Greg Abbott’s call for more vehicle inspections at the border is causing delays and supply chain issues, locals say
Trucks delivering products from Mexico are facing hourslong waits at ports of entry. Full Story
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![Commercial vehicles go through the CBP inspection before entering El Paso from Juarez, Mexico at the Bridge of the Americas on April 8, 2022, in El Paso.]()
Credit: Ivan Pierre Aguirre for The Texas Tribune -
Analysis: Abbott’s border initiative is expensive, ineffective and not as tough as it sounds
The results of the state’s $3 billion border security effort don’t match the up-front promises, and Gov. Greg Abbott is flipping the political script with loud opposition to a change in federal border policy. Full Story
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![Texas Department of Public Safety Director Steve McCraw speaks at a presser with Gov. Greg Abbott in Weslaco on April 6, 2022.]()
Credit: Michael Gonzalez for The Texas Tribune -
Texas border officials worry that Greg Abbott’s order to increase vehicle inspections will hurt local economies
The governor is pushing for more border security measures, some of which he acknowledges will slow traffic across the Texas-Mexico border. Full Story
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![A line of trucks wait to cross the World Trade Bridge over the Rio Grande from Mexico into the United States in Laredo, on Sept. 16, 2020.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Gov. Greg Abbott’s plan to bus migrants to Washington, D.C., will be voluntary
Abbott said he’s responding to the Biden administration announcement that it will lift a pandemic-era emergency health order that allowed immigration authorities to turn away migrants at the border, even those seeking asylum. Full Story
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![Asylum seekers disembark a bus in front of the Catholic Charities Humanitarian Respite Center in McAllen on Aug. 1, 2021.]()
Credit: Sophie Park/The Texas Tribune -
Critics of Texas’ push for a “Don’t Say Gay” bill say acknowledging LGBTQ people isn’t the same as teaching kids about sex
Republicans say they don’t want young kids learning about sex. Educators say that’s already the standard. Full Story
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![AISD employees Melissa and Caitlin Kender cheer on models as they walk past during a fashion show at the AISD "Pride Out!" Party in the Park event at Eastside Early College High School in Austin on Saturday, Mar. 26, 2022. The Kenders have been married for a week. "When we want to establish a family, this is somewhere we want our kids to be a part of," Melissa said. They moved from Dallas to be a part of AISD specifically.]()
Credit: Lauren Witte/The Texas Tribune -
Texas Guard’s border mission needs an additional $531 million to continue past this month, top general says
Texas Military Department leaders say they’ve addressed many of the issues that arose late last year when the mission ramped up to 10,000 service members — but more money is needed to run the mission at its current pace. Full Story
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![National Guard oversee an area where the border wall ends in Del Rio, on Nov. 7, 2021.]()
Credit: Verónica Gabriela Cárdenas for ProPublica/The Texas Tribune -
Abbott calls June 14 special election for South Texas congressional seat that Republicans want to flip
The race will determine who finishes the term of former U.S. Rep. Filemon Vela, D-Brownsville. Full Story
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![Texas Tribune CEO Evan Smith moderates a discussion with U.S. Rep. Filemon Vela, D-Brownsville, on Monday, Feb. 13, 2017.
Vela, D-Brownsville, has represented Texas’ Congressional District 34 since 2013. In the 114th Congress, he sat on the House Agriculture and Homeland Security committees and served as co-chairman of the Congressional Border Caucus.]()
Credit: Shelby Knowles for The Texas Tribune -
Texas’ border operation is meant to stop cartels and smugglers. More often, it arrests migrants for misdemeanor trespassing.
The largest share of Operation Lone Star arrests were of people accused only of trespassing on private property. Many spend months in prison, but the strategy does not appear to have slowed immigration. Full Story
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![A collage of photos of Gov. Abbott, detention facilities, paperwork, the Rio Grande and men in prison uniforms viewed from behind.]()
Credit: Photo illustration by John Whitlock for ProPublica/The Texas Tribune/The Marshall Project. -
TribCast: Layers of scandal in the Texas foster care system
In this week’s episode, Matthew speaks with Reese and Mitchell about the fallout from sexual abuse allegations at a state-contracted children’s shelter and Russian threats against Texas’ energy infrastructure. Full Story
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![A caseworker's badge hangs off her neck as she prepares to assist on a case for the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) in June 2018.]()
Credit: Pu Ying Huang for The Texas Tribune -
Texas teachers say they’re pushed to the brink by law requiring them to spend dozens of hours unpaid in training
K-3 teachers in Texas have until 2023 to complete a 60-hour Reading Academies course to keep the job. It’s taking some 120 hours on their own time to finish. Full Story
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![Teacher Melissa Perry reads to her fifth grade class at Jacob’s Well Elementary School in Wimberley on September 4, 2020.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
What is Operation Lone Star? Gov. Greg Abbott’s controversial border mission, explained.
The governor has ordered thousands of state troopers and National Guard members to the border since last year. Here’s what you need to know about the initiative. Full Story
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![National Guard soldiers stand guard near the U.S. and Mexico border in Del Rio on July 23, 2021.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Analysis: The political value of an interruption
Nobody wants storms or fires. But for Texas politicians, responding to disasters can be a welcome change of subject from political fights in an election year. Full Story
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![Gov. Greg Abbott and Attorney General Ken Paxton hosted 12 attorneys general from around the U.S. for a border security briefing at Texas DPS regional headquarters in Weslaco on Jan. 27, 2022.]()
Credit: Michael Gonzalez for The Texas Tribune -
U.S. Rep. Filemon Vela’s resignation announcement sparks a sudden special-election scramble in hotly contested South Texas
A special election will determine who finishes Vela’s term, and while the winner will only serve for a short period, Republicans are already eyeing the contest to show momentum in South Texas. Full Story
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![Texas Tribune CEO Evan Smith moderates a discussion with U.S. Rep. Filemon Vela, D-Brownsville, on Monday, Feb. 13, 2017.]()
Credit: Shelby Knowles/The Texas Tribune -
North Texas superintendent orders books removed from schools, targeting titles about transgender people
The Granbury superintendent’s comments, made on a leaked recording, raise constitutional concerns, legal experts said. Full Story
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![Granbury ISD Superintendent Dr. Jeremy K. Glenn discusses agenda items with school board trustees at a GISD school board meeting in Granbury, TX on March 21, 2022.]()
Credit: Shelby Tauber for ProPublica/The Texas Tribune/NBC News -
Beto O’Rourke touts his oft-overlooked background — small-business owner — as Greg Abbott attacks him as job-killer
Abbott’s campaign has argued O’Rourke would “destroy the Texas miracle.” O’Rourke argues he’s the one who has run a business. Full Story
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![Gubernatorial candidate Beto O’Rourke answers questions from journalists following a town hall as part of his ‘Keeping the Lights On’ road trip on Feb. 4, 2022 in Odessa.]()
Credit: Eli Hartman for The Texas Tribune -
After deadly tornadoes tear through Texas, Gov. Greg Abbott declares disaster for 16 counties
At least 20 tornadoes tore through homes and buildings in Texas and Oklahoma on Monday. At least two dozen people were injured and a woman died, authorities said. Full Story
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![A man inspects the damage to his home after a tornado moved through Round Rock on March 21, 2022.]()
Credit: Evan L'Roy/The Texas Tribune -
Attorney General Ken Paxton asks Texas Supreme Court to let investigations into transgender families continue
The temporary injunction was issued as part of a lawsuit brought on behalf of parents being investigated by child welfare workers for letting their transgender teenager access gender-affirming health care. Full Story
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![Transgender, pride progress and nonbinary flags are passed out during the Trans Kids Cry for HELP! rally in front of the Governor's Mansion in Austin on March 13, 2022.]()
Credit: Lauren Witte/The Texas Tribune -
Help us investigate Texas border security initiatives
We’re looking into Texas’ border security initiatives, including what has worked, what hasn’t and how they affect residents. If you have experience on the border, we’d like to hear from you. Full Story
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![A member of the Texas Army National Guard holds a flashlight as migrants crawl over rocks after wading across the Rio Grande into the United States from Mexico, in Roma, on March 4, 2022.]()
Credit: REUTERS/Adrees Latif -
Gov. Greg Abbott brags about his border initiative. The evidence doesn’t back him up.
Arrests of U.S. citizens hundreds of miles from the border. Claiming drug busts from across the state. Changing statistics. The data that Texas leaders use to boast about Operation Lone Star raise more questions than answers. Full Story
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![A photo collage a map of the Texas-Mexico border, images of the border fence, a handcuffed pair of hands and Operation Lone Star paperwork.]()
Credit: Photo illustration by John Whitlock -
Gov. Greg Abbott declares disaster as wildfires rage in several Texas counties
Wildfires have burned more than 58,000 acres across the state. At least one person has died and dozens of homes have burned down. Full Story
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![Gov. Greg Abbott and Attorney General Ken Paxton hosted 12 attorneys general from around the U.S. for a border security briefing at Texas DPS regional headquarters in Weslaco on Jan. 27, 2022.]()
Credit: Michael Gonzalez for The Texas Tribune