Analysis: How Private Opinions Can Diverge From Public Votes
Tax cuts and politics ethics legislation have this in common: When lawmakers have to vote in public view, they're often forced to set aside their private opinions. Full Story
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Tax cuts and politics ethics legislation have this in common: When lawmakers have to vote in public view, they're often forced to set aside their private opinions. Full Story
Rick Perry and Marcus Luttrell, the Navy SEAL who escaped a 2005 Taliban ambush in Afghanistan, are drawing attention to their unusual relationship as the now-former governor prepares to launch his second presidential campaign. Full Story
Despite appearances, the House and Senate aren't too far apart on border security funding, says the lone border lawmaker on the budget conference committee. One sticking point is funding for state trooper pay. Full Story
After months of little movement in the Texas Legislature on proposals to further restrict abortion, the pace is picking up as a flurry of bills moves to the House and Senate floors. Full Story
The budget conference committee will hash out a compromise of the chamber’s respective 2016-17 budget plans. Committee members include two Democrats who rank as the most experienced budget negotiators on the panel. Full Story
A Republican-appointed federal appellate judge on Tuesday questioned why the Texas Legislature had not addressed concerns that its four-year-old voter ID law discriminated against minority voters. Full Story
With the U.S. Supreme Court set to hear oral arguments in four same-sex marriage cases on Tuesday, Texas Republicans are already looking for loopholes in hopes of getting around a possible decision that effectively legalizes gay marriage. Full Story
The House Human Services Committee heard testimony Monday evening on a bill that would partially consolidate the state’s massive health and human services system. Full Story
Health insurers could be prohibited from offering Texans plans covering abortions under a proposal by Republican state Sen. Larry Taylor of Friendswood. Full Story
As the Texas Legislature ponders ethics reforms to increase transparency and reduce conflicts of interests among its members, a key state lawmaker is facing new questions about whether his private business affairs are impacting his public duties. Full Story
If the Texas Legislature has to come back for special sessions after its current session ends, it might not be because state lawmakers left something unresolved. It might trace back to election lawsuits pending in federal courts. Full Story
On this week's edition of WFAA-TV's Inside Texas Politics, host Jason Whitely, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram's Bud Kennedy and Tribune Executive Editor Ross Ramsey talk about last week's "breakfast blowup." Full Story
How the House and Senate resolve their budget differences could offer clues about toxicity levels between the chambers for the balance of the session, so here's The Police, playing "Canary in a Coal Mine." Full Story
The two White House hopefuls from Texas made fiery appeals Saturday to a well-heeled crowd at the Republican Jewish Coalition's annual meeting in Las Vegas. Full Story
Texans in Congress are trying to balance party loyalties, distrust of the president and the interests of their districts as they decide whether to give President Obama fast-track authority on a Pacific Rim trade deal. Full Story
Former Gov. Rick Perry and U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz are heading to Las Vegas to make their presidential pitches to a group of major Jewish donors that includes billionaire casino magnate Sheldon Adelson. Full Story
This week, the House and the Senate named the members of a conference committee that will resolve the differences between the two chambers' budget plans. Here’s a look at how the two proposals compare, with details on some areas where the plans diverge. Full Story
UPDATED: Debate on legislation to re-evaluate a state health agency morphed into a fight over abortion in the Texas House on Thursday, and the bill was pulled down after a pair of anti-abortion amendments were added to the bill over the author's objections. Full Story
The panel of conservative activists that is advising Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick is putting him in a tricky spot as he navigates leadership politics under the dome. Full Story
On the first-ever episode of The Ticket, our presidential podcast, Jay Root and Ben Philpott talk with former Texas GOP Chairman Steve Munisteri, who's now working for Rand Paul, and dissect Sen. Ted Cruz’s presidential announcement speech at Liberty University. Full Story