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A rumored new set of state Senate voting maps would give Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick's GOP an even bigger advantage.

Texas Redistricting When Republicans Seem to Hold All the Cards

By Schaefer Edwards

Sep 20, 2021

It doesn't matter that 95 percent of the state’s population growth since 2010 (according to the latest census results) has come from Texans of color who traditionally lean toward Democrats when voting. Not when Republicans control the Senate and House. State Democrats and progressive advocacy groups are already convinced the...

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland's Justice Department has upped the ante in its attempt to block Texas' latest abortion ban.

DOJ Asks Judge To Block Texas' Abortion Law, While Women Seeking Abortions Are Driven Out of State

By Schaefer Edwards

Sep 15, 2021

One sexual assault victim had to travel to Oklahoma to get the abortion now forbidden to her by the new draconian Texas abortion law that went into effect September 1. “I provided an abortion to [a] woman from Texas who had been raped and could not get an abortion in...

A downed stop sign on Washington Ave. showed how strong last night's winds were gusting.

Power Outages From Nicholas Likely To Last As It's Still Too Windy For Crews To Start Work

By Schaefer Edwards

Sep 14, 2021

In brief remarks updating the public on Harris County’s response to Tropical Storm Nicholas, Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo on Tuesday warned residents without power that they may not have their electricity restored any time soon, as CenterPoint crews will not be sent out into the field until the strong...

Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo said she'd spoken twice with Gov. Greg Abbott Monday about Tropical Storm Nicholas.

Hidalgo Asks Harris County Residents To Stay Put Monday Night Due To Nicholas

By Schaefer Edwards

Sep 13, 2021

As the first bands of rain from the edges of Tropical Storm Nicholas continued to drop water across greater Houston, Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo spoke Monday afternoon about the county’s response to the fast-approaching storm. “We could get 10 to 15 inches of rain over the next 24 hours...

Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner addressed Tropical Storm Nicholas Monday from Houston's emergency center.

Houston Area Leaders and Schools React As Tropical Storm Nicholas Zooms Toward Texas

By Schaefer Edwards

Sep 13, 2021

As Tropical Storm Nicholas barrels toward the Gulf Coast, Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner gave a brief update on the city’s preparations for what’s expected to be a heavy rain event that could cause significant flash flooding in parts of the greater Houston area. Meanwhile, several local school districts responded quickly...

Paxton Decides Yes He Can Sue School Districts Mandating Masks. And Does.

By Margaret Downing

Sep 10, 2021

Apparently disturbed by reports that Gov. Abbott wasn't doing anything to school districts that have been defying his order barring any of them from requiring masks, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton reversed course and filed several lawsuits Friday with the promise of filing more. Although representatives of Gov. Abbott and...

Biden Says His Patience Has Worn Thin With the Unvaccinated, Mandates Shots

By Margaret Downing

Sep 9, 2021

Although Houston Mayor stepped back from hints that he would make COVID vaccinations mandatory for city workers, opting instead for frequent testing of the unvaccinated, President Joe Biden took a more forceful step Thursday. Possibly affecting as many as 100 million Americans, the measures called for by the President impose ...

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland is coming for Texas.

Justice Department Sues Texas Over Its New Restrictive Abortion Law

By Margaret Downing

Sep 9, 2021

Saying Texas was seeking to circumvent federal law and the constitutional rights of women, the U.S. Department of Justice Thursday filed suit in Austin against the state over its new "heartbeat" bill that bans abortions at about 6 weeks of pregnancy and turns private citizens into "bounty hunters." The result...

Gov. Greg Abbott is giving the Lege a couple weeks off before calling them back to work.

Abbott Calls Third Straight Special Session of Legislative OT For September 20

By Schaefer Edwards

Sep 7, 2021

On Tuesday evening, Gov. Greg Abbott called yet another special session of the Texas Legislature, ordering state lawmakers to head back to Austin for one more round of legislating starting September 20. Abbott’s announcement came hours after he signed Senate Bill 1 into law, the controversial set of GOP election...

State Sen. Bryan Hughes and Gov. Greg Abbott were all smiles in East Texas Tuesday.

Abbott Signs Controversial GOP "Election Integrity" Bill Into Law

By Schaefer Edwards

Sep 7, 2021

After Labor Day weekend, Gov. Greg Abbott got right back to work by signing into law Senate Bill 1, the Republican-backed slate of election changes that he and his supporters proclaim as a defense against voter fraud and critics say is nothing but a way to make it harder for...

