The latest politics news from The Texas Tribune.
With a pro-ethanol group hounding his trail in Iowa, U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz has found himself defending his stand on eliminating the federal Renewable Fuel Standard, which is politically sensitive in the corn-growing state. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2016/01/04/Cruz_Iowa_Tour_Bus.jpg)
Facing his first Texas crowd at a rally Wednesday, Sen. Marco Rubio gave a wide-ranging speech that touched on nearly every conceivable topic — except his fellow Republican candidates. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2016/01/06/Marco_Rubio_in_Dallas_TT1.jpg)
Congressional Hispanics are lining up behind U.S. Rep. Gene Green as he seeks to fend off a primary challenge from former Harris County Sheriff Adrian Garcia. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/GreenGene.jpg)
After more than a year of nonstop punditry, predictions and stump speeches, 2016 is finally here. Texans can expect more candidate visits and more campaign ads with the state’s March 1 primary very much in play. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/videos/2016.png)
As he makes his way through a six-day tour of Iowa, Ted Cruz is enjoying — and enduring — life as a frontrunner in the first-in-the-country caucus state. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2016/01/04/Cruz_in_Guthrie_IA_2_TT.jpg)
Ted Cruz on Wednesday blamed President Barack Obama and presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton for North Korea's claims it had tested a nuclear weapon, insisting it shows the “sheer folly” of their foreign policy. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2016/01/06/Cruz_Iowa_PS_TT.jpg)
While Ted Cruz spends the week crisscrossing Iowa ahead of that state's caucuses, Marco Rubio is making his first major play for Cruz's home turf with a campaign rally Wednesday in Dallas. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2016/01/05/cruz-rubio-trump.jpg)
The political bromance between GOP presidential hopefuls Donald Trump and U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz appeared to be unraveling Tuesday after Trump raised the issue of Cruz's Canadian birth, and Cruz suggested his rival has jumped the shark. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2016/01/05/Jumping_the_shark.jpg)
In an recent interview, Donald Trump said hat rival Ted Cruz’s Canadian birthplace was a “very precarious” issue that could make the Texas senator vulnerable if he became the Republican presidential nominee. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/09/08/CruzTrump.jpg)
Texas' elected leaders lashed out Tuesday at President Obama's executive orders prompting more background checks during gun purchases. But those officials offered no specifics on how they planned to fight Obama's actions. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/HandGuns.jpg)
Intervening in what could be a landmark decision, the Obama administration, state and federal lawmakers and medical experts are among those who filed amicus briefs urging the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn Texas’ 2013 abortion law. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/07/01/TexasSupremeCourt.jpg)
Voters will be settling many political and policy disputes this year, from the presidential nominating contests to legislative races, from comebacks to grudge matches. You be the pundit: Take our quiz and predict what will happen. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2016/01/05/2016Prediction-art.png)
During an upcoming U.S. House recess this month, House Speaker Paul Ryan will make several stops in some of the richest pockets of the state: Austin, Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston, Midland and San Antonio. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/RyanPaul.jpg)
Ted Cruz's presidential campaign is launching its first major TV ad in New Hampshire, a dramatic spot that seeks to shore up his border security credentials in a Republican primary race that has been dominated by the issue for months. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2016/01/05/Bankers_at_the_Border.jpg)
With two U.S. House members from Texas declining to seek re-election, we know that the state's congressional delegation will look different after 2016. But could there be other new faces? Here are four races that are standing out. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/12/22/DistrictingUSCapitol-2.jpg)
Ted Cruz on Monday morning launched a six-day swing through Iowa, looking to close the deal with voters in the state where he bas become the leader of the Republican presidential pack. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2016/01/04/Cruz_Iowa_Tour_PS_TT.jpg)
It remains a daunting political reality in Texas. While women make up more than half the state, they are underrepresented in the halls of power, and it appears the 2016 elections will do little to change that. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/01/13/_S3R7968handsup.jpg)
There were two halves to 2015 for the Republican presidential race: Before Trump and After Trump. Since June, there had been several unanticipated twists — some of which included Texans Ted Cruz and Rick Perry. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/09/17/GOP_Debate_2_Full.jpg)
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick appeared on national television Sunday morning, saying he hopes to see the day when Americans can have a gun without having "to go through a long ordeal." Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/10/16/_S2_6139.jpg)
A former spokeswoman for ex-Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee has joined Ted Cruz's presidential campaign, giving the Texas senator a key operative who worked for the last two winners of the Iowa caucuses. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/11/14/Cruz_Bob_JonesU_TT.jpg)