Help us prioritize the policy issues and election questions we should report on ahead of the November midterms.
Dan Patrick
Posted in
Uvalde school shooting
After Uvalde shooting, Texas leaders will spend more than $100 million on school safety, mental health
Almost half the money is going toward bullet-resistant shields for school police officers, a move that Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick called on fellow state leaders to support.
Posted in
Uvalde school shooting
Texas is unlikely to adopt key provision of bipartisan gun bill — a red flag law to take guns away from people deemed dangerous
Red flag laws likely remain a nonstarter among Republican leaders in Texas, where Gov. Greg Abbott already faced a conservative backlash after he asked the Legislature to consider them four years ago.
Posted in
Higher Education
University of Texas selects new director — and new name — for its conservative institute
The University of Texas at Austin selected Justin Dyer to run The Civitas Institute, formerly referred to as the Liberty Institute. The center raised concerns among faculty after The Texas Tribune reported UT-Austin worked with conservative donors and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick to bring the institute to the flagship UT campus.
Posted in
Uvalde school shooting
Texas House speaker pitches spending more than $100 million for mental health, school safety programs
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick had asked House leaders to support his push for arming school police officers with bulletproof shields after the Uvalde shooting. House Speaker Dade Phelan is also asking for more money for mental health and school safety programs.
Posted in
Uvalde school shooting
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick calls for spending $50 million to buy bulletproof shields for school police
Patrick said he wants police in as many Texas schools as possible to have bulletproof shields before the fall. He’s asked other state leaders to move around money in the state budget to make it happen.
Posted in
Uvalde school shooting
Sen. Roland Gutierrez, who represents Uvalde, says it’s a “slap in the face” to be left off committee responding to shooting
Gutierrez, a Democrat who has been critical of the state’s response to past shootings, said Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick also snubbed state senators whose districts were affected by shootings in El Paso and Santa Fe.
Posted in
Guns in Texas
A gun and a prayer: How the far right took control of Texas’ response to mass shootings
The “God-given right” to self-defense has become a rallying cry in Texas politics, further cementing gun ownership as a holy cause and political identity. The state’s Republican leadership has spent decades carrying the banner.
Posted in
Uvalde school shooting
Trump and Cruz propose “hardened” one-door schoolhouses. Experts say that’s not a credible solution.
U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz and other Republicans argue that gunmen can be stopped by locking all but one door and posting guards at schools. School officials and safety experts say that’s not realistic.
Posted in
Uvalde school shooting
Video: Greg Abbott and Beto O’Rourke clash over Uvalde deaths as governor provides more details on school shooting
Abbott was publicly criticized by his Democratic opponent for governor. Abbot also said he wasn’t sure if he would attend the National Rifle Association’s annual meeting later this week.
