Over the past two sessions, State Rep. Byron Cook (R–Corsicana) has pushed a legislative proposal so bad that it has not just harmed his political future, but the future of any representative voters perceive to have supported it. In 2013 and again in 2015, Cook pushed...
Gov. Greg Abbott on Monday appointed Dallas Independent School District Trustee Mike Morath to be the next Education Commissioner of Texas. Referring to Morath as a “proven educational reformer,” Abbott applauded the progress DISD has made in large part to Morath’s...
The Midland City Council will be voting Tuesday on whether to take the first step in authorizing roughly $22.4 million in new city debt via Certificates of Obligation (CO), which do not require voter approval, and should typically be used in emergency circumstances...
Boasting the 10th highest per-capita tax burden in the nation, San Antonio also has nearly $1.5 billion in hidden retirement obligation. Unsurprisingly, instead of addressing the obvious spending problems within their administration, officials are attempting to pass...
Houston’s quarrelsome municipal election came to an end last night following a spar-filled campaign season. After coming in first in November’s runoff, former State Rep. Sylvester Turner edged out Bill King earning 51 percent of the vote becoming Houston’s next mayor....
Today, President Obama endorsed Houston mayoral candidate State Rep. Sylvester Turner. If Conservatives didn’t have a reason to get out and vote before – now they do. Obama’s endorsement, much like the NY Times and Hillary Clinton’s HERO endorsement, shows...
When House Speaker Joe Straus (R–San Antonio) and State Affairs Chairman Byron Cook (R–Corsicana) called a committee hearing on Thursday to discuss sanctuary cities and “undocumented immigrants,” conservatives knew to expect inaction. Indeed, Cook has repeatedly...
At the start of the 84th legislative session, liberal Republican House Speaker Joe Straus engaged in a lame attack on Empower Texans, decrying organizations that produce “scorecards” as a mechanism of informing voters about the difference between politicians’ campaign...
State Rep. Jonathan Stickland (R-Bedford) called in to Lubbock’s Chad Hasty Show Tuesday and explained why he’s backing District 84 candidate and former State Rep. Jim Landtroop over incumbent State Rep. John Frullo. Although Frullo describes himself as a limited...
The liberal Republican speaker of the Texas House is hiring more democrats, prompting praise from the political left. Last week, Texas House Speaker Joe Straus promoted Patricia Shipton, his “strategic legal advisor” and a former lobbyist, to Chief of Staff after...
After recent exposure for killing immigration enforcement initiatives over the past several sessions, and doing nothing on the issue since it heated up this summer, the Texas House is belatedly responding to citizens’ frustrations with “sanctuary cities” by holding a...
Another conservative group is out with ratings of the 84th Texas Legislature and they confirm many Texas Republicans are not what they claim to be on the campaign trail. Young Conservatives of Texas today released the 21st installment of their ratings of the Texas...
The City of Dallas has been exposed for keeping billions in “hidden” debt from its financial statements. According to a recent report, Dallas currently has the third highest taxpayer burden in the nation, driven primarily by unfunded pension obligations that are held...
Religious leaders, who spoke out against the recently defeated Houston “Equal Rights Ordinance,” were handed subpoenas in response. Now, some council members are saying they too were unjustly targeted for voting against the controversial ordinance. The Campaign for...
Houston Mayor Annise Parker recently participated in the Victory Fund’s International Leadership Conference where she interviewed with the Washington Blade to discuss the failure of her signature ordinance and future plans for public office. On the equal rights...
Born and raised on a dairy farm in eastern Iowa, Dave Wilson has called Cypress, Texas home for six years. Here, he has helped grow conservative presence as the Director of the Cypress Texas Tea Party. An engineer by trade, Wilson says he wasn’t involved in politics...
After being caught violating their own ordinances to aid Planned Parenthood, the San Antonio City Council will vote next week to retroactively define the zoning codes for the Dreamhill Estates neighborhood so the abortion provider’s $6.5 million facility will be in...
Government interest groups are confessing their belief that reforms aimed at providing greater fiscal transparency to voters will be harmful to local governments. Unsurprisingly, a better-informed voter makes debt-hungry governments nervous. During Wednesday’s hearing...
Outgoing Houston Mayor Annise Parker has long expressed interest in a texting-while-driving ban but, until now, she hasn’t offered specific policy for council to consider. Her administration recently proposed three policies aimed at curbing the use of handheld devices...
A new study by the Heritage Foundation found that—of the twelve most costly regulatory mistakes made by federal, state, and local officials—local governments impose the largest burden on families. According to the report, local land-use restrictions unnecessarily...
