Lead Stories

At least one winner emerges from Iran war: U.S. natural gas exporters

U.S. gas exporters are emerging as among the biggest beneficiaries of President Donald Trump’s war with Iran, as governments in Asia scramble for alternatives to Middle Eastern fuel. Asia, more reliant than other regions on fuel that passes through the Strait of Hormuz, is staggering from Iran’s effective closure of the key chokepoint and from Iranian strikes on gas facilities in the Persian Gulf, in retaliation for U.S.-Israeli attacks. Demand here is surging for U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports, much to the approval of the Trump administration, which is seizing on shortages to push U.S. gas sales even as it demands that other governments step in to open the strait. “We need to sell energy to our friends and allies so they don’t have to buy from adversaries, so they don’t have to be dependent on sources of energy that can be controlled,” U.S. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said last week in Tokyo, where he announced $57 billion in energy deals with providers in Asia. “This has been part of President Trump’s energy dominance policy since Day 1.”

The turbulence in energy markets is just one aspect of rising global anxiety over the political and economic instability resulting from the continuing war. Stock markets in Asia fell sharply on Monday, with Japan’s Nikkei closing down 3.5 percent and the Korea Composite Stock Price Index finishing 6.5 percent lower. Though the tech manufacturing hubs of Taiwan, Japan and South Korea have spent years trying to lower their reliance on Middle East gas, U.S. LNG had often been considered too pricey and shipped from too far-off to be a viable alternative. That began to change last year when Trump pressed these governments, threatening them with tariffs, to lower trade deficits with the U.S. With the damaging of Qatari gas infrastructure, the shift is set to accelerate. Because near-term U.S. gas export capacity is limited, however, these cargoes have come at a premium, promising a windfall for gas companies like Cheniere and Venture Global, which have seen their stock prices soar. Executives at both companies have made major donations in support of Trump. Cheniere rejected a request for comment. Venture Global did not respond. “High prices for security purposes — we have to take this,” Kuan-ting Chen, chair of the Taiwan legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, said in an interview Thursday.

Read this article at Washington Post - Subscribers Only

Texas and Louisiana face financial, regulatory barriers in scaling up carbon capture and storage

Texas and Louisiana are both primed for a vast carbon capture and storage network, but regulatory and financial challenges in the states could slow down development along the Gulf Coast. When Louisiana achieved regulatory authority over Class VI carbon dioxide injection wells, which are otherwise regulated by the Environmental Protection Agency, the state was already far surpassing Texas in permit applications. But after the state received too many applications, Gov. Jeff Landry signed an executive order in October putting a pause on all new Class VI well permit applications as the state worked to keep up.

“The executive order urges the department to focus on prioritizing the over 30 permits that have already been filed,” Meghan Thacker, vice president of federal and state affairs at the Consumer Energy Alliance and former Capitol Hill staffer, told the Houston Business Journal. “(For) each permit, I think the executive order states that it takes over 2,000 hours to review and so in order to be efficient, he wanted to make sure that all of these applications were done in the right way and in the most thorough way possible.” Although Texas had fallen behind Louisiana in its pace of applications, Southeast Texas has all of the things a CCS network needs: good geology, carbon dioxide pipeline infrastructure, and facilities emitting the carbon dioxide that can be captured. “We have the concentrated industrial market in both states, so we're able to capture really pure, concentrated forms, streams of CO2 at these facilities. And then we have the geology that is really looked at as some of the best in the world for storing CO2. So we are able to capture from the industrial facilities, we're able to transport it through our existing system, and then we have really good storage opportunities onshore and near shore in Texas and Louisiana,” Scott Castleman, a representative of the Gulf Coast CCS Alliance, told the HBJ. Texas has since received its own primacy over Class VI wells, and the state could learn from Louisiana’s troubles as it moves forward with its applications.

Read this article at Houston Business Journal - Subscribers Only

Trump's changing course on Strait of Hormuz strategy raises questions about US war preparation

At war with Iran, President Donald Trump is cycling through an increasingly desperate list of options as he searches for a solution to the crisis in the Strait of Hormuz. He has jumped from calls to secure the waterway through diplomatic means to lifting sanctions and now escalating to a direct threat against civilian infrastructure in the Islamic Republic. Trump and his allies insist they were always prepared for Iran to block the strait, yet the Republican president’s erratic strategy has fueled criticism that he is grasping for answers after going to war without a clear exit plan. On Saturday came his latest attempt, via an ultimatum to Iran: Open the strait within 48 hours or the United States will “obliterate” the country’s power plants.

Trump’s aides defended the threat as a hard-edged tactic to press Iran into submission. Opponents framed it as the failure of a president who miscalculated what it would take to get out of a geopolitical mire. “Trump has no plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, so he is threatening to attack Iran’s civil power plants,” said Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass, adding: “This would be a war crime.” Related Stories Trump's mixed messages on Iran: 'Winding down' the war and easing sanctions but adding more troops Trump says that he's asked 'about 7' countries to join coalition to police Iran's Strait of Hormuz Trump side-stepped diplomacy on his way to war in Iran. Now, he's asking China and others for help “He’s lost control of the war and he is panicking,” said Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., responding to Trump’s post. Over the course of about a week, Trump has repeatedly shifted his approach on the crucial waterway for global oil and gas transport. There is growing urgency for Trump as soaring oil prices rattle global markets and pinch American consumers months before pivotal midterm elections.

Read this article at Associated Press - Subscribers Only

Growing frustration with Chuck Schumer spurs talk of replacing him

Sen. Chris Murphy was dining with progressive activists at a French restaurant in Washington’s Georgetown neighborhood when the conversation about how to advance their legislative priorities turned to a thorny question: what to do about Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. To the surprise of some attendees, the Connecticut Democrat—a rising star in the party’s left flank—responded that some lawmakers had been doing informal counts to see whether enough votes existed to remove the New York Democrat from his leadership position, according to people familiar with the mid-February dinner. Murphy explained that Schumer had enough backing to remain as leader. But the disclosure stood out nonetheless, because it revealed that frustration inside the Senate had reached a high enough level that some Democrats were actively contemplating how to oust Schumer. Murphy is among a group of senators and top advisers who have grown increasingly dissatisfied with Schumer’s leadership, according to people familiar with the conversations.

That group includes Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, who has been initiating conversations with other senators to gauge frustrations with Schumer, some of the people said. Sen. Tina Smith of Minnesota has also been active in discussions about her frustrations with Schumer, and her advisers have spoken with other Senate staff about different scenarios to challenge Schumer’s leadership, other people said. In an interview, Murphy said he is frequently asked about Senate leadership, but he doesn’t have a count of who would vote to remove Schumer and doesn’t recall mentioning one. “Could someone infer from that that someone was keeping a count? Maybe, but that’s not what I meant,” Murphy said. “I meant that he has the support of the caucus.” He said he still supports Schumer. In more than four dozen interviews with Democratic senators, candidates, current and former congressional aides, activists and advisers, many said the concern about Schumer’s leadership was widespread. Meetings between Democratic chiefs of staff on Senate business often veer into airing discontent with Schumer and how to pressure him to step aside as leader after November’s elections, according to attendees and others familiar with the discussions. Murphy, Warren and Smith are part of a batch of senators dubbed “Fight Club” who are particularly incensed by Schumer’s approach to the midterms. This group of progressives believes that Schumer favors centrist candidates in some key races and is disregarding the enthusiasm a new crop of outsiders is stoking. The senators maintain a Fight Club chat on Signal where they have discussed how to counter Schumer’s preferred candidates, according to people familiar with the conversations. The existence of the group was reported earlier by the New York Times.

Read this article at Wall Street Journal - Subscribers Only

State Stories

Houston airports see highest TSA callout rates in the nation, straining security lines

Travelers at Houston airports are facing significant delays as staffing shortages among TSA officers persist amid the ongoing Department of Homeland Security shutdown, federal officials said. New data released by the Department of Homeland Security shows absenteeism among Transportation Security Administration officers has surged nationwide, with callout rates topping 11.5% on Friday, March 21 — the highest recorded during the shutdown. In Houston, the numbers were even more severe. At George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH), 42.4% of TSA officers reportedly called out, while at William P. Hobby Airport (HOU), that figure climbed to 47.4%, among the highest rates in the country.

Federal officials say the staffing shortages are contributing to long security lines and extended wait times for travelers, particularly during the busy spring break travel period. According to DHS, TSA officers have now gone without pay for the third time in six months, creating financial strain that is impacting attendance. “Many TSA officers cannot pay their rent, buy food, or afford to put gas in their cars — forcing them to call out sick from work,” the agency said in a statement. Over the past week, TSA callout rates have remained above 9% nationwide, with more than half of those days exceeding 10%, officials said.

Read this article at KHOU - Subscribers Only

A 20-million-year old water supply may help save Corpus Christi

Corpus Christi is turning to water that has been trapped deep underground for hundreds of millions of years as the region struggles through worsening drought. With lakes dropping and the water supply tightening, the City of Corpus Christi has started pumping about 4.5 million gallons of groundwater a day into the Nueces River from its newly activated western well field. The water then flows downstream to the O.N. Stevens Water Treatment Plant. State officials allowed the move under emergency permits approved by Texas Governor Greg Abbott. City leaders say the project could eventually deliver much more water if conditions continue to worsen.

Water officials recently took 3 News' Michael Gibson to the dusty site where the groundwater is being pumped hundreds of feet from underground formations. The wells were built to reach deep layers of the Chicot and Evangeline aquifers. Nick Winkelmann, the chief operating officer for Corpus Christi Water, said the wells target groundwater that sits far below the shallow aquifers that are typically replenished by rainfall. Each well reaches an average depth of about 515 feet. City Manager Peter Zanoni said hydrogeologists believe the water being tapped has been trapped in that geologic layer for extremely long periods of time. According to Zanoni, the water has likely been sitting in those formations for hundreds of millions of years, meaning it does not recharge quickly like shallow groundwater.

Read this article at KIIITV - Subscribers Only

Suspected meteorite crashes into Houston woman's home amid citywide reports of 'boom'

Following reports of a loud "boom" and houses shaking the Houston area on Saturday, a woman says a potential piece of the answer may have been what crashed through her roof. Social media was buzzing with questions about a noise sounding like thunder or an explosion shortly before 5 p.m. Saturday. The Brenham Fire Department said they responded to reports of a possible explosion, but they did not find proof that one happened. Some speculated whether the noise came from a meteor or a sonic boom. As the questions continued, a woman contacted FOX 26 claiming a meteorite crashed through her roof. Sherrie James says she contacted the Ponderosa Fire Department for help. Fire Captain Tyler Ellingham confirmed that he responded to James' call. The captain's team found what they say is an unusual rock. Since there was no construction or trees nearby, the fire department believes the rock is a part of the alleged meteor that was heard around Houston.

Read this article at KHOU - Subscribers Only

Paxton's lawsuit over Bexar County immigration program dismissed

A Bexar County judge on Friday dismissed Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s lawsuit challenging the county’s immigration legal services program, bringing an end to weeks of legal battles before any court could hear the merits of the case. In Bexar County’s presiding court, 408th Civil District Court Judge Angelica Jimenez granted the county’s motion to dismiss filed earlier this week, ruling the case is moot after the remaining funds tied to the program were already distributed. In a filing to the Texas Supreme Court on Thursday, the state acknowledged that outcome, saying because the payments had been distributed the courts could no longer grant the relief originally requested. In legal terms, a “moot” case means there is no longer an active dispute for a court to resolve and any ruling would have no real-world effect.

The lawsuit, filed in early February, targeted more than $556,000 in county funding for legal representation for low-income residents facing deportation proceedings. The program contracts with the nonprofit American Gateways to provide those services. From the start, the case centered on timing, with the lawsuit filed less than 30 days before the contract was set to expire and its first district court hearing coming just eight days before that deadline. Attorneys for the state repeatedly argued courts needed to intervene to temporarily block the remaining funds from being released, warning that once the final payment was made, there would be “nothing left to enjoin” and the case would effectively be over. Despite multiple attempts, the state was unable to secure emergency orders blocking the payment. The 15th Court of Appeals declined to stop the funding, and a subsequent request to the Texas Supreme Court was filed but not ruled on before the case was dismissed. “The Court no longer has subject-matter jurisdiction over the dispute,” a spokesperson for the county’s civil division said in a statement following the motion to dismiss. “There is no longer a live controversy between the parties.”

Read this article at San Antonio Report - Subscribers Only

How the Prairieland 'Antifa' verdict threatens the anti-Trump resistance

Late last week, federal prosecutors notched a victory in an unprecedented and controversial trial that sought to tie alleged members of “Antifa,” a decentralized anti-fascist movement, to domestic terrorism. A Tarrant County jury returned a mixed verdict for nine defendants, who were accused of a variety of crimes stemming from a July 4 “noise demonstration” outside the Prairieland immigrant detention center in Alvarado and the nonfatal shooting there of a police officer. Prosecutors argued the defendants constituted a “North Texas Antifa cell” that shared anti-Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and anti-government beliefs—and that all nine played a role in the shooting that occurred, despite several government witnesses, who took plea deals, testifying at trial that they were surprised when the protest turned violent and that they and the other defendants did not belong to the purported Antifa group. The defendants said the protest, which involved setting off fireworks and acts of vandalism, was intended to show solidarity with migrants in detention at Prairieland.

Benjamin Song, Savanna Batten, Zachary Evetts, Meagan Morris, Maricela Rueda, Autumn Hill, Elizabeth Soto, and Ines Soto were convicted on felony charges of providing material support to terrorists, rioting, conspiracy to use and carry an explosive, and use and carry of an explosive (the aforementioned fireworks). Daniel Sanchez Estrada was convicted of corruptly concealing a document or record, and along with his wife, Rueda, was also convicted of conspiracy to conceal documents. Song, the alleged shooter, was also convicted on one count of attempted murder and other gun charges, while Hill, Evetts, Morris and Rueda were acquitted of the attempted murder and discharging a firearm charges. “I think this is the worst-case-scenario verdict,” said Luis, a member of the DFW Support Committee, a group working to support the Prairieland defendants, who requested that the Texas Observer use only his first name for fear of reprisal. Even had the shooting never occurred, Luis said, the verdict suggests the jury would have convicted the defendants anyway for actions that are common to many protests. The case represents the federal government’s first use of material support for terrorism charges against alleged Antifa members. Experts say the outcome will give the Trump administration the green light to take a more aggressive stance against left-wing activity and further politicize the use of domestic terrorism laws.

Read this article at Texas Observer - Subscribers Only

Annise Parker denies backing City Council candidate who used her image in mailer

Former Mayor Annise Parker clarified Thursday that she has not made an endorsement in the ongoing District C Houston City Council race after candidate Nick Hellyar’s campaign sent out a mailer with her picture on it. Parker wrote on X Thursday afternoon that she had received calls about a Hellyar campaign text message and a mailer that she “did not authorize” and of which she “had no advance notice.” The mailer in question shows seven photos of current or former elected officials and community leaders who have endorsed Hellyar on one side, with their names listed. On the other side is a photo of Hellyar and Parker standing side by side, without Parker’s name listed.

Beside the photo is a block of text that reads, “We need a fighter on City Council! As a member of the community, Nick Hellyar has fought for LGBTQ+ rights his whole life. District C, home of Houston’s largest LGBTQ+ community, has never been represented on City Council by one of their own.” Parker’s post said the mailer and text included a quote of hers from a previous Hellyar campaign, but none of the statements on the mailer are attributed to an individual. Asked to clarify, Parker said she had “nothing else to say about the issue.” Hellyar said he has made clear on the campaign trail that Parker is not endorsing him whenever the topic comes up, and denied using a Parker quote in his campaign materials. “She is the head LGBT leader in the region and having a picture with someone that leads a movement is very common,” Hellyar wrote in a text. Early voting in the April 4 special election is underway and runs through March 31 in Montrose, Meyerland, the Heights, Oak Forest and other neighborhoods. Outgoing District C council member Abbie Kamin resigned to run for Harris County Attorney. Parker, too, is seeking county office. She will compete in next month’s Democratic runoff for County Judge.

Read this article at Houston Chronicle - Subscribers Only

Budget cuts at SAISD could cut food drives, slow maintenance and freeze police hires

Planning for a budget reduction for the fifth year in a row, top leaders at San Antonio Independent School District laid out their proposals for budget cuts this week. Overall, district leaders identified $19.3 million in budget reductions, including 224 positions, most of which are already vacant positions, though roughly a quarter of the positions are filled and those could be subject to layoffs. While the proposals could reduce SAISD’s budget deficit — about $45.9 million — by half, it would mean the loss of programs, slower response times for customer service calls and maintenance requests and even larger student-teacher ratios. “This is not a new challenge,” said Superintendent Jaime Aquino, who’s set to retire in January of next year. Within the past four years, SAISD has reduced its budget by $46 million; this included the elimination of 352 positions.

The budget cuts proposed on Monday would go into effect for the 2026-27 school year. While looking for ways to cut the budget, Aquino said the district focused on eliminating positions not directly tied to student outcomes, trying to minimized disruptiveness, reducing contracted services and redirecting resources to the district’s academically struggling schools. Every SAISD department head identified potential cuts for the next school year. SAISD’s Police Department could have one the largest percentage in budget reductions by about 17.4%, cutting its current $6.1 million budget by about $1.07 million. The department would eliminate 15 vacant positions that were budgeted for a couple of years ago but were never filled. SAISD Police Chief Johnny Reyes said the cuts would “streamline command structure, allowing for a more robust focus on community-based policing and incident prevention.” Cutting positions in other departments, vacant or filled, would also mean longer wait times for technology repairs, IT service tickets and maintenance requests. District leaders also proposed a slimmed down custodial department, potentially cutting 58 — 35 filled and 23 vacant— district-wide custodial positions and two campus-based custodians. Doing so would move the district’s cleanliness standards to the minimum required for most schools.

Read this article at San Antonio Report - Subscribers Only

Houston suburb makes bold bet to become Texas' next Silicon Valley

Sugar Land isn't just building more homes—it's now trying to build the companies that fill them. The city recently launched the "Sugar Land Starts Innovation Fund," a new incentive program aimed at attracting startups as part of a broader push to turn the fast-growing suburb into more than just a place where people live. The fund offers performance-based incentives to companies that commit to bringing jobs and long-term investment to Sugar Land, targeting industries like life sciences, technology and advanced manufacturing, according to the city's announcement. "By focusing on revenue-generating startups and performance-based incentives, we are creating a clear pathway for innovative companies to scale while reenergizing existing office space," Colby Millenbruch, Sugar Land's business recruitment manager, said in a statement.

To qualify, startups must already be generating revenue or have significant financial backing. Their average salaries also must be at least $61,000, and the company must agree to relocate employees to Sugar Land for at least three years. The move reflects a broader shift taking shape across the Houston region. Suburbs like Sugar Land aren't just growing residentially—they're trying to become job centers in their own right. For years, Sugar Land has been known as one of the Houston area's more affluent suburbs, built around master-planned communities and corporate campuses. Now, city leaders are trying to expand that model by attracting companies that allow residents to live and work in the same place. That push comes as the Greater Houston Area continues to expand. As Chron previously reported, suburban areas like Sugar Land, Katy and Cypress have seen steady development as buyers search for more space, even amid affordability pressures.

Read this article at Chron - Subscribers Only

Stars officially clinch fifth straight trip to Stanley Cup playoffs

For the fifth consecutive season, the Dallas Stars are heading to the Stanley Cup playoffs. Dallas officially clinched its spot on Sunday night with the Utah Mammoth beating the Los Angeles Kings in overtime. The Stars are the second team in the NHL to land a playoff spot, joining their Central Division rival Colorado Avalanche. Dallas had a chance to seal their berth with a point earlier on Sunday against the Vegas Golden Knights but lost 3-2 in regulation, necessitating some help from Utah to clinch.

Sealing their playoff spot is the latest accomplishment for a Stars team that has been among the best teams in the entire NHL all season. In their first season under Glen Gulutzan, the Stars have maintained the level of regular season success they had under Pete DeBoer. The only playoff mystery left for the Stars to solve over the final few weeks of the regular season is their seeding. If Dallas fails to catch Colorado in the Central Division standings, it likely will face Minnesota in the first round of the playoffs. Tracking down the Avalanche in the standings could give Dallas home ice advantage throughout the playoffs, given the fact Dallas and Colorado currently have the two best point totals in the sport. The Stars, who have 97 points with 12 games remaining, will also have a chance over the final weeks of the regular season to set a new franchise points record. That record is owned by the same team that won the franchise’s only Stanley Cup, as the 1998-99 Stars went 51-19-12 with 114 points.

Read this article at Dallas Morning News - Subscribers Only

Will The Woodlands get free underground tunnels? We'll find out Monday

Will The Woodlands get an unground tunnel, courtesy of Elon Musk’s company? We should find out Monday. That’s when a winner will be announced in the “Tunnel Vision Challenge” -- a competition for underground transportation funded by Musk’s The Boring Company. The Woodlands is one of 16 finalists to get the tunnels free of charge. That's out of 487 entries. The winner will be announced from this list of finalists, which was released March 3. The list includes five Texas projects.

The Woodlands’ proposal -- backed by the township’s board -- calls for two parallel 12-foot-diameter tunnels connecting major destinations using electric vehicles. Proposed stops include Waterway Square, The Woodlands Waterway Marriott Hotel & Convention Center, Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion and Town Green Park, with potential expansion to Hughes Landing. Officials say the goal is to provide a zero-emission transportation option to improve mobility during peak periods and major events. If selected, The Boring Company would pay for tunnel construction, with additional infrastructure costs to be negotiated. Final details -- including tunnel depth and scope -- would come later. So, how deep would these tunnels be? Chris Nunes, chief operating officer for The Woodlands Township, said that'll be determined if The Woodlands’ proposal is selected. Next steps then would be the team going back to the board with proposed agreements, a permitting strategy, scope of the project, and any funding needed.

Read this article at KHOU - Subscribers Only

A Texas reckoning over César Chávez's legacy after abuse allegations

In Texas, César Chávez has long been remembered as a towering figure in the fight for farmworker rights, a labor leader whose organizing helped reshape working conditions for some of the country's most vulnerable workers, including thousands in the Lone Star State. Now, that legacy is being fundamentally reexamined. The shift follows reporting by The New York Times that outlined years of alleged sexual harassment and abuse tied to Chávez, including claims that he engaged in sexual misconduct with women and girls connected to the farmworker movement during the 1960s and 70s. That reckoning is already having broad effects across Texas — and the response has been swift.

On Wednesday afternoon, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said he directed state agency heads to stop observing César Chávez Day and plans to work with lawmakers to remove the March 31 holiday from state law during the next legislative session. In a social media post, Abbott also said the allegations "dismantle the myth" of Chávez as a figure worthy of official state recognition. This came just hours after organizers in cities including Houston, San Antonio and Austin called off long-running César Chávez Day marches and events, many of which have drawn thousands of attendees in past years. In South Texas, leaders with La Unión del Pueblo Entero, or LUPE, said they wouldn't participate in any Chávez-related events this year, calling the allegations "shocking and disturbing." In a statement, the organization, which represents more than 8,000 farmworkers in the Rio Grande Valley, called the allegations "indefensible" and said LUPE is working with other groups to create a confidential, independent process for people who say they were harmed to come forward and potentially seek accountability or reparations.

Read this article at Texas Newsroom - Subscribers Only

National Stories

Why Iran does not appear ready to give in, despite heavy losses

As the war in Iran enters its fourth week, with U.S. operations increasingly focused on global energy flows, Tehran is rebuffing efforts to identify a diplomatic off-ramp from the war launched by the United States and Israel, according to officials in the region. Instead, Tehran is escalating attacks on its neighbors, betting it can ratchet up global economic pain faster than the Trump administration can relieve it with military force, according to an Iranian diplomat, two European diplomats stationed in the region and a senior Arab official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media on sensitive details. Iran’s unwillingness to capitulate is wrapped up in the power it exerts over the Strait of Hormuz, through which roughly one-fifth of the world’s fuel shipments transit, that Tehran has largely closed, roiling energy markets. President Donald Trump gave Iran a 48-hour deadline on Saturday to reopen the critical waterway, threatening to “obliterate” the country’s power plants if Tehran doesn’t comply.

By partially closing the strait, Iran is seeking to “make this aggression super expensive for the aggressors,” according to the Iranian diplomat. “We are alone against the biggest military superpower of the history,” he said. Iran’s leaders see their ability to control the strait and withstand the U.S. and Israeli onslaught as a short-term victory, the Arab official and European diplomats said. But as the war expands, with Iran’s critical infrastructure increasingly threatened, the country’s leadership is also deeply concerned about their ability to recover in the long term, they said. “As long as the regime is there, they can create terror in the region, they terrorize international markets with the oil and gas prices. Yes, that’s what winning is for them,” said one of the European diplomats, who is based in the Persian Gulf. “They don’t feel any pressure to negotiate.” So far, the conflict’s economic fallout for the United States and its European allies has been “moderate,” by the diplomat’s assessment, not reaching the dire level that would increase pressure for talks on the U.S. side. However, rising energy prices are causing concern in Washington.

Read this article at Washington Post - Subscribers Only

Covid gave us hybrid work. The Iran War might give us a four-day week—and this time, experts say it could stick

COVID-19 gave us hybrid work. The Iran War might give us a three-day weekend. That’s because, as Sri Lanka, the Philippines, and Pakistan move to a 4-day work week because of the war in Iran, experts say we’re the closest we’ve ever been to a permanent shorter workweek. It started in Asia, but now major governments around the world are once again mandating that workers stay home to save on fuel and survive an energy crisis as the war in the Middle East threatens vital oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz. What began as an emergency measure in the developing world is now spreading globally. Sound familiar? We’ve been here before: The last time the world was forced to shift en masse—the pandemic—the changes we thought would be temporary became permanent. Hybrid work didn’t die when offices reopened. Instead, it reshaped how we work.

Now, with governments reaching for the same lever again, experts say something similar could happen with a four-day workweek. But it’ll come with major consequences for those who can’t take their jobs home, like drivers, baristas, window cleaners, pet sitters, and more. Although Brits and Australians are being urged to work from home, Dr. Wladislaw Rivkin, Professor in Organisational Behaviour at Trinity Business School, told Fortune that a global three-day weekend currently looks unlikely—at least not at the click of the government’s fingers. That’s because a permanent restructuring of how work is organized is a far heavier lift than an overnight shift to working from a makeshift home office. “I do not see this as a model for the U.S. and U.K., at least in the long term, because the current sharp rise in fuel costs is temporary,” Rivkin says. Professor Roberta Aguzzoli at Durham University Business School says she wouldn’t rule out the West moving to shorter workweeks to save fuel, but she argues better infrastructure should minimise that need.

Read this article at Yahoo! - Subscribers Only

Iran threatens to 'completely' close Strait of Hormuz and hit power plants after Trump ultimatum

The United States and Iran threatened to target critical infrastructure Sunday as the war in the Middle East, now in its fourth week, puts lives and livelihoods at risk throughout the region. Iran said the Strait of Hormuz, crucial to oil and other exports, would be “completely closed” immediately if the U.S. follows up on President Donald Trump’s threat to attack its power plants. Trump late Saturday set a 48-hour deadline to open the strait. Israeli leaders visited one of two southern communities near a secretive nuclear research site struck by Iranian missiles late Saturday, with scores of people wounded. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said it was a “miracle” no one was killed. Netanyahu claimed Israel and the U.S. were well on their way to achieving their war goals. The aims have ranged from weakening Iran’s nuclear program, missile program and support for armed proxies to enabling the Iranian people to overthrow the theocracy.

There has been no sign of an uprising, nor of an end to the fighting that has shaken the global economy, sent oil prices surging and endangered some of the world’s busiest air corridors. The war, which the U.S. and Israel launched Feb. 28, has killed over 2,000 people. The Iranian-backed Hezbollah claimed responsibility for an airstrike that killed a man in northern Israel, while Lebanese President Joseph Aoun called Israel’s new targeting of bridges in the south “a prelude to a ground invasion.” “More weeks of fighting against Iran and Hezbollah are expected for us,” said Israeli military spokesperson Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin. Meanwhile, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates said early Monday their air defenses were dealing with missile and drone attacks as air raid sirens sounded in Bahrain. Iran has effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz that connects the Persian Gulf to the rest of the world, while claiming safe passage for vessels from countries other than its enemies. Roughly one-fifth of global oil supply passes through it, but attacks on ships have stopped nearly all tanker traffic.

Read this article at Associated Press - Subscribers Only

When voters worry about ‘affordability,’ many point to health care

Tom Perriello, a Virginia Democrat who was swept from the House in 2010, in large part because of his vote for the Affordable Care Act, is trying for a comeback this year — but far from running away from that vote more than a dozen years ago, he’s embracing it. “What’s aged politically even better than my support for the A.C.A.,” Mr. Perriello said, “was the fact that I was pushing right to the end for it to be stronger.” “When I got kicked out of office,” he added, “I kept fighting for things like Medicaid expansion in Virginia.” A Democrat embracing this issue might not seem like a novel concept; the party has been more trusted on health care for a while now, though the public hasn’t often seen it as a top issue. But in 2026, Democrats like Mr. Perriello have a new script on health care that could prove more potent. It’s affordability, not access. And polls show that when voters say that affordability is their biggest concern, for many, they’re talking about health care.

“Health care costs are out of control,” said Shawn Spencer, 48, of Greene County, Va. “I don’t have insurance, so I’m paying a boatload when I need care.” Such concerns are particularly acute for working-class white voters, such as Ms. Spencer, whom Republicans will need to win in November. The costs of health care and housing ranked nearly even as top affordability concerns for the group, in a recent New York Times/Siena University poll. Ms. Spencer voted for President Trump and considered herself more of a Republican, she said, but feels as if party leaders have not shown that they care about health care costs. “At this point I would vote for the party that can help me afford to stay healthy,” she added. In 2009, the nascent Tea Party movement urged voters to “pack the halls” as members of Congress returned home for summer recesses, and they did. Angry constituents mobbed town-hall meetings shouting, “Kill the bill!” One analysis of the Republicans’ 2010 landslide calculated that “yes” votes on the Affordable Care Act in swing districts like Mr. Perriello’s cost Democrats 25 seats, which would have been enough to hold the House. But the act cut the uninsured rate nearly in half by 2023, to 7.9 percent of Americans down from 14.4 percent in 2010, largely through an expansion of Medicaid.

Read this article at New York Times - Subscribers Only

Doubts from key Republicans on surgeon general test MAHA’s political power

The nascent Make America Healthy Again movement got one of its biggest wins last spring: Casey Means was selected to be the nation’s top doctor. But more than 10 months later, the controversial surgeon general pick has yet to assume the position advising Americans on how to improve their health. Her nomination has stalled as some Republicans question her stance on vaccines, her medical credentials and her pushes against the medical establishment. Means probably cannot afford to lose the support of a single Republican on the Senate Health committee, which has yet to schedule a vote to advance her nomination to the full Senate. The panel’s chairman, Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-Louisiana), repeatedly pressed Means on her views on immunizations during a late February hearing — questions she largely dodged — and Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) afterward publicly said they still have questions.

