Maj. Gen. John F. Nichols of Spring Branch was reappointed as Adjutant General of Texas by Gov. Greg Abbott for a term set to expire Feb. 1, 2018. The adjutant general is commander of the 24,283 soldiers and airmen of the Texas Military Department (TMD).
President Barack Obama announced on Tuesday five nominations to serve on the federal bench in Texas. They are:
• Walter David Counts III, Western District
• E. Scott Frost, Northern District
• James Wesley Hendrix, Northern District
• Irma Carrillo Ramirez, Northern District
• Karen Gren Scholer, Eastern District
The Ted Cruz campaign announced the newest members of its national finance team. As the GOP presidential field narrows, it’s notable here the presence of former backers of Govs. George W. Bush and Rick Perry as well as former Marco Rubio supporters.
• Jim Dannenbaum, Houston
• Carey Maguire, Dallas
• Kit and Charlie Moncrief, Fort Worth
• Marsland and Richard Moncrief, Fort Worth
• Dan Brouillette, San Antonio
• Reed Morian, Houston
• Peggy and Dan Allen Hughes, San Antonio
Texas Right to Life is endorsing former state Rep. Wayne Christian in his runoff for a seat on the Texas Railroad Commission. In a news release late Tuesday, the anti-abortion group said it has built a strong relationship over the years with the East Texas Republican, “fighting for the rights of preborn, elderly, and disabled Texans.”
Former Harris County GOP Chairman Jared Woodfill and former RPT Chairwoman Cathie Adams, who are looking to unseat Tom Mechler and Amy Clark as chair and vice chair at the May state party convention, picked up the support on Tuesday of Julie McCarty, president of the NE Tarrant County Tea Party.
The Texas Advocacy Project announced the addition of four new board members — Marci Braden of Frost Bank, Sheri Hunter of King & Spalding, fitness entrepreneur Shonnery Pettit and Alison Walgren of Deloitte Consulting. The nonprofit’s mission is to provide free legal services to survivors of domestic and dating violence, sexual assault and stalking.
The McGuire Woods Consulting firm announced a couple of new hires and a promotion on Tuesday. Amber Hausenfluck, who joined the firm in January 2015 as an assistant vice president of state government relations, was promoted to vice president. As to those hires: former Greg Abbott deputy press secretary Cait Meisenheimer was hired as assistant vice president and Chasity Tillis, former chief of staff to state Rep. Marisa Marquez, was brought on as a research assistant.
Disclosure: Frost Bank and Deloitte are corporate sponsors of The Texas Tribune. Dan Allen Hughes Jr. is a major donor to the Tribune. A complete list of Tribune donors and sponsors can be viewed here.