Texas Republicans in Congress stand behind Donald Trump after federal indictment
GOP lawmakers dismiss the charges over classified documents as a partisan attack, but Democrats say the matter proves nobody is above the law. Full Story
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![Hundreds of people gathered to attend former President Donald Trump's first 2024 presidential campaign rally in Waco on March 25, 2023.]()
Credit: Leila Saidane/The Texas Tribune -
Clash of styles as Colin Allred prepares to challenge Ted Cruz in 2024 race
The Dallas native, former NFL linebacker and civil rights lawyer has not traveled a typical path to Congress. Full Story
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![U.S. Rep. Colin Allred, D-Dallas, arrives before a House Judiciary Select Subcommittee hearing on the weaponization of the federal government, at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Thursday, Feb. 9, 2023.]()
Credit: Graeme Sloan/Sipa USA via REUTERS -
For a Texan who wants to build bridges in Congress, U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales has burned quite a few
The two-term Republican, criticized by his own party for breaking with the GOP on key votes, is not inclined to change his ways. Full Story
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![U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales, a Republican representing the Texas’ 23rd district, talks during an interview in his office at Rayburn House Office Building in Washington, D.C. on April 28, 2023. Gonzales is a member of the House Appropriations Committees.]()
Credit: Eric Lee for The Texas Tribune -
Biden to nominate Texas judge to be first Latina on federal appeals court
Both of Texas’ Republican senators voiced support for Irma Carrillo Ramirez’s nomination to the conservative 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Full Story
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![U.S. Magistrate Judge Irma Carrillo Ramirez gives opening remarks during a Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing on Sept. 7th, 2016.]()
Credit: US Senate Committee on the Judiciary -
Homeland security chief calls Ted Cruz’s comments “revolting” in heated border hearing
“You’re willing to let children be raped to follow political orders,” Cruz told Sec. Alejandro Mayorkas at the hearing. “This is a crisis. It’s a disgrace.” Full Story
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![Sen. Ted Cruz speaks to Peter McCormack about bitcoin and freedom at the Texas Blockchain Summit in Austin, Texas, on Nov. 18, 2022.]()
Credit: Azul Sordo for The Texas Tribune -
Texas’ shortage of mental health care professionals is getting worse
The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated an already short supply of therapists, psychologists, psychiatrists and social workers. Full Story
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![AUSTIN, TEXAS - FEBRUARY 14, 2023: Communities in Schools staff members Christy Mitchell, Dorothy Garza and Amara Nitibhon (left to right) pose for a portrait at Langford Elementary School in Austin, Texas on February 14, 2023. (Photo by Montinique Monroe for The Texas Tribune)]()
Credit: Montinique Monroe for The Texas Tribune -
Texas border Republican accuses GOP of using immigration crisis for politics
U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales said in an interview with the Washington Examiner that his fellow Republicans benefit politically from a sustained border crisis. The attack indirectly alluded to U.S. Rep. Chip Roy’s contentious border security bill. Full Story
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![From left: U.S. Reps. Chip Roy, R-Austin, and Tony Gonzales, R-San Antonio.]()
Credit: Michael Brochstein/Sipa USA via REUTERS -
Cruz, Cornyn renew calls for release of Mark Swidan, Texan detained in China for 10 years
The two Texas Republicans are drumming up attention to the decade-old case as Secretary of State Antony Blinken is planning to meet with Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang this week. Full Story
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![Mark Swidan.]()
Credit: Courtesy of Swidan Family Free Mark Campaign -
Potential 2024 GOP presidential hopefuls headed to Austin for retreat with donors
Gov. Greg Abbott and U.S. Sen. John Cornyn are helping host the event at the Omni Barton Creek Resort and Spa. Full Story
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![Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley, and former Vice President Mike Pence.]()
Credit: Rebecca F. Miller and Jonathan Ernst via REUTERS; Leslie Boorhem-Stephenson for The Texas Tribune -
U.S. Sen. John Cornyn eyes the seemingly impossible: a bipartisan deal on immigration
Riding the success of his historic congressional session last year where he helped pass the first gun safety bill signed into law in a generation, Cornyn is hopeful that his ability to strike deals across the aisle will help Congress achieve another elusive legislative goal: an immigration deal. Full Story
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![U.S. Sens. John Cornyn, center, and James Lankford, R-Okla., were shown items displayed by a Border Patrol agent after two Chinese nationals were detained upon entering the U.S. in Sunland Park, New Mexico on on Jan. 9, 2023. The senators were on a night tour of the border led by the National Border Patrol Council.]()
