Ken Paxton and James Talarico are in a close race for Texas’ U.S. Senate seat, with Ted Brown also on the ballot. See where they stand on THC, data centers and Flock cameras. Talarico and Brown answered our questions; Paxton did not, so we used his past public statements to describe his positions.
Politics
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Posted in
Criminal Justice
Texas appeals order requiring prison air conditioning, saying it puts operations at risk
TDCJ, which estimates climate control will cost $1.5 billion, said the federal judge’s order imposes “chaos and confusion” on the country’s largest prison system.
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Health care
Texas health agency proposes eliminating children’s autism program
The proposed elimination of the program, aimed at serving lower-income families, comes as Texas leadership has called on agencies to reduce budgets by 3%.
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Environment
How a bid to beat the drought drove Corpus Christi to the brink of disaster
What started as a novel plan to provide an unrestricted water supply to the oil and gas industry turned into a political quagmire that has consumed the city.
Posted in
2026 Texas Elections
James Talarico returns to campaign trail at ACL festival after illness spurred GOP calls for “proof of life”
Republican Ken Paxton made hay over the Democrat’s nine-day spell between public appearances, while right-wing commentators ran with unverified theories and dismissed that Talarico’s recovery could have been hindered by his Type I diabetes.
Posted in
2026 Texas Elections
Mayes Middleton, running for Texas attorney general, wants to “put God back in government”
Middleton, a Republican, has long pushed for injecting Christianity into the public sphere. His Democratic opponent, Nathan Johnson, said those views make him unfit for office.
Posted in
Investigations
Ken Paxton took nearly 1,000 trips with state-funded security detail costing millions of dollars
The Texas attorney general’s use of a taxpayer-funded travel security detail stands out when compared with his predecessor and other state officials, our analysis found.
Posted in
Texas affordability crisis
How Texas candidates plan to lower the cost of gas, groceries and housing
From groceries to childcare, Texans are spending more to live here. Here’s how much costs have risen, why it’s happening and what candidates are proposing to fix it.
Posted in
Politics
Trump slams Rep. Henry Cuellar for sticking with Democratic Party despite presidential pardon
Cuellar and his wife, charged with bribery, money laundering and conspiracy, were pardoned in December. In a social media post, Trump indicated he expected Cuellar to run as a Republican.
Posted in
2026 Texas Elections
In attacking Talarico for campaign absence, Trump calls for debate that Paxton has avoided
The Democrat, off the trail with the flu, quickly accepted the president’s call to “immediately report to a Debate Stage” with Ken Paxton.
