Did party politics cost a Texas city manager and attorney their jobs?
City councils are typically nonpartisan. Odessa residents are wondering if that’s still the case after the local Republican Party helped elect new council members. Full Story
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![Odessa city manager Michael Marrero and city attorney Natasha Brooks were fired by the City Council on Dec. 13, 2022.]()
Credit: odessa-tx.gov -
GOP lawmakers accuse investment firms of breaking a law that prohibits divesting from oil and gas
At a senate committee hearing in Marshall, Texas Republican lawmakers accused investment firms of pulling back on fossil fuels, running afoul of a 2021 law that prohibits the state from contracting with or investing in companies that “boycott” oil, natural gas and coal companies. Full Story
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![Pumpjacks at sunrise in the Permian Basin in West Texas.]()
Credit: Jerod Foster for The Texas Tribune -
U.S. judge in Amarillo halts Biden administration’s attempt to end “remain in Mexico” policy
The Biden administration stopped enrolling new asylum-seekers into the Trump-era program in August. Full Story
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![Hundreds of migrants wait in line along the banks of the Rio Grande to seek asylum in the U.S., Monday, December 12, 2022.]()
Credit: Ivan Pierre Aguirre for The Texas Tribune -
After recount, Democrat remains winner of battleground South Texas Senate seat
Republican Adam Hinojosa conceded Friday after a recount that included three counties in Senate District 27, the most competitive senate district in the state. Full Story
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![Morgan LaMantia, Texas Senate District 27 Democratic Candidate, after a Futuro RGV candidate forum in Brownsville on Jan. 19, 2022.]()
Credit: Verónica G. Cárdenas for The Texas Tribune -
Texas GOP lawmaker hires Christian nationalist who called for drag show attendees to be executed
State Rep. Tony Tinderholt, R-Arlington, hired Jake Neidert, 22, last month as his office’s legislative director amid a wave of anti-LGBTQ violence and rhetoric and ahead of an impending legislative session that is expected to focus heavily on anti-trans bills. Full Story
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![Jake Neidert is legislative director for state Rep. Tony Tinderholt, R-Arlington.]()
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After a Texas National Guard member died, his family got no financial payment. Lawmakers want to change that.
In April, Bishop Evans drowned after jumping into the Rio Grande to save two migrants being swept away by the current. His family members will receive no financial payment, but they would if he worked for DPS or was under federal deployment. Full Story
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![Jo Ann Johnson sits for a portrait on the bed that once belonged to her grandson, Bishop Evans, in her home in Arlington on Dec. 7, 2022. 22 year-old Bishop Evans, who was serving on the Texas Army National Guard and assigned to work on Operation Lone Star, died after jumping into the Rio Grande to save two migrants. “When they told me why, I understood, because he saw someone who needed help. That was who he was — he helped people.”]()
Credit: Shelby Tauber for The Texas Tribune -
Former Fort Worth police officer found guilty of manslaughter of Atatiana Jefferson
A jury on Thursday found Aaron Dean guilty of manslaughter for shooting Jefferson while she babysat her nephew in her mother’s home in 2019. Full Story
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![Aaron Dean reacts on the stand while testifying on Monday, Dec. 12, 2022, in Fort Worth, Texas. Dean, a former Fort Worth police officer, fatally shot Atatiana Jefferson in 2019 during an open structure call at her home.]()
Credit: Amanda McCoy/TNS/ABACA via REUTERS -
“He had our back”: John Scott’s legacy as secretary of state will be his defense of local election officials
Thrust into the job at a contentious time, Scott believed defending the integrity of Texas elections was his top priority Full Story
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![John Scott speaks to The Texas Tribune during an interview inside his office at the Capitol on Oct. 28, 2021, in Austin. Scott was appointed last week by Gov. Greg Abbott, and his appointment has been criticized after Scott's role in representing the Trump administration in a lawsuit challenging the 2020 election results.]()
Credit: Sergio Flores for The Texas Tribune -
Texas state senator blasts Uvalde police response in congressional hearing: “It was cowardice”
Roland Gutierrez made the remarks during a hearing of the U.S. House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security that was focused on bipartisan legislative solutions to gun violence. Full Story
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![State Sen. Roland Gutierrez, D-San Antonio, during a House Judiciary subcommittee hearing, Examining Uvalde: The Search for Bipartisan Solutions to Gun Violence, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 15, 2022.]()
Credit: Shuran Huang for The Texas Tribune -
Without evidence, Gov. Greg Abbott asks whether nonprofits are helping migrants enter Texas
A Fox News story described Mexican nonprofits aiding migrants, but did not allege any improper action by U.S.-based nonprofits. Full Story
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![Gov. Greg Abbott speaks at a press conference with Nuevo León Gov. Samuel Alejandro García Sepúlveda on April 13, 2022.]()
Credit: Kaylee Greenlee Beal for The Texas Tribune -
West Texas parents are suing their schools over racism as others demand action over antisemitic bullying
School leaders have said they don’t tolerate racism and that they regularly train teachers how to deal with bullying. But parents say inaction by officials tells a different story. Full Story
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![Tracy Kemp stands outside of Laura Bush Middle School on Dec. 14, 2022. Both of Kemp’s sons attend Lubbock-Cooper ISD schools and have been experiencing racism from classmates throughout this school year.]()
Credit: Mark Rogers for The Texas Tribune -
Voters in five Texas cities approved decriminalizing marijuana. Now city officials are standing in the way.
