Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst made some new committee assignments last week to cover the resignation of state Sen. Kip Averitt, R-Waco. But the rejiggering created as many questions as it answered: Not about who went where, but about what went where. For instance: What committee will have legislative oversight of electric utility companies?
David Dewhurst
Posted in
State Government
TribBlog: Musical Chairs
Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst has shuffled the chairs in the Texas Senate.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Last Call
Tonight is the legally imposed reporting deadline for the next round of campaign finance reports, which is big deal for two reasons: Candidates want to show momentum and credibility at mid-year, and they love having an excuse to ask supporters to pony up before the clock strikes midnight. Hurry, hurry, hurry!
Posted inState Government
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.
Posted in
Higher Education
TribBlog: Political Football [Updated]
Shopping for a new athletic conference? Make sure the political alignment matches up with the school alignment.
Posted in
State Government
The Brief: June 7, 2010
Forecasters pegging a looming state budget shortfall at $18 billion don’t have Gov. Rick Perry particularly worried.
Posted inState Government
Drop and Give ‘Em 10
The governor, lieutenant governor and speaker directed all state agencies on Friday to cut their budgets by an additional 10 percent. Last week, those same agencies had their current budgets trimmed by a total of around $1.2 billion in an effort to close a projected $18 billion budget shortfall in the next legislative session. Ben Philpott of KUT News and the Tribune reports.
Posted in
Economy
TribBlog: The 10 Percent Solution
Fresh off of asking for five percent cuts from state agencies and actually approving $1.2 billion of what was proposed, the state’s top three leaders are asking for ten percent cuts in the amounts the agencies will be seeking next time the Legislature meets.
Posted in
Politics
The Polling Center: Location, Location, Location
At this point, anti-incumbent sentiment in Texas appears to be dwarfed by party identification and opposition to the national Democratic Party.