The Senate voted in often odd coalitions to reveal more about the money members make, prohibit themselves from immediately becoming lobbyists, post their financial statements online and even subject themselves and other elected officials to drug testing.
Jay Root
Jay Root is an award-winning journalist who reported for the Tribune from 2011 to 2020. He covered the dramatic collapse of Gov. Rick Perry’s 2012 presidential campaign and went on to write an ebook about it called “Oops! A Diary from the 2012 Campaign Trail.” Root also broke the story that put the Texas attorney general, Ken Paxton, on the path toward criminal indictment, co-wrote an exposé that brought an end to privately funded prosecutions in Travis County, and authored a series of watchdog articles that prompted a wave of firings and resignations at two major state agencies.
In 2017, Root co-directed “Beyond The Wall,” a film exploring border politics in the age of Trump, which won a national Edward R. Murrow award for best news documentary. Root’s latest film, “Border Hustle,” was released in early 2019 and reveals how desperate migrants have become cash cows on both sides of the border.
Previously, for a dozen years, Root was Austin bureau chief of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, where he chronicled the rise of then-Gov. George W. Bush, wrote about cartel violence in Mexico and covered Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita. During a three-year stint at the Associated Press, Root was twice named AP Staff Reporter of the Year for his watchdog reporting, including a story that sparked felony charges against a sitting state representative.
Posted inState Government
Wining and Dining Disclosure Bills Advance
Bills designed to shed more light on wining and dining of politicians by lobbyists and contractors advanced in the Texas Legislature on Monday.
Posted in
Energy
Watchdogs Question Fraser’s Energy Holdings
As the Texas Legislature ponders ethics reforms to increase transparency and reduce conflicts of interests among its members, a key state lawmaker is facing new questions about whether his private business affairs are impacting his public duties.
Posted in
The Ticket
The Ticket: A Presidential Podcast
On the first-ever episode of The Ticket, our presidential podcast, Jay Root and Ben Philpott talk with former Texas GOP Chairman Steve Munisteri, who’s now working for Rand Paul, and dissect Sen. Ted Cruz’s presidential announcement speech at Liberty University.
Posted in
Politics
Patrick Advisers Blast Abbott’s Pre-K Plans
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick’s grassroots advisers are blasting Gov. Greg Abbott’s plan to enhance pre-kindergarten programs, a move sure to increase tension between the top two Republican leaders.
Posted in
State Government
Ethics Legislation Headed to Senate Floor
A heavily watered-down ethics reform bill will soon be taken up by the full Senate. Lawmakers on Monday rejected an amendment that would have required legislators to publicly disclose their tax returns each year.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Politicians Pick New Way to Get Prosecuted
State politicians, high court judges and top bureaucrats would get public corruption cases against them moved to their home counties under a controversial bill that cleared the Texas House on Monday.
Posted inState Government
Analysis: Abbott’s Caution on Display in Tax Fight
Texans grew accustomed to the swagger and bombast of Rick Perry, a governor who didn’t shy from confrontation with the Legislature and upended the notion that his office was inherently weak. Newly elected Gov. Greg Abbott, ever cautious and lawyerly, is cutting a different path.
Posted inState Government
Committee Waters Down Ethics Reform Legislation
Proposed ethics reform legislation underwent a significant overhaul Thursday in a Senate committee. Gone is the plan to take state pensions from lawbreaking lawmakers. Also out: a proposal to stop legislators from cashing in on a piece of the public debt business.
Posted inState Government
Abbott Refuses to Take Sides on Tax Cuts
Gov. Greg Abbott refused to pick sides Wednesday in a growing squabble over how best to cut state taxes, and moved away from an earlier promise to “insist” that Texas lawmakers cut property taxes before the session ends on June 1.
