The Midday Brief: June 1, 2010

“A right to remain silent and a right to a lawyer are the first of the Miranda rights warnings, which police recite to suspects during arrests and interrogations. But the justices said in a 5-4 decision that suspects must tell police they are going to remain silent to stop an interrogation, just as they must tell police that they want a lawyer.” — Mere Silence Doesn’t Invoke Miranda, Justices Rule —The Associated Press

“The writers note that, while many of these former lawmakers are now lobbying for well-known firms, ‘a surprising number have chosen, essentially, to hang out a shingle, setting up eponymous one- or two-person shops built around their principals' connections. One firm, Advantage Associates, has taken that concept to a new level, bringing together nine former lawmakers -- all white men, four of whom are named Bill -- under one roof.’” — Report says Texas leads in lawmakers-turned-lobbyists — Fort Worth Star-Telegram

“A security official in the northern state of Chihuahua, where Ciudad Juarez is located, said the three at the top of the list belong to La Linea, a gang tied to the Juarez cartel. Rewards of $1.1 million (15 million pesos) were offered for each.” — Mexico offers rewards for 33 drug gang suspects — Houston Chronicle

“By all means, let schoolchildren in Texas read Jefferson Davis’s inaugural address. But there should be more material from the Confederate side of the conflict than that. For generations, apologists for the Confederacy have claimed that secession was really about the tariff, or states’ rights, or something else -- anything other than preserving the right of some human beings to own, buy and sell other human beings.” — Texas textbooks and the truth about the Confederacy — Salon.com

“In the past month or so, crews of outlaws in a small armada of banged-up skiffs and high-powered bass boats launched from the Mexican shore have ambushed anglers from the Texas side. The buccaneers have struck in Mexican waters but within sight of the Texas shore.” — Fishers, residents worry about reports of piracy on South Texas lake — The Washington Post

New in the Texas Tribune:

“Since 1998, the earliest year for which TCEQ's electronic data is available, the agency has levied a total of more than 13,000 such actions and more than $140 million in penalties on entities big and small, its records show. In the same time period, the agency has pursued 520 cases through the courts for a total of $588 million in penalties.” — The Pollution Police

“Friday, state agencies were told to cut another 10 percent from their budgets as a way of closing what could be an $18 billion biennial shortfall. But those cuts will only scratch the surface of what's needed, so what to do next?” — The Ditch: Do It Yourself