The latest politics news from The Texas Tribune.
With the addition of more than a dozen statewide elected officials to our Lawmaker Explorer — including Attorney General Greg Abbott and Comptroller Susan Combs and the state's railroad commissioners and Supreme Court justices — we're renaming it the Ethics Explorer. Full Story
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Your evening reading: Cruz's plans for South Carolina speech stir speculation; Williams says state will move to A-F grading system for schools; House lawmakers question CPRIT Foundation's decision to rebrand Full Story
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Polling over the last two years from the University of Texas/Texas Tribune suggests that education has not become more salient to Texas voters, nor have perceptions of school quality suffered significantly. Full Story
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A clash of political heavyweights has pounded new urgency into the debate over Medicaid expansion in Texas. Full Story
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Your evening reading: press conferences highlight Medicaid expansion debate; FBI assisting Kaufman County murder investigation; House freshmen target budget to free up money for retired teachers Full Story
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The Texas rhetoric around a key tenet of federal health reform reached a high-water mark on Monday, with back-to-back press conferences at the Capitol featuring political leaders on both sides of the aisle. Full Story
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Dueling events at the Capitol today will pit Texas' top Republicans against the state's two highest-profile Democrats. Full Story
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UPDATED: As debates over gun control intensify across the nation, state senators on Tuesday tentatively approved a measure allowing Gov. Rick Perry to offer economic incentives to gun manufacturers that want to move to Texas. Full Story
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This week in the Newsreel: The Legislature makes progress on key education and water bills; Rep. Ron Reynolds, D-Missouri City, is busted for barratry; and Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst bares his partisan teeth. Full Story
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UPDATED: U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-San Antonio, and his twin, San Antonio Mayor Julián Castro, will hold their own event at the Capitol on Monday to promote the Medicaid expansion provision of federal health reform. Full Story
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Austin has become a growing market for Mexican narco cinema, hastily made films inspired by the cartels. The videos are popular in Austin partly because of the city's increasing population of Hispanic immigrants and Texas’ proximity to Mexico, where the movies are made. Full Story
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Some voters will associate a particular policy with a particular individual, and they will probably transfer the opinion of the person to the issue at hand. President Obama's numbers in Texas show that any issue he supports is unlikely to gain much traction in the state. Full Story
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Your evening reading: Cruz's attempt to repeal health care reform fails; crash victims want Gonzalez to step down; George P. Bush steps up fundraising efforts Full Story
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George P. Bush, Republican candidate for Texas Land Commissioner, told a crowd at the Texas Legislative Conference in New Braunfels on Friday that he's interested in education issues, in cutting regulations and taxes, and in helping the 1.7 million veterans expected to live in or return to the state over the next few years. Full Story
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After successfully leading the bruising campaigns for two state senators and a state representative, Terrysa Guerra, an unassuming Democratic strategist, has emerged as a secret weapon for her party. Full Story
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Your evening reading: former workforce commissioner announces bid for governor; House committee approves budget with additional school funding; Cornyn wants hearing on immigrant release Full Story
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Tom Pauken, the former Texas workforce commissioner and former chairman of the Texas Republican Party, confirmed Thursday to the Tribune that he will file to run for governor. Full Story
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George P. Bush is running for land commissioner, clearing the way for other politicians who want to run in 2014 but don't want to run against that famous last name. But the filing doesn't end the speculation — it just changes it. Full Story
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In an interview with The Shark Tank, a Florida politics blog, Gov. Rick Perry said he would decide whether to run for re-election in June, then make his decision on a presidential bid "sometime later in the year." Full Story
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For this week's nonscientific survey of insiders in politics and government, we asked about exemptions from school property taxes and about the political future of U.S. Sen. John Cornyn. Full Story
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