Texas Observer

https://texasobserver.social/@TexasObserver

Founded in 1954, the Texas Observer is a #progressive #nonprofit news outlet and print #magazine covering the Lone Star State.

Follow Interim Editor-in-Chief Gus Bova (npub1dkz…ymlm)
McHam Investigative Reporting Fellow Josephine Lee (npub1ayp…yw0l)

🤠 Learn more about us: https://linktr.ee/texasobserver
Become a member and support our work:
https://www.texasobserver.org/join/

#Texas #Politics #Culture

Homepage: https://www.texasobserver.org
Contact Us: https://www.texasobserver.org/contact/
More About TXO: https://linktr.ee/texasobserver
🎟️ MOLLY Awards: https://texasobserver.org/MOLLY

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2026-05-25T23:17:49Z

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Last Notes

2026-03-24 17:00:20 UTC

“It’s anyone and everyone who is pushing back against the insanity that is gripping our country right now. This can happen to you, and if they can do it to you, they will.” https://www.texasobserver.org/prairieland-antifa-verdict-threatens-anti-trump-resistance/
#antifa #politics #USpol #news #fascism #law #Texas #NorthTexas

2026-03-15 15:00:21 UTC

"SB 13 also neutered librarians’ authority over their collections. I no longer det"ermine what goes into my collection. I make recommendations. ... In many districts, AI is being used to assess the lists of books turned in by librarians." https://www.texasobserver.org/abilene-isd-librarian-book-ban/
#Texas #FreeSpeech #books #bookstodon #library #schools #education

2026-03-06 21:27:13 UTC

From Public Health Watch: More than 26,000 #workers — an average of seven per day — suffered workplace amputations from 2015 through 2024. Texas led the nation in worker amputations by a wide margin, with more than 3,900 reported in the 10-year period. https://www.texasobserver.org/workplace-amputations-on-the-rise/
#health #Texas #news #safety #labor

2026-03-02 18:07:25 UTC

New from Cecilia Ballí: Bobby Pulido, the Tejano singer best known for his 1990s hit “Desvelado,” is widely viewed as the frontrunner in Tuesday’s Democratic Party primary in a district redrawn in 2022 to favor Republicans—but one of the few in #Texas that #Democrats hope they can flip. https://www.texasobserver.org/south-texas-primary-bobby-pulido-latino-voters/
#elections #midterms #politics #SouthTexas #SanAntonio #border #USpol #news

2026-02-21 15:47:57 UTC

Scholarship that challenges white supremacy, colonialism, or state violence is labeled as divisive. Programs rooted in Indigenous, Latinx, and Black knowledge are consolidated, put under review, or dismantled. The result is not balance—it is containment. https://www.texasobserver.org/ut-system-new-controversial-topics-policy-policing-knowledge/
#education #politics #USpol #news #Texas #censorship #FreeSpeech

2026-02-18 23:00:08 UTC

Out today: “A prosecutor who is truly interested in justice does not blast out a public press release like this to the media while a trial is pending. Nothing has been proven in court yet, and this inflammatory language is just meant to fan the flames of public outcry and poison a jury pool before the facts are heard.” https://www.texasobserver.org/ken-paxton-prosecution-midwife-power-low-income-houston/
#abortion #healthcare #HumanRights #law #Texas #politics #USpol #fascism

2026-02-15 20:00:16 UTC

Like Molly Ivins, does your journalism challenge conventional wisdom, and look critically at the issues of the day?
Submit it to the MOLLY Awards, our prize for investigative #journalism in both print and digital outlets, before March 20. The winner receives $5000.
Enter here: https://www.texasobserver.org/molly-awards/the-molly-awards-submissions/
#media #politics #news #contest #awards #events

2026-02-14 18:00:09 UTC

“Drilling mud is a witches’ brew of chemicals. Society will have to pay for the cleanup, and the company that made all the money just closes up their doors and they’re on down the road. I have been screaming about this forever.” https://www.texasobserver.org/radioactive-oil-and-gas-waste-north-texas-elementary-school/
#environment #ClimateChange #politics #USpol #news #Texas #NorthTexas

2026-02-08 16:00:11 UTC

Each data center can “drink” as much as an entire community. Yet #Texas does not require data center operators to disclose projected #water use or report actual consumption. This makes research difficult and limits visibility for water-stressed municipalities. https://www.texasobserver.org/texas-ai-data-centers-water-usage-regulation/
#tech #AI #politics #USpol #environment #ClimateChange #news

2026-02-04 19:40:34 UTC

"We have no way of reconciling what these cases will do to #water supplies."
New from Miranda Williamson: The world’s largest artificial intelligence data center complex is being built in Amarillo, and it’s almost seven times the size of Central Park. https://www.texasobserver.org/texas-ai-data-centers-water-usage-regulation/
#tech #AI #Texas #politics #USpol #environment #ClimateChange #news

2026-01-29 22:50:20 UTC

Last week: Although the DOJ investigation found that there were “cascading failures of leadership, decision-making, tactics, policy, and training,” prosecutors have not clarified why none of the other officers have been charged for their actions that day. https://www.texasobserver.org/uvalde-trial-acquittal-shooting-columbine-police/
#police #politics #USpol #news #Uvalde #education #schools #GunViolence #guns