Murkowski earlier this month told reporters she still has “strong reservations” about Means’s nomination. On Friday, Murkowski said she didn’t “have anything new.” The stagnation sets up a test of the political power of the MAHA movement and its champion, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Means wrote the book widely considered the bible of the MAHA movement, “Good Energy” with her brother, Calley Means, a top White House adviser on health issues. While she honed her message on the importance of healthy food — talking points that Kennedy has tried to amp up as the midterms approach — she is getting tangled in his prior controversial stances on vaccines and other aspects of the MAHA movement, which has tried to galvanize supporters to call on reticent senators. If her nomination makes it out of committee, she can only afford to lose the support of three Republicans on the floor with every Democratic senator likely to oppose her and all senators voting. Sen. Thom Tillis (R-North Carolina), who is not seeking reelection this year, told The Washington Post that he was leaning toward voting against her.

Read this article at Politico - Subscribers Only

Pilot and copilot killed in collision between jet and fire truck at New York's LaGuardia Airport

Two people were killed and several others badly hurt when an Air Canada regional jet struck a fire truck on a runway while landing at New York’s LaGuardia Airport, officials said. The pilot and copilot were killed in the late Sunday night collision, which crushed the nose of the aircraft, while around 40 passengers and crew members were taken to area hospitals, some with serious injuries. Most have since been released from treatment, authorities said Monday. Two Port Authority employees who were traveling in the fire truck also suffered injuries that were not believed to be life-threatening, said Kathryn Garcia, executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which operates the airport.

The pilot and copilot were both based out of Canada, Garcia said during a news conference. The airport will remain closed until at least 2 p.m. Monday to facilitate the investigation, which is being led by the National Transportation Safety Board. The fire truck was traveling across the runway to respond to a separate incident aboard a United Airlines flight, whose pilot had reported “an issue with odor,” said Garcia, who deferred additional questions about the sequence of events leading up to the crash to the NTSB. There were 72 passengers and four crew members aboard the aircraft, a Jazz Aviation flight operating on behalf of Air Canada, according to a statement from the airline. The flight originated at Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport, the major airport serving Montreal. Photos and videos from the scene showed severe damage to the front of the aircraft, with cables and debris hanging from a mangled cockpit. Nearby, a damaged emergency vehicle lay on its side. Stairways used to evacuate passengers from the aircraft were pushed up to the emergency exits on the jet, a Bombardier CRJ. The impact left the jet with its crumpled nose tilted upward.

Read this article at Associated Press - Subscribers Only

Lead Stories

The new weapons of global power are oil, rare earths and microchips

Iran’s move to choke off the Strait of Hormuz and turn crude oil into a weapon of war marks a new phase in the 21st-century competition for global power—one that will be defined by the control of critical raw materials and energy. In the face of a withering campaign of airstrikes by the U.S. and Israel, Tehran has launched an asymmetric counterattack, using energy supplies as a cudgel on a scale unseen in decades. Iran has effectively paralyzed the Strait of Hormuz, a passageway where a fifth of global oil supplies usually transits. On Wednesday, it struck Qatar’s Ras Laffan, the site of the world’s largest liquefied natural gas plant, in retaliation for a strike on an Iranian gas field. The war has unleashed havoc in global markets, pushing up oil prices by around 50% since the start of the conflict. European natural gas prices have roughly doubled. The strike on Ras Laffan led President Trump to call for a de-escalation.

It is a stunning reminder of the centrality of energy to the global economy, and further evidence that the roots of military and economic power are shifting from software and information back to hard, physical resources—from oil to rare-earth metals and industrial capacity. The risk for nations that don’t have them span from soaring inflation and economic downturns to hampering the build-out of artificial intelligence and the militaries of the future. Last year, China used its control of roughly 90% of the world’s supplies of rare-earth magnets to checkmate the U.S. in trade negotiations. By cutting off access to metals used in cars, weapons and electronics, Beijing forced U.S. factories to idle and Washington to soften its demands. “Great-power competition has returned to basics: who controls the physical resources that modern economies and militaries run on,” said Alice Gower, a partner at Azure Strategy, a political-risk advisory firm in London. “Energy, critical minerals and industrial capacity are leverage, not just economic assets.” For decades, Western consensus held that geography was fading as destiny. In this view, the winners of the 21st century would be defined less by control of territory and raw materials than by command of capital, technology and global networks. Yet the recent weaponization of supply chains has offered a stark reminder that rather than erasing physical geography, the era of hyperconnectivity has turned it into a possibly more potent weapon.

Read this article at Wall Street Journal - Subscribers Only

As Big Bend area border walls move forward, local landowners gear up for a fight

As the Trump administration's plans for border walls in the rugged Big Bend region of West Texas advance, landowners in the path are struggling to understand how the plan could impact their homes and livelihoods. Amid a lack of details from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), advocates are rushing to help landowners with legal aid in sparsely-populated rural areas along the Rio Grande, where local residents have started receiving government letters threatening the seizure of land for the project. David Keller, with the newly formed advocacy group No Big Bend Wall, led a landowner meeting earlier this month in Redford, a small community outside of Presidio on the Texas-Mexico border.

Border wall plans have never progressed this far here before. In recent weeks, locals opposing the wall have rushed to form a landowner coalition, coordinate legal access and educate landowners on their rights. Keller, who lives in Redford, said letters seeking landowner authorization for border wall construction are stoking fear and anger. "?Most of them don't have attorneys on file," he said. "Most of them…English is not their first language, and this is written in coercive language." He's been urging his neighbors not to sign anything and to lawyer up. "We're all in this fight together and we gotta have each other's backs, man," Keller said at the recent landowner meeting. "And if you know people that you feel are gonna sign, you know, talk to 'em and try to get 'em not to." Local farmer Esteban Mesa has a property in Redford that backs up to the Rio Grande. Mesa and other farmers pump water directly from the river to their fields. He said a border wall would cut off access to his pump, making it impossible to irrigate. "?I know that they're not gonna – with the way this valley is – they're not going to be putting a gate at every property owner's property," Mesa said.

Read this article at Marfa Public Radio - Subscribers Only

US and Iran trade threats of expanding war after strikes near sites tied to nuclear programs

Iran and its ally, the Lebanese militant Hezbollah group, stepped up pressure on Israel on Sunday, with intense attacks on the country’s north and south after the United States and Iran threatened to widen their targets in the war in the Middle East, now in its fourth week. As Israel came under renewed fire, top Israeli leaders traveled to the Negev Desert, home to the country’s main nuclear research center and the site where Iran’s barrages struck two towns on Saturday, shattering apartment buildings and injuring scores of people in Arad and Dimona. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu toured Arad and said it was a “miracle” no one was killed there. He claimed Israel and the U.S. were well on their way to achieving the war’s goals and implored the international community for support.

Earlier, President Donald Trump warned the United States will destroy Iran’s power plants if Tehran fails to fully open the Strait of Hormuz in 48 hours. Iran’s parliament speaker said if the U.S. follows through on its threat, Tehran would retaliate against American and Israeli energy and wider infrastructure in the region. The developments signaled the Iran war, which the U.S. and Israel launched on Feb. 28, was moving in a dangerous new direction, despite Trump’s mention last week he was considering “winding down” operations. The war that has killed hundreds of people, rattled the global economy and sent oil prices surging. Hezbollah claimed responsibility for an airstrike Sunday that killed a man in northern Israel while Gulf Arab states — including Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates — said they were working to intercept new Iranian strikes. Iran has practically closed the Strait of Hormuz, a critical chokepoint connecting the Persian Gulf to the rest of the world through which roughly one-fifth of the world’s supply passes. Attacks on commercial ships and threats of further strikes have stopped nearly all tankers from navigating the strait, compelling some of the world’s largest oil producers to make cuts because their crude has nowhere to go.

Read this article at Associated Press - Subscribers Only

Corpus Christi’s water shortage threatens billions in investment, city leaders say

Corpus Christi’s water crisis is no longer just about drought restrictions or conservation, city leaders have said it is now threatening the region’s economic future and is costing the Coastal Bend billions of dollars in lost investment. Major companies that once showed interest in building in Corpus Christi are now putting projects on hold or walking away because the city cannot guarantee a long term water supply. City officials said the economic impact is enormous. Corpus Christi City Councilman Roland Barrera said the city has already missed out on massive projects tied to industries that require large volumes of water. “I have heard numbers as high as $20 billion,” Barrera said.

Many of the successful projects secured by the Corpus Christi Regional Economic Development Corporation were landed before 2020 when the city still had excess water capacity to offer new industry. That advantage has largely disappeared said the councilman. Barrera said one example involved interest from Google, which explored building operations in the region but required about three million gallons of water per day. “That’s the type of project we’re talking about,” said Barrera. To try to boost supply, the city has drilled new wells along the Nueces River. Even with those wells, officials said it may not be enough to meet long term demand. Some projections show local reservoirs could approach critically low levels as soon as next year if drought conditions continue. City leaders are also pushing forward with plans to build a seawater desalination plant, which could provide a more reliable water source in the future. However, until a long term supply is guaranteed, companies remain cautious about making large investments in the area.

Read this article at KIIITV - Subscribers Only

Robert Mueller, former FBI director and special counsel in Trump-Russia probe, dies

Robert Mueller, the former FBI director who led the historic probe into alleged collusion between Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign and the Russian government, has died. He was 81. “With deep sadness, we are sharing the news that Bob passed away last night,” his family said in a statement Saturday. “His family asks that their privacy be respected.” His family announced last August that he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2021. For years, Mueller was highly trusted on both sides of the aisle: When he was selected as FBI director by President George W. Bush just days before September 11, 2001, he was unanimously approved, and earned full support again when he was asked to stay past his 10-year tenure by President Barack Obama. He served in the role for 12 years, becoming the longest-serving FBI director since J. Edgar Hoover.

His reputation for integrity was a key factor in his selection to handle the politically sensitive investigation into Trump. But by the time the investigation concluded in the middle of Trump’s first presidency, views of Mueller, as was the case with so much else in the American political landscape, were largely divided along party lines. Ultimately, the investigation into Trump produced mixed results. Investigators uncovered dozens of secret and often high-level contacts between the Trump campaign and the Russian government, despite both sides denying there were any. The probe also highlighted how Trump eagerly capitalized on the Kremlin’s election-meddling and that his campaign “expected it would benefit electorally from information stolen and released through Russian efforts.” However, Mueller did not establish that the Trump campaign conspired with Russia. He also made the controversial decision not to charge Trump with obstruction even though he had the evidence he needed, saying he was prohibited from even considering it because Trump was the sitting president at the time.

Read this article at CNN - Subscribers Only

State Stories

Texas school district bans books by US presidents

Aschool district in Texas has banned approximately 1,500 books from its libraries, including titles by former U.S. presidents Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, and George W. Bush, the literary nonprofit group PEN America reports. The book removals took place in New Braunfels, a fast-growing city of about 100,000 people located 30 miles northeast of San Antonio. The city’s school district has banned or restricted hundreds of titles, including Obama’s A Promised Land, Clinton’s My Life, and Bush’s 41: A Portrait of My Father. Other memoirs or biographies banned by the district include former first lady Michelle Obama’s Becoming and The Light We Carry; Malala Yousafzai’s I Am Malala; Ron Chernow’s Alexander Hamilton; Matthew Perry’s Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing; Britney Spears’ The Woman in Me; Cicely Tyson’s Just as I Am; and U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar’s This Is What America Looks Like: My Journey.

The bans also targeted novels including Barbara Kingsolver’s Demon Copperhead, Colson Whitehead’s The Underground Railroad, Ann Patchett’s Bel Canto, and Tommy Orange’s There There. The books were banned in accordance with the Senate Bill 13, which requires school libraries to remove titles deemed “indecent” or “profane.” Laney Hawes, a co-founder of the Texas Freedom to Read Project, said in a statement, “The latest slate of book bans from SB13 confirms what many Texas parents have been saying for years: The culture wars are ruining our kids’ education. Texas has produced world class authors, scientists, leaders; it’s as though our state legislators want to put that in jeopardy.”

Read this article at Kirkus Reviews - Subscribers Only

John Moritz: Texas GOP base is aging fast — and still calling the shots

Old people rule! That could be the slogan of both political parties in Texas, based on an Austin political researcher's deep dive into the data on which voters powered the record-breaking turnout in the March 3 primaries. But the slogan would be a lot more true, and potentially a lot more worrisome, for one of the two major parties. The numbers crunched by Derek Ryan, founder of Ryan Data and Research, show that nearly 55% of the ballots cast early and on the same day in the recent Democratic primary came from voters 50 and older. By contrast, voters 30 and under accounted for just 14% of the turnout in a primary that nominated 36-year-old James Talarico, who would become the youngest U.S. senator if he wins in November.

But the age gap is even more yawning on the Republican side, according to Ryan's analysis, which uses data from the Texas Secretary of State's Office, the Texas Legislative Council and other sources. Voters 50 and older made up 78% of GOP primary turnout, and those over 70 accounted for one-third of the total. That means just 22% of the Republican vote came from people 49 and younger. And if you just look at the under-30 subset, it comprised just 4% of the party's total vote. That would appear to be a shaky foundation for building a Texas Republican Party of the future. Republican turnout was also anchored by voters who show up for the primary cycle after cycle. More than three of every four GOP voters had never wandered over to the Democratic side during the nominating process. A tiny sliver of the turnout — around 3% —had at least some history of going back and forth from primary to primary, but the large majority of that group has tended to side more often with Republicans than with Democrats.

Read this article at Austin American-Statesman - Subscribers Only

How these Texas influencers are trying to turn viral fame into votes

At the Williamson County Republican Party’s annual fundraising gala in January, congressional candidate Valentina Gomez approached U.S. Rep. John Carter, shook his hand and thanked him for his service. A video Gomez posted on X shows her accusing the congressman she was challenging in the GOP primary of allowing Texas to become “like Minnesota.” She demanded to know why 200 mosques had been built during his 22 years in office. After Round Rock police told her to leave, Gomez claimed she was “almost arrested” for asking questions. (Party officials said her brother, who manages her campaign, shoved a member of Carter’s security detail.) For most candidates, being ejected from a party gala — and subsequently banned from future county GOP events — would be a disaster.

For Gomez, a far-right influencer with a massive online following, it was the intent: a made-for-social-media confrontation that generated attention and algorithmic reach. The video was viewed more than 180,000 times on the social media platform X, where Gomez has hundreds of thousands of followers. Gomez lost to Carter in the primary, drawing just 10% of the vote. But Gomez still raked in ad revenue from her posts on X, where she has earned tens of thousands of dollars. In federal disclosures, she listed “triggering liberals on X” as her only source of income aside from rental revenue on a home she owns in St. Louis. Gomez says her approach represents the future of politics. “I get attacked because I have the largest platform in American politics and I don’t rely on fake news media like yours to get my message in front of voters,” she said in an email to Hearst Newspapers. “I changed the game of politics by speaking the truth, saving children, and catching pedophiles.” She is part of a wave of influencers who have gone from using their platforms to push those already in office to running for office themselves. They include Republican congressional nominee Brandon Herrera, a YouTuber with 4.2 million followers, and Austin City Council candidate Farrah Abraham, the former “Teen Mom” star who went viral after learning in a live TMZ interview that she was ineligible to run for mayor until 2028.

Read this article at San Antonio Express-News - Subscribers Only

Texas Democratic Senate nominee James Talarico courts Jasmine Crockett voters in Dallas

Texas Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate James Talarico made an appeal to voters of Rep. Jasmine Crockett at a Dallas County Democratic Party convention in Southern Dallas. Talarico’s speech comes as Democrats try to build up their coalition after a fierce Texas Senate primary election that was the most expensive primary in American history and drove record turnout. “I did not generate this historic turnout on my own. I did it with my friend and your champion, Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett,” Talarico told the crowd at the Inspiring Body of Christ Church. “To the congresswoman's supporters: I know I wasn't your first choice, but I hope to earn your trust and earn your support.” His comments came after Eve Williams, a local business owner, told attendees to vote for Talarico if they voted for Crockett in the primary.

“Some stood with Jasmine, others stood with Talarico, and that's exactly how democracy is supposed to work,” Williams said. “Primaries are where we compete, but November is where we decide. And if you don't make that shift from competition to coalition, we lose more than an election. We lose momentum. We lose representation.” The convention was the first ever countywide Dallas County Democratic Party inaugural convention follows massive statewide Democratic turnout. A March 19 internal poll for Talarico’s campaign shows him narrowly beating either of his potential Republican candidates, Sen. John Cornyn and Attorney General Ken Paxton, who will face off in a May 26 runoff election. Dallas County's Republican Party does not have plans to host a similar local convention, but encourages its members to participate in local events and the Texas GOP Convention in Houston June 11-13.

Read this article at KERA - Subscribers Only

Ami Mizell-Flint: Lawmakers must put children, parents before Big Tech

(Ami Mizell-Flint is an affiliate leader with the National Alliance of Mental Illness in San Angelo.) More than 4 million U.S. children suffer from a serious mental disorder. Given the prevalence of those disorders, we need fundamental changes to our systems to improve outcomes for our children. Most importantly, we must ensure parents are equipped with tools and resources to keep their children safe and healthy. One area where parents are lacking safeguards is the digital world. Children and teenagers are experiencing more negative encounters online than ever before. A 2024 Heat Initiative study discovered 200 apps in a 24-hour period with inappropriate content — ranging from dieting apps, violent, or sexual games, beauty filters and anonymous chat forums — that were rated suitable for children on the app store.

Even when the content isn't suitable for vulnerable age groups, the “age-appropriate” ratings tell parents otherwise. Legislative action is necessary to provide parents with proper guardrails over their children’s access to the digital world. The federal App Store Accountability Act, which recently advanced out of the House Energy & Commerce Committee, would do that. Now's the time for Texas’ congressional delegation to stand with Texas parents, fight for a safer online future for children and support the App Store Accountability Act. The act tackles online dangers at the source: app marketplaces that sell unsuitable content and bind minors to contracts without parental oversight. Today, every dangerous application is only a few taps away, making harmful content far too accessible to minors. This legislation places power back in parents’ hands. The act would require app stores to obtain verifiable parental consent before minors can download apps or make in-app purchases. It would also ensure app age ratings accurately reflect in-app experiences. The act also encourages meaningful conversations between parents and teens about the content they consume and the apps they use.

Read this article at Galveston County News - Subscribers Only

Texas had one of its warmest, driest winters ever — raising concerns about climate trends

Texas is emerging from a winter that stood out for its heat and lack of rain, ranking as the warmest and driest on record for several parts of the state. While the season included brief arctic outbreaks, it was dominated by temperatures that frequently climbed 10 degrees above normal. Statewide, this season was among the top two warmest ever recorded across the United States. According to the National Weather Service in Fort Worth, the winter of December 2025 through February 2026 was also the 11th driest and third warmest on record for the Dallas-Fort Worth area, with climate records dating back to 1898. While the season was defined by heat, it was also marked by intense volatility.

Dr. Yunyao Li, an assistant professor of earth and environmental sciences at UT Arlington, said the winter saw "sharper swings between mild conditions and extreme events." Temperatures were consistently above average in December and February, while January provided a brief, intense dip in overnight lows. Miles Langfeld, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Fort Worth, said a strong La Niña season was the primary atmospheric factor driving the heat. A La Niña occurs when sea surface temperatures in the tropical Pacific, off the coast of South America, are cooler. "Cooler-than-average sea surface temperatures in the eastern Pacific often shift the jet stream northward, allowing for more mild conditions over Texas," Langfeld said. Despite the general warmth, Langfeld said these patterns do not offer total immunity from the cold. Even during La Niña years, the state can see significant arctic outbreaks, such as the winter storm in January, or the historic February 2021 freeze.

Read this article at KERA - Subscribers Only

Honorary Texan Chuck Norris dies at 86

Martial arts star Chuck Norris, who fought his way to fame in such 1980s action movies as The Delta Force, Code of Silence, and a trilogy of Missing in Action films, has died. He was 86. In a fight, Norris tended to lead with his right…foot. He all but trademarked a roundhouse kick that villains never seemed to see coming. He'd plant a heel in someone's gut, spin once to knock him off balance with a boot to the chest, spin again to catch the guy's shoulder with his instep, maybe throw in a punch just to vary the rhythm, and finish him off with a high kick to the head. It was art, and widely imitated, but it did not kick off his career at first.

He was knocking around martial arts competitions and teaching celebrity clients in Hollywood, including Priscilla Presley, Bob Barker, and Donny and Marie Osmond, when his pal Bruce Lee gave him his break in films by inviting him to play one of many villains in 1972's The Way of the Dragon. The film fetishized Norris' hairy chest opposite Lee's smooth one, and he gave a little smirk when he flattened Lee with a roundhouse kick early on. But it was Lee's film, and by scene's end, Norris was toast. That could've been it, if one of Norris' celebrity students, Steve McQueen, hadn't suggested he take acting lessons. Norris did, and scored the leading role of a put-upon trucker in Breaker! Breaker!, an action flick shot in just 11 days. It made money, and in a string of indie hits that followed, Norris established himself as America's first homegrown martial arts movie star. At which point, Hollywood studios came calling with bigger budgets, and titles like Forced Vengeance, Silent Rage, Lone Wolf McQuade, and Invasion U.S.A. In that one, Norris played a mercenary combatting a Soviet-led terrorist army that lands in Florida at Christmastime, taunting foes with lines like, "If you come back in here, I'm gonna hit you with so many rights, you're gonna beg for a left."

Read this article at KERA - Subscribers Only

City of Austin says new $1.48 million website will make services easier to use

The city of Austin launched a new website that city leaders hope will make it easier for people to use. The updated site went live Thursday morning. City officials said users will be able to more easily access information, including links to pay utility bills and citations, adopt a pet and submit 3-1-1 requests. In total, the city has budgeted $2.52 million to the website overhaul, with $1.48 million for the initial redesign and another $1.04 million for refining updates or addressing issues that arise over the next two years. Yasmin Wagner with the city’s communication and engagement department said the city has known for a while that an update was needed, but it took time to get the funding and resources in place.

“The look and feel and functionality have become outdated, inconsistencies appear throughout the site, and it's weakening our brand recognition, usability of the site and user’s trust in the site as well,” Wagner said. The website's architects removed about 16,000 pages, taking the total number down to 1,300. By streamlining the content available and improving the search function, the city said users will be able to more easily find information about city news, council meetings and recycling and trash schedules that were previously hard to find. Updated ADA accessibility, translation features and city forms are also included on the new site. Wagner said visitors to the website will be able to provide feedback and inform updates. Roxanna Meneses, IT manager for Austin’s Technology Services Department, said the new website comes with data analytics to show staff what pages people visit and where issues might be occurring. City officials said Thursday's launch has gone smoothly, although staff are still working out kinks. This is the first major overhaul of the city’s website since 2012, but not the first step in refreshing the city's image. Last fall, the city unveiled a new $1 million logo and rebrand initiative that was met with community backlash from residents and city leaders who questioned the city's spending habits as it continues to struggle with budget constraints. Many residents were also critical of the logo.

Read this article at KUT - Subscribers Only

Inside the charter network that may take over San Antonio campuses

During a schoolboard meeting earlier this week, Hirsch Elementary School parentsconfronted San Antonio Independent School District leaders and trustees about the possibility of handing day-to-day operations at their children’s campus to a charter network with no campuses in town. “As a parent, you worry about whether your child will be understood, included, and supported in this classroom; the teachers at Hirsch didn’t just do the bare minimum. They went above and beyond,” Savannah Longoria, a mother of two Hirsch students, said. “They showed compassion, patience and understanding during a very difficult time for our family.” But to stave off a potential state takeover of the district and improve poor academic results that could trigger the elimination of local control, SAISD’s board could vote Monday for charter network Third Future Schools to run Hirsch and two other SAISD campuses starting next year.

In the past three years, Hirsch scored two Fs and a D on the state letter grade system. Third Future has a track record of quickly improving academic improvement — something that is especially important when repeat years of academic struggles can mean a campus closure or district takeover. But critics worry that a narrow focus on test scores and academic rigor will replace a more holistic approach to students' classroom time. “Our children are not experiments, and our school is not a project to hand over to an outside organization,” Longoria said. “My children are supported. They are learning, and they are happy, and I ask that you listen to the parents who trust in the teachers and staff already serving our children.” The San Antonio Independent School District and Edgewood ISD boards will vote next week on handing over control of four campuses to Colorado-based charter school operator Third Future. Both districts face an end-of-month deadline to pick a charter school provider if they want to forge such an agreement and buy their struggling schools more time before facing state consequences.

Read this article at San Antonio Express-News - Subscribers Only

East Texas vape shop sues DSHS to block new hemp rules scheduled to take effect March 31

An East Texas vape shop is suing the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS), challenging new rules for hemp retailers that are set to take effect on March 31. That lawsuit echoes what many local hemp retailers have felt in recent weeks: that these new rules and fees could devastate the Texas hemp industry. This stems from new regulations DSHS adopted earlier this month that revise testing and packaging requirements, amend record-keeping standards and tack on much heavier licensing fees.

DSHS implemented these new rules and fees in response to an executive order from Gov. Greg Abbott last year. After bills to ban or regulate hemp products containing THC failed to become law, he directed state agencies to come up with new rules to regulate them to address concerns that some of those products are dangerous and marketed to children. So DSHS increased licensing fees to $10,000 per year for product manufacturers and $5,000 per year to retailers starting on March 31. The retailer that filed the lawsuit claims it'll make it harder for small businesses to stay open. In their lawsuit, the retailer "Boomtown Vapor" claims that the new rules contradict a state law passed in 2019 that allowed for hemp containing a low amount of THC to be grown in Texas. That law specifically mentioned testing for Delta 9 THC, and the retailers argue that DSHS's new rule about testing for Total THC defies that. The retailers also say the licensing fees will be double from what they were before and are arbitrary.

Read this article at KVUE - Subscribers Only

Gatesville City Manager says major fire originated at the Gatesville Messenger, ruled out criminal activity

Dozens of fire crews battled a major fire on the west side of the Square in downtown Gatesville on Monday night, according to the Gatesville Police Department. On Wednesday March, 18, 2026, the Gatesville City Manager Brad Hunt told KWTX the fire originated at the Gatesville Messenger on Monday night and that they have ruled out criminal activity as a cause. As of Tuesday evening, U.S. Highway 84 was reopened and traffic returned to normal. Three minor injuries have been reported in firefighters due to smoke inhalation, according to Gatesville City Manager Brad Hunt.

Hunt confirmed officials received the call at 6:50 p.m. on Monday. The Gatesville Volunteer Fire Department responded immediately and called for additional assistance after the fire broke out, Hunt said. “They’ve done an amazing job to keep people safe,” Hunt said. Gatesville Police Chief Jeff Clark said U.S. Route 84, also known as Main Street, would be closed through downtown and had been expected to remain closed overnight Monday and potentially into the following day due to the instability of buildings along the route. Clark said the road would reopen once the buildings are safe enough for traffic to pass through. Traffic was being diverted at Lutterloh on the east side and Levita Road on the west side, according to the Gatesville Police Department. Drivers and residents were urged to avoid the downtown area. Four businesses have allegedly been affected: Gatesville Messenger, Freedom Bail Bonds, Davidson Chiropractic and Leaird’s Furniture. The structures involved are believed to date to around 1900.

Read this article at KWTX - Subscribers Only

Texas A&M eliminated by Houston in the second round of March Madness

After defeating Saint Mary's in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, Texas A&M was eliminated by Houston in the round of 32, as the Cougars notched a dominant 88-57 win over the Aggies on Saturday night in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Texas A&M kept the game within reach through the first few minutes of the contest, but Houston's physicality was a major mismatch and proved too much for the Aggies to stop. The Cougars ended the first half of play on a 24-2 run for an 18-point lead. From that point forward, it was all Coogs. Emmanuel Sharp led the way for Houston with 18 points, followed by Chris Cenac Jr. with 17. Kelvin Sampson had four players record double-digit points, while shooting 44% from the field as a team in their win over the Aggies.

Meanwhile, Texas A&M guard Josh Holloway had a team-best 12 points, going 4-of-6 from the field and going a perfect 2-of-2 from the free-throw line. Houston's 19 offensive rebounds and 18 second-chance points led to the rout of Texas A&M at the Paycom Center, as the Cougars advance to the Sweet 16 to play the winner of Illinois-VCU. It was a season to remember for first-year head coach Bucky McMillan, who had just one scholarship player on the roster when he was named the new head coach for the Aggies in April of 2025. McMillan renovated and recruited to build a team full of transfers, committed to representing Texas A&M and running one of the most explosive styles of basketball in the country. After being picked to finish 13th in the SEC during the preseason, the Aggies performed outstandingly through conference play to finish tied for fourth in the league standings and earn the opportunity to compete in the NCAA Tournament.

Read this article at Aggies Wire - Subscribers Only

TCU’s Sweet dream is over as it falls to No. 1 Duke in NCAA tourney

TCU men’s basketball’s quest for the program’s first Sweet 16 trip came to end Saturday, as the No. 9-seeded Horned Frogs fell 81-58 to overall No. 1 seed Duke in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. “I’m certainly proud of our team, proud of how we handled some adversity today and still had the lead with 16 minutes left,” TCU coach Jamie Dixon said. “We certainly had a lot of adversity early on in the game and into the second half, but just proud of how they battled.” After trailing by four at halftime, TCU (23-12) started the second half hot, briefly taking a 40-38 lead thanks to a 6-0 run. The teams exchanged blows, and the game was tied at 44 with 13:56 remaining. But that’s when the game turned. Duke (34-2) went on a 24-6 run over the next seven minutes as fouls quickly began to stack up on the Horned Frogs.

TCU went over four minutes without scoring at one point. It didn’t help that third-team All-Big 12 forward Xavier Edmonds played just two minutes in the second half due to foul trouble. The junior center fouled out with six minutes remaining. “Obviously we had some challenges,” Dixon said. “Guys had foul trouble. Our rotation wasn’t what we wanted it to be. I think our defense wasn’t the way we wanted it to be. But the rebounding sticks out. I think we were not physical enough to come up with the rebounds. Having guys not available was a big factor. We had the lead, but things didn’t seem to go our way after that.” Sophomore forward Micah Robinson led TCU with 18 points. Duke advances to face the winner of Sunday’s game between No. 4 seed Kansas and No. 5 St. John’s in the Sweet 16.

Read this article at Fort Worth Star-Telegram - Subscribers Only

National Stories

‘Good, I’m glad he’s dead’: Trump’s insensitive comments about the dead hit a new level

For years, President Donald Trump has offered crass and insensitive comments about people who died — especially his foes. But on Saturday, he explicitly celebrated the death of former FBI Director Robert Mueller, writing, “Good, I’m glad he’s dead.” As a special counsel, Mueller probed Trump and his 2016 campaign as the leader of the Russia investigation during the president’s first term. “Robert Mueller just died,” Trump posted on social media shortly after the death was first reported. “Good, I’m glad he’s dead. He can no longer hurt innocent people!” While it was the culmination of a yearslong series of such comments by Trump, it was hardly an isolated incident.

