Inside Ted Cruz’s last-ditch battle to keep Trump in power
The Texas senator’s effort alienated some allies and sparked questions about ties to John Eastman, a longtime friend and author of key legal memos in Trump’s efforts. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/9df568669381bbe4de1427b5ab1edf16/Cruz%20Trump%20REUTERS%20TT.jpg)
-
![U.S. U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz applauds as President Donald Trump displays a presidential permit for energy development that he signed during a tour of the Double Eagle Energy Oil Rig in Midland on July 29, 2020.]()
Credit: REUTERS/Carlos Barria -
Analysis: Rural Texas hospitals still searching for a remedy
The good news is that no rural hospitals in Texas have closed in the last two years. The bad news? They’re still in crisis mode, and the state government is still struggling to find a remedy. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/e2a506ec806cf825192e859e716f6c26/07_Eastland_Memorial_GR_TT.jpg)
![Dr. William Simpson, a surgeon with Eastland Memorial Hospital, visits with a patient pre-surgery on March 10, 2019.]()
Credit: Gary Rhodes for the Texas Tribune -
TribCast: Two death penalty cases draw attention in Texas
In this week’s episode, Matthew speaks with Andrew and Jolie about Texans’ role in the confirmation hearing of Ketanji Brown Jackson and two important death penalty cases. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/e31179d1acb2c550fd82583db6c941d8/TribCast%20March%2025.jpg)
![Maggie Luna from Texas Center for Justice and Equity watches a press conference discussing the case of Melissa Lucio and the public push for her clemency at the state Capitol on Thursday, March 24, 2022. A bipartisan group of Texas lawmakers are pushing for a stay of execution for Melissa Lucio saying that there is enough doubt in her case that it would be a miscarriage of justice to execute her despite the doubts.]()
Credit: Sergio Flores for The Texas Tribune -
Analysis: The political value of an interruption
Nobody wants storms or fires. But for Texas politicians, responding to disasters can be a welcome change of subject from political fights in an election year. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/cc40d59883657a4f5534f2870cb8e497/Abbott%20Paxton%20MGO%20TT%2001.jpg)
![Gov. Greg Abbott and Attorney General Ken Paxton hosted 12 attorneys general from around the U.S. for a border security briefing at Texas DPS regional headquarters in Weslaco on Jan. 27, 2022.]()
Credit: Michael Gonzalez for The Texas Tribune -
U.S. Rep. Filemon Vela’s resignation announcement sparks a sudden special-election scramble in hotly contested South Texas
A special election will determine who finishes Vela’s term, and while the winner will only serve for a short period, Republicans are already eyeing the contest to show momentum in South Texas. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/aa2f9e54ce4149f38d4ab62fcc0e151f/Filemon%20Vela%20SK%20TT%20new%2019.jpg)
![Texas Tribune CEO Evan Smith moderates a discussion with U.S. Rep. Filemon Vela, D-Brownsville, on Monday, Feb. 13, 2017.]()
Credit: Shelby Knowles/The Texas Tribune -
Ted Cruz and John Cornyn are poised to vote against Ketanji Brown Jackson
Democrats hold narrow control of the Senate and have pledged to confirm Jackson — who would be the first Black woman on the U.S. Supreme Court — by April 8. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/3e3d7cd2ac177d5ce7c8c8ea5abba9be/Ketanji%20Brown%20Jackson%20Hearing%20REUTERS%20TT%2004.jpg)
![Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson testifies during the Senate Judiciary Committee's confirmation hearing on her nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court, on Capitol Hill in Washington, on March 22, 2022.]()
Credit: REUTERS/Michael A McCoy -
Federal judge says Waller County voting process did not discriminate against Black college students
A group of students at Prairie View A&M University sued the county, claiming it set up an election schedule in 2018 that offered students — most of them Black — fewer opportunities to vote early than the county’s white residents. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/3d350e3861e3ef8a186a1457115e6057/2018-10-29_Prairie_View_Early_Voting_Rachel.Zein.jpg)
![Early voting inside the Memorial Student Center at Prairie View A&M University in 2018.]()
Credit: Rachel Zein for The Texas Tribune -
U.S. Rep. Filemon Vela will resign early from Congress
The South Texas Democrat announced last year that he wouldn’t seek reelection. He’s leaving early to take a job at a law firm. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/5457a6638771189eec76f928292995e0/Filemon%20Vela%20REUTERS%20TT.jpg)
![U.S. Rep. Filemon Vela, D-Brownsville, attends a roundtable discussion on unaccompanied minor shelters in Brownsville on June 18, 2018.]()
Credit: REUTERS/Callaghan O'Hare -
Abortion funds bring new legal challenges to overturn Texas ban
The Texas law has proven largely impervious to judicial review. But lawyers representing abortion advocacy groups believe opponents may have given them an opening to challenge the law in a more friendly federal court. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/ac6612b73a73c76778874a7e0b4928be/SCOTUS%20Nov%201%20EL%20TT%2047.jpg)
![Abortion rights supporters hold signs that read, “Bans off our bodies” outside the Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., on Nov. 1.]()
Credit: Eric Lee for The Texas Tribune -
Ted Cruz clashes with Democrats during heated confirmation hearing for Ketanji Brown Jackson
Cruz argued with the committee’s chair over procedure, leading to an accusation that he was performing for the television cameras. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/bcf6b0862b7c2032b64149bb9a1eeefb/Ketanji%20Brown%20Jackson%20Hearing%20REUTERS%20TT%2002.jpg)
![Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin looks on as U.S. Senator Ted Cruz, R-TX, speaks during the third day of U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearings on Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson's nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court, on Capitol Hill in Washington on March 23, 2022.]()