2026-01-29 19:45:11 UTC

Featured story: U.S. law enforcement’s growing use of an array of #surveillance tools enables #police to build a robust profile of almost anyone’s life and movements without a warrant or probable cause. Experts find phone-tracking tools like Tangles particularly troubling.
https://www.texasobserver.org/texas-police-invest-tangles-sheriff-surveillance/
#tech #Texas #law #privacy #politics #USpol #news

2026-01-27 18:00:04 UTC

Out today: Texas #Democrats have been attempting the inverse maneuver for a generation: trying to win elections without taking into account the eroded civic foundations of the state.
Zohran Mamdani's victory points at another way forward. https://www.texasobserver.org/let-a-hundred-mamdanis-bloom/
#Texas #politics #USpol #news #socialism #Mamdani

2026-01-23 23:00:13 UTC

Catch up with everything we've published from the January/February 2026 issue of our magazine: https://www.texasobserver.org/issues/january-february-2026/
#journalism #Texas #news #art #culture #politics #USpol #media
https://cdn.hosted.spacebear.ee/sb-444643948490e1fed8199ed78bf1ee5f/media_attachments/files/115/946/894/618/755/461/original/6ba76c81639a66c7.jpeg

2026-01-23 15:12:40 UTC

New from our magazine, by Courtney Thomas: In September, two new Shakespeare adaptations used the Bard’s canonical plays as jumping-off points to bring stories infused with Hispanic culture to #Dallas audiences. https://www.texasobserver.org/dallas-bilingual-shakespeare-review/
#culture #art #theater #NorthTexas #Texas #language

2026-01-22 19:48:05 UTC

New from Michelle Pitcher: Since 1999, the year of the Columbine shooting in Colorado, the federal government has devoted an estimated $1 billion to putting sworn #police officers in schools.
But the efficacy of these officers remains unproven, especially in the case of mass shootings. https://www.texasobserver.org/uvalde-trial-acquittal-shooting-columbine-police/
#Uvalde #GunViolence #guns #schools #education #safety #news #politics #USpol

2026-01-21 21:17:53 UTC

UPDATE from Steven Monacelli: Last week, the Texas Observer revealed that James Rodden, the #ICE lawyer with a white supremacist X account, was back trying cases in a #Dallas courtroom.
Now, a member of Congress wants Rodden to finally face consequences. https://www.texasobserver.org/congressman-veasey-salary-james-rodden-ice-x-account/
#WhiteSupremacy #NorthTexas #law #immigration #politics #USpol #racism #news

2026-01-20 18:41:04 UTC

Featured story, from @npub1ayp…yw0l: 92% of private #schools already enrolled in the state's voucher programs serving kids beyond kindergarten are religious. An investigation by the Texas Observer found many of these exclude non-Christian and #LGBTQ+ kids. https://www.texasobserver.org/texas-voucher-schools-openly-discriminate/
#politics #USpol #news #education #TXlege #religion #vouchers

2026-01-19 14:57:13 UTC

Last week: This isn’t all just inside baseball for navel-gazing journalists. It has direct ramifications for the quality and quantity of coverage of #Texas politics and government—at a crucial time.
https://www.texasobserver.org/texas-media-concentration-local-journalism/
#politics #USpol #news #journalism #media

2026-01-18 18:00:22 UTC

An investigation by @npub1ayp…yw0l found that 92% of private #schools already enrolled in Texas’ voucher programs serving kids beyond kindergarten are religious. Many of these exclude non-Christian and #LGBTQ+ kids. https://www.texasobserver.org/texas-voucher-schools-openly-discriminate/
#Texas #vouchers #politics #USpol #religion #education #TXlege

2026-01-17 20:00:05 UTC

The neo-fascist group Patriot Front is building a network of businesses in North #Texas in an attempt to create a parallel, self-sufficient white nationalist economy. The Observer identified the men behind 4 of these companies. https://www.texasobserver.org/revealed-four-businesses-patriot-front-north-texas/
#fascism #NorthTexas #Dallas #politics #USpol #extremism #news #racism #WhiteSupremacy

2026-01-16 16:30:09 UTC

Last February, the Texas Observer investigation revealed the identity of James Rodden, an #ICE attorney who operates an openly white supremacist account on X. This year, we proved he's back in court trying #immigration cases: https://www.texasobserver.org/ice-prosecutor-racist-account-back-at-immigration-court/
#NorthTexas #Dallas #law #politics #USpol #fascism #WhiteSupremacy #news

2026-01-15 15:07:30 UTC

New from Steven Monacelli and Tristan Lee: Through analysis of publicly available information, interviews and in-person observation, the Observer identified multiple companies in the #Dallas-Fort Worth area operated by individuals with connections to Patriot Front. https://www.texasobserver.org/revealed-four-businesses-patriot-front-north-texas/
#NorthTexas #politics #USpol #news #Texas #WhiteSupremacy #fascism #racism

