Analysis: Coronavirus is not the only affliction preying on community
The protests of the last week are about an affliction that's bigger than the pandemic — and important enough for people to forget about social distancing. Full Story
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Ross Ramsey co-founded The Texas Tribune in 2009 and served as its executive editor until his retirement in 2022. He wrote regular columns on politics, government and public policy. Before joining the Tribune, he was editor and co-owner of Texas Weekly. He did a 28-month stint in government with the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Before that, he reported for the Houston Chronicle, the Dallas Times Herald, as a Dallas-based freelancer for regional and national magazines and newspapers, and for radio stations in Denton and Dallas.
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![Demonstrators march down Copper Avenue toward the El Paso Police Department headquarters building during a protest over the death of George Floyd on May 31, 2020.]()
Credit: Joel Angel Juarez for The Texas Tribune -
Analysis: For a state in pain, a little empathy is only a start
Gov. Greg Abbott has avoided the president's militaristic tenor and has expressed empathy with nonviolent demonstrators protesting George Floyd's death. But the conversations about what's next haven't started. Full Story
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![President Donald Trump speaks with Gov. Greg Abbott in the Oval Office on May 7, 2020.]()
Credit: Tom Brenner/POOL via REUTERS -
Analysis: The coronavirus forces face-to-face politics online
Campaigning during a pandemic is a lot like normal, without the people. Just put the word "virtual" in front of the normal activities: fundraising, town hall meetings and even block walking. Full Story
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![From left, Russell Holloway and Amanda Chavira listen to democratic presidential candidate and U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Massachusetts, speak at a town hall in Austin on Sept. 10, 2019.]()
Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune -
Analysis: Judges deal Texans more confusion about voting by mail
If you were looking for voting-by-mail advice from the Texas Supreme Court, you're out of luck. The court ruled that the pandemic is no reason to expand voting by mail, but also that election officials don't have to check voter claims of disability. Full Story
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![Mail-in ballot application.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Analysis: Rising property values — and taxes — during an economic slump
Many Texas property owners are sweating potential increases in their taxes, which are based on property values that don't reflect a pandemic, an oil price collapse or a slumping economy. Full Story
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![A home in Austin, Texas. Feb. 21, 2019.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Analysis: Politics and a pandemic jumble Texas elections
The partisan differences about voting by mail in Texas — Democrats want to expand it, Republicans believe it's insecure — were in place long before COVID-19 came along. But the pandemic has escalated the debate. Full Story
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![Mail-in ballot envelopes at the Travis County Elections division headquarters.]()
Credit: Charlie Pearce for The Texas Tribune -
Analysis: In spite of it all, a Texas government that’s running full-steam ahead
The pandemic has devastated the Texas economy. The state comptroller says that will mean billions of dollars less than expected for the current budget. But state agencies haven't received any orders to cut their spending. Full Story
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![Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, Gov. Greg Abbott and House Speaker Dennis Bonnen brief reporters during a press conference on a Domestic Terrorism Task Force roundtable held at the capitol on Jan. 7, 2020.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Analysis: Texas tiptoes down the road to normal
As some pandemic doors are slowly opened, others are getting kicked in. Either way, individual choices are quickly replacing the weeks of government instructions about what and what not to do. Full Story
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![Bar and Restaurant.]()
Credit: Anneke Paterson for The Texas Tribune -
Analysis: The path to emergency powers in Texas might run through the courts
State and local governments are at odds over what should and should not be allowed during a pandemic — a debate over health, economics and civil liberties. The old sparring partners have increasingly appealed to a referee: the courts. Full Story
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![Attorney General Ken Paxton speaks to the convention delegates at the Texas Republican Convention in San Antonio.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
Analysis: In Abbott’s hands, executive orders look like suggestions
Even as Gov. Greg Abbott is loosening his pandemic restrictions on people and businesses, he is buckling to opponents who protest that he's moving too slowly. He's undermining his own authority — and enforcement of the rest of his rules. Full Story
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![A sign requiring masks is posted at Cosmic Cowboy on South Congress Avenue on Austin. May 8, 2020.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune