The Brief: Trump reportedly taps first Texan for Cabinet position

Tribune Today

Analysis: The state’s declining support for public education in Texas
Had the state kept its share of school funding constant for the past 10 years, voters might not be griping about rising property taxes. The state is spending more than it used to, but it's spending less per student. 

New job for Charlie Strong means UT saves millions
Charlie Strong has a new job at the University of South Florida, which means the University of Texas at Austin will save some of the millions of dollars it owes its recently fired coach. 

Despair, meteors and f-bombs: Texans' write-in voters had a lot to say
Texans who weren't interested in any of the presidential candidates on the ballot wrote in everything from Bernie Sanders and Ted Cruz to Chuck Norris and Harambe. Some left colorful messages for election officials.

Accreditation woes a distraction for UTRGV students
Students at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley are worried after their school was placed on probation this week. The school's president says he is confident he'll get the problems fixed. 

UT case lingers as Applewhite takes over as new UH football coach
Major Applewhite, whose 2009 affair with a student while at UT-Austin is part of a discrimination case against his former employer, was announced as the University of Houston's new head football coach.

Texas officials confirm 4 more locally transmitted Zika cases
State and local officials have identified four more locally transmitted cases of Zika in Cameron County, weeks after the first such case in Texas was reported there.

The Big Story

On Saturday, NBC News reported that President-elect Donald Trump had allegedly tapped Exxon Mobil CEO Rex Tillerson to be his secretary of state, turning to a Texan to be the country's top diplomat. If the reports are confirmed, Tillerson will likely be a contentious appointment due to his lack of formal diplomatic experience and close ties to oil-rich Russia, a controversial force in the this year's presidential race. As of Sunday night, Trump’s transition team has not confirmed the selection. In a tweet Sunday morning, however, Trump called Tillerson “a world class player and dealmaker.” Here’s the story so far:

• If Trump selects Tillerson to serve on his Cabinet, he will be the first Texan selected. The field of candidates for secretary of state originally — and most notably — included 2012 Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney, an ardent critic of Trump during the 2016 race.

• Exxon Mobil is currently in a legal battle with state attorneys general investigating whether the company downplayed the risks of manmade climate change to the public and shareholders. However, Exxon argues in court filings that the two states investigating — New York and Massachusetts — have “joined together with each other as well as others known and unknown to conduct improper and politically motivated investigations of Exxon Mobil in a coordinated effort to silence and intimidate one side of the public policy debate on how to address climate change.”

• Tillerson’s climate views are more progressive compared to some of Trump’s other high-profile appointments. For years now, Tillerson has expressed support for a revenue-neutral carbon tax as a means of reducing earth-warming greenhouse gas emissions. In a 2009 speech in Washington, D.C., he called it “the most efficient means of reflecting the cost of carbon in all economic decisions — from investments made by companies to fuel their requirements to the product choices made by consumers.”

• Before word got out about Tillerson, the Lone Star State had come up empty in Trump's Cabinet appointments. Trump has passed over at least three Texans, including U.S. Reps. Jeb Hensarling of Dallas and Michael McCaul of Austin, for jobs for which they were said to be under consideration. On Sunday morning, however, Bloomberg reported that former Gov. Rick Perry is said to be the leading candidate for energy secretary.

What We're Reading

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

Inside a tumultuous week for Dallas Police & Fire Pension System, KERA News 

Facing pressure to cut special education, Texas schools shut out English Language Learners, Houston Chronicle

Spotlight: The San Antonio way, The Boston Globe 

San Antonio universities grapple with Trump’s promise to remove DACA, San Antonio Express-News

On the El Paso border, Trump’s appeal with Latinos defies expectations, The Washington Post 

Today in TribTalk

"In 2015, Democrats were less frequently able to keep legislation they opposed off of the floor or gain majority backing for legislation they supported than in previous sessions."

— Mark P. Jones, political scientist

Trib Events for the Calendar

•   Health Care and the 85th Legislature on Dec. 15 at UT Health Science Center San Antonio - Pestana Lecture Hall

•   Trivia Night on Jan. 8 at The Highball 

•   A Conversation with Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick on Jan. 11 at The Austin Club 

•   A Conversation with the University of Houston's Renu Khator on Jan. 12 at The Austin Club

•   A Conversation with Reps. Dustin Burrows & Drew Darby on Jan. 19 at Howard College – West Texas Training Center

•   A Conversation with Sen. Kel Seliger & Rep. Brooks Landgraf on Feb. 17 at Odessa College – Saulsbury Campus Center

•   A Conversation with Reps. Senfronia Thompson & James White on March 31 at Prairie View A&M University – W.A. Tempton Memorial Student Center