In 2017, one of the first big controversies of Trump’s first term was his insensitive alleged comments to the widow of a soldier who had just died. Trump was accused of telling the widow that her husband “knew what he signed up for.” And while Trump claimed it had been a “very respectful conversation,” the White House eventually?seemed to tacitly confirm the comments. After John McCain died in August 2018, Trump in early 2019 resumed his yearslong attacks on the former Arizona senator. He criticized the Republican for killing Trump’s health care law, saying, “I never was a fan of John McCain, and I never will be.” Trump also falsely claimed the recently deceased had graduated “last in his class” and falsely accused him of sharing the “Steele dossier” with the FBI before the 2016 election. In late 2019, Trump attacked another legislative foe who died that year — longtime Rep. John Dingell — by suggesting the Michigan Democrat was “looking up” from hell. Dingell’s widow, Democratic Rep. Debbie Dingell of Michigan, responded: “I’m preparing for the first holiday season without the man I love. You brought me down in a way you can never imagine and your hurtful words just made my healing much harder.”

Read this article at CNN - Subscribers Only

Immigration agents deploying to airports under border czar as TSA staffing falls short

President Donald Trump said Sunday border czar Tom Homan will be in charge of deploying Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to airports on Monday, with Homan telling CNN the agents will assist with security at entrances and exits to ease TSA workload amid a partial government shutdown. “This is about going to helping TSA do their mission and get the American public through that airport as quick as they can while adhering to all the security guidelines and the protocols,” Homan said on CNN’s “State of the Union with Dana Bash.” Long security lines have been seen at airports around the country as TSA officers have quit their jobs or called out sick as they continue to work without pay.

“We’re simply there to help TSA do their job in areas that don’t need their specialized expertise, such as screening through the X-ray machine. Not training that, we won’t do that,” Homan said. “But there are roles we can play to release TSA officers from the non-significant roles, such as guarding an exit so they can get back to the scanning machines and move people quicker, and we’re just simply helping our fellow officers at TSA.” Asked about logistics and numbers regarding deployment of ICE officers, Homan said planning discussions are happening Sunday in coordination with the heads of ICE and the TSA. “I’m currently working on the plan now of execution, working with the Director of ICE and the administrator of TSA, the acting administrator. So we’ll put together a plan today, and we’ll execute tomorrow,” Homan said. Homan added that details can be expected later Monday. “Hopefully we’ll have all those answers here by this afternoon, but we’re working on it when we when we deploy tomorrow, we’ll have a well thought out plan to execute,” Homan said.

Read this article at CNN - Subscribers Only

How Amazon is bringing fast delivery to rural America

A little past noon, Amazon.com driver Matthew Norton pulled his Ford F-250 pickup up alongside the Bitterroot River. He removed a small package and stashed it in a drop-box at the foot of a crude bridge with a sign: Private Bridge, No Trespassing. Norton and his pickup are part of a $4 billion investment by Amazon to push its signature speedy delivery further into the rural recesses of the U.S. In dozens of thinly populated regions across the country, Amazon is building new delivery hubs to deliver packages in around two days. That might not seem especially rapid at a time when the e-commerce giant is introducing one-hour delivery in some areas, but residents of some far-flung Montana hamlets were used to waiting up to a week for their orders.

The effort helps Amazon reduce its reliance on the U.S. Postal Service, a relationship that has become rocky following a dispute over contract terms. Amazon says it aims ultimately to have 200 rural delivery hubs serving around 13,000 ZIP Codes covering around 1.2 million square miles of America—an area the size of Texas, California and Alaska combined. Delivering packages within Amazon’s signature two-day frame means drivers contend with backcountry challenges such as bighorn sheep on the road, dangerously high winds in mountain passes and roads that are impassable during parts of the year. Norton says many of his customers are regulars. “They order online, because they don’t have many stores and their closest grocery store is an hour away.” Amazon currently operates around 560 delivery stations across the country, of which around 160 are in rural areas, said Marc Wulfraat, president of MWPVL International, a supply-chain consultancy that monitors the e-commerce company’s logistics network. At its current pace of constructing around 40 to 50 new delivery hubs a year, Wulfraat estimates that Amazon will be able to ship packages to every U.S. ZIP Code in four years.

Read this article at Wall Street Journal - Subscribers Only

Cuba's deputy foreign minister says its military is preparing for possible 'military aggression' from the U.S.

Cuba’s deputy foreign minister on Saturday said that the nation’s military is involved in ongoing preparations for “the possibility of military aggression” from the U.S., adding that it would be “naive” for Cuba’s leaders to ignore the possibility of conflict with the U.S. “Our military is always prepared, and in fact, it is preparing these days for the possibility of military aggression,” Carlos Fernández de Cossío told NBC News’ “Meet the Press” in an interview that aired Sunday. He added, “we would be naive,” not to consider the possibility of conflict “looking at what’s happening around the world.”

Fernández de Cossío said the country’s leaders “truly hope that it doesn’t occur. We don’t see why it would have to occur, and we find no justification whatsoever.” His comments come amid an escalation in tensions between the U.S. and Cuba following the U.S. military operation in Venezuela that led to the capture of that nation’s president, Nicolas Maduro, who had a close relationship with Cuba’s leadership. During a press conference following the operation, U.S. President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio warned that military intervention in Cuba could be next, with Rubio saying at the time, “If I lived in Havana and I was in the government, I’d be concerned.” In January, the president signed an executive order threatening to impose tariffs on goods from countries that sold or provided oil to the country. Residents of the island have suffered daily power outages amid the U.S. blockade. Power grids in the country collapsed Saturday, leaving the country without electricity for a third time in March. On Saturday, Fernández de Cossío said the oil blockade is the result of the U.S.’ aggression against Cuba and it “cannot be sustained forever.”

Read this article at NBC News - Subscribers Only

U.S. judge rules against Pentagon restrictions on press coverage

A federal judge in Washington, D.C., has blocked a Pentagon policy that sought to limit what journalists are able to report about the U.S. military, ruling in favor of The New York Times in a case that raised fundamental questions about the freedom of the press. The Pentagon policy, unveiled last September, required media organizations to pledge not to gather information unless officials from the Department of Defense formally authorized its release. The policy extended beyond classified information, and included a prohibition on reporting even unclassified material without the approval of Pentagon officials. The policy prompted widespread condemnation from press freedom groups, and led multiple news organizations to forfeit their Pentagon press passes, rather than comply. NPR is among the organizations that turned in its press passes, but has continued vigorous reporting on the Pentagon.

The rules also spurred a lawsuit from the Times, which filed suit in December against the Pentagon, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell. In its suit, the Times said the Pentagon policy violated the First Amendment and would "deprive the public of vital information about the United States military and its leadership." In the ruling late Friday, U.S. District Court Judge Paul L. Friedman sided with the Times, writing that the First Amendment was designed to empower the press to publish information in the public interest "free of any official proscription." "Those who drafted the First Amendment believed that the nation's security requires a free press and an informed people and that such security is endangered by governmental suppression of political speech," Friedman wrote. "That principle has preserved the nation's security for almost 250 years. It must not be abandoned now." In a statement, a Times spokesperson said the ruling marked a welcome enforcement of the free press' constitutionally protected rights. "Americans deserve visibility into how their government is being run, and the actions the military is taking in their name and with their tax dollars. Today's ruling reaffirms the right of The Times and other independent media to continue to ask questions on the public's behalf," said the statement from spokesperson Charlie Stadtlander. Parnell, the Pentagon spokesman, responded to the ruling in a statement posted to social media, saying the department planned to challenge the order. "We disagree with the decision and are pursuing an immediate appeal," he said.

Read this article at NPR - Subscribers Only

‘Tax resistance’ gains attention amid ICE protests, Iran war — and IRS penalties could follow

Chicago attorney Rachel Cohen owes more than $8,000 in federal income taxes — but has intentionally left that balance unpaid. "I'm not paying my federal income tax this year," Cohen said in a widely viewed TikTok video from March 2 about her decision. The 31-year-old community organizer filed her federal tax return, which shows a balance due of $8,830, according to a tax document reviewed by CNBC.But Cohen said she deliberately chose to withhold payment of that bill as a protest against immigration detention, including ICE facilities, and U.S. strikes on Iran launched without congressional approval. While voicing resistance to taxes is legal, refusing to pay taxes owed can violate federal law and lead to serious penalties.

"It's completely OK to be unhappy and be dissatisfied with our government," said Josh Youngblood, owner of The Youngblood Group, a Dallas-based tax firm. "But not paying taxes, or engaging in tax fraud or evasion, is not the answer." In addition to penalties and interest that start accruing immediately on their past-due balances, tax protesters can face "long-term consequences," such as wage garnishment, a tax lien on property or even jail time, according to Michele Frank, associate professor of accountancy at Miami University. Federal courts have a long track record of siding with the Internal Revenue Service in cases involving tax resistance, routinely dismissing these claims as frivolous and, in some instances, imposing additional penalties. Cohen told CNBC she is fully aware of the potential risks and that speaking openly about the decision could attract additional scrutiny from federal authorities. Her protest is directed at federal spending priorities, not taxation itself, Cohen said. She paid about $3,000 in Illinois state taxes, according to a tax document reviewed by CNBC, and said she sees value in how those dollars support state and local services. Cohen said her decision is personal and not something she is encouraging others to do, but hopes it pushes people to reflect on whether their actions match their beliefs.

Read this article at CNBC - Subscribers Only

Paul Farhi: How Will Lewis lost the Washington Post

( (Paul Farhi is a prominent American freelance journalist and media analyst specializing in news media, journalism ethics, and political coverage, based in Washington, D.C.. Formerly a longtime media reporter at The Washington Post (1988–2023), he now contributes to outlets like The Atlantic, Vanity Fair, and the Columbia Journalism Review.) When the bad news broke, Will Lewis wasn’t around for it. As hundreds of Washington Post employees gathered in front of phones and laptops for a Zoom meeting in early February to learn their fates, the Post’s chief executive and publisher didn’t appear on their screens. Instead, the announcement that more than 350 journalists would lose their jobs was left to executive editor Matt Murray. Afterward, Lewis made no statements and granted no interviews. Murray said later that Lewis “had a lot of things to tend to today.” The mass layoff—amounting to nearly half of the Post’s vaunted newsroom—translated into a broad disfiguring of the publication. The paper vaporized its sports and book sections, halved its network of foreign bureaus, and reduced its Metro section—where its history-making Watergate coverage had begun—to a skeleton. Every staff photographer was laid off. Among the casualties was Martin Weil, a beloved Metro reporter who’d worked at the paper since Lyndon Johnson was President. Weil was notified in a form letter delivered via email. Past and present Post employees trained their anger and disappointment on the paper’s owner, Jeff Bezos, Amazon’s multi­billionaire founder.

Former executive editor Martin Baron blasted the world’s fifth-­richest man for neglect, abandonment, and worse. Some of Bezos’s decisions, Baron wrote, were “gutless” and reflected “moral infirmity.” The paper had been losing money for several years, yes, but critics argued that Bezos could afford to lose money—literally for centuries—to maintain the paper’s newsgathering. He was now worth around $250 billion, ten times as much as he was when he bought the Post in 2013. Back then, he promised to provide “runway” (read: hard cash) for growth and experimentation. The new cuts would instead make the paper’s newsroom smaller than when Bezos first stepped in—smaller even than Politico, cofounded in 2007 by two former Post reporters. Lewis received his share of the rage and blame, too. Hired by Bezos in early 2024 to reverse declining readership and revenues, the 56-year-old newsman turned media executive had plainly failed. The Post lost a reported $100 million in 2024, Lewis’s first year, and even more in 2025. Lewis was unable to stanch the bleeding, despite previous buyouts and layoffs. Dozens more star journalists had left on their own, disappointed and disgusted by what they saw as his fecklessness. Only a few months into his tenure, Lewis had retreated into a kind of sullen isolation. When Post reporters landed important scoops—such as the revelation in late November 2025 of the Pentagon’s “double tap” strike on a suspected drug-smuggling boat—he couldn’t muster up an attaboy or use it as a peg for collective encouragement, a tradition for the paper’s publishers. For a brief period, Lewis had even stopped talking to Murray, whom he’d handpicked to lead the news operation. “As far as the newsroom is concerned, he’s a nonentity,” a veteran reporter said in early January. “We haven’t seen him in months. He’s a ghost.” Lewis, who hasn’t given an on-the-record interview in more than two years, didn’t respond to multiple requests for comment on this article. Nor did Murray or three of Lewis’s top business deputies. A Post spokesperson offered limited information in response to submitted questions.

Read this article at Washingtonian - Subscribers Only

Lead Stories

The bond market is flashing a signal not seen since before the 2008 crisis

Troubling developments unfolded in the U.S. bond market on Thursday that had some investors drawing comparisons with the run-up to the 2008 financial crisis. The current problems start with rising oil prices as a result of the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran, which is raising the risk of stagflation and the prospect of a 2026 interest-rate hike by the Federal Reserve. Brent crude the global oil benchmark, briefly blew past $119 a barrel on Thursday as attacks escalated on oil-and-gas infrastructure in the Persian Gulf. West Texas Intermediate crude-oil futures briefly crossed $100 a barrel. But even as oil prices have spiked and stock prices come down, Treasurys, often seen as a haven during times of market unease, haven’t rallied on a continual basis.

Instead, fears that the war in the Middle East could morph into a full-blown energy crisis pushed the policy-sensitive 2-year Treasury yield above the Federal Reserve’s interest-rate target on Thursday. Bond yields move inversely with prices and rise during selloffs. Thursday’s bond-market selloff caused the Treasury yield curve to exhibit what traders describe as a “bear-flattening” pattern. This actually began back in early February. Typically, the pattern emerges when bond traders are bracing for a difficult economic environment ahead. The confluence of these three developments — oil above $100 a barrel, a 2-year yield above the fed funds rate, and a bear-steepening dynamic in the bond market — is making some investors nervous. The last time all three things unfolded simultaneously was in the late spring of 2008, according to Bloomberg data. About four or five months later, Lehman Brothers collapsed, ushering in the most acute phase of the 2008 financial crisis. The S&P 500 declined 38.5% that year. Widespread mortgage defaults also resulted in many Americans losing their homes. The current environment includes both similarities and differences to that troubling time. Whereas the 2008 crisis was triggered by the bursting of a housing bubble and the subsequent collapse of the subprime mortgage market, investors are currently focused on the continued war with Iran, which began on Feb. 28, as well as signs of increasing stress in the private-credit industry. Already, investors have been impacted by twin declines in stocks and bonds, which amount to a double-whammy for anybody holding their retirement savings in a 60-40 portfolio.

Read this article at Market Watch - Subscribers Only

‘Rage turnout’ ahead? Democrats are hopeful their primary bump fuels midterms

A turnout surge in the 2026 Democratic primaries continued this week in Illinois, as the party’s voters again cast ballots in far greater numbers than they did in the last midterm election. It’s a boomlet already reshaping the Democrats’ many intense primary contests — and boosting confidence among party strategists that Democrats could benefit from a big turnout wave in November’s general election. “Nobody shows up to a parade for losers,” said Caitlin Legacki, a Democratic strategist. “And the enthusiasm we’re seeing in Dem primaries vs. the lack of enthusiasm we’re seeing in Republican primaries is a pretty strong signal.” Parties traditionally enjoy a turnout boost in midterm years after they lose a presidential election. But Democratic operatives say they’ve been pleasantly surprised with the level of engagement in this year’s primaries, especially when the party’s image is at historic lows.

In Tuesday’s Illinois primary, the Senate race saw a nearly 50% increase in participation compared to the last midterm election in 2022, jumping from 860,000 votes to a projected 1.28 million votes when all ballots are counted. The increase was even larger in some House races. Illinois’ 8th Congressional District saw a 63% increase relative to 2022, from 43,000 votes to a projected 70,000 votes. The 9th district saw a 71% hike, increasing from 77,000 in 2022 to 132,000 this week. Democrats offer a lot of explanations for why turnout has so significantly increased this year. But at the center of it, most of them say, is a visceral anger at President Donald Trump, motivating even voters who normally avoid politics to become involved. “I think there’s a strong likelihood of a rage turnout this year,” said Aviva Bowen, an Illinois-based Democratic strategist who worked on some of the contested House primaries in Chicago this week. The comparisons aren’t perfect. The Illinois Senate race in 2022 was an uncontested romp for Sen. Tammy Duckworth, for example, while this year’s contest featured three prominent candidates in a tight battle for the nomination.

Read this article at NOTUS - Subscribers Only

Irving-based Nexstar closes $6.2 billion acquisition of TEGNA

The FCC and DOJ approved the $6.2 billion acquisition of broadcaster TEGNA by fellow television operator Nexstar Media Group. A release issued Thursday by Nexstar states in part: "Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: NXST), today announced that it has closed its acquisition of TEGNA Inc." That announcement came after the approval of the transaction by the federal agencies. The proposed acquisition was announced in August 2025. “The FCC has been focused on empowering broadcast TV stations to serve their local communities, consistent with their public interest obligations. Today’s agency decision does exactly that as both the record and Nexstar’s enforceable commitments demonstrate," FCC chairman Brendan Carr said in a statement. "For too long, the FCC stood by while newspapers closed by the dozen in communities all across the country. Those trusted sources of local news and information shuttered while the FCC dithered. If you care about local news, you should care about the future of local broadcast TV stations."

Read this article at WFAA - Subscribers Only

ICE raids adding to falling enrollment at RGV school districts

Ongoing ICE raids are impacting Rio Grande Valley school districts, forcing hundreds of U.S.-born students out of the country while straining tight budgets. Across the Valley, educators struggling to curb years of falling enrollment are pointing to months of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids as a growing factor behind dropping student numbers. As part of a formula, the Texas Education Agency is paying Valley school districts about $6,200 a year for each student in classrooms. In Weslaco, the school district’s enrollment’s dropped from 16,305 to 16,028 during the last year, Superintendent Richard Rivera said, blaming much of the loss of 277 students to what he describes as “the immigration scare.”

“I have been a superintendent for about 30 years and this is the most I’ve ever seen a district losing for this reason,” he said in an interview. Of the students leaving the country, many were born in the United States, Rivera said. “It affects them deeply,” he said. “They were born here. They’ve adjusted here. Most are elementary kids. Most of them have been successful. They‘ve learned the language and were doing well in school. All of a sudden life is shattered. Now they are starting a new life. It’s going to impact their life.” For school districts, the students’ losses are eating into strained budgets reeling from years of falling enrollment amid the federal government’s cuts in Elementary and Secondary Emergency Relief Funds, or ESSER funds, aimed at helping school districts through the coronavirus pandemic. “It affects the district — the budget,” Rivera said of the latest factor behind dropping enrollment. “We’re overstaffed with these students gone. Now, as people resign or retire, we don’t fill the positions.”

Read this article at MyRGV - Subscribers Only

State Stories

Williamson County GOP votes to return to countywide voting for May runoff

The Williamson County Republican Party has voted to return to countywide voting for the primary runoff set for May 26, a representative for the county confirmed. The party must amend their election contract with the county before the change can be finalized. Connie Odom, the communications director for Williamson County, said a meeting for that purpose is set for March 24. During the initial primary elections in early March, Williamson County voters had to visit assigned precincts to cast their ballots on Election Day, a change from previous elections when voters could stop by any polling place in the county.

The change led to confusion on Election Day. Some voters faced long lines and two- to three hour long waits. A judge ordered two polling places to stay open for three extra hours, and election officials did not finish counting votes until the next day. Both Democrats and Republicans must agree for countywide polling places to be available during primaries. The shift to assigned voting locations came at the request of the Williamson County Republican Party. The GOP in Dallas County also chose to make the shift. State Democrats said they anticipated issues ahead of the election. "For more than two months, Democratic Party leadership has been warning Republican leadership every step of the way that a disaster was impending, but they refused to listen," the Texas Democratic Party said in a statement on Election Day. "Now, voters all across Dallas and Williamson Counties are being denied ballot access, being turned away at the polls, and facing outrageous wait times at their polling locations."

Read this article at KUT - Subscribers Only

Harris County commissioners table resolution seeking to condemn Lina Hidalgo after rodeo dispute

Harris County commissioners punted a proposed resolution on Thursday that would have condemned Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo’s recent actions at the Houston rodeo and called for her resignation. Republican Commissioner Tom Ramsey’s resolution would have recognized the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo’s accomplishments and condemned Hidalgo for an incident in which she was removed by security from a rodeo concert last week at NRG Stadium. The delay comes after a rule change in February that moves resolutions from Harris County Commissioners Court’s regular bi-weekly meetings to business court meetings. Commissioner Rodney Ellis, a Democrat who directed the regular court meeting on Thursday because of Hidalgo’s absence, said Ramsey would have to make a motion to suspend the recent rule change in order to read the resolution.

No other commissioner seconded Ramsey’s motion to temporarily suspend the rule change — which kicked the item to the next business court meeting on March 31. Ellis also suggested pausing the discussion until Hidalgo, who is in Europe on a trade mission, returned to commissioners court. “Just from the timing of it all, I think reading it here, and we can certainly talk about it again when she returns, her having missed the last three meetings, I’m not sure when she’s coming,” Ramsey said. The dispute between Hidalgo and security personnel at the rodeo happened after she and four other guests attempted to access the chute area — a premium seating area in NRG Stadium closest to the concert stage — without proper credentials. Hidalgo claimed she was threatened with arrest, shoved by security personnel and escorted out of a rodeo concert. Rodeo officials disputed her claims and said they were “very disappointed” in Hidalgo’s actions. The event’s board of directors also voted to strip Hidalgo of her role on the board, which was tied to her elected position as county judge.

Read this article at Houston Public Media - Subscribers Only

Escobar denies ICE claims that staffer posed as detainee's attorney at Camp East Montana

U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar of El Paso is pushing back against allegations from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement involving a member of her staff. According to a report by Fox News, Benito Torres, a senior caseworker on Escobar's staff, allegedly lied at least 11 times about being an attorney for detainees at Camp East Montana in Fort Bliss and brought cellphones into the facility. The acting ICE director, Todd Lyons, said he informed Escobar about the staffer in a letter dated Thursday. Escobar, however, denied the claims. “I have every reason to believe these allegations are unfounded,” Escobar said. “I stand proudly by the members of my team who have demonstrated nothing but dedication and integrity to serving our nation and our community.”

In his letter to Escobar, Lyons wrote, "The available evidence demonstrates your staffer... misrepresented himself as counsel for detainees in ICE custody, violated clear detention standards and security protocols prohibiting the use of cellphones inside ICE facilities, improperly met with multiple detainees, and falsely claimed to ICE personnel such use had been approved by the agency." Fox News' report features an image of a sign-in log that shows the staffer allegedly claiming to be a "lawyer" visiting a "client." The letter also states that during that visit, the staffer admitted he was not an attorney after he was confronted by a facility staff member after they became aware of someone passing a phone to multiple detainees.

Read this article at KFOX - Subscribers Only

Sen. John Cornyn: Force members of Congress to wait in TSA lines

Sen. John Cornyn wants to make sure members of Congress wait in the same airport security lines as everyone else. As a weekslong stalemate leaves Transportation Security Administration agents working without pay, Cornyn has introduced a bill to outlaw preferential screening treatment for members of Congress. Cornyn said the change would put lawmakers on equal footing with travelers and restore “democracy” to airport security lines. “Nobody should be above the rules and regulations imposed on the American people, and a member pin on your lapel should not give you carte blanche to skip airport screening lines while everyday Americans are forced to patiently wait their turn,” Cornyn said.

The bill includes exceptions for programs such as TSA PreCheck and in cases of security concerns, he said. The proposal, which would have to clear both chambers, a slow process, comes as security lines have been growing at airports nationwide. That’s been blamed on a partisan impasse over Homeland Security funding that includes TSA, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and other agencies. Sen. Ted Cruz, Cornyn’s home state Republican colleague, offered a proposal in 2024 that would have made it easier for rank-and-file members of Congress to get airport escorts. Supporters said that proposal would only have applied to federal lawmakers facing credible security threats, which have spiked in recent years, but the idea was blocked after opponents said it could be abused. Public criticism at the time focused in part on Cruz’s widely derided decision to take his family to Cancun during a deadly February 2021 winter storm.

Read this article at Dallas Morning News - Subscribers Only

Proposed policy would enable Harris County employees to advocate for higher wages through a labor organization

Harris County could soon become one of the first major jurisdictions in Texas to establish a policy enabling labor organizations to advocate for higher wages and improved working conditions for government employees. The worker consultations policy — proposed by Harris County Commissioner Rodney Ellis — is set to be discussed and considered during a commissioners court meeting on Thursday. Though Texas law prohibits public employees from collective bargaining, the local program could make it easier for county workers to file grievances related to pay, workplace conditions and terminations.

Under the policy, nonsupervisory employees in certain county departments could also file group grievances and request representation by labor organizations to lodge complaints. Harris County’s five-member commissioners court, which currently includes four Democrats, would retain final authority over personnel policies and recommendations. “This policy that we have creates a consultation process between county workers and county leadership,” Ellis said. “It gives workers a seat at the table to raise workplace concerns about wages, hours, promotions and working conditions. It creates a clear process so workers can make their case when problems arise. “ If the proposal receives approval by commissioners on Thursday, interested county workers could select a labor organization to represent them. An organization would be established as an agent when it receives support from 20% of eligible employees. If multiple organizations qualify for the title, employees would vote in an election to select one sole representative, according to the proposed policy.

Read this article at Houston Public Media - Subscribers Only

Chuck Norris, 86, rushed to the hospital in Hawaii after medical emergency

Chuck Norris was reportedly rushed to a hospital in Hawaii after suffering a medical emergency. The “Walker, Texas Ranger” alum, 86, was on the island of Kauai when the incident occurred, TMZ reported Thursday. However, the nature of the incident remains unclear. Norris bounced back immediately as insiders told the outlet that he is in good spirits. A rep for Norris wasn’t immediately available to Page Six for comment. The martial artist proved he’s still in great shape as he celebrated his birthday on March 10 with a private outdoor boxing lesson. “I don’t age. I level up,” he said in a video shared via Instagram. “I’m 86 today! Nothing like some playful action on a sunny day to make you feel young.”

“I’m grateful for another year, good health and the chance to keep doing what I love,” Norris continued. The actor expressed his gratitude to the “best fans in the world,” concluding, “Your support through the years has meant more to me than you’ll ever know.” The “Way of the Dragon” star often shares his workouts online, and recently posted a photo of himself flexing his bicep while hitting the gym in November. “Here’s a photo I took several months ago,” he captioned the snap. “Progress isn’t measured by perfection, but by the courage to keep going.” Norris reassured his 2.8 million followers that he was “still setting goals, pushing forward and choosing discipline over comfort.” “No matter your age, keep striving for the best version of yourself,” he added. The “Invasion U.S.A.” star also posts footage of himself horseback riding, hiking and weight lifting.

Read this article at Page Six - Subscribers Only

Northside ISD has nearly $200 million in 2022 bond project 'on hold'

Nine school improvement projects totaling nearly $200 million from Northside Independent School District’s2022 bond issue are “on hold” with no indication of when the projects will be built. Just four years after its nearly $1 billion bond election,San Antonio’s largest school district intends to seek voter approval in November on a bond package for security upgrades and other improvements. Northside’s Building Committee got an update Wednesday on the $198.47 million in projects that were approved nearly four years ago but have not since been executed. Superintendent John Craft told a panel of trustees he wants to “be careful in not putting millions and millions of dollars into these facilities and then having to come back in a very short amount of time (and saying), 'Well, we really need more science labs.'

The delayed projects were slated for elementary campuses across the district and meant to replace outdated school facilities and upgrade HVAC and ventilator systems. “I will still stand fast in saying by holding just a little bit until we have really clear visioning as to what needs to happen at the campuses, we’re going to be better off in the end,” Craft told board trustees who will soon nominate community members to serve on a Citizen Bond Committee. This committee will help shape the district’s ask to voters in an anticipated November election.The district is considering whether to ask voters Nov. 3 for a 3-cent increase to its tax rate, which is currently at $1.0049 per $100 valuation of property. Northside officials arealso studying the potential for a $400 million bond issue to target priorities in a facilities wish list that exceeds$2 billion in value. Craft emphasized that the nine schools with projects on hold are not “on the fringe” or at risk of closure. As Northside ISD grapples with a looming budget deficit and declining enrollment now at about 97,600 students, district officials have emphasized the need to “optimize” operations, something that may eventually result in campus closures.

Read this article at San Antonio Express-News - Subscribers Only

San Antonio, Medina County continue to attract data centers

The San Antonio area, and a booming Medina County to the west of the Alamo City, continue to attract Amazon and Microsoft Data Centers. Recent filings with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation show Microsoft plans to construct two additional data centers at its location on County Road 381 in the community of Rio Medina at a cost of $52 million. Work on both additions starts this spring and should be completed within a couple of years. Combined, they will cover nearly half-a-million square feet.

Meanwhile, similar filings find Amazon is expanding its data center presence in the San Antonio area with two of the facilities, both each well over 100,000 square feet. One will be built on the Southeast Side on Donop Road at a cost of $65 million and the other is planned on the West Side on Northwest Crossroads at a cost of $25 million. Their completion dates fall within the next two or three years. The demands such centers place on water for cooling and on electricity for power have become concerns for local residents, especially the demand on water in a time of drought. They are also known to be noisy to live around. The San Antonio City Council may formally address local policy for the industry this year. San Antonio Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones told Texas Public Radio in February that such data centers are not going unnoticed at city hall. "We know these things are coming," she said. "That doesn't mean they can show up wherever they want to. We certainly have some say in that. And we want to make sure we are thinking about impact on utilities. And we're also thinking about what makes the best place in terms of location in the city."

Read this article at Texas Public Radio - Subscribers Only

Texas judge issues restraining order against utility district involved with Islamic development

The acting board of directors for a North Texas utility district has been stopped in their tracks by a judge after the state accused them of illegally acting in support of a controversial Islamic development. The temporary restraining order issued Thursday follows a lawsuit from the attorney general's office, accusing the utility district of helping East Plano Islamic Center developers duck state regulation.

The TRO was issued by a district court in North Texas on Thursday, enjoining the Double R Municipal Utility District No. 2A of Hunt and Collin Counties ("Double R MUD") from taking actions in their board meeting scheduled for Friday, March 20. The defendants in the TRO, referred to as the "purported directs," are now barred from taking up or deciding on most of the agenda items they had planned. Those defendants, named as Yaneli Molina, Hatim Mahmoud Yusuf, Nadeem Ashraf Khan, Asim Hussain Khan, and Faisal Abbas, are accused of breaking portions of the Texas Water Code. The order says they "did not own taxable property within Double R MUD’s geographic boundaries as they existed prior to the purported annexation of lands on September 12, 2025." According to a previous state lawsuit, the MUD was inactive until September 2025, when developers involved in the Meadow, previously EPIC City, allegedly "engineered the takeover" of the district rather than creating a new one for the development. Paxton claimed this was to avoid state regulation, calling the actions "highly unusual."

Read this article at Fox 4 News - Subscribers Only

UNT cuts and consolidates 85 degree programs, certifications amid $45 million deficit

The university will begin eliminating and consolidating 85 degree programs and certificates in response to its current $45 million deficit. University President Harrison Keller and Provost Michael McPherson sent an official notice to students via email on March 19 stating the majors, minors and certificates that will be phased out or merged with others. “As the university addresses financial challenges, the difficult decision was made to begin the process of closing or consolidating a selection of academic programs,” said Melisa Brown, senior director of university relations, in an email to the North Texas Daily. “Programs were selected after a thorough evaluation of many factors, including student demand and enrollment trends, time to value, resource efficiency, and alignment with our university’s mission.”