2026-01-14 17:56:47 UTC

From Francesca D'Annunzio: Police—sheriffs, Texas state cops, and even ICE—can follow the location of your smart phone without a warrant.
Yet, we know little about how this software has been used. https://www.texasobserver.org/texas-police-invest-tangles-sheriff-surveillance/
Presented with support from Pulitzer Center.
#surveillance #tech #police #Texas #politics #USpol #news

2026-01-14 15:06:55 UTC

Update from Steven Monacelli: James Rodden, the attorney for ICE which we identified as the operator of a white supremacist account on X, is back on the job in a Dallas immigration court. https://www.texasobserver.org/ice-prosecutor-racist-account-back-at-immigration-court/

2026-01-13 15:24:15 UTC

“Police are doing an end run around this well-articulated system of judicial oversight by just paying money instead of going to a judge.”
New from Francesca D'Annunzio: Civil liberties experts are raising the alarm about "Tangles," a law-enforcement surveillance software that allows police to bypass judicial oversight by spying on smartphone users without a warrant.
https://www.texasobserver.org/texas-police-invest-tangles-sheriff-surveillance/
#tech #Texas #police #news #politics #USpol #law

2026-01-11 22:00:17 UTC

The newest from Texas Observer cartoonist Ben Sargent.
See more Loon Star State: https://www.texasobserver.org/topics/loon-star-state/
https://cdn.hosted.spacebear.ee/sb-444643948490e1fed8199ed78bf1ee5f/media_attachments/files/115/878/711/233/281/101/original/85c569bb77af680a.jpeg

2026-01-09 20:00:07 UTC

"You talk about the fact that while you may not be on SNAP benefits, everyone’s cost of #food is going to go up. You talk about the fact that they’re pulling this money away from those that are just trying to eat and that also impacts our #farmers—as we’re seeing record bankruptcies with farmers and ranchers." https://www.texasobserver.org/jasmine-crockett-interview-senate-december/
#Texas #politics #USpol #news #Democrats #midterms #elections

2026-01-06 23:09:13 UTC

Earlier, from Francesca D'Annunzio: “All the evidence we have seen suggests that this had nothing to do with gang enforcement—no one was arrested on any charge remotely related to gang activity. It appears that DPS simply raided this house because the people throwing a party were Latinos from another country.” https://www.texasobserver.org/prosecutors-drop-charges-hays-county-airbnb-raid/
#Texas #police #Immigration #ICE #CentralTexas #politics #USpol #news #fascism

2026-01-04 18:00:22 UTC

#BestOf2025: 34,000 employees work at VA outpatient and inpatient care sites across the state, and in the Central #Texas VA healthcare system 45% of #workers previously served in the military. Some told the Observer the system is at its limits. https://www.texasobserver.org/veterans-texas-healthcare-doge-trump/
#veterans #politics #USpol #news #CentralTexas #healthcare

2025-12-24 22:00:15 UTC

Happy Holidays from all of us at the Texas Observer!
Thank you for supporting our work in 2025, and we'll see you in the New Year!
https://cdn.hosted.spacebear.ee/sb-444643948490e1fed8199ed78bf1ee5f/media_attachments/files/115/776/789/501/705/365/original/9dcf6f844d5c0d9c.png

2025-12-24 16:00:16 UTC

No matter how deep the darkness, sparks of light, beauty, and joy surround us—in, say, a baby’s smile, a lover’s touch, a refugee family’s safe arrival in a place of sanctuary, the first drops of rain on dry earth, a fragile monarch butterfly pausing its 3,000-mile migration to sip nectar from a blue mistflower. https://www.texasobserver.org/a-light-the-darkness-cannot-extinguish/
#hope #culture #fascism #Trump #democracy #religion #HumanRights

2025-12-22 15:27:56 UTC

From #cryptocurrency to adoption, from an immigrant's experience in school sports to a former death row inmate, here are 10 of our best long-form stories of 2025:
https://www.texasobserver.org/best-longform-stories-2025/
#politics #USpol #news #Texas #environment #DeathPenalty #immigration #BestOf2025

2025-12-21 20:00:20 UTC

Earlier: Former Congressman and felon Steve Stockman, a Friendswood-area conservative who was convicted of 23 federal corruption charges in 2018, has declared himself rehabilitated and fit to run again for the U.S. House of Representatives. https://www.texasobserver.org/steve-stockman-rides-again/
#Texas #politics #USpol #news #Republicans #Trump #GulfCoast

2025-12-20 18:00:08 UTC

From @npub1ayp…yw0l: Total membership in Texas #unions has been growing. According to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 603,000 Texans belonged to unions in 2024, up from closer to half a million a decade ago. https://www.texasobserver.org/texas-afl-cio-changing-of-the-guard/
#Texas #politics #USpol #news #labor #workers #HumanRights

2025-12-16 21:30:13 UTC

Previously: “All the evidence we have seen suggests that this had nothing to do with gang enforcement—no one was arrested on any charge remotely related to gang activity,. It appears that DPS simply raided this house because the people throwing a party were Latinos from another country.” https://www.texasobserver.org/prosecutors-drop-charges-hays-county-airbnb-raid/
#police #ICE #immigration #Texas #politics #USpol #news #CentralTexas

