The Brief: Paul Ryan Will Visit San Antonio to Stump for Will Hurd

The Big Conversation

U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan will be coming to San Antonio in mid-October to help U.S. Rep. Will Hurd, R-San Antonio, win his hotly contested seat against Pete Gallego — a rematch of a close contest from two years ago.

"Will Hurd's national security experience and principled representation makes him an effective advocate for Texas's 23rd Congressional District and a major asset in Congress," Ryan spokesman Zack Roday said in a statement to the Tribune. "Speaker Ryan is all in for Congressman Hurd, and he is looking forward to joining him in October to support his re-election efforts."

Ryan has previously campaigned for Hurd, holding various events for him in both Washington, D.C., and San Antonio. Other prominent figures in the GOP, including Gov. Greg Abbott and former presidential candidate John Kasich, have rallied behind Hurd as well.

As the Tribune’s Patrick Svitek reports, sending Ryan to Texas signals that Republicans are prioritizing the re-election of Hurd — in the only competitive congressional seat in Texas — in their efforts to keep their majority in the House.

Trib Must Reads

Analysis: High Voter Registration Figures Are Great — Sometimes, by Ross Ramsey — Registering new people to vote is terrific, as far as it goes. But it doesn't mean more people are going to actually cast votes.

To Help Rehabilitate Juveniles, Texas Keeping Them Closer to Home, by Johnathan Silver — More than a year after state lawmakers told it to stop incarcerating so many teenagers, the Texas Juvenile Justice Department has diverted 52 juvenile offenders for rehabilitation instead of shipping them to state lockups.

Texas Officials Want Money to Investigate Student-Teacher Relationships, by Elena Mejia Lutz — Faced with growing state attention on improper student-teacher relationships, the Texas Education Agency is asking lawmakers for hundreds of thousands of additional dollars to help investigate them — plus new legislation. 

Paxton Loses Last-Minute Bid to Stop Federal Internet Transition, by Patrick Svitek — Attorney General Ken Paxton on Friday lost his last-minute bid for a court injunction to prevent the federal government from transferring its oversight of internet registrations to an international body.

New Texas Health Executive Will Oversee Abstinence, Abortion Programs, by Alexa Ura — The state health commission has begun advertising for someone to fill a new executive job overseeing “women’s education services” —  including abstinence education and counseling on alternatives to abortion. The position could pay six figures.

Texas Officially Withdraws from Refugee Resettlement Program, by Alexa Ura — Texas has officially withdrawn from the nation’s refugee resettlement program, according to Gov. Greg Abbott's office. But that won't stop the federal government from continuing to help refugees relocate here.  

The Day Ahead

•    The Senate Select Committee on Property Tax Reform and Relief will hear testimony on the property tax process, ways to promote transparency by all taxing entities and develop options to reduce the tax burden on property owners during a morning hearing at Collin College Spring Creek Campus.

Elsewhere

(Links below lead to outside websites; content might be behind paywall)

A Look at Texas' History of Laws Suppressing Minority Voters (Audio), Reveal 

'Guac the Vote:' Houston taco trucks seek to register voters, Houston Chronicle 

Donald Trump Tax Records Show He Could Have Avoided Taxes for Nearly Two Decades, The Times Found, The New York Times

AG Loretta Lynch to kick off National Community Policing Week in Dallas, The Dallas Morning News

Source: State Rep. Dawnna Dukes attempting a deal with prosecutors, Austin American-Statesman 

In Pasadena, Redistricting Leaves Hispanics on Political Sideline (Audio), Houston Chronicle and Reveal

Reporter ousted from autism conference featuring Bexar DA Nico LaHood, Jenny McCarthy, San Antonio Express-News

UT students hooked by scam peddling iTunes cards to pay 'student taxes', The Dallas Morning News

George W. Bush's daughter attends Clinton fundraiser in Paris, CNN

Quote to Note

"The federal government either doesn’t have the capability or the will to keep Americans safe in the refugee system. Texas will not be an accomplice to this dereliction of duty to the United States of America."

— Gov. Greg Abbott said in a Facebook post Sunday after Texas withdrew from the refugee resettlement program. 

Today in TribTalk

Texas has become the nation's economic engine in large part by allowing competition to thrive in markets, even in such unlikely activities as providing benefits for injured workers, write Bill Peacock and Jennifer Minjarez of the Texas Public Policy Foundation.

News From Home

•    Getting to know you: We’re conducting a survey of Texas Tribune readers. Your responses will help us get to know you — and how we can serve you — better. Do you have 10 minutes to help The Texas Tribune? Take the survey now.

Trib Events for the Calendar

•   A Conversation with state Reps. Four Price and John Smithee on Oct. 4 at Amarillo College in Amarillo

•   The Texas Response To Zika on Oct. 18 at BCBSTX Headquarters in Richardson

•   A Conversation with U.S. Rep Michael McCaul on Oct. 25 at The Austin Club 

•   A Conversation with U.S. Rep. Beto O'Rourke on Nov. 4 at The Austin Club 

•   A Conversation with state Reps. Andrew Murr and Jason Isaac on Nov. 14 at Schreiner University in Kerrville