Labor Day and the Kickoff to General Election Season
Also, ballot vacancies filled on the South Plains and in the Dallas area.
Full StoryAlso, ballot vacancies filled on the South Plains and in the Dallas area.
Full StoryTexas’ other high-profile voting rights court case — the challenge to the state’s voter ID law — finally gets its day in court on Tuesday.
Full StoryThis week in Newsreel: Newly indicted Rick Perry tested the presidential waters in New Hampshire. Labor Day kicks off election season. And search your communities' local debt with the Tribune's Debt Explorer app.
Full StoryFor this week’s nonscientific survey of insiders in politics and government, we asked about moving the public integrity unit from the Travis County district attorney’s office.
Full StoryKey meetings and events for the coming week.
Full StoryIt’s commendable that the governor was willing to go outside the box and when his own ass was in a sling he did what people should do when their ass is in a sling and that is go hire a good plaintiff lawyer.
Beaumont-based trial lawyer Brent Coon to the Tribune on Gov. Rick Perry's hire of trial lawyer Tony Buzbee
This court should not hesitate to dismiss both counts of the indictment and bar the prosecution, immediately if not sooner.
Perry's attorneys in their Monday filing seeking to have the charges against him thrown out
I'll give him his due — for a guy who had to go into booking and take a mug shot and got charged with a couple of felonies and might go to prison ... aside from that he had a pretty good week.
Harold Cook, tongue firmly-in-cheek, on MSNBC Friday evening
Sometimes people will shake our hands and be very nice to us and say ‘I appreciate the work you do,’ but as soon as they walk in front of a TV camera, they say it a little bit differently.
Public integrity unit leader Gregg Cox to The New York Times on political criticism of his division
We need to look at the states, which are lavatories of innovation and democracy, reform.
Gov. Rick Perry speaking at an Americans for Prosperity event last Friday in Manchester, N.H.
State District Judge John Dietz on Thursday ruled the state's school finance system unconstitutional in a decision sure to reverberate through the November general election races. Dietz gave the Legislature until next July to find a remedy but it remains to be seen what will happen to the ruling on appeal.
Gov. Rick Perry did not let his legal travails keep him from re-introducing himself to voters in New Hampshire and South Carolina this past week. And he makes an appearance this weekend at the Americans for Prosperity's Defending the American Dream Summit in Dallas. He also made light of his indictments while on the stump, including putting T-shirts with his mug shot on sale.
Brandon Creighton was officially sworn in Tuesday as the new state Senator representing Southeast Texas' SD-4. On hand for the ceremony in the Texas House was Perry, his fellow advocate for state sovereignty.
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Wendy Davis released on Tuesday released her full tax return for 2013, days after the campaign tried to limit its dissemination by the press. The return showed that Davis earned nearly $250,000 for the year, buoyed by a $132,000 payment for her soon-to-be-released memoir, Forgetting to be Afraid.
Saying she wants to expand Texas high schoolers’ access to technical job training programs, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Wendy Davis on Tuesday announced a plan to create a Career-Technical Coordinating Board. The proposal was the latest in a string of education proposals from the candidate.
The state of Texas on Tuesday announced a second lawsuit against Xerox, alleging that the former contractor failed to turn over client health records relating to its operation of the state Medicaid program.
Craig Stoddart of Rockwall was named justice of the 5th Court of Appeals by Gov. Rick Perry for a term to expire at the next general election.
David Cabrales of Dallas was named by Perry to the Texas Economic Development Corporation for a term to expire at the pleasure of the governor.
Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst announced his appointments to a select committee set up to make recommendations on what constitutes a healthy balance in the state's Rainy Day Fund. Those appointees are: Jane Nelson, R-Flower Mound, co-chair; Robert Nichols, R-Jacksonville; Brian Birdwell, R-Granbury; Kevin Eltife, R-Tyler; and John Whitmire, D-Houston.
House Speaker Joe Straus announced the hire of two new senior staff members in advance of the next legislative session:
• Heather Fleming is the new senior health and human services policy advisor. She previously served as the health and human services budget analyst at House Appropriations and before that was former state Rep. Jim McReynolds' chief of staff.
• Erika Akpan is the new senior business and regulatory affairs policy advisor. She most recently was state Sen. John Carona's legislative director. She also handled energy and telecommunications issues for the Senate Business and Commerce Committee.
Todd Kimbriel was named Deputy Executive Director of the Texas Department of Information Resources, effective Sept. 1. In this role, he will also function as the state's Deputy Chief Information Officer.
Ruth Guerra has left U.S. Rep. Sam Johnson's shop — where she was his press secretary — to become director of Hispanic Media for the Republican National Committee.