Texas Tribune Brief

The Texas Tribune put this podcast on hiatus in August 2023 due to staffing changes in the newsroom.If you want to follow the latest news on Texas politics and policy, check out our daily email newsletter, which is also called The Brief. You can sign up at texastribune.org/newsletters

In a court hearing over the barrier near Eagle Pass, the U.S. Justice Department argued it was installed without proper authorization, while lawyers for the state said it notified the feds first.Sad to announce that this will be the last episode of the Texas Tribune Audio Brief.Thank you to the dedicated Audio Brief podcast listeners and the numerous followers who have enjoyed and supported the Audio Brief.I am truly sorry and thank each and every one of you for gracing me your trust and support.I will miss you all,Justin Dehn

Lawyers for the suspended attorney general argue that compelled testimony would violate Paxton's rights, but House impeachment managers disagree. The issue may be settled in the trial's opening hours.

A day after Patrick announced the appointment, Marc Brown declined it, citing a campaign contribution he made to Paxton's GOP primary opponent in 2021.

Before 30 senators take on their role as impeachment trial jurors, they face a series of momentous votes on whether to dismiss the charges as requested by the suspended attorney generalThe Texas Tribune Audio Brief would like to hear from you! Please click here to take our audience survey. It's the best way to get to know our listeners.

After Paxton's lawyers sought to dismiss articles of impeachment as unsubstantiated, House managers responded by accusing the suspended attorney general of going to great lengths to cover up his relationship to the Austin real estate investor.The Texas Tribune Audio Brief would like to hear from you! Please click here to take our audience survey. It's the best way to get to know our listeners.

Texas families and health care providers sued the state over Senate Bill 14, which restricts transgender youth from accessing gender-affirming care. The groups are requesting an injunction from a state district court judge before the law goes into effect on Sept. 1.The Texas Tribune Audio Brief would like to hear from you! Please click here to take our audience survey. It's the best way to get to know our listeners.

Amid ongoing wildfires, the governor's disaster declaration for three-fourths of the state's counties allows local governments to access state resources to fight fires.The Texas Tribune Audio Brief would like to hear from you! Please click here to take our audience survey. It's the best way to get to know our listeners.

The university had asked the federal agency to dismiss sexual-harassment complaints by LGBTQ+ students, arguing that the claims infringed on the school's religious tenets.The Texas Tribune Audio Brief would like to hear from you! Please click here to take our audience survey. It's the best way to get to know our listeners.

The seven-months-pregnant officer reported contraction-like pains at work, but she wasn't allowed to leave for hours. Soon after, her baby was delivered stillborn. But the anti-abortion state is fighting her lawsuit, in part by saying her fetus didn't clearly have rights.The Texas Tribune Audio Brief would like to hear from you! Please click here to take our audience survey. It's the best way to get to know our listeners.

Since the permitless carry law passed in 2021, Texans have not needed a license to carry a gun. But gun instructors and some gun owners still see the benefits in taking the classes necessary to obtain a license.The Texas Tribune Audio Brief would like to hear from you! Please click here to take our audience survey. It's the best way to get to know our listeners.

Heading into the Democratic primary, the U.S. House member and state senator answer questions on guns, the border, abortion and other parts of their platforms.The Texas Tribune Audio Brief would like to hear from you! Please click here to take our audience survey. It's the best way to get to know our listeners.

If successful, the flurry of legal filings would halt the suspended attorney general's September impeachment trial before it truly begins in the Texas Senate.The Texas Tribune Audio Brief would like to hear from you! Please click here to take our audience survey. It's the best way to get to know our listeners.

State District Court Judge issued a temporary exemption to Texas' abortion ban. Hours later, the attorney general's office filed an appeal, which blocked the order.The Texas Tribune Audio Brief would like to hear from you! Please click here to take our audience survey. It's the best way to get to know our listeners.

State officials backing Senate Bill 12 have said they want to protect children from seeing sexually explicit performances. But a new legal challenge says the law is so broad and vague that it criminalizes constitutionally protected expression.The Texas Tribune Audio Brief would like to hear from you! Please click here to take our audience survey. It's the best way to get to know our listeners.

The professor allegedly criticized Patrick during a lecture and was temporarily suspended after the lieutenant governor contacted Texas A&M University System Chancellor John Sharp. The case has raised questions about political interference in the university's academic affairs.The Texas Tribune Audio Brief would like to hear from you! Please click here to take our audience survey. It's the best way to get to know our listeners.

More than a million people visited Texas' 89 state parks in June. But in spots without bodies of water, park officials are warning people to not overdo it as triple-digit temperatures persist.The Texas Tribune Audio Brief would like to hear from you! Please click here to take our audience survey. It's the best way to get to know our listeners.

Paxton's legal team says removing him from office would “override the will of the people.” His attorneys have also requested that any evidence of alleged misconduct that predates his current term be excluded from his Senate impeachment trial.The Texas Tribune Audio Brief would like to hear from you! Please click here to take our audience survey. It's the best way to get to know our listeners.

Legislation passed this month would raise the state's homestead exemption to $100,000, lower school districts' tax rates and put an appraisal cap on residential and commercial properties, among other measures. But voters must first approve a constitutional amendment.The Texas Tribune Audio Brief would like to hear from you! Please click here to take our audience survey. It's the best way to get to know our listeners.

