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Texas Legislature

Texas Tells Students to Report Threats. It Should Give Us a Seat at the Safety Table.

State law requires parents, educators, police, and administrators to be a part of district safety committees, but not the kids who are expected to recognize and report danger.

by Arjun Sharda

Keep Reading

One of the Top Texas House Races Could Come Down to a Single Issue: Water

by Justin Doud

Come and Take Them, Dan Patrick

by Kalyn Gensic

University of Houston Is Gutting Its Gender and Sexuality Classes. That Won’t Stop Texas’ Crusade Against Higher Ed.

by Andrew Joseph Pegoda

Four uniformed Texas national guard troops stand near a Texas Department of Public Safety SUV, near barbed wire which stands at the border with Mexico in El Paso. Mar 01, 2024

Federal Judge Halts Texas Deportation Law

"Surges in immigration do not constitute an 'invasion' within the meaning of the Constitution."

by Gus Bova

A man in a crowded, urban protest march turns away from the marchers to face the camera, smiling as he holds up a handwritten sign reading "Trans Rights are Human Rights." Jan 25, 2024

Anti-LGBTQ+ Laws in Texas May Violate Human Rights Treaties

Four nonprofits are urging the United Nations to pressure the federal government to protect queer residents of the Lone Star state.

by Kit O'Connell

A collage image of Colin Allred, Ted Cruz and Roland Gutierrez. Cruz is centered in black nd white, while Gutierrez and Allred are behind him, with a cold blue filter on their photos. Abstract circls and brackets make up the background. Jan 02, 2024

Cruzin’ for a Bruisin: Can Anyone Defeat Ted?

After 12 years in office, the junior senator podcasts more than he legislates. But history suggests Texans will give him six more years to talk.

by Justin Miller

Dec 14, 2023

Texas Is Challenging 150 Years of Immigration Law

Senate Bill 4 could be the vehicle for the U.S. Supreme Court to finally unleash Lone Star Republicans on the world’s huddled masses.

by Gus Bova

Jonathan Stickland, a white man with a light beard and mustache, wearing a suit with a striped red tie, laughs in a candid portrait photo. Dec 04, 2023

Texas GOP Rejects Ban on Association with Nazis

It’s the latest instance of the state party’s right-wing officialdom embracing extremism, and vengeance, above all else.

by Justin Miller

A random scattering of crescent shapes from the leaves reflecting on a gray painted brick wall, with the leaves acting like pinhole cameras during the eclipse. Dec 01, 2023

Strangest State: Eclipses and Flying Snakes

A young teen reporter covers the Ken Paxton impeachment on typewriter, serpents fall from the sky and more dispatches from far-flung Texas.

by Texas Observer Staff

Dade Phelan, a white man in a suit and tie, prepares to bang his gavel. Behind him is a light board showing how different representatives vote on the current bill. Nov 17, 2023

House Votes 84-63 to Strip Vouchers from Omnibus School Funding Bill

Rural Republicans team up with Dems to reject vouchers in intra party showdown on the House floor.

by Josephine Lee

A cartoon depicts Ken Paxton watching The Godfather on TV, wearing a mafia-style ostentatious purple suit and fedora hat. On TV, Michael Corleone is saying, "Today, I settled all family business..." As Ken Paxton reacts with utter glee, "Yes! Oh YES!" Caption: Ken Paxton's favorite! The line in "The Godfather" in which Michael Corleone announces he has just had all his enemies whacked ... Nov 17, 2023

Loon Star State: Whacked

"A man who doesn't spend time with his family can never be a real man."—Vito Corleone

by Ben Sargent

The dome of the Texas State Capitol, in black and white, with a gradient filter creating a gloomy aura about it. Nov 15, 2023

Texas Legislature Votes to Seize Immigration Authority from Feds

A major U.S. Supreme Court case could be on the horizon as the Lone Star State takes international matters into its own hands.

by Gus Bova

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