Afghan soldier Abdul Wasi Safi, once detained at Texas-Mexico border, wins asylum
The solider helped U.S. forces in Afghanistan. As a refugee, he hoped to save his life by joining his brother in Houston. Full Story
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![Sami-ullah Safi and Abdul Wasi Safi shop for items to celebrate Eid on Friday, April 21, 2023, in Houston, TX.]()
Credit: Annie Mulligan for The Texas Tribune -
Political dominoes could fall in Houston as 2 longtime Democrats campaign for mayor
State Sen. John Whitmire, first elected in 1982, and U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, in office since 1995, could be vacating seats that haven’t been open for decades. The election calendar, however, may bring a tough decision for one or both. Full Story
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![Houston mayor candidates Sheila Jackson Lee and John Whitmire]()
Credit: Kylie Cooper/Sophie Park for The Texas Tribune -
U.S. debt ceiling fight riles Texans at both political ends
The high-stakes confrontation could have an impact on retirements accounts, corporations and much more. Full Story
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![The U.S. Capitol is seen through a food truck window on April 14, 2022.]()
Credit: Shuran Huang for The Texas Tribune -
Months after being freed, Afghan soldier arrested at border is now on a path toward asylum and healing
Wasi and his brother pray for their family’s safety as the holy month of Ramadan ends and the Taliban continues to rule Afghanistan. Full Story
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![Abdul Wasi Safi talks with his father in Afghanistan on Friday, April 21, 2023, in Houston, TX.]()
Credit: Annie Mulligan for The Texas Tribune -
U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee is running for Houston mayor
Jackson Lee enters a mayoral contest that is already well underway. The early frontrunner is state Sen. John Whitmire, D-Houston, and his competitors include Chris Hollins, the former Harris County clerk, and Amanda Edwards, a former City Council member. Full Story
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![Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Houston, speaks at a Washington D.C. rally in support of the Senate passing a federal assault weapons ban on Friday, March 24, 2023.]()
Credit: Julia Nikhinson for The Texas Tribune -
Parents share their outrage during first public meeting over Houston ISD takeover
The Texas Education Agency announced on March 15 that it would replace the current superintendent and its democratically elected school board with a new board of managers as soon as June 1. Full Story
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![Attendees of a TEA community meeting express their disapproval of the agency's takeover of Houston Independent School District at Westbury High School in Houston on March 21, 2023.]()
Credit: Douglas Sweet Jr. for The Texas Tribune -
Afghan soldier says he will live the “American dream” after being released from immigration detention center
U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee’s office mounted pressure on several federal agencies earlier this month leading up to Abdul Wasi Safi’s release on Tuesday. Full Story
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![Abdul Wasi Safi speaks at a Houston press conference on Jan. 27, 2023, following his release from a Texas detention center.]()
Credit: Annie Mulligan for The Texas Tribune -
Afghan soldier jailed in Texas for crossing border should receive presidential pardon, U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee says
The Houston Democrat said she has sent a letter to the White House asking the Biden administration to ensure Abdul Wasi Safi starts his life in America without a criminal record. Full Story
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![Sami-ullah Safi, brother of detained Afghan soldier Abdul Wasi Safi, speaks during a press conference with U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Houston, in downtown Houston on Jan. 13, 2023.]()
Credit: Annie Mulligan for The Texas Tribune -
Texas state senator blasts Uvalde police response in congressional hearing: “It was cowardice”
Roland Gutierrez made the remarks during a hearing of the U.S. House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security that was focused on bipartisan legislative solutions to gun violence. Full Story
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![State Sen. Roland Gutierrez, D-San Antonio, during a House Judiciary subcommittee hearing, Examining Uvalde: The Search for Bipartisan Solutions to Gun Violence, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 15, 2022.]()
Credit: Shuran Huang for The Texas Tribune -
Only one Texas Republican in Congress voted to protect marriage equality
U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales was the only Texas Republican to vote for a bill seeking to codify the right to same-sex marriage. The measure passed the House, but its fate in the Senate is uncertain. Full Story
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![A protestor waves a pride flag during a protest outside of the G. Brint Ryan College of Business at the University of North Texas in Denton on March 23, 2022.]()
Credit: Emil Lippe for The Texas Tribune -
Partisan tensions flare among Texans in congressional gun hearing
