Politics
Hutchison takes jab at Perry again
By Elliott Blackburn, Lubbock Avalanche-Journal, 26 January 2010
U.S. Senator and Republican challenger for governor Kay Bailey Hutchison continued on Monday to question the ethics of Gov. Rick Perry during a quick Monday afternoon campaign stop in Lubbock.
Hutchison brings Armey of one to Amarillo
By Brenda Bernet, Armarillo Globe-News
U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison made her second stop in Amarillo in a week to galvanize support for her campaign for governor, this time bringing former House Majority Leader Dick Armey to introduce her before a crowd at the Oliver Saddle Shop on Plains Boulevard.
Jackson Lee courts Hispanics
Houston Chronicle, 25 January 2010
Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, facing her first semi-serious challenge in her 16 years representing the 18th District, was in town this morning to tout the endorsements of several Hispanic elected officials.
Ag. Commissioner Staples branded as corporate politico
By Jessica Meyers, Dallas Morning News, 25 January 2010
Opponents of agriculture commissioner Todd Staples have started branding him.
Government
UT developing plan to cut $29 million from budget
By Ralph K.M. Haurwitz, Austin American-Statesman, 26 January 2010
Responding to a directive from state leaders, the University of Texas is developing a plan to cut 5 percent, or $29 million, from the state-funded portion of its two-year budget, UT President William Powers Jr. said Monday.
Feds find dubious home tax credit claims from Texas
By Steve McGonigle, Dallas Morning News, 25 January 2010
Federal inspectors scouring tax returns that contain a credit for first-time homebuyers have found something curious about claims from Texas. Nearly 1,000 were filed by people employing a special taxpayer identification number primarily used by illegal immigrants, who are not entitled to the credit.
News
No permit for failed wall
By Jennifer Hiller and Vianna Davila, San Antonio Express-News, 26 January 2010
Centex, the Texas-based developer that Pulte Homes acquired last year, did not have a permit for “an improperly constructed retaining wall” that collapsed Sunday, causing damage to at least three homes and forcing the evacuation of dozens of families, according to city officials
Stomach flu outbreak hits prisons
By Mike Ward, 25 January 2010
What appears to be an outbreak of norovirus has five state prisons under medical quarantine, and more than 1,600 convicts and staff at nearly a quarter of Texas' facilities have come down with the illnesss
District attorney, county judge at odds over consultant
By Emma Perez-Trevino, The Brownsville Herald, 25 January 2010
Cameron County’s arrangement with a consultant that assists District Attorney Armando Villalobos is under review by County Judge Carlos Cascos, who fears a possible conflict.
Texas' teen pregnancy ranking: 4th highest
By Robert T. Garrett, Dallas Morning News, 25 January 2010
Texas had the 4th highest teen pregnancy rate in the country in 2005, according to a new study. That's up one notch from 5th highest in 2000, according to new data from the Guttmacher Institute, which supports abortion rights and is a leading source of data on abortion-related trends. Overall, the group reported a 3 percent increase in the nation's teen pregnancy rate in 2006, a year after reaching its lowest point in three decades.
Witness says Dallas County prosecutor coached him to ID man as killer
By Jennifer Emily, Dallas Morning News, 25 January 2010
The sole eyewitness who testified at a 1995 trial that Richard Miles was a murderer now says the Dallas County prosecutor in the case coached him to do so, according to an affidavit obtained by The Dallas Morning News.
People
Manny Barraza trial: Key witness says judge asked her for money
By Ramon Bracamontes, El Paso Times, 26 January 2010
Diana Rivas Valencia, the government's key witness in state judge Manuel Barraza's trial, testified Monday that he visited her in jail and asked her for money and women as payment for intervening in her cocaine case.