Gov. Rick Perry, closing his speech to the first general session of the Texas Republican Convention.
Gov. Rick Perry, closing his speech to the first general session of the Texas Republican Convention. Bob Daemmrich
Spreading the Gospel of Texas

Since George W. Bush exited the White House, Texas has lost in place at the center of the political universe. But Texas Republicans, who gathered this weekend in Dallas, say there’s still plenty here for the rest of the nation to emulate and embrace. Ben Philpott filed this report for KUT News and the Tribune.

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Ben Philpott is a senior reporter for KUT-FM, Austin’s National Public Radio affiliate. He has been covering state politics and dozens of other topics for the station since 2002, during which time he...