The latest politics news from The Texas Tribune.
As Texans struggle with terrible winter weather, electric utility failures affecting more than 4 million households, a pandemic and a botched vaccine rollout, a natural question arises: Do state leaders know what they're doing? Full Story
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Texas residents said the storm — and ensuing partial collapse of the state's power system — sapped what mental reserves they had left after eleven months of a global health crisis that has cost thousands of jobs and claimed more than 40,000 lives in the state. Full Story
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“The Electric Reliability Council of Texas has been anything but reliable over the past 48 hours,” Gov. Greg Abbott said in a statement. Full Story
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As the Biden administration works to expand federal nondiscrimination protections for LGBTQ people, Texas advocates and lawmakers are pushing for similar legislation here. Full Story
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Paxton's legal troubles are increasing in volume, at just about the time an officeholder in his position would be thinking about the next round of elections. Full Story
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The U.S. Senate voted to acquit the former president on Saturday after a five-day impeachment trial in which several Texans played a key role. The state's two Republican senators voted to acquit, as they did during Trump's first impeachment trial. Full Story
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On this week's TribCast, Matthew speaks with Kate, Karen and Mitchell about Attorney General Ken Paxton's latest legal problems, the vaccine rollout and the politics of energy in Biden-era Texas. Full Story
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The Census Bureau now says it will get detailed results of the national population count to states by Sept. 30. That means Gov. Greg Abbott will almost certainly need to call lawmakers back for overtime in the fall to craft new Congressional and legislative districts. Full Story
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What gets the state’s unusually subdued lieutenant governor to stand up and take notice? Not playing the national anthem at Dallas Mavericks games, as it turns out. The first culture clash of the 2021 legislative session is underway. Full Story
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U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro served as an impeachment manager. And multiple rioters from Texas were referenced in descriptions of the violence at the Capitol. Full Story
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People pushing for the move say they are hopeful they'll get legislative approval this year. If not, one executive said, it's "inevitable" in the future. Full Story
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Multiple federal courts have found Texas' cash bail practices discriminatory against poor people. The governor has said his priority bill will instead focus on keeping "dangerous criminals" in jail before they're convicted. Full Story
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The climate, environment and energy caucus aims to start a conversation in the Legislature on how Texas can prepare for climate change and take advantage of the transition to cleaner energy sources. Full Story
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The NBA said the team would resume playing the song at home games, a day after it was reported that the national anthem had not been played at any Mavericks home games this season. Full Story
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The National Republican Congressional Committee announced Wednesday that its initial list of targets includes three representatives from South Texas: Henry Cuellar of Laredo, Vicente Gonzalez of McAllen and Filemon Vela of Brownsville. Full Story
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Delays in the delivery of court-approved political maps have disrupted past elections in Texas. And this year's pandemic-related delays in the U.S. census have raised the possibility of jumbled election plans in 2022. Full Story
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The lieutenant governor is not starting the biennial legislative session in his characteristically outspoken style, particularly when it comes to making clear his policy priorities. Full Story
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In the latest episode of our podcast about the Texas Legislature, Evan Smith talks to state Rep. Nicole Collier, chairwoman of the House Criminal Jurisprudence Committee, about the George Floyd Act, bail reform, marijuana, public safety funding and other items on the agenda in the 2021 session. Full Story
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Now praised as heroes of the pandemic, nurses and other front-line medical workers have been routinely scratched, bitten or verbally abused by patients. Well over half of Texas' nurses reported being subject to workplace violence in their career, according to a 2016 state study. Full Story
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There are a total of 181 legislators in the Capitol, but the influence is not evenly distributed. Due to the lawmakers’ positions, ideology and tenure, some will have a much bigger say on the biggest issues this session. Full Story
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