The Hispanic vote in Texas is often referred to as a "sleeping giant" because of historically low turnout. If Hispanics were to show up at the ballot box in record numbers, they could easily influence elections of all kinds. In part two of his three-part series, Ben Philpott of KUT News and the Tribune reports on the efforts of state Democrats to sound the alarm. Full Story
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Evan returns for this week's TribCast, in which the podcast gang takes up campaign finance, the Hispanic Republicans of Texas, Gov. Rick Perry's taxes and the committee shakeup in the Texas Senate. Full Story
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It couldn't be much better for Rolando Pablos. Full Story
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House Speaker Joe Straus, R-San Antonio, did not have to win a formalwear or swimwear competition to land the title of Mr. South Texas. Full Story
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Your afternoon reading. Full Story
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Hispanic Republicans of Texas made its public debut Tuesday. Even the group's leaders are even willing to admit that the political atmosphere could be friendlier. Full Story
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A court case involving two University of Texas applicants who believe they were denied admission because they're white threatens to reinvigorate an ideological skirmish that peaked in the late 1990s. The first lawsuit of its kind brought against a university since a pair of landmark U.S. Supreme Court decisions in 2003, Fisher v. Texas has observers everywhere wondering if the state's troubled history with race-based admissions makes it the ideal incubator for the next round of affirmative action battles. Full Story
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In the latest clash between the Houston Independent School District and those who question its use of "value-added data" to grade and sometimes fire teachers, state Sen. Mario Gallegos Jr., D-Houston, grilled an HSID representative at Tuesday's Senate Education Committee hearing over what he decried as a transparency issue for the district. Full Story
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More than a dozen state officials have at least $1 million in campaign money — and many of them face nominal financial competition this fall. Full Story
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Jose Reyes Ferriz on what he'll do next, why his successor isn't corrupt and why the violence in his crime-ridden city will continue. Full Story
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Your afternoon reading. Full Story
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Bill V. Flores, president of University of Houston-Downtown, is joining calls for the passage of the DREAM Act, which clears a path to permanent-residency status for undocumented students. Full Story
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It's back to back-and-forth in the governor's race this week. Full Story
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After a sluggish 2009, Texas' top trade districts — Houston, Laredo and El Paso — are rebounding well from the national recession and witnessing huge increases in the value of trade passing through their ports this year. Full Story
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Most of Texas' health insurance companies have fully covered the costs of the infant vaccine Prevnar 13, which prevents deadly cases of bacterial pneumonia and meningitis. The exception has been Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas, which has forced physicians to make up the difference or turn babies away. But no more: On Monday, the same day The Texas Tribune asked about the reimbursement gap, BCBS reversed course. It will now cover all costs associated with the vaccine. Full Story
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Private, for-profit colleges, which offer professional certificates at a steep cost, have come under fire for peddling big student loans to vulnerable Texans in exchange for credentials of dubious value. Full Story
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This month, parts of Central Texas will decide how much water will be in the aquifers below the land for the next 50 years. The decisions will affect Dripping Springs, Johnson City, Wimberley and other towns south and west of Austin that rely on groundwater supplies. Erika Aguilar of KUT News reports. Full Story
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Of the 1,200 National Guard troops deployed to the U.S.-Mexico border, Texas will see 250 — fewer than half of the 524 ordered to Arizona. Full Story
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Your afternoon reading. Full Story
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A national program to encourage energy-efficiency and solar in homes is generating interest in Texas cities — even as it has encountered setbacks in Washington. Full Story
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