The Midday Brief: January 27, 2010

Your afternoon reading:

 “If TCEQ disappeared tomorrow, would anyone know the difference?” —  Bogus Science Peddled by TCEQ — The Texas Observer

 “I am truly flabbergasted that Perry would resume meddling in A&M affairs in the middle of a political campaign.”— More turmoil at  A&M; Corps commandant resigns, Perry’s involvement seen — Burkablog

 “Texas Education Commissioner Robert Scott announced Tuesday that the much-maligned Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills will be replaced with the State of Texas Assessment of Academic Readiness, or STAAR.” —TAKS no more; STAAR will be the new student assessment — Associated Press

 “Two days after a ground shift and retaining wall collapse at a Northwest Side neighborhood displaced 91 families and left hundreds of residents panicked about the future of their homes, there still were few answers about what went wrong.”— Collapse investigation continues — San Antonio Express-News

 “Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott resolved a civil Medicaid fraud investigation into dental management company FORBA Holdings, LLC. Under the $24 million multi-state settlement agreement, the attorney general recovered $546,000, including $214,588 that will be returned to the state treasury.”  — Attorney General Abbott's Fraud Investigation Yields $546,000 Recovery for Medicaid — The Cherokeean Herald

 “Voters aren’t good at parsing policy; they’re better at deciding if the folks in charge are doing a good job or not.” —  What Obama Should Say Tonight — The New York Times

 New in the Texas Tribune:

 “While working for Democrat Chris Bell's campaign, political consultant Jason Stanford spent much of 2006 criticizing then-independent gubernatorial candidate Kinky Friedman.  Time for him to make some adjustments.” — 2010: Stanford Gets Kinky

 “Friday night's second and final debate between the Republican candidates for governor might as well be called "The Debra Medina Show." While the two big-name contenders — Kay Bailey Hutchison and Rick Perry — are trying not to make any career-threatening gaffes, she'll be trying to add momentum to an outsider run that has made her the most interesting candidate in the race.” —  The Last Picture Show