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June 20, 2018 2:15 PM

Abbott sets July 31 special election to fill unexpired term of Sen. Uresti

Filing deadline is 5pm this coming Monday

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June 20, 2018 2:02 PM

Abbott asks Congress to pass a fix for family separations just as Trump reverses course with executive order

In a letter to members of Congress, Abbott echoed Trump by saying Democrats are responsible for inaction: “Texans are not fooled by the partisan divide on this issue...they know that even if all Republicans agree, a bill fixing the problem will not pass without Democrat support in the Senate.”

Latest on the president’s moves via the Washington Post:

President Trump abruptly reversed course Wednesday, signing an executive order ending family separations at the U.S.-Mexico border after a public uproar over the impact of his administration’s “zero tolerance” immigration policy.

The plan would keep families together in federal custody while awaiting prosecution for illegal border crossings, potentially violating a 1997 court settlement limiting the duration of child detentions.

“So we're going to have strong, very strong borders, but we’re going to keep the families together,” Trump said as he signed the order in the Oval Office. “I didn't like the sight or the feeling of families being separated.”

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June 20, 2018 1:57 PM

Poll: 79% of fantasy sports players who do not gamble now plan to do so if it is legalized in their state

“This research strongly suggests that the value of most fantasy sports companies will rise significantly, even when the companies themselves don't take legal wagers."

79% of fantasy sports players who do not bet on sports now will plan to do so if sports betting is legalized in their state, according to a new poll commissioned by the Fantasy Sports Trade Association.

The results were unveiled during the trade group’s summer conference in Minnesota.

The rest of the story, subscribers only

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June 19, 2018 5:07 PM

HK: GOP Convention opts for small tent Republicanism

This Convention leaves little doubt it prefers purity over party-building but that has not always been the case

You can put a ribbon on the 2018 State Republican convention now and one thing is clear. The “small tent” Republicans carried the day.

With the exception of a chairman battle which typically represents the soul of the party for the next two years, this was more a celebration of Donald Trump and “party unity” than growing an even more formidable Republican Party of Texas.

This year there was more rhetoric about stopping the blue wave and George Soros and less about the challenges facing a Party that should never stop its effort to build its ranks despite its current formidable numerical success.

The rest of the story, subscribers only

By Harvey Kronberg

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June 19, 2018 5:05 PM

Press Releases: Immigration, child detentions, appointments, and more

Click the Press Releases button above for the latest submissions

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June 19, 2018 4:24 PM

Fort Worth could be the next city on the hot seat for pension reform at the legislature

Without adjustments to benefits, the pension fund could run out of money within 20 years; the city has been agreeable to increase contributions on its side of the ledger

Fort Worth could be the next city on the hot seat for employee pension problems, a problem the Fort Worth City Council has only begun to address.

The Texas Pension Review Board has begun round-robin sessions with some of the most problematic pension funds in the state at each meeting. The clock is ticking on Cowtown, which is scrambling to address chronic pension shortfalls before legislative action is needed.

“The mayor and council feel very strongly they would like to solve this pension issue locally, as compared to the state level,” said Fort Worth Employee Retirement Fund Executive Director Joelle Mevi. “I believe they are very sincere in that effort.”

The rest of the story, subscribers only

By Kimberly Reeves

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June 19, 2018 9:52 AM

Speaker Straus asks President Trump to rescind policy causing family separations at the border

"It is wrong to use these scared, vulnerable children as a negotiating tool”; meantime Rep Villallba asks Gov. Abbott to provide for family facilities instead of separate ones

Saying children should not be used as a "negotiating tool," Texas House Speaker Joe Straus on Tuesday asked President Donald Trump to rescind his administration's policy causing family separations on the Texas-Mexico border.

In a letter to Trump dated today, Straus said "There is no federal law requiring the separation of children and parents." He also cited the fact that some of the facilities being used to house immigrants right now "have in recent weeks requested variances to exceed their licensed capacities."

The rest of the story, subscribers only

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June 18, 2018 5:41 PM

SB: Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick declares no civil war in the GOP and he may be correct

A smaller Texas House GOP caucus could prove more compliant for Patrick and Abbott, the latter usually deferring to Patrick for setting an agenda; Democrats would have to ride a “blue wave,” though, that may never materialize

Perhaps every column should now start like this: Before you’re done reading, the president may tweet something that changes almost everything I’m about to say.

In his speech at the RPT convention and again in an email to supporters on Sunday evening, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick – who finished about 15 points behind Gov. Greg Abbott in the primary but remains the spiritual leader of the party – declared there is no civil war among Republicans. Patrick argued that at this point, any assertion to the contrary is solely a media creation.

“As we saw clearly in our Primary Election in March, when it comes to the key issues that are central to the work we are doing in the Legislature in Austin, we are close to unanimity,” Patrick said, pointing to ballot questions voters answered about things like toll roads, abortion, and how the speaker should be chosen.

Setting aside the hair pulling and gnashing of teeth in the Texas GOP Chairman’s race along with the vicious and ineffective attacks lobbed by “conservative” groups and Gov. Greg Abbott against Texas House Republicans leading up to the March primary, let’s entertain the idea that Patrick is correct.

The rest of the story, subscribers only

By Scott Braddock

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June 18, 2018 5:39 PM

SCOTUS takes another pass on partisan gerrymandering, leave Texas decision ahead

Given the ultimate outcome in the Wisconsin case, the Supreme Court might end up hung up on the jurisdiction issue in the Texas case

The U.S. Supreme Court discarded two of the pending redistricting cases this morning, leaving the issue of partisan gerrymandering unresolved and the fate of the Texas maps still murky.

The cases for Wisconsin and Maryland were partisan gerrymandering cases, one for each major party.

But instead of validating the idea of redistricting, the court punted, sending the Wisconsin case back to the lower court to reconsider standing and deferring to a federal court on the lines drawn in the single district challenged in the Maryland case.

The rest of the story, subscribers only

By Kimberly Reeves

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June 18, 2018 11:52 AM

Sen. Uresti resigns, asks Abbott to call a special election in November for successor

"After 22 years of public service to the great State of Texas - both as the State Representative for District 118 and the State Senator for District 19, I formally announce my resignation as State Senator effective June 21, 2018."

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June 18, 2018 9:28 AM

SCOTUS rules against Wisconsin Democrats over legislative map; leaves open broader issue of partisan districting

"It was a technical resolution of what has seemed to hold the promise of being a landmark decision about extreme efforts to give one party advantage over another...."

Here’s the latest via the Washington Post.

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June 18, 2018 8:38 AM

Husch Blackwell Strategies Adds Larry Gonzales to Texas Team

"I am honored to join Husch Blackwell Strategies," Larry Gonzales said. "Their success and continued growth across the nation speaks to their ability to serve their clients." Former Chair Gonzales is senior consultant

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June 18, 2018 7:47 AM

One man arrested after suspected arson at Austin Club

Minimal damage, police believe the man stole some booze from the building

Per KXAN TV in Austin:

A suspect is in custody following a fire at a historic building in downtown Austin Monday.

Austin police discovered a door to the Austin Club at 110 E. Ninth St. had been pried open. A man came out before 4:40 a.m. and started running, but an officer was able to chase him down.

While police were sweeping the building, they found water and smoke and called the fire department. Crews first arrived and reported smoke on two floors, then found the fire on the third floor. A sprinkler had gone off and put out the fire, but firefighters worked to remove the smoke and make sure the fire hadn't spread.

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June 17, 2018 4:31 PM

Full text of the RPT platform is released

The full text of the Republican Party of Texas platform is right here.

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