President Obama speaks to a crowd at the University of Texas on Aug. 9, 2010.
President Obama speaks to a crowd at the University of Texas on Aug. 9, 2010. Bob Daemmrich

Your afternoon reading:

  • “The Down Syndrome Association of Central Texas is asking the House to make a late change to the sonogram bill because it would allow women to opt out of the pre-abortion procedure if the fetus has an ‘irreversible medical condition or abnormality.'” โ€”ย Down syndrome group seeks change in sonogram bill, Postcards
  • “Don’t let the headlines fool you. While the Senate and House have both passed versions of the budget, the debate is far from over. That’s because both budgets rely on major cuts to public education, and those cuts are contingent on new bills getting passed. If a school finance bill doesn’t pass, the budgets don’t balance.” โ€”ย School Finance: The Democrats’ Last Chance to Stop the Budget, The Texas Observer

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  • “In an unmarked office building in this ranching town, among thousands of Revolution-era documents and two muskets with bayonets, David Barton might seem like a quirky history buff. But the true ambition of this slender man in cowboy boots is to use Americaโ€™s past to remake its future, and he has the ear of several would-be presidents.” โ€” Using History to Mold Ideas on the Right, The New York Times

New in The Texas Tribune:

  • “Some of the thousands of untested rape kits lining evidence storage room shelves statewide would finally get testing under a bill the Texas Senate approved today.” โ€” Senate Approves Rape Kit Testing Bill

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David Muto was the editor of TribTalk, The Texas Tribune's opinion page. He is also the Tribune's copy editor. A Richardson native, he attended the University of Texas at Austin, where he earned degrees...