Credit: Ivan Pierre Aguirre for The Texas Tribune -
DACA deal for “Dreamers” fizzling as Texas Republicans prioritize border security
The House passed the American Dream and Promise Act in March 2021, which would allow DACA recipients, or “Dreamers,” to apply for permanent residency and end the legal limbo that has repeatedly jeopardized their ability to stay in the United States. Full Story
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![Protesters gather as the U.S. Supreme Court hears arguments on whether the 2017 Trump Administration decision to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program is lawful, in Washington, D.C., on Nov. 12, 2019.]()
Credit: USA Today Network via REUTERS -
Cruz: “Of course” Trump was wrong to call for terminating Constitution
U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz condemned the comment by the former president, but he also said that reporters were overblowing the story and should instead “focus on what matters.” Sen. John Cornyn called the move “irresponsible” on Monday. Full Story
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![Former President Donald Trump speaks during a rally in Robstown on October 22, 2022.]()
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Ted Cruz sides with Bernie Sanders to give rail workers more sick days
Cruz split with Sen. John Cornyn in a vote to expand paid sick days for railroad workers in a tumultuous action to stave off a potentially catastrophic rail shutdown. Full Story
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![U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, during a committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., in September of 2020.]()
Credit: Erin Schaff/Pool via REUTERS -
U.S. Senate gives final passage to same-sex marriage bill without support from Cruz and Cornyn
The bill is largely a safeguard against potential action by the Supreme Court to overturn Obergefell v. Hodges, which made the Defense of Marriage Act unenforceable and enshrined the right to same-sex marriages across the country. Full Story
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![People attend an LGBTQ+ Pride event in Washington, D.C., on June 12, 2021.]()
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Same-sex marriage bill heads for Senate passage over opposition from Cornyn and Cruz
The bill would provide federal recognition and interstate portability of same-sex marriages, but it stops short of guaranteeing a right to such marriages. Full Story
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![Pamela Holwerds holds up her marriage license following the ceremony that married over 40 same-sex couples on the south lawn of the Texas Capitol in Austin on July 4, 2015.]()
Credit: Tamir Kalifa for the Texas Tribune -
Ted Cruz lashes out at Senate GOP leadership after Democrats retain control
The Texas Republican demanded a delay in leadership elections and is among an increasingly vocal cohort voicing their discontent with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell. Full Story
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![U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, attends a Senate Committee on the Judiciary business meeting in the Hart Senate Office Building in Washington, D.C., on Sept. 8, 2022.]()
Credit: Rod Lamkey/Sipa USA via REUTERS -
John Cornyn doubles down on support for embattled Georgia Republican Herschel Walker with Senate fundraising effort
“I do support Herschel because he may well be the 51st Republican elected this cycle,” Cornyn said in an interview Thursday. Full Story
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![U.S. Sen. John Cornyn and Herschel Walker, Republican candidate for U.S.Senate in Georgia.]()
Credit: Amna Ijaz/The Texas Trbune and Richard Burkhart/USA TODAY NETWORK via REUTERS -
Brittney Griner’s wife says WNBA star is at “weakest moment” before final hearing could send her to a Russian labor camp
The two-time Olympic champion’s wife spoke out for the first time since Griner’s sentencing two months ago in an interview with CBS’ Gayle King. Full Story
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![Brittney Griner of the United States in action at Saitama Super Arena during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic women's basketball Group B game in Saitama, Japan, on Aug. 2, 2021.]()
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Ted Cruz says he will vote against bill to codify same-sex marriage protections
On an episode of his podcast Tuesday, the U.S. senator said the bill would be an attack on religious liberties. Full Story
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![U.S. Senator Ted Cruz, R-TX, leaves a U.S. Senate classified briefing on the ongoing tensions between Russia and Ukraine, at Capitol Hill in Washington on Feb. 3, 2022.]()
Credit: REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz -
Texas will plug 800 abandoned oil and gas wells, funded by $25 million federal infrastructure grant
The initial grant will allow Texas to plug a fraction of the state’s approximately 7,400 documented abandoned oil and gas wells. Full Story
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![Brackish water flows from an unplugged abandoned well outside Imperial in Pecos County — one of several in the area likely drilled for oil but later tapped for water.]()
Credit: Rafael Aguilera for The Texas Tribune