The latest border news from The Texas Tribune.
An estimated 68,000 of the more than 99,000 guns submitted to U.S. authorities by Mexican law enforcement for tracing had origins here, according to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Full Story
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A report by the U.S. Government Accountability Office says that using the National Guard to help secure the nation’s borders can hinder recruitment efforts and may fuel the perception that the border is militarized. Full Story
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Many Mexicans displaced by the violence in Chihuahua are seeking refuge in El Paso, where through their common tragedies they have come together to form a group to raise awareness about their plight. Full Story
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A group of Texas lawmakers is pushing for the inclusion of Mexico in the Trans-Pacific Partnership. But some warn that expanding free trade agreements could send much-needed U.S. jobs out of the country. Full Story
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The executive director of the Drug Policy Alliance on how drug policies are making Texas’ criminal justice system “horrific,” and who has the most to gain and lose by amending current drug policies. Full Story
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Texas banks are worrying that a seemingly obscure new rule proposed by the IRS could cause flight of foreign capital from the state. But as Nathan Bernier of KUT News reports, consumer advocates say that's a false alarm. Full Story
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Wednesday’s court ruling that the city of Farmers Branch does not have the authority to enact immigration legislation is being hailed as a victory for immigrants. But it doesn't mean all local ordinances are dead on arrival. Full Story
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Opponents of a coal company's plan to mine land in Eagle Pass are also fighting a plan to build a rail line to transport the coal to Mexico. Full Story
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After the state reduced its share of co-payments for Texans who are dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid, doctors who treat such patients are seeing revenue disruptions. Full Story
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U.S. Rep. Silvestre Reyes, D-El Paso, wants to close a loophole that allows underground cross-border tunnels — which are often used by Mexican cartels — to flourish. Full Story
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UPDATED: The Texas Department of Public Safety today renewed a warning that cautions Texas students against traveling to Mexico. The break begins next week for most of the state’s schools. Full Story
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A cross-border training program between Texas peace officers and Mexican police has yet to get off the ground. But U.S. authorities are still intent on helping their southern neighbor. Full Story
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There are signals that cartels south of the border aren’t looking at methamphetamine as merely a backup source for revenue anymore, analysts say. Full Story
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The White House's proposed 2013 budget has the Texas Border Coalition insisting that the administration's lack of money for port improvements puts trade and security in peril. Full Story
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Coal may have fallen out of favor in the U.S., but it's still big business in Mexico, as residents of Maverick County have found out. Mose Buchele of KUT News reports on an effort along the Texas border to fight a mining operation that would bring coal to Mexican power plants. Full Story
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Root on the end of Rick Perry's presidential campaign, Murphy on what happens to his campaign cash, Ramsey on his next act, Ramshaw, Aaronson, Murphy, Chang and Seger interactively chart the rise and fall of his run, Aguilar talks Juárez violence with a documentary filmmaker, Galbraith on the tug-of-war over surface water, Grissom and Murphy on three decades of capital punishment in Texas, Hamilton and Aaronson on our workforce needs in 2018 and Tan on the state's much-reduced list of women's health clinics: The best of our best content from January 16-20, 2012. Full Story
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A perfume seller who federal prosecutors said tried to "remove the stench of Mexican drug cartel money" was sentenced today to nearly two decades in prison for a money-laundering scheme. Full Story
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After narcotics seizures surged 45 percent in 2010, the Laredo Customs District saw a relatively minimal increase in contraband intercepted at its ports in 2011. But others aren't sure the federal government should applaud so loudly about the Laredo district figures, saying efforts on the whole are still lacking. Full Story
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The director of 8 Murders a Day, a documentary about the carnage in Ciudad Juárez, on what prompted him to relocate to the border to work on the project, his thoughts on Mexican President Felipe Calderón’s war against organized crime, and his response to the criticism the project has received. Full Story
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Rapper and part-time actor Snoop Dogg, whose real name is Calvin Broadus Jr., was arrested early Saturday after agents at the West Texas Border Patrol checkpoint found marijuana in his tour bus. Full Story
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