Free Republic

The state of Texas is facing a lawsuit over a new law that allows state and local law enforcement to arrest people who enter Texas illegally. Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed Senate Bill 4 into law in Brownsville on Monday. "We expect a dramatic drop well over 50%, maybe 75%, of the people coming across the border illegally will stop entering through the State of Texas," Abbott said Monday. On Tuesday, the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas, the ACLU, and the Texas Civil Rights Project (TCRP) filed a lawsuit in an Austin federal court to challenge the bill. The...

After more than three decades as the Travis County District Attorney, Democrat Ronnie Earle's seat is up for grabs. It won't be taken by a Republican since no one from the GOP filed to run in the March primary. The main watchdog position in Texas will stay in the hands of Democrats. "Obviously the issue that sets this particular district attorney position apart from any other in the state of Texas is the presence of the Public Integrity Unit," Travis County Democratic Chairman Chris Elliott said. The district attorney doubles as the primary ethics enforcer for the state government. Republicans...

Brees vs. Brees: NFL player tells mother to stop using his imae in political ads Mina Brees says she has taped new version of ad that doesn't use Drew Brees' image By Marty Toohey AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF Tuesday, October 31, 2006 Drew Brees wants no part of his mother's political aspirations. The NFL quarterback and Westlake High School graduate has told Mina Brees, an Austin attorney, to stop using his picture in TV commercials as she runs for a spot on Texas' 3rd Court of Appeals, saying their relationship is now "nonexistent" after souring six years ago. "I think the major...

Bonds and the BudgetAN OVERVIEW OF THE ADMINISTRATION'S BORROWING PROPOSALS The 2002-03 Governor's Budget reflects 11 separate borrowing proposals, including one that is already on the March 2002 Ballot (Proposition 40, Clean Water Bonds). As shown in Table 1, eight of these borrowing proposals are intended to provide resources for the budget in 2002-03, while the other four address ongoing infrastructure or energy crisis issues. The total amount of the borrowing proposals is approximately $58 billion, although not all of this amount would be borrowed during 2002-03.For each of the borrowing proposals, the table shows three figures. First, the table...