Political Intelligence
Raid Aid
High on the Hog
Texas' Republican ag commissioner spent $55,000 outfitting his office with taxidermy and other bits of Wild West ephemera.
The Republican spent $55,000 outfitting his office with western-themed decor and various iterations of taxidermied wildlife....Read More
Bad Credit: Are College Classes Working for High Schoolers?
The problem isn’t that high schoolers “aren’t ready for college,” says UTEP graduate student Eddie Nevarez, but rather that they get credit for courses ...Read More
Denial of Service
Among its dozens of accountability measures for school districts — including test scores and other data points — the Texas Education Agency (TEA) includes a...Read More
Baby Steps on Trans Health Care
The Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) has quietly made it easier for transgender prisoners to access hormone therapy and other medically necessary hea...Read More
No Work-Around Before Birth Certificate Case Goes to Trial
In mid-October, a federal judge issued a decision denying the parents' request that Texas be compelled to find a temporary means by which to issue the birth cer...Read More
Progreso ISD Fights State Over Students’ Residency
While most of the state’s allegations against the district turn on misappropriated money, there’s one long-running battle between the state and Progreso ISD...Read More
Ghosts of Truancy Laws Past
This school year, for the first time in 20 years, Texas students won’t face criminal penalties for missing school. Texas is one of just two states in the coun...Read More
Dallas Ranks No. 3 in Nation for Rate of Fatal Police Shootings
A new report shows that Dallas recorded the third-highest rate of fatal police shootings among the nation’s 10 largest cities from 2010 through 2014....Read More
State Rep. Giovanni Capriglione’s Support for Joe Straus Sparks Backlash
Julie McCarty—mother, Christian and First Citizen of the Northeast Tarrant Tea Party (NETTP)—is not a woman who suffers fools gladly, and state Rep. Giovann...Read More