Linked in the notice was the university’s Academic Programs Update that listed every upcoming degree program elimination or consolidation. It states “the most substantial change” is the Department of Linguistics merging with the Department of World Languages. With the merger of the two departments alongside other cuts, the College of Information recorded 15 total degree program changes. That is the second most among the university’s impacted colleges behind the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, which saw 34 changes. Linguistics senior Sage Smith said they learned of their department being phased out in the email sent to all university students. Smith said when they opened the email, they were not expecting to see that their program will not exist in three years. “It just makes me really sad and disappointed,” Smith said. “So, just seeing that a program that means so much to me and to my friends, peers and my professors is just really upsetting. The university added the M.S. in Linguistics in the 2024-25 school year and it has since been removed in the recent department merger. Smith said they had planned to get their graduate degree at the university as it was one of the few universities in the state to offer the M.S. in Linguistics rather than only an M.A. The impacted programs will no longer accept new enrollments, though currently enrolled students will be able to complete their degrees. As for eliminations, there are 25 undergraduate minors and 21 graduate and 21 undergraduate certificates, three master's degree programs and the undergraduate Latino and Latin American Studies major.

Read this article at North Texas Daily - Subscribers Only

Rep. Julie Johnson demands answers in death of her constituent in ICE custody

Rep. Julie Johnson visited ICE’s Dallas field office on Monday, March 16, to demand answers regarding the death of Mohammed Nazeer Paktiawal, 41, who lived in her district. Paktiawal was an Afghan immigrant who worked with U.S. forces since 2006 in Afghanistan. He and his family were evacuated when the U.S. pulled out of the country. He died at Parkland Hospital a day after ICE had taken him into custody. “Paktiawal has a known criminal history including an arrest by local authorities for SNAP fraud, a felony, on Sept. 16, 2025,” ICE wrote in a press release. “He was arrested a second time for theft on Nov. 1, 2025.” Paktiawal lived in Richardson and was the father of six.

Read this article at Dallas Voice - Subscribers Only

Anderson County lands $16 billion gas power project in White House, Japan deal

President Donald Trump and Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick on Thursday announced the building of a $16 billion natural gas generator to be located in Anderson County. This announcement was made during Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s visit to the White House and is one of three new energy infrastructures in a $550 billion investment package pledged by Japan in October.

This natural gas-fired power generation hub operated by NextERA Energy Resources, is to have a capacity of up to 5.2 gigawatts of natural gas-fired generation, capable of serving up to 5 GW of large-load demand. In a statement on social media, Rep. Cody Harris, (R-Palestine) who was in Washington,D.C. for the meeting, said this project would bring 3,000 long-term, high paying jobs to the community and enable local taxing entities to slash property taxes. “This will be a massive investment in House District 8 which will have a multi-generational impact,” he stated. “Very exciting day for our area.” According to County Judge Carey McKinney, the Anderson County Commissioners Court had their first meeting with NextERA energy Tuesday and received preliminary information about the project. “We are still in the development stages, and we are going to have some more meetings and get more information, and talk about what this will do for the county,” McKinney said. The project is located in Precinct 2 Commissioner Rashad Mims portion of the Bethel Community which is split between Precinct 2 and Precinct 4.

Read this article at Athens Review - Subscribers Only

At 40, The Wittliff Collections remains a true Texas treasure

In the heart of Texas State University’s campus, on the seventh floor of the Alkek Library, resides a Texas-size treasure known as The Wittliff Collections. Stepping off the elevator, a polished sea of saltillo tile leads visitors through a labyrinth of exhibitions, where vestiges of the state’s artistic history and heritage shine like crowned jewels. Spanning literature, photography, music, and film, The Wittliff has become a world-renowned research archive, library, and rotating gallery space dedicated to preserving and sharing the cultural and creative legacy of Texas, as well as Mexico and the American Southwest. Despite this international reputation, however, many Texans remain unaware of the creative riches safeguarded in this San Marcos institution. “I think everyone should know about The Wittliff, yet I’m always surprised not everybody does,” says Carrie Fountain, The Wittliff’s literary curator and the 2019 State Poet Laureate. “We don’t want to be the best kept secret in Texas.”

Now, thanks to a monumental exhibition commemorating the 40th anniversary of The Wittliff, a new generation of Texans and travelers can come to know this revered site. The Spirit of The Wittliff in 40 Objects—on view through 2026—reveals 40 of the archive’s most unique and captivating objects that embody the collections’ storied soul, which originated from its founder and namesake, Bill Wittliff. Forty years ago, the late writer, photographer, and celebrated screenwriter of Lonesome Dove founded the Southwestern Writers Collection with his wife, Sally, after acquiring the literary estate of writer and folklorist J. Frank Dobie, including boxes of his personal papers, diaries, correspondence, and memorabilia, like his desk. Since donating their Southwestern literary manuscripts to the university in 1986, the archives have expandedto include the Southwestern and Mexican Photography Collection and the Texas Music Collection. Today, it comprises more than 500 collections, with writers like Sandra Cisneros, Larry McMurtry, Taylor Sheridan, Elizabeth Crook, and Stephen Harrigan, and musicians Jerry Jeff Walker and Willie Nelson among the many to have their works contained here.

Read this article at Texas Highways - Subscribers Only

National Stories

US weighs military reinforcements as Iran war enters possible new phase

President Donald Trump's administration is considering deploying thousands of U.S. troops to reinforce its operation in the Middle East, as the U.S. military prepares for possible next steps in its campaign against Iran, said a U.S. official and three people familiar with the matter. The deployments could help provide Trump with ?additional options as he weighs expanding U.S. operations, with the Iran war well into its third week. Those options include securing safe passage for oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, a mission that would ?be accomplished primarily through air and naval forces, the sources said. But securing the Strait could also mean deploying U.S. troops to Iran's shoreline, said four sources, including two U.S. officials.

Reuters granted the sources anonymity to speak about military planning. The Trump administration has also discussed options to send ?ground forces to Iran's Kharg Island, the hub for 90% of Iran's oil exports, the three people familiar with the matter and three U.S. officials said. One of the officials said such an operation would be very risky. Iran has the ability to reach the island with missiles and drones. The United States carried out strikes against military targets on the island on March 13 and Trump has threatened to also strike its critical oil infrastructure. However, given its vital role in Iran's economy, controlling the island would likely be viewed as a better option than destroying it, military experts say. Any use of U.S. ground troops - even for a limited mission - could pose significant political risks for Trump, given low support among the American public ?for the Iran campaign and Trump's own campaign promises to avoid entangling the ?U.S. in new Middle East conflicts.

Read this article at Reuters - Subscribers Only

Trump invokes Pearl Harbor in front of Japanese prime minister to defend Iran attack secrecy

In an apparent awkward moment at the Oval Office on Thursday stateside, U.S. President Donald Trump referenced Pearl Harbor in his first meeting with Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi after her landslide electoral victory. When asked by a Japanese reporter on why the U.S. did not inform allies such as Japan before carrying out the attacks against Iran on Feb. 28, the U.S. president said it was to maintain the element of surprise. "Who knows better about surprise than Japan ... Why didn't you tell me about Pearl Harbor?" Trump was referencing the surprise Japanese attack on the U.S. Pacific Fleet in 1941, which saw the deaths of over 2,400 personnel and drew the U.S. into World War II. Takaichi appeared to draw a deep breath and lean back in her seat with an uneasy expression.

Trump said that the surprise attack on Iran had helped the U.S., adding that it "knocked out 50% of what we anticipated" in the country within the first two days. During the meeting, Trump praised Japan for "stepping up" to assist in efforts to secure the Strait of Hormuz, "unlike NATO." Before the meeting, Japan, as well as Britain, France, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands had released a joint statement expressing their readiness to "contribute to appropriate efforts to ensure safe passage through the Strait." Trump had called on Japan and other countries to help secure the Strait of Hormuz, but Takaichi had reportedly said Monday that there were no plans to dispatch naval vessels to escort boats in the Middle East. Her office also said in a post on X that there was "no specific request from the United States to Japan for the dispatch of vessels." Japan's prime minister on Tuesday said that the government was considering what could be done within the framework of the country's law. Japan's Self-Defense Forces are governed by its pacifist constitution, that renounces war and the threat or use of force for settling international disputes. Trump had taken aim at NATO allies earlier this week, saying that the alliance was "making a very foolish mistake" by not getting involved in the war. In response, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius reportedly said on Monday that "This is not our war, we have not started it," a stance that was also adopted by French President Emmanuel Macron. Subsequently, Germany's Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Thursday that "we have declared that as long as the war continues, we will not participate in ensuring freedom of navigation in the Strait ?of Hormuz, for example, by military means," according to Reuters.

Read this article at CNBC - Subscribers Only

Woman charged with murder after allegedly taking abortion pills, going to hospital

A Georgia woman has been charged with murder after going to the emergency room with severe pain she experienced after allegedly taking abortion pills at home. Alexia Moore delivered a 22- to 24-week-old fetus “with cardiac activity” in December, according to an arrest warrant, which cited Moore’s medical records. The newborn, a girl, died within an hour. Police questioned Moore, 31, in the hospital and charged her this month with felony murder — the first such charging, abortion advocates said, since Georgia instated a six-week abortion ban after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. In the arrest warrant, police alleged that Moore’s pregnancy was “well beyond six weeks.” Other states have charged women who have abortions with murder or attempted murder since Roe’s fall in 2022, but few of those prosecutions have advanced far. In a similar case in Georgia, prosecutors in 2015 dropped a murder charge against a woman who took abortion pills.

“This is just yet another attempt to criminalize abortion by avoiding the actual limits of the law,” said Karen Thompson, legal director of the abortion rights advocacy group Pregnancy Justice. Moore is being held in jail in Camden County, Georgia, according to jail records. The Georgia Public Defender Council’s Brunswick Judicial Circuit office, which is representing Moore, declined to comment. Moore was transported to the Southeast Georgia Health System Camden Campus in late December after complaining of abdominal pain, according to an arrest warrant. She told medical staff that she was pregnant and took misoprostol pills to terminate her pregnancy, the warrant alleges. She also allegedly took oxycodone, a painkiller. A hospital security guard allegedly told officers from the Kingsland Police Department details of Moore’s pregnancy and abortion, according to a police report. In addition to murder, police also charged Moore with possession of a Schedule II controlled substance and possession of dangerous drugs.

Read this article at New York Times - Subscribers Only

Father of service member killed in Iran war said he never told Pete Hegseth to 'finish' the job

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth met privately Wednesday with the families of six service members who died in the Iran war and, in a press briefing the next morning, said the message he got was consistent and supportive. “What I heard through tears, through hugs, through strength and through unbreakable resolve was the same from family after family. They said, ‘Finish this. Honor their sacrifice. Do not waver. Do not stop until the job is done,’” Hegseth said. One of the people he met at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware was Charles Simmons. His 28-year-old son, Tech. Sgt. Tyler H. Simmons, was among the six crew members killed when their refueling plane crashed in Iraq last week. Simmons recalled his exchange differently. “I can’t speak for the other families. When he spoke to me, that was not something we talked about,” he told NBC News in an interview Thursday.

Simmons said he spoke separately to Hegseth and President Donald Trump at Dover and was grateful for the warmth that both men showed him. He and Hegseth spoke mostly about Tyler, his impressive service record and the speed with which he had advanced in the military, Simmons recalled. He said he told the defense secretary, “I understand there’s a lot of peril that goes into making decisions like this, and I just certainly hope the decisions being made are necessary.” Asked if he said anything to Hegseth or Trump about the need to keep fighting the war, Simmons said, “No, I didn’t say anything along those lines.” A 60-year-old music teacher in Columbus, Ohio, Simmons told NBC News that he has “questions” about the war and isn’t able to draw “definitive conclusions when I don’t have all the data.”

Read this article at NBC News - Subscribers Only

From Bush to Obama to Trump, White House faith office persists at 25 years

Influenced by a prominent pastor and a layman who led a prison ministry, George W. Bush in his first presidential administration embarked on an ambitious goal: to partner the federal government with faith-based groups. The concept already existed during the Clinton administration through a federal welfare reform provision known as “charitable choice” that permitted religious organizations to receive government funding if they allowed their beneficiaries to receive social services without religious coercion. But Bush codified it with what was initially called the Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives in the White House that included 11 Cabinet-level departments. “Government can hand out money, but it cannot put hope in a person’s heart or a sense of purpose in a person’s life,” became a Bush mantra.

In his 2010 memoir “Decision Points,” the former president credited Tony Evans, then the pastor of a predominantly Black church in Dallas, and Chuck Colson, Watergate felon-turned-evangelical advocate for prisoners, with helping him see the value of faith-based programs receiving government support. Now, 25 years later, all the Democratic and Republican presidential administrations that have followed included some form of the so-called White House faith-based office. Though some critiqued the office as inappropriate mixing of church and state, Bush argued in his memoir that “government need not fear religion” even as it “should never impose religion.” The Republican president aimed to create a nonpartisan initiative, choosing Democrats as the first two leaders appointed to direct the office: John DiIulio, a University of Pennsylvania professor, and Jim Towey, a former lawyer for Mother Teresa.

Read this article at Religion News Service - Subscribers Only

Judge rules that R.F.K. Jr. overstepped on transgender care

A federal judge in Oregon ruled on Thursday that Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. overstepped his legal authority when he declared last December that providers of gender-transition medical treatments for minors “do not meet professionally recognized standards.” The decision, a setback for the Trump administration, gives temporary relief to hospitals, clinics and health professionals who provide such treatments. In the weeks after Mr. Kennedy issued his written declaration, the Department of Health and Human Services indicated that it would investigate institutions that continued to prescribe medication to minors for gender transitions and would potentially bar them from receiving federal Medicare and Medicaid funds. Twenty-one states, all led by Democrats, had filed a lawsuit over Mr. Kennedy’s issuing of the 12-page declaration, claiming that the statement interfered with the power of states to regulate the practice of medicine within their borders.

The declaration states that it “supersedes” statewide or national standards of care and that “sex-rejecting procedures for children and adolescents are neither safe nor effective as a treatment modality for gender dysphoria, gender incongruence, or other related disorders in minors.” The states asserted that the federal government had attempted to unilaterally establish a national medical standard, violating the Administrative Procedure Act, which requires federal agencies to act within the bounds of authority delegated to them by Congress. The federal government countered that the states had failed to show they were harmed by Mr. Kennedy’s declaration, because no individual providers of gender-transition care have been barred from receiving Medicare and Medicaid at this point. In court documents, the federal government’s lawyers characterized Mr. Kennedy’s declaration as a “non-binding policy position” and likened it to an opinion piece in a publication: “Secretary Kennedy, just like anyone else, is entitled to articulate his opinion on the safety and efficacy of emerging and controversial medical practices,” the lawyers wrote. Gender transition treatments have been banned in 27 Republican-led states, but they are legal in the states bringing the lawsuit, which include Oregon, California, Michigan, Pennsylvania and New York. In some of those states, health care institutions that fail to offer the treatments may run afoul of state anti-discrimination laws.

Read this article at New York Times - Subscribers Only

Inside JB Pritzker’s power play in Illinois’ Senate primary – and what it means for a 2028 run

The Illinois state troopers’ code name for Juliana Stratton, the lieutenant governor and the new Democratic nominee for US Senate, is Sprinter. Their code name for JB Pritzker, the governor who put his political capital and upward of $10 million behind getting her there, is Believer. There was Believer outside a school on the corner of 24th Street and South Millard on a Tuesday morning that had warmed up to 19 degrees. Carefully standing on the legal side of the blue cone that marked the boundary for electioneering, Pritzker talked up his candidate to each voter who passed or the preschool teachers who popped out to ask for selfies, even after Stratton had already headed back to the car. There were many doubters of Stratton’s chances, people who cited her seeming discomfort on the campaign trail, the huge campaign donations collected by Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi and the candidacy of Rep. Robin Kelly potentially splitting the Black vote.

“A lot of people have suggested that this election tonight was personal to me,” Pritzker, his voice hoarse from the final stretch, said as he introduced Stratton. “And I’m here to tell you all: They’re right, it was.” What played out in Tuesday’s Senate primary was more complicated than Stratton’s win being good news for Pritzker, though he can walk onto a future presidential debate stage and say he stood by the person who’d supported him for years, now on track to be only the sixth Black woman in the Senate ever. With many assuming Pritzker is at most a year away from launching a 2028 presidential campaign, this race was an early demonstration of what kind of larger operation he might run, with even eager “Pritzker for President” boosters worried he and his inner circle need to sharpen up ahead of a campaign when he won’t be the front-runner on his home turf. Pritzker and his aides push back on over-indexing on the Stratton campaign, but they argue it shows what he might carry forward into a presidential campaign: loyalty to those loyal to him among fellow politicians and operatives, a willingness from a hotel fortune heir to put his money to use, strength among less reliably blue voters and success despite early chatter about underperforming.

Read this article at CNN - Subscribers Only

The women leading the farmworker movement won’t let it be defined by Cesar Chavez

Monica Ramirez has spent much of her life spotlighting the pervasiveness of sexual violence against women farmworkers. She, like many in that movement, considered civil rights leader Cesar Chavez an icon. Since allegations came to light this week that Chavez sexually assaulted women and girls as young as 12 — including fellow movement leader Dolores Huerta — Ramirez and the larger farmworker community have been left reeling. Now, they’re trying to reconcile how this man who so many revered — whose name is on streets, schools and even a holiday — could perpetrate the violence that has plagued women farmworkers for decades. The community has been “shaken to its foundation,” said Ramirez, the founder of Justice for Migrant Women, a civil rights organization focusing on farmworker and migrant women. She and other leaders are now trying to push forward the farmworker movement and continue the work that many women — not just Chavez — spearheaded.

“The farmworker movement is a leaderful movement, and women have always been part of that leadership,” Ramirez said. But their work has often been made invisible, sometimes by the very men who stood beside them in building worker power for Latinx people in the United States. “In order to have a movement, in order to have a boycott, in order to organize any kind of action, it’s often women who are helping to organize the meetings, helping to bring their compañeras,” Ramirez said. Chavez was one of the most revered figures in the Latinx civil rights movement. The labor leader cofounded what became the United Farm Workers union alongside Huerta, and was most known for a series of strikes and protests that grew unionization efforts across California. After Chavez’s death in 1993, he was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor. In 2014, former President Barack Obama designated his birthday, March 31, as a federal holiday to celebrate his legacy, which many states had already marked. Now, many of those celebrations are being canceled or renamed after a bombshell, yearslong investigation published by The New York Times Wednesday found evidence of a pervasive pattern of sexual abuse perpetrated by Chavez. Two women said Chavez sexually abused them for years as girls, when the organizer was in his 40s and had already become a powerful global figure. Ana Murguia said Chavez first assaulted her when she was 13; Debra Rojas was 12. In the years following the abuse, both suffered from depression, panic attacks and substance abuse.

Read this article at The 19th - Subscribers Only

Lead Stories

Texas GOP lawmakers head to Washington for White House meeting

Close to 100Texas Republican state senators and representatives are scheduled to visit the White House Thursday for a meeting with members of President Donald Trump's cabinet. Texas House Speaker Dustin Burrows, of Lubbock, and state Rep. Jared Patterson, of Frisco, who chairs the House Local & Consent Calendars Committee, are among the lawmakers set to attend the meeting. “It is an honor for the Texas Republican delegation to be invited to the White House to engage directly on the priorities shaping our state and nation under President Trump’s leadership," Burrows said in a statement. "Texas continues to lead with policies that expand freedom, strengthen opportunity, and drive prosperity—playing a defining role in America’s success."

The lawmakers are set to meet with are Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Housing and Urban Development Secretary Scott Turner and Small Business Administrator Kelly Loeffler. The White House has not said what they are planning to discuss with theTexas legislators. But a White House spokesperson said such meetings are not unusual as the administration looks at how states are "advancing President Trump’s policies." Article continues below this ad The visit comes as the Trump administration is trying to find ways to reduce costs on American families ahead of a midterm election where Republicans are defending slim majorities in the House and Senate. In the aftermath of the U.S. attack on Iran earlier this month, oil prices have jumped more than 30%, driving upnot only fuel prices but the cost of everything from food to air travel. Also among those expected to attend the White House meeting Thursday is state Sen. Bryan Hughes, of Tyler, who visited the White House in December for a summit on "stopping illegal immigration, deregulating energy, making our streets safe, ending woke extremist policies like DEI, and growing our economy," he wrote in a post on X at the time. "Texas is leading the nation on most of these issues, and this event provided some great ideas that we’ll get started on as soon as we get home to Texas," he wrote.

Read this article at San Antonio Express-News - Subscribers Only

Two Islamic schools approved for Texas school choice program after judge's order

The Texas Comptroller's Office has approved two Islamic private schools from North Texas to take part in the state's taxpayer-funded school choice program. The move comes one day after Houston federal judge Alfred Bennett ordered the state to consider the schools' applications – a step the schools say Texas had previously refused to take. Records from the comptroller's office, which oversees the Texas Education Freedom Accounts program, show Excellence Academy, a private Islamic school in McKinney, has now been approved to participate. By Wednesday afternoon, the school appeared on the state's website of participating schools. Ehsan Sayed, a board member and graduate of Brighter Horizons Academy in Garland, told CBS News Texas on Wednesday afternoon that they had just learned the state had also approved their school.

"It's a big relief," Sayed said. "We were excited about the vouchers program when it was first even mentioned, years ago, by the governor, because it would really give our parents and families an opportunity to help with their private education." Sayed said his school has been around since 1989 and now has 1,200 students in its K-12 program. "It's a typical private school with all the subjects, all the wonderful recreational and after-school activities, with the addition of the religious curriculum and classes. And so, as you mentioned, we've been around for over 30 years, graduated hundreds. I want to say almost 800 alumni from the school to date. Just normal and everyday Texans." Sayed and other schools and parents sued the Texas Comptroller's Office. Their attorney, Maha Ghyas, told CBS News Texas that as many as 30 Islamic schools in Texas were blocked from taking part in the application process, which she said violated the Constitution and freedom of religion. "We believe it was on the basis of the Islamic faith that the school teaches."

Read this article at CBS News - Subscribers Only

Resignation of top intelligence official exposes bitter MAGA-influencer divide

When Joe Kent resigned his post this week as the White House’s chief counterterrorism officer over his opposition to President Trump’s Iran war he appeared to be out of touch with MAGA world. But Kent’s antipathy for Trump’s Iran strikes—for which he blamed Israel and its lobbyists—has chimed with one vital constituency: an isolationist faction of leading influencers and stars of the conservative podcast arena where so much MAGA discourse transpires. Chief among them is Tucker Carlson, who hailed Kent on a live podcast on Wednesday evening, saying he hoped his resignation would be the “beginning of the long overdue truth telling.” Carlson also echoed Kent’s assertion that Israel was driving U.S. foreign policy. The White House has maintained that the war has widespread backing.

For a president who has enjoyed the adulation of conservative podcasters and celebrated their electoral influence, the criticism might prove uncomfortable. Nor is Carlson the only one now clashing with the administration over the war and the U.S.’s once-sacrosanct relationship with Israel. Megyn Kelly, the onetime Fox News personality who now has her own online platform, has also questioned whether the war is “good for America”—as has Candace Owens, another popular influencer who supported Trump in 2024 and has become a vociferous critic of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. “I don’t know how he cannot see how his base, his actual base, is reacting right now,” Owens said of the president during an interview on Wednesday. Kelly and Owens are among the many dissenting podcasters who invoke the late Charlie Kirk, the conservative activist who was close to Trump and credited with bringing a younger generation into the MAGA fold. Kirk argued against going to war with Iran before he was assassinated last September. Their criticism has prompted aggressive pushback by a band of pro-Israel MAGA rivals.

Read this article at Wall Street Journal - Subscribers Only

Federal Reserve maintains rates and watches risks from Iran war

The Federal Reserve held rates steady for a second straight meeting, but Jerome H. Powell, the central bank’s chair, leaned into the uncertainty of the moment with the Iran war dragging on, energy prices surging and the labor market sending mixed signals. He repeatedly said it was too early to tell how the conflict would affect inflation and unemployment, although he acknowledged that the U.S. economy was still on relatively solid footing. According to projections released alongside the rate decision on Wednesday, most officials still expect at least one quarter-point cut this year even though they forecast a bumpier path to 2 percent inflation. Mr. Powell, downplaying how informative these forecasts are at the moment, noted that several policymakers said that if there were ever a meeting to skip releasing economic projections, “this would be a good one, because we just don’t know.”

The high degree of uncertainty from the war only adds to the complicated situation the Fed finds itself in as it contends with its goals of low, stable inflation and a healthy labor market now in tension with one another. “We are balancing these two goals in a situation where the risks to the labor market are to the downside, which would call for lower rates, and the risks to inflation are to the upside, which would call for higher rates, or not cutting anyway,” he said. Mr. Powell acknowledged that no policy action was off the table, and suggested there was still a path to cut so long as some progress was made on reducing inflation. “If we don’t see that progress, then you won’t see the rate cut,” he said. Mr. Powell, whose term as chair ends on May 15, provided some details about his future at the Fed. If no chair is confirmed before then, he said he would stay in the top job on a temporary basis. Though he can technically stay on as a governor until 2028, Mr. Powell said he would not leave the central bank so long as the Justice Department’s criminal investigation into renovations of the Fed’s headquarters continued. Mr. Powell declined to stay whether he would stay if the investigation was dropped.

Read this article at New York Times - Subscribers Only

State Stories

Texas-led Congressional ‘Sharia Free America’ caucus membership is surging

Republicans in Congress are engaging in increasingly extreme anti-Muslim rhetoric, with little pushback from their own leadership. If anything, more lawmakers are seeking to join the chorus. But some in the party are beginning to wonder, is a renewed crusade against “Sharia law” actually what Republican voters are demanding? Since its founding in December, the Sharia Free America Caucus has ballooned in size from its two co-founders to 55 members as of this week. More are expected to join. The membership includes Rep. Andy Ogles, who recently said Muslims “don’t belong in American society.” Rep. Randy Fine, who said he’d choose dogs over Muslims, is a member, too. The caucus drew early support from Sen. Tommy Tuberville, who recently shared a photo of New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani alongside one of the 9/11 terrorist attacks and wrote that “the enemy is inside the gates.”

Membership has grown in recent months to include more mainstream Republican lawmakers like Reps. Monica De La Cruz, who is in a vulnerable seat this midterm cycle, and Mike Kennedy, who isn’t known for having a loud online presence. The founders of the caucus said the group is dedicated “to counter the alarming rise of Sharia in the United States.” “A lot of people have a heightened awareness that, look, those that are that radicalized, that’s problematic,” Rep. Randy Weber of Texas, who told NOTUS he’s joining the caucus in the coming days, said. “We’re trying to make sure we’re drawing attention to it, and we’re trying to prevent it.” “Actually, maybe there’s a third thing that we’re gonna do: Punish those who perpetrate that kind of evil on us. Those three things,” Weber continued. “No Sharia law. ’Cause I don’t know how much you know about Sharia law, but they can be pretty rough on the ladies.” Some lawmakers focused on Sharia law, however, admit their attention is outpacing their constituents’ concern, framing the movement as being more about “prevention” than any issue at hand. While multiple lawmakers told NOTUS they do hear from constituents about it, few were able to point to a specific situation driving that outreach.

Read this article at NOTUS - Subscribers Only

Police: Former judge Baird crashed car, showed signs of intoxication

Veteran Austin defense attorney and former judge Charlie Baird was arrested Tuesday night on a charge of driving while intoxicated after allegedly causing a crash in South Austin, according to a police affidavit. Baird, 71, was booked into the Travis County Jail at 12:59 a.m. Wednesday and later released on a $3,000 bond, jail records show. According to the affidavit, Austin police pulled Baird over around 10:30 p.m. after he crashed his vehicle into another car while attempting to turn left onto Menchaca Road from Slaughter Lane. Investigators allege Baird failed to yield to a driver crossing Menchaca, causing the collision.

Before the crash, a 911 caller reported that a driver matching Baird’s description was traveling on the wrong side of the road, ran a red light and struck curbs, the affidavit states. The arresting officer wrote that Baird showed multiple signs of intoxication, including a strong odor of alcohol, watery and glassy eyes and difficulty standing without assistance. The officer also noted that Baird “had no recollection of being involved in a collision,” according to the affidavit. “I just had too much to drink at my crawfish eatery,” Baird said. “Everyone’s safe, no one got hurt and we’re just going to go through the process from here.” Baird said he had been at Crawfish ATX in South Austin before being pulled over. He said he declined to provide a breath sample and that officers obtained a blood sample to test his blood alcohol level. He said he has not received the results. Baird declined to comment on the affidavit’s allegations and said he has not decided whether he will represent himself. Baird is a longtime figure in Texas criminal law. He served on the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals from 1991 to 1999 and later as judge of the 299th Criminal District Court in Travis County from 2006 to 2010. Since leaving the bench, he has worked as a criminal defense attorney in Austin and has frequently appeared in local media as a legal analyst. As a trial judge, he was known for emphasizing rehabilitation and alternative sentencing and presided over proceedings that led to the posthumous exoneration of Tim Cole.

Read this article at Austin American-Statesman - Subscribers Only

Texas Education Agency asks judge to dismiss suit alleging violation of educators’ free speech rights

Attorneys for the Texas Education Agency asked a federal judge Monday to dismiss a lawsuit accusing the agency – and its top leader – of weaponizing their investigative authority to silence educators’ protected speech. The lawsuit was filed earlier this year by the Texas branch of the American Federation of Teachers, after the TEA launched investigations into hundreds of complaints accusing educators of making “inappropriate” social media posts about the shooting death of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk. In the latest filing, attorneys for the agency said a letter Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath sent to every superintendent in the state two days after Kirk’s death, instructing them to report educators who made “inappropriate” comments about Kirk, was taken out of context by the teachers’ union.

Morath said in the letter that the agency was made aware of some educators posting and sharing “reprehensible and inappropriate” content about Kirk, and told superintendents that any additional instances of “inappropriate content” should be reported to the agency. Morath later added educators found to have incited violence with their comments could face losing their teaching certification. Texas AFT said in its lawsuit that the investigations into educators were unlawful and that Morath’s letter had a “chilling effect” on its members’ political speech and presented a First Amendment concern. “[Morath] simply asked for referrals for investigation of anything the superintendents believed was not within the ethical boundaries for a public-school teacher of Texas’s children to publish to the world. Nothing more, nothing less,” Morath’s attorneys wrote in the filing. KXAN reached out to TEA for additional comments on the motion. A TEA spokesperson said “it can’t comment on pending litigation.”

Read this article at KXAN - Subscribers Only

The fight to stay home: How a Texas lawsuit could upend disability care

In his homeschool curriculum, 12-year-old Luke Lunday is learning about Section 504, a cornerstone of disability rights. Championed by disability rights activist Judy Heumann, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act is responsible for what’s known as the integration mandate, which requires that people with disabilities have access to services in their homes and communities, rather than an institution. It enables Luke, who has a rare genetic disorder and requires the daily aid of a nurse, to live at his Trophy Club home with his parents. A lawsuit filed by the state of Texas is challenging this cornerstone of disability rights; advocates say it could eliminate the kinds of services that people like Luke rely on for basic needs.

