Voting sites expected to open in Panhandle on Tuesday, despite wildfires
Candidates continued their campaigns at a subdued pace, as they focused on getting resources for fire victims. Full Story
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Robert Downen was a reporter covering democracy and the threats to it, including extremism, disinformation and conspiracies. Before joining the Tribune in 2022, he worked for five years at the Houston Chronicle. As a Hearst Media fellow, he developed what would become "Abuse of Faith," a landmark investigation into child sexual abuse in the Southern Baptist Convention that prompted a Department of Justice investigation. Before coming to Texas, Robert was a business reporter in New York's capital region and the managing editor of six newspapers in his home state of Illinois. He is a 2014 graduate of Eastern Illinois University.
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![While some homes in the Fritch area were spared from the Windy Deuce Fire, others were completely destroyed.]()
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Greg Abbott, Tim Dunn spend millions in Texas GOP primary fights over vouchers, impeachment
Texans For Lawsuit Reform and pro-voucher groups are also spending millions. Full Story
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![Texas Gov. Greg Abbott signs a bill banning COVID-19 vaccine mandates at the Governor's Mansion in Austin on Nov. 10, 2023.]()
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In leaked audio, Supreme Court Justice John Devine railed against “brainwashed” GOP colleagues
Devine, a former anti-abortion activist, faces a heated primary challenge that has focused on questions about his ethics. Full Story
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![Texas Supreme Court Justice John Devine, far left, with fellow judges on the House floor in Austin in 2013.]()
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Despite ties to defendants, Texas Supreme Court justice didn’t recuse himself from sex abuse case
Two decades ago, John Devine worked with the law firm of Paul Pressler and Jared Woodfill, later defendants in a Southern Baptist abuse case. Full Story
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![Texas Supreme Court Justice John Devine listens to Douglas Alexander make oral arguments in the cases Abbott v. City of San Antonio, Abbott v. Jenkins, and Abbott v. Harris County, Feb. 22. 2023 in Austin. The cases were consolidated for oral arguments, as they all concern whether an executive order barring local mask mandates falls within the scope of authority granted to the Governor under the Texas Disaster Act.]()
Credit: Sara Diggins/Austin American-Statesman via REUTERS -
Texas GOP leaders reverse course, ban antisemites from party
The party’s executive committee also formally censured House Speaker Dade Phelan on Saturday. Full Story
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![Republican Party emblems and signs at the Republican Party of Texas office in downtown Austin.]()
Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune -
Texas House candidate Kyle Biedermann blasts expulsion of Bryan Slaton, removed for having sex with a drunk intern
In a statement, Biedermann said the point he was trying to make was that leaders “selectively punish impropriety.” Full Story
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![Former state Reps. Bryan Slaton, Kyle Biedermann on the House floor at the state Capitol in Austin on April 26, 2021.]()
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Federal investigators asked to reopen fraud case against Texas House candidate Jared Woodfill
Woodfill’s former client fears that politics played a role in the case, which she said was mishandled and abruptly closed by the Harris County DA’s office. Full Story
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![Jared Woodfill speaks during a reception for for his campaign at the Federal American Grill in Houston on Monday, Feb. 5, 2024.]()
Credit: Annie Mulligan for The Texas Tribune -
Texas' standoff with the feds in Eagle Pass is igniting calls for secession and fears of violence
The calls for Texas to defend itself and defy the federal government have set fire to a long-simmering fight over states’ rights, emboldening right-wing figures. Full Story
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![A Texas National Guard humvee parked at the gates of Shelby Park, in Eagle Pass, on Jan. 16, 2024. Texas has closed off Shelby Park, cutting access to federal agents to part of the Texas-Mexico border and escalating tensions between the Biden administration and Gov. Greg Abbott.]()
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“Hold the line”: Republicans rally to Abbott’s defense in border standoff with Biden
From the Texas House to former President Donald Trump, Republicans around the country defended Gov. Greg Abbott’s challenges to the Biden administration's border policies. Full Story
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![Gov. Greg Abbott, displays SB 1900, one of six bills he signed during a border security bill signing session at the state capitol in Austin on June 8, 2023. The bills signed include SB 423, SB 602, SB 1133, SB 1403, SB 1484, and SB 1900. “Washington D.C. has failed to do its job to secure the border,” Abbott said. “As a result, Texas has had to take unprecedented steps in responding to the crisis caused by the Biden administration on the border, and in response the Texas legislature has stepped up to make sure that we will be able to more robustly respond.”]()
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Email sheds new light on Texas House candidate Jared Woodfill’s role in Southern Baptist leader’s sex abuse scandal
Woodfill has been endorsed by Attorney General Ken Paxton despite his connection to Paul Pressler, a prominent religious figure accused of rape. Full Story
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![Attorney and former Harris County Republican Party Chair Jared Woodfill holds a press conference in Houston to discuss his election fraud claims and answer questions about the arrest of an ex-cop who he hired to investigate the claims, on Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2020.]()
Credit: Courtesy of Steve Gonzales/The Houston Chronicle