Student who mocked Charlie Kirk’s death “no longer” at Texas State University as clampdowns continue
The university's announcement came hours after Gov. Greg Abbott called for the student's expulsion. Full Story
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![Students walk through an area known as “The Quad” on the first day of the fall semester at Texas State University in San Marcos on August 24, 2020.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Tarrant County’s Democratic commissioners skip meeting to prevent vote on tax rate cut
Republican county commissioners retaliated and voted to slash the Democrats’ office budget and eliminate road and bridge crew jobs. Full Story
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![Tarrant County Judge Tim O’Hare listens to comments over the electronic pollbook system in place during a Commissioners Court meeting in Fort Worth on April 18, 2023.]()
Credit: Shelby Tauber for The Texas Tribune -
TribCast: Texas A&M firing reignites campus free speech battles
After a firing at Texas A&M and the assassination of Charlie Kirk, free speech on-campus is back in the spotlight. Full Story
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![Charlie Kirk speaks at a rally for gubernatorial candidate Andy Biggs at the Arizona Biltmore in Phoenix on May 31, 2025.]()
Credit: Gage Skidmore/ZUMA Press Wire via REUTERS -
Texas State fires professor accused of trying to incite political violence in video
Thomas Alter’s lawyer said the professor would seek legal action for being fired after allegedly violating university policy in a video posted on social media. Full Story
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![Empty seats in the Alkek Teaching theatre on the first day of the fall semester at Texas State University in San Marcos on Aug. 24, 2020.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Lina Hidalgo, Harris County chief executive, won’t seek reelection
The progressive Democrat’s upset win at the age of 27 established her as a rising star. But her ascent was stunted in recent years amid clashes with fellow Democrats and unwavering GOP scrutiny. Full Story
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![Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo speaks at the first general session at the Texas Democratic Convention in El Paso on June 7, 2024.]()
Credit: Justin Hamel for The Texas Tribune -
“Our girls are still dead”: Camp Mystic parents pushed for laws to protect kids at camp. But their pain remains.
Two dads helped lead Camp Mystic parents to advocate for new camp rules in the Texas Legislature. What they wanted most was to have their daughters back. Full Story
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![Families of the Camp Mystic flood victims known as the “Heaven’s 27,” stand behind Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick as he speaks about the Fourth of July floods and the new bills at the Governor’s Mansion on Friday, Sept. 5, 2025. The bills, passed during the second special session of the 89th Texas Legislature, aim to enhance camp safety and protect Texans.]()
Credit: Manoo Sirivelu/The Texas Tribune -
James Talarico’s progressive take on Christianity made him an online sensation. Will it translate to his Texas Senate bid?
The Austin lawmaker says his faith fuels his vision of a Democratic Party that “fights back” against billionaires. Republican critics say his stances are at odds with Scripture. Full Story
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![State Rep. James Talarico, D-Austin, sits for a portrait in his office on Wednesday, August 27, 2025.]()
Credit: Manoo Sirivelu/The Texas Tribune -
Roughly 180 complaints filed against Texas teachers for alleged comments on killing of Charlie Kirk
Several school districts have already taken disciplinary action against staff for comments made about the Christian conservative activist’s death. Full Story
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![Texas Education Agency Commissioner Mike Morath participates in a roundtable at the Alpha School campus in Austin on Sept. 9, 2025.]()
Credit: Kaylee Greenlee for The Texas Tribune -
Faculty, advocacy groups fear Texas A&M firing threatens academic freedom
The firing happened over two years after Texas A&M stressed its support for academic freedom and amid a changing higher education landscape. Full Story
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![The College of Liberal Arts and Humanities building at Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas on Tuesday, Sep. 9, 2025.]()
Credit: Adriano Espinosa for The Texas Tribune -
Federal loopholes may have opened the door for sports betting alternatives that skirt Texas’ gambling ban
While the state's strict ban on gambling hasn’t changed, fast-growing daily fantasy sports and prediction market apps are giving Texans new ways to wager without leaving home. Full Story
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![While a legislative session filled with scrutiny for lottery couriers' unclear legality ended with a ban on the services, daily fantasy sports apps went unnoticed despite operating in a similarly gray legal area.]()
Credit: John Jordan/The Texas Tribune -
ICE seeks to deport DACA recipient after arrest at El Paso airport
An immigration judge ruled ICE can’t deport Catalina “Xochitl” Santiago, who has permission to be in the country, unless the agency can provide evidence that her legal status was revoked. Full Story