Opinion: The Taliban Didn’t Take Over Texas, Christians Did

By Jef Rouner

Sep 7, 2021

There are a ton of memes going around now that basically say, “no one could have prepared for how quickly the Taliban would retake Texas.” The implication is that the recent forced-birth law is similar to that of Islamic extremism in the Middle East following the end of the Afghanistan...

Texas' GOP Big Three had plenty to celebrate following special session two, but there's still more lawmaking on the horizon.

Texas Lawmakers Head Home, But A Third Special Session Looms

By Schaefer Edwards

Sep 3, 2021

The Texas Legislature officially shut the door on special session number two Thursday night, as both the state House and Senate voted to adjourn and head home in time for Labor Day weekend. Even though Republicans are celebrating the passage of most of the GOP's laundry list of laws during...

The lies we're told/are cruel and old/ deep in the heart of Texas.

Opinion: Texas, Where Republican Leaders Have Gaslighted Us All

By Jef Rouner

Sep 3, 2021

It’s been a very bad week in Texas. The so-called “heartbeat bill” went into effect, essentially ending reproductive freedom. The draconian election bill custom designed to disenfranchise marginalized people passed the Senate. Lt. Governor Dan Patrick wanted to hold the entire legislative branch’s pay hostage so he could have transphobic,...

Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner and HPD Chief Troy Finner might be talking about a city employee vaccine mandate soon.

Citing Low HPD & Fire Department COVID Vaccinations, Turner Considers City Worker Mandate

By Schaefer Edwards

Sep 3, 2021

Given anecdotal reports that only 50 percent or fewer of Houston Police Department and Houston Fire Department employees have taken a COVID-19 vaccine, Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner is considering issuing a vaccine mandate for city employees, Turner's communications director has told the Houston Press. When answering a question about tracking...

Gov. Greg Abbott is glad the "election integrity" bill is on his desk, but other conservative priorities have stalled in the Lege.

Election Bill Hits Abbott's Desk While Fights Over Other GOP Priorities Heat Up

By Schaefer Edwards

Sep 1, 2021

With less than a week left in the Texas Legislature’s second straight overtime round of lawmaking this summer, state Republicans have finally delivered Gov. Greg Abbott the “election integrity” bill he and the GOP base have been clamoring for, the one that will supposedly prevent Texas from falling victim to...

Pro-choice protesters gathered in Austin in May after the Legislature passed its "heartbeat" abortion bill.

Pro-Choice Groups File Last-Ditch Request Asking U.S. Supreme Court To Block TX Heartbeat Bill

By Schaefer Edwards

Aug 30, 2021

Texas pro-choice advocates hoped a legal challenge to Senate Bill 8 — the state’s new “heartbeat” abortion law that would effectively ban all abortions in the state after a fetal heartbeat is detected — could lead a federal district court to block the law from going into effect later this...

State Sen. Bryan Hughes (R-Minneola) said he isn't willing to rubber-stamp the House's election bill.

Weekend Deal On GOP Election Bill Means It Could Head To Abbott's Desk Later This Week

By Schaefer Edwards

Aug 30, 2021

Thanks to a backroom deal between Texas House and Senate members, the controversial GOP-backed “election integrity” legislation, Senate Bill 1, is on track for final approval by both chambers early this week, according to the bill’s author state Sen. Bryan Hughes (R-Minneola). The bill could now head to Gov. Greg...

Opinion: Texas' Anti-Abortion Senate Bill 8 Should Scare Everyone

By Erika Forbes

Aug 30, 2021

American women have fought for agency over our own bodies well throughout history. For more than a few decades here in the state of Texas, that fight has not been easy. Restrictive moves by political leaders aside, just having a coherent and productive conversation on reproductive health and abortion has...

On Thursday, Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo announced it's even easier to get $100 for your first vaccine shot.

Vaccine Payments Are Spurring More Shots As Hospitals Feel Delta Pinch

By Schaefer Edwards

Aug 27, 2021

With the Delta variant still running rampant through Texas, the Houston area school year has already been marked by multiple temporary campus closures, and local hospitals are still buckling under the massive wave of COVID-19 patients (the overwhelming majority of whom are unvaccinated) in their emergency rooms, general beds and...

Impressively mustachioed State Rep. Andrew Murr (R-Kerrville), author of the GOP's latest election bill, defended it Thursday.

Texas House Passes Controversial GOP Election Bill In the Dead of Night

By Schaefer Edwards

Aug 27, 2021

After lacking enough members to do business for almost six weeks, the Texas House finally passed the state GOP’s controversial election bill on the House floor after a 12-hour debate late Thursday night. The bill previously passed through committee earlier this week on Tuesday, and House Republicans seemed intent during...

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