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Texas Observer
Houston Mayoral Candidates Inspire Yawns As Run-Off Election Looms
Two veteran (and older) politicians in Texas’ largest city are generating little excitement among its youthful population. On December 9, the next mayor of America’s fourth-most populous city will be decided. With the initial round of the Houston mayoral election failing to determine a clear victor among 18 contenders, candidates Sheila Jackson Lee, 73, and John Whitmire, 74, veterans who’ve racked up decades in federal and state political office respectively, are poised to go head-to-head in a runoff.
Texas GOP Rejects Ban on Association with Nazis
It’s the latest instance of the state party’s right-wing officialdom embracing extremism, and vengeance, above all else. Over the weekend, a majority of the Texas State Republican Executive Committee (SREC) voted to remove language from a resolution affirming support for Israel that would have prohibited party associations with people and groups “known to espouse or tolerate antisemitism, pro-Nazi sympathies or Holocaust denial.” Members of the state party committee—who are elected by party delegates—voted 31-29 to remove that language. About half the committee also tried to block a public record of the vote.
Going Extinct in Texas
Declaring an endangered species officially gone can take decades. Extinction questions involve a lot of science and, often, a lot of human emotions—especially when someone sights a plant or animal that was thought to be extinct. “You have these very hardened researchers literally shaking or breaking down into tears,” said Tania Homayoun, an ornithologist with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD). “There’s a lot wrapped up in it when you let yourself process what that means, to be in the presence of something that is almost gone from the planet.”
Strangest State: Eclipses and Flying Snakes
A version of this story ran in the November / December 2023 issue. The Paxton impeachment trial was mostly covered by the usual Austin press corps. But one scribe with a notebook stood out: 13-year-old Vincent Mazzara, who came to cover the trial for his own newspaper. “It’s called the Grand Enclave Bugle. Not a lot of people know about it,” Mazzara explained to a Texas correspondent for NPR. He said the idea hit him while reading a book about a kid who did the very same. The twist: Young Mazzara is old-school. He uses a typewriter and has no website.
Texas Rangers Investigation Sheds Light on Dallas Judge’s ‘Bizarre’ Behavior
Dallas County Judge Amber Givens was accused of having her court coordinator impersonate her during a 2021 Zoom bond hearing, prompting a Rangers inquiry. After a 2021 bond hearing on Zoom, Dallas Judge Amber Givens became the subject of a nearly two-year Texas Rangers investigation and an ongoing judicial misconduct inquiry. The bizarre accusation: that Givens had her court coordinator impersonate her during the video proceeding held to review the bond of a criminal defendant.
The Fish Whisperer
Half of the fish in the Mission-Aransas Estuary vocalize. One scientist is dedicated to recording and decoding their thumps, pops, and other sounds. When Philip Souza gets ready to work in his unusual island-based recording studio, he activates an “On Air” sign to warn others to be quiet. Unlike most recording studios, however, his sign sits in a bookcase, sandwiched between shelves of ethanol-filled jars containing preserved crabs, shrimp, and fish.
Braving ‘La Bestia’
A version of this story ran in the July / August 2023 issue. Articles must link back to the original article and contain the following attribution at the top of the story:. This article was originally published by the Texas Observer, a nonprofit investigative news outlet. Sign up for their weekly newsletter, or follow them on Facebook and Twitter.”
Beyond the Refrigerator Door
A version of this story ran in the November / December 2023 issue. Articles must link back to the original article and contain the following attribution at the top of the story:. This article was originally published by the Texas Observer, a nonprofit investigative news outlet. Sign up for their...
House Votes 84-63 to Strip Vouchers from Omnibus School Funding Bill
Rural Republicans team up with Dems to reject vouchers in intra party showdown on the House floor. The writing was already on the wall for Governor Greg Abbott’s pet project when, early in the morning, Representative John Raney filed an amendment—signed by more than a dozen other rural Republicans—to strip school vouchers from the omnibus school funding House Bill 1. The amendment was adopted by a vote of 84-63.
