The latest politics news from The Texas Tribune.
Texas has scored a 68 out of 100, placing 27th in a national state integrity study. The state got high marks for auditing and for monitoring pension funds, but not as high for accountability of the governor and legislators. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/ScalesMoneyTexas.jpg)
A new report says the number of Texas children living in areas of high poverty has increased about 40 percent over the past decade. And as Ben Philpott of KUT News and the Tribune reports, advocacy groups hope the data will bolster anti-poverty programs. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/photo_1.JPG)
A report released Monday by the conservative Texas Public Policy Foundation renewed its criticism of the Environmental Protection Agency. Environmentalists say the group's concerns are misplaced. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/Powerplant-and-EPA.jpg)
A teachers group has urged Gov. Rick Perry to call a special session to address education funding. But as Ben Philpott of KUT News and the Tribune reports, there's still plenty of disagreement on what fixing the school funding system would actually mean. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/KidsInClassroom_EducationApp.jpg)
Every Texas Democrat who has run for statewide office in the last 18 years has been defeated. Every Democrat on the ballot this year hopes to bust that slump. But Republicans in Texas have suffered a longer drought than what Democrats are currently facing. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/548ead94fe3e32fd2241444837acee19/BD%20INC%20Sadler%20048%20CMS%202011)
The state Legislature heads back to work in less than a year. And as Ben Philpott of KUT News and the Tribune reports, the state’s improving economy won't likely save legislators from the protracted budget battle that awaits them. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/budgetcuts.jpg)
Hot on the heels of his fellow GOP Senate candidates Craig James and David Dewhurst releasing their tax returns, Ted Cruz has provided the Tribune with the last five years of his tax filings. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/TedCruz-HandInAir.jpg)
For members of Houston's aerospace industry, GOP presidential candidate Newt Gingrich's vow to put a permanent base on the moon by 2020 is a plan unlikely to take off. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/GingrichMoon_1.jpg)
Following the lead of fellow Republican U.S. Senate candidate Craig James, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst has released his tax returns from 2009 and 2010. James on Thursday urged his fellow candidates to release their returns from the last five years. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/d7ff44a10d39e7cc92c7ddc8f1ac998a/BD%20INC%20Dewhurst%2004%202011)
Up and down the Texas ballot, candidates are waiting to see whether the redrawn political maps give them any chance of winning. Careers, plans and schemes are in the balance. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/582467f7c93550193bf1f557966e63a8/BD%20INC%20Morrisin%20Geanie%2002%202012)
Nobody said running for a U.S. Senate seat in Texas was cheap. A (partial) release of Ted Cruz's finances, and other political news from around the state. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/9282c215d391052f3dcd6312e9050f5a/BD%20INC%20Cruz-Dewhurtst%202012)
When the Legislature decamped from Austin in July, there was a sense of order in Texas politics. And yet, as Rick Perry returns a mere seven months later, conditions on the ground in Texas border on the chaotic. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/d489077b68053256cb3dcf8ef9419222/BD%20INC%20A%20Perry%20Boone%20397%20CMS%20X%202011)
Craig James, the former sports commentator who is running to replace Republican U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, has released his tax returns from the last five years. Expect his opponents to follow suit. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/aafefaecde7f93092fddd6712d5e7166/BD%20INC%20James%2002%202012)
The insiders think Ron Paul's biggest obstacle is Ron Paul, are pessimistic about Texas Democrats, and predict Democratic primaries focused on education and Republican primaries focused on spending and taxes. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/inside_intelligence-logo.png){kind=logo}
The U.S. Department of Justice is keeping Texans guessing as to whether they will have to furnish photo IDs before casting their ballots. But a fresh lawsuit has spurred a new round of mudslinging directed at the law's Republican backers. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/Voter_ID_Pin.jpg)
Emily Ramshaw explains how family planning clinics are complying with the state's new abortion sonogram law. Morgan Smith shows us a school district that is canceling its sports program. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/videos/jan26.jpg)
Despite opposition from state Rep. Larry Taylor, who co-chairs the Windstorm Insurance Legislative Oversight Board, the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association's board decided today to hire a third party to assess its financial structure. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/a31fda5d4e5e1cd6de60d3269f91109b/BD%20INC%20Taylor%2012%202011)
The underlying fundamentals that buttressed Gov. Rick Perry's political power in the state are not much changed, and they suggest that the governor will reassert his powerful presence in Texas politics now that he is back. Full Story
Evan, Ross, Reeve and Ben take the TribCast on the road with a special live edition recorded at The Cactus Cafe as part of KUT’s Views and Brews series. The topic? Rick Perry, of course. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/Tribcast_2.jpg)
One of the "poor" U.S. Senate candidates in Texas claims to have caught up with one of the "rich" ones, and both camps, incidentally, are getting outside help with television ads. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/6ec9deb088b125c27f91c51e4e0ff0ad/BD%20INC%20Cruz%2003%202012)