UPDATED: A 19-year-old Honduran injured on the job is at the center of a workplace safety controversy. The Workers Defense Project says he was fired for speaking to investigators. His former employer says the firing was unrelated.
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 in
Politics
Lisa Fritsch Now Biggest Small Fish in GOP Race
Among lesser-known primary challengers to front-running GOP gubernatorial candidate Greg Abbott, former talk show host Lisa Fritsch has bragging rights, besting the others in a recent opinion poll and a Tea Party contest.
Posted in
Politics
Abbott Proposes Far-Reaching Ethics Reform
Ethics watchdogs are applauding gubernatorial candidate Greg Abbott for proposing what would amount to a sea change in Texas ethics laws.
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Energy
In Drought, Abbott Keeps Lawn Green by Drilling
With what has been described as the worst drought in recorded history punishing parts of Texas, Attorney General Greg Abbott found a way to keep watering his yard: He drilled his own well.
Posted in
Politics
Gubernatorial Hopefuls Make Candidacies Official
Wendy Davis and Greg Abbott made their candidacies for governor official on Saturday by filling out the paperwork and paying the $3,750 fee to file in their respective primaries.
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Politics
Book Describes Rise, Fall of Perry’s 2012 Campaign
Gov. Rick Perry’s failed 2012 presidential campaign is chronicled in detail in Double Down: Game Change 2012, a new book about the last presidential race.
Posted in
Higher Education
Perry Blasts Impeachment Probe of Wallace Hall
Gov. Rick Perry on Wednesday called the ongoing impeachment investigation into University of Texas System Regent Wallace Hall “extraordinary political theater.”
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Politics
Trial Lawyers Meeting to Address Recent Criticism
In the wake of criticism from a former Texas Trial Lawyers Association president about the group’s spending practices, the association has scheduled a meeting for Wednesday in Austin to address concerns.
Posted inState Government
Abbott and Davis Fight Before Fight Begins
They haven’t even won their respective primaries yet, but the leading candidates for Texas governor — Republican Greg Abbott and Democrat Wendy Davis — are engaged in a bitter fight in federal court. It’s not over who should be governor. It’s about money — and bragging rights.
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Politics
Davis Hits Cruz on Shutdown, Rejects Comparison to Filibuster
Sen. Wendy Davis, the Democratic candidate for governor, offered her harshest assessment yet of U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, criticizing the Republican’s role in the government shutdown. She also rejected comparisons between Cruz’s actions and her June filibuster.