The end result of the suit, disability advocates say, is that people with disabilities could be at greater risk of being institutionalized, and might lose the right to receive services in their homes and communities. In its lawsuit, Texas v. Kennedy, Texas argues that updated rules for Section 504 are unconstitutional, and that the integration mandate “exceeds statutory authority and conflicts with federal law.” The state argues that the updated rule “creates a regime that is impossible for any State to fully comply with.” Disability rights groups throughout the country have voiced their opposition to the lawsuit. The Arc of Texas, which advocates for Texans with intellectual and developmental disabilities, sent a letter to Attorney General Ken Paxton in February asking him to withdraw from the suit. The Attorney General’s Office did not respond to a request for comment. “We have expectations about [people with disabilities] living in the community, being part of the community, having supports,” said Claudia Center, the legal director for the Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund. “This is an attack on that whole foundational understanding.”

Read this article at Fort Worth Star-Telegram - Subscribers Only

Texas officials are watching hotel demand closely as the World Cup kickoff approaches in three months.

Officials from the Arlington Convention and Visitors Bureau confirmed Wednesday that FIFA has dropped some rooms from its reserved hotel blocks ahead of the 2026 World Cup. Brent DeRaad, President & CEO of Arlington CVB, told NBC 5 he is still optimistic that the city's hotels "will fare well with FIFA groups and individual travelers." “Group room blocks are preferable due to a longer length of stay, but our hotels will adjust as needed to fill their rooms with FIFA fans," DeRaad said in a statement. Arlington is not the only host city seeing FIFA return room inventory.

Hoteliers in the San Francisco area reported "very lackluster" demand for reserved room blocks, according to Forbes. Demand for hotel room space is one of several indicators tourism officials in North Texas say they are tracking closely. Officials with Visit Dallas say they are seeing "encouraging demand" for hotels so far, with the average daily rate for rooms in June and July up 46% and 47%, respectively, compared to the same time in 2025. Additionally, international bookings into DFW International and Dallas Love Field are up more than 100%, officials say, reflecting that travelers are starting to plan for the World Cup. "We expect Dallas hotel performance to grow as the tournament approaches, as the majority of bookings will likely occur much closer to the event once teams, match-ups and ticket allocations are finalized," a spokesperson said. Arlington hosts its first of nine matches on June 14 at AT&T Stadium, renamed Dallas Stadium during the World Cup due to corporate sponsorship considerations. Tourism officials in Frisco say they are tracking demand closely too. A spokesperson for Visit Frisco said the officials there said two additional World Cup ticket allotments are still to come, and the city will learn which team will call FC Dallas stadium home as Team Base Camp on March 31. "We are optimistic that this will induce increased room demand," Kelly Walker with Visit Frisco said.

Read this article at NBC DFW - Subscribers Only

Was Texas key to the Live Nation-Ticketmaster illegal monopoly settlement?

The criticism began immediately after the Justice Department announced terms of the settlement it had reached with with entertainment behemoth Live Nation and its Ticketmaster subsidiary, which it had accused of illegally monopolizing the live entertainment market. From Democratic senators to industry insiders, detractors came down hard on the deal. The federal government since 2024 had been seeking the breakup of what it calls a monopoly but came up short. Instead, the agreement would make Live Nation divest its assets in 13 amphitheaters — including the Germania Insurance Amphitheater in Austin. It would allow any ticketing company to operate and ticket at those 13 venues, create a $281 million settlement fund for states and, most importantly, force the end of exclusive ticketing deals with hundreds of other venues.

But while the federal government may be satisfied, many states’ attorneys general are not and the nearly two-year-old trial resumed Monday in a Manhattan courtroom. About 30 states are continuing the fight on their own to break up the company from Ticketmaster, which controls 80% of major concert venues’ primary ticketing. Texas isn’t among them. Though it joined the Justice Department suit in 2024, it now is among a handful of states that have reportedly expressed concerns about the agreement but are assessing options. Ironically, Texas may have been where the DOJ sought to leverage its power to flip a key witness — and where things fell apart. For now, though, if federal Judge Arun Subramanian approves the deal with the Justice Department, it will enter into a consent decree that the court will enforce. At that point, Live Nation will have 30 days to divest its interests in the 13 amphitheaters and end exclusive deals for Ticketmaster for the hundreds of other venues nationwide. It would be the third time since 2010 that antitrust enforcers have entered into a deal with Live Nation over its conduct in the live events market.

Read this article at Austin American-Statesman - Subscribers Only

Gov. Abbott says Texas will stop observing César Chávez Day amid abuse allegations

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott says the state will no longer observe César Chávez Day, citing newly surfaced allegations of sexual abuse against the late labor leader. In a social media post on Wednesday, Abbott said he has directed state agency heads to stop observing the March 31 holiday, which honors the civil rights leader’s role in organizing farmworkers and advocating for labor protections. The holiday is recognized as a federal commemorative holiday and is observed in several states, including Texas. Abbott said he plans to work with lawmakers to remove it from state law “altogether” during the Texas Legislature’s next session in 2027.

“Reports of the horrific and widely acknowledged sexual assault allegations against Cesar Chavez rightfully dismantle the myth of this progressive hero and undermine the narrative that elevated Chavez as a figure worthy of official state celebration,” Abbott said Wednesday. The move follows recent reporting by The New York Times that outlined years of alleged sexual harassment and abuse tied to Chávez, including allegations involving two minors. The allegations have already sparked backlash across Texas, with organizers canceling César Chávez Day events in cities like Houston, San Antonio and Austin. Some advocates and officials have also raised the possibility of renaming streets across the state that bear his name.

Read this article at KERA - Subscribers Only

FEMA awards $65 million to Houston for public safety ahead of FIFA World Cup

Three weeks after the city's host committee for the FIFA World Cup signed onto a letter expressing concern about possible delays in funding, Houston was awarded $65 million in federal dollars this week to cover public safety initiatives tied to the massive sporting event. Mayor John Whitmire's office confirmed the award to Houston Public Media on Wednesday, when the Federal Emergency Management Agency announced $625 million in public safety grants for the 11 host cities across the U.S. A spokesperson for Whitmire said the approximately $65 million for Houston will be used for overtime, personnel, technology and equipment for the police and fire departments, as well as "regional law enforcement agencies working for the FIFA World Cup."

In late February, Politico reported host cities penned a letter to the White House's FIFA task force emphasizing "the importance of finalizing and resolving any administrative concerns regarding the distribution of FIFA World Cup security grants" amid the ongoing partial government shutdown. A spokesperson for Houston's host committee confirmed local officials signed onto the letter but otherwise did not immediately comment on the situation. A spokesperson for the White House FIFA task force said, in a statement to Houston Public Media, "Host cities have received guidance and are receiving support from FEMA throughout the reimbursement process." In a press release, FEMA senior official Karen Evans said, "The 2026 FIFA World Cup is expected to be the largest sporting event in history, so it must also be the most secure." According to Governor Greg Abbott's office — which will oversee the grant program — the state is slated to receive $116 million from FEMA, on top of a previously awarded $30 million to address threats posed by drones. The first match in Houston between Germany and Curaçao kicks off on June 14. On the same day, the Netherlands and Japan will face off in Dallas. The Houston Police Department expects about half a million people from the Netherlands, Germany, Portugal, Curaçao, Uzbekistan, Cabo Verde, Saudi Arabia and other countries to flood the city in June and July.

Read this article at Houston Public Media - Subscribers Only

Texas can begin enforcing drag ban amid ongoing lawsuit

A Texas law banning some drag performances in public spaces goes into effect today, though a lawsuit challenging it is ongoing. State lawmakers passed Senate Bill 12 in 2023, restricting “sexually oriented performances” in public spaces or in front of children. A federal court declared the law unconstitutional, but after a lengthy court battle an appeals court last month ruled the state can enforce it. Brian Klosterboer, an attorney with the ACLU of Texas, which brought the lawsuit, said the law's wording is confusing. “That is still unconstitutionally vague and problematic because what is considered sexual or erotic is often in the eye of the beholder,” he said. According to Klosterboer, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled family-friendly drag shows such as the Woodlands Pride and Abilene Pride Alliance – the two plaintiffs in the case – are not affected by SB12.

SB12 is not limited to drag performance but any performance that someone can deem sexual, he said. “From a Shakespeare play to the Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders, this could have a dramatic and chilling effect on the performing arts all across Texas,” Klosterboer said. The penalties for an individual performer can be a year of jail time with a fine up to $2,000. Venues that host these shows can face a fine up to $10,000. According to the ACLU of Texas, “criminal penalties also do not apply on public property if the performance is “at a time, in a place, and in a manner that could [not] reasonably be expected to be viewed by a child.” Klosterboer said many businesses are already canceling performances because of fear of inadvertently violating the law and that the fines could be catastrophic. Supporters of SB12, including Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, have said it’s a “major victory for Texas kids.” Critics say it portrays all drag performances as sexual or obscene. Klosterboer said the ACLU will continue the case in court. “We’re hopeful that we can get future court decisions that’ll protect even more types of drag shows,” Klosterboer said. “All of those very family-friendly, PG drag shows can still go forward.”

Read this article at KERA - Subscribers Only

Little news about Dallas Mavs, Stars in City Hall emails

Widespread speculation has tied Dallas City Hall’s future to new arena plans for the Dallas Mavericks, but a trove of city emails over the past year shows virtually no discussion linking the downtown site to the Mavericks or Stars. Instead, more than 5,000 pages of messages reviewed by The Dallas Morning News largely reflect routine outreach, event invites and one pointed warning from City Manager Kimberly Bizor Tolbert to the Stars hockey team over lease disputes. City leaders are weighing whether to repair, relocate or redevelop the aging I.M. Pei–designed City Hall, a decision with long-term implications for downtown. Consultants estimate $329 million in near-term repairs and more than $1 billion over 20 years to fully modernize the building. At the same time, the Mavericks are exploring sites for a new arena ahead of their 2031 lease expiration at the American Airlines Center, including downtown. That overlap has stirred talk that City Hall could become part of a larger redevelopment deal.

By signing up, you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. The emails contain no detailed exchanges about arena negotiations, no plans tying a new venue to the City Hall site and no evidence of internal talks about demolishing the building for that purpose. Representatives for Tolbert didn’t respond to a request for comment. The Mavs, in a statement, said the team has been “exploring a long-term arena solution in Dallas” and has met with the city manager’s office to “evaluate opportunities and gather information.” A Stars spokesman on Wednesday declined to comment. Sparse contact with the Mavericks: The only direct touchpoints between City Hall leadership and the Mavericks appear in two undated calendar-style emails referencing a meeting and a lunch between Tolbert and Mavericks CEO Rick Welts. Neither includes an agenda or follow-up. The meeting invite also was also sent to Mark Boekenheide, senior vice president of global real estate development for Las Vegas Sands Corp. The company is owned by the same family that owns the Dallas Mavericks. Another email from a Mavericks official to Tolbert last year says the city manager and Welts had a meeting set for May 8. But it’s unclear if that meeting happened or is one of the ones referenced in the email invites.

Read this article at Dallas Morning News - Subscribers Only

Dallas Mavericks CEO seeking 50 acres downtown for arena, but ‘time is not on our side’

Mavericks CEO Rick Welts says the team still wants a downtown arena, but with no land, no talks with City Hall and no design, the project remains in its earliest stages. The updates came during an interview with former Mayor Tom Leppert and Kyle Waldrep on the Intersections podcast released online this week. Among the highlights: Welts said the team needs roughly 50 acres, and “right now there aren’t 50 acres available downtown,” a limitation that effectively narrows the field for any urban site.

While he reiterated that downtown would be ideal, he emphasized it “is not the only place in Dallas we can build,” keeping options outside the core in play. The team previously has identified the former Valley View Mall site as a possibility. The Mavs lease on their current home, American Airlines Center, runs through 2031. For all the attention on a potential City Hall redevelopment, Welts said the Mavericks have not even begun substantive talks with the city. “We haven’t even been able to talk to the city about what that deal would look like,” he said, adding that the arena itself has not yet been designed, another sign the effort is still conceptual. Welts described a broader mixed-use vision for any 50-acre site, anchored by a new arena, team headquarters and a practice facility. Beyond that, he pointed to other elements tied to the development, including a training complex that “probably would include a medical facility run by a medical company you’re very familiar with.” He also cited interest from Live Nation in building a 4,000- to 5,000-seat venue and in having a four-star hotel connected to the arena so performers and players could move between the two without leaving the building. Welts said dense, urban locations deliver the greatest payoff, saying such projects “are incredibly successful in a dense environment” and can serve as a catalyst for surrounding development. But he also signaled urgency, noting “time is not on our side.” He said that while a downtown site like City Hall is “a very viable option,” the team has no control over it and cannot negotiate unless it becomes available.

Read this article at Dallas Morning News - Subscribers Only

The present danger of foster care in North Texas

After observing foster-kid caseworkers—often inadequately trained, overwhelmed, and tardy to proceedings—during about 40 court hearings in Dallas County this month, it was no surprise the state acknowledged in a court filing Monday that children are in peril. Since the nonprofit Empower won the contract in February 2023 to provide case management services for nine local counties, including Dallas and Collin, its systemic failures have created what the legal filing calls “an imminent danger to the children under conservatorship.” The Texas Department of Family and Protective Services cites the deaths of two children and hospitalization of a third as among the reasons for a court to appoint an outside receiver to oversee Empower’s work on behalf of kids living in foster care in those counties. According to the filing, the children who died were three weeks old and two months old; the age of the hospitalized juvenile was not disclosed, nor were the counties where the incidents occurred.

No cases of the magnitude detailed by the state came to light during my time in a Dallas County courtroom. But in at least half of the proceedings I watched, Empower fell short of meeting educational, medical, or therapeutic needs and of offering appropriate services to the children’s caregivers, whether that be a foster home or kinship placement. Small but pernicious problems emerged each day I sat in Judge Delia Gonzales’ Child Protection and Permanency Courtat the George Allen Courts Building in downtown Dallas. Gonzales’ questions to caseworkers revealed months-long gaps without action on vital items such as securing birth certificates or foster-home licenses. Her queries about the status of crucial paperwork led to prolonged silences as caseworkers and their supervisors searched their phones for records. Hearings often turned into tutorials delivered by the judge to Empower employees on how to process forms or where to secure benefits. Other times Gonzales and her staff tried to troubleshoot problems that should have been resolved before the court date. When all else failed, the judge issued formal orders to ensure a caseworker provided options for basic services that families had repeatedly asked the contractor to help with. She ruled several times that “no reasonable effort” had been made on a case, which can delay Empower’s access to federal funds.

Read this article at Lab Report Dallas - Subscribers Only

United Methodist Church and SMU resolve legal dispute

United Methodist leaders and Southern Methodist University announced an agreement March 18 that ends their long-simmering legal dispute over the university’s ties to the denomination. Under the agreement, SMU has filed amended and restated articles of incorporation that provide clarity around its governance — and most critically, preserve its historic and ongoing relationship with the denomination’s South Central Jurisdictional Conference. Both institutions also affirm their shared commitment to the university’s mission and jointly agree to dismiss pending litigation.

“The board of trustees, the university, and I are pleased we have reconciled with the SCJC, and we very much look forward to a collaborative and enhanced relationship into the future,” Jay C. Hartzell, SMU’s president, said in a joint statement with the jurisdictional conference. He began his tenure at SMU last year when the lawsuit was already pending. The Rev. Derrek Belase, chair of the South Central Jurisdictional Conference’s Mission Council, offered a similar sentiment. The Mission Council — consisting of bishops, other clergy and lay people — makes decisions about the operations of the jurisdiction between conference meetings. “I am grateful for the spirit of collaboration shown throughout this process, and especially for the thoughtful engagement of President (Jay) Hartzell and Provost Rachel Davis Mersey as we worked toward this agreement,” Belase said. “These conversations have not only helped us address important matters but have allowed us to begin imagining what the future of this relationship can look like.”

Read this article at United Methodist News - Subscribers Only

National Stories

Mullin's testimony is giving new life to DHS shutdown talks

Sen. Markwayne Mullin, President Donald Trump’s nominee to head the Department of Homeland Security, pledged at his confirmation hearing on Wednesday that DHS would revert to the practice of requiring judicial warrants for Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to enter homes and businesses under his leadership. That’s a change from outgoing DHS Secretary Kristi Noem’s tenure and fulfills a key demand from Democrats, who remain in talks with the White House to reopen DHS. The shutdown entered a second month with little sign of movement. Democrats continue to insist that reforms of ICE and Customs and Border Patrol be included in any funding bill to reopen the agency. “I have made it very clear to the staff,” Mullin said, “that a judicial warrant will be used to go into houses or to place of businesses unless we are pursuing someone who enters into that place. I have not minced words with that and I haven’t changed my opinion on that.”

But Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal, who asked Mullin for his stance on the use of warrants during the hearing, told NOTUS that change isn’t likely to be enough to convince his party to shift their position on the shutdown. Mullin and the White House would have to fulfill the rest of the Democrats’ demands, which include prohibiting ICE officers from wearing masks and an end to roving patrols, for Blumenthal to vote to fund the agency, he said. He added that he expected the rest of the caucus to agree. Any DHS funding bill needs 60 votes, mandating some bipartisan support. “It’s one of the reforms that we’re seeking but by no means all of the basic changes in policy and practices that are necessary for this agency to be lawful,” Blumenthal said, adding he “doesn’t know” if Mullin will help negotiations proceed at a faster pace. A senior White House official said that Mullin’s stance on judicial warrants is proof that he will lead the department differently than Noem, and the shift on the issue was blessed by the White House itself.

Read this article at NOTUS - Subscribers Only

Are College Republicans OK?

Over the past few weeks, a growing contingent of far-right campus Republicans have encountered pushback to their extremist views—including from other conservative students. Earlier this month, The Miami Herald exposed hundreds of racist, homophobic, sexist and antisemitic messages written by some college Republicans at Florida International University in a group chat they referred to as “Nazi Heaven.” The Florida Federation of College Republicans (FFCR)—a moderate organization affiliated with the National Federation of College Republicans—condemned the messages as “sickening, abhorrent and completely unacceptable” and said “such rhetoric does not reflect the values of the party.”

Last week, a group called the Georgetown University College Republicans wrote in a now-deleted post on X that “Muslims have no place in American society. Their religion is incompatible with our Christian Nation.” The university is investigating; leaders of the group said the post was made without their permission and “was inconsistent with the values of our organization.” And last Saturday, the University of Florida announced plans to deactivate the UF College Republicans at the request of the FFCR, which alerted university officials to a 2025 picture of a UF College Republicans member making a Nazi salute. In a statement, the university said it “emphatically supported its Jewish community and remains committed to preventing and addressing antisemitism and other forms of discrimination.” But the UF College Republicans wrote on X that because they’re not affiliated with the FFCR—they are instead a member of the separate College Republicans of America—the state organization doesn’t have the authority to deactivate the group, and they accused the entity of a pattern of lying “to silence christian [sic] conservative groups on campus.” On Monday, the UF College Republicans filed a lawsuit against the university, alleging that it violated the club’s First Amendment rights and engaged in “viewpoint discrimination” when it deactivated the club “to silence” and “chill its future speech.”

Read this article at Inside Higher Ed - Subscribers Only

Intel chief Gabbard declines to say if Iran posed an 'imminent threat' to U.S.

Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard declined to say if Iran’s nuclear program presented an “imminent threat,” deflecting questions from lawmakers about whether U.S. intelligence backed up White House statements on the rationale for starting the war. Gabbard’s congressional testimony Wednesday at an annual hearing on worldwide threats came a day after a top deputy, Joe Kent, resigned in protest over the Iran war, saying that the Tehran regime posed no imminent threat and the joint U.S.-Israeli air campaign was unnecessary. Kent and Gabbard, both military veterans, had found political common ground over their opposition to foreign military interventions and “regime change” wars like Iraq and Afghanistan. Gabbard has not publicly endorsed the decision to go to war, staying mostly silent on the U.S.-Israeli air campaign that began on Feb. 28.

Her appearance before the Senate Intelligence Committee took place as the war entered its third week, with no clear end in sight. The White House has offered shifting rationales for launching the offensive, and Iran has retaliated, essentially shutting down a critical passageway for commercial shipping. The conflict has triggered a spike in gas prices, creating political problems for President Donald Trump at home ahead of the congressional midterm elections in November. Gabbard's reluctance to offer a full-throated endorsement of the president’s decision to wage war on Iran, unlike other Cabinet officials, raised fresh questions about her standing in the administration. In her opening statement, Gabbard omitted language included in her written remarks saying that Iran had not tried to rebuild its uranium enrichment capability after U.S. air strikes in June. “Iran’s nuclear enrichment program was obliterated. There has been no efforts since then to try to rebuild their enrichment capability,” her prepared remarks read, according to her written statement posted on the Senate Intelligence Committee’s website. That assessment appeared to contradict Trump, who has said Iran was working to rebuild its nuclear program.

Read this article at NBC News - Subscribers Only

Detained pregnant people are entitled to full medical care. They say it’s not happening.

Amanda Isabel Fanego Cardoso was about 11 weeks pregnant when she was detained last September, then transferred between five immigration facilities over several months. Because her medical care was so limited, she said, it was only after her release this February that she learned she had developed potentially life threatening pregnancy-related conditions. Cecil Elvir-Quinonez was about eight weeks pregnant and still breastfeeding her 5-month-old when she was detained in January. She received emergency room care on January 6 after experiencing heavy bleeding and cramps in federal custody. The next day, she was transferred to a detention facility in Louisiana, where, though her bleeding continued, she received no follow-up medical attention or prenatal visits, according to her family. A pregnant woman in Minnesota was pulled over by immigration officials on her way to work in January. While detained, she developed abdominal pain, according to her lawyer. She, her husband and two children were sent to a Texas detention facility that did not have an OBGYN on staff.

Government detention standards say that when pregnant people are detained, they should receive comprehensive health care, including routine prenatal visits, specialized follow-ups if needed, prenatal vitamins and proper nutrition and exercise. But court documents and interviews with pregnant detainees and immigration attorneys across the country paint a different picture: Pregnant people in detention facilities say they are receiving sporadic medical visits and slow or limited medical care even when they experience bleeding, pain and other complications that could threaten their pregnancies. Some who have received medical visits say they were not given test results. Allegations of improper medical care for pregnant people are piling up. The 19th has spoken to two women who were pregnant while detained and four attorneys whose clients were pregnant while detained, and reviewed court records related to another similar case from last summer. A new report suggests that lack of medical care is endangering pregnant immigrants, who suffer complications in detention and do not receive timely treatment. For a report published Wednesday from two advocacy groups, the Women’s Refugee Commission and Physicians for Human Rights, researchers traveled to Honduras to spend a week interviewing recently deported people, including three women who were “visibly pregnant” and four who said they were recently postpartum.

Read this article at The 19th - Subscribers Only

FBI investigating Kent over allegedly leaking classified information

The FBI is investigating Joe Kent, the former director of the National Counterterrorism Center, who resigned earlier this week over opposition to the U.S. ongoing war with Iran, over allegedly leaking classified information, The Hill’s sister network confirmed on Wednesday. The agency’s probe was underway before Kent, a top aide to Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, announced his resignation from the post on Tuesday, arguing that Iran did not pose an imminent threat to the U.S. and urging President Trump to change course regarding the Middle East conflict, a source told NewsNation. The FBI declined to comment when reached by The Hill.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt denounced Kent’s comments around the decision to launch strikes against Iran on Feb. 28 as “insulting and laughable.” “I always thought he was a nice guy, but I always thought he was weak on security, very weak,” Trump told reporters on Tuesday. “When I read his statement I realized it’s a good thing that he’s out, because he said Iran is not a threat.” Semafor first reported on the existence of the probe into Kent, who on Wednesday sat for an interview with right-wing pundit Tucker Carlson, who similarly has voiced opposition to the U.S.’s war against Iran. “The Israelis drove the decision to take this action,” Kent told Carlson. “Which we knew would set off a series of events, meaning the Iranians would retaliate.” The president, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and other top U.S. officials have argued that hitting Iran was necessary because Tehran posed an imminent threat to American national security. “That just simply did not exist,” Kent told Carlson during the wide-ranging interview.

Read this article at The Hill - Subscribers Only

After Trump’s Interior Secretary transferred thousands of staff to his office, chaos followed, former workers say

One year into President Donald Trump’s second term, the Department of the Interior is in turmoil, hobbling many of the agencies overseeing the country’s public lands and waters. Not only has Interior lost some 11,000 employees, or more than 17 percent of its workforce, it is also reeling from a drastic centralization of personnel: Last May, almost 5,500 staff from the department’s component agencies were moved into the office of the Interior secretary, Doug Burgum. That shift has created a hostile work culture, made staff less efficient and broken important lines of communication, former Interior employees say. According to an Inside Climate News analysis of federal workforce data released by the Office of Personnel Management, almost 1,800 workers have left Burgum’s office since the reorganization—the vast majority opting to retire or quit.

As a whole, the federal workforce shrank by about 12 percent in the first year of the second Trump administration. Some parts of the government, such as the Environmental Protection Agency, which shed 24 percent of its employees, have suffered bigger losses. But Burgum’s reorganization is unique, with wide ripple effects. Under an order signed on April 17, Burgum confirmed plans to absorb administrative staff from Interior’s component agencies, including workers responsible for human resources, training, information technology, contracting and communications. The Inside Climate News analysis shows sudden staff losses in the next month at agencies including the Bureau of Reclamation; the U.S. Geological Survey; the Bureau of Land Management; the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement; and the Fish and Wildlife Service that correspond to the swelling of Burgum’s own staff. The stated goal was efficiency. “This unification effort will accelerate technology advancements and enhance the Department’s ability to deliver on our core mission,” Burgum’s order said. But Interior staff reorganized into Burgum’s office who later left say they encountered a hostile, inefficient work culture designed to push people out. Russell Vought, the powerful director of the federal Office of Management and Budget, said in a private speech between Trump’s two terms that “we want the bureaucrats to be traumatically affected” by going to work, ProPublica reported in 2024.

Read this article at Inside Climate News - Subscribers Only

Lead Stories

No Trump endorsement for Cornyn or Paxton in Texas Senate race as deadline passes

President Trump let a key filing deadline pass on Tuesday without endorsing a candidate in Texas’ Senate race, locking in a high-stakes Republican runoff between the incumbent, John Cornyn, and the state’s attorney general, Ken Paxton. Mr. Trump could still offer an endorsement at any time, but his decision not to before the deadline for candidates to formally drop out of the race means both Mr. Cornyn and Mr. Paxton will be on the next ballot even if one of them withdraws at a later date. It also means both will continue to duke it out in what has already been a highly personal, historically expensive Senate race. Who the president endorses, and when he makes that announcement, may now depend on the fate of the SAVE America Act, the sweeping voter ID bill being considered by the Senate. Mr. Trump is not expected to make a call in the race before debate on the bill is over.

The runoff election is May 26. The deadline for Republican candidates to remove their names from the runoff ballot was Tuesday at 5 p.m. Central time. As of Tuesday evening, both Mr. Cornyn and Mr. Paxton remained on the ballot, their campaigns said. After neither secured a majority in the primary election on March 3, Mr. Cornyn and Mr. Paxton vied for the president’s approval. The day after the primary election, the president pledged to endorse in the race “soon.” News reports surfaced that he was likely to throw his support to Mr. Cornyn, but so far nothing has swayed Mr. Trump to back either man officially. Mr. Trump spent Tuesday railing against NATO allies and calling for the passage of the SAVE America Act on social media. At the White House, he participated in St. Patrick’s Day celebrations. He did not weigh in publicly on the Senate race.

Read this article at New York Times - Subscribers Only

New NRCC report: The Latino vote could crush Republicans, and a House win goes through Texas.

House Republicans are very aware that the same Latino voters who propelled the GOP to the majority in 2024 could desert them this fall. Swing districts with large Latino populations in Texas, Florida, Arizona and California will determine control of the House. Republicans made serious inroads last cycle with these voters, especially among Hispanic men. GOP candidates were buoyed by cost-of-living concerns and the appeal of President Donald Trump on the ballot. But the Latino voting bloc swings widely between the two parties, and the 2024 election feels like a lifetime ago. Trump is implementing mass deportations targeting many Hispanic communities, prices remain stubbornly high and the job market is showing weakness.

Now, some in the GOP are growing nervous that these same voters could revert back to Democrats — or just stay home. Recent elections have given Democrats hope, too. In November, Democratic candidates won the New Jersey and Virginia gubernatorial elections, two states with significant Latino populations. “Our Hispanic voters didn’t show up,” NRCC Chair Richard Hudson acknowledged in an interview during the House GOP retreat last week. Speaker Mike Johnson was even more blunt: “We got a little hiccup with some of the Hispanic, Latino voters because some of the immigration enforcement was viewed to be overzealous.” Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar (R-Fla.) has been loudly sounding the alarm that Trump’s deportation regime is unpopular among her majority-Latino Miami-area seat. Plus, Democrats flipped the Miami mayor’s seat for the first time since 1997. More recently, robust turnout from Latinos in the Texas Senate Democratic primary and a special election upset excited Democrats. Those Texas results even led House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries to brag that Republicans went too far and ended up drawing a “dummymander” in the Lone Star State. Republicans take notice. At a House GOP Conference meeting on Tuesday, Hudson presented polling with a concerning message — Hispanic voters weren’t aware of the One Big Beautiful Bill, Republicans’ most important legislative achievement.

Read this article at Punchbowl News - Subscribers Only

Brendan Carr’s ‘equal time’ curveball crashes the midterms

The midterm elections that could upend the final years of Donald Trump’s presidency face a new complication — his Federal Communications Commission chair. Brendan Carr’s attempt to resurrect enforcement of the FCC’s nearly century-old “equal time” rule has already set off a chain reaction that kept Stephen Colbert’s interview with Texas Democrat James Talarico off the air in February. But the rule’s impact on elections could be even more sweeping, media law experts and campaign veterans of both parties told POLITICO, after Carr warned of potential penalties for television stations that fail to be even-handed in offering airtime to political candidates. One result, some fear, could be the virtual banishing of candidate interviews from broadcast TV talk shows.

Democrats said they expect their candidates to take the immediate brunt if the FCC’s pressure causes TV programs to avoid interviews that could cause trouble. Some Republicans, meanwhile, worry that a future Democratic-led FCC will turn the same rules against one of the GOP’s longtime media bastions: conservative talk radio. For Democrats, concerns about Carr’s tactics are heightened by his openly combative pro-Trump persona, history of launching investigations of liberal-leaning programs and repeated threats to pull the licenses of outlets he accuses of “distorting” the news — a threat he revived over the weekend while reposting Trump’s complaints about news coverage of the war in Iran. Carr’s efforts have gotten praise from Trump, who wrote Sunday night that he was “thrilled” to see his FCC chair “looking at the licenses of some of these Corrupt and Highly Unpatriotic ‘News’ Organizations.” While Carr’s remarks on war coverage were driving headlines last weekend, his efforts to reimpose enforcement of the commission’s equal time rules threaten to have a more tangible effect on the interviews that millions of viewers see during the midterm campaign.