Some local leaders say they worry the changes violate state law, while residents who supported decriminalizing marijuana say the pushback disrespects democracy. Full Story
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![Newly planted marijuana plants at Texas Original Compassionate Cultivation Medical Marijuana facility in South Austin on April 30, 2021.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Gov. Greg Abbott appoints new El Paso district attorney
Abbott announced Wednesday that the veteran lawyer Bill Hicks will serve the last two years of the former district attorney’s term. Full Story
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![El Paso’s District Attorney Yvonne Rosales, middle, walks away from the witness stand after she was asked questions during a court hearing to address the Walmart shooting gag order by Judge Sam Medrano Jr., of the 409th state district court, Thursday, December 1, 2022, in El Paso, Texas.]()
Credit: Ivan Pierre Aguirre for The Texas Tribune -
National Guard member deployed for Operation Lone Star stabbed while off duty in Mexico
The service member is expected to recover. Full Story
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![Members of the Texas National Guard set up a shade structure while they guard a gate along the border wall in Del Rio on September 16, 2021.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
UT suspends head basketball coach after family violence arrest
Chris Beard was hired in 2021 and is one of the University of Texas’ highest-paid employees. Full Story
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![Chris Beard, head coach of the Texas Longhorns men's basketball team, during the second half against the Gonzaga Bulldogs, at the Moody Center in Austin on Nov. 16, 2022.]()
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Texas fights federal rule that would outlaw LGBTQ discrimination in state adoptions and foster care
Texas allows religious groups that are part of the state’s child welfare network to refuse to assist LGBTQ couples seeking to foster or adopt. That could put critical federal funding at risk. Full Story
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![Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton speaks after being re-elected, on Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2022 at the Haggard Party Barn in Plano, Texas. Paxton defeated Rochelle Garza.]()
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Messianic Jewish leader charged with sexual assault gives opening prayer at Keller school board meeting
The board made news earlier this year for banning a graphic novel portrayal of Anne Frank’s diary. Full Story
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![Mark Aaron Griffin, a Messianic "rabbi" awaiting trial on four counts of sexual assault, leads the opening prayer at Keller Independent School District's board meeting, Dec. 12, 2022.]()
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Texas attorney general’s office sought state data on transgender Texans
The behind-the-scenes effort by Ken Paxton’s office to obtain data on how many Texans had changed their gender on their licenses came as he and other Republican leaders in the state have been publicly marshaling resources against transgender Texans. Full Story
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![People gather in front of the Texas Capitol during a protest for transgender kids' rights in Austin on Tuesday, March 1, 2022.]()
Credit: Lauren Witte/The Texas Tribune -
In El Paso, migrants are sleeping on the streets after thousands crossed the border last weekend
A Nicaraguan fisherman planned to spend the night in a parking garage with other migrants, then a good Samaritan offered him a place to sleep. The city is struggling to handle a sudden influx of migrants that has overwhelmed local resources. Full Story
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![Two migrants, one from Venezuela and one from Nicaragua carry a bed that was donated to them by a local resident to a parking garage they are sleeping at for the night to stay warm, after being dropped off at a local bus station by CBP, Monday, December 12, 2022, in El Paso, Texas. Photo by Ivan Pierre Aguirre for The Texas Tribune]()
Credit: Ivan Pierre Aguirre for The Texas Tribune -
Austin voters elect Kirk Watson, who served as mayor two decades ago, to lead the city again
Watson, a former state senator who was Austin’s mayor from 1997 to 2001, pitched himself as a back-to-basics candidate who could ease the city’s growing affordability crisis. Full Story
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![State Rep. Celia Israel and former State Sen. Kirk Watson debate on ATX Decides, hosted by Austin PBS at Studio 919 on Monday, Dec. 5, 2022.]()
Credit: Azul Sordo/The Texas Tribune