The legislature gets Rick-rolled

June 25, 12:52 PMTexas Statehouse ExaminerAndrew Roush

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AP Photo: Gov. Rick Perry

Following last week's orgiastic spree of vetoing, Gov. Rick Perry has announced that the legislature will convene a special session starting July 1 at 10 a.m.

On the docket for lawmakers: life support for five vital state agencies and bond issues unresolved in the regular session.

Amongst those returning to 11th and Congress is Sen. Kirk Watson (D - Austin), rumored (by Sen. Van de Putte of San Antonio) to be a Democratic contender for governor. Watson has a commendable history as former mayor of Austin and now senator, but it remains to be seen if he can wrangle votes away from the winner of the Perry-Hutchison fracas. 

The new session comes in the wake of Perry's takedown of 34 bills from the regular session, 6 from the Austin delegation. His line-item cuts from SB1, the state biennial budget, were mostly yawn-inducing cuts from failed and vetoed bills. Amongst his vetoes, however, are a few interesting bits, including the death of the "zombie TV" act, and the denial of new lobbying restrictions for Harris County employees, a self-serving bit of legislative denial, considering Perry's lobbyist-packed staff.

 

Rick roll'd: Texas style.