Many Texas lawmakers have the resources to stay in Austin a few extra weeks — or even months — for special sessions. But others take a big fiscal hit. And it takes a personal toll on all of them.
Bryan Hughes
Posted in
Health care
Guest Column: The Case Against Family Planning Funding
At a time when we are scouring the budget and questioning every expenditure, when funding for essential services like public education must be reduced, it is time to stop subsidizing abortion providers under the guise of “family planning.”
Posted in
Health care
Video: Why Hughes Opposed the Smoking Ban
Late Friday night, the Texas House tentatively approved a statewide ban on smoking in public places by a vote of 73-66. State Rep. Bryan Hughes, R-Marshall, explains why he voted against the measure.
Posted in
State Government
Tribune Directory Updated to Include 2011 Lege Staffers
We’ve updated our elected officials directory this week to include the names and e-mail addresses of legislative staffers in the 82nd session now that the House Research Organization has released a complete list.
Posted inState Government
TribBlog: The First Non-Vote
After winning a rough and tumble contest for his seat, freshman state Rep. Jason Isaac, R-Dripping Springs, got his first chance at a record vote in the Texas House of Representatives today. And when that vote finally came, what did he do? He abstained.
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State Government
TribBlog: Four for Paxton
Add four East Texas state representatives to Rep. Ken Paxton’s list, bringing the McKinney Republican closer to a dozen-and-a-half votes in his quest for 76. Paxton is challenging Speaker Joe Straus for the top job.
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State Government
No Ethics Violation in House Speaker’s Race
A House committee heard testimony yesterday on whether or a lawmaker used the threat redistricting as a tactic to coerce a colleague into supporting Speaker Joe Straus. Ben Philpott of KUT News and the Tribune reports on the testimony — and what’s next in the investigation.
Posted inState Government
House Committee Can’t Confirm Misconduct
Members of the Texas House General Investigating and Ethics Committee heard testimony today on whether or not a lawmaker used redistricting to threaten a member into supporting Speaker Joe Straus. Their conclusion: We can’t tell.
Posted inState Government
Interactive: The Speaker’s Race!
We’ve reached a point in the soap opera known as the House Speaker’s Race at which it’s tough to track all the characters and their connections. To keep his post, current Speaker Joe Straus is actively campaigning for the votes of House members who will elect him — or his replacement — in January. In recent weeks, two of his fellow Republicans have emerged as challengers, and the involvement of sundry outside interests make for an increasingly tangled web. As the House General Investigating and Ethics Committee prepares to hold a hearing today about alleged threats made against one minor player in the drama, we present this handy interactive to help make sense of it all.
Posted in
State Government
TribBlog: Hughes Leaves Team Straus [Updated]
The latest defection from Speaker Joe Straus’ list of supporters is state Rep. Bryan Hughes, R-Mineola, who claims the speaker’s team is “using the redistricting process as retribution.”