Rick Perry drew direct fire from a potential rival Friday night when GOP presidential contender Rick Santorum attacked the Texas governor’s recent comments about how far states can go in setting policies on gay marriage and abortion. Full Story
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Michael Williams, who jumped from the U.S. Senate race to the congressional race in the new CD-33 in North Texas, says he'll jump again: He's running for congress in CD-25, a district that stretches from Tarrant County all the way south to Hays County. Full Story
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Gov. Rick Perry, who has at least one eye on the White House, is already beating potential rival Rick Santorum in this quite unofficial contest: book sales at the Western Conservative Summit in Denver. The two were expected to sign books, in the same room, Friday afternoon. Full Story
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The Texas Forensic Science Commission’s investigation of the science used to convict Cameron Todd Willingham may be at an end after the state’s top attorney ruled that the panel cannot consider evidence in cases older than 2005. Full Story
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The new accountability ratings released Friday for public school campuses in the state's 1,228 districts and charter schools are markedly lower from the ratings given last year. Full Story
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Your afternoon reading: Abbott prohibits forensic panel from ruling on Willingham case; Ron Paul vs. Rick Perry; Warren Jeffs breaks his silence in court Full Story
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Texas may have two well-known Republican candidates running for president, and some say Gov. Rick Perry and U.S. Rep. Ron Paul are "diametrically opposed" to one another. The real battle between them isn't over money. It's over ideas. Full Story
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A new standardized testing system will replace the TAKS exam this year, and as Kelsey Sheridan of KUT News reports, the switch to more difficult tests comes as schools are already grappling with reduced budgets. Full Story
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Gov. Rick Perry's show must go on, a judge ruled Thursday. Full Story
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Gov. Rick Perry wasn't born into wealth and has drawn relatively modest pay as an elected official since 1985, but he's made a small fortune on land transactions — some with the help of rich and politically connected friends. Full Story
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As Gov. Rick Perry dances closer and closer to the presidential flame, those Texas Republicans who didn't board the train to Washington in 2000 might get another chance. Full Story
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As cash-strapped public schools attempt to squeeze every possible dollar out of their budgets, an unpleasant reality awaits parents: They will most likely have to pay for programs and services that schools once provided for free. Full Story
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In a rare move Thursday, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, the state’s highest criminal court, stayed the scheduled Aug. 18 execution of Larry Swearingen, convicted of the 1998 rape and murder of 19-year-old Melissa Trotter. Full Story
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Nine Texas government borrowers including Dallas, Bexar, Tarrant and Travis counties could face costly downgrades in their bond ratings if the federal government doesn't quickly resolve its debt ceiling problems. Full Story
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The Environmental Protection Agency on Thursday issued new regulatory standards for oil and gas wells that use hydraulic fracturing. Full Story
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A weeklong partial shutdown of the Federal Aviation Administration has delayed airport construction projects in Houston and Abilene. Full Story
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Michael Williams might be on the move again, switching from a new Tarrant County-centered congressional district to one that starts on that county's southern edge and runs all the way south of Austin into Hays County. Full Story
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Gov. Rick Perry, taking flak from social conservatives, took a step back from his laissez-faire approach to New York’s gay marriage law on Thursday. Now he says it threatens the definition of marriage everywhere, including Texas. Full Story
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Gov. Rick Perry’s name won’t appear on the key Iowa Straw Poll ballot, but he’ll face a test of his strength among Western conservatives this weekend in Denver in a straw poll of declared and undeclared Republican candidates. Full Story
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Your afternoon reading: Perry walks back gay marriage remark; Troy Fraser for governor?; Perry eying Fox News debate Full Story
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