and former Sen. Jeff Flake — two respected Republicans from the state — that pushed Biden over the top. …
8. AOC and Ilhan Omar want to block Biden’s former chief of staff; By Alexi McCammond | AXIOS.COM | Nov 24, 2020
   1. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ilhan Omar are boosting a petition against Joe Biden nominating his former chief of staff to a new role in his administration, calling Bruce Reed a “deficit hawk” and criticizing his past support for Social Security and Medicare cuts. …
   2. Some progressives have privately said the order of Biden’s announcements was important to send an early signal the incoming administration took them seriously. So far, they’re suspicious of some of the people being named or rumored for jobs — but happy with John Kerry, Janet Yellen, Alejandro Mayorkas and Linda Thomas-Greenfield….
   3. “Rejecting Reed will be a major test for the soul of the Biden presidency,” it says, demanding that OMB “be staffed with people who will prioritize working people, not Wall Street deficit scaremongers.”
   4. Reed led the Bowles-Simpson Commission under Barack Obama, which progressives opposed because it made cuts to Social Security and Medicare. “Biden must not repeat Obama’s mistake,” the petition says. …
9. Biden looks to career officials to restore trust, morale in government agencies; By Brett Samuels | THEHILL.COM | 11/28/20 05:05 PM EST
   1. President-elect Joe Biden’s picks for Cabinet posts will face dual challenges upon taking office: implementing policy and restoring morale and public trust after four years of the Trump administration. …
   2. … Trump regularly undercut career officials and policy experts during his time in office, and the Biden transition team — staffed with career officials and policy experts — cautioned it would need time to learn to what extent Trump had tried to “hollow out” the federal government. …
   3. Trump spent the last eight months contradicting his own public health officials about a deadly pandemic and sidelining the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) from the response.
   4. But while the pandemic has spotlighted the need to restore confidence in the CDC, the same issues could apply to several other departments.
   5. Former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson gutted the State Department and imposed a hiring freeze. His successor, Mike Pompeo, was often embroiled in controversy, further deflating the diplomatic corps.
   6. The Trump administration turned the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), a sprawling agency with oversight of cybersecurity, counterterrorism and immigration enforcement, into a department that mostly focused on restricting immigration and left multiple high-level positions there unfilled. Career officials inside DHS have seen agencies such as Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection turned into arms of the Trump administration to enforce crackdowns on legal and illegal immigration. …
   7. A Pew Research poll released earlier this year showed that ICE had a 46 percent favorability rating, though 77 percent of Republicans approved of the agency, compared with just 28 percent of Democrats. …
   8. Biden’s solution appears to be tapping Cabinet nominees with extensive experience in government who former colleagues believe will command respect if confirmed. …
10. A Fight Over Agriculture Secretary Could Decide the Direction of Hunger Policy – The delicate proxy clash has pitted Democrats eager to emphasize issues like hunger and nutrition against traditionalists who believe the department should represent rural America. By Jonathan Martin | NYTIMES.COM | Nov. 26, 2020
    1. An unlikely fight is breaking out over President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr.’s choice for agriculture secretary, pitting a powerful Black lawmaker who wants to refocus the Agriculture Department on hunger against traditionalists who believe the department should be a voice for rural America.
    2. Representative James E. Clyburn of South Carolina, the highest-ranking Black member of Congress and perhaps Mr. Biden’s most important supporter in the Democratic primary, is making an all-out case for Representative Marcia L. Fudge of Ohio, an African-American Democrat from Ohio.
    3. Clyburn, whose endorsement of Mr. Biden before the South Carolina primary helped turn the tide for the former vice president’s nomination, has spoken to him on the phone about Ms. Fudge as recently as this week. The lawmaker has also lobbied for her with two of the president-elect’s closest advisers and discussed the matter with Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
    4. “I feel very strongly,” Mr. Clyburn said in an interview on Wednesday about Ms. Fudge, who leads the nutrition and oversight subcommittee on the House Agriculture Committee.
    5. “It’s time for Democrats to treat the Department of Agriculture as the kind of department it purports to be,” he added, noting that much of the budget “deals with consumer issues and nutrition and things that affect people’s day-to-day lives.”
    6. But there are complications. Two of Mr. Biden’s farm-state allies are also being discussed for the job: Heidi Heitkamp, a former senator from North Dakota, and Tom Vilsack, the former Iowa governor who served as agriculture secretary for President Barack Obama.
    7. The delicate proxy clash over the post, which is usually not as coveted as more high-profile cabinet positions, has pitted Democrats eager to emphasize issues like hunger and nutrition against more traditional members of the party who believe the department should represent rural America. The sprawling agency oversees farm policy, the Forest Service, food safety and animal health, but also the food stamp program, nutrition services, rural housing and rural development.
    8. More broadly, the debate illustrates the challenge Mr. Biden faces as he builds his administration. Every appointment he makes interlocks with others, and if he does not select a diverse candidate for one position it becomes more likely he will for other posts. …
    9. Recalling her campaign efforts on behalf of Mr. Biden’s “great rural plan,” Ms. Heitkamp predicted the president-elect would “pick the person who can implement that rural plan.”
    10. Clyburn, though, said the Agriculture Department had for too long seemed “to favor big farming interests” over less wealthy people, whether they be “little farmers in Clarendon County, S.C., or food stamp recipients in Cleveland, Ohio,” Ms. Fudge’s hometown.