House Democrats are combining several gun policy bills into one large package known as the Protecting our Kids Act. Among the measures in the bill: raising the age to purchase semi-automatic weapons to 21; outlawing the sale, manufacture, transfer or possession of a large-capacity magazine; and creating tax breaks for purchasing proper gun storage equipment. Full Story
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![Hundreds of handguns and rifles for sale at McBride’s Gun’s in Central Austin on April 20, 2021.]()
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Texas Senate approves congressional map that draws no new Black or Hispanic districts even as people of color fueled population growth
Texas gained two new seats in Congress based on population growth fueled by people of color. But the Senate’s proposal provides no new majority-Black or majority-Hispanic districts to reflect that growth. Full Story
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![The U.S. Capitol building in Washington, D.C., on Sept. 21, 2021.]()
Credit: Eric Lee for The Texas Tribune -
Texas Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee arrested for civil disobedience over voting rights bill
It was unclear what the Houston Democrat did to spur the arrest, though she said, “I engaged in civil disobedience.” Full Story
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![U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas, speaks as the House Judiciary Committee meets on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on May 8, 2019.]()
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Bipartisan effort led by Texans to make Juneteenth a federal holiday passes Congress
The bill was passed in both chambers with wide support. Full Story
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![The Juneteenth historic marker is located on Strand Street in Galveston. The marker commemorates June 19, 1865, the day that Union soldiers arrived in Galveston to inform enslaved black Texans that slavery had ended, two and a half years after President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation. June 15, 2020.]()
Credit: Pu Ying Huang for The Texas Tribune -
U.S. Sen. John Cornyn will file bill to make Juneteenth a federal holiday
Cornyn is not the first Texas lawmaker to take similar steps toward celebrating Juneteenth. On Monday, U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Houston, introduced a resolution aiming to recognize the historical significance of the holiday. Her measure has more than 200 cosponsors. Full Story
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![U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, speaks to the press at the University of Texas at Austin tower in Austin on June 14, 2019.]()
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Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo tells U.S. House committee defunding police is "not the answer"
George Floyd's brother Philonise Floyd was also a featured witness at the hearing, where he spoke about the pain of losing his brother. Full Story
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![Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo responds to demonstrators about police accountability at a rally for George Floyd at Houston City Hall.]()
Credit: Pu Ying Huang for The Texas Tribune -
Texans in Congress divided over President Donald Trump's protest response
Members of Congress and staff worry that the country's political dysfunction has rendered the federal government incapable of addressing police violence legislatively before the November elections. Full Story
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![A view of the U.S. Capitol Building in Washington, D.C. on April 13, 2020.]()
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Joe Biden to attend George Floyd's funeral in Houston, family attorney says
Biden, the former vice president, has spoken out multiple times about Floyd's death in recent days, including in a speech Tuesday morning that called the tragedy a "wake-up call for our nation." Full Story
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![Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden speaks to a supporters in Dallas the night before Super Tuesday.]()
Credit: Cooper Neill for The Texas Tribune -
No Texans cross party lines in votes to impeach President Trump
The U.S. House voted to impeach the president on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress, the third time in the nation's history the chamber took such action. Full Story
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![Lights shine from the U.S. Capitol prior to a vote in the U.S. House of Representatives on two articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump in Washington, D.C. on Dec. 18, 2019.]()
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How a question from Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee led to a joke about Trump's son in the impeachment hearing
The witness later apologized after First Lady Melania Trump condemned the comment. Full Story
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![U.S. Representative Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas, holds up copies of the Mueller Report as she questions constitutional scholars during a House Judiciary Committee hearing on the impeachment Inquiry into President Donald Trump on Capitol Hill on Dec. 4, 2019.]()
Credit: Drew Angerer/Pool via REUTERS