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Comment by neilv | Hacker News Reader

> And Sharp was communicating directly with the lieutenant governor’s office about the incident, promising swift action.

In Texas, what entities have oversight over potential abuses of power by the Lt. Governor's office, the Texas A&M system Chancellor, and the Texas Land Commissioner?

Are they credible?

I'm not going to jump to conclusions, but am wondering whether this credible-looking journalism will prompt government investigation with integrity.

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Texas's attorney general has had been both state, and federally indicted for fraud for the past 8 years, and has successfully stalled the case, on the basis[1] that as long as he's a Republican politician, he can't get a fair trial.

He's only been impeached for it this year.

There is no oversight to be had in that kind of single-party state.

If you're wondering about what the end game of that sort of thing looks like, Putin's Russia laid out a roadmap for it.

[1] The actual mechanism with which he has done so is by not paying the prosecutors that were supposed to prosecute him. It's utterly insane - the criminals are literally running the courts.

How does a /state/ prosecutor have the ability to interfere with the prosecutorial budgets for a /federal/ indictment?

The FBI is investigating him but no federal charges have ever been filed. The state situation is also a bit more complicated than the grandparent suggests. There have been both jurisdictional struggles and a county government refusing to pay sizable fees for outside special prosecutors (not state prosecutors).

The guy belongs in prison but is not just refusing to be prosecuted, nor does he have the ability to do so.

How do tech workers in Texas cities like Austin feel about being under that?

It's easy to close your eyes to politics when you have the capital to cushion you from them.

Well, tech workers here don’t make up a significant voting block in state-wide races. Not to mention we mostly got the conservative tech bros from NYC and Cali anyway, so they’re not really bothered.

That said, Williamson County flipped blue last election which was surprising. A lot of the wealthier, slightly older suburban tech/business Austin crowd lives there.

Like cities with dense populations should operate as city-states and that the current federal model is broken.

Bad.

We feel bad about being under that.

I'm trying to improve things where I can, but I'm a singular young person in a state where it's not uncommon to want people like me "gone".

Tech worker in Austin here. I'd like to throw Abbott and Patrick in the Rio Grande.

Into the concertina wire, or into the more dangerous areas deliberately left unfortified as to increase the likelihood of migrants dying during crossing?

I live in Austin and I hate it here. I vote in every local and statewide race but it seems like it's getting worse.

I'm pretty close to selling my house and moving to Colorado but as third generation Texan I feel like I'm abandoning my home and leaving it to the crazies.

I'm no fan of these nutjobs at the wheel, but one important thing to consider is you don't have to be a leftist to be a "tech worker". There's lots of right-leaning tech workers out there. And since Texas has a few tech-focused cities in the South, there's quite a mix of people. Its not like there's just a some leftist tech workers in a sea of right-wing ranchers in Texas.

I know a lot of people who are pretty smart tech people who would argue for the repeal of Roe v. Wade, are pro school vouchers, want a flat tax rate, want to see prayer in schools, etc.

Going by Blind comments, they are enthusiastically cheering the demise of California. For every "lived in texas, found a company" commenter there's like ten "relocated my job to a more sufficiently republican locale" fascist enablers.

I don't like it. Texas's leadership when not corrupt is cruel, and when not cruel manages to give the appearance of cruelty. It's also increasingly dumb, doing things like trying to strangle the incredible renewable energy generation growth that has kept the power on during recent heat waves.

Texas has always been a one-party state (Democrat until the 1980s and Republican since) but it managed to be mostly pragmatic until 2016 or so.

I wouldn't be happy living under one party government in California (the corruption on California high speed rail makes Texas look squeaky clean) or Hawaii either. But when I can I'll likely move somewhere more reasonable.

To answer your question, the Texas Rangers have a Public Corruption Unit. The unit is relatively new (replacing a unit that used to be run out of the Travis County D.A.'s office, which Republicans objected to, because Travis County is Austin and run by Democrats). The Rangers would investigate and hand over to the D.A. in whatever county has jurisdiction (which is sometimes contested).

Results will have to be seen but I don't know that anyone really questions the general integrity or competence of the Rangers.

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