Woman Released on Parole Seeks Exoneration in Child Sex Assault
Amid questions about whether she and three other San Antonio were wrongfully convicted of sexually assaulting two young girls, Anna Vasquez will be released on parole Friday. Full Story
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Democrat Has Reputation for Political Brawling
The outnumbered Texas House Democrats have plenty of leaders, insists state Rep. Trey Martinez Fischer, of San Antonio. But that hasn’t stopped the chairman of the Mexican American Legislative Caucus from taking center stage. Full Story
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![State Representative Trey Martinez-Fischer, right, and District 7 Councilman Justin Rodriguez, left, greet Rodriguez's grandmother, Inez Randon Ramirez, and her friend, Mary Barker as they get out the message to vote at the Alicia Trevino Lopez Senior Center in San Antonio, Friday, October 26, 2012.]()
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Oversight Committee Again Targets TWIA Costs
While coastal residents told lawmakers that increasing policy rates are harming the coastal economy, state lawmakers grilled windstorm insurance administrators over money spent on consultants at a legislative hearing Thursday. Full Story
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Video: Carona's Comments on Gay Rights Reflect Changing Attitudes
While comments by state Sen. John Carona, R-Dallas, on his "evolving" attitude toward certain gay rights issues have garnered plenty of negative attention from conservative groups, the latest University of Texas/Texas Tribune Poll shows the Republican lawmaker's views are consistent with changing attitudes among many Texans. Full Story
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Visualization: Executions on Perry's Watch at 250
The execution of Donnie Lee Roberts Jr., 41, on Wednesday for the 2003 shooting death of a Polk County woman marked the 250th execution during Gov. Rick Perry’s tenure, and the 12th in 2012. The total is the largest — by far — under any recent governor in the United States. Full Story
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Political Clash Dominates Debate Over Reforming Windstorm Association
As state lawmakers prepare for a joint hearing Wednesday morning on how to reform the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association, a long-standing political battle continues to define the debate. Full Story
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UT/TT Poll: Texans Are Leery of Government
News flash: Texans aren't big fans of the state government in Austin, according to the University of Texas/Texas Tribune Poll. But if you really want to get their dander up, ask about the government in Washington. Full Story
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Lawmakers Discuss Ways to Fight Prescription Drug Abuse
At a Senate panel hearing Tuesday on prescription drug abuse, doctors called upon the Legislature to provide "better education to physicians" about “how addictive these drugs are.” Full Story
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Republican Says Straus Should Explain Redistricting Tactics
Speaker Joe Straus defended the House's redistricting work and said they'll continue their legal fight after a second Republican — Bill Zedler of Arlington — joined Democratic inquiries about how Straus' staff handled those political maps in 2011. Full Story
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New Parole Rules Sought in Cases That Involved Injury to a Child
Advocates in Houston are hoping to make parole more difficult for anyone convicted of injuring a child. They plan to pursue legislation to allow the Board of Pardons and Paroles to deny reviews of parole eligibility for up to five years in these cases. Full Story
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As New Public Ed Chair, Patrick Focuses on Expanding School Choice
State Sen. Dan Patrick says he is ready to champion public schools at the Capitol when the 83rd Legislature convenes in January. Whether the education community is ready to embrace him in that role is another matter. Full Story
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![Texas Senator Dan Patrick in his Houston Disctrict 7 office in Houston Tuesday, October 23, 2012.]()
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Reorganization Yields Early Reward for Senators
Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst upset the normal order of things when he announced his committee leaders four months early. But he did the senators a political favor in the process. Full Story
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After Years on Top, Future Brings Challenges for State GOP
In the last installment of a three-part series on Texas Republicans' lock on state government over the past decade, Ben Philpott of KUT News and the Tribune looks at the evolution of the GOP in Texas — and what the party might look like 10 years from now. Full Story
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In Decade of GOP Power, Cuts Moved Costs to Local Level
In the second installment of a three-part series on Texas Republicans' lock on state government over the past decade, Ben Philpott of KUT News and the Tribune looks at the debt and tax burdens that have been passed on to municipalities over the years. Full Story
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Looking Back at Texas' Republican Decade
In the first installment of a three-part series on Texas Republicans' lock on state government over the past decade, Ben Philpott of KUT News and the Tribune looks at the early days of the GOP's domination. Full Story
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Aide's Talk About 2014 May Benefit Perry in 2013
When Ken Armbrister, chief legislative aide to Gov. Rick Perry, said last week that Perry had told him he was going to run for re-election in 2014, Armbrister may have done his boss a favor. Full Story
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Texas Appeals Redistricting Decision; Elections to Proceed
As expected, the state of Texas is appealing a federal court decision throwing out Legislature's redistricting maps, Attorney General Greg Abbott announced Friday. The appeal, however, won't affect the current elections. Full Story
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New Faces — a Big Turnover Year in Politics
Even if none of the remaining incumbents gets beat or loses, this will be the biggest freshman class over all — legislative and congressional officeholders combined — since 1983, when 63 newbies came in. Full Story
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Dewhurst Tears Up the Seating Chart
Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, fresh off a stinging loss to Ted Cruz in the race for the GOP nomination to the U.S. Senate, reshuffled the Senate committee chairs. Full Story
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![Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst in his office at Falcon Seaboard in Houston Wednesday, April 25, 2012.]()
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Guest Column: A More Conservative Texas Senate
Four new senators are coming from the Texas House, where their voting records can be analyzed. Compared to the people they're replacing, they're more conservative. Full Story
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Credit: Tommy LaVergne of Rice University
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