The Lone Star Project, a Democratic group, claims to have found Republican Stefani Carter’s muse.
TribBlog: Channeling Obama? [Updated]
TribBlog: State Suspends Daystar Placements
The Texas Department of Family and Protective Services has suspended all new placements of foster children at the Daystar Residential Treatment Center outside of Houston, following a Texas Tribune/Houston Chronicle investigation that revealed workers forced young girls to fight each other in return for snacks.
2010: Carville Protege Joins Team White
Chad Clanton, a Waco-born Democratic consultant and well-known protege of James Carville, has joined the Bill White gubernatorial campaign to “work on a variety of projects … on multiple media channels,” says White spokeswoman Katy Bacon.
The Brief: June 14, 2010
It’s summertime in Texas, and things only got warmer this weekend in Dallas as the state Republican party whipped up clouds of hot, thick anti-Washington fervor.
Spreading the Gospel of Texas
Since George W. Bush exited the White House, Texas has lost in place at the center of the political universe. But Texas Republicans, who gathered this weekend in Dallas, say there’s still plenty here for the rest of the nation to emulate and embrace. Ben Philpott filed this report for KUT News and the Tribune.
Far From Home
Alaska officials sent 16-year-old Richard DeMaar 4,000 miles away from his parents to a psychiatric facility in San Antonio because his home state wasn’t equipped to handle his severe depression. Within six weeks, he had tied a makeshift noose around his neck, strangling himself to death. He’s one of roughly 900 out-of-state kids sent to residential treatment centers in Texas in the last five years, part of a national compact that allows states that don’t have adequate psychiatric services to send kids to states that do. But the practice has come under fire from children’s health advocates, who say it takes kids away from their families and their communities — two things they need to make a full-fledged recovery.
Congressmen Push Bill to End Offshore Drilling Moratorium
Congressional Republicans — led by members of the Texas delegation — are poised to file a bill lifting Barack Obama’s moratorium on offshore drilling. Ben Philpott filed this report for KUT News and the Tribune.
The Chair Yields
The ouster of Cathie Adams as the titular head of the Republican Party of Texas was the biggest news at its biennial convention this weekend. There was also open hostility toward Speaker Joe Straus, predictable fretting about a rift between moderates and conservatives and, of course, a laser-like focus on the state GOP’s common enemy: Washington.
Sacrificing Care?
For the past 16 years, the medical needs of Texas’ 160,000 prison inmates have been outsourced to the University of Texas Medical Branch and Texas Tech University, which have worked hard to provide care at the lowest possible cost. But with steep budget cuts and anticipated layoffs, critics contend the state could soon sacrifice the quality of that care — and could even face a legal challenge. Nathan Bernier of KUT News reports.
Boyd Richie: The TT Interview
The chair of the Texas Democratic Party on why he should keep his job, whether Matt Angle is really running things, why zero out of 29 statewide offices held by Democrats isn’t his fault, why he’s optimistic about 2010 and what he thinks of Barack Obama.



