It may be hard to believe now, but Gov. Rick Perry got his start in politics as a Democrat, representing Haskell in the Texas House from 1985-1991. It’s a period likely to be scrutinized by his Republican opponents should he run for president.
Texas House of Representatives
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Criminal Justice
TribWeek: In Case You Missed It
Aguilar on a change in law that affects applications for state-issued IDs, Galbraith on how the drought is taking its toll on wildlife, Hamilton on an outsider’s attempt to lower the cost of higher ed, Murphy visualizes the partisanship of House members, Ramsey on who becomes Lite Guv if David Dewhurst takes another job, Ramshaw on life in the colonias and three stories about Rick Perry — Grissom on how his death penalty stance might play in a 2012 presidential race, Root on how he cemented his reputation as one of the state’s most powerful governors and Tan on the growing demand for him to speak elsewhere: The best of our best content from July 4 to July 8, 2011.
Posted inState Government
Visualization: How Partisan are Texas House Members?
Mark P. Jones, chair of the political science department at Rice University, analyzed nearly 1,000 votes during the 2011 regular and special legislative sessions to rank members of the Texas House from most liberal to most conservative. Compare your state representative to the other 149 using our visualization.
Posted in
State Government
Guest Column: How Partisan are Texas House Members?
Who are the most liberal and conservative members of the Texas House? Mark Jones, chair of the political science department at Rice University, breaks it down with his 2011 analysis.
Posted in
State Government
Video: Rep. Dawnna Dukes on a Difficult Session for Democrats
State Rep. Dawnna Dukes, D-Austin, talked Wednesday about the tough battle Democrats waged this session, why she believes the budget outcome is not the success portrayed by the GOP and how this session may affect the next.
Posted in
State Government
The End Game: Special Session Wraps Up Today
The House couldn’t get the votes it needed to suspend the rules to take up the TSA anti-groping bill before the clock runs out today.
Posted in
State Government
Video: Harless Explains “No” Vote on SB 1
State Rep. Patricia Harless, R-Spring, explains why she voted against the budget measure SB 1 this afternoon, and why she thinks the Tea Party may have influenced legislators.
Posted in
Guides
Texplainer: What Happens to a Bill Perry Doesn’t Sign or Veto?
Hey Texplainer: What happens to the bills that Perry doesn’t sign or veto? Gov. Rick Perry has vetoed and signed a multitude of bills this year, but to date there have been 27 he allowed to become law by default.
Posted inState Government
Updated: Interactive: Visualizing the 82nd Legislative Session
Lawmakers filed a whopping 5,796 bills during the 82nd legislative session and approved nearly a quarter of them. Use our updated data visualizations to take a closer look at how bills performed in the upper and lower chambers, how each political party and committee fared, and how many bills Gov. Rick Perry vetoed.
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Guides
Texplainer: How Often Does Perry Veto Bills?
Gov. Rick Perry is not shy when it comes to using his veto pen.