2025-12-06 16:03:19 UTC

“There are enough voters out there who can absolutely turn an election & blow up what they are trying to do.”
Our top story: A broad coalition are fighting for the spirit of their community, after GOP redistricting galvanized organizers. https://www.texasobserver.org/tarrant-county-redistricting-grassroots-pushback/
#activism #elections #NorthTexas #politics #USpol #news

2025-12-05 16:51:15 UTC

Earlier: “The immediate economic losses projected here are just the tip of the iceberg. International students drive innovation, advance America’s global competitiveness, and create research and academic opportunities in our local colleges that will benefit our country for generations.” https://www.texasobserver.org/targeting-international-students-texas-trump/
#education #politics #USpol #news #immigration #Texas

2025-12-05 15:19:02 UTC

"I am very interested in fighting for a public option, so that every single Texan, every single American, would have the ability to join Medicare and would have that option of affordable, quality coverage."
https://www.texasobserver.org/james-talarico-big-tent-revival-primary/
#politics #USpol #Texas #news #healthcare #Democrats

2025-12-04 19:58:36 UTC

Out today: "Captivating, funny, profane, contemptuous of establishment figures who busted unions, shut minorities out of power, and claimed ownership of the state’s Legislature and executive mansion, David always left you wanting more." https://www.texasobserver.org/remembering-david-richards-1933-2025/
#Texas #TXlege #law #history #memorial #politics #USpol #news

2025-12-04 18:00:36 UTC

From Tuesday: "That commandment to love our neighbors is inherently a public thing. Politics is just another way that we figure out how we treat our neighbors and how we treat each other." https://www.texasobserver.org/james-talarico-big-tent-revival-primary/
#religion #ethics #HumanRights #politics #USpol #Texas #Democrats #elections #news

2025-12-01 18:14:08 UTC

Featured story from Michelle Pitcher: “The State of #Texas makes every inmate seem like the most evil, horrible [person]. We demonize them, and we don’t see the trauma of people like Pam Perillo.”
#law #prison #HumanRights #ethics #DeathPenalty #politics #USpol

2025-11-30 16:00:25 UTC

Featured story from Lise Olsen and Martha Pskowski: Oil and gas wells produce prodigious amounts of waste. One horizontal well generates upwards of 8,000 barrels—or 336,000 gallons—of waste during the drilling and completion process. https://www.texasobserver.org/east-texas-oil-waste-pits-mcbride/
#OilAndGas #politics #USpol #news #environment #ClimateChange #pollution #EastTexas #water

2025-11-27 20:00:16 UTC

Since 1973, at least 201 people on death row have been exonerated—meaning cleared of any responsibility for a crime. Eighteen of those people were in #Texas. A recent report reveals how racist the ultimate punishment really is: https://www.texasobserver.org/aclu-report-death-penalty-exonerations/
#DeathPenalty #HumanRights #law #politics #USpol #news #prison #racism

2025-11-26 21:09:22 UTC

- reply

love this discussion, thank you for sharing and getting it going! 🤠

2025-11-25 19:56:21 UTC

“I felt like Dred Scott. I felt like a person sitting in front of white people with no rights, knowing that I hadn’t done anything to anybody, but I could not control what they were trying to do to me.” https://www.texasobserver.org/aclu-report-death-penalty-exonerations/
#DeathPenalty #politics #HumanRights #racism #Texas #law #prison #USpol #news

2025-11-22 16:00:04 UTC

Our top story, from Lise Olsen and Martha Pskowski: East Texans are uniting to fight oil waste pits in bucolic areas near the #Louisiana line—all run by an operator who’s been cited for dozens of violations, and a worker’s death. https://www.texasobserver.org/east-texas-oil-waste-pits-mcbride/
#politics #USpol #news #OilAndGas #pollution #energy #Texas #EastTexas

2025-11-21 20:10:47 UTC

Featured story, from Candice Bernd: A Texas Observer analysis found, since 2021, at least 60 cryptomines have been developed or are under construction in at least 33 counties statewide. Experts worry our grid, and #water supply, can't handle the load. https://www.texasobserver.org/crypto-energy-grid-texas-bitcoin-water/
#crypto #bitcoin #energy #Texas #politics #USpol #environment #ClimateChange

2025-11-21 18:00:04 UTC

After a nearly 4-hour meeting of the water board, the people of Van Zandt County secured what many described as a major victory for their land, #water, and community. But getting to that point took months of meetings and advocacy. https://www.texasobserver.org/east-texas-locals-fight-to-stop-an-unnecessary-reservoir/
#environment #politics #USpol #news #EastTexas #Texas

2025-11-21 16:37:49 UTC

From our magazine, the latest by Texas Observer cartoonist Ben Sargent.
Read more from the November/December 2025 issue: https://www.texasobserver.org/issues/november-december-2025/
https://cdn.hosted.spacebear.ee/sb-444643948490e1fed8199ed78bf1ee5f/media_attachments/files/115/588/665/678/059/865/original/e891767df8a646c1.jpeg

