Texas Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee arrested for civil disobedience over voting rights bill
It was unclear what the Houston Democrat did to spur the arrest, though she said, “I engaged in civil disobedience.” Full Story
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Abby Livingston
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Abby Livingston joined The Texas Tribune in 2014 as the publication's first Washington bureau chief, and departed August 2022. In this role, she covered members in the Texas congressional delegation and campaigns back in the home state. A seventh-generation Texan, Abby grew up in Fort Worth and graduated from the University of Texas at Austin. Prior to the Tribune, Abby worked for NBC, CNN, National Journal and Roll Call. At the Tribune, she won the 2017 National Press Club Award for Washington regional reporting and the Society of Professional Journalists' 2018 Sigma Delta Chi Award for Washington correspondence. Abby is a contributing writer to the Almanac of American Politics and frequently appears on MSNBC, CNN and Sirius XM radio. She also had a role on an episode of "The Bold and The Beautiful." In keeping with the Trib’s great history of hiring softball stars, Abby is a three-time MVP (the most in game history) for The Bad News Babes, the women’s press softball team that takes on female members of Congress in the annual Congressional Women’s Softball breast cancer charity game.
Past Contributions
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![U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas, speaks as the House Judiciary Committee meets on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on May 8, 2019.]()
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A tale of two capital cities: Texas Democrats continue fight for voting rights in Washington as Republicans push them to return
Both Republicans in Austin and Democrats in D.C. have engaged in the political drama over the past two weeks, with the two camps battling it out on cable news interviews and social media over the quorum bust and who is to blame for it. Full Story
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![State Rep. Cecil Bell Jr, R-Magnolia, sits on the House floor on July 19, 2021.]()
Credit: Sophie Park/The Texas Tribune -
Texas House Democrats trying to block the GOP voting bill are pinning their hopes on Congress. So far Congress is unmoved.
Over the past few days, the Texas delegation has met with nearly all of the most powerful Democrats in Washington, save for President Joe Biden. But there is not yet clear movement to revive the congressional Democrats’ federal voting legislation. Full Story
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![Jesse W. chanted in support of the "For the People Act" during a rally in Concord, Massachusetts on July 10, 2021.]()
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Sen. Joe Manchin, key Democratic holdout on federal voting protections, coming to Texas for fundraiser hosted by several GOP donors
The fundraiser comes just a day after Manchin met with Texas House Democrats on Capitol Hill who are desperate for his support of the congressional efforts which could preempt the statewide GOP’s push to pass bills that would restrict voting access for Texans. Full Story
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![U.S. Senator Joe Manchin III, D-West Virginia, spoke with reporters at the Dirksen Senate Office Building in Washington, D.C., on June 24, 2021.]()
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Texas Democrats land in Washington, D.C., and promise to stay out of Texas until after special legislative session ends Aug. 6
Texas Democrats said they are urging Congress again to pass federal voting laws, acknowledging that Gov. Greg Abbott would continue to call special sessions until the GOP elections bill was passed. Full Story
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![State Rep. Senfronia Thompson, D-Houston, speaks to the press after Democratic members of the Texas House of Representatives, who are boycotting a special session of the legislature to block Republican-backed voting restrictions, arrive at Dulles airport in Sterling, Virginia, on July 12, 2021.]()
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State museum canceled book event examining slavery’s role in Battle of the Alamo after Texas GOP leaders complained, authors say
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick confirmed on Twitter that he called for the event to be canceled. Abbott, Patrick and other GOP leaders are board members of the State Preservation Board, which oversees the Bullock museum. Full Story
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![The Bullock Texas State History Museum in Downtown Austin on Oct. 9, 2020.]()
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U.S. House calls for Russia to free Texan who's been imprisoned since 2019
Trevor Reed, a 29-year-old resident of Granbury, was arrested in August 2019 on specious grounds, according to news reports and American diplomats, and his supporters say he’s being held on trumped-up charges because he’s a retired Marine. Full Story
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![Former U.S. Marine Trevor Reed during a 2020 court hearing in Moscow on March 11, 2020.]()
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Jill Biden and Doug Emhoff visiting Texas to encourage COVID-19 vaccinations
Their Texas swing is part of a larger effort by senior administration officials who are fanning out across the country this week to encourage vaccinations ahead of the administration’s self-imposed goal of hitting a 70% countrywide vaccination rate by July 4. Full Story
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![First lady Jill Biden is greeted by
Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins, left, Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson and U.S. Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson, D-Dallas, as she arrives at Love Field Airport in Dallas on June 29, 2021.]()
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As Texas Republicans line up for 2022 primaries, Democrats are waiting on Beto O'Rourke and redistricting
“Whatever Beto decides to do is the domino that affects everybody," said Royce Brooks, executive director of Annie’s List, the Texas Democratic women-in-politics group. Full Story
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![Former Democratic Presidential Candidate, Beto O’Rourke, spoke at the ‘For the People Rally' at the Capitol in Austin in support of the expansion of voting rights. June 20, 2021.]()
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Texas Sens. John Cornyn and Ted Cruz join fellow Republicans to block Democrats' federal elections overhaul
While a majority of the Democratic-controlled Senate backed the bill, enough Republicans banded together to use the filibuster to block the bill from receiving an up-or-down vote. Full Story
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![Supporters hold Campaign signs at the ‘For the People’ voting rights rally on the south steps of the Texas Capitol on June 20, 2021.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune