Houston midwife accused of illegal abortions appeals clinic closures
In an appeal filed this week, Maria Rojas’ attorneys accused Attorney General Ken Paxton’s office of a careless investigation. Full Story
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Eleanor Klibanoff is the law and politics reporter, based in Austin, where she covers the the Texas Legislature, the Office of the Attorney General, state and federal courts and politics writ large. She also co-hosts the weekly politics podcast, TribCast. Eleanor previously spent three years as the Tribune’s women’s health reporter, covering abortion, maternal health and LGBTQ issues. Before coming to Texas, Eleanor worked for the Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting, where she reported, hosted and produced the Peabody-nominated podcast, “Dig.” Eleanor was born in Philadelphia and raised in Atlanta, and attended The George Washington University in Washington, D.C.
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![A close-up of family planning pamphlets at Latinoamericana Medical Clinic in Spring, Texas, on March 27, 2025. The clinic, part of Maria Margarita Rojas' network, remains closed after a Waller County judge granted a temporary injunction prohibiting the facility from providing medical services.]()
Credit: Hope Mora for The Texas Tribune -
“A gift to our mothers”: Moms could drive solo in car pool lanes under Texas House bill
The bill originally allowed pregnant women to drive in HOV lanes, to be consistent with Texas abortion laws, but legislators extended it to all mothers. Full Story
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![A toll road in Austin on Dec. 17, 2019.]()
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Texas lawmakers propose abortion pill bill that can’t be challenged in state courts
The bill contains many provisions legal experts say are likely unconstitutional, including one that says it can’t be challenged in state court. Full Story
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![State Sen. Bryan Hughes, R-Mineola, speaks on the Senate floor on March 25, 2025.]()
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Texas House votes to strictly define man and woman, excluding trans people from state records
If it becomes law, the bill would define sex based on reproductive organs and require state documents and policies to comply with that framework. Full Story
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![Over 300 activists and supporters marched from the Bexar County Courthouse to Crockett Park in “March for Us,” San Antonio's third annual celebration of Transgender Day of Visibility, on Saturday, March 29, 2025 in San Antonio, Texas.]()
Credit: Salgu Wissmath for The Texas Tribune -
TribCast: One month of session left, and the kids are fighting
The biggest bill is already signed, but there are plenty of wars left to wage in the last month of the session. Full Story
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![Texas House of Representatives Members vote on an amendment on the House floor in Austin on April 16, 2025.]()
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Wide-ranging crackdown on abortion pills passes Texas Senate
The bill gives the state new tools to try to stop the flow of abortion pills, but critics say it’s legally dubious on several fronts. Full Story
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![A nurse drops Mifepristone, the first pill in a medical abortion, into a patient's hand at Alamo Women's Clinic in Carbondale, Illinois, on April 9, 2024.]()
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Bill clarifying when doctors can perform medically necessary abortions clears Senate
The bill, which must still go through the House, received unanimous approval from the upper chamber. Full Story
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![Dr. Franz Theard, looks at a patient's sonogram at his abortion clinic, Women's Reproductive Clinic of New Mexico in Santa Teresa, New Mexico, on Jan. 13, 2023. Dr. Theard's abortion clinic, less than a mile from Texas, where abortion is illegal since the landmark legal case Roe v. Wade which protected a woman's constitutional right to an abortion was overturned, provides medical abortions for women who are flying and driving hundreds of miles across Texas.]()
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Texas will ask voters to approve $3 billion to study dementia
State lawmakers have been pushing the dementia fund for years, modeling it after a state fund for cancer research. Full Story
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![Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick at a press conference at the Capitol in Austin on April 23, 2025.]()
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Amended bill clarifying Texas abortion laws receives Senate panel approval
The revised bill, which seeks to clarify when a doctor can perform medically necessary abortions, aims to address concerns from abortion advocates and conservative groups. Full Story
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![A patient returns for a follow up appointment to make sure her abortion treatment was successful hours after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade at the Alamo Women’s Reproductive Services abortion clinic in San Antonio on June 24, 2022.]()
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TribCast: Get out the popcorn, it’s Paxton vs. Cornyn
The gang welcomes back an old friend, Patrick Svitek, to preview Texas’ biggest political throwdown in years. Full Story
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![Incumbent U.S. Sen. John Cornyn (l.) is being challenged by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. The two Republicans will face off in the 2026 primaries.]()
Credit: Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call/Sipa USA via REUTERS|Emil T. Lippe for The Texas Tribune