Politics
Speaker's Race, Anyone?
By Ross Ramsey, THE TEXAS TRIBUNE, 8 June 2010
Nobody's openly campaigning right now, but there's talk of who might succeed Joe Straus if he stumbles before January.
Bid to put a Green in Texas governor race may be illegal, expert says
By Wayne Slater, THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 7 June 2010
One of the state's leading election experts says a petition drive funded through an out-of-state group to put the Green Party on the ballot this fall might have violated state law.
The New Tenthers
By Morgan Smith, THE TEXAS TRIBUNE, 8 June 2010
To limit what former Texas solicitor general Ted Cruz says is the “most dramatic expansion of federal government authority and the most concerted assault on individual liberty in modern times," conservatives are invoking the Tenth Amendment at every whistlestop. But what rights does it actually protect?
White campaign says Perry is a part-time governor
By Jason Embry, AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN, 7 June 2010
Democratic gubernatorial nominee Bill White's campaign chided Gov. Rick Perry on Monday for keeping a schedule that Team White says is light on official events.
Abbott denies campaign rival's charge that he went easy on BP
By Theodore Kim, THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 8 June 2010
Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott said Monday that he feels "frustration and aggravation" over BP's response to the Gulf of Mexico oil spill and that the company's actions could lead to criminal charges.
Government
Qualms arise over TAKS standards
By Ericka Mellon, HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 7 June 2010
Texas schoolchildren generally performed better on the all-important TAKS test this year, but some superintendents, state lawmakers and statisticians are casting doubt on the gains.
Texas officials seek to keep cities from pocketing state road money
By Gordon Dickson, FORT WORTH STAR-TELEGRAM, 7 June 2010
The Texas Transportation Commission is expected to close a legal loophole in highway funding that is allowing cities to pocket millions in state funds after building projects for up to 20 percent below the estimated cost.
Officials investigate deadly Texas gas explosion
By Angela K. Brown, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS, 8 June 2010
A natural gas explosion in north Texas killed one member of a crew installing utility poles, and authorities were trying to figure out if the gas line had been marked before digging started.
Feds: Hempstead terror suspect thrived on secrecy
By Dane Schiller, HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 7 June 2010
He used at least a dozen Yahoo e-mail addresses to hide his identity, spoke and wrote in a self-styled code of joining al-Qaida holy warriors, and eagerly went to bogus drop sites set up by FBI agents, thinking he was proving himself a worthy jihad recruit.
RGV Border Patrol chief tapped to help lead agency
By Jeremy Roebuck, THE MONITOR, 7 June 2010
The U.S. Border Patrol’s top agent in the Rio Grande Valley will head to Washington, D.C., this summer to become the agency’s second in command.
Houston hospital gets $1 million grant to treat veterans
By Lindsay Wise, HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 7 June 2010
Houston's Riverside General Hospital will receive a $1 million grant from the Department of Defense to treat active-duty troops and veterans for post-traumatic stress disorder, officials announced Monday.
Movement aims to foster college-going culture
By Melissa Ludwig, SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS, 8 June 2010
The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board on Monday announced the rollout of a $3 million grass-roots movement and marketing campaign to create a college-going culture throughout Texas, starting with San Antonio and Fort Worth.
$3 million grant to promote college access in Fort Worth, San Antonio
By Mitch Mitchell, FORT WORTH STAR-TELEGRAM, 7 June 2010
The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board announced Monday that it is launching a pilot program in Fort Worth and San Antonio to amplify some words of parental wisdom: Go to college.
PEC trials moved outside of Blanco County
By Patrick George, AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN, 7 June 2010
State District Judge Dan Mills ruled Monday that the trials of Bennie Fuelberg, the Pedernales Electric Co-op's former general manager, and Walter Demond, a former counsel for the co-op, will be held outside of Blanco County. Prosecutors from the Texas attorney general's office did not oppose the defense motions for a change of venue.
Lawmakers will meet in Plainview
By Enrique Rangel, AMARILLO GLOBE NEWS, 8 June 2010
Civic and business leaders from across the state will be in Plainview next week to address rural, redistricting and other issues the Texas Legislature is expected to tackle when lawmakers are back in session in January.
Blight law is surveyed by Dallas City Council committee
By Steve Thompson, THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 7 June 2010
The Dallas City Council's housing committee was briefed Monday on a proposed ordinance aimed at streamlining and strengthening the city's ability to demolish blighted structures in historic neighborhoods.
Streetcar revival: City rep seeks to restore symbol of El Paso's past
By Gustavo Reveles Acosta, EL PASO TIMES, 8 June 2010
International politics and budget problems ended streetcar service in the city more than 35 years ago. Now, the regal cars that zoomed through the streets of El Paso and Juárez are rusting away in the desert near the El Paso International Airport, perhaps awaiting a new chapter in their storied history.
News
Admiral: BP cleanup faces 'an enemy that changes'
By Monica Hatcher, HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 7 June 2010
BP turned a significant corner over the weekend in its efforts to contain the Gulf oil spill, saying Monday it was collecting as much as half of the estimated amount oil pouring into the sea.
Fickle oil slick scatters its threats across Gulf
By Bill Kaczor, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS, 8 June 2010
The oil spill plaguing the states along the Gulf of Mexico isn't one slick - it's many.
Border agent involved in shooting near Paso del Norte bridge
By Daniel Borunda, EL PASO TIMES, 7 June 2010
A U.S. Border Patrol agent shot and apparently killed a man who died on the Mexican side of the Rio Grande during a confrontation Monday evening in the Downtown area.
Baylor president Ken Starr reiterates desire for Big 12 Conference to stay together
By Michael W. Shapiro, WACO TRIBUNE-HERALD, 8 June 2010
Baylor University President Ken Starr emphasized the school’s bond with its Big 12 in-state rivals, especially the University of Texas, during a Monday news conference.
Osborne could decide Tech's fate
By Courtney Linehan, LUBBOCK AVALANCE-JOURNAL, 8 June 2010
The Big 12 Conference may soon explode, and the Cornhuskers' athletic director sits at the epicenter, bomb in hand.
UT panel to review dorm named for Klan member
By Ralph K.M. Haurwitz, AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN, 7 June 2010
A 19-member panel has been appointed by the University of Texas to recommend whether a dormitory named for a Ku Klux Klan member should be renamed.