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![Desiree Miller, 25, the partner of Catalina “Xochitl” Santiago, a DACA recipient who was detained by immigration agents at El Paso International Airport in August, speaks to press during a rally for Xochitl’s release outside of the El Paso Service Processing Center, an immigration detention center in El Paso on Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2025.]()
Credit: Paul Ratje for The Texas Tribune -
Longtime GOP Rep. Michael McCaul says he will not seek reelection to Congress
The Austin lawmaker, first elected in 2004, chaired the influential House Foreign Affairs and Homeland Security committees. He is the second Texas Republican this week to bow out of Congress. Full Story
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![U.S. Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Austin, at The Texas Tribune Festival in Austin on Sept. 6, 2024.]()
Credit: Eli Hartman/The Texas Tribune -
State Board of Education OKs Texas-heavy social studies plan, setting stage for clash over history lessons
Educators worry the plan will deemphasize topics like world geography, history and cultures. The board aims to vote on what specific content social studies lessons will include by next summer. Full Story
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![A school bus drives past the Texas Capitol Complex as State Board of Education members hold a meeting in the William B. Travis building on Nov. 17, 2023, in Austin.]()
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Texas legislative committees will study freedom of speech on college campuses in wake of Charlie Kirk killing
The committees were made to honor slain conservative activist Charlie Kirk and come as university faculty have come under online scrutiny. Full Story
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![A student walks through the Library Mall at the University of North Texas in Denton on March 22, 2022.]()
Credit: Emil Lippe for The Texas Tribune -
Gov. Greg Abbott orders minors banned from THC products
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick on Friday called Abbott’s decision a pathway to full legalization of cannabis, including marijuana which is still federally illegal. Hemp-derived THC is legal. Full Story
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![THC products sit near the cash register in Hyde Park Market in Austin on May 5, 2025.]()
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Democratic voters favor undeclared candidates O’Rourke and Crockett in hypothetical Senate primary, poll finds
The survey found many Texas voters are either undecided or would support candidates who haven’t actually entered the race. It also showed GOP Sen. John Cornyn leading Attorney General Ken Paxton. Full Story
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![Left: Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton addresses the crowd during a rally at the Tarrant County Republican Party Headquarters in Fort Worth, Texas on Monday, January 6, 2025. Right: U.S. Sen. John Cornyn speaks with press after taking a tour of Camp East Montana, a new U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention facility that will be housing migrants, at Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas on Monday, August 11, 2025.]()
Credit: The Texas Tribune -
“Operation Lone Star 2.0”: DPS arresting thousands of undocumented immigrants across Texas to aid Trump’s mass deportation
The Department of Public Safety has shifted from Biden-era border enforcement to helping expel people from the country, a job once exclusively done by federal authorities. Full Story
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![DPS troopers return to their patrol route after making a traffic stop in southeast Austin on Aug. 7, 2023.]()
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Texas bill to restrict abortion pills beefs up an existing legal tool for a new fight
HB 7, which passed the Legislature this month, allows private citizens to sue abortion pill providers and manufacturers, mirroring a 2021 law that allows private enforcement of abortion bans. Full Story
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![Misoprostol on the shelf at Parker Road Drug Store in Greenville, S.C., on June 13, 2024.]()
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Providing basic care to students does not violate Texas’ parental consent law, state guidance to schools says
The guidance comes in response to confusion over a new state law requiring schools to notify parents whenever students need health care services. Full Story
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![Students and teachers walk between classes at Blanco Vista Elementary School in San Marcos on Monday August, 23, 2021.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Texas drops lawsuit against doctor accused of illegally providing care to transgender youth
Dr. Hector Granados of El Paso said he wished AG Ken Paxton’s office had let him show he stopped providing gender-affirming care for youths before the law took effect. Full Story
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![Pediatric endocrinologist Dr. Hector Granados speaks during an interview at his private practice in El Paso on Jan. 21, 2025.]()
Credit: AP Photo/Andres Leighton