The latest politics news from The Texas Tribune.
Wiping out the tall stands of Carrizo cane that give drug and human smugglers easy cover along the Rio Grande was deemed a border-security priority by Gov. Greg Abbott in 2015, but the program wasn't funded. Full Story
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Getting Texas Republicans in Congress to say whether they're backing Donald Trump is a bit like pulling teeth. Luckily, The Texas Tribune's got the skills of a dentist. Full Story
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The Texas Democratic Party’s convention lands at a moment when the state’s Republicans are feverishly manufacturing topics for the opposition party to talk about. Will it matter? Full Story
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Texas is finally poised to move forward with budget cuts to a pediatric therapy program for children with disabilities, but opponents of the cuts have vowed to continue putting up a fight. Full Story
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The most reliable source of third-party candidates — the Libertarian Party of Texas — didn't field contestants in most of the state’s few remaining swing districts. It looks like that’s one problem GOP candidates in the most competitive races won’t have to deal with. Full Story
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The state's colleges and universities have been largely been left out of the debate over transgender bathroom policies. Over the past decade, most have adopted policies friendlier to transgender students and staff. Full Story
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A group of Democratic state lawmakers from along the Texas-Mexico border is applying pressure to a bank whose CEO is helping raise money for Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee. Full Story
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Rep. Jason Villalba, a Dallas Republican, is helping launch LightSwitch Solutions, an Austin-based public relations and consulting firm with plans to shape opinion about local policy. Full Story
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As Donald Trump's presidential campaign assembles a fundraising network in Texas, it is turning to a longtime proponent of a historic trade deal with Mexico against which the candidate regularly rails. Full Story
Straight-ticket voting is usually an advantage for the majority party, which is one reason why a Republican Texas Legislature has left that voting law in place in spite of steady attempts to change it. But what if the person at the top of the ballot is unpopular? Full Story
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U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro on Thursday lost his battle with Congressional Republicans that want to stop the U.S. Library of Congress from removing controversial immigration terms from its search headings. Full Story
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U.S. Rep. Ted Poe took to the House floor on Thursday to denounce the “pathetic” sentencing of Stanford sexual assailant Brock Turner and to demand the removal of the judge who oversaw the case. Full Story
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Standing on the steps of the U.S. Supreme Court, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced Thursday morning that his office launched a lawsuit against Delaware over millions of dollars he argued are owed to Texas and 20 other states. Full Story
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There are now 12 Texas cities with a population of more than 100,000 that have some rules or legislation in place to protect residents or city employees based on sexual orientation or gender identity. See how those protections compare. Full Story
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The city of Mesquite earlier this week joined the short list of Texas cities that protect city employees from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. We've updated the Tribune's comparison of nondiscrimination protections in the state. Full Story
U.S. Rep. Bill Flores, a Bryan Republican, said Wednesday he won't formally endorse his party's nominee, real estate magnate Donald Trump, but he does plan to vote for him. Full Story
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Donald Trump on Wednesday ruled out picking former rival Rick Perry as his running mate but said there could still be a role for the former Texas governor in a Trump administration. Full Story
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“Shut up” is nearly always a terrible response. It escalates a disagreement. It’s obnoxious. It hardly ever works. It is a clear signal that someone is losing the argument, their patience — or both. Full Story
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Lobbyists for doctors' groups and the telemedicine industry hope to hammer out a compromise over the state's rules governing long-distance health care by the end of the summer. Full Story
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The Travis County GOP has voted to limit the power of incoming chairman Robert Morrow, a controversial figure whose surprise election earlier this year shook up local politics in Texas' fifth-largest county. Full Story
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