Dems seek seat held by elder Bush [1]

By JOSH KRAUSHAAR, Politico.com, 4/1/8

Democrats are eyeing one of the most reliably Republican seats in the heart of Texas — Rep. John Culberson’s suburban Houston district, once held by President Bush’s father — and have a candidate who is causing a stir due to his prolific fundraising.

Clinton's Texas campaign says Obama may be ahead in delegates [2]

By W. Gardner Selby, AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN, 2 April 2008

AUSTIN – Presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton's Texas campaign conceded Tuesday that if nearly complete results from weekend Democratic conventions hold, Barack Obama stands to take more delegates from Texas to the party's national convention than Clinton.

Rump group members protest [3]

By Denise Malan, Corpus Christi Caller-Times, 1 April 2008

CORPUS CHRISTI -- Members of a group who led a separate meeting Saturday at the Republican county convention said Monday they were trying to protest rule violations by the county chairman, not take over the convention.

Web site: Obama won county vote [4]

By Dan X. McGraw, Denton Record-Chronicle, 1 April 2008

DENTON – Denton County is Obama country, at least among Democrats. Unofficial results Tuesday showed Illinois Sen. Barack Obama won the Denton County Democratic Convention by a 94-48 delegate tally over New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, according to the Web site Burnt Orange Report.

Obama Wins Smith County Delegates [5]

By ROY MAYNARD, Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2 April 2008

TYLER – The Democratic and Republican parties of Smith County have released their lists of delegates to their respective state conventions.

Barack Obama wins the Bowie County caucus [6]

By Kristi Jordan, Texarkana Gazette, 1 April 2008

TEXARKANA – Bowie County’s caucus results are opposite of its popular vote, with Barack Obama receiving 18 of the county’s 32 votes.

Commissioner Price named twice on Democratic delegate list, sealing his spot [7]

By Gromer Jeffers Jr., Dallas Morning News, 2 April 2008

DALLAS – Some people never get on the list once.

Aide: Kay Bailey Hutchison planning to run for governor [8]

Dallas Morning News, 1 April 2008

WASHINGTON – Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison may be moving a step closer to running for Texas governor.

Hutchison testing gubernatorial waters? [9]

Austin American-Statesman, 2 April 2008

AUSTIN – U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas, who might run for governor in 2010, confirmed Tuesday that she's quietly asked teams of experts to advise her on what's best for the state.

Senate candidate visits Kerrville [10]

By Alyson Chapman, Kerrville Daily Times, 2 April 2008

KERRVILLE – Rick Noriega says Texans and Americans are fed up.

Sekula Gibbs, Olson swap jabs on service [11]

By ALAN BERNSTEIN, Houston Chronicle, 2 April 2008

SUGAR LAND – Seeking a public salary of about $165,000 a year, congressional candidates Shelley Sekula Gibbs and Pete Olson revealed differing views Tuesday of the wisdom gained from drawing a salary from taxpayers.

West, Lewis raise big bucks [12]

ODESSA AMERICAN, 1 April 2008

ODESSA – Campaign contribution forms released Tuesday by the Texas Ethics Commission are starkly different in the runoff for the District 81 Seat in the state House of Representatives.

A bruiser of a battle in GOP runoff between Button, Dunning [13]

By Gromer Jeffers Jr., Dallas Morning News, 2 April 2008

DALLAS – For those who like their politics raw and uncut, consider the District 112 Republican runoff for the Texas House.

Mail ballots remain a South Texas problem [14]

Corpus Christi Caller-Times, 2 April 2008

CORPUS CHRISTI – The investigation of alleged voting irregularities in Jim Wells County should be prompt and thorough.

Democrats must revamp delegate selection [15]

San Antonio Express-News, 1 April 2008

SAN ANTONIO – Democracy is a cumbersome, inefficient process, and that represents both its beauty and its curse.

Plan to waive environmental laws to build fence sparks outrage in border region [16]

By DAVID McLEMORE, Dallas Morning News, 1 April 2008

DALLAS – The announcement by the Homeland Security Department on Tuesday that it plans to waive 30 environmental laws to expedite construction of 267 miles of border security fence sparked outrage from environmentalists and elected officials in most of the region.

Deep South Texans hold firm against border fence [17]

By JAMES PINKERTON, Houston Chronicle, 1 April 2008

HOUSTON – Texas border land owners, mayors and wildlife groups blasted the Bush administration's sweeping plan to waive nearly three dozen federal laws to speed construction of a border fence by year's end.

Rules will be broken to build border fence [18]

By Brandi Grissom, El Paso Times, 2 April 2008

AUSTIN – El Paso officials were frustrated and disappointed Tuesday after the Bush administration said it would waive legal and environmental challenges that could impede construction of 670 miles of fence by the end of this year.

Texas Border Coalition outraged by Chertoff’s waiver [19]

By Steve Taylor and Joey Gomez, Rio Grande Guardian, 1 April 2008

McALLEN – The chairman of the Texas Border Coalition says that in trying to force through construction of a border wall, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff is attempting the largest environmental waiver in U.S. history.

Bush administration to bypass laws to build border fence [20]

Dallas Morning News, 1 April 2008

WASHINGTON – The Bush administration will use its authority to bypass more than 30 laws and regulations in an effort to finish building 670 miles of fence along the southwest U.S. border by the end of this year, federal officials said Tuesday.

DHS issues news release about Chertoff waiver [21]

Rio Grande Guardian, 1 April 2008

The Department of Homeland Security has issued a news release about Tuesday's decision by Homeland Security Michael Chertoff to waive all environmental laws in order to speed up construction of a fence along the southwestern U.S. border.

Enrollment of children in Texas state schools surging [22]

By EMILY RAMSHAW, Dallas Morning News, 1 April 2008

AUSTIN – The number of children living in state schools for the disabled has grown by 80 percent in the last five years, a trend advocates say threatens decades of work to move Texas' most fragile youths back into family homes.

Letter opens door to Park Service transfer of Christmas Mountains [23]

By R.A. DYER, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 2 April 2008

AUSTIN – In what may be a softening of his position on the issue, Texas Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson has signaled his willingness to transfer the Christmas Mountains to the National Park Service, although he also has requested the tract's designation as a national preserve so the public can hunt and carry firearms on the property, according to correspondence obtained by the Star-Telegram. Addressed to Big Bend National Park

Texas land official backs down on Christmas Mountains [24]

Houston Chronicle, 2 April 2008

AUSTIN – The state land commissioner blocking a proposal to transfer the Christmas Mountains to the National Park Service because he wants to permit hunting on the land appears ready to let the transaction proceed, documents show.

Audit of PEC must steer clear of board influence [25]

Austin American-Statesman, 1 April 2008

AUSTIN – Like Rep. Patrick Rose, D-Dripping Springs, we would prefer to see the state auditor do a thorough financial and governance audit of Pedernales Electric Cooperative Inc. rather than the consultant agreed to by Pedernales’ own board.

A better border patrol [26]

Houston Chronicle, 1 April 2008

HOUSTON – In 1924, when the U.S. Border Patrol was founded, it needed workers who could ride, shoot and track, who knew the area and who had the stamina to fight criminal activity in a neglected part of the country

On the Border [27]

Texarkana Gazette, 2 April 2008

TEXARKANA – So far, about 309 miles of the border fence between the United States and Mexico is in place.

'Dead zone' off Texas coast poses threat to marine life [28]

By JACK DOUGLAS JR., Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 2 April 2008

FORT WORTH – A dead zone of oxygen-depleted water has lurked off the Louisiana coast for years, but a Texas A&M scientist now says the same condition exists off Texas.

Some State Farm rates could rise 21% [29]

By Laura Elder, Galveston County Daily News, 2 April 2008

GALVESTON – After months of legal disputes, the Texas Department of Insurance approved rate increases for State Farm that could cost some Galveston County consumers on average nearly 21 percent more.

Alleged stalker of Kay Bailey Hutchison arrested in Dallas [30]

By SCOTT GOLDSTEIN and TODD J. GILLMAN, Dallas Morning News, 1 April 2008

DALLAS – Dallas police arrested a 57-year-old Weatherford man last month after he repeatedly threatened U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison in telephone messages and visited her Dallas home, according to police records.

University of Texas System names interim chancellor [31]

Dallas Morning News, 1 April 2008

AUSTIN – The University of Texas System on Tuesday appointed Kenneth I. Shine as interim chancellor to succeed Mark Yudof, who has been named president of the University of California system.

Skilling has shot, experts say [32]

By KRISTEN HAYS, Houston Chronicle, 1 April 2008

HOUSTON – Jeff Skilling suffered a knockout when he faced a Houston federal court jury two years ago. But he's flexing more potent muscle in his appeal, scheduled for court argument today.