Escalating their fight over Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas' handling of immigration at the southern border, far-right representatives say they will oppose any appropriations for his agency.The Texas Tribune Audio Brief would like to hear from you! Please click here to take our audience survey. It's the best way to get to know our listeners.

Operation Lone Star originally targeted single men suspected of crossing the border illegally in mass trespassing arrests, but some claimed that not arresting women violated equal protection laws.The Texas Tribune Audio Brief would like to hear from you! Please click here to take our audience survey. It's the best way to get to know our listeners.

At a time when the state has some of the nation's highest property taxes, the initiative was a cornerstone of his 2022 reelection campaign.The Texas Tribune Audio Brief would like to hear from you! Please click here to take our audience survey. It's the best way to get to know our listeners.

The U.S. Department of Justice made good on its warning last week that it would sue Texas unless the state agreed to remove the barrier in the Rio Grande near Eagle Pass.The Texas Tribune Audio Brief would like to hear from you! Please click here to take our audience survey. It's the best way to get to know our listeners.

Hart Blanton, the head of the university's department of communications and journalism, also said then-President M. Katherine Banks interfered with the recruitment of journalist Kathleen McElroy.The Texas Tribune Audio Brief would like to hear from you! Please click here to take our audience survey. It's the best way to get to know our listeners.

About 500,000 people have been removed from the rolls since continuous Medicaid coverage ended in April. Those helping low-income people with medical care say many don't realize they've lost coverage yet. We have a favor to ask: would you go to texastribune.org/briefsurvey to take a five-minute listener survey? This is the best way for Texas Tribune journalists to know what works and what doesn't for our podcasts. We appreciate your feedback.

The women, believed to be the first to testify about an abortion ban's impact on their pregnancy since 1973, are seeking to clarify when a medical emergency justifies an abortion.We have a favor to ask: would you go to texastribune.org/briefsurvey to take a five-minute listener survey? This is the best way for Texas Tribune journalists to know what works and what doesn't for our podcasts. We appreciate your feedback.

The Office of the Inspector General is investigating the claims, which include pushing small children and women with nursing babies back into the river and turning away a 4-year-old girl, who later passed out on the riverbank from the heat.We have a favor to ask: would you go to texastribune.org/briefsurvey to take a five-minute listener survey? This is the best way for Texas Tribune journalists to know what works and what doesn't for our podcasts. We appreciate your feedback.

“Prejudicial and inflammatory statements” from both sides have jeopardized the ability of senators to offer fair and impartial justice, Patrick says. Violators can be found in contempt, jailed and fined.The Texas Tribune Audio Brief would like to hear from you! Please click here to take our audience survey. It's the best way to get to know our listeners.

Texas doctors fear a new era of government intrusion into medicine as lawmakers ban transition care for kids following prohibitions on abortion.

The families who are suing argue the new law, which goes into effect Sept. 1, violates their parental rights by stopping them from providing medical care for their children and discriminates against transgender teens.

The legislative package could make its way to Gov. Greg Abbott's desk before the week's end. Voters must then approve the plan via a constitutional election in November for it to take effect in the 2023 tax year.

Drinking water frequently and resting in the shade are minimum safety measures for avoiding injury and death during triple-digit temperatures. But they are not applied to every job site.

The compromise would put more than $12 billion toward reducing the school property tax rate for homeowners and business properties, increase the homestead exemption, and create a pilot program to reduce taxes on certain residential and commercial properties. It's expected to pass later this week.

State lawmakers passed the law after a North Texas homeowners' association banned landlords from renting to Section 8 tenants. Most of the affected renters in that neighborhood were Black.

During the gunman's sentencing, relatives of those killed nearly four years ago are telling him how he upended their lives.

After the U.S. Supreme Court ended President Joe Biden's debt cancellation program, advocates for lowering student loan debt say the federal SAVE plan, an updated loan repayment program, could save Texans and other borrowers a lot of money in interest.

The Texas Senate could pressure Paxton to testify, but members of his defense team say they will fight such efforts.

The state law enforcement agency has been withholding nearly all of its records on police's botched response to Texas' deadliest school shooting. DPS will have the chance to redact the documents before they are released.

An impasse among Texas' top GOP legislators has dragged on for months. On Wednesday, the House and Senate each advanced their own plans in the hopes to move the conversation forward.

Gov. Greg Abbott quickly called lawmakers back to the Capitol for round two, hoping to break an impasse that has outlasted the regular session and one overtime period.

The Florida governor calls for deputizing local law enforcement to police the border and deport migrants, saying his plan is “more aggressive” than the former president's proposals.

The U.S. Supreme Court paved the way for major civil rights victories for queer Americans in the 2003 decision that decriminalized homosexuality. But progress for LGBTQ+ people, particularly trans people, has been uneven.

Advocates say they accept that abortion won't become legal again in Texas any time soon, so they are focusing on shoring up the safety net and playing the long game.

Organizers across state are increasing security at their celebrations of community after state lawmakers pushed a plethora of bills threatening to upend the lives of LGBTQ Texans.

Here's a look at Senate members, ranked from most conservative to most liberal, based on votes cast during the 2023 regular session.

Gov. Greg Abbott has thrown his weight behind the idea being pushed by an influential conservative think tank. Many school leaders are worried.