The Evening Brief: Aug. 7, 2013

New in The Texas Tribune:

•    A New Campaign Team for Dewhurst Re-Election Bid: "Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst unveiled a campaign team heavy on national grassroots experience Wednesday as he officially announced his bid for re-election."

•    At Border Conference, Speakers Talk Trade, Infrastructure: "Mexico’s economy is the fastest growing among the North American Free Trade Agreement nations, and trade between it and the U.S. continues to grow each year. But that growth is limited because of outdated infrastructure and policies crafted by out-of-touch leaders in Washington and Mexico City, according to several elected officials and business leaders who spoke Wednesday during a conference at the University of Texas at El Paso."

•    TribCast: Wendy Davis, Ted Cruz, and Rick Perry: "Reeve, Ross, Ben and Evan discuss the end of the third special session, speculate about the intentions of Wendy Davis and Ted Cruz, and let's see....I can't. The third one, I can't. Sorry. Oops." 

•    Video: Texas Closes Two Privately Run Jails: "After Lawmakers cut nearly $97 million from the Texas Department of Criminal Justice budget, its board decided to terminate  contracts for two facilities run by the Corrections Corporation of America when they expire on Aug. 31."

Culled:

•    Judge halts trial in Fort Hood shooting rampage (Associated Press): "The standby attorney for the soldier charged in the 2009 Fort Hood shooting rampage accused Maj. Nidal Hasan on Wednesday of deliberately charting a course toward a conviction and death sentence, abruptly halting the trial after only one day."

•    Parkland Hospital Passes Final Inspections, Declared Safe (The Dallas Morning News): "Parkland Memorial Hospital has passed a do-or-die series of recent safety inspections, capping a turbulent two years under federal oversight to remedy dangers to patients, we learned a few minutes ago."

•    Police union calls for investigation into leaked police-shooting information (The Austin American-Statesman): "The Austin Police Association on Wednesday called on the city of Austin to investigate who leaked information to the American-Statesman from an internal affairs investigation into a fatal officer-involved shooting last month."

•    George W. Bush now home after heart procedure: (Associated Press): "Former President George W. Bush has been discharged from a Dallas hospital a day after having a heart procedure to ease a blocked artery."

•    Libby Doggett tapped to lead expansion of pre-K education (The Austin American-Statesman): "Libby Doggett has been tapped for a high-level position in the U.S. Department of Education and will play a key role in promoting the administration’s $75 billion proposal to provide full-day prekindergarten for all low- and moderate-income 4-year-olds."