Border security overpowers school vouchers and Paxton impeachment in Republican Texas House primaries
Despite all the hubbub about vouchers and the attorney general’s impeachment, it’s still about the border. Full Story
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![Texas Republican state House ads touting the border as a central election issue. Clockwise, from top left: Mark LaHood, challenger for HD-121; Joanne Shofner, challenger for HD-11; Chris Spencer, challenger for HD-1; and Gary VanDeaver, HD-1 incumbent.]()
Credit: Campaign videos -
Lubbock group pushes forward with marijuana ballot question despite Paxton lawsuit
The Texas attorney general has sued five other cities that have passed similar policies decriminalizing marijuana. Full Story
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![Nathan Lewis gets signatures on a petition to to legalize marijuana from Andrew Alcala, center, and Yvette Castillo, right, at the South Plains Fair Monday, Sept. 25, 2023, in Lubbock, Texas.]()
Credit: Justin Rex for The Texas Tribune -
Bills to fight Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s whistleblower case top $700,000, records show
The lead attorney helping defend Paxton against former top aides is charging $540 an hour. Full Story
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![Attorney General Ken Paxton recites the pledge of allegiance at a Trump Rally in Conroe on January 29, 2022.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Speaker Dade Phelan forcefully defends Ken Paxton impeachment in campaign ad
Facing heat for presiding over the impeachment of the attorney general, Phelan is addressing the issue head-on and citing an alleged Paxton extramarital affair. Full Story
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![House Speaker Dade Phelan beckons at another member of the House during a special legislative session at the state Capitol in Austin on Nov. 17, 2023.]()
Credit: Julius Shieh/The Texas Tribune -
House Speaker Dade Phelan, enemy of the far-right, faces toughest reelection yet
Attorney General Ken Paxton, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, and former President Donald Trump are accusing Phelan of being a “RINO,” even as Phelan has overseen the passage of some of the most conservative bills in recent history. Full Story
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![Beaumont, Texas: Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives Dade Phelan poses for a portrait at his office in Beaumont on Friday, Jan 26, 2024. Mark Felix/The Texas Tribune]()
Credit: Mark Felix for The Texas Tribune -
U.S. Rep. Kay Granger’s legacy looms in race to replace her
Rep. Craig Goldman faces off against John O’Shea, backed by Attorney General Ken Paxton, in the crowded primary for congressional district 12. Full Story
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![Incumbent U.S. Representative Kay Granger, R-Fort Worth, spoke to supporters at Blue Mesa restaurant as the 2020 primary election results trickled in March 3, 2020.U.S. Representative Kay Granger, R-Fort Worth, spoke to supporters at Blue Mesa restaurant as the 2020 primary election results trickled in March 3, 2020.]()
Credit: Leslie Boorhem-Stephenson for The Texas Tribune -
In Texas House special election, big endorsements weren’t enough for Brent Money
Money fell short in the runoff for House District 2, despite winning the support of a who’s who of Texas Republican leaders. Full Story
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![From left: Jill Dutton and Brent Money. Dutton won the race to replace Bryan Slaton in HD-2, the state House district east of Dallas, but they'll face off again in the March primary.]()
Credit: Facebook campaign accounts -
Ken Paxton sues five Texas cities that decriminalized marijuana
Voters in Austin, San Marcos, Killeen, Elgin and Denton approved the policies in 2022. The attorney general said the ordinances are inconsistent with laws enacted by the Texas Legislature. Full Story
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![An Austin police officer in Southwest Austin on Dec. 5, 2023.]()
Credit: Jay Janner/Austin American-Statesman via REUTERS -
Ken Paxton could face public trial in whistleblower lawsuit after judge’s ruling
A Travis County judge denied the attorney general’s attempt to decide the case without a jury. Full Story
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![Attorney General Ken Paxton sits between his attorneys Tony Buzbee, left, and Mitch Little, right, during final prosecutor arguments as both sides have rested in the suspended Attorney General's impeachment trial September 15, 2023 in Austin.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
Texas Republicans who defied Gov. Greg Abbott on school vouchers face mounting primary attacks
As promised, the governor is going after members of his own party after some of them tanked his top legislative priority. Full Story
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![A protester, left, pauses to leave a boot at the steps of the Governor's Mansion during a rally to "boot vouchers" on Oct. 7, 2023. Hundreds gathered to protest two days before a special session was slated to begin on Oct. 9, 2023.]()
Credit: Julius Shieh/The Texas Tribune -
Under Ken Paxton, Texas’ civil Medicaid fraud unit is falling apart
