Capitol Letters Archives - The Texas Observer

Most Recent in Politics:

1Special Session Edition: Dan Patrick Locks the Legislature in a Bathroom Stall

2Photos: They Fought the Lege (and the Lege Won)

3Texans Could Soon Be Jailed for Flying Drones over Oil Facilities, Animal Factory Farms

4Texas Bill Could Send People to Jail for Driving a Woman to an Abortion, Lawmaker Says

5Bathroom Wars Prove Dan Patrick’s Dominance over Texas Legislature

6After Freedom Caucus Kills Her Legislation, Lawmaker Announces Anti-‘Lunch Shaming’ Campaign

Most Recent in Environment:

1Texans Could Soon Be Jailed for Flying Drones over Oil Facilities, Animal Factory Farms

2Endangered Science

3After Eight-Year Battle Over Reforming the Railroad Commission, Oil and Gas Industry Wins

4Bill Aims to Protect Communities of Color from Polluting Concrete Facilities

5For Texas Pronghorn, an Unusual 500-Mile Journey

6Lawmaker Hopes Bill Will Encourage Legislature to End Shady Accounting Practice

Most Recent in Border:

1Death of ‘Baby Jails’ Bill a Win for Immigrant Families

2Activists: Greg Abbott’s SB 4 Pitch to Univision Viewers is ‘Nothing But Lies’

3On Mother’s Day, Hundreds Protest Senate Bill 4 at Governor’s Mansion

4Texas Lege on Farmworker Housing Crisis: Better Luck Next Time

5Texas Senate Votes to License ‘Baby Jails’ as Child Care Facilities

6Without Notice, Texas Governor Greg Abbott Signs ‘Sanctuary Cities’ Ban on Facebook Live

Most Recent in Criminal Justice:

1Texans Could Soon Be Jailed for Flying Drones over Oil Facilities, Animal Factory Farms

2Texas Bill Could Send People to Jail for Driving a Woman to an Abortion, Lawmaker Says

3Two Blatant Lies from Governor Greg Abbott’s ‘Sanctuary Cities’ Op-Ed

4Traffic Ticketing Program That Feeds Debtors’ Prison Pipeline May Be in its Final Year

5Activists: Greg Abbott’s SB 4 Pitch to Univision Viewers is ‘Nothing But Lies’

6Sandra Bland Act Passes Senate Unanimously After Key Provisions Dropped

Most Recent in Education:

1After Freedom Caucus Kills Her Legislation, Lawmaker Announces Anti-‘Lunch Shaming’ Campaign

2Texas’ ‘Lunch Shaming’ Problem and the Fight to Fix It

3CPS Caseworker: Lawmakers Are ‘Shifting the Blame’ by Privatizing Child Welfare System

4‘Academic Freedom’ Bill Provides Cover to Teach Creationism, Climate Denial in Classrooms

5‘Another Book, Another Month, Another Day Closer to You’

6Dan Patrick Offers Vouchers as Solution to Special Ed Failures that He Helped Create

Most Recent in Health Care:

1Texas Bill Could Send People to Jail for Driving a Woman to an Abortion, Lawmaker Says

2Abandoning ‘Women’s Health’ Claims, Texas House Approves Wide-Ranging Anti-Abortion Bill

3CPS Caseworker: Lawmakers Are ‘Shifting the Blame’ by Privatizing Child Welfare System

4Texas Is Seeking Trump’s Approval of its Planned Parenthood Ban. Will Other States Follow?

5We Were the Safety Net

6Sandra Bland Act Passes Senate Unanimously After Key Provisions Dropped

Most Recent in The Interview:

1The Interview: Joaquin Castro Says Texas Democrats are Poised for a Comeback

2The Interview: Beto O’Rourke on Trump, the Border and How to Revive the Democratic Party

3The Interview: Tom ‘Smitty’ Smith

4The Interview: Lupe Valdez

5The Interview: Paul Quinn College’s Michael Sorrell

6The Interview: Judge John Dietz on Texas’ School Finance Crisis

Most Recent in Books:

1We Were the Safety Net

2‘Cornyation’ Celebrates San Antonio’s Most Fabulous Fiesta Tradition

3Valeria Luiselli’s ‘Tell Me How It Ends’ Is the First Must-Read Book of the Trump Era

