The latest Texas House of Representatives news from The Texas Tribune.
"I don't need lessons on how to be a Republican," Joe Straus said Wednesday morning, responding to claims by his challenger in the Speaker's race, state Rep. Warren Chisum, R-Pampa, that he isn't Republican enough to hold the leadership post. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/videos/Screen_shot_2010-11-03_at_1.29.55_PM.png)
House Speaker Joe Straus says he's got 122 votes for another term as speaker — in spite of the fact that at least a dozen of his past supporters were defeated in Tuesday's election. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/c93b47ded0e2328326187d07bceadf8d/BD%20INC%20Straus%2026%202009)
The Tribune's crack reporting staff — in Houston, Buda and other political hotspots — will be posting the latest news and spin the minute the polls close. Check back and refresh often for updates and photos from the field. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/110210_elexdayvoter.jpg)
Yes, yes, the governor’s race: It’s tended to suck all the air out of the room this election cycle, hasn’t it? But there’s an undercard as well, and even if it’s received scant attention by comparison, don’t think it doesn’t matter. To the contrary, the outcome of races other than the one at the top of the ballot has serious implications for a great many matters of politics and policy that will affect and should interest every single Texan in the near term. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/SundayPoliticalRoundUp_v2.jpg)
In our final TribCast before Election Day, the gang takes a look back at the closest races this cycle and dares to makes some predictions about what's going to happen on November 2. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/TT-TribCast-002.png)
The state's political economy hummed with $43.5 million in contributions to and between candidates and political action committees between Sept. 24 and Oct. 23, according to the most recent reports filed with the Texas Ethics Commission. The biggest contribution: $3 million to Rick Perry's re-election campaign from the Republican Governors Association. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/Campaign-Finance_1.jpg)
In House District 52 — southern Williamson County — incumbent Democrat Diana Maldonado faces one of her party's toughest challengers in Republican Larry Gonzales. Ben Philpott of KUT News and the Tribune looks at how the candidates would set priorities for a fast-growing part of state. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/Maldonado_Gonzalez_MicroDebate.jpg)
The trial-lawyer-as-epithet strategy, a perennial favorite of Texans Republicans, is playing big in the effort to oust longtime Democratic House member Jim Dunnam, D-Waco. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/4c995617642780154ddcc22beb0e04df/BD%20INC%20Jim%20Dunnum%202010)
As he was widely expected to do, state Rep. Warren Chisum, R-Pampa, officially threw his hat into the race for Speaker today. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/3130c9670fc2165857973909a8082e27/BD%20INC%20Warren%20Chisum%20001%202010)
In House District 47 — which sits entirely within Travis County — incumbent Democrat Valinda Bolton is locked in a tight race with Republican Paul Workman. Ben Philpott of KUT News and the Tribune looks at where the candidates stand on the issue of transportation. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/Bolton-Workman_mash.png)
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
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/videos/Screen_shot_2010-10-08_at_3.07.17_PM.png)
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
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/SophmoreYearbook_1.jpg)
With a month to go before Election Day, challengers in fifteen House races outraised incumbents during the most recent reporting period, according to the most recent filings with the Texas Ethics Commission. In eight of those races, the challengers led in combined spending and saving, a rough measure of each campaign's financial strength. Full Story
In this week's skirmish, topics include campaign cash, the latest polls in the governor's race, the hotbed of Texas House activity in the Dallas-Fort Worth area and the consequences of the budget crisis. Full Story
Ben Philpott of KUT News and the Tribune looks at where the candidates running in House District 48 stand on the issue of education. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/DanandDonna.jpg)
A court filing provides 59 hints as to what the state's case against state Rep. Ismael "Kino" Flores, D-Palmview, will look like when his trial for ethics charges begins on Oct. 18. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/Gavel003.jpg)
The Republican Party of Texas is accusing Democratic state Rep. Joe Moody, of El Paso, of plagiarizing the text of a State of the State address by Gov. Rick Perry, and it has launched a website to make its case: www.madatmoody.com. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/20100626_Joe_Moody_S.S._069.jpg)
In House District 45 — which covers Hays, Blanco and Caldwell counties — incumbent Democrat Patrick Rose faces a stiff challenge from Republican Jason Isaac. Ben Philpott of KUT News and the Tribune looks at where the candidates stand on two flashpoints this election year: the budget and immigration. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/7cf5dcc2386519e115cbbf5b4b55f9ee/DONT%20USE%20Rose%20and%20Isaac%202010)
Double-billing taxpayers for travel expenses, driving a luxury car owned by a state transportation contractor and repeatedly failing to pay taxes won’t put a lawmaker in good standing with the ethics police, as state Reps. Charles “Doc” Anderson, R-Waco; Joe Driver, R-Garland; and Linda Harper-Brown, R-Irving, are finding. The three hope the headlines dogging their re-election bids won’t follow them to the polls, while their Democratic opponents are reveling in their misery at every campaign stop. Yet whether a scandal forces an incumbent from office depends on the scenario. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/Scandal-Babies.jpg)
For the 12th event in our TribLive series, I interviewed the GOP state representative from Tomball about what she really said on CNN, whether "tourism" babies are a threat to national security, why an Arizona-style immigration law would be right for Texas and whether she'll back Joe Straus for speaker. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/videos/Screen_shot_2010-09-16_at_5.09.14_PM.png)