After the chief of the attorney general’s Civil Medicaid Fraud Division was forced out last year, two-thirds of attorneys have quit the unit, leaving it at its smallest size since Paxton took office. Full Story
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![Nearly two-thirds of the lawyers for Texas’ Civil Medicaid Fraud Division have quit under Attorney General Ken Paxton, which former staffers say will leave the elite unit less equipped to weed out fraud and abuse in the Medicaid system.]()
Credit: Shelby Tauber for The Texas Tribune -
Texas Supreme Court pauses depositions in Paxton whistleblower case
The ruling by the all-Republican court came after former President Donald Trump told justices to leave Paxton alone. Full Story
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![Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, center, speaks with defense attorney Dan Cogdell before starting the ninth day of his impeachment trial in the Senate Chamber at the Texas Capitol on Friday, Sept. 15, 2023, in Austin.]()
Credit: Sam Owens/Pool via San Antonio Express-News -
Texas man arrested after threatening House Speaker Dade Phelan
Texas Department of Public Safety arrested Daniel Troy Leblanc earlier this month after the Orange County resident made “terroristic threats” on social media. Full Story
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![A news headline on the side of The Examiner building in downtown Beaumont on Friday, Jan. 26, 2024.]()
Credit: Mark Felix for The Texas Tribune -
Texas attorney general requests transgender youths’ patient records from Georgia clinic
This is at least the second time Ken Paxton’s office has sought such records from an out-of-state provider since Texas banned transition-related care for kids. Full Story
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![Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton speaks at the Collin County Labor day picnic in Plano, Texas on Sept. 2, 2023, just days before his impeachment trial.]()
Credit: Azul Sordo for the Texas Tribune -
Republican senator who voted to acquit Paxton wants Senate to consider reopening impeachment proceedings
The bombshell request by retiring state Sen. Drew Springer, R-Muenster, comes after Paxton decided to stop fighting a whistleblower lawsuit whose claims factored into his impeachment trial. Full Story
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![State Sen. Drew Springer, R-Muenster, sits on the floor during the afternoon session of Day 1 of the Ken Paxton impeachment trial in the Texas Senate.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
Ken Paxton could be deposed after Texas judge’s ruling in whistleblower lawsuit
The attorney general accused the judge of “recklessly disregarding legal precedent” after he attempted to end the long-running lawsuit from former staffers. Full Story
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![Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton sits alone at the defense table during the morning of day nine of Paxton's impeachment trial in the Texas Senate on September 15, 2023.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for the Texas Tribune -
Texas high court won’t force Collin County to pay prosecutors in Paxton securities fraud case
Paxton’s securities fraud trial has been delayed for years by a number of pretrial disputes, including how much the special prosecutors should be paid. Full Story
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![Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton makes a statement to the press May 26, 2023, a day before the impeachment vote in the Texas House.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
Texas’ border standoff with feds continues, despite U.S. Supreme Court order
Texas officers are still erecting border wire and some Republicans are calling on Gov. Greg Abbott to defy the high court. Full Story
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![A Texas National Guard member walks past a line of buoys in Eagle Pass on Jan. 17, 2024. The U.S. Department of Justice, in a filing to the U.S. Supreme Court, stated that U.S. Border Patrol agents have been blocked off of a section of the border, accessible through Shelby Park.]()
Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune -
Two House Republicans repent for voting to impeach Ken Paxton
While most GOP state reps stand by their votes, Reps. JM Lozano of Kingsville and Gary Gates of Richmond have publicly distanced themselves since the September impeachment trial in the state Senate. Full Story
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![Reps. Gary Gates of Richmond and JM Lozano of Kingsville are publicly expressing regret in their votes to impeach attorney general Ken Paxton.]()
Credit: Michael Stravato and Jordan Vonderhaar for the Texas Tribune -
Email sheds new light on Texas House candidate Jared Woodfill’s role in Southern Baptist leader’s sex abuse scandal
Woodfill has been endorsed by Attorney General Ken Paxton despite his connection to Paul Pressler, a prominent religious figure accused of rape. Full Story
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![Attorney and former Harris County Republican Party Chair Jared Woodfill holds a press conference in Houston to discuss his election fraud claims and answer questions about the arrest of an ex-cop who he hired to investigate the claims, on Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2020.]()
Credit: Courtesy of Steve Gonzales/The Houston Chronicle