4In the Age of Trump, the First All-Latino Sci-Fi Anthology Hits too Close to Home

5In ‘Blue Texas,’ a Historical Blueprint for Texas Activists

6Austin Writer Ed Ward Celebrates the Black Musicians Who Made Rock

Most Recent in Postcards:

5Feathering Their Nest

6The Business of Burying Horses

Most Recent in Essay:

1Going It Alone

2The Observer’s Founding Editor: ‘Bring the Fight Back’ to Texas Politics

3A Texan’s Political Guide to Resisting Trump

4The Resistance Against Donald Trump Begins in Texas

5What a 1940 Novel Can Teach Us About Fighting Trump

6A Single Mom’s Search for ‘School Choice’ in Texas

Most Recent in Eye on Texas:

1Eye on Texas: Runners Take on 170-Mile Race in Big Bend

2Eye on Texas: Liberty Hill Hosts Texas Firearms Festival

3Eye on Texas: TX Open Swim

4Eye on Texas: Blessing of the Hands in San Antonio

5Eye on Texas: Austin’s Chapels

6Eye on Texas: Portico Tejas

Most Recent in Poetry:

2Poem: ‘Resistance’

3Poem: ‘Screenplay for a Homemade Movie’

4Poem: ‘To Be One with the All’

5Poem: ‘Whitewashing’

6Poem: ‘Rice and Beans’

Capitol Letters

Gov, Lite: Meet the Four (Whacky) Candidates for Texas Lt. Governor

by Eileen Smith | Thu, Jul 25, 2013 at 15:26 CST

Ted Cruz mid-speech

by Eileen Smith

Mr. Cruz Goes to Washington

Leave a comment |

Fri, Dec 14, 2012 |

A coveted leadership post in the tea party has opened up and Cruz is most likely salivating at the chance to prove that the uber-conservative wing of the Repub...Read More

by Eileen Smith

Texas Democrats, Make Your Move

Fri, Nov 16, 2012 |

Forget about the great GOP awakening. Now is the perfect time for Texas Democrats to figure out what the hell they’re doing. The default explanation for their...Read More

Gallego vs Canseco: ¿Quien es mas Catolico?

In Texas' 23rd Congressional District, Jesus has taken time out of his busy schedule to endorse the incumbent.

by Eileen Smith

Leave a comment | Tue, Oct 30, 2012

Last Thursday Bill Clinton turned on that old Clinton charm, which seems to work on everyone but his wife, to lend his support to Democratic state Rep. Pete Gal...Read More

Ted Cruz Comes Home to the GOP Establishment

Ted Cruz inches (ever so slightly) over to the Republican establishment.

by Eileen Smith

1 Comment | Tue, Oct 23, 2012

Ted Cruz is where he is today—the next senator from Texas, barring any unforeseen circumstances such as being eaten alive by angry trolls—because of the tea...Read More

Perry 2016? It Would Take an Act of God

by Eileen Smith

Leave a comment | Thu, Oct 11, 2012

Satan runs across the world with his doubt and with his untruths and what have you, and one of the untruths out there that is driven is that people of faith sho...Read More

Call Me Crazy, Maybe: The Sadler-Cruz Debate

by Eileen Smith

Leave a comment | Wed, Oct 3, 2012

What you don’t do, is do your job as a legislator worried that some troll will come along 10 years later or 20 years later and try to run a campaign against y...Read More

Testing Rape Kits a No-Brainer for Most Pols… But Not Dr. Mark Shelton

by Eileen Smith

Leave a comment | Fri, Sep 28, 2012

Incredible as it may seem there are still some issues that can rally bipartisan support. Take, for example, the federal Sexual Assault Forensic Evidence Registr...Read More

Texas Republicans Become Arabian Knights

by Eileen Smith

Leave a comment | Wed, Sep 19, 2012

Last week Texas Republican heavyweights, from Gov. Rick Perry to Senate nominee and Latino rising star Ted Cruz, weighed in on the riots in Libya almost as quic...Read More

Women’s Rights Takes Center Stage at DNC

by Eileen Smith

Leave a comment | Fri, Sep 7, 2012

Why are we having to fight in 2012 against politicians who want to end access to birth control? It’s like we woke up in a bad episode of Mad Men.—Cecile...Read More

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