DAY 29 of our month-long series on the effects of new state laws and budget cuts: The state has dramatically reduced support for nursing education, meaning Texas will continue to face a critical shortage of registered nurses. Full Story
DAY 27 of our month-long series on the effects of new state laws and budget cuts: Lawmakers didn't cut spending for the Texas HIV Medication Program, but it remains nearly $20 million short. Full Story
Tan on coming prison school cuts and online sales taxes, Root on Rick Perry's support for tax increases when he was a lawmaker, Ramshaw and Serafini on what "Perrycare" would entail, yours truly on the differences between Perry and George W. Bush, Philpott on the passions of the Paulites, Murphy and Seger unveil the Trib's Texas Public Schools Database, Hamilton on UT's answer to calls for improvements in higher ed, Galbraith on predictions that the record heat in Texas will be a long-term problem and Aguilar on the legal shootout over gun sales in Texas: The best of our best content from Aug. 22 to 26, 2011. Full Story
Gov. Rick Perry routinely attacks federal health care reform, but he has so far revealed little on the presidential campaign trail about what his own “Perrycare” could look like — or how much changing American health care will figure into his candidacy. Full Story
DAY 22 of our month-long series on the effects of new state laws and budget cuts: Lawmakers slash funding for residency programs in Texas, making it even more difficult for the state to meet its growing physician shortage. Full Story
Aaronson analyzes TWIA claims and lawyer fees, Aguilar talks border security and voter ID with Chuy Hinojosa, Grissom on the latest inmate exonerated via DNA evidence, Hamilton interviews John Sharp on higher ed and the SEC, Murphy interactively maps the changes wrought by redistricting, Philpott on who's running Texas while Rick Perry is out campaigning for president, Ramsey on Perry's history of off-the-cuff remarks, Ramshaw on Perry's childhood years in Paint Creek, Root on Perry's extraordinary first week on the trail and Tan on even more ways Texas will change on Sept. 1: The best of our best content from Aug. 15-19, 2011. Full Story
Rick Perry came to press the flesh with voters in Portsmouth, N.H., Thursday — but he ran instead into a vociferous protest of his views on Social Security and Medicare outside a local cafe. It wasn't much better inside. Full Story
Gov. Rick Perry likes to rail against the Obama administration's "failed" federal stimulus program, but he and state lawmakers have more than $17 billion in fed-stim dollars to thank for the last two balanced Texas budgets. Full Story
DAY 15 of our month-long series on the effects of new state laws and budget cuts: The Department of State Health Services expects about 180,000 Texas men and women will lose access to birth control and cancer screenings. Full Story
With his lengthy record as governor under intense new scrutiny, Rick Perry is seeking to defuse the controversy around one of his most controversial decisions: his 2007 executive order requiring all girls to be vaccinated against HPV, the principal cause of cervical cancer. Full Story
DAY 14 of our month-long series on the effects of new state laws and budget cuts: Despite making deep cuts across the state's budget, lawmakers increased funding for anti-abortion crisis pregnancy resource centers. Full Story
Gov. Rick Perry is scoring some endorsements from GOP activists and officeholders, but support for Perry among his fellow Texas Republicans isn't unanimous. The Democrats, as you might expect, are vociferously in opposition. Full Story
A federal appeals court today ruled that the individual insurance mandate in President Obama's health care reform plan is unconstitutional, a decision Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott lauded as a step toward ending "Obamacare." Full Story
Saddle up, buckaroos and buckarettes. We're going on our second presidential ride in 12 years. It doesn't matter who your candidate is or what your politics are, the presence of a Texas governor on a national ticket means some changes around here. Full Story
DAY 10 of our month-long series on the effects of new state laws and budget cuts: Losing $31 million in state aid leads UT Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas to lay off more than 100 employees and eliminate 250 vacant positions. Full Story
DAY 7 of our month-long series on the effects of new state laws and budget cuts: The East Texas Medical Center will downgrade its trauma center in Athens from Level III to Level IV. Full Story
DAY 5 of our month-long series on the effects of new state laws and budget cuts: The Rio Grande Valley’s longest-running helicopter ambulance will be permanently grounded this fall — and state budget cuts were the final straw. Full Story
The state comptroller talks about the flip in her position on abortion, the data breach at her agency this spring, what office she might seek next and how all of the politics of those subjects mix. Full Story
To help visualize demographic changes from 2000 to 2010, the Center for Urban Research at the City University of New York updated its interactive maps of Houston and other major U.S. cities today. Full Story