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Campaign finance

The latest campaign finance news from The Texas Tribune.

  • Tom DeLay's Negative Numbers

    By Elise Hu

    During a break in Wednesday's pretrial hearing, former U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay, R-Sugar Land, and his lawyer, Dick DeGuerin, discuss a poll that shows a significant portion of potential jurors in Travis County already believe he's guilty. They're using the numbers to argue for a change of venue in the state's money laundering case against DeLay. Full Story 

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  • TribWeek: In Case You Missed It

    By Ross Ramsey

    Galbraith on grass, federal money and efforts to prevent another dust bowl, Ergenbright on school suspensions and who gets punished; Aguilar's interview with Alan Bersin, whose job is to keep the U.S./Mexico border secure, M. Smith on why it would be harder than you think to ditch the 14th Amendment, Adler and me on whether controversy is politically contagious, Ramshaw on the flap over funding for the state's institutions for the disabled (it's not about the money), my meditation on the state's fiscal woes (including a $1.3 billion deficit in the current budget), Philpott on proposed cuts to the state's food stamp program, Grissom on the push by Hidalgo County officials for a special election that might not be legal; Hamilton on the seven Texas universities that are making a play for Tier One status and Stiles on the mid-year cash-on-hand numbers reported by campaigns and political action committees: The best of our best from August 16 to 23, 2010. Full Story 

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    Credit: Graphic by Todd Wiseman

  • Accounts Playable

    By Ross Ramsey and Matt Stiles

    The 2,694 political committees and campaigns that filed mid-year reports with the Texas Ethics Commission together held $167 million in their accounts, but only 274 of them had more than $100,000 on hand. Our interactive chart tells you who or what they are and how much they've banked. Full Story 

    The 2,694 political committees and campaigns that filed mid-year reports with the Texas Ethics Commission together held $167 million in their accounts, and the numbers offer a glimpse at what's competitive and what's not
    Credit: Graphic by Todd Wiseman

  • Justice DeLayed

    By Andy Uhler, KUT News/StateImpact Texas

    The Justice Department has ended a six-year criminal probe of onetime U.S. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Sugar Land, without filing charges. But as Andy Uhler of KUT News reports, that doesn’t mean the controversial former congressman is off the legal hook. Full Story 

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  • 2010: It's a Gas, Gas, Gas

    By Ross Ramsey

    Jason Isaac, the Republican running against state Rep. Patrick Rose, D-Dripping Springs, says the incumbent is misusing his campaign accounts to cover personal transportation costs. Rose says it's a big district and points out that Isaac's campaign pays for gas, too. Full Story 

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    Credit: Bob Daemmrich

  • 2010: Hide and Seek

    By Ross Ramsey

    Rick Perry and Bill White traded barbs during and after short speeches in Austin this morning, each implying the other was concealing financial information that would be of interest to voters. Full Story 

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  • Face the Donation

    By Matt Stiles

    Democratic gubernatorial candidate Bill White is again attacking his Republican opponent, Gov. Rick Perry, for accepting contributions from political appointees — but the former Houston mayor is no stranger to the practice, according to a Texas Tribune analysis of campaign and city records. White has raised nearly $2 million over his years in public life from the people he appointeed to boards and commissions. Full Story 

  • The Weekly TribCast: Episode 41

    By Ben Philpott, KUT News

    Ben, Ross, Evan and Matt talk about President Obama's visit to Texas and who didn't want to be seen with him, the battle over strings attached to federal education money, Bill White's donor-appointees and the legal and political definitions of residency. Full Story 

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  • Countering Obama

    By Erika Aguilar, KUT News

    As President Obama made his way to a fundraiser in Dallas Monday, Republicans in Austin got in their two-cents worth, holding a "Hands Off Texas" rally on the South Steps of the state Capitol hours after Obama visited Austin for fundraiser and a speech at UT. KUT's Erika Aguilar reports. Full Story 

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  • TribWeek: In Case You Missed It

    By Ross Ramsey

    Thevenot on bogus public school accountability rankings, Garcia-Ditta on what locals think of increased patrols on the border, Stiles and Ramsey on where Kay Bailey Hutchison's donors have landed, Grissom on the pay gap between state and local police, Cervantes on how tweaks to the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder will impact Texas, M. Smith on the sinking prospects for an East Texas wetlands project, Ergenbright on the challenge of educating autistic children, Aguilar on efforts to legalize medicinal marijuana, Ramshaw on former foster children having trouble getting records from the state and Burnson on public health officials battling imported infectious diseases: The best of our best from August 2 to 6, 2010. Full Story 

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    Credit: Graphic by Todd Wiseman

  • Interactive: Kay's Cash

    By Ross Ramsey and Matt Stiles

    When U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison lost the Republican primary for governor, her supporters became political orphans. But many of them have landed with either Rick Perry or Bill White. A Texas Tribune data mash-up shows that more than $1 million has flowed to Perry from Hutchison supporters since March, while at least $600,000 has gone to White. Full Story 

    Numerous contributors who supported U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison's unsuccessful campaign for the Republican gubernatorial nomination in March are now backing other candidates.
    Credit: Graphic by Todd Wiseman

  • Pols in Purgatory

    By Forrest Burnson

    State Rep. Tara Rios Ybarra, D-South Padre Island, who is awaiting prosecution on corruption charges, is the latest Texas elected official under indictment but not yet convicted to languish in career-crippling limbo. Full Story 

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    Credit: Graphic by Todd Wiseman

  • The Map: Get Out the Vote

    By Matt Stiles, The Texas Tribune, and Zahira Torres, El Paso Times

    El Paso and Hidalgo are the largest Latino-majority and Democratic-leaning counties in the state, and they rank near the bottom when you compare the size of their voting age population to the actual number of people who show up at the polls. Collin and Fort Bend are growing suburban counties with larger Anglo populations that tend to lean Republican and produce some of the highest turnouts of eligible voters anywhere in Texas. Guess which pair gets the most attention and has the most clout? Full Story 

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    Credit: Graphic by Todd Wiseman/Jacob Villanueva

  • TribWeek: In Case You Missed It

    By Ross Ramsey

    Ramshaw's question about an insurance company denying coverage for an infant vaccine prompts a reversal; Stiles' new app lets you poke through mid-year campaign reports on donations and spending; Ramsey finds foreshadowing of the state's big fall races in the campaign finance reports; Aguilar interviews Henry Cisneros about current politics; Dawson finds Texas environmentalists getting advice from an unexpected place; Galbraith on "demand response" that might cut the need for power plants and on the next wave of electric cars; Aguilar on increasing trade through Texas ports of entry; M. Smith on affirmative action battles in higher education; Titus on Mexican college students' drift from border universities to UT-Austin and Texas A&M; and Hamilton on controversy over private, for-profit colleges: The best of our best for the week of July 19 to 23, 2010. Full Story 

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    Credit: Graphic by Todd Wiseman

  • TribBlog: White's D.C. Dollars

    By Forrest Burnson

    Gubernatorial candidate Bill White may have more campaign cash on hand than Republican incumbent Gov. Rick Perry — but where it came from could hurt the former Houston mayor's campaign. That’s because nearly 25 percent of the donations since Feb. 20 — about $1.8 million — came from contributors in Washington, D.C. Full Story 

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