2025-11-20 21:58:54 UTC

Previously: His wife visited him #ICE in detention on his 50th birthday. She couldn’t even bring him the card she’d made. They could only speak through a phone, divided by a thick pane of glass. It was one of few times she’d ever seen him cry. https://www.texasobserver.org/trump-ice-arrested-whistleblower-sexual-assault-detention/
#politics #USpol #news #immigration #HumanRights #law #Texas #fascism #genocide

2025-11-20 15:00:06 UTC

“In America, this risk [of wrongful conviction] is not only a defining feature of the modern death penalty, but it also results in the disproportionate conviction and execution of innocent Black people.” https://www.texasobserver.org/aclu-report-death-penalty-exonerations/
#DeathPenalty #politics #USpol #HumanRights #news #Politics #USpol #ethics

2025-11-14 23:01:09 UTC

"There’s a very strong pro-life argument. As a society, we are capable of keeping people safe, and we can do that while honoring that every life has inherent dignity and worth, and that includes people on death row who have committed unspeakable acts." https://www.texasobserver.org/pro-life-anti-death-penalty/
#DeathPenalty #prison #law #HumanRights #religion #Republicans #Texas #ethics #USpol #politics

2025-11-14 21:30:09 UTC

Our top story: A state regulatory agency blocked our analysis of public data about #crypto mining operations and their energy use. So we conducted our own independent investigation ... https://www.texasobserver.org/crypto-energy-grid-texas-bitcoin-water/
#bitcoin #energy #environment #water #Texas #politics #USpol #news #ClimateChange #tech

2025-11-13 15:13:05 UTC

Yesterday: "The death penalty is extremely fiscally irresponsible. It costs more to sentence someone to death and execute them than to sentence them to life in #prison without parole. It’s also an ineffective deterrent to violent crime." https://www.texasobserver.org/pro-life-anti-death-penalty/
#DeathPenalty #politics #USpol #news #law #Republicans #religion #ethics #HumanRights

2025-11-12 19:34:58 UTC

Out today: "When we’ve talked to conservatives who are against the death penalty or questioning it, the most common thing we’ll hear about is the risk of wrongful execution. The data backs it up. There is strong evidence that Texas has executed at least seven innocent people." https://www.texasobserver.org/pro-life-anti-death-penalty/
#DeathPenalty #Republicans #law #prison #ethics #abortion #religion #politics #USpol #news

2025-11-12 18:00:47 UTC

From our magazine, Michelle Pitcher interviews Nan Tolson, a conservative opponent of the death penalty: "Every life has inherent dignity and worth, and that includes people on death row who have committed unspeakable acts." https://www.texasobserver.org/pro-life-anti-death-penalty/
#prison #DeathPenalty #religion #ethics #abortion #politics #USpol #news #Texas #activism #Republicans #law

2025-11-10 18:00:24 UTC

Last week: “Are we rushing to do this? Is this going to be properly considered? How do we know if we’ve selected the right partner or if we’re just selling off our #schools?” https://www.texasobserver.org/houston-magnet-hspva-private-charter-tea-takeover-mike-miles/
#Houston #politics #USpol #GulfCoast #education #news #Texas

2025-11-03 17:59:16 UTC

Last week: "About 11.4 % (nearly 3.5M) of Texans will lose access to healthy, complete meals. I will no longer be able to buy meat or fresh vegetables. I will lose the only reliable way I have to eat lunch." https://www.texasobserver.org/snap-benefits-shutdown-will-leave-hungry-students/
#hunger #poverty #SNAP #food #Trump #politics #Texas #USpol #news

2025-11-01 15:00:12 UTC

“The current system is failing #workers in that it’s too slow, especially with many Texans living paycheck to paycheck.”
Our top story: Texas Workforce Commission is struggling to respond to a staggering number of wage-theft complaints. https://www.texasobserver.org/texas-workers-wage-theft-complaints-surge/
#news #politics #labor #Texas #USpol #poverty #work

2025-10-31 17:00:25 UTC

“When people can’t get their #SNAP, they’re going to go to the #food banks. There isn’t enough food in the food pantries to handle this need. I mean, they’re all saying we’re going to run out of food. There’s no way we can replace everybody’s SNAP benefits.” https://www.texasobserver.org/snap-benefits-shutdown-will-leave-hungry-students/
#Texas #poverty #hunger #economy #politics #USpol #Trump

2025-10-28 15:37:47 UTC

Introducing our November/December 2025 issue: "As this frankly awful year comes to a close, I hope having this magazine lying around will strike an appropriate note, as you celebrate holidays while temporarily avoiding or bravely facing the news as you like." https://www.texasobserver.org/editors-letter-november-december-2025/
Cover by Ben Sargent.
#journalism #media #Texas #news #politics #USpol #culture #books #bookstodon #nonprofit
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2025-10-27 22:00:27 UTC

