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  • Ads Infinitum: Chet Edwards' "Experience"

    By Morgan Smith

    A new ad from the Chet Edwards campaign spotlights a recent Dallas Morning News article that revealed his Republican opponent, Bill Flores, failed to repay $7.5 million he received from the federal government to rescue his company from a bankruptcy. Full Story 

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  • The Mayor of Mayhem

    By Julián Aguilar

    “The scourge of drug trafficking, kidnapping, extortion, robbery and violence has dismantled our economy, has eroded our tranquility and has stained our social structures with blood,” said Ciudad Juárez's new mayor, Héctor “Teto” Murguía, at his inauguration Sunday. “This economic and social disaster deserves a desperate cry for help and solidarity.” Full Story 

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    Credit: Illustration by Todd Wiseman

  • A Hole in the Safety Net

    By Emily Ramshaw

    Advocates say the Department of Aging and Disability Services’ baseline budget request eliminates financing for more than 13,000 people — the majority waiting to receive Medicaid waiver services. Agency officials will only say that an “unknown number” of people already receiving the services could lose them. It's unclear if lawmakers can make these cuts without risking losing federal funding; federal health care reform requires states to maintain coverage at the same level it was when the Affordable Care Act became law in March. Full Story 

    Barbara Cullison does her daughter Audrey's hair. Audrey, who is autistic, risks losing her Medicaid waiver services because of state budget cuts.
    Credit: Wenjing Zhang

  • Meanwhile, Back in the Gulf...

    By Matt Largey, KUT News

    Next week will be six months since a BP oil well in the Gulf of Mexico began spewing out millions of barrels of crude. Scientists are now scrambling to collect data and determine what — if any — long term damage the Gulf ecosystem might suffer. Matt Largey of KUT News reports. Full Story 

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  • Where They Stand: SBOE District 5

    By Ben Philpott, KUT News

    Over the next two days, Ben Philpott of KUT News and the Tribune will report on the hard-fought battles for Central Texas seats on the State Board of Education. Today: where candidates in District 5 — which covers 12 counties, including Hays, Caldwell and parts of Travis — stand on a variety of issues. Full Story 

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  • The Life Jacket

    By Brandi Grissom

    For some incumbent Republican House members who might otherwise be struggling to stay above water — Harper-Brown, Bohac, Driver, Kleinschmidt, Anderson, Hartnett, Legler — President Barack Obama may be just the flotation device they need. Full Story 

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    Credit: Illustration by Todd Wiseman

  • TribBlog: Keller Cleared

    By Morgan Smith

    A specially appointed court of review vacated the State Commission on Judicial Conduct's sanction of Sharon Keller today, saying the state board acted unconstitutionally in reprimanding the presiding judge of the Court of Criminal Appeals. Full Story 

    Sharon Keller at the 2010 Texas Republican Convention.

  • Swing Shift?

    By Elise Hu

    In one of the most competitive Texas House races this fall, Republican Cindy Burkett is challenging freshman state Rep. Robert Miklos, D-Mesquite, in a southeastern Dallas County swing district. Full Story 

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  • A Quarter-Ounce of Prevention

    By Julie Chang

    Callers have flooded the Texas Poison Center this year with reports of chest pains and increased heart rates because of a synthetic drug that mimics marijuana. Some cities are already taking steps to outlaw the substance, and lawmakers will propose a statewide ban in the next legislative session. Full Story 

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  • A Sophomore Slump?

    By Elise Hu

    Half a dozen Democratic House members first elected in 2008 face an important test this fall: Can they win re-election on their own merits, without the help of high turnout generated by a popular presidential candidate? Republicans believe the combination of the current anti-incumbent mood, the Obama backlash and the built-in advantage that the GOP enjoys in Texas spells doom for Dems up and down the ballot. But the freshmen playing defense point to a few factors working in their favor. Full Story 

    These freshmen state lawmakers are battling to hang onto their seats this fall.
    Credit: Illustration by Todd Wiseman

  • ICE Under Fire

    By Julián Aguilar

    A year after Immigration and Customs Enforcement announced it would reform immigration detention, advocacy groups say the agency has fallen short on a few key counts: addressing alleged human rights violations and expanding alternatives to incarceration. Full Story 

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    Credit: Ben Hassan

  • Money, Honey

    By Ross Ramsey

    The campaign finance reports due 30 days before an election spur at least two varieties of anxiety. There's the obvious thing: Candidate A has more money than Candidate B. And there's the less-obvious thing, often a product of experience: Who started handing out checks, and to whom, the day after the reporting cutoff? This year, the deadline date was September 23, and the next reports — covering the final week of September and all but the last week of October, won't be here for a few weeks. Rumors of last-minute money are swirling. Full Story 

  • 2010: Beaumont, Corpus Papers Endorse White

    By Evan Smith

    The Beaumont Enterprise and the Corpus Christi Caller-Times today threw their support behind Bill White's bid to unseat Gov. Rick Perry, bringing to four the number of newspapers that have endorsed the Democratic challenger over the Republican incumbent. Full Story 

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    Credit: Caleb Bryant Miller

  • TribWeek: In Case You Missed It

    By Evan Smith

    Ramsey on whether Bill White at the top of the ballot helps Houston-area candidates, Aaronson and Stiles present a treemap of Texas political ads, Stiles and Ramsey on the latest campaign finance filings, Aguilar on the Laredo mayor's race, Hamilton on anonymous tweeters who make mischief, Ramshaw interviews a disability rights activist with a thing for iPads and bibles, Hu on the accidental release of Rick Perry's "secret" schedule, M. Smith on the bitter back-and-forth over a voter registration effort in Harris County, Philpott's micro-debate on education between two House candidates, Grissom on this week's twist in the Cameron Todd Willingham investigation and, in our latest collaboration with a big-city Texas newspaper, Stiles, Grissom and John Tedesco of the San-Antonio Express News on what kind of Texans, exactly, are applying to carry concealed handguns: The best of our best from Oct. 4 to 9, 2010. Full Story 

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