Tag Archives: Joe Straus
Religious Right Takes Bathroom Fight Back to Schools after Defeat at Capitol
After failing to pass a “bathroom bill” at the Legislature, religious-right conservatives target LGBT-inclusive policies at schools.
On Monday, Allan Parker stood outside the San Antonio Independent School District’s David G. Burnet Center and asked everyone gathered to imagine Caitlyn Jenn...Read More
New San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg on Priorities, Progressives and the Legislature
Nirenberg doesn’t identify with a specific political party, but thinks future-focused candidates are in a prime position to take back the state.
Ron Nirenberg assumed office in June after defeating former Mayor Ivy Taylor with 54 percent of the vote in a runoff election. Like Taylor, Nirenberg’s job pe...Read More
Never Say Sine Die: Legislature Returns to Ideological Special Session Agenda
As if the regular session wasn’t terrible enough, Governor Greg Abbott has called lawmakers back for another 30 days of hell.
If your town suddenly seems emptied of crooks, scoundrels and liars, it’s probably because state lawmakers are trickling back into Austin for a very special l...Read More
Dan Patrick Accuses Joe Straus of Ponzi Scheme Ahead of Special Session
Patrick seemed to suggest that spending money on ESL and special needs students is a waste and should be spent on teacher pay.
For once, Dan Patrick didn’t mention bathrooms at a press conference. Instead, the lieutenant governor stepped into the spotlight ahead of next week’s speci...Read More
30 Days of Horror: Greg Abbott Calls Texas Legislature Back for Summer Session
The governor announced the Legislature will reconvene on July 18 to address his grab-bag list of 20 issues.
At a press conference in which he took no questions, Governor Greg Abbott announced a July 18 special session that had a not-so-subtle undertone: I’m in charg...Read More
Worst. Legislature. Ever. How Did We Get Here?
The Republican Party of Texas, hostage to its own overreach and gerrymandered districts, will never fix itself.
Grind with me for a moment the gears of imagination, and consider a state not unlike our own — let’s call it Rexas — which has demonstrated an unusual deg...Read More
Special Session Edition: Dan Patrick Locks the Legislature in a Bathroom Stall
Dan Patrick is forcing a special session to get his bathroom bill passed.
Sometimes the right questions to ask at the Texas Legislature are the simple ones, like: Dear god, what’s happening? And, Dear god, why is this happening? And...Read More
Bathroom Wars Prove Dan Patrick’s Dominance over Texas Legislature
More than ever, Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick is pulling the strings at the Capitol.
There was something very peculiar about the proceedings of the Texas House Sunday night, even amid a session that has scored high in casual cruelty and procedur...Read More
In Passing ‘Bathroom Bill,’ Joe Straus’ House ‘Rolled’ By Dan Patrick
“We are being rolled by the Senate, and trans children are part of that bargain,” said Representative Celia Israel.
In the final days of the 85th Texas Legislature, the House bent to the will of Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick by approving a version of the anti-transgender ba...Read More