The latest politics news from The Texas Tribune.
Promising to secure the border and take the Texas approach to government national, Gov. Rick Perry delivered an impassioned speech Friday morning in which he called for conservatives to wage a “war” on “the battlefield of ideas.” Full Story
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Last week, state Sen. Leticia Van de Putte, the Democratic candidate for lieutenant governor, shot down speculation she was considering a run for San Antonio mayor. The rumors could hurt her prospects on multiple fronts. Full Story
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No debates have been scheduled yet between lieutenant governor candidates Dan Patrick and Leticia Van de Putte. But the two spoke in front of the same crowd on Thursday, making a case for their candidacies and promoting their support for business. You can read the full story here. Full Story
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Rick Perry's political star is rising again, and associates say the new man behind the curtain is Jeff Miller, a California transplant known for his fundraising prowess and overflowing address book. Full Story
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UPDATED: A TV ad war is about to begin in the governor's race. State Sen. Wendy Davis is out with a blistering TV attack ad featuring the story of a rape victim and a vote her opponent made as a judge. The ad was released after Greg Abbott announced he was airing the first major statewide TV ad of the fall governor's race. Full Story
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Gov. Rick Perry and U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, two potential 2016 presidential candidates, are among the Texas Republicans scheduled to speak at RedState's national conference Friday and Saturday in Fort Worth. Full Story
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Leticia Van de Putte, the Democratic candidate for lieutenant governor, calls for reducing high-stakes testing in a new plan for Texas schools. The campaign of her Republican opponent, Dan Patrick, said the plan would do nothing to help turn around underperforming schools. Full Story
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State Rep. Brandon Creighton, R-Conroe, has defeated state Rep. Steve Toth, R-The Woodlands, in a special election runoff for a vacant Houston-area state Senate seat. Full Story
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When Congress adjourned last week without passing a border security bill to pay for additional operations, it also left local governments without an avenue to be reimbursed for millions spent during the border crisis. Full Story
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SpaceX on Monday chose to place its first commercial launch complex on Boca Chica beach near Brownsville. The announcement solidified Texas' leading position in the country's space program even as it transitions to one with greater opportunities for private companies. Full Story
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Seeking to aid fellow Republicans in the November elections — and perhaps bolster his own chances for a 2016 presidential run – Gov. Rick Perry has formed a federal political action committee. Full Story
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UPDATED: Attorneys made their opening arguments Monday in a U.S. district court trial over a provision that requires abortion facilities to meet the same regulations as ambulatory surgical centers. Full Story
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A new report raises fresh doubts about a key witness instrumental in securing the execution of Cameron Todd Willingham. This new evidence forces again the question as to whether Texas executed an innocent man. Full Story
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“God spoke to me," Hope Jackson said about her plan to start a shelter for homeless female veterans in El Paso. Jackson, who is relying on her money and community support to convert a house for the facility, said it would be ready this fall. Full Story
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State Rep. Jason Villalba, R-Dallas, urged the GOP to focus on appealing to Hispanic voters, emphasizing that the “ultimate survivability of the Republican Party” is at stake, in an Austin speech Thursday. Full Story
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Rep. Scott Turner, R-Frisco, has not been in the Texas House for two years, but the freshman lawmaker and former California congressional candidate has his eye on the top job there: speaker. Full Story
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Ted Cruz has become the latest D.C.-based practitioner of the Pottery Barn rule: He broke the border bill, and now, possibly more than any other single person, he owns it. Full Story
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A once-obscure federal export credit agency has landed at the center of a national debate over business and free-market ideology, with potentially enduring ramifications for the Texas companies it supports and the Republicans it is dividing. Full Story
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UPDATED: After the U.S. House called off a vote Tuesday afternoon on a $659 million supplemental bill for border security operations, Gov. Rick Perry said Congress is "abandoning its post." Full Story
This week's House committee hearing in which leading officials in charge of executing the plan said they never asked for Guard troops revealed another aspect of Rick Perry's border action, according to the Houston Chronicle's Patrick Svitek. Full Story
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