Kim Davis, Donald Trump, Ted Cruz, Mike Huckabee, Rick Santorum, Ben Carson to speak at Values Voter Summit

Eight Republican presidential candidates, including front-runner Donald Trump, as well as Kentucky county clerk Kim Davis will address thousands of grassroots activists at the Family Research Council’s 10th annual Values Voter Summit this weekend in Washington.

Other candidates who have confirmed their participation in the event include Ben Carson, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio and South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham.

 The Values Voter Summit will be held Friday through Sunday at the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington. Featured speakers include Arizona Sen. John McCain, former Texas Gov. Rick Perry and House Majority Whip Steve Scalise.

SOURCE: Washington Times

5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Upholds Parts of Texas Abortion Law

A three-judge panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld some of the most onerous parts of a Texas abortion law, which is likely to cause most of the state's abortion clinics to close,

The ruling, released Tuesday, allowed provisions requiring clinics to meet hospital-level operating standards and requiring providers to have admitting privileges at local hospitals to go into effect. It did exempt the last open clinic in the state's Rio Grande Valley from the provisions, which were passed by the Republican-controlled state legislature and signed by former Gov. Rick Perry (R) two years ago. In court, attorneys opposing the law said it could close all but eight clinics in Texas.

"In plain terms, H.B. 2 and its provisions may be applied throughout Texas, except that Supreme Court precedent requires us to partially uphold the district court’s injunction of the [ambulatory surgical center] requirement as applied to the Whole Woman’s Health abortion facility in McAllen, Texas, and to uphold the district court’s injunction of the admitting privileges requirement as applied to Dr. Lynn when he is working at the McAllen facility," the ruling read.

More at Huffington Post

Tara Kyle Endorses Rick Perry for President 2016

From email sent out by Tara Kyle last week:

"One of the greatest things my husband, Chris Kyle, ever did was move our family to Texas. Even though he is gone, this state that shaped his patriotism, integrity and loving spirit reminds us of him at every turn. I tend to keep my political opinions to myself—the only candidate I ever endorsed was in a race for county sheriff—but this is different. On Thursday June 4th, I’ll be in Addison, Texas, where I’ll proudly stand with one of the great leaders this state and country have ever produced: Rick Perry. I got to know Rick and Anita Perry outside of the public eye, where I’ve had an up-close view of their humility and commitment to doing the right thing for people regardless of who gets the credit. Believe me, they are a breath of fresh air in a political system full of people playing games and twisting the truth. My husband may have been in the military, but no one tells me which leader to follow. Instead, I look beyond the sound bites and even minor disagreements to find who has the economic TRACK RECORD and the CHARACTER it takes to make tough choices in the face of criticism. That’s why I’ll be there in person as Rick and Anita Perry discuss their future and his vision for America. Please join me and patriots like Marcus & Morgan Luttrell as we stand with our friend, Gov. Rick Perry."

Wendy Davis is More Excitement than Substance

Since announcing her candidacy for governor, however, Wendy Davis has seemingly made little headway against Abbott. Fresh evidence of the mountain she must climb came with the release of the latest fundraising reports. She continues to raise substantial amounts of money, but with a little more than 100 days to go before Election Day, her campaign says it has about $12 million to $13 million in the bank. Abbott’s campaign has about $36 million.

Davis has generated considerable enthusiasm, attracting donations from about 140,000 contributors, according to her campaign. Her advisers say the excitement around her campaign is real — in Texas and nationally — but there are concerns that the roughly three-to-one gap in cash on hand and her own performance as a candidate could discourage some of her biggest donors from stepping up with more in the final months.

Davis is not blameless about the situation in which she finds herself. She has not delivered a clear or consistent message. As many or more people have an unfavorable view of her as have a favorable view, and that’s without Abbott running any negative ads against her.

Jeremy Bird, who set up Battleground Texas, said there is a path to victory for Davis: turning out registered minority voters who often stay home; registering unregistered minority voters; and attracting the support of suburban white women. She will do better among African Americans and Hispanics than the polls now show, he said.

Her advisers see opportunities. Abbott, they argue, is more conservative and less skilled as a politician than the man he seeks to replace, Gov. Rick Perry, and has been thrown on the defensive repeatedly during the campaign. The Republican Party of Texas continues to shift to the right, potentially alienating some more moderate voters. By October, they argue, the race will look different.

Republicans say conservative Texas will never warm to Davis’s brand of politics. Dave Carney, top strategist for the Abbott campaign, described the Davis operation as having become a campaign of news releases, sophomoric tactics and some fuzzy math. But he also said of the race, “There’s not a single person . . . taking this for granted.”

More at Washington Post: http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/will-national-democrats-help-wendy-davis-turn-texas-blue/2014/07/19/4ba721b4-0f4c-11e4-b8e5-d0de80767fc2_story.html?tid=hpModule_f8335a3c-868c-11e2-9d71-f0feafdd1394&hpid=z11