Out today: Feeding #Texas estimates that its 20 member banks have lost a total of $57.6 million in federal funding cuts, and that’s only in immediate canceled funding. But this could actually be on the low end of the potential impact range. https://www.texasobserver.org/trump-cuts-texas-food-banks/
#food #SNAP #Trump #poverty #Texas #politics #USpol #news

2025-10-26 15:00:47 UTC

From @npub13uq…vy6g: In February, the Texas Observer confirmed that James “Jim” Joseph Rodden—an #ICE assistant chief counsel in #Dallas—operates a white supremacist X account. Now, ICE refuses to tell us, or members of Congress, if he's still employed. https://www.texasobserver.org/ice-white-supremacist-x-account-veasey-answers/
#Texas #NorthTexas #immigration #law #fascism #genocide #WhiteSupremacy #politics #USpol #news

2025-10-25 17:47:36 UTC

Texas #workers have long struggled with wage theft by their employers—and the state’s unwillingness to crack down on scofflaw employers. Now, rates of suspected wage theft are increasing and the state #labor law enforcement system is straining to keep up. https://www.texasobserver.org/texas-workers-wage-theft-complaints-surge/
#law #politics #USpol #Texas #news #HumanRights #economy

2025-10-21 14:01:37 UTC

After we broke the story of the #ICE lawyer with a white supremacist X account, no one seems to be able to tell us whether James Rodden still works with the agency. Even Congress can't get answers. https://www.texasobserver.org/ice-white-supremacist-x-account-veasey-answers/
#racism #fascism #genocide #law #Dallas #NorthTexas #Texas #Immigration #politics #USpol #news #Trump

2025-10-18 14:49:59 UTC

Greg Abbott is "running for an unprecedented fourth term on a record of schools in crisis, housing more expensive, groceries more expensive, electricity utility rates are up. This is a record of failure, and he owns it."
https://www.texasobserver.org/gina-hinojosa-campaign-for-texas-governor/
#GregAbbott #Texas #news #politics #USpol #Democrats #elections

2025-10-14 21:45:04 UTC

Earlier: The new #Texas "bathroom bill" not only makes it harder for trans people to exist in public, it also attempts to grant immunity from prosecution to those enforcing it, even if they violate the constitution. https://www.texasobserver.org/texas-bathroom-bill-weaponizes-transphobia/
#law #HumanRights #genocide #fascism #politics #USpol #news #TXlege #trans #LGBTQIA+

2025-10-07 22:00:28 UTC

In our magazine: When Kendrick Sampson eventually launched BLD PWR, he was looking to merge activism and education with pop culture, inspiring others to fight for a cause while being creative—and having a good time. https://www.texasobserver.org/houston-actor-kendrick-sampson-political-engagement/
#activism #art #music #Houston #GulfCoast #culture #politics #USpol #Texas

2025-10-05 15:00:30 UTC

“They’re essentially trying to revoke his bond for thought crimes. I think it’s very important for people to understand: Fascism is here.” https://www.texasobserver.org/tarrant-county-prosecution-palestine-israel-activist-graffiti/
#Palestine #activism #Texas #NorthTexas #law #police #USpol #politics #news

2025-10-03 22:00:43 UTC

From Monday: So swings the political pendulum of First Amendment rights, as this foundational protection is treated as a prop to be bear-hugged in one moment and conveniently tossed aside when an opportunistic moment demands. https://www.texasobserver.org/greg-abbott-free-speech-charlie-kirk-universities/
#Republicans #GregAbbott #news #politics #USpol #CharlieKirk #FreeSpeech #Texas

2025-10-01 17:57:36 UTC

ICYMY 🤠: Are you interested in covering politics in the Lone Star State? The Texas Observer is hiring an intern to help us cover the 2026 elections! Apply here: https://www.texasobserver.org/jobs/
#journalism #jobs #Texas #politics #USpol #elections #democracy #JournoJobs #hiring #GetFediHired #FediHired

2025-09-28 15:00:36 UTC

Decades of research show that standardized tests don’t measure intellect, creativity, or resilience. They measure zip codes. https://www.texasobserver.org/austin-schools-children-tea-scores-closures/
#education #Austin #news #Politics #USpol #schools #CentralTexas

2025-09-27 19:00:11 UTC

Featured story, from Mary Tuma: “This bill will harm women and could even lead to more pregnant women dying because they couldn’t access life-saving medications. The only reason we haven’t returned to the days of ‘coat-hanger abortions’ is because of the medication #abortion pill.” https://www.texasobserver.org/texas-legislature-bounty-hunter-ban-abortion-pills/
#healthcare #politics #USpol #news #TXlege #Texas #HumanRights

2025-09-25 22:00:12 UTC

Out today: “The work is physically hard, the pay right now is barely keeping up with other jobs. There is a shortage of #workers willing to even do these jobs because of the already low wages.” https://www.texasobserver.org/texas-domestic-workers-trump-minimum-wage/
#Texas #Trump #poverty #news #politics #USpol #HumanRights #disabled #healthcare

2025-09-25 17:01:56 UTC

Austin’s “F” schools overwhelmingly serve mostly low-income African-American and Hispanic children. Closing them on the basis of a flawed metric sends one message: Your community does not matter. https://www.texasobserver.org/austin-schools-children-tea-scores-closures/
#Austin #Texas #education #schools #politics #USpol #Texas #news #racism

