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Houston ISD appoints committee that will oversee $4.4 billion bond if approved in November
Read full article: Houston ISD appoints committee that will oversee $4.4 billion bond if approved in NovemberThe Houston Independent School District has appointed a Bond Oversight Committee to ensure transparency and accountability for a proposed $4.4 billion bond.
Colin Allred responds to comparisons with Beto O’Rourke’s campaign, defends his strategy
Read full article: Colin Allred responds to comparisons with Beto O’Rourke’s campaign, defends his strategyAllred has run a more traditional campaign in his bid to unseat U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, focusing on targeted ads and moderate policy.
Republican Rep. Tony Gonzales predicts GOP will lose control of the House
Read full article: Republican Rep. Tony Gonzales predicts GOP will lose control of the HouseGonzales, who represents a Texas border district, tells a Tribune Festival audience that his own party will be to blame for defeats in the November election.
Houston ISD’s Black and Latino students show significant improvement on STAAR exam, says Superintendent Miles
Read full article: Houston ISD’s Black and Latino students show significant improvement on STAAR exam, says Superintendent Miles📚 Exciting news from the Houston Independent School District (HISD)! The latest results from the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness exams (STAAR) show that HISD students have demonstrated significant academic growth 💪🎉 Despite the challenges, HISD is closing achievement gaps and paving the way for a brighter future, according to Superintendent Mike Miles. #HISD #AcademicGrowth #ClosingGaps #EducationMatters
After Fuentes scandal, Texas billionaires fund new PAC to support conservative candidates
Read full article: After Fuentes scandal, Texas billionaires fund new PAC to support conservative candidatesIn the wake of a scandal tying them to white supremacists, Tim Dunn and Farris Wilks started a new PAC to support far-right candidates
Journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones urges Texans to get organized, learn from history
Read full article: Journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones urges Texans to get organized, learn from historyIn an interview for The Texas Tribune Festival, the journalist urged Texans to organize in response to the state’s book bans and restrictions on public school lessons.
Texans in U.S. House describe GOP in chaos ahead of likely government shutdown
Read full article: Texans in U.S. House describe GOP in chaos ahead of likely government shutdownTexas Democrats decry Republican infighting that has halted attempts to approve annual spending bills and avoid a federal government shutdown.
Paxton prosecutors blame politics for trumping evidence in attorney general’s impeachment trial
Read full article: Paxton prosecutors blame politics for trumping evidence in attorney general’s impeachment trialHouston attorney Dick DeGuerin said his team was naive in its belief that “principle would win out over politics.”
Compromise or pick a side? Texas House members offer preview of school vouchers debate ahead of special session
Read full article: Compromise or pick a side? Texas House members offer preview of school vouchers debate ahead of special sessionLawmakers at a Texas Tribune Fest panel found common ground on school funding and teacher pay but took starkly different stances on “school choice.”
Texas lawmakers will have new money going into special session on education, comptroller says
Read full article: Texas lawmakers will have new money going into special session on education, comptroller saysTexas Comptroller Glenn Hegar says the state has collected more from insurance premiums that he had previously predicted. He suggested lawmakers invest more in teacher pay raises.
Ahead of the 2023 session, Texas lawmakers previewed their objectives. Here are five things you need to know.
Read full article: Ahead of the 2023 session, Texas lawmakers previewed their objectives. Here are five things you need to know.Texas lawmakers on both sides of the aisle talked schools, abortion and guns in advance of next year’s session in a range of panels at The Texas Tribune Festival.
Republican Texas senator says he will support new rape exceptions for abortion
Read full article: Republican Texas senator says he will support new rape exceptions for abortionOne of the longest-serving Republican state senators, Robert Nichols is among the first to say publicly he’d support revising the state’s abortion prohibition. He spoke Friday at The Texas Tribune Festival.
Texas House Speaker Dade Phelan rules out raising the minimum age to buy a firearm
Read full article: Texas House Speaker Dade Phelan rules out raising the minimum age to buy a firearmAt the 2022 Texas Tribune Festival, the Texas House speaker also signaled willingness to consider exceptions to the state’s abortion ban.
