The Midday Brief: January 15, 2010

Your afternoon reading:

• "[Art] Hall's withdrawal came only 10 days after his last-minute campaign filing to pursue the San Antonio Republican's House seat. It clears the Democratic primary field for Dr. Masarrat Ali, a political newcomer who owns two biotechnology companies." — Hall pulls out of state rep race — San Antonio Express-News

• "A three-judge panel of the Austin Court of Appeals unanimously ruled that a bloody bandana found about 100 yards from a murder scene 25 years ago must be tested with DNA techniques that were not available at the time of the trial." — Court dings forensic panel chief — Houston Chronicle

• "I’m no lawyer, but isn’t it always the County Party chair who determines if a primary filing is legal?" — Wilson appeals being booted from the ballot — Off the Kuff

• "[State Board of Education member Don McLeroy] alone spent more than three hours suggesting amendments to the high school American history standards as the board trudged through a second-day of social studies minutiae." — The U.S. according to Don McLeroy — Postcards

• "Addressing anti-abortion activists, Johnson quickly found that she enjoyed public speaking much more than she had when she was on the other side." — The Convert — Texas Monthly

• "The Tea Party movement, named after the original tax revolt in 1773, might be better described as a diverse, rambunctious and Internet-connected network of groups, powered by grass-roots anxiety about the economy, bailouts and increasing government involvement in health care." — In Power Push, Movement Sees Base in G.O.P. — The New York Times

New in the Texas Tribune:

• "Specifically, we'll be looking at the names of the candidates' donors, the size of the donations and whether any of these details tell us more about the respective races. Then, of course, we get to check out their spending." — On the Records: Ready, Set, File — Texas Tribune

• "While White and Shami may have generated the most media attention, most of them, like Dear and Aguado, are relatively unpolished, underfunded, and unknown." — The Unmentionables — Texas Tribune

• "Conservative members supported the inclusion of Hispanic historical figures in ways some feared they wouldn’t." — Civil Civics — Texas Tribune

P.S. It's been a pleasure Brief-ing you this week. Reeve Hamilton will make a short appearance on Monday before Julian Aguilar takes over for the rest of the week. See you in three weeks.