2025-09-25 15:30:14 UTC

Our top story: Friends rented the Airbnb to celebrate a pair of birthdays. There were beers, arepas, and a birthday cake. They were planning to blow out candles and sing the following day.
But first there was a massive, militarized multi-agency #ICE raid. https://www.texasobserver.org/officials-tren-de-aragua-party-attendees-differ/
#HumanRights #immigration #police #law #politics #USpol #news #fascism #CentralTexas #Texas

2025-09-24 15:31:20 UTC

New today: Earlier this month, the #Texas Education Agency announced that 12 #Austin-area schools with an “F” rating could be closed. This isn’t just a policy decision—it’s a direct threat to thousands of children’s educational stability and their communities’ future. https://www.texasobserver.org/austin-schools-children-tea-scores-closures/
#education #schools #politics #USpol #news #CentralTexas

2025-09-24 14:09:53 UTC

Our top story: ICE staged a massive, heavily-armed multi-agency raid on a #Texas birthday party. Attendees deny that any gang members were present at the rented Airbnb.
https://www.texasobserver.org/officials-tren-de-aragua-party-attendees-differ/
#ICE #politics #USpol #news

2025-09-23 18:35:33 UTC

Out today: Students went on strike, and 8,000 of them marched in a mock funeral procession carrying a coffin with a banner that read “academic freedom” from campus to the Capitol and the governor’s mansion. Meanwhile, conservative critics of the university continued to circulate their charges that it harbored communists, was a “nest of homosexuals,” and had plans to admit Black students. https://www.texasobserver.org/texas-faculty-firings-tom-alter/
#history #DEI #racism #education #schools #Texas #politics #USpol #news

2025-09-18 18:30:10 UTC

“Where, as here, the parties are not private citizens but elected constitutional officers, the need for #transparency is heightened, not diminished. Allegations that might suggest abuse of marital assets, concealment of financial information, or personal conduct inconsistent with public responsibility are not merely private — they are of public consequence.” https://www.texasobserver.org/news-orgs-unseal-paxtons-divorce-case/
#Texas #law #politics #USpol #news #journalism

2025-09-13 17:00:05 UTC

Last week from Lise Olsen: A killer storm two decades past still teaches lessons about survival and resilience in a world where #weather is getting more extreme. https://www.texasobserver.org/twenty-years-later-katrina-houston/
#Houston #Katrina #NewOrleans #GulfCoast #history #politics #USpol #news #Texas #environment #ClimateChange

2025-09-12 15:59:04 UTC

Earlier: A killer storm two decades past still teaches lessons about survival and resilience in a world where #weather is getting more extreme. https://www.texasobserver.org/twenty-years-later-katrina-houston/
#politics #USpol #news #environment #ClimateChange #GulfCoast #history #NewOrleans #Katrina

2025-09-10 19:01:29 UTC

From Lise Olsen: Twenty years ago, when the nation’s most deadly modern hurricane approached New Orleans, Eva Kinnard didn’t have a car or the money to leave her apartment on her own. She was still recovering from surgery. https://www.texasobserver.org/twenty-years-later-katrina-houston/
#history #GulfCoast #Katrina #weather #Louisiana #politics #USpol #NewOrleans

2025-09-07 15:00:50 UTC

“This bill will harm #women and could even lead to more pregnant women dying because they couldn’t access life-saving medications.”
From Mary Tuma: Under this extreme new law, citizens could sue anyone who “manufactures, distributes, mails, transports, delivers, prescribes, or provides” #abortion pills to Texans for at least $100,000 in damages. https://www.texasobserver.org/texas-legislature-bounty-hunter-ban-abortion-pills/
#Texas #TXlege #healthcare #HumanRights #politics #USpol #fascism #news

2025-09-02 18:30:10 UTC

Congratulations to @npub13uq…vy6g and Tristan Lee (of @npub140y…0uvc) for winning the Al Neuharth Innovation in Investigative Journalism Award, in the small newsroom category from the Online News Association, for a series of articles identifying online extremists. https://awards.journalists.org/entries/open-source-extremist-identifications/
#journalism #media #nonprofit #awards #extremism #news
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2025-09-01 21:00:25 UTC

From our magazine: Rural #Texas wears a friendly facade. You know everyone, and everyone treats each other so kindly, but, if you’re Black, you just ignore the stares when you walk into the local steakhouse for fish fry night.https://www.texasobserver.org/racism-wrapped-rural-warmth/
#racism #politics #USpol #culture #rural

2025-08-29 17:00:05 UTC

From Monday: “What are they hiding, if they will break the law and not let a member of Congress in? What are they hiding if they’ll violate constitutional rights and not let a lawyer in?” https://www.texasobserver.org/dems-congress-ice-detention-oversight-lawsuit/
#ICE #immigration #politics #USpol #news

