The Trib’s multimedia team highlights some of the most memorable — and surprising — moments from the 82nd Legislative Session. Our lawmakers sure do love to make a statement, complete with finger pointing, yelling and props. (Some video courtesy the Texas House, the Texas Senate and legetv.org.)
Trey Martinez Fischer
Posted in
State Government
Is There a Boys Club Under the Pink Dome?
The flap in the House and Senate this week over a political flyer showing an infant nursing at a bare breast has rekindled an age-old discussion: Is there sexism in the Texas Capitol?
Posted in
Public Education
Struggle Over Education Bill Breaks Old Alliances, Creates New Ones
State Rep. Rob Eissler, R-The Woodlands, is a widely liked Republican chairman with a supermajority to back him up. So why has his signature education bill this session, a mandate relief package for school districts, stumbled so badly?
Posted in
State Government
House Meltdown Ends in GOP Show of Force
A day of parliamentary chaos in the House ended with the passage of Gov. Rick Perry’s newest emergency item: a tort reform bill. And a powerful message from Republicans to Democrats: mess with us at your own peril.
Posted in
Demographics
Update: Point of Order Derails Sanctuary Cities Bill — For Now
The controversial “sanctuary cities” bill hit a roadblock in the Texas House late Friday when a point of order derailed the legislation and knocked it off the calendar.
Posted in
State Government
Texas House Gives Initial OK to Redistricting Plan
The Texas House tentatively approved new political districts early this morning on a 92-52 vote after hours of nips and tucks that left the proposal they started with mostly intact.
Posted in
Economy
Is an Incomplete Budget Better Than a Shrunken One?
There’s a widely held belief around the Capitol that lawmakers balanced a troublesome budget in 2003 with a convenient underestimation of how many people would need to be served. So why not do that on purpose, and out in the open?
Posted in
State Government
Texting While Driving Ban Gets Early OK In House
This is no LOL matter: Texting while driving could soon be prohibited statewide. But using other applications on a smart phone, like GPS or Facebook, would not be banned — as long as you’re reading, not typing.
Posted in
State Government
Voter ID Passes House After Long, Emotional Debate
After more than 11 hours of debate, seven points of order, more than 60 amendments and nearly as many heated exchanges, a mentally vanquished and emotionally exhausted Texas House preliminarily approved the controversial voter ID bill late tonight.
Posted in
Health care
Lawmakers Target Federal Health Reform
Federal health care reform was the clear antagonist at today’s meeting of the House Select Committee on State Sovereignty. Republican lawmakers laid out a dozen bills aimed at getting the federal government out of Texas’ health care system.