TribLive: Patrick on Democratic Chairmen
At Thursday's TribLive conversation, state Sen. Dan Patrick, R-Houston, a candidate for lieutenant governor, revealed how he'd dole out the chairmanships of Senate committees. Full Story
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TribLive: Patrick on the Two-Thirds Rule
At Thursday's TribLive conversation, state Sen. Dan Patrick, R-Houston, a candidate for lieutenant governor, explained his ongoing opposition to the Senate's two-thirds rule. Full Story
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Perry Calls Third Special Session, Focuses on Transportation Funding
UPDATED: Just over an hour after lawmakers ended their second 30-day special session of the year, Gov. Rick Perry on Tuesday called lawmakers back for a third one, with transportation funding the only issue on the agenda. Full Story
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Some Democrats' Political Accounts See Boost in Donations After Filibuster
State Sen. Wendy Davis' filibuster against abortion legislation gave Democrats across the country a rare red-state rallying point, and some of them responded by opening their checkbooks. Full Story
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Dewhurst Discusses What He Saw at DPS Screening Spot
UPDATED: A week after saying that he saw bottles of urine and bags of feces at a DPS screening station ahead of a Senate debate on an abortion bill, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst said Thursday that he wasn’t close enough to see what was in the containers but was told what was in them, the Houston Chronicle reported Thursday. Full Story
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Guest Column: A (Texas) Liberal in a Red State
State Sen. Wendy Davis raised her public profile with a filibuster on an omnibus abortion bill, but the Fort Worth Democrat didn't necessarily make herself more electable — at least in 2014. Full Story
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Guest Column: When Mob Rule Overwhelmed Democracy
The "gallery filibuster" last Tuesday — when loud demonstrations made it impossible for senators to vote on anti-abortion legislation — wasn't democracy in action. It was mob rule. Full Story
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How Activists Yelled an Abortion Bill to Death
When efforts by state Sen. Wendy Davis, D-Fort Worth, and other Senate Democrats to run out the clock on an abortion bill fell short, protesters made enough noise to grind the Senate chamber to a halt. Full Story
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![Cecile Richards, president of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, cheering with activists to disrupt the last minutes of the vote on Senate Bill 5.]()
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For Dewhurst, a Critical Failure With a Large Audience
The state's lieutenant governor was hoping the special session would revive his support among conservatives. It might have done exactly the opposite. Full Story
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![Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst ends the 83rd regular session an announces a special session to begin at 6:00PM on May 27, 2013.]()
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Guest Column: What Really Happened With the State Budget
When a fellow senator voted against the state budget because certain programs weren't funded, he forgot to mention that he was directly responsible for those funding decisions. Full Story
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TribLive: How'd the Senate Do?
Here's full video of my May 30 TribLive conversation debriefing the 83rd Legislature with state Sens. Dan Patrick, R-Houston, and Kirk Watson, D-Austin. Full Story
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TribLive: Patrick and Watson on Public Education
At Thursday's TribLive conversation, state Sens. Dan Patrick, R-Houston, and Kirk Watson, D-Austin, talked about the 83rd Legislature's approach to public education reform. Full Story
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TribLive: Patrick and Watson on the Budget
At Thursday's TribLive conversation, state Sens. Dan Patrick, R-Houston, and Kirk Watson, D-Austin, explained their different votes on the state budget. Full Story
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Redistricting Lawyers: Keep the Senate Maps for 2014
UPDATED: At a federal redistricting hearing in San Antonio, lawyers for the state and the various plaintiffs agreed that the state Senate maps used in 2012 should be left as is for the 2014 elections. But they still differ on the House and Congress plans. Full Story
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Perry Hails Water Bill, is Evasive on His Future
Gov. Rick Perry signed a major water infrastructure bill into law on May 28. Speaking to reporters afterward, he remained coy about his political future and wouldn't say if he will add any items to the special session agenda. Full Story
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![Texas Governor Rick Perry ceremonially signed House Bill 4, which lays the foundation for Texas' future water needs. He is joined by Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, Speaker Joe Straus, Rep. Allan Ritter, R-Nederland and Sen. Troy Fraser, R-Horseshoe Bay on May 28, 2013]()
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This Session, Lawmakers Put Down Their Swords
If Texas’ less-than-theatrical 83rd legislative session is remembered at all, it will be known for accords, not discord. Here's a look at top storylines from this session and what they could portend for the future. Full Story
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News App: Tracking the Status of House and Senate Bills
The deadline for bills to win approval from the House and the Senate passed earlier this week, resulting in the death of a lot of legislation. Most of what remains is to reconcile differences between versions of legislation passed by both chambers. Our updated bill apps — one for House bills and one for Senate legislation — detail the results. Full Story
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Dewhurst's Run to the Right Falls Short
David Dewhurst, the state's lieutenant governor for the past decade, started this legislative session looking for some momentous conservative victories. He's still looking. Full Story
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Budget Agreement Leaves About $8 Billion in Fund
The budget deal that took a step closer to passage Wednesday evening would spend $3.9 billion from the state's Rainy Day Fund. That would leave more in the fund than many lawmakers or Gov. Rick Perry had earlier proposed. Full Story
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For 83rd Lege, More Civility Than Drama
Texas lawmakers have 10 days left in the regular session. They haven't embarrassed themselves, spent much time in bitter fights or generated the sorts of headlines that have made voters think so little of Washington. Full Story
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![The Texas Capitol on the opening day of the 83rd legislative session, Jan. 8, 2013.]()
Credit: Todd Wiseman
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