The Brief: Could Perry Soon be Dancing With the Stars?

The Big Conversation

Former Gov. Rick Perry may be taking a break from campaigning to bust a move on the dance floor, following reports from an entertainment website that the politician may be joining the next season of "Dancing With the Stars."

As The Dallas Morning News’ Hannah Wise put it, “Perry's is taking the Texas two-step to 'Dancing with the Stars.'” Reports indicate he will be a contestant in the show's 23rd season, slated to premiere on Sept. 12 on ABC. Despite speculation on his involvement with the show's next season, however, Perry has declined to comment.

Although the news will not be officially confirmed until Tuesday morning on ABC's "Good Morning America," Entertainment Tonight reported Monday night that the longest-serving governor in Texas history would be joining the likes of Vanilla Ice, Amber Rose and Olympians Ryan Lochte and Laurie Hernandez. 

As the Tribune’s Patrick Svitek reports, Perry would not be the first Texas Republican to step on the show's stage. During the show's ninth season, Tom Delay, R-Sugar Land, was set to compete alongside Cheryl Burke. However, the former majority leader of the U.S. House of Representatives suffered foot injuries and left the competition early. 

Trib Must Reads

Rich Schools Hopeful Houston ISD Could Topple Robin Hood Plan, by Kiah Collier — Texas has deemed an increasing number of schools as property-wealthy, requiring them to give up a share of their local tax dollars to help buoy poorer districts and exacerbating resentment from school officials.

Privatized Immigration Detention Centers to Be Focus of Federal Review, by Julián Aguilar — The U.S. Department of Homeland Security on Monday called for a review of its current policy of detaining undocumented immigrants in private, for-profit facilities — several of which are in Texas.

State Representative Calls for Suspension of Texas' STAAR Exam, by Kiah Collier — A state representative who has passed legislation aimed at reeling in Texas’ standardized testing regime is calling on the state to ditch required STAAR exams while it “tries to iron out STAAR’s many kinks.”

The Day Ahead

The House Transportation Committee will talk about Uber, Lyft and other transportation network companies during a morning hearing in the Capitol complex. In an afternoon hearing, a select House committee focusing on transportation planning is scheduled to receive updates from a TxDOT working group on changes in how the state prioritizes and finances transportation projects.

Elsewhere

(Links below lead to outside websites; content might be behind paywall)

Labor of Love, Washington Monthly 

Dallas mayor: Police Chief David Brown reconsidering plan to hire 549 officers in one year, The Dallas Morning News

Chasnoff: Bexar County District Attorney Nico LaHood: 'Vaccinations can and do cause autism', San Antonio Express-News

Gary Johnson Hires Lionel Sosa to Boost Hispanic Outreach, The Wall Street Journal 

Patrick: Hidden tax on Texas college tuition must end, The Dallas Morning News

9 Texas colleges rank among the 'absolute worst' for LGBT students, gay rights group says, The Dallas Morning News

How Trump turned to an Austin crowd to shape his deportation plan, Austin American-Statesman

UIW fires President Louis Agnese after controversial comments, San Antonio Express-News

Texas troopers to increase patrols over Labor Day weekend, The Associated Press

Quote to Note

"These religious campuses need to come out and say, 'Yes, we discriminate. We don't want LGBT people to come to our campus.'"

— Shane Windmeyer, executive director of Campus Pride, on the nine Texas colleges with religious ties that were accused of openly discriminating against LGBT students

News From Home

Today, The Texas Tribune is launching “Unholstered,” a seven-part, data-driven investigation into police shootings in Texas. Among today’s featured pieces are a look at what the data shows and a story on the lack of reliable, consistent information on police shootings in the state.

Trib Events for the Calendar

•    San Antonio & the Legislature: The Election and Beyond on Sept. 14 at University of Texas at San Antonio – Downtown Campus

•   The Texas Tribune Festival on Sept. 23-25 at the University of Texas at Austin

•   The Washington Post's Politics & Pints with Chris Cillizza: TTF Edition on Sept. 24 at Scholz Garten

•   TribFeast: A Dinner To Support Nonprofit Journalism on Sept. 24 at the University of Texas at Austin's Etter-Harbin Alumni Center

•   A Conversation with state Reps. Four Price and John Smithee on Oct. 4 at Amarillo College in Amarillo

•   A Conversation with state Reps. Andrew Murr and Jason Isaac on Nov. 14 at Schreiner University in Kerrville