When he warned of terror babies on Anderson Cooper 360 last week, U.S. Rep. Louie Gohmert, R-Tyler, told Cooper that he and comedian Jon Stewart could “have their fun” with him. So Stewart did.
Immigration
In-depth reporting on border issues, policies, communities, and the impact of immigration across the state, from The Texas Tribune.
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Demographics
165 Seconds of Terror
Can’t get enough of Texas lawmakers and the “terror baby” threat? Neither can we. We trimmed down and mashed up the most memorable moments from the appearances by state Rep. Debbie Riddle, R-Tomball, and U.S. Rep. Louie Gohmert, R-Tyler, on CNN last week. Cue Mr. Beethoven…
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Demographics
The Optimist Club
Along the border, the beheadings and bombings carried out by drug cartels are drawing comparisons to murders by Muslim extremists — not surprising, given the war-like death toll of 8,100 so far this year in Mexico, including about 50 casualties last weekend. Yet diplomats from both sides reject the notion raised regularly by government officials and media outlets that Mexico is a “failed state.” The horrors of some communities, they told a border security conference last week in El Paso, overshadow the fact that parts of the country remain stable and are thriving economically.
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Demographics
Alan Bersin, Audio Clip
The Tribune interviews U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Alan Bersin.
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Demographics
Anchors Away
As anti-immigration sentiment continues to rise along with border violence, proposals to abolish the 14th Amendment’s birthright citizenship provision have ricocheted through the political noise machine as an antidote for the incidence of “anchor babies.” But as a practical matter, what would the removal of birthright citizenship mean for the country? Pierce the fog of rhetoric and you’ll quickly discover that nobody really knows — including the state and federal lawmakers yelling loudest for change.
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Demographics
Alan Bersin: The TT Interview
The commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection on why he believes the Texas-Mexico border is secure, why deportations of criminals have reached unprecedented levels, why trade between the U.S. and Mexico still thrives and what motivates most undocumented immigrants to enter this country illegally.
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Criminal Justice
TribWeek: In Case You Missed It
Stiles on Bill White’s donor-appointees, M. Smith on a form of meritless lawsuit that’s still legal in Texas, Ramshaw on what federal health care reform means for the future of physician-owned specialty hospitals, Galbraith’s interview with the chairman of the Public Utility Commission, Philpott on the latest flap over federal education funding, Grissom on the finally-in-compliance Dallas County Jail, Titus on the oiled pelicans of the BP spill, Hamilton’s interview with the new chancellor of the Texas State University System, Ramsey on the political and legal definitions of residency, Hu on Barack Obama’s visit to Austin and Aguilar on what the U.S. could be doing to aid Mexico: The best of our best from August 9 to 13, 2010.
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Demographics
TribBlog: Legalize It? You Must Be High
Drug Czar Gil Kerlikowske laid out the case against legalizing marijuana and other drugs today at a border security conference.
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Congress
HuTube: Texas Lawmakers and Terror Babies, Cont.
In today’s must-watch video, the Texas congressman who first brought up the “terror baby” claims on the U.S. House floor isn’t taking too kindly to being challenged about it.
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Demographics
Alone Together
Gov. Rick Perry and his Democratic challenger, Bill White, appeared on the same stage in Austin on Thursday. But anyone itching for a debate between the two was disappointed. The candidates were separated on the schedule by other speakers and were never even in the room at the same time. Ben Philpott of KUT News and the Tribune filed this report.