Liz Cheney, other big names in the lineup for the 2022 Texas Tribune Festival in Austin
Read full article: Liz Cheney, other big names in the lineup for the 2022 Texas Tribune Festival in AustinThis month in Austin at The Texas Tribune Festival, Houston-area leaders, change-makers and everyday Texans will come together to think big and get inspired on all things politics, policy and the day’s news.
Watch Texas A&M Chancellor John Sharp talk about the pandemic, college football and more at The Texas Tribune Festival
Read full article: Watch Texas A&M Chancellor John Sharp talk about the pandemic, college football and more at The Texas Tribune FestivalSharp talked about how higher ed survives the pandemic, the obstacles to running a world-class public university and the future of college football.
Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller alleges aid to farmers of color discriminates against white farmers in suit against Biden administration
Read full article: Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller alleges aid to farmers of color discriminates against white farmers in suit against Biden administrationState GOP Chair Allen West calls on Donald Trump to visit Texas before Election Day
Read full article: State GOP Chair Allen West calls on Donald Trump to visit Texas before Election DayAllen West at The Texas Tribune Festival in 2016 Credit: Erich Schlagel for The Texas TribuneTexas GOP Chair Allen West would like to see President Donald Trump visit the state again before Election Day to help rally support for down-ballot candidates, the Republican leader said during a Texas Tribune Festival interview that aired Tuesday. “I’ve got the message up to him,” West, a former Florida congressman, told the Tribune’s Patrick Svitek. “We’re seeing the Democrats really focus up here in North Texas, between Dallas County, Collin, Denton and Tarrant County for those state House seats,” West said, also referencing two contested congressional races in Texas’ 24th District and Texas’ 32nd District. West, who won the race for party chair in July, has at times openly disagreed with how Republican Gov. “We cannot live in a state where an executive believes that they can change established law by themselves.
Gov. Greg Abbott used pandemic as cover to ban abortions in Texas, former Planned Parenthood head says
Read full article: Gov. Greg Abbott used pandemic as cover to ban abortions in Texas, former Planned Parenthood head saysGreg Abbott used the pandemic as a guise to limit access to abortion. Greg Abbott of using the coronavirus pandemic as a guise to end abortion access in Texas. During the month-long period when Texas was shut down, top state officials and the courts effectively banned nearly all abortions. Circuit Court of Appeals largely sided with state officials throughout the legal back and forth. In the initial weeks of the pandemic, a number of states including Texas tried to ban abortions as part of emergency orders.
Dallas Police Chief Rene Hall resigns following criticisms of protest response
Read full article: Dallas Police Chief Rene Hall resigns following criticisms of protest responseDallas Police Chief U. Rene Hall at The Texas Tribune Festival in 2017. Credit: Qiling Wang for The Texas TribuneDallas Police Chief U. Rene Hall will leave her position on Nov. 10, according to a statement from Dallas City Manager T.C. Hall was heavily criticized by six City Council members after anti-police brutality protests in Dallas in the wake of George Floyds killing. A federal judge later temporarily banned the City of Dallas from using tear-gas and other non-lethal weapons against peaceful crowds. Prior to working in Dallas, she was the deputy chief of the Detroit Police Department.
TribCast: Hurricane Laura, coronavirus on campus and the RNC
Read full article: TribCast: Hurricane Laura, coronavirus on campus and the RNCU.S. Rep. Dan Crenshaw, R-Houston, at The Texas Tribune Festival on Sept. 28, 2018. Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera for The Texas Tribune(Audio unavailable. Click here to listen on texastribune.org.) In this week's TribCast, Matthew speaks with Ross, Alex and Patrick about the incoming hurricane, the first week of college classes and the Republican National Convention.