Lone Star State: Whacked
To see more political cartoons from Ben Sargent, visit our Loon Star State section, or find Observer political reporting here. Ken and Angela Paxton’s relationship to a shadowy shell company, plus analysis of the role of Dan Patrick by our Politics Reporter Justin Miller, a biting essay about accountability in Texas from correspondent Nancy Goldstein, and more from Ben Sargent.
Court: Lone Star State Violated Emissions Limits on Gulf Coast
Judges argued that the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality illegally enabled Port Arthur LNG to avoid air pollution control requirements. “I hope this goes out and sends a message to the rest of the companies that are looking at us and want to make us a sacrifice zone,” said John Beard, a retired refinery worker and community activist in Port Arthur who first challenged the permit. “We’re going to attack every single one of them and we’re going to take them down where we can.”
Mistrial: Austin Police Officer’s Landmark Murder Trial Gets No Resolution
A grand jury indicted Christopher Taylor after the 2020 shooting of Michael Ramos in South Austin. He is believed to be the first Austin officer ever prosecuted for murder after an on-duty killing. Taylor was indicted and charged with murder in March 2021 in connection with the death of Ramos,...
Disaster Declared for Texas Shrimp
Articles must link back to the original article and contain the following attribution at the top of the story:. This article was originally published by the Texas Observer, a nonprofit investigative news outlet. Sign up for their weekly newsletter, or follow them on Facebook and Twitter.”. Articles cannot be rewritten,...
Texas Legislature Votes to Seize Immigration Authority from Feds
A major U.S. Supreme Court case could be on the horizon as the Lone Star State takes international matters into its own hands. SB 4 had already passed the state Senate and now heads to the desk of Governor Greg Abbott, who had called for such a bill during the current special legislative session. The GOP-controlled House Tuesday passed the bill along party lines after rejecting two dozen Democratic amendments to clarify or weaken it.
Republicans Target ‘Woke’ Climate Change Topics in Science Textbooks
The Texas Board of Education could vote as early as next Tuesday on whether it will recommend state school districts to use a batch of new science textbooks, which include accurate descriptions of the causes and effects of climate change. While recommendations by the Republican-dominated board do not carry legal weight, they have an outsized influence on the educational priorities in Texas and can have rippling effects in other school districts nationwide.
Protect and Serve
A version of this story ran in the November / December 2023 issue. Articles must link back to the original article and contain the following attribution at the top of the story:. This article was originally published by the Texas Observer, a nonprofit investigative news outlet. Sign up for their...
These Are the Right-Wing Ideologues Taking Over School Boards
A version of this story ran in the November / December 2023 issue. Articles must link back to the original article and contain the following attribution at the top of the story:. This article was originally published by the Texas Observer, a nonprofit investigative news outlet. Sign up for their...
Right-Wing Pastor Arrested for ‘No-Islam’ Graffiti in Downtown Brownsville
Genovevo Izaguirre’s social media accounts feature anti-LGBTQ+ and Islamophobic propaganda. The words “No Islam” scrawled in black spray paint appeared on the walls of businesses in downtown Brownsville in mid-October, coming at a time when threats and crimes against Muslims in the United States are rising. A local blogger linked the Islamophobic scribblings to Genovevo Izaguirre, the pastor of Mision Divina, whom police have charged with five counts of graffiti.
Dan Patrick: Judge, Jury, Executioner?
A version of this story ran in the November / December 2023 issue. There’s no greater example of this than the way Patrick has responded to criticism of how he presided over the Senate impeachment trial of Attorney General Ken Paxton, which ended with 16 GOP senators delivering an acquittal. Patrick’s detractors have accused him of being judge, jury, and executioner and of tipping the scales in favor of Paxton, then attacking those who dared accuse him.
Local Initiatives for Cannabis Inspire Voter Turnout, Direct Democracy at Its Messiest
In some cities, enforcement of cannabis laws is way down. In others, a backlash has seen increased arrests. In Texas, voters are unable to pass statewide ballot initiatives. But in some “home rule” communities, the city charter does allow for local voter initiatives. In several of these cities across the state—including Austin, San Marcos, and Killeen—residents have voted to change how police handle low-level marijuana crimes by passing initiatives to deprioritize misdemeanor marijuana charges, urging police to ignore them whenever possible.
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