The Midday Brief: December 8, 2009

Your afternoon reading:

• “Kinky Friedman's camp is disputing Houston businessman Farouk Shami's assertation that Friedman is moving toward an endorsement of Shami in the Democratic gubernatorial primary race.” — Endorsement talk premature, says Friedman campaign — PoliTex

• “Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst called GOP gubernatorial candidates Rick Perry and Kay Bailey Hutchison experienced foes today and declined to say he’s backing either one.” — Dewhurst files for re-election, forecasts request for agency cuts, doesn’t rule out U.S. Senate bid — Postcards

• “So in nearly 2/3 of cases in which Travis prosecutors sought the death penalty, they did not succeed in securing it.” — Texas jurors sent only 8 murderers to death row in 2009 — Grits for Breakfast

• “A new national poll from Rasmussen finds what many of us have known instinctively and seen anecdotally: Republicans won’t win by running to the center-left, as liberal media pundits often suggest.” — Like It Or Not, GOP Needs A Tea Party — Empower Texans

• “Michael McCaul never thought to get anything in writing?!?!” — TX-10: Michael McCaul Drops the Ball, Loses 3,000 Texas Jobs — Burnt Orange Report

• “A Texas pension fund will decide this week whether to award CVS Caremark Corp. a new pharmacy-benefits contract valued at almost $1 billion after the state’s attorney general sued the company for alleged Medicaid fraud.” — CVS Faces Scrutiny in $1 Billion Texas Contract Bid — Bloomberg

• “During a speech Monday at Scott & White, the state health commissioner encouraged Texans to continue seeking out H1N1 flu vaccine, saying no one can predict when another wave of the illness might hit.” — Texas health commissioner explains flu-vaccine allocation — Waco Tribune-Herald

• “Gov. Rick Perry doesn't offer human sacrifices to the earth goddess Gaia.” — California Should Copy Texas — Investor’s Business Daily

New in The Texas Tribune:

• “The EPA's move could propel the cost of carbon reduction onto the list of issues in play in the governor’s race.” — Audio: Cap and Tirade — The Texas Tribune

• “Elaine Hime dreads a day that should be a landmark — her profoundly disabled son’s 21^st birthday.” — Aging Out — The Texas Tribune

• “Leave it to the magic of marrying sound and moving images to encapsulate the themes of this race — all to a familiar holiday tune.” — HuTube: Dueling '12 Days' Vids — The Texas Tribune