Sarah Eckhardt wins special election for Texas Senate seat after Rep. Eddie Rodriguez forgoes a runoff
Read full article: Sarah Eckhardt wins special election for Texas Senate seat after Rep. Eddie Rodriguez forgoes a runoffFormer Travis County Judge Sarah Eckhardt at The Texas Tribune Festival in 2018 Thomas Meredith for The Texas TribuneFormer Travis County Judge Sarah Eckhardt is set to succeed former state Sen. Kirk Watson, D-Austin, in the Texas Senate after state Rep. Eddie Rodriguez said Monday he is dropping out of the race. Eckhardt and Rodriguez, both Democrats, were poised to face off in a special election runoff for the seat. "For that reason," he wrote, "I have decided to forego the runoff for Senate and focus my efforts on winning a Democratic majority and promoting an aggressive, progressive agenda in the Texas House." Eckhardt and Rodriguez finished first and second, respectively, in the six-way race on July 14. Greg Abbott had not yet set a date for the runoff.
Sarah Eckhardt may avoid a runoff in Texas Senate District 14 special election, but its too close to call
Read full article: Sarah Eckhardt may avoid a runoff in Texas Senate District 14 special election, but its too close to callTravis County Judge Sarah Eckhardt speaks at The Texas Tribune Festival on Sept. 29, 2018. Thomas Meredith for The Texas TribuneFormer Travis County Judge Sarah Eckhardt was leading the way Tuesday night in the special election to replace former state Sen. Kirk Watson, D-Austin, though it remained unclear whether she would be able to avoid a runoff. Eckhardt, who needs 50% of the vote to win the election outright, was hovering around that figure Tuesday night. Rodriguez touted his 18 years in the Texas House, arguing that his relationships there will serve him well in the Senate. His district includes all of Bastrop County, most of Austin and northern Travis County.
Ted Cruz said his Nike boycott was exerting free speech, but people boycotting Goya Foods are silencing speech
Read full article: Ted Cruz said his Nike boycott was exerting free speech, but people boycotting Goya Foods are silencing speechChris Hayes interviews U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz at The Texas Tribune Festival on Saturday, Sept. 28, 2019. On Thursday, Goya Foods CEO Robert Unanue praised president Donald Trump in a ceremony at The White House. Free speech works both ways. And now the Left is trying to cancel Hispanic culture and silence free speech, Cruz tweeted on Friday. I respect Free Speech & Im exerting mine: until @Nike ends its contempt for those values, I WILL NO LONGER PURCHASE NIKE PRODUCTS.
U.S. Rep. Sylvia Garcia moves to self-quarantine after exposure to coronavirus
Read full article: U.S. Rep. Sylvia Garcia moves to self-quarantine after exposure to coronavirusU.S. Rep. Sylvia Garcia, D-Texas, at The Texas Tribune Festival in 2018. Stephen Spillman for The Texas TribuneWASHINGTON U.S. Rep. Sylvia R. Garcia, a Houston Democrat, announced Friday that she was exposed to the coronavirus and will be self-quarantining. Noting that she lived near an international airport and could make a direct flight to Washington, Garcia voted on behalf of her fellow freshman, U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar, D-El Paso. U.S. Rep. Louie Gohmert, R-Tyler, announced in early March he was potentially exposed, but under the direction of the U.S. House physician, he returned to Congress. And after running a fever, U.S. Rep. Lizzie Pannill Fletcher self-quarantined but ultimately tested negative for the coronavirus.
U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz calls George Floyd case "clearly police brutality"
Read full article: U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz calls George Floyd case "clearly police brutality"WASHINGTON Chris Hayes interviews U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz at The Texas Tribune Festival on Saturday, Sept. 28, 2019. Bob Daemmrich for The Texas TribuneU.S. Sen. Ted Cruz this weekend said the death of George Floyd, a Minneapolis black man, is "clearly police brutality." "It's horrific, and it starts with a horrific act of police brutality," the state's junior GOP senator said on Fox News on Sunday evening. And there is an immediate demonization and attack of the police officers, and I think that's wrong, and I think it's premature." "It was clearly police brutality and it was not conduct we expect of any officer.