Senate passes GOP’s tax and spending bill with Cornyn, Cruz priorities included
The package includes $13.5 billion to reimburse states for border spending. It is expected to meet resistance in the House from some Texas Republicans. Full Story
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![The U.S. Capitol in Washington in January 2022.]()
Credit: Shuran Huang for The Texas Tribune -
Texas Democrat Colin Allred launches 2026 U.S. Senate campaign
Allred lost to U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz last year by 8.5 points while outperforming the top of the ticket. Full Story
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![Then-U.S. Rep. Colin Allred, D-Dallas, at a Kamala Harris campaign rally at the Shell Energy Stadium in Houston on Friday, Oct. 25, 2024.]()
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Sen. John Cornyn looks to overcome Paxton primary challenge by embracing Trump
As he faces the toughest electoral challenge of his career, Cornyn has also wielded his powers as a U.S. senator to lean into partisan issues prized by the GOP base. Full Story
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![U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, prepares to introduce Brooke Rollins, President Donald Trump's nominee to be Agriculture secretary, during her Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee confirmation hearing in Dirksen building on Thursday, January 23, 2025.]()
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Ted Cruz wants to stop states from regulating AI. Some of his Republican colleagues aren’t so sure
Senate Republicans, Democrats and outside groups are mounting an offensive against Cruz’s push to withhold AI money from states that regulate the technology. Full Story
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![Senator Ted Cruz arrives at the Trump Rally at Million Air in Austin, Texas on Oct. 25, 2024.]()
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Proposed Pell Grant cuts threaten aid for Texas students
Proposals in the federal budget bill would cut the maximum Pell Grant award amount by $1,500 and take away eligibility for students enrolled less than half-time. Full Story
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![Students walk across the Texas A&M campus in College Station on Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2024.]()
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Progressive Rep. Greg Casar has a playbook he wants Democrats to use in 2026
Casar, the chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, thinks economic populism and “authentic candidates” can win back recently converted GOP voters. Full Story
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![U.S. Rep. Greg Casar, D-Texas, sits in his soon-to-be old office at Longworth House Office Building Friday, Dec. 6, 2024, in Washington, D.C. He and his team are currently in the process of moving office spaces to Canon House Office Building.]()
Credit: Luke Johnson for The Texas Tribune -
Rep. Jasmine Crockett drops bid for influential post on House oversight panel
The Dallas Democrat had said her party should respond more aggressively to the Trump administration and pitched herself as the best messenger for the job. Full Story
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![U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Dallas, at a House Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Oversight hearing in the Rayburn House office building in Washington on April 2, 2025.]()
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Former astronaut Terry Virts launches Democratic bid for U.S. Senate in Texas
The early announcement tees up what is likely to be a crowded primary field angling for the seat held by Republican Sen. John Cornyn. Full Story
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![International Space Station (ISS) crew member Terry Virts of the U.S. speaks by satellite phone shortly after landing near the town of Zhezkazgan, Kazakhstan, June 11, 2015. Three astronauts landed safely in the steppes of Kazakhstan on Thursday, ending their 199-day mission after an unexpected "bonus month" aboard the International Space Station, NASA Television showed.]()
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Former U.S. Rep. Blake Farenthold of Corpus Christi dies at 63
Farenthold, a local radio personality, served in Congress from 2011 to 2018 and is credited with securing funding for the port. He resigned amid allegations of sexual harassment. Full Story
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![U.S. Rep. Blake Farenthold, R-Corpus Christi.]()
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American babies may get $1,000 each to invest because of Ted Cruz
Included in Congress’ major tax and spending bill is Cruz’s proposal to give every American baby $1,000 to invest. Full Story
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![President Donald Trump and U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, after the signing ceremony for the "Take it Down Act" in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, D.C., on Monday, May 19, 2025.]()
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To fight screwworm, the U.S. is opening a South Texas facility to disperse sterile flies
