The Brief: November 25, 2009
When students get back from Thanksgiving break, the problems with their education system may not be fixed yet — but there’s no need to worry because the gubernatorial candidates are on the case. Full Story
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The Checks Aren't in the Mail
Sorry, retired teachers and other public employees: You'll have to do without that extra $500 you were expecting. And you shouldn't count on any additional benefits next year — not if the state pension fund continues to be, in the words on one state senator, "actuarially unsound." Full Story
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Credit: Jacob Villanueva -
Charter School Crossroads
Do charter schools outperform traditional public schools? Should they be allowed to expand? Who holds them accountable if they fail? David Dunn, founder of the Texas Charter School Association, explains. Full Story
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Hidden Force
School district police departments use tasers, pepper spray, dogs and drawn handguns to control crime on campus. But most don't keep data on the incidents, leaving parents no way to track them. Many even refuse to turn over their “use of force” guidelines, saying parting with their policies could create a security threat. Full Story
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Credit: Jacob Villanueva -
Help from Above?
This holiday weekend, Democrats up and down the ballot are giving thanks for the prospect of a Bill White gubernatorial candidacy. Full Story
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2010: Chavez Not Running for Senate
State Rep. Norma Chavez, D-El Paso, announced today on a local radio show that she plans to run for reelection to the Texas House instead of making a go at the state Senate seat that Eliot Shapleigh is vacating. Full Story
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TribBlog: Texas Sidelined in Race for the Top?
Texas will not adopt national school curriculum standards, risking its ability to get a $700 million federal grant. Full Story
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The Midday Brief: November 24, 2009
Your afternoon reading. Full Story
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TribBlog: The (Very) Skinny
Comptroller Susan Combs says the state will have $77.7 billion in general revenue for the current budget, which calls for $77.6 billion in general revenue. Full Story
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HuTube: Monday's Developments in 60 Seconds
It's a Bill White-Tom Schieffer-Kinky Friedman-Farouk Shami-Rick Perry mashup to get you caught up on Monday's developments, if you missed them. Full Story
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T-Squared: Give or Take a Million
If we didn't think campaign finance law was confusing before this morning, well, we do now. Full Story
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Credit: Jacob Villanueva -
The Brief: November 24, 2009
Is “eye-gougingly boring” the new “gubernatorial”? Full Story
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Upwardly Mobile
The number of Mexican-born professionals living in the United States has more than doubled since 1995. They're not the undocumented workers you see in evening-news mug shots or aerial photographs of a littered and barren desert. They're college graduates — some with multiple degrees — who join their blue-collar counterparts in their journeys north. Full Story
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Soul Search: Race, religion and education in West Dallas
Rev. Rayford Butler watched as the churches of West Dallas slipped into irrelevance and the surrounding community suffered. The hard truth: neighborhood pastors failed to work together, selfishly competing with one another. Full Story
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The $4.2 Million Question
How much of Bill White's federal war chest could be used in a race for governor? Most of it. Full Story
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Texas Weekly: Simple Math, Complex Problem
Balancing the next state budget may be more a political exercise than a technical one. Full Story
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On the Records: Shami vs. Himself
Farouk Shami donated $4,800 to Bill White's senate campaign. Now the money could be used against him in the govenor's race. Full Story
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Credit: Matt Stiles -
T-Squared: Little White Lie
In which I forgive the mayor of Houston for B.S.ing me last Friday. Full Story
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2010: Kinky to White -- "Plenty of Room in This Hot Tub"
Kinky Friedman has rejected Tom Schieffer's calls for all Democratic gubernatorial candidates to line up behind possible contender Bill White. Full Story
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2010: Watson's for White
State Sen. Kirk Watson, an Austin Democrat who kicked the tires on the governor's race earlier this year, says he'll back Bill White, if White runs. Full Story
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