After backlash, Abbott expresses some regret after labeling all Cleveland shooting victims “illegal immigrants”
The governor’s focus on immigration status, not the loss of life, draws rebukes from across the country. Full Story
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The latest matt rinaldi news from The Texas Tribune.
The governor’s focus on immigration status, not the loss of life, draws rebukes from across the country. Full Story
About two months into his comeback bid, few prominent Texas Republicans have endorsed Trump — and some are showing more willingness to cross him publicly. Full Story
Ronna McDaniel has kept the RNC aligned with former President Donald Trump, who some Republicans have blamed for the party’s underwhelming performance in the midterm elections. Full Story
Gay Republicans who have fought for acceptance within the Texas GOP over the past three decades told The Texas Tribune progress has been excruciatingly slow. Many of them have left the party, even as the number of Log Cabin Republicans in Texas continues to grow. Full Story
Republicans say they don’t want young kids learning about sex. Educators say that’s already the standard. Full Story
The rally in the Houston suburbs put on full display how much of a grip former President Donald Trump still has on Texas Republican leaders. Full Story
The Republican Party of Texas announced Monday it had launched a new Local Government Committee to work with county parties on backing candidates for nonpartisan local offices. Full Story
Some party activists had worried Rinaldi would be more of the same after West left the chairmanship to challenge Gov. Greg Abbott earlier this summer. Full Story
The State Republican Executive Committee met Sunday to pick a successor for Allen West, the chairman who resigned last month after a drama-filled tenure and is now running for governor. Full Story
It's not unusual for former opponents to turn around and endorse their party's candidates, or to go quiet in general elections — to say nothing at all. But it's unusual to endorse the other party's general election candidates. And yet, that's happening in several Texas races this year. Full Story
Two statewide officeholders are among the Republican incumbents who have seen former primary opponents take the unusual step of endorsing their Democratic challengers ahead of the midterm elections. Full Story
Democrats are running aggressively in the Dallas area to flip several Republican-held seats in the Texas House. Talk of a "blue wave" is only part of why they're optimistic. Full Story
In this edition of the TribCast, Texas Tribune political reporter Patrick Svitek sits down with CEO Evan Smith, executive editor Ross Ramsey and education reporter Aliyya Swaby. Full Story
A year after the Texas Freedom Caucus first launched, the bloc of hardline conservatives in the Texas House is optimistic it will broaden its membership before state lawmakers head back to Austin in 2019. Full Story
A state law put into effect in September made it legal for houses of worship to have armed volunteer security — but the law's author says many churches in Texas don't know it's an option. Full Story
State Rep. Matt Rinaldi, who drew national attention as part of an incident on the Texas House floor in which he said he reported protesters to ICE, represents one of 10 Republican-held House districts that Hillary Clinton won last year. Full Story
On the last day of the regular session of the Texas Legislature, hundreds protested at the Capitol — and Republican state Rep. Matt Rinaldi called ICE on them. He also nearly came to blows with Democratic colleagues. Full Story
Here's video of our "Really, How Conservative Was the 84th Session?" panel from Oct. 17 at The 2015 Texas Tribune Festival. Panelists included State Sens. Paul Bettencourt and Konni Burton and state Reps. Stephanie Klick, Matt Rinaldi and Jonathan Stickland. Full Story
At our 1/14 conversation, new state Reps. Celia Israel, D-Austin, Linda Koop, R-Dallas, and Matt Rinaldi, R-Irving, talked about border security, in-state tuition and other immigration-related topics. Full Story
At our 1/14 conversation, new state Reps. Celia Israel, D-Austin, Linda Koop, R-Dallas, and Matt Rinaldi, R-Irving, talked about what the Lege is likely to do on health care. Full Story