Read this article at Politico - Subscribers Only

State Stories

Federal judge extends school voucher application window for Texas families

Texas parents have an additional two weeks to apply for the state’s new school voucher program after a federal judge in Houston extended the application deadline on Tuesday just hours before the window was set to close. The extension comes after no Islamic schools in Texas were approved for the program while thousands of others schools have been. U.S. District Judge Alfred Bennett called that fact “troubling” before issuing a temporary restraining order to extend the window. The new deadline to apply for the state voucher program is March 31. Several Islamic schools in Texas are suing Comptroller Kelly Hancock, claiming the state blocked Islamic schools from the $1 billion private school voucher program because of their religion.

Eric Hudson, an attorney for those suing the state, said Tuesday that the goal of his clients was to ensure the appliction window did not block parents from the Texas Education Freedom Accounts as a lottery system decides which families receive a school voucher. Texas lawmakers started the voucher program last year to assist families in paying for private and religious education. Households can receive up to $2,000 for a homeschooled student, $10,500 for private school, and $30,000 for students who have a disability. More than 200,000 Texas families have applied for the vouchers, as of Tuesday. The lottery system will decide how to spread the funds, but will prioritize families who classify as low income. Earlier this year, the Council on American-Islamic Relations’ Texas chapter sent a letter to the Comptroller and called on the community to urge Attorney General Ken Paxton to end the exclusion of Muslim families in the school voucher program. On Tuesday, CAIR-Texas issued a statement welcoming Bennett’s decision to extend the deadline by two weeks, saying there is serious concern about the exlusion of Islamic schools. “We welcome the court’s decision to extend the application deadline and recognize the serious concerns raised about the exlusion of Islamic schools from Texas’ voucher program,” the statement reads. “All families, regardless of their faith, deserve equal access to educational opportunities supported by public programs.”

Read this article at Fort Worth Star-Telegram - Subscribers Only

Groups reckon with sex abuse allegations against labor icon César Chávez

The family of the late César Chávez, a farmworker organizer who became a national civil rights icon, is at the center of a mounting crisis involving allegations that he engaged in sexual relationships with women and at least one minor, according to statements and interviews with a former United Farm Workers insider and a historian who has written about the movement. The fallout has already led to the cancellation of public marches across the country and raised new questions about his public record. On Tuesday, two organizations connected to his legacy — the César Chávez Foundation and the United Farm Workers — both released statements acknowledging allegations involving women and minors.

The César Chávez Foundation said it has become aware of “disturbing allegations” that Chávez engaged in inappropriate sexual behavior with women and minors during his time leading the United Farm Workers. “We are deeply shocked and saddened by what we are hearing,” the foundation said in the statement. In a separate statement, the United Farm Workers said it had learned of “deeply troubling allegations” involving its co-founder, including claims of abuse of women and minors. The union said it has no firsthand knowledge of the allegations but called them “serious enough” to take “urgent steps” to learn more and to create a confidential, independent channel for potential victims to come forward. “Allegations that very young women or girls may have been victimized are crushing,” the statement said.

Read this article at San Antonio Express-News - Subscribers Only

U.S. House hopeful Brandon Herrera backs out of San Antonio radio show at last minute

Brandon Herrera, a Republican running for a San Antonio U.S. House district, pulled out of a live interview on Texas Public Radio on Monday, leaving host David Martin Davies high and dry. In a clip tweeted out moments before the Davies’ radio show The Source was set to begin, the host informed listeners that Herrera’s campaign manager said the candidate was unavailable due to a scheduling conflict. The last-minute cancelation comes just three days after media outlets including MeidasTouch News and Courier Texas reported on an old clip of Herrera, a YouTube gun influencer known to fans as the “AK Guy,” promoting a Confederate heritage group. “His campaign manager said something came up and they had to drop out,” Davies said in his online announcement about the cancelation. “We will try to reschedule and see if they will work with us on that.”

Herrera’s campaign didn’t immediately respond to the Current’s request for comment about the withdrawal. In the resurfaced promotional clip that began circling over the weekend, a young Herrera talks up the Confederate heritage group Fayetteville Arsenal Camp 168, a chapter of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, a hereditary group set up to honor Confederate soldiers and preserve Confederate memorials. “Once a year, we actually have what we call our ‘Annual Yankee Shoot,’ where we go out back with black powder rifles — some that were actually in the war — and we go out and shoot up posters of our favorite Yankees,” Herrera, who’s wearing a white polo shirt emblazoned with an emblem of the Confederate battle flag, says in the decades-old clip. Democrat Katy Padilla Stout, an attorney and former school teacher running against Herrera to represent Texas’ 23rd Congressional District, slammed her rival on social media over the video. She and Herrera are vying to represent a district that includes a western part of San Antonio and a long stretch of the Texas-Mexico border. “Honoring those who fought to preserve slavery is just another example of why Brandon Herrera has no business in the U.S. Congress,” Stout tweeted. “These are not the values of the people of TX23.”

Read this article at San Antonio Current - Subscribers Only

Meteorologist Elliot Wilson no longer employed at KSAT-TV after assault charge

San Antonio’s KSAT-TV has parted ways with a staff meteorologist charged with assault, according to details the station’s website. Elliot Wilson — whom KSAT describes in a news story about his arrest as a “former” meteorologist at the station — was picked up Thursday after Bexar County Sheriff’s deputies said he was involved in an altercation with a woman. Deputies responded to a call from a home Thursday, where the woman told deputies that Wilson struck her when he was driving her to a medical appointment, KSAT reports, citing information from the sheriff’s office. The two were reportedly in a vehicle on Loop 410 when they got into an argument.

The woman was taken to a hospital, where she was diagnosed with a broken nose, according the station. Deputies arrested Wilson the same day, KSAT reports. He now faces a charge of assault — bodily injury to a family member, according to the story, again citing the sheriff’s office. The case remains under investigation. In its report, KSAT didn’t specify whether Wilson quit or was fired. However, the story was updated Saturday to reflect that he’s no longer employed there. Wilson joined KSAT late last year. He worked as a meteorologist in Texas and Oklahoma TV markets, including Waco, before landing in San Antonio, according to a story the station did on his arrival.

Read this article at San Antonio Current - Subscribers Only

Judge grants indigency motion for Arredondo in Uvalde case

A judge has granted a motion of indigency for former Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District police chief Pete Arredondo in his criminal case tied to the Robb Elementary School shooting. The order allows Arredondo to use public funds to support his legal defense. Court records show his monthly income exceeds expenses by a few hundred dollars, meeting local indigency guidelines. Arredondo faces 10 counts of abandoning or endangering a child in connection with the May 2022 shooting that left 19 children and two teachers dead. He has denied wrongdoing. More than 300 officers from multiple agencies responded to the scene, but waited more than an hour before confronting the gunman. The response has been widely scrutinized in investigations and public reports.

Arredondo is now the only officer still facing criminal charges related to the law enforcement response. Former Uvalde police officer Adrian Gonzales, who was also charged, was acquitted by a Nueces County jury in January. The indigency order was issued by presiding Judge Sid Harle. In a separate order, Harle has paused Arredondo’s case while a federal legal dispute plays out over whether U.S. Border Patrol agents who responded to the shooting can be required to testify. That dispute centers on questions of federal authority and whether those agents can be compelled to appear in a state criminal case. No trial date has been set.

Read this article at Texas Public Radio - Subscribers Only

Crews remain on the scene Tuesday morning after massive fire in Downtown Gatesville

Dozens of fire crews battled a major fire on the west side of the Square in downtown Gatesville on Monday night, according to the Gatesville Police Department. As of Tuesday evening, U.S. Highway 84 was reopened and traffic returned to normal. Three minor injuries have been reported in firefighters due to smoke inhalation, according to Gatesville City Manager Brad Hunt.

Hunt confirmed officials received the call at 6:50 p.m. on Monday. The Gatesville Volunteer Fire Department responded immediately and called for additional assistance after the fire broke out at the Freedom Bail Bonds building, Hunt said. “They’ve done an amazing job to keep people safe,” Hunt said. Gatesville Police Chief Jeff Clark said U.S. Route 84, also known as Main Street, would be closed through downtown and had been expected to remain closed overnight Monday and potentially into the following day due to the instability of buildings along the route. Clark said the road would reopen once the buildings are safe enough for traffic to pass through. Traffic was being diverted at Lutterloh on the east side and Levita Road on the west side, according to the Gatesville Police Department. Drivers and residents were urged to avoid the downtown area. Four businesses have allegedly been affected: Gatesville Messenger, Freedom Bail Bonds, Davidson Chiropractic and Leaird’s Furniture. The structures involved are believed to date to around 1900.

Read this article at KWTX - Subscribers Only

'All of a sudden it's a $4,000 bill': Magnolia homeowners hit with skyrocketing gas bills; gas company explains why

Residents in a Montgomery County neighborhood say their natural gas bills have surged to unusually high levels this winter, leaving many frustrated and searching for answers. One Magnolia family reported being billed nearly $4,700 in February -- a charge they say is about 15 times higher than what they typically pay. “Last month, we received our bill, and it was for $4,669.48, and that is when I said absolutely not,” said Abbe Roberts, a homeowner who contacted KHOU 11 for help. Roberts said her household usually pays between $90 and $300 per month. She believes the spike was caused by a faulty meter that has since been replaced, but said the bill has not yet been adjusted. “Something didn’t alert them in their system,” she said. “All of a sudden, it’s a $4,000 bill. Maybe we should look into that. Nothing.”

Other residents in the area report similar increases. One family said their bill rose from about $50 in November to $618 this month. Another homeowner, Linda Schmidt, said her typical $40 bill climbed to $180. “We’re just seeking answers,” Schmidt said. “What’s going on? Why is our bill so outrageous?” The neighborhood is served by Pines Gas, which residents say is their only provider. In a statement, the company attributed the higher bills to a winter storm in late January that drove up natural gas prices. The company said those costs were reflected in February and March billing cycles and are expected to return to normal. Residents say that the explanation does not fully account for the size of the increases. Several have filed complaints with the Railroad Commission of Texas, which oversees natural gas utilities in the state. “They just want to ignore it and hope that we go away,” Roberts said. “That’s not what’s happening.” As bills remain unresolved, some residents say they are weighing difficult decisions. “I’m even thinking, am I going to have to move?” Schmidt said.

Read this article at KHOU - Subscribers Only

Prosecutors rest their money laundering case against Fort Bend County Judge KP George

After more than three days of presenting their case, prosecutors rested their felony money laundering case against Fort Bend County Judge KP George. On Monday, special prosecutor Brian Wice told ABC13 that prosecutors planned to call one more witness. That person was District Attorney Fraud Examiner Betty Chi. When Chi finished testifying, prosecutors said they had one more witness to call on Tuesday before resting their case, but didn't reveal who it was. On Tuesday morning, they told the judge they planned to call an officer to translate a video. Before jurors were brought into the courtroom, prosecutors said George posted a video to social media where he spoke in Malayalam, his native language from India. In the video, prosecutors told Judge Maggie Jaramillo that George talked about campaign money he loaned himself.

Prosecutors said the amount he said in the video was $46,500. That's important, they said, because they argue that George stole $46,500 from his campaign in 2019. Prosecutors said they couldn't find a court reporter in the Richmond area to translate the video. They found an officer, who they said spoke Malayalam and could translate the video to the jury. Defense attorneys immediately asked the judge to block the witness. George's team told the judge that they weren't aware of this video or the witness until Tuesday. "It's a complete surprise," defense attorney David Medina shouted. "It's a complete ambush." Jaramillo grew frustrated with both sides, told them to stop fighting, and left the courtroom. When Jaramillo returned, she said the witness couldn't be called, and if prosecutors could find a court translator, they could be called as a rebuttal witness. With that, prosecutors rested their case.

Read this article at ABC 13 - Subscribers Only

Microsoft is pouring $52M into tiny Texas Hill Country town

On March 9, Microsoft registered two new filings with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR) to build additional data center sites on County Road 381 in Rio Medina, TX 78253. The company will spend $26 million on each new site. Though all TDLR filing details are subject to change, construction on the Microsoft SAT93 and Microsoft SAT94 data sites will begin within one month of each other between March and April of 2027, respectively.

Data centers are popping up all over Texas, especially around the Hill Country and San Antonio areas. A recent report analyzing the North American industry sector's growth in 2025 claims that data center projects, like Microsoft's in Medina County, are preparing the Lone Star State to outpace its competitors. In fact, the report suggests that Texas is on track to become the world’s largest data center market by 2030. The report from JLL, a leading global commercial real estate and investment management company, states that the growth is "driven by hyperscale and AI demand" and that Texas, though outside of traditional markets, is building more data centers. More For YouLayoffs feared as TX tech giant secures $2.1B for restructuringThe company is ramping up spending on artificial intelligence tools and data center infrastructure.Start of SXSW has TX hospitality workers feeling like 'The Bear'Some folks forgot the annual festival was even happening.Possible massive Meta layoffs could slam Texas tech workersThis wouldn't be the first time Meta layoffs hit Texas.Texans wait 3 hours in line to shop at new $62M CostcoHundreds of eager residents lined up early Wednesday morning to shop.New details revealed on $300B refinery planned for Texas coastAs the Strait of Hormuz shuts down amid war in Iran, President Trump announces America's first new oil refinery in decades.

Read this article at MySA - Subscribers Only

Gov. Abbott launches Texas Jobs Council to address skilled worker shortage

Texas is launching a new effort to strengthen the state's workforce pipeline and prepare workers to fill highly skilled jobs. Governor Greg Abbott announced the launch of the Texas Jobs Council at an event at the Governor's mansion on Monday afternoon. Abbott was joined by Plumbers Local Union 68 Business Manager Wayne Lord, Texas Association of Business Interim President Megan Mauro and other business and labor leaders. “For us to fulfill our destiny, for us to maintain our dominance,” Abbott said. “Business and labor are working together to meet the high demand for high-skilled labor positions like electricians, pipefitters, welders, plumbers, truckers, and a whole lot more.”

Earlier this month, Abbott celebrated Texas winning Site Selection magazine's Governor's Cup as the nation’s top-performing state in attracting jobs, businesses, and expansion projects for the 14th year in a row. According to the Governor’s Office, Texas attracted more than 1,400 business location and expansion projects in 2025, representing more than $75 billion in capital investment and creating more than 42,000 new jobs. “Texas right now is the hottest state in America for business and labor opportunity, as we're ranked number one for the most new jobs, whether it be over the past year or since COVID or since I was elected Governor,” Abbott said. “We're ranked number one for business expansion and capital investment. The number one business climate, number one for things like exports, technology and semiconductor.” Abbott spoke about the need to fill trade jobs and how meeting the growing need has become a growing challenge statewide. Texas has a shortage of workers in construction, manufacturing and other skilled trades.

Read this article at KVUE - Subscribers Only

National Stories

Joe Kent, a top counterterrorism official for the Trump Administration, resigns, citing Iran War

One of the United States’ top counterterrorism officials resigned on Tuesday, citing his opposition to the war in Iran and what he said was Israel’s influence over the Trump administration’s policies, a sign of emerging divisions in the Republican coalition. The official, Joe Kent, is the first senior member of the administration to quit over the war. The seemingly open-ended nature of the U.S.-Israeli war in Iran has created strong divisions among Mr. Trump’s supporters. An anti-interventionist wing of the coalition, which supported President Trump because of his criticism of long overseas conflicts, has quickly become uneasy with the war, which has lasted 18 days with no immediate sign of ending.

“I cannot in good conscience support the ongoing war in Iran,” Mr. Kent, the director of the National Counterterrorism Center, wrote in a letter to Mr. Trump. “Iran posed no imminent threat to our nation, and it is clear that we started this war due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby.” Mr. Kent’s resignation came as a surprise. The top ranks of Mr. Trump’s administration have been remarkably stable, and no senior leader has quit while laying out a sharp policy difference with the president. Unsurprisingly, Mr. Kent’s stance earned a sharp rebuke from Mr. Trump. “I always thought he was a nice guy, but I always thought he was weak on security,” Mr. Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Tuesday. “It’s a good thing that he’s out because he said Iran was not a threat.” Mr. Kent’s resignation and Mr. Trump’s comments put Tulsi Gabbard, the director of national intelligence and Mr. Kent’s boss, in an awkward position. She backed the president, but with a carefully worded statement posted on social media that did not mention Mr. Kent or directly rebuff his comments.

Read this article at New York Times - Subscribers Only

Some small US airports may have to shut due to TSA absences, official says

Some small U.S. airports may have to shut due to a shortage of ?security screeners if a government funding impasse continues, a senior Trump administration ?official said on Tuesday.The Department of Homeland Security said overall absences among Transportation Security Administration airport security officers was 10.2% on Monday, close to the 10.1% who failed to show up for ?duty on Sunday. But the absenteeism rate was much higher at some major ?airports on Monday including 30% at New York's JFK, 37% ?at Atlanta, 35% at Houston Hobby and 39% at New Orleans, DHS ?said.

50,000 TSA officers have been forced to work without pay for the ?last month due to the budget standoff."As the weeks continue, if this continues, it's not hyperbole to suggest that we may have to quite literally shut down airports - particularly smaller ?ones if callout rates go up," Acting Deputy TSA Administrator Adam Stahl ?told Fox News's "Fox and Friends."Large airports may be able to continue security operations by closing ?all ?but a few checkpoints, but small airports with a single checkpoint could be unable to staff it with absenteeism at the same rates. House Speaker Mike Johnson on Tuesday said airports "are reaching a breaking point." Typically, under 2% of TSA workers ?call in sick ?or do not ?report to work, DHS said. DHS said 366 TSA officers have quit their jobs.Last fall, a 43-day government shutdown led to ?widespread flight disruptions, and the FAA ordered a 10% flight cut ?at major ?airports. Airlines, which expect a record-breaking spring travel season, have criticized the impasse, and airline CEOs complained on Sunday that air travel was again a "political football."DHS funding lapsed on February ?13 after ?Congress failed to reach a deal on immigration ?enforcement reforms demanded by Democrats. Senators from both parties failed Thursday in competing efforts to fund the ?TSA.

Read this article at Reuters - Subscribers Only

GOP tempers flare over how to pass SAVE America Act

Tempers are starting to boil within the Senate Republican Conference as disagreements arise over how to handle President Trump’s No. 1 legislative priority, the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE America) Act, which Trump wants to push through the Senate despite staunch Democratic opposition. Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah), a leading proponent of the bill, angered some colleagues this week by suggesting on social media that Republican senators who don’t want to force Democrats to wage a “talking filibuster” to oppose the legislation should be ousted from the Senate. “If your senators don’t support using the talking filibuster to pass the SAVE America Act, you might need to replace them,” Lee posted on the social platform X. That ticked off some Republican senators, according to Senate GOP sources.

One Republican senator said the response to Lee’s post was “not very favorable.” The squabble reflects rising tensions over how to handle the bill amid intense pressure from Trump to add language to ban no-excuse mail-in voting and to ram it through the chamber even though no Democrats support it. The Senate voted 51-48 to advance the measure, despite the opposition of Sen. Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), the only Republican to vote “no.” Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), who said last week he would vote against proceeding with the bill because he didn’t see a viable endgame for passing the legislation, missed Tuesday’s vote because of a travel delay. Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) voted to begin debate on the legislation even though he has told GOP colleagues privately that he doesn’t support the measure. He voted to start the debate as a courtesy to the Senate GOP leadership. Republicans mainly agree on the core elements of the House-passed bill, such as the requirements that people registering to vote need to show documented proof of citizenship to register and that people need to show proper identification to vote.

Read this article at The Hill - Subscribers Only

U.S.P.S. Postmaster says service will be ‘out of cash’ in under a year

David Steiner, the postmaster general, said at a hearing in Washington on Tuesday that the U.S. Postal Service would be “out of cash in less than 12 months” unless Congress allows it to borrow more and charge more for postage. While lawmakers from both parties vowed to resolve the Postal Service’s budgetary bind, they appeared to be at odds with Mr. Steiner about how best to do so. “In about a year from now, the Postal Service would be unable to deliver the mail if we continue the status quo,” Mr. Steiner told lawmakers at the hearing before the Oversight Subcommittee on Government Operations, which oversees the independent service. In fiscal years 2024 and 2025, the agency incurred net losses of $9.5 billion and $9 billion. From Oct. 1 to Dec. 31, 2025 — the first quarter of fiscal year 2026 — it lost nearly $1.3 billion.

Mr. Steiner, a former FedEx board member who took over as head of the Postal Service last year, asked lawmakers to loosen regulations so the agency could charge more for postage, and for the ability to borrow more money. After successive years with net losses, the Postal Service, which is meant to be self-sufficient, is up against a federally mandated borrowing limit. “One easy action, increasing our borrowing authority, buys us time,” he said. “Time that we can use to best determine what the Postal Service should do to best serve the American public.” Several of the lawmakers, meanwhile, focused their questions on waste and inefficiencies, asserting that the service bore responsibility for turning around its financial situation. “I am very concerned with the caliber of service that we are getting and with the fact that the post office continues to come to us for more money,” said Representative Virginia Foxx, Republican of North Carolina.

Read this article at New York Times - Subscribers Only

Juliana Stratton ppsets Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi to win Illinois Senate primary

Illinois Lieutenant Governor Juliana Stratton is projected to be the Democratic nominee for Senate in Illinois after defeating Reps. Raja Krishnamoorthi and Robin Kelly, among others, on Tuesday night. Stratton prevailed in a rare open primary in the state after Sen. Dick Durbin, the No. 2 Democrat in the Senate, announced his retirement following nearly 30 years in the upper chamber. A Republican hasn’t won statewide in Illinois in 12 years, priming Stratton to take the spot after November’s general election. “We did it. We showed what’s possible when you listen to the people and give the people what they want,” Stratton told supporters after her victory. “What’s possible when you stay true to your values, fight for what you believe in, and never take anything for granted.” Stratton also pledged to support all Illinoisans — including those who did not vote for her — in Washington.

“I’d like to thank each and every Illinoisan who showed up to participate in this election and refused to be silenced no matter who you cast your ballot for,” she continued. “Tonight’s message is clear. We’re ready to take our democracy back into our own hands.” Stratton’s victory was a major upset, demonstrating that endorsements and statewide name ID could overpower Krishnamoorthi’s massive war chest. He raised $30 million for his bid (including $20 million transferred from his U.S. House account). Krishnamoorthi had emerged early as the frontrunner, opening with early polling advantages and airing television ads months before his competitors. “Now we must come together as Democrats and as Americans to make sure that we return to the principles that made us a beacon of freedom and opportunity for the world,” Krishnamoorthi said after conceding the race to Stratton on Tuesday. “I will have almost a year remaining in the best job I’ve ever had representing the good people of Illinois’ 8th Congressional District, and I pledge to you tonight that I will continue to do that job to the best of my ability to fight for the kind of country we all still believe in,” he continued.

Read this article at NOTUS - Subscribers Only

Jason Bordoff and Spencer Dale: Making the U.S. more resilient to oil price shocks

(By Jason Bordoff, a columnist at Foreign Policy and the founding director of the Center on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs, and Spencer Dale, a visiting professor in practice at the London School of Economics and Political Science and a nonresident fellow at the Center on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs.) The oil shock triggered by the crisis in the Persian Gulf has pushed crude above $100 per barrel, reviving familiar fears of economic turmoil in the United States driven by surging gasoline and diesel prices. Political leaders have long lamented high oil prices, yet President Donald Trump celebrated the price spike last week, arguing that the “United States is the largest oil producer in the world, by far, so when oil prices go up, we make a lot of money.” His embrace of higher oil prices marks a sharp departure from his past pledges to lower costs at the pump. Trump has long decried high oil prices, and Energy Secretary Chris Wright has argued that elevated prices may benefit a few oil companies but not the “99 percent of Americans” who consume these energy products.

To neutralize the macroeconomic impact of higher oil prices—not to mention the burden on the “99 percent” of Americans that Wright referenced—there needs to be a mechanism to redistribute income from oil producers to consumers, mitigating any reduction in near-term spending. Most major oil-producing countries have such systems, which is why they welcome price spikes. In Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states, for example, the national oil company is state-owned, and most profits accrue directly to the government. In Russia, the fiscal framework links taxation directly to oil prices: As prices rise, so does the marginal tax rate. No comparable mechanism exists in the United States. As a result, even though the country is now a major net oil exporter, it is less able to withstand the short-term recessionary effects of price spikes than many of its fellow petrostates. Policymakers therefore continue to focus on lowering oil prices in response to shocks—for example, by releasing barrels from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve or easing sanctions on major producers such as Russia. Some countries have attempted to address this issue through windfall profits taxes, transferring extraordinary crisis-driven gains from oil companies back to households. Yet such taxes have proved to be difficult to design and implement effectively. They take time to enact, limiting their usefulness in addressing immediate economic shocks, and often remain in place long after the immediate crisis has passed, as the United Kingdom’s recent experience illustrates. Poorly designed levies create fiscal uncertainty and risk discouraging production precisely when additional supply is needed. A better approach would make the U.S. economy more structurally resilient to oil price shocks, not just today but also in the future. The most effective way to do this involves hardwiring policy mechanisms to redistribute “excess” gains—as well as losses—borne by oil producers to oil consumers.

Read this article at Foreign Policy - Subscribers Only

Judge questions Trump aides’ ‘brazen’ claims on White House ballroom

A federal judge on Tuesday grilled Trump administration lawyers on the legal justification for the president’s $400 million White House ballroom plan, accusing the Justice Department of “shifting” arguments as historic preservationists urged him to halt the controversial project. U.S. District Judge Richard J. Leon said he hoped to issue a ruling by the end of March. The White House has said that it plans to begin aboveground construction of the ballroom in April. The project is a top priority of President Donald Trump. Leon repeatedly questioned the administration’s insistence that the president does not need congressional approval for the project. The White House has countered that Congress set aside several million dollars for alteration and maintenance of the president’s residence — a characterization that Leon said was “brazen,” given the scope of the planned 90,000-square-foot project.

“I’m struggling to see this as an ‘alteration,’” Leon said later. The judge also grew frustrated after a Justice Department lawyer defended the project — which involved demolishing the White House’s East Wing last year — by citing past projects at national parks, with Leon saying there was no comparison. The White House “is a special place,” he said. “This is an iconic symbol of this nation.” The judge added that Trump was a “steward” of the White House, not its owner. The National Trust for Historic Preservation, a nonprofit charged by Congress with preserving historic buildings, has argued that Trump exceeded his authority by demolishing the East Wing and soliciting private donations to build a ballroom in its place. They have asked Leon to issue a temporary injunction and pause the project until the administration receives congressional approval. The Justice Department has defended the project as within the president’s authority, citing construction efforts overseen by past presidents, such as a pool built by President Gerald Ford. They also have said that any pause to the ballroom project could pose a threat to national security, although they have declined to publicly specify the risks. A presidential emergency bunker has been located for decades under the former East Wing site.

Read this article at Washington Post - Subscribers Only

Lead Stories

Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo attends Europe trade mission amid calls for her resignation over rodeo dustup

In the aftermath of her dustup at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, which has prompted some to call for her resignation, Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo is on a trade mission to Europe with the Greater Houston Partnership, according to the economic development organization. The trip is meant to promote business opportunities in Harris County ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup as Houston is hosting seven matches in June and July. The trade mission has stops in the Netherlands, Germany and Portugal — which are among the countries whose soccer teams will compete in Houston — according to Brina Morales, a spokesperson for the Greater Houston Partnership. She said The Netherlands is Houston’s closest trading partner. Morales and a spokesperson for Hidalgo on Monday confirmed her attendance on the trade mission along with the partnership.

“The Greater Houston Partnership organized the trip in collaboration with other organizations in our region, company leaders, and other representatives of state and local government entities,” Morales said in a statement. “These leaders will work to showcase Houston internationally, with Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo participating in the mission.” The trip comes as Hidalgo is facing calls for her resignation after a dispute with security officials during a sold-out Megan Moroney concert at the rodeo last Tuesday. Hidalgo and her guests attempted to access the chute — a premium area in NRG Stadium closest to the concert stage — without proper credentials. Hidalgo claimed she was threatened with arrest, shoved by security personnel and escorted out of a rodeo concert, subsequently posting several videos and an audio clip to her social media account detailing the incident. The board of directors for the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo revoked Hidalgo's leadership role on the board after disputing her claims that she was “manhandled” during the encounter. In a social media post on Monday, Harris County Commissioner Tom Ramsey called for Hidalgo’s resignation in response to the rodeo incident.

Read this article at Houston Public Media - Subscribers Only

NRCC chair to show new Hispanic voter data

NRCC Chair Richard Hudson will present the results of a new internal poll of Hispanic voters this morning, one of the largest research projects House Republicans has ever undertaken. The NRCC conducted regional polls and focus groups among Hispanic voters in 15 battleground seats across the country. The project cost “well into the six figures,” according to a party official, and was aimed at figuring out what messages resonated with Hispanic voters in 2024 and what could bring the group to the ballot box in 2026. This is a major challenge for the GOP this year.

After months of ICE raids and restrictive immigration policies, President Donald Trump is firmly under water with Hispanic voters, a far cry from 2024. Hill Republicans have publicly backed Trump amid expansive nationwide ICE raids and a wave of deportations. So you have to use that backdrop in any analysis of the GOP’s 2026 prospects. But toplines that were notable to us: Republicans believe the best messages for Hispanic voters include economic opportunity, public safety and “standing up for working families.” The GOP believes they have an “education gap” on the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and its tax cuts. This is problematic for Republicans since they have banked their entire majority on the tax bill bringing voters of all stripes to the ballot box for their party. And Hudson will urge Republicans to communicate “consistently” with constituents in English and Spanish.

Read this article at Punchbowl News - Subscribers Only

Australian gambler The Joker confirms he bankrolled 2023 Texas Lottery operation

In the first public acknowledgement of his role in the 2023 scheme in which professional gamblers engineered a guaranteed Lotto Texas jackpot win, an enigmatic Australian gambler known as “The Joker” –— said to wager billions of dollars a year –— confirmed he was the main investor in the enterprise, which netted an estimated $20 million payday. “I was involved in the funding of the Texas lottery play,” Zeljko Ranogajec told the Sydney Morning Herald in a lengthy article published recently describing the operation. He stressed that the big buy had the full support of the Texas Lottery Commission, the agency charged with regulating the games. “It would not have been possible to operate at this scale without full cooperation,“ Ranogajec said.

The article also provided more granular details about the colorful team of high-stakes gamblers behind the lottery play, which was the subject of an ongoing Houston Chronicle series that last year resulted in two pending investigations and the dissolution of the Texas Lottery Commission. With the Lotto jackpot at $95 million, on April 22, 2023, a single buyer purchased virtually all of the possible 25.8 million number combinations, guaranteeing that one of its tickets would be the winner. No other player guessed the correct six numbers, and two months later the State of Texas handed an entity called Rook TX a $57.8 million check. The operation was carried out at four licensed retailers –— in Round Rock; Spicewood, outside of Austin; Waco and Colleyville –— which processed millions of tickets over the 72 hours between Lotto draws. Yet it also was abetted by state lottery officials. Not only did the lottery agency provide dozens of extra official terminals and pallets of paper to process the tickets with no questions asked – including to three retailers that had sold barely any tickets in the months prior. Lottery officials also turned a blind eye to several apparent rules violations that made the scheme possible.