Credit: REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz -
Nancy Pelosi affirms support for U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar after FBI raid, primary runoff berth
The U.S. House speaker said during a stop Wednesday in Austin that she always supports her incumbents — “from right to left.” Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/126aea931f8ba4a2a8799b04b1416d75/_JER6533.jpg)
![Speaker of the U.S. House Nancy Pelosi campaigns with Congressman Henry Cuellar at Cuellar's campaign headquarters in Laredo on Feb 02, 2020.]()
Credit: Robin Jerstad for The Texas Tribune -
Beto O’Rourke touts his oft-overlooked background — small-business owner — as Greg Abbott attacks him as job-killer
Abbott’s campaign has argued O’Rourke would “destroy the Texas miracle.” O’Rourke argues he’s the one who has run a business. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/4c85636e12d9275a52905683f6d63f9c/Beto%20Odessa%20Rally%20EH%20TT%2009.jpg)
![Gubernatorial candidate Beto O’Rourke answers questions from journalists following a town hall as part of his ‘Keeping the Lights On’ road trip on Feb. 4, 2022 in Odessa.]()
Credit: Eli Hartman for The Texas Tribune -
Former U.S. Senate candidate Amanda Edwards announces run for Houston mayor
Edwards joins a field that already includes two well-known names: veteran state Sen. John Whitmire, D-Houston, and Chris Hollins, the former Harris County clerk who oversaw election changes in 2020 that became a lightning rod for Republicans. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/21a414cb8298942e8ec25ceebc52bc61/Amanda%20Edwards%20AP%20TT.jpg)
![Houston City Councilwoman and U.S. Senate candidate Amanda Edwards outside of 919 Congress Avenue in Austin on Feb. 7, 2020.]()
Credit: Angela Piazza for The Texas Tribune -
Analysis: Texas government’s favorite local tax
State lawmakers will tell you they hate property taxes as much as anyone. But the state itself doesn’t levy the tax — local governments do. And lowering it in a meaningful way would require state officials to raise taxes or cut programs. For them, talking about it is easier than doing something. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/91c66c3846388c43bca287ed4d0d9e68/Aerial%20Suburbs%20JV%20TT%2004.jpg)
![An Aerial image of a suburban neighborhood in San Marcos on October 18, 2021.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Ted Cruz and John Cornyn question Ketanji Brown Jackson about anti-racism books, Supreme Court’s gay marriage ruling
U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, the other Republican senator from Texas, asked the nominee about the court case legalizing gay marriage and questioned her defense of Guantánamo Bay detainees who allegedly faced mistreatment. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/ee25728a66ec5459f1e25d04d9897f0e/Cruz%20CRT%20SCOTUS%20REUTERS%20TT%2001.jpg)
![U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-TX, holds up the book "How To Be an Antiracist" as he questions Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson during her testimony before a Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing on her nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court, at Capitol Hill in Washington, on March 22, 2022.]()
Credit: REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz -
T-Squared: María Méndez is joining The Texas Tribune as service and engagement reporter
She will connect readers with resources, demystify politics and public policy and look for ways to reach Texans whose questions often go unheard. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/bb0bc2d86d847f092512403de66d5d22/Maria%20Mendez%20JWJ%20TT.jpg)
![María Méndez has reported from Austin, Dallas and Laredo.]()
Credit: Jay Janner/Austin American-Statesman -
What is harm reduction, the drug-treatment program that Sen. Ted Cruz has criticized?
A $30 million grant program aims to mitigate the fallout from drug addiction and overdoses. Officials say Cruz’s comments about it are misleading. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/feb3c2374c9ac12e21f5f0e7fe3babaa/Ted%20Cruz%20Tech%20Privacy%20REUTERS%20TT.jpg)
![U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, speaks during a Senate Judiciary Subcommittee hearing on "Big Data, Big Questions: Implications for Competition and Consumers" in Washington, D.C., on Sept. 21, 2021.]()
Credit: Ting Shen/Pool via REUTERS -
Attorney General Ken Paxton asks Texas Supreme Court to let investigations into transgender families continue
The temporary injunction was issued as part of a lawsuit brought on behalf of parents being investigated by child welfare workers for letting their transgender teenager access gender-affirming health care. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/a7a188030276eccbc8bcf4b0f73e87b2/Trans%20Rights%20Rally%20LW%20TT%2025.jpg)
![Transgender, pride progress and nonbinary flags are passed out during the Trans Kids Cry for HELP! rally in front of the Governor's Mansion in Austin on March 13, 2022.]()
Credit: Lauren Witte/The Texas Tribune -
Help us investigate Texas border security initiatives
We’re looking into Texas’ border security initiatives, including what has worked, what hasn’t and how they affect residents. If you have experience on the border, we’d like to hear from you. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/a544e0799b1bc09a841bdebe958b1e99/National%20Guard%20OLS%20REUTERS%20TT.jpg)
![A member of the Texas Army National Guard holds a flashlight as migrants crawl over rocks after wading across the Rio Grande into the United States from Mexico, in Roma, on March 4, 2022.]()
Credit: REUTERS/Adrees Latif -
Analysis: A health care problem too big for the Texas Legislature
Texas, unlike all but 11 other states, hasn’t expanded its Medicaid program. And it also hasn’t addressed the problem that’s supposed to help solve: The state’s worst-in-the-nation ranking for people without health insurance. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/1213fd47091ec5aa33238c9ea8a18cb1/Doctor%20Clinic%20Medical%20Women%20Health%20SS%20TT%2005.jpg)
![Nurse Practitioner Barber Anika with a patient at the Legacy Community Health Center in Houston on Aug. 2, 2013.]()
Credit: Michael Stravato for The Texas Tribune