Analysis: The 2021 Texas Senate, from left to right
Based on the votes they cast during the just-concluded regular session, the author ranks the members of the Texas Senate from most conservative to most liberal. Full Story
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![Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick presides over the Senate chambers in Austin on May 30, 2021.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Las Vegas Sands went all in on legalizing casinos in Texas. Here's why the multimillion-dollar effort did not make it far this session.
The legislation — which required voter approval — would have brought a monumental expansion of gambling to Texas, which has some of the most restrictive gaming laws in the country. Full Story
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![Gamblers play slot machines during the reopening of The D hotel-casino, closed by the state since March 18, 2020, as part of steps to slow the spread of COVID-19, in downtown Las Vegas, Nevada, on June 4, 2020.]()
Credit: REUTERS/Steve Marcus -
Texas Democrats who blocked GOP voting bill make their pitch on Capitol Hill for federal legislation
After temporarily derailing a GOP priority voting bill, Texas Democrats looked to Washington this week to make the case for a federal legislation to overhaul elections and reinstate protections for voters of color. Full Story
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![Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi held a news conference with members of the Texas state legislature at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on June 15, 2021.]()
Credit: REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein -
Analysis: The 2021 Texas House, from left to right
Based on the votes they cast during the just-concluded regular session, the author ranks the members of the Texas House from most conservative to most liberal. Full Story
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![State lawmakers honor Capitol staff on the last day of session on May 31, 2021.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
State Rep. James White, an East Texas Republican, won't seek another term in Texas House
White, chairman of the House Homeland Security and Public Safety Committee, has served in the lower chamber since 2011. Full Story
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![Rep. James White, R-Hillster, testifies regarding HB 1708, legislation he proposed relating to an electronic voting system that produces a voter-verifiable paper record, on Thursday, April 8, 2021.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Gov. Greg Abbott wants to build a border wall, but does Texas have the ability — or money — to do so?
Critics have denounced Abbott's proposal as "political theater" that won't pass legal muster. But the two-term Republican governor says it's time to secure the border. Full Story
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![A segment of the border fence in the Rio Grande Valley.]()
Credit: Callie Richmond for The Texas Tribune -
Kamala Harris to host White House meeting with Texas Democrats who blocked voting bill
The meeting will take place Wednesday, according to Harris' office. Full Story
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![State Rep. Trey Martinez Fischer, D-San Antonio, speaks at a press conference at Mt. Zion Baptist Church near the state Capitol in Austin after Democrats broke quorum in opposition to Senate Bill 7, a sweeping GOP voting bill. May 30, 2021.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Gov. Greg Abbott has lifted almost all Texas pandemic restrictions. But not the one limiting jail releases.
As he was fighting for the Legislature to change state bail laws, the governor continued his emergency order to restrict no-cost jail releases during the pandemic. At least several Texas courts have deemed the order unconstitutional. Full Story
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![Inmates at the Dawson State Jail in Dallas.]()
Credit: Brandon Thibodeaux for The Texas Tribune -
Texas House rallies behind Speaker Dade Phelan, even as Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick blames him for GOP legislative failures
Phelan has touted a list of conservative wins in his first session as House leader, such as passing legislation to let Texans carry handguns without a license and approving some of the strictest restrictions on abortion in the country. Full Story
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![House Speaker Dade Phelan speaks with legislators on the House floor on May 30, 2021.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Despite GOP majority, a number of conservative “bumper sticker” issues fell short
The Tribune’s Ross Ramsey breaks down the big takeaways from the 2021 Legislature. Listen in the weekend edition of The Brief podcast. Full Story
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![Democratic lawmakers met in the Speaker's Committee Room during a break in the session on May 30, 2021.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Republican state Sen. Dawn Buckingham running for Texas land commissioner
The news of her decision comes two days after the current land commissioner, George P. Bush, announced he was running for attorney general next year, challenging fellow Republican Ken Paxton. Full Story
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![State Sen. Dawn Buckingham, R-Lakeway at the Texas Tribune Festival on Sept. 23, 2017.]()
Credit: Kelly West for The Texas Tribune -
Texas Republican leaders promised action on gun safety after the El Paso shooting. Instead, they passed permitless carry.
The Legislature passed a bill allowing Texans to carry handguns without a license or training — an expansion of gun rights so divisive Republican leaders in previous years refused to touch it. Full Story
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![A M&P Shield handgun, small enough to be ideal for conceal carry, in Austin on April 23, 2021.]()
Credit: Photo Illustration by Evan L'Roy/The Texas Tribune -
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott could be upsetting balance of powers with threat to veto Texas Legislature’s pay
A governor targeting the Legislature’s budget would be unprecedented in Texas history. Full Story
Credit: Evan L'Roy/The Texas Tribune -
Texas lawmakers responded to the pandemic by limiting what the government can do in response to a pandemic
Lawmakers didn’t succeed in curtailing the governor's power during a disaster, but they did pass bills that prohibit so-called vaccine passports and ban the mandatory closure of churches and gun stores. Full Story
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![A state trooper stand guard outside of the door to the House chamber on opening day of the legislative session on Jan. 12, 2021.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Texas’ GOP leadership already at odds over plans for special legislative session
Since House Democrats staged a walkout that killed Republicans’ priority elections bill for the regular session, the governor and the leaders of the state House and Senate have diverged notably in interviews about how they are approaching the overtime round. Full Story
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![The sun sets on the state Capitol in Austin, on May 27, 2021.]()
Credit: Montinique Monroe for The Texas Tribune -
TribCast: Democrats defeat the Texas voting bill — for now
On this week's episode, Matthew speaks with James, Patrick and Alexa about the wild end to the legislative session and the future of proposed voting restrictions in Texas. Full Story
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![State Rep. Jessica González, D-Dallas, speaks at a press conference at Mt. Zion Baptist Church near the state Capitol in Austin after Democrats broke quorum in opposition to Senate Bill 7, a sweeping GOP voting bill. May 30, 2021.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
For Democrats of color, walkout on Texas voting bill was rooted in the long fight for equal voting rights
All they could get was a temporary win. But the lawmakers said taking the extraordinary measure of breaking quorum in the Texas House was justified by the harm they felt their mostly Black and Hispanic constituents would face under the GOP’s voting bill. Full Story
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![State Rep. Trey Martinez-Fischer addresses the media during a press conference at Mt. Zion Baptist Church. The group of Democratic lawmakers walked off the House floor and broke quorum over Senate Bill 7.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Republicans say they’ll tweak part of Texas elections bill criticized for impact on Black churchgoers
The provision deals with the window for early voting on Sundays, and the current version of the bill raised concerns that it would hinder get-out-the-vote efforts by Black churches. Full Story
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![State Rep. Travis Clardy, R-Nacogdoches, on the House floor on May 7, 2021.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
House Speaker Dade Phelan says Gov. Greg Abbott could hurt staffers and legislative agencies if he tries to block lawmaker salaries
Abbott’s vow came after a Democratic walkout in the House late Sunday night blocked passage of Senate Bill 7, his priority elections bill that would overhaul voting rights in Texas. Full Story
![House Speaker Dade Phelan speaks with legislators on the House floor on May 30, 2021.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
With feelings raw over voting bill's demise, Texas Legislature wraps up — for now
Members celebrated the end of the session, but also acknowledged that they’ll be back sometime soon for at least one special session. Full Story
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![House members praised House Speaker Dade Phelan on Sine Die. May 31, 2021.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune
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