Read this article at Houston Chronicle - Subscribers Only

Flying in America is about to get more expensive and less fun

Major airlines and millions of travelers across the United States face a rare convergence of challenges this spring that together are making it both costlier and less convenient to fly. The Department of Homeland Security’s partial shutdown has created staffing shortages at domestic airport security checkpoints. Meanwhile, the Iran war has driven up jet fuel costs and forced many global carriers to reroute or suspend flights over the Middle East. In America, the busiest spring break week of the year kicked off Sunday, just days after tens of thousands of Transportation Security Administration workers who conduct airport screenings missed their first full paychecks of the DHS shutdown — with no end in sight for the funding lapse. Federal airport security workers are considered “essential employees” during government shutdowns, so they are required to report to work even if they’re not being paid.

More than 300 TSA workers have quit since the partial government shutdown began Feb. 14, the agency announced. At the same time, the number of employees calling out sick has more than doubled at several major airports, a senior TSA official confirmed. As a result, travelers are experiencing hourslong security lines at airports nationwide, and social media is flooded with videos of TSA screening lines that fill up entire terminals. Meanwhile, the Iran war and the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz off Iran are driving up the price of oil worldwide and causing a surge in the cost of jet fuel. On Friday, the spot price of a gallon of jet fuel was $3.99, roughly double the price at this time last year, according to the Argus U.S. Jet Fuel Index. A Boeing 747 burns about 60 gallons of fuel per minute, or roughly 10,000 gallons for a three-hour flight, according to the aviation news site Simple Flying. The fuel price spike is testing the ability of airlines around the world to absorb financial shock and respond quickly to rapidly evolving situations.

Read this article at New York Times - Subscribers Only

State Stories

Court ruling settles Texas-Oklahoma border fight over Red River property rights

Texas has secured a court order to protect Texas land after an Oklahoma property owner attempted to claim a portion of Texas’s Red River property. The Oklahoman argued that the Texas-Oklahoma border had shifted. In August 2025, an Oklahoma property owner filed a lawsuit in Oklahoma state court seeking to "quiet title" and obtain a ruling declaring that the owner’s property included land belonging to Texas based on "alleged changes" to the lower bank of the Red River. The lawsuit named several Texas landowners, including the State of Texas. The Motion to Dismiss was granted on March 8, 2026, and the State of Texas was removed from the lawsuit.

The case was dismissed on sovereign immunity grounds, arguing that the Oklahoma property owner could not sue Texas in Oklahoma state court, or anywhere else, without Texas’s consent. Dig deeper: The lawsuit relied on a 1923 U.S. Supreme Court opinion that identified the Texas-Oklahoma border as the lower bank of the Red River. However, the Texas Attorney General's Office states that the boundary between Texas and Oklahoma was determined by the 1999 Red River Boundary Compact between Texas and Oklahoma, which was approved by Congress in 2000. In a news release made by the Attorney General’s Office, Ken Paxton worked alongside the Texas Department of Transportation, which also utilized outside counsel to assist in filing out-of-state pleadings. "The full force of the law will come crashing down on anyone trying to seize Texas land. I will always defend our state’s sovereignty and will not allow erroneous theories to undermine Texas’s land ownership," said Attorney General Paxton. "The Red River Rivalry may be famous on the football field, but I won’t allow that term to extend to Oklahoma property owners unlawfully seizing Texas land in the courtroom."

Read this article at Fox 7 Austin - Subscribers Only

Gooden is transferring $100,000 to the NRCC

Texas GOP Rep. Lance Gooden is transferring $100,000 to the NRCC. Gooden will announce the transfer at the closed House Republican political meeting this morning.

Read this article at Punchbowl News - Subscribers Only

'A legal legend': Roy Barrera Sr., first Hispanic man to serve as Texas Secretary of State, dies at 99

Roy Barrera Sr., a former Texas secretary of state, the first Hispanic president of the San Antonio Bar Association and the beloved patriarch of a family of noted San Antonio attorneys, has died. He was 99. Barrera practiced law for nearly seven decades and remained active in the courtroom until the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, when he was in his early 90s. Lawyers and judges across San Antonio remembered him as a formidable trial lawyer, mentor and public servant whose influence shaped generations of attorneys. He died peacefully in his sleep Saturday, his family said.

U.S. District Judge Fred Biery said Barrera's influence spanned generations of lawyers. “Truly a legendary and heroic life. I had the pleasure of knowing and admiring him from my early childhood, when my father would take me to the courthouse,” said Biery, 79. “In adulthood, for the last 48 years, it was always a pleasure and learning experience to have him appear before me, though somewhat surreal to have him call me ‘Your Honor,’ remembering that in his eyes and mine I was still that little kid," Biery recalled. "We will do our best to carry on his traditions at the Bar and for the rule of law and the Constitution.” Charles A. Gonzalez, a San Antonio attorney, former Democratic congressman and former state district court judge, said Barrera was a towering figure in the legal community. In 1968, Gov. John Connally appointed Barrera Texas secretary of state. He was the first Hispanic man to hold the position. Henry Cisneros, a former San Antonio mayor who went on to serve as U.S. secretary of housing and urban development, said Barrera was part of the first generation of Mexican American leaders to gain prominence in the city. “In San Antonio of the 1950s and ’60s, when the Hispanic community was just coming into its own politically and publicly, Roy Barrera was one of the very first,” Cisneros said.

Read this article at San Antonio Express-News - Subscribers Only

As North Texas school districts turn to virtual options, some hope it will bring back students

School districts across North Texas are rolling out full-time virtual and hybrid learning programs for high school students this fall. Frisco, Granbury, Denton and Argyle ISDs are among districts that have announced plans to offer new virtual options after a 2025 state law expanded pathways for students to attend school. Senate Bill 569 “gives us a little bit more freedom and how we meet the needs of our students,” said Frisco ISD Associate Deputy Superintendent Wes Cunningham. The district will start its Frisco Flex program this fall. After the pandemic, Frisco ISD was allowed by the state to teach through a modified online instruction for certain students in 2022. Now, the program is available for all high school students, including those outside the district, who apply.

Frisco ISD is working with teachers to build courses from the ground up to align with the curriculum, Cunningham said. “We're trying to build in week to two-week chunks of learning has to be done within this timeline,” Cunningham said. “And the teachers will have check-ins with students on a fairly regular basis.” Cunningham said the program could help keep students within the district and bring back students who have left to go to other districts. Frisco ISD, once the fastest-growing district in the state, has lost hundreds of students in recent years as enrollment shifts across the region. “We’re trying to bring them back home; come back to the family,” Cunningham said. We want to increase those numbers over time, but these things take a little bit of time.” Like Frisco, Granbury ISD leaders hope their BridgeED virtual-hybrid program for high schoolers will keep student enrollment rates up. Superintendent Courtney Morawski told school board members earlier this year there’s a “sense of urgency” as enrollment dips. “We're down a hundred students and so I don't think this board, it would be smart for us to create a system where we are giving an opportunity for other students to leave our district,” Morawski said. “We need to be creating systems where students are staying or even being attracted into our school.”

Read this article at KERA - Subscribers Only

Residents join together to question data center proposal in west Fort Worth

A meeting room at the Benbrook United Methodist Church was filled with dozens of both Benbrook and Fort Worth residents on March 16 as they discussed a data center development aimed at the far southwest edge of Fort Worth. Across town, residents in southeast Fort Worth and the nearby city of Forest Hill have been protesting the development of another $10 billion data center that has raised questions about how nearby cities benefit when a data center comes to town, and about the potential health and environmental risks associated with data centers.

Many of those same questions were asked Monday night as the group of Benbrook and Fort Worth residents — an autonomous group, loosely organized until something more formal is decided — discussed how to voice their concerns about a proposed $1.1 billion data center. In June 2025, the Fort Worth City Council approved the rezoning of 186 acres owned by PMB Capital Investments in the Veale Ranch development, near the intersection of Interstate 20 and Chapin School Road. Fort Worth is now considering a tax break for Edged Data Centers, a subsidiary of sustainable infrastructure company Endeavor, for a data center to be developed on that land. Council members discussed the proposal at the March 3 work session, and it is expected to be on the agenda at the council’s March 31 meeting. The data center would be in the city of Fort Worth, in District 3, near Benbrook’s southern edge.

Read this article at Fort Worth Star-Telegram - Subscribers Only

Caldwell County feels overwhelmed by data center developers

The Austin metro's most rural yet fastest-growing county is also one of the most targeted for data center development. That's prompted leadership there to join a growing chorus calling on the state to give them more regulatory authority to handle them. The Caldwell County Commissioners Court on March 12 held an 80-minute workshop to discuss the scope of their regulatory authority with residents expressing concern about the boom in data center development and its impact on water and power, the environment and ultimately their way of life. Caldwell County, southeast of Austin with a population of 52,400 people, is the most rural county in its five-county MSA. Yet it is home to proposed large-scale data center campuses from Tract, Prime Data Centers LLC and Edged Energy.

Caldwell County Judge Hoppy Haden gave a presentation to the small crowd about their limited regulatory authority. Counties in Texas don't have the same control as cities, and in some ways are the Wild West for development with no zoning. They also don't operate water and wastewater or electric utilities or even environmental standards. Like Hays County, which floated a temporary moratorium on large water users like data centers, he said that any sort of development moratorium would result in a lawsuit "15 minutes later," he said, adding that they have to issue development permits within 30 days if they check off all the boxes. “They appear on our doorstep and we have to deal with them," Haden said. He ultimately encouraged neighbors to lobby their state legislators and to start now ahead of the 2027 legislature to allow for more regulation on these types of developments. But he did simultaneously lay out some creative steps that the county is taking to ensure sensible development and said that the county can recoup much of the tax generation.

Read this article at Austin Business Journal - Subscribers Only

Texas based ICON announces its Titan 3D-printing construction system for builders

Texas-based 3D-printed construction and architecture pioneer ICON announced the commercial rollout of new machines, described as a “multi-story robotic construction system.” The Titan is designed to build at “lower cost and with greater speed and quality.” Builders and construction companies can reserve a machine with a deposit of $5,000 and purchase one for a lean $899,000.

Since ICON’s 2018 debut, the novel printing technology has seen major contracts with US Army and Martian application development with NASA. However, their aspirations with Titan seem to be much more far-reaching, and its deployment democratized. CEO Jason Ballard said in a statement on the release of the machine, “After nearly a decade of research, development, and field operations, we believe it’s time to put these technologies directly into the hands of other builders.” Titan precedes ICON’s previous 3D construction machine, the Vulcan. As previously reported by AN, the Vulcan printer was used to build 3D-printed homes in Austin and an expansive single-story barracks structure in Bastrop, Texas. The Titan, however, marks a jump in speed and efficiency: at 27 feet tall, it requires only two operators to maintain a single 2,500-square-foot printing area. Using ICON’s proprietary printing material, Reinforced Formcrete, the machine can print a home in under seven days. In 2022, the Vulcan I took three weeks to print something of a similar size, utilizing lavacrete as its material.

Read this article at Architect's Newspaper - Subscribers Only

How 2 judges’ exit from an ages-old Bexar County court system is sowing discord

It’s been somewhat of a bumpy transition for two judges who pulled out of Bexar County’s more than six-decades-old Presiding Court system this month. Ahead of their March 1 exits, civil district Judges Christine Hortick and Nadine Nieto issued orders to District Clerk Gloria Martinez directing her to send certain cases to their courts. Hortick ordered the clerk to send her Department of Family and Protective cases that seek to remove a child from a home, while Nieto sought civil cases other than “family law cases and other matters.” Angelica Jimenez, the local administrative judge, though, challenged the orders. She argued they conflict with the Texas Government Code — the state’s rule book on how major areas of government, including the judicial branch, operate.

Jimenez asked Sid Harle, the senior district judge who presides over the multicounty 4th Judicial Administrative Judicial Region, to rule on the dispute. On Thursday, Harle held a noon hearing in Jimenez’s courtroom before deciding that the orders should be held in “abeyance.” Harle ruled that “implementation of those standing orders would be unfair and unduly burdensome.” But he didn’t like the idea of leaving it up to the clerk’s office to decide what cases should be assigned to a judge. “I frankly am very concerned about the district clerk making these determinations,” Harle said at the conclusion of the hearing that lasted over an hour. “They’re not lawyers. When something is on the cusp of civil versus family, for instance, I don’t want them to be forced to make that decision. It puts them in a very bad position.”

Read this article at San Antonio Express-News - Subscribers Only

Casar, Cornyn debate Homeland Security funding outside Austin’s airport

The debate over how to fund the Department of Homeland Security spilled into the passenger drop-off area of the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (AUS) when Democratic Congressman Greg Casar and Republican Senator John Cornyn publicly argued over different proposals. Cornyn was scheduled to speak with reporters Monday morning after he delivered Whataburger to Transportation Security Administration (TSA) agents at Austin’s airport. TSA agents have been working without pay for a month because the federal government partially shutdown after Congress failed to pass funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which oversees the TSA.

As reporters waited for Cornyn to pull up to the airport in the passenger drop-off area, Congressman Greg Casar, D-Texas, walked up to the cameras and began delivering remarks about the partial shutdown. “I’m confused as to why Senator Cornyn would be here having a press conference at the airport about funding TSA, when it is him that has blocked the funding,” Casar said. As Cornyn’s truck pulled up to the impromptu press conference, Casar said, “Senator Cornyn should put his money where his mouth is.” Cornyn got out of the passenger side of the car and walked straight to Casar. “Why don’t you tell your Democrats to vote to pay these poor people,” Conryn asked Casar. “Let’s do it,” Casar responded. “No, you do it,” Cornyn said back.

Read this article at KXAN - Subscribers Only

Closure of UNT art show points to larger climate of fear on college campuses

The University of North Texas recently made national headlines for closing an art exhibition on campus days after it opened. But it’s not an isolated incident. It’s just one example of a growing climate of fear and censorship, and it’s happening at colleges across the country. “We're in a really chilling atmosphere at this very moment,” said Chloe Kempf, a lawyer for the ACLU of Texas. “But I would say, in general, over the course of our history, this is a very uncommon action.” The recent action isn’t the first art-related controversy on campus. Last year, five North Texas lawmakers sent a letter to UNT asking for the removal of an exhibit where “The murder of a people = genocide” was written in Hebrew. The lawmakers described the pro-Palestinian artwork as antisemitic and warned that the work might run afoul of a federal antidiscrimination law and an executive order from Gov. Greg Abbott. In that instance, two students — not the university — removed one piece of their exhibition early. The gallery in that incident is managed by the student union instead of the art school.

Victor Quiñonez, also known as Marka27, is the artist whose show was abruptly shut down by UNT in February. Quiñonez was born in Mexico and raised in Dallas. His exhibition, “Ni de Aquí Ni de Allá (Not From Here, Not From There), explored the tension of living at the intersection of two cultures. The show included work from his I.C.E. Scream series. In it, a reworked seal for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement instead reads as “U.S. Inhumane and Cruelty Enforcement.” The seal appears on a pushcart for frozen treats - and the words are repeated on the popsicle sticks that poke out from colorful paleta sculptures. Some of the paletas also have handcuffs, guns and laser-etched images of border crossings inside. “I've always had experience with positive and negative feedback. But never in my 30-plus year career have I had an exhibition canceled or a large work of art censored,” Quiñonez said in a conversation with KERA News. Spokespeople for UNT did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

Read this article at KERA and Denton Record-Chronicle - Subscribers Only

Texas rare-earth project aims to curb US reliance on China, strengthen national security

Efforts to develop domestic rare-earth resources are gaining momentum in Texas as policymakers and industry leaders push to reduce U.S. reliance on China for minerals critical to defense and advanced-technology supply chains. Texas Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham joined FOX Business' Maria Bartiromo on "Mornings with Maria," Monday to discuss how development of the Round Top rare-earth deposit could help strengthen U.S. national security while generating billions of dollars in revenue for Texas public schools.

Round Top, located in West Texas, is considered one of the richest known deposits of heavy rare-earth minerals in North America. These materials are essential for defense systems, semiconductors and advanced manufacturing. The project has drawn increasing attention as the U.S. looks to challenge China’s long-standing dominance of the global rare-earth supply chain. Buckingham said the state's mineral resources could play a key role in reshaping that balance while delivering economic benefits in Texas. "There are 17 rare-earth minerals. We have 15... We're heavy in the heavies. Those are the really important ones," Buckingham said, "It's going to be billions of dollars into public education... We're breaking China's stronghold on this market. We are making Texas safer." As exploration expands across the region, officials are also focusing on the infrastructure needed to process the minerals domestically. "We have lots of rare-earth minerals all over the region. We are looking at those deposits right now," Buckingham said, "It's going to be billions of dollars to the schoolchildren of Texas, and it's going to make the United States and the whole world safer."

Read this article at Fox Business - Subscribers Only

Historic Congress Avenue building approved for demolition near Texas Capitol

809 Congress Avenue, a slender two-story building a stone’s throw away from the Texas Capitol, could soon be demolished to clear the way for future redevelopment. While a demolition plan for the building that is 3,082 square feet and was built in 1925, according to Travis Central Appraisal District, it is still awaiting approval from the city of Austin, Austin’s Historic Landmark Commission approved the demolition on March 4 meeting. Property owner Haidar 1919 LLC’s hasn't publicized plans for the property post-demo, but an approved redevelopment site plan from 2022 could hold clues as to what redevelopment could look like. The identity of Haidar 1919, which purchased the property from Wukasch Properties Ltd. LLP late last year, could not be verified through property records.

Nelsen Partners, an architecture firm and the applicant listed on the demolition request, did not respond to a request for comment. 809 Congress has been a beauty shop, saloon, millinery, cafeteria and Subway fast food restaurant during its existence, and its most notable tenant was Stelfox Jewelers, according to the landmark commission meeting agenda. Wukasch Properties and other entities bearing the Wukasch name owned the property since 1994, and Haidar purchased it in December. While under Wukasch Properties’ ownership, a site plan application for redevelopment of 809 Congress was submitted in 2021 and approved in 2022. Those plans would have seen the property redeveloped into a four-story office and restaurant building totaling about 13,000 square feet. It is not clear if the new owner would follow the previously approved redevelopment plans, but the plans do serve as an example of what could be redeveloped at the slender site, with the first floor being a 3,195-square-foot restaurant, and the upper three floors being 3,264-square-foot offices. A few blocks south, another Congress Avenue property is facing a demolition and rebuild. Karlin Real Estate's 422 Congress Ave., the site of Shiner's Saloon, is working its way toward approval for demolition and redevelopment as well. That property is now under contract to be sold, per the website of JLL, the broker.

Read this article at Austin Business Journal - Subscribers Only

National Stories

Fed officials huddle under pressure from Iran war, Trump’s rage

The Federal Reserve will hold its March policy meeting under intense political pressure from President Trump and the economic blowback of the war with Iran. After keeping borrowing costs steady in January, members of the Fed’s rate-setting committee are set to meet Tuesday and Wednesday while facing a far more tumultuous economy and political climate. Prices for crude oil, gasoline, natural gas and fertilizer have skyrocketed since the U.S. and Israel began their bombardment of Iran more than two weeks ago, which could both slow the economy and push inflation higher. “The most important developments since the last FOMC meeting are the start of the war in Iran and the spike in oil prices,” wrote David Mericle, chief U.S. economist at Goldman Sachs global investment research, in an analysis.

“For the Fed, the war increases both the risk that earlier rate cuts will be needed to address labor market softening and the risk that a higher inflation path will delay cuts.” At the same time, the Trump administration is ramping up its criminal investigation into the Fed — and its rage against Chair Jerome Powell — after suffering a key defeat last week. The swirling political and economic storms are unlikely to influence the Fed’s upcoming interest rate decision. The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) was expected to keep rates steady again this month, and the odds of a cut dropped sharply as oil prices rose, according to futures markets. But those dual threats are raising tough questions for the Fed as it navigates the road ahead, along with growing uncertainty about who will be behind the wheel: Powell, or Trump’s nominee to replace him, former Fed board member Kevin Warsh.

Read this article at The Hill - Subscribers Only

A $50 million push hopes to make child care a top issue in the midterm elections

An advocacy group hoping to expand support for child and elder care plans to spend $50 million to back Democrats in congressional races, tying the costs of caregiving to the nation’s affordability debate. The Campaign for a Family Friendly Economy, created a decade ago, aims to make caregiver issues more salient in elections. The announcement comes as the cost of child care continues to rise and as waiting lists for federal child care subsidies, which support working families in poverty, continue to grow. Sondra Goldschein, executive director of the campaign and its political action committee, said child care and elder care are important to the affordability conversation, especially as child care costs exceed what families pay for housing.

Then there is the pressure on the “sandwich generation,” composed of middle-aged people who are caring simultaneously for their own children and parents. “When child care can cost more than your rent or a mortgage, or you have to sacrifice a paycheck in order to be able to take care of a loved one,” that can motivate how people vote, said Goldschein. “Each election cycle, we see candidates recognizing that more and more.” She hopes the message will resonate as families face a slew of rising costs, including climbing gas prices driven by a war in the Middle East that is unpopular with many voters. The campaign plans to pour support for Democrats into Senate races in North Carolina, Georgia, Michigan, Maine and Ohio and into House races in Iowa and Pennsylvania. It is also slated to dispatch volunteers to talk with voters about caregiving. The National Republican Congressional Committee did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Republicans have begun to back child care as an issue crucial to growing the workforce, but their proposals tend to be less dramatic than those offered by Democrats. Last year, through President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill, Republicans made an estimated 4 million more families eligible for a child care tax credit. The law also increased child care aid for military families and tax credits for employers who provide child care to their workers.

Read this article at Associated Press - Subscribers Only

SEC prepares proposal to eliminate quarterly reporting requirement

The Securities and Exchange Commission is preparing a proposal to eliminate the requirement to report earnings quarterly and instead give companies the option to share results twice a year, according to people familiar with the matter. The regulator could publish the proposal as soon as next month, the people said. In preparation for the proposal, regulators have been talking to officials at the major exchanges to discuss how they may need to adjust their rules. Once the proposal is published, it will be subject to a public comment period. After that period, which typically lasts at least 30 days, the SEC will vote on it. There are no guarantees it will ultimately happen. The rule is expected to make quarterly reporting optional, not eliminate quarterly reports altogether.

The push for semiannual reporting gained steam late last year. The Long-Term Stock Exchange petitioned the SEC to eliminate the quarterly earnings report requirement, The Wall Street Journal reported in September. Within days, President Trump and SEC Chairman Paul Atkins both said they supported the idea. Publicly traded companies in the U.S. have reported results every three months for the past 50-plus years. Trump briefly explored the idea of moving to semiannual earnings reports during his first term, but the effort went nowhere. Those in favor of less-frequent reporting requirements believe a switch could help boost the shrinking number of public companies in the U.S. Among the reasons companies cite as to why they remain private is the time-consuming and costly clerical work required to list and maintain publicly traded shares. Any change is likely to face opposition from investors who rely on the transparency of regular disclosures. Publicly listed European companies are no longer required to report quarterly financial results after a 2013 rule change. The U.K. also ended quarterly reporting requirements about a decade ago, though many companies still report quarterly.

Read this article at Wall Street Journal - Subscribers Only

CEOs want to be like Warren Buffett, right down to his shareholder letter

Warren Buffett’s advice on investing and business reached tens of millions of people during his long run at Berkshire Hathaway. But it is Buffett’s success in making shareholder letters sing that might have left the biggest mark on a particular cohort of his fans: fellow CEOs. Buffett retired as Berkshire’s CEO in December, handing off his role as top executive (and shareholder-letter writer) to Greg Abel. Executives say Buffett, who infused his letters with his wit and personal anecdotes that often veered from the requisite review of Berkshire’s operations, elevated a dreary convention of corporate America and set a new standard. For those willing to step up their own letter-writing game, it can mean a lot more work. “It’s hard,” said Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan Chase and the writer of more than 20 shareholder letters. “I’m happy when it’s birthed.”

Dimon read investors Benjamin Graham and David Dodd’s book “Security Analysis” as a young man, which featured a foreword written by Buffett. Later, he discovered the letters Buffett wrote annually to shareholders of Berkshire and the investing partnership he ran before he took over the company. What always struck him about Buffett’s writing, Dimon said, was his talent for explaining complex financial concepts in plain English. “I write it for people like my sisters,” Buffett told the Journal in 2016. “They’re smart, they read a lot, they have a lot invested in the company. They don’t know all the financial jargon, but they don’t want to be treated like 5-year-olds.” “I’ve always tried to emulate that,” Dimon said. Buffett’s letters could continue for more than a dozen pages, and their readership extended beyond Berkshire shareholders. Indeed, many of the Oracle of Omaha’s oft-quoted aphorisms found in past annual letters are applicable to investors in just about anything. His wise words included, “We simply attempt to be fearful when others are greedy and to be greedy only when others are fearful,” and “never bet against America,” among others.

Read this article at Wall Street Journal - Subscribers Only

Man charged with planting bombs near the Capitol claims he’s covered by Trump pardon

The man charged with planting pipe bombs at Democratic and Republican party headquarters on the eve of Jan. 6, 2021, says he’s protected from prosecution by the sweeping clemency President Donald Trump decreed for participants in the attack on the Capitol. Lawyers for Brian Cole Jr. filed the provocative motion Monday arguing that the felony charges he faces of transporting and maliciously using explosives should be dismissed because Trump granted clemency to anyone convicted of or charged with crimes “related to events that occurred at or near the United States Capitol on January 6, 2021.”

“Applying governing law to the plain, unambiguous language of the President Trump’s Pardon demonstrates that the Pardon applies to Mr. Cole because his alleged conduct is inextricably tethered to the events at or near the United States Capitol on January 6, 2021,” Cole’s attorneys, Mario Williams and John Shoreman, wrote. While the wording of the proclamation Trump issued on his first day in office last year is extremely broad, it refers to cases that are pending and to people already convicted. It’s not clear from its face if it fends off future charges. Trump has said he intended his pardon to apply to people he says were treated unfairly when charged with committing crimes on Jan. 6 ranging from trespassing to committing grievous assaults on police officers. But Cole’s attorneys say the pardon “unequivocally” covers their client, as well.

Read this article at Politico - Subscribers Only

Kennedy Center board approves two-year closure for $250 million renovation

The Trump-appointed board of the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts voted unanimously Monday to shutter the arts mecca for two years for renovations. “Major renovations are required to keep the facility functional, and that will start right after July 4,” the center's vice president of public relations, Roma Daravi, said in a statement. “This project will transform the Center into a world-class destination worthy of the nation’s legacy and future — a landmark where every American is welcome to experience artistic excellence and premiere entertainment,” Daravi said. The board also voted to name Matt Floca as the center's chief operating officer and executive director, replacing interim head Richard Grenell, who President Donald Trump announced was stepping down last week.

Trump touted the planned renovations on Truth Social ahead of the vote, saying the renovations will transform the center into "the finest performing arts facility" in the world. He said that “the fastest way to bring the Trump Kennedy Center to the highest level of success, beauty and grandeur is to cease the entertainment operations for a two-year period of time as we complete high quality, really high quality construction.” Rep. Joyce Beatty, D-Ohio, an ex-officio board member who sued to ensure she could attend the meeting, confirmed that the vote was unanimous. A judge ruled Saturday that she be allowed to attend but not necessarily permitted to vote. She was not allowed to vote Monday. Trump fired the center's board and named himself chairman in February 2025. Near the end of last year, the board voted to add his name to the center, which led some artists to cancel their performances.

Read this article at NBC News - Subscribers Only

Native Americans could be among the hardest hit by SAVE America Act

The voting bill that President Donald Trump wants Republicans to pass would make it harder for Native Americans who live on tribal land to vote, advocates and lawmakers say. The SAVE America Act, which is expected to get a vote in the Senate sometime this week, would have sweeping ramifications for many eligible voters if it becomes law. Native Americans, who often live hundreds of miles away from the closest polling place and have lower rates of passport ownership, could be among the hardest hit. “Tribes hate this. But you know, the truth is, everybody hates this. This is not voter ID. This is going to remove tens of millions of people from the voter rolls without even informing them, and without even giving them a chance to remedy it,” Democratic Sen. Brian Schatz, the vice chair of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, told NOTUS. “We’re a hard no, and I don’t think they will succeed.”

Republicans say the SAVE America Act, which does not currently have the votes to pass in the Senate, is necessary to prevent noncitizens from voting in U.S. elections, despite the fact that data shows this rarely happens. In crafting their legislation, Republicans included provisions that would require voters to show proof of citizenship in person to register to vote and to cast mail-in ballots. Advocates are worried that the bill’s in-person requirement would disenfranchise many people who lack easy access to election centers. “All of those things are harder in Indian Country,” said Jacqueline De León, a senior staff attorney for the Native American Rights Fund, a legal assistance nonprofit. “Election services are too far, sometimes located at county seats that can be hundreds of miles away. On reservation, opportunities are extremely limited if they exist at all.” The bill contains language that says tribal IDs can be used as proof of citizenship, but must show “that the applicant’s place of birth was in the United States.”

Read this article at NOTUS - Subscribers Only

Illinois voters pick a new generation of Democrats for House, Senate after near-record retirements

Illinois voters are deciding primaries Tuesday for six open U.S. House and Senate seats that will spur a new generation of leadership in the state’s heavily Democratic congressional delegation. The retirement of longtime Sen. Dick Durbin, a Democrat, has triggered a competitive campaign, drawing as candidates two sitting House members and the lieutenant governor, among others. Sharp elbows and furious fundraising have marked the race, which also is a test of the influence of Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker, a billionaire whose name is floated as a 2028 presidential contender. A spate of House retirements has led to open seats with crowded contests across the Chicago area. The stakes are high, with most primary winners in the Democratic stronghold expected to win in November.

Ten Democrats and six Republicans are running after Durbin, the Senate’s No. 2 Democrat, announced his retirement after five terms. Three top Democrats have emerged: Chicago-area U.S. Reps. Raja Krishnamoorthi and Robin Kelly and Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton. Krishnamoorthi has dominated fundraising and the airwaves and was the first on television with ads in July. He started 2026 with over $15 million on hand after spending more than $6 million and raising more than $3.5 million in the final three months of last year, according to campaign finance records. By comparison, Stratton started the year with $1 million after raising about the same amount and spending just under $1 million in the last three months of 2025. But last month Pritzker put $5 million in a super PAC largely aimed at helping get her elected.

Read this article at Associated Press - Subscribers Only

Lead Stories

Senate prepares for marathon SAVE America Act debate

President Trump’s allies are planning to take over the Senate floor this week in a bid to pass the SAVE America Act, setting up a major test for Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) who is under pressure from Trump and the MAGA base to extend the debate over voting reform for as long as possible. GOP senators are playing their cards close to the vest ahead of this week’s marathon debate over the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) America Act, which would require people registering to vote to show documented proof of citizenship. But they’re bracing for long hours and possible late nights in a bid to build momentum for the bill, which already has broad public support. A recent Harvard CAPS/Harris poll of 1,999 registered voters found that 71 percent support the SAVE America Act.

“They faced a 32-vote cloture deficit at the time it came over from the House in March of 64,” Lee said. “They were able to close a 32-vote cloture deficit. It took them 60 days but they got there.” “Debating a bill that continues to get more popular even as people are trying to slow it down and stop it and obstruct it sometimes sharpens the minds of individual lawmakers and makes them more amenable in the end to negotiation,” Lee added. “That’s what we’re looking at here.” Lee, a close Trump ally, suggested that the president will closely watch this week’s Senate debate. Trump has put intense pressure on Thune to get the bill through the upper chamber and last week said he would not sign any legislation until the SAVE America Act hits his desk. “The extent of his satisfaction with the process will depend on whether in his view we gave it everything we have,” he said. Sen. Katie Britt (R-Ala.) said Republicans are still “working through” their floor strategy but are preparing for a battle.