Screwworm is a parasitic fly that targets warm-blooded animals and has the potential to disrupt Texas’ $15 billion cattle industry. Full Story
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![Cattle are brought across the U.S.-Mexico border at the livestock import/export facility in Santa Teresa, New Mexico on January 22, 2021.]()
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Two Texas congressmembers named on alleged Minnesota assassin’s hit list
Reps. Veronica Escobar and Joaquin Castro were among the 45 elected officials placed on a hit list by a man accused of killing a former Minnesota House speaker and her husband. Full Story
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![U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar, D-El Paso, speaks during Madres de la Frontera: Love Without Borders, a peaceful protest denouncing separation and honoring unity, on Saturday, May 10, 2025.]()
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Texas DPS makes arrest after warning state lawmakers of “credible threats” tied to Capitol protest
The agency said there was no additional active threat, as Austin demonstrators took aim at the Trump administration. Full Story
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![Texas Department of Public Safety vehicles outside of the state Capitol on Aug. 11, 2021.]()
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U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales draws GOP primary challenge from Cotulla rancher Susan Storey Rubio
In a launch video, Storey Rubio attacked Gonzales’ border security record and said it’s “time to round up the career politicians and deport them out of Washington.” Full Story
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![Susan Storey Rubio is running in the Republican primary against U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales, R-San Antonio.]()
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Trump aides want Texas to redraw its congressional maps to boost the GOP. What would that mean?
The plan would shift voters from safely red districts into blue ones. Members of the state’s Republican delegation aren’t sold on the idea. Full Story
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![The newest drafts of the statewide congressional districts in Texas outside the Senate Chamber in the Texas Capitol in Austin on Sept. 30 2021.]()
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Texas’ GOP congressional delegation meets to discuss redrawing districts ahead of midterms
The proposal would require the Texas Legislature to return for a special session to carry out the rare move of reshaping the state’s political boundaries mid-decade. Full Story
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![2020 Census data and redistricting maps at The Texas Tribune office in Austin on Oct. 7, 2021. The state population grew by nearly 4 million and was mostly driven by people of color.]()
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A Texas Republican new to Congress, Brandon Gill has a knack for getting noticed
With a scant legislative record but a lot of face recognition, the representative from North Texas has found a way to make a mark in his first term. Full Story
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![U.S. Rep. Brandon Gill, R-Flower Mound, speaks during the news conference on the Birthright Citizenship Act at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 23, 2025.]()
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Texas Rep. Jolanda Jones announces bid to succeed Sylvester Turner in Congress
Jones, a Democrat elected to the Texas House in 2022 and previously served on the Houston City Council, joins a slate of candidates running to fill the solidly blue seat. Full Story
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![State Rep. Jolanda Jones, D-Houston, speaks in favor of Medicaid expansion during the budget debate in the Texas House on April 10, 2025.]()
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U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett joins race for top Democratic slot on powerful House oversight panel
“Our work cannot be solely reactive,” Crockett told her colleagues, pitching herself as the most effective messenger among the Democratic hopefuls. Full Story
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![United States Representative Jasmine Crockett (Democrat of Texas), attends a House Committee on Oversight and Accountability markup ì1 H.Res. Recommending that the House of Representatives find Robert Hunter Biden in contempt of Congress for refusal to comply with a subpoena duly issued by the Committee on Oversight and Accountabilityî in the Rayburn House Office Building in Washington, DC, Wednesday, January 10, 2024. Credit: Rod Lamkey / CNP/Sipa USANo Use Germany.]()
Credit: Rod Lamkey - CNP/Sipa USA via Reuters Connect -
Food aid cuts and other changes: What the U.S. House spending bill could mean for Texans
Many low-income families would see cuts in health care and food benefits. The state hopes for a big reimbursement for border security spending. Full Story
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![A volunteer loads a box of groceries into a truck for delivery to a nearby community in the the panhandle.]()
Credit: Callie Richmond for The Texas Tribune