2025-08-26 22:00:10 UTC

In #poetry:
I insist on survival every day I stay in Texas.
Let me explain. A friend came over today
& boom: joy shone from our fingertips.
While the moon transitioned from waxing to waning,
my bro got a top surgery letter. We get by
with bitterness & rage.
https://www.texasobserver.org/texas-no-exodus-poem/
#Texas #culture #politics #LGBTQIA #USpol #poem #trans

2025-08-26 18:41:45 UTC

Featured story, from Candice Bernd: “It’s been an open secret in the Legislature for a while that if your bill has the word ‘climate’ in the caption, it’s not getting a hearing. That has been true for many sessions.” https://www.texasobserver.org/gop-flood-relief-what-not-pass-climate/
#environment #TXlege #Texas #ClimateChange #news #politics #USpol #weather #flooding

2025-08-26 17:05:04 UTC

Previously: “He has never been imprisoned or had a criminal record. His life has always been marked by hard work and integrity. He has no connection to the Tren de Aragua case.” https://www.texasobserver.org/a-venezuelan-was-detained-as-a-documented-gang-member-by-ice-which-refused-to-provide-proof/
#ICE #immigration #HumanRights #politics #USpol #Texas #news #fascism

2025-08-24 17:00:38 UTC

New today from Francesca D'Annunzio: “He has never been imprisoned or had a criminal record. His life has always been marked by hard work and integrity. He has no connection to the Tren de Aragua case.”
https://www.texasobserver.org/a-venezuelan-was-detained-as-a-documented-gang-member-by-ice-which-refused-to-provide-proof/
#ICE #immigration #politics #USpol #HumanRights #news #Texas #fascism

2025-08-22 14:19:46 UTC

Yesterday: He survived the treacherous Darien Gap to come to the U.S. Then #ICE agents called him a member of Tren de Aragua. No criminal record, no gang tattoos, he was deported over the sneakers he wore. https://www.texasobserver.org/a-venezuelan-was-detained-as-a-documented-gang-member-by-ice-which-refused-to-provide-proof/
#immigration #HumanRights #news #politics #USpol #Texas

2025-08-19 22:00:30 UTC

From 2023: The U.S. has the worst maternal mortality rates of any wealthy country, by a lot, and the rates are increasing. The rate of Black mothers dying is more than twice as high as that for white women. https://www.texasobserver.org/texas-maternal-mortality-racism-midwife/
#HumanRights #healthcare #children #racism #health #news #politics #USpol #Texas

2025-08-17 15:01:02 UTC

From Mary Tuma: “We continue to be underfunded while the demand—and the stakes—grow. And it’s not as if the attacks on #abortion have slowed down in #Texas, we still deeply need investment, possibly now more than ever.” https://www.texasobserver.org/abortion-funds-texas-dwindling-donations-demand-costs/
#nonprofit #healthcare #HumanRights #RoeVWade #politics #USpol #news

2025-08-15 15:40:07 UTC

Join Mother Jones, Capital B, and the Texas Observer in #Houston for The Lingering Storm: Stories of Hope and Action—a powerful in-person event reflecting on Hurricane Katrina’s legacy and how communities are rising in the face of climate change and displacement.
Where: Julia Ideson Building, Houston, #Texas
When: Wed., Sept. 10 | Doors 6:30PM | Program 7–9PM
Donation-based RSVP (suggested $5): https://bit.ly/KatrinaEvent2025
(🧵 1/2: See reply for lineup!)
#events #TheLingeringStorm #ClimateJustice
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2025-08-15 13:52:04 UTC

This week's top story: Allowing police departments the discretion to silo off certain parts of #police personnel records is a recipe for abuse. Now, the #Texas lege wants to help them hide their misconduct ...
https://www.texasobserver.org/secrecy-g-file-police-records-texas-legislature/
#politics #USpol #news #TXlege #HumanRights

2025-08-13 20:00:13 UTC

Last week: Both NIH grants that support the Harvard/MIT MD-PhD Program were terminated as part of a broader attempt by the federal government to terminate direct NIH funding to Harvard Medical School. 32 students who spent countless hours applying for and earning fellowships saw their awards vanish.
https://www.texasobserver.org/lindale-to-harvard-trump-nih-grant-cuts/
#education #DOGE #Trump #healthcare #politics #USpol #Texas #news

2025-08-11 21:30:05 UTC

Featured story, from Francesca D'Annunzio: Nearly 1.5M Texans now live in jurisdictions where sheriffs or #police chiefs have agreed to train some of their officers to act as #immigration agents in their communities. These agreements currently cover around 30 Texas law enforcement agencies. https://www.texasobserver.org/ice-task-force-galveston-beaumont-tyler/
#ICE #HumanRights #border #sheriffs #politics #USpol #Trump #news #GulfCoast

2025-08-09 19:18:43 UTC

Earlier, from @npub19fq…rjhq: The ban on churches endorsing candidates is overwhelmingly supported. 77% of Americans surveyed oppose houses of worship endorsing political candidates and 67% say houses of worship should keep out of political matters altogether. https://www.texasobserver.org/trump-irs-texas-churches-johnson-amendment/
#economy #religion #Trump #politics #USpol #news