Read this article at The Hill - Subscribers Only

Trump administration turns to migrant workers to help farm labor shortage

For years, the agricultural sector has faced a tight labor market as farmworkers age and fewer new immigrants and younger Americans are willing to toil in the fields. Top Trump administration officials vowed that mass deportations would help, leading to “higher wages with better benefits” and a “100 percent American work force.” But the administration has quietly acknowledged in recent months that its immigration raids and crackdown on the border have aggravated the issue. So it has instead turned to an alternative source, making it cheaper for farmers to hire immigrant farmworkers on temporary visas. Many farmers have celebrated those changes, made to an increasingly popular visa program known as H-2A, noting the difficulty in hiring American workers and tough economic conditions for the industry.

But immigration hawks and labor unions alike are opposed, arguing the move will only increase the share of foreign workers and hurt native workers and suppress their wages. The simmering debate underscores how some of the administration’s top goals of reducing immigration, keeping food prices low and helping American workers may inevitably conflict. The competing interests at play also show the spillover effects of Mr. Trump’s hard-line approach to legal and illegal immigration. Brooke L. Rollins, the agriculture secretary, said in a statement that the administration was enacting “real reforms to ease regulatory burdens and lower labor costs.” “The farm economy is in a difficult situation, and President Trump is utilizing all the tools available to ensure farmers have what they need to be successful,” she said. Only 0.4 percent of farmers in California reported losing workers directly to farm raids, according to a new survey by the California Farm Bureau and Michigan State University. But more than 14 percent said the raids and general anxiety surrounding enhanced immigration enforcement caused worker shortages. Among labor-intensive crops like fruit and vegetables, that number was nearly 20 percent.

Read this article at Wall Street Journal - Subscribers Only

Ted Cruz was ‘blindsided’ by the Pentagon in effort to avoid repeat of DC plane crash

In the months after a U.S. Army helicopter collided with an American Airlines passenger jet over Washington’s Potomac River last year, killing 67 people, U.S. Sen Ted Cruz set about making sure it would never happen again. The Republican chair of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee spent months meeting with victims’ families, Democrats, military officials and air safety experts. Cruz has long had a reputation as a partisan firebrand, but in this instance he crafted a bipartisan bill to put into law a longstanding recommendation by federal safety experts that aircraft use digital maps showing the location of nearby aircraft — instead of relying on radio chatter that can be cut off or difficult to follow — when navigating congested airspace like that over Washington.

To Cruz, it seemed like an obvious and easy fix. And it appeared most of Congress was in agreement. The bill easily cleared the Senate, seemingly well on its way to becoming law. But Cruz, as he put it, was soon “blindsided” by opposition from the Pentagon, along with a small but powerful segment of the aviation industry represented by U.S. Rep. Sam Graves, a lifelong pilot who flies old fighter planes in his spare time and chairs the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. Cruz — long an opponent of big government — faced pushback for trying to force more red tape on pilots. Fellow Republicans accused him of trying to let federal bureaucrats control military planes. The bill failed in the House and the fix that once seemed like a no-brainer remains in doubt. On the day House Republicans voted down the bill last month, Doug Lane, who lost his wife and 16-year-old son in the crash, was up in the gallery overlooking the House floor with other victims’ families when Cruz walked up. “He just kind of gave us assurances he was going to keep fighting and he said to keep the faith and keep fighting and don’t let this discourage us,” said Lane, a tech consultant in Rhode Island. “The reason we had a vote at all was because of his political capital and ability to convince Speaker (Mike) Johnson to bring it to the floor.” The Rotor Act, led by Cruz and Sen. Maria Cantwell, a Democrat from Washington state, was built on an almost 20-year-old recommendation from the National Transportation Safety Board that planes be required to adopt surveillance technology known as ADS-B In to allow them to better track each other in the air.

Read this article at Houston Chronicle - Subscribers Only

Oil industry warns Trump administration that fuel crunch will likely worsen

American oil executives delivered a bleak message to Trump officials in recent days: The energy crisis the Iran war has unleashed is likely to get worse. In a series of White House meetings Wednesday and recent conversations with Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, the CEOs of Exxon Mobil, Chevron and ConocoPhillips warned that the disruption to energy flows out of the vital Strait of Hormuz waterway would continue to create volatility in global energy markets, according to people familiar with the matter. In response to questions from the officials, Exxon CEO Darren Woods said that oil prices could rise past current elevated levels if speculators unexpectedly bid up prices and that markets could see a supply crunch of refined products.

Chevron CEO Mike Wirth and ConocoPhillips CEO Ryan Lance also conveyed their concerns about the scale of the disruption, these people said. President Trump didn’t attend the Wednesday meetings. U.S. oil prices have climbed from $87 a barrel that day to $99 a barrel Friday. The White House has implemented or is considering several measures it hopes will lower oil prices—including further easing sanctions on Russian oil, a massive release of emergency energy reserves and possibly waiving a statute that limits crude flows between U.S. ports. Administration officials have also told oil chief executives that they are hoping to increase the flow of oil between Venezuela and the U.S., a White House official said. Burgum said the administration has been “working around the clock” with energy companies to stabilize global energy markets. Wright and the Trump administration will continue to take action to minimize disruptions to energy supplies, Energy Department spokesman Ben Dietderich said.

Read this article at Wall Street Journal - Subscribers Only

State Stories

Why industry experts are skeptical of $300B Texas refinery touted by Trump

Brownsville may be getting a long-promised crude refinery, the nation’s first new oil refinery in almost 50 years. President Donald Trump announced the $300 billion project, to be funded by Reliance Industries, an Indian refining company owned by billionaire Mukesh Ambani, on Truth Social this week. But because of the more than decade-long attempt to get a light crude refinery built in Brownsville and the financial risk associated with such a project, the announcement has been met with some skepticism. The refinery, if built, would defy the decline that has affected the U.S. refining industry in recent years as increasingly fuel-efficient vehicles cut into fuel demand. Houston’s own oldest refinery shuttered its doors just last year.

“It doesn’t seem to me that the U.S. Gulf Coast really needs another refinery, especially down in Brownsville,” said Andy Lipow, head of consulting firm Lipow Oil Associates. The project is the latest iteration of a nearly decadelong attempt by multiple companies to launch a 160,000 barrel-a-day refinery in Brownsville. Companies have for years failed to get the necessary funding or struggled to obtain and maintain the necessary permits from entities such as the Environmental Protection Agency and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. Not only does a project of this magnitude require serious financial backing but it would also mean needing to build a pipeline to get crude to the Brownsville site — another hurdle bound by red tape. The project’s price tag would be a steep climb, but “project announcements are cheap,” Lipow said. Compounding economic skepticism is a lack of acknowledgement from Reliance Industries, which is the company footing the massive bill, according to Trump’s announcement. It’s odd, Lipow said. “I just don’t even know what to make of it, because there’s no statement out of Reliance.”

Read this article at Houston Chronicle - Subscribers Only

US energy secretary directs oil company to restore operations off California

U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright directed a Texas-based oil and gas company Friday to restore operations in waters off southern California that were damaged by a 2015 oil spill, invoking the Defense Production Act. Restoring Sable Offshore Corp.’s Santa Ynez unit and pipeline off Santa Barbara aims to address supply disruption risks, according to a department news release. The unit includes three rigs in federal waters, offshore and onshore pipelines, and the Las Flores Canyon Processing Facility. The facility can produce about 50,000 barrels of oil per day and would replace nearly 1.5 million barrels of foreign crude each month, officials said. “The Trump Administration remains committed to putting all Americans and their energy security first,” Wright said in a statement.

“Unfortunately, some state leaders have not adhered to those same principles, with potentially disastrous consequences not just for their residents, but also our national security. Today’s order will strengthen America’s oil supply and restore a pipeline system vital to our national security and defense, ensuring that West Coast military installations have the reliable energy critical to military readiness.” On the first day of his second term, President Donald Trump signed an executive order to reverse former President Joe Biden’s ban on future offshore oil drilling on the East and West coasts. A federal court later struck down Biden’s order to withdraw 625 million acres of federal waters from oil development. “This is an attempt to illegally restart a pipeline whose operators are facing criminal charges and prohibited by multiple court orders from restarting,” Newsom said in a statement. “California will not stand by while the Trump administration attempts to sacrifice our coastal communities, our environment, and our $51 billion coastal economy. The Trump administration and Sable are defying multiple court orders, and we will see them back in court.” In January, California sued the federal government for approving Houston-based Sable’s plans to restart pipelines along the coast. Democratic state Attorney General Rob Bonta said at the time that the state oversees the pipelines through Santa Barbara and Kern counties and the federal government “has no right to usurp California’s regulatory authority.”

Read this article at Associated Press - Subscribers Only

Afghan father, former U.S. military ally, dies in ICE custody in North Texas

An Afghan father who served with U.S. forces died in ICE custody less than a day after being arrested in North Texas. Mohammed Nazeer Paktiawal's family says he was in the country legally after serving alongside the U.S. military in Afghanistan and evacuating to the U.S. in 2021. According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the 41-year-old had a criminal history and his temporary legal status had expired.

Mohammed Nazeer Paktiawal's brother, Naseer Paktiawal, said that on Friday, while dropping off his kids at school, Nazeer Paktiawal was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents near his home in Richardson, Texas and taken into custody. "He was arrested in front of these kids while taking them to school at 7 in the morning. Some people surrounded him, put him in the car, and drove him away while they were screaming, asking for help," Naseer Paktiawal said. Less than 24 hours later, Naseer Paktiawal received a call that his brother was dead. When he arrived in the U.S. in 2021, according to ICE, Mohammed Nazeer Paktiawal "was paroled into the U.S. by an immigration officer," or given temporary permission to enter and remain in the U.S. under the Biden administration's Operation Allies Refuge. The agency said he provided no record of his military service. ICE said the duration of his parole expired on Aug. 20, 2025. Naseer Paktiawal said his brother, a husband and father of six, had a pending immigration case. According to his brother, before emigrating, Mohammed Nazeer Paktiawal was hired by the U.S. government as an Afghan special force and worked alongside them for over a decade.

Read this article at CBS News - Subscribers Only

Gulfton, Houston's 'Ellis Island,' is hurting under ICE fears, residents say

When Elmer Romero walks into his Gulfton office lately, the lobby is mostly empty — a sharp change from the crowds that once waited there for help with immigration cases. When he and his coworkers go to a nearby Salvadoran restaurant for lunch, they’re often the only customers. And when he drives around the neighborhood on weekends, he sees fewer families celebrating birthdays in neighborhood parks. This is life in Gulfton, known as the Ellis Island of Houston, under the second administration of President Donald Trump. More than half of the neighborhood’s residents were born outside the United States, according to Rice University’s Kinder Institute for Urban Research, making Gulfton the largest immigrant community in Houston.

As the Trump administration continues its mass deportation campaign across Texas and the U.S., the fear of immigration enforcement has indelibly changed day-to-day life in the southwest Houston neighborhood — and not just for immigrants without legal status. Businesses are struggling and the cultural fabric of the neighborhood is beginning to fray, according to some locals, presenting Gulfton with an existential challenge unlike any it has faced in recent memory. “When the pandemic happened, it greatly affected us, but the neighborhood recovered, and little by little life returned here,” said Romero, an organizer at the neighborhood nonprofit CRECEN, in Spanish. “Today, I don’t know if we’ll recover because the political situation is so uncertain.” Gulfton was first developed in the mid-20th century to provide cheap housing for thousands of people who were flocking to Houston for jobs in the booming oil and gas industry, according to University of Houston architecture professor Susan Rogers.

Read this article at Houston Chronicle - Subscribers Only

Kelley Shannon: Want to cut government fraud, waste? Support these transparency laws

(Kelley Shannon is executive director of the Austin-based nonprofit Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas.) As we watch over our government, it’s often about the money. Are taxpayer dollars being spent wisely on social programs, road projects and employee pay? Can we view government contracts with outside organizations? What are the details of bond proposals on the election ballot? Long-established state open-government laws — the Texas Public Information Act and the Texas Open Meetings Act — help us answer these questions and root out malfeasance. As we celebrate national Sunshine Week March 15-21, let’s recognize our transparency laws and learn how to keep them strong.

Beyond detecting financial waste and fraud, journalists and vigilant citizens are using these laws to retrieve videos related to suspected crimes against kids, to identify finalists for top jobs in cities and school districts, and to review the emergency response after the tragic Hill Country floods. The Texas Public Information Act and the Open Meetings Act are more than 50 years old and continue to be adapted to modern times and troubles. Open-government advocates worked with legislators last year to establish stricter requirements for public officials responding to records requests. There are now more consequences when a government ignores a request. Another new law requires public meeting notices to be posted at least three business days, rather than 72 hours, before the meeting. That prevents a notice from getting overlooked if it is first posted on a weekend. This common-sense law also specifies that if a budget is to be considered at the meeting, a copy of that proposed budget must be posted for public view in advance.

Read this article at Fort Worth Star-Telegram - Subscribers Only

He came to Austin for a new chapter. After death in shooting, loved ones mourn his 'bright spirit'

In a city of transplants, Jorge Pederson was one of Austin’s newest arrivals. He came from Minneapolis in mid-February, drawn by a new job, warmer weather and the city’s live comedy scene. On March 1, Pederson was meeting a new coworker at Buford’s on West Sixth Street when a gunman opened fire. He was one of three people in the crowd that were killed. He was 30 years old. Now, friends in Austin and Minneapolis are confronting a terrible loss, and sharing stories of a man they say was always “unapologetically himself.” “[He] loved deeply, and protected the ones around him fiercely,” Kit Ingersoll, his best friend since childhood, told KUT News by phone as he drove Pederson’s belongings back to Minneapolis from Austin. “Jorge and I started a moving company together, so it's kind of fitting that I'm the one to handle the move back."

In business and life, Pederson was the “hardest worker," Ingersoll said. "Very disciplined, determined to do whatever it was that he wanted." It was a decisiveness on full display the day he agreed to quit a previous job to start the moving business with his friend. “He just said, ‘I'd absolutely love to be your partner. I'll put my two weeks in right now,’” Ingersoll said. Minutes later, Pederson sent a follow-up text with a screenshot of him submitting his notice. “That's how committed he was to doing what he wanted to do,” Ingersoll said. Among those mourning Pederson’s death is the mixed martial arts community in Minnesota. Pederson wrestled and studied Muay Thai. But, over the last five years, he had prioritized MMA, often training six days a week. He was planning to participate in his first professional match in May. ”He was very welcoming as a martial artist,” MMA fighter Brody Oothoudt said. “He was the one who invited me to come start training in the first place.” Friends and fellow students said he was attracted to the sport for the skill and discipline it requires. They said he had no patience for fighters who needlessly injure or hurt their opponents. “Jorge was vocally against that, because that is against the spirit of what martial arts is,” said Oothoudt, who helped organize an online fundraiser to pay for his friend's funeral. “He was a good guy, working to make a positive impact.” At 6-foot-4 and 185 pounds, Pederson was a “bigger guy,” who would sometimes spar against smaller partners.

Read this article at KUT - Subscribers Only

Lawsuit over Bexar County Immigration legal fund now in 3 courts

A lawsuit filed by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton challenging Bexar County’s immigration legal services program is now unfolding simultaneously in three courts — a local district court, the Austin-based 15th Court of Appeals and the Texas Supreme Court — as state and county attorneys fight over whether the case will survive long enough for any judge to rule on its constitutionality. The dispute centers on more than $556,000 in county funding for legal representation for immigrants facing deportation hearings through the nonprofit American Gateways. While the lawsuit originally focused on whether the program violates the Texas Constitution’s “Gift Clause,” the immediate legal fight has shifted to a narrower question: whether courts should intervene before the program’s funding expires, potentially making the case moot.

Paxton filed the lawsuit at the beginning of February seeking to temporarily block the release of funding for the county’s Immigration Legal Services Fund, which contracts with the nonprofit American Gateways to provide legal assistance to low-income residents facing federal deportation proceedings. The program had been in operation since 2024 and was set to expire on Feb 28. The state argued the program violates the Texas Constitution’s Gift Clause, which prohibits governments from giving public money to private parties unless the spending serves a clear public purpose and remains under government control. County officials have defended the program as a lawful use of public funds, saying it helps residents navigate complex immigration proceedings and serves a broader public benefit. Officials cited a decision in a November separate lawsuit where the 15th Court of Appeals ruled against Paxton in favor of Harris County over its immigration legal service fund, which had been in operation since 2020. In the ruling, the 15th Court of Appeals declined to block a nearly identical immigrant legal services program in Harris County, writing that Texas courts have long recognized providing legal counsel to indigent people as a public service. The court found the state had not shown evidence that the program harmed residents or violated the Texas Constitution’s Gift Clause.

Read this article at San Antonio Report - Subscribers Only

California billionaire and tech CEO announces move to Texas

Texas is continuing to attract some of the nation's wealthiest business leaders, as another California billionaire and tech CEO announced he recently relocated to the Lone Star State. Travis Kalanick, cofounder and former CEO of Uber, said in an interview with hosts John Coogan and Jordi Hays on the tech podcast TBPN he had made the move to the Austin area. "On December 18th, I moved to Texas," Kalanick said. "So, I'm a primary resident of Texas." While his transition is finally official, Kalanick said he has owned a place on Lake Austin for nearly five years now, located just 20 minutes outside of the city. However, Kalanick didn't share details on what inspired his move.

Kalanick was born and raised in Los Angeles and co-founded Uber in San Francisco in 2009. He resigned as CEO in 2017 after mounting pressure from major investors amid allegations of a toxic workplace culture that included claims of gender discrimination and sexual harassment, as reported by the New York Times. Now, Kalanick is CEO of Atoms, a robotics company catered to the food, mining and transportation industries. "There's a lot of room for specialized robots that do things in an efficient sort of industrial-scale kind of way, which is sort of where we play," Kalanick said of the company. As of March, Kalanick has an estimated net worth of roughly $3.6 billion, according to Forbes. The 49-year-old's relocation to Austin comes amid a broader influx of tech billionaires to the Lone Star State, alongside a surge of technology companies expanding operations across Texas. In perhaps one of the most high-profile moves, Elon Musk moved from California to Texas in December 2020. Musk now primarily lives in Starbase near the SpaceX launch site.

Read this article at Chron - Subscribers Only

Flying taxis to connect Texas cities under new federal program

Electric flying taxis could start testing routes between Texas’ largest cities within the next three years, state transportation officials say. A state plan to connect San Antonio, Austin, Dallas-Fort Worth and Houston with “regional test flights” of the futuristic aircraft was recently accepted into a federal program designed to develop the use of the technology across the nation. Collectively known as Electric Vertical Takeoff and Landing, or eVTOL, the aircraft resemble giant drones and are designed to be self-flying. Several types are in testing and awaiting certification by the Federal Aviation Administration.

They’re part of a larger discussion over the concept of Advanced Air Mobility which is reimagining the nation’s air network to integrate the new types of aircraft, work out how best to use them and develop the infrastructure needed to operate them safely. U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and the FAA announced this week they had selected a plan developed by the Texas Department of Transportation into the federal eVTOL Integration Pilot Program, along with seven other projects that span 25 states. “This is a first of its kind effort to safely integrate electric aircraft into U.S. airspace and puts Texas squarely in the center of the next generation of aviation,” Sergio Roman, director of office within TxDOT that works with emerging aviation technologies, said in a statement.

Read this article at San Antonio Express-News - Subscribers Only

Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson defends exploring City Hall relocation

Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson pushed back Sunday against friction over City Hall’s future as “silly games” meant to “muddy the waters,” saying exploring relocation options is routine due diligence, not a backroom scheme. In his weekly newsletter, Johnson outlined his most detailed case yet for studying whether Dallas should move City Hall, saying speculation and sensational coverage have distorted the debate. “Those who are more interested in muddying the waters than dealing in facts are working overtime, trying to make normal stuff sound nefarious,” Johnson said. The mayor said the core issue is simple: the I.M. Pei-designed City Hall is aging, expensive to maintain and ill-suited for modern government operations.

“Dallas City Hall isn’t in good shape,” Johnson said. “It doesn’t meet the needs of a modern big-city government — or, really, of any modern workplace.” He said the building’s design anchors a government district that leaves a large stretch of downtown inactive after business hours. Broader changes in Dallas’ urban core make it the right moment to reconsider the city’s headquarters, Johnson said, pointing to: Redevelopment of the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center. The rise of the city’s financial district, dubbed “Y’all Street.” The expected departure of AT&T’s downtown headquarters in the coming years. “This city is at an inflection point,” Johnson wrote. “It’s the right time to ask what kind of urban core Dallas wants to have in the coming decades and then start building it.” He said that’s why he sided with the majority of the City Council in a recent 9-6 vote directing city staff to explore options, including repairing the building or relocating City Hall. Johnson said that is a common step to gather information before any major decision is made. Consultants estimate fully modernizing the current building could cost more than $1 billion over 20 years. Less expensive repairs alone may not produce a more effective workplace, he said. “You can’t consider the viability of any one option in a vacuum without knowing what your other options are,” he said.

Read this article at Dallas Morning News - Subscribers Only

Carnival area at RodeoHouston shuts down early Saturday night as a precaution, officials say

The carnival area at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo closed early Saturday night after fights broke out, prompting some guests to run and causing confusion. That's according to a new statement released by rodeo officials Sunday afternoon. They said the situation prompted others nearby to begin running as well. Law enforcement and on-site security responded immediately, according to a statement released Sunday. Out of an abundance of caution, organizers decided to close the carnival area for the rest of the night. Officials said they are not aware of any injuries. “The safety and security of our guests remains the top priority for the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo,” the statement said.

Read this article at KHOU - Subscribers Only

National Stories

Rising prices and high interest rates are making car ownership feel impossible

An $830-a-month car payment. Auto insurance for $280 each month. Thousands more for tire and maintenance repairs. For almost three years, those bills have followed Davine Greene, a nursing student who hasn’t missed or been late on a payment since buying her Kia K5 GT in November 2023. But keeping up with the payments has driven up her debt to more than $80,000, not including student loans. Last week, she filed for bankruptcy to escape the burden, she said. “This car is the bane of my existence,” said Ms. Greene, 24, who lives in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. “Probably the worst decision I’ve ever made, like, financially speaking.” As car prices, auto loan interest rates and insurance and maintenance costs continue to rise, owning or buying a car is becoming harder to afford.

The war in Iran have pushed gas prices up, adding to greater affordability concerns. President Trump said in a recent interview with Reuters that he was willing to tolerate higher prices for strategic priorities. Vehicle prices climbed during the pandemic as supply chain disruptions slowed production and manufacturers focused on building more profitable vehicles. In the years since, rising interest rates have made the situation even tougher on households. The average interest rate on a 60-month new car loan from banks was 7.22 percent in November, according to the Federal Reserve. Higher rates have pushed monthly payments further. The average monthly new-car payment reached $774 in January, up from $588 in January 2021, according to Edmunds, an auto research firm. A growing share of buyers are taking on even larger loans: More than 20 percent of new-car borrowers agreed to pay over $1,000 a month at the end of last year, which was a record, Edmunds reported. But loan payments are only part of the strain. When insurance, gas, repairs and maintenance are included, the total cost of owning a vehicle has risen more than 40 percent since January 2020, according to an index from Navy Federal Credit Union.

Read this article at New York Times - Subscribers Only

Oscars TV review: Hollywood finally reinvents its big night

“Patience, resilience and that rarest of qualities today, optimism.” That may have been Oscar host Conan O’Brien’s serious wish tonight for the film industry and the world, but it ended up being a pretty good epitaph for Hollywood’s Biggest Night this year. Let’s get it out of the way that patience, resilience and optimism were required for a show that was over 3 hours and 40 minutes long. Sinners star Michael B. Jordan’s Best Actor speech tapped into the same trio of elements in a very different way as he listed off “the people that came before me: Sidney Poitier, Denzel Washington, Halle Berry, Jamie Foxx, Forest Whitaker, Will Smith.” Maybe it was the fact that YouTube will be replacing ABC as the home of the Oscars in 2029, but someone somewhere in the Movie Academy and Disney finally dragged the lumbering show deep into the 21st century.

Making the Oscars watchable from start to finish, and reducing the cringe, has been no easy task. Many a producing team, director and AMPAS board had been defeated trying, or at least pretending to try. A changing culture, fractured viewing habits and sliding ratings during the past 15 years only has exacerbated the hardship as the movies’ big night seemed to get smaller and smaller and far less relevant. Sunday night wasn’t perfect, but it sure was something worth watching with some drama, some surprises and a lot of fun. Big and bold-ish, the 98th Academy Awards had eagles, a pope, crowns, Josh Groban and a “hasasmallpenis” Donald Trump dig. The Raj Kapoor/Katy Mullan-produced show also had best use of a Beastie Boys tune in an Oscars opening skit ever, a passable new Leonardo DiCaprio meme. some YouTube pearl clutching, a couple of big wins for Netflix’s KPop Demon Hunters, and a “Thank you, Canada,” all in its first 30 minutes.

Read this article at Deadline - Subscribers Only

Appointee wants to replace White House columns with the ones Trump prefers

For nearly two centuries, the White House’s main entrance — framed by a row of graceful Ionic columns — has been a signature image of the seat of American power. Now the Trump-appointed head of a federal arts commission is proposing to replace them with a more ornate style favored by President Donald Trump. Those more decorative columns, a style known as Corinthian, are considered the most luxurious in classical architecture and appear on buildings such as the U.S. Capitol and the Supreme Court. They have long been deployed on Trump’s properties, and the president has handpicked them for his planned White House ballroom, too. “Corinthian is the highest order [of column], and that’s what our other two branches of government have,” Rodney Mims Cook Jr., the Trump appointee who chairs the Commission of Fine Arts, a federal panel charged with advising the president on design matters, said in an interview last week.

“Why the White House didn’t originally use them, at least on the north front, which is considered the front door, is beyond me.” A White House spokesperson told The Washington Post that while Trump prefers Corinthian columns in new construction, there are no plans to change the existing Ionic columns outside the White House. Cook said he had yet to discuss the idea directly with the president. But Cook’s proposal to overhaul the front entrance to the White House, known as the North Portico, reflects a common dynamic in Trump’s Washington, where the president’s deputies and allies often anticipate and implement his desires — and frequently upend decades of tradition and norms in the process. Some of Cook’s allies have cheered his idea. “Historic buildings, as important as the White House is, nevertheless they change through time,” said Richard Cameron, a longtime colleague who has pushed to redesign New York’s Penn Station. Many other architects and designers say they’re baffled or even horrified by Cook’s proposal.

Read this article at Washington Post - Subscribers Only

The National Park Service race to rewrite history becomes a slog

The Trump administration’s campaign to remove National Park Service exhibits that “inappropriately disparage” historical figures is bogged down more than nine months after Interior Secretary Doug Burgum set it in motion. The sheer volume of park signs, panels and museum exhibits flagged by park rangers because they mentioned topics like slavery, climate change or violence against Native Americans overwhelmed the Trump administration from the beginning, said three people familiar with the process used to evaluate potential changes, granted anonymity because they feared retribution. “They bit off way more than they could chew,” one of those people said.

But even as parks rushed to meet Interior deadlines, NPS last year dissolved in just a few months a team of experts created to decide if the material flagged by parks had violated President Donald Trump’s prohibition on excessively “negative” portrayals of U.S. history, said two of the people familiar with the process. Many park personnel on the ground now are unsure if NPS will soon demand changes at many parks or leave things as they are, said a park superintendent, who was granted anonymity because they are not allowed to speak to the media. The effort has reached a “nebulous” phase, the superintendent said, with some parks moving forward with edits and others still waiting for changes to be approved. While some exhibits have been altered or removed — most dramatically when NPS in January abruptly took down an exhibit about former President George Washington’s slaves at a Philadelphia site — the vast majority of parks have blown past several Interior Department deadlines to remove material or put up new content, said the superintendent and one of the people familiar with the internal NPS process.

Read this article at Politico - Subscribers Only

Tucker Carlson claims DOJ will charge him for violating foreign agent law: CIA ‘read my texts’ on Iran war

Tucker Carlson on Saturday night said the Justice Department is preparing to charge him for being an unregistered foreign agent, which Carlson said the CIA recommended after reading his text messages leading up to the war on Iran. He suggested “some” CIA workers could be targeting him because of his “views about Israel.” Carlson explained the situation from his view in a 5 minute video posted to X. “The CIA is preparing some kind of criminal referral against me, a crime report to the Department of Justice, on the basis of a supposed crime I committed,” Carlson said. “What’s that crime? Well, talking to people in Iran before the war. They read my texts.”

Carlson said he is “apparently” being charged under the “Foreign Agent Act” – likely referring to the Foreign Agents Registration Act; the 1938 legislation requires people who are paid by foreign governments for lobbying or political advocacy to register with the Justice Department. The ex-Fox News star said he does not “expect this to go anywhere” for several reasons. “I’m not an agent of a foreign power,” Carlson said was the first reason. “Unlike a lot of people commenting on U.S. politics and global affairs, I have only one loyalty and that’s the United States and have never acted against it.” He said another reason he is not worried is because he has “never taken money” from a foreign power. “Don’t need it, don’t want it,” he said. Carlson also said he is an American and can speak to anyone he wants — which is yet another reason he believes the potential charges are bogus. “Legally, I think, the case is ludicrous, and I doubt it’ll even become a case,” Carlson said.

Read this article at Mediaite - Subscribers Only

UF disbands College Republican chapter, citing antisemitic activity

The University of Florida deactivated its College Republicans chapter after the Florida Federation of College Republicans alerted the university to a photo showing a student leader performing a Nazi salute. UF wrote that the gesture violated its policies in a March 14 statement on X. The photo, circulated on X by North Carolina–based journalist Sloan Rachmuth, was a screenshot showing two students performing a Nazi salute in a Guilded chatroom. The group chat platform was designed for gaming communities and was shut down in December 2025. The Florida Federation of College Republicans requested UF disband the chapter while it looked to reorganize the club after it engaged in "a pattern of conduct that violated [FFCR's] rules and values," but it's unclear what authority the FFCR has over UFCR.

The UF club says it's not affiliated with FFCR and instead is part of the College Republicans of America. Both of those organizations accused the FFCR of lying to UF to get the club disbanded. “They cited the FFCR, an organization that we are not a part of that has no authority over our chapter. We are proud members of a different organization, @uscollegegop,” the club wrote on X. “We look forward to the University reinstating our club and correcting this statement. We have retained counsel and have received information that this is not the first time that FFCR has lied to silence christian conservative groups on campus.” FFCR did not immediately reply to the Sun's request for comment on its relationship with the UF club. UFCR's deactivation comes three days after the club hosted gubernatorial candidate James Fishback on campus. The New York Times reported that Fishback, an America First Republican, has openly criticized the U.S.’s ties to Israel and has been praised for his rhetoric by far-right commentator Nick Fuentes, who is often associated with antisemitic views.

Read this article at Gainesville Sun - Subscribers Only

Copyright March 24, 2026, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved