Which Rick Perry will appear? The right one, for any occasion [1]

By Jason Embry, AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN, Feb. 9, 2010

Why has Rick Perry never lost an election? It could be because there are four of him.

Political Notes: How Chavez-Thompson counts on a win [2]

AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN, Feb. 9, 2010

If you give the Republicans 25,000 (yes, there are GOP union members, she says), that means 200,000 folks out there will probably vote for her if they go to the polls.

Kyle's growth, debt has council candidates concerned [3]

By Patrick George, AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN, Feb. 9, 2010

With one council member leaving to run for mayor and another for a county commissioner seat, Kyle will see a big shake-up on its City Council after Saturday's special election.

From farm to politics, Perry follows in family's footsteps [4]

By Jason Embry, AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN, Feb. 9, 2010

If he wasn't your governor, chances are that Rick Perry would be spending his days in the left seat of a Boeing 737 cockpit as a Southwest Airlines pilot.

Hispanic Democratic group endorses Shami for governor [5]

By ROBERT T. GARRETT, The Dallas Morning News, Feb. 10, 2010

A leading group of Hispanic Democrats endorsed businessman Farouk Shami for governor Tuesday, saying the Palestinian-American immigrant personifies the American dream.

Hutchison calls education a priority [6]

By Jenny LaCoste-Caputo, San Antonio Express-News, Feb. 9, 2010

Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison visited San Antonio's KIPP Aspire Academy Monday along with former first lady Barbara Bush and former Congressman Henry Bonilla to talk about what she calls her No. 1 issue in her campaign for governor: education.

White calls for more efficient state government [7]

By Gilbert Garcia, San Antonio Express-News, Feb. 9, 2010

The former Houston mayor earned bipartisan support in that city — averaging 88 percent of the vote over his two re-election campaigns — by emphasizing efficiency over ideology, and he told the Express-News Editorial Board on Tuesday that Gov. Rick Perry is mishandling a looming budget crisis.

US Rep Sheila Jackson Lee gets rare challenge [8]

By MICHAEL GRACZYK, Associated Press, Feb. 9, 2010

Sheila Jackson Lee's appearance at Michael Jackson's funeral in Los Angeles last summer helped convince a three-term Houston city councilman to give the ubiquitous congresswoman her first credible re-election challenge since she won her seat 16 years ago.

Fact-checking the Democratic debate [9]

By AMAN BATHEJA, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Feb. 8, 2010

Here is a closer look at some of the statements and claims made by businessman Farouk Shami and former Houston Mayor Bill White in Monday night's debate between the 2010 Democratic gubernatorial candidates.

County punches its ticket for rail group [10]

By CHRIS MORAN, Houston Chronicle, Feb. 9, 2010

Commissioners Court decided Tuesday to buy a $50,000 ticket to get Harris County aboard a movement to bring high-speed rail to Texas.

Experts disagree on reasons for area's smog compliance [11]

By MATTHEW TRESAUGUE, Houston Chronicle, Feb. 9, 2010

Houston met the federal smog limit for the first time last year because of pollution controls and not as a result of favorable weather conditions or a slumping economy, Texas regulators say.

DPS cuts training time to gain recruits, reduce costs [12]

By JAMES PINKERTON, Houston Chronicle, Feb. 9, 2010

The tan cowboy hat and shiny back boots will be the same, but Texas troopers soon will be on the highways with nine fewer weeks of training than their veteran colleagues.

Districts consider ending salary perk for teachers [13]

By ERICKA MELLON, Houston Chronicle, Feb. 9, 2010

Houston-area school districts spend tens of millions of dollars a year on teachers with advanced degrees that studies show don't produce better student achievement.

Hundreds of pieces of mail undelivered in Temple [14]

The Associated Press, Feb. 9, 2010

A federal investigation found that nearly 700 pieces of mail sat undelivered in the Temple post office last July, more than half of it first class.

Texas to discard millions of babies' blood samples [15]

Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Feb. 8, 2010

A critical safety net for babies -- that heel prick of blood taken from every newborn -- is facing an ethics attack.

Slater: Mansfield couple’s fight with powerful homebuilder back in court [16]

By Wayne Slater, The Dallas Morning News, Feb. 9, 2010

The Culls are a retirement-age couple who say Perry Homes built a defective house with a broken foundation and cracked walls, but won’t fix it.

NASA chief: Mars is our mission [17]

By ERIC BERGER, Houston Chronicle, Feb. 9, 2010

NASA's emerging exploration plan will call for safely sending humans to Mars, possibly by the 2030s, and de-emphasize exploration of the moon, the agency's leader said Tuesday.

Space shuttle Endeavour pulls in at space station [18]

By MARCIA DUNN, AP, Feb. 9, 2010

Shuttle Endeavour arrived to a warm welcome at the International Space Station early Wednesday, delivering a new room and observation deck that will come close to completing construction 200 miles above Earth.

The one that got away [19]

By HARVEY RICE, Houston Chronicle, Feb. 9, 2010

Over the last few months investigators have learned that Salaz, now 34, is in the vicinity of Monterrey, Mexico, said the inspector general of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. But U.S. officials have no authority to make arrests in Mexico and are having trouble persuading Mexican authorities to send him back to Texas.

Short sale failures long on problems [20]

By Laura Elder, The Galveston County Daily News, Feb. 10, 2010

The story of 4114 Green Heron Drive in Pointe West is playing out again and again in the county and across the nation, driving down property values and prices and leaving taxpayers potentially on the hook for many millions of dollars, industry observers said.

Perry underscores executive during long tenure as state's CEO [21]

By Jason Embry, AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN, Feb. 9, 2010

Gov. Rick Perry has in many ways dispelled the notion that governor of Texas is an inherently weak office.

Drama likely as Scardino, Siegler face-off in retrial [22]

By HARVEY RICE, Houston Chronicle, Feb. 9, 2010

Two experienced attorneys, one a former Harris County star prosecutor known for theatrics and the other a skilled defense attorney, will face each other in the retrial of Anthony Graves, whose capital murder conviction was overturned by a federal appeals court.

Sanders steps down as CEO of United [22]

By Walt Nett, LUBBOCK AVALANCHE-JOURNAL, Feb. 10, 2010

Dan Sanders has resigned as chief executive officer of United Supermarkets, the company announced Tuesday.

Former McAllen mayor's DWI case filed [23]

Jared Taylor, The McAllen Monitor, Feb. 9, 2010

Prosecutors said they filed the driving while intoxicated case of former McAllen mayor Leo Montalvo on Monday, seven months after his arrest.