Free Republic

Gov. Greg Abbott is coming to the defense of a fallen Muslim soldier's family, which has been under attack from Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump. "The service and devotion of Gold Star families to America cannot be questioned," Abbott said in a statement provided Monday to The Texas Tribune. "Captain [Humayun] Khan, like many heroes who paid the ultimate sacrifice, will be forever remembered for their service in protecting the freedoms we cherish in America." Trump has been clashing with the Khans after Khizr Khan, Humayun Khan's father, delivered an emotional speech Thursday at the Democratic National Convention in which...

The Saudi-led Gulf states have certainly succeeded in killing off a string of global mega-projects in deep waters. Investment in upstream exploration from 2014 to 2020 will be $1.8 trillion less than previously assumed, according to consultants IHS. But this is a bitter victory at best. North America's hydraulic trackers are cutting costs so fast that most can now produce at prices far below levels needed to fund the Saudi welfare state and its military machine, or to cover Opec budget deficits. Scott Sheffield, the outgoing chief of Pioneer Natural Resources, threw down the gauntlet last week - with some...

Suddenly, U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, isn’t acting like a shoo-in for re-election. After his prime-time non-endorsement of GOP nominee Donald Trump at the Cleveland convention caused a firestorm, Cruz became the target of a lot of speculation. Already Democrats such as former State Sen. Wendy Davis, formerly of Fort Worth, and U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro of San Antonio are talking about throwing their hats in the ring for U.S. Senate in 2018. As soon as Castro said in a joint CBS News’ interview with his brother, Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Julian Castro, that he was “going to...

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Texas will allow concealed handgun license holders to carry their weapons into public university buildings, classrooms and dorms starting Monday, which is also the 50th anniversary of the mass shooting at the University of Texas' landmark clock tower. The campus-carry law pushed by Gov. Greg Abbott and the Republican legislative majority will make Texas one of a handful of states that guarantee the right to carry concealed handguns on campus. Here's a Q &A on how the law will work:

The University of Houston's Student Government Vice President has been sanctioned following a social media controversy. Vice President Rohini Sethi's five sanctions include a 50-day suspension beginning Aug. 1, mandatory attendance of the Libra Project diversity workshop, mandatory attendance of three cultural events per month, a reflection letter and a public presentation in the Senate Meeting on Sep. 28. The Student Government President Shane Smith was given a one-time power to determine Sethi's suspension by the Student Senate. It was passed with 13 votes of approval, two against and one abstaining. He released the letter below. Between the Senate Meeting...

A yearly Building Bridges basketball tournament and community event with the Harris County Constable Precinct 1 office has a brand new attraction: a tricked out patrol car, complete with "swangers" for rims. It's part of an effort to break down barriers between law enforcement officers and members of the public. "A lot of us who drive slabs, who ride on those wheels, most of the time we don't have positive experiences with law enforcement when we get pulled over. I'd love to be pulled over by an officer who has swangers on his car," laughed rapper Paul Wall. He and...

Weatherman Bob Goosmann denied there were any racial undertones to the incendiary Facebook comment that led him to resign as chief meteorologist at KRLD (1080 AM). The Facebook message, posted Wednesday, said, "As many of you have probably noticed, I've stayed away from politics on FB. The DNC parading the mothers of slain thugs around on their stage has me furious."

DALLAS – The Army reservist who killed five Dallas police officers had kept an unauthorized grenade in his room on an Afghanistan base in 2014, according to a report by Army officials investigating a sexual harassment complaint against him.

Sixteen people died this morning when a large hot air balloon struck a high-voltage power line, caught fire and crashed in a pasture near Lockhart, Texas, according to Texas authorities and the Federal Aviation Administration said.

A 41-year-old man believed to be an undocumented immigrant was arrested Tuesday for allegedly sexually assaulting a 7-year-old girl on the Northeast Side Monday, according to arrest documents. Carlos Esparza, who is suspected of being in the country illegally, was arrested on a first-degree felony charge of aggravated sexual assault of a child and is currently being held at the Bexar County Jail on a $75,000 bond, according to online records. The alleged sex assault occurred at the Harlow Apartments in the 7500 block of Harlow Drive on the Northeast Side, according to an arrest affidavit obtained by mySA.com. The...

COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Texas A&M has suspended two assistant football coaches for two weeks for what they described as a "failed attempt at humor" this week at a football clinic for women. Coach Kevin Sumlin announced Friday night that offensive line coach Jim Turner and special teams coordinator Jeff Banks have been suspended without pay and will have to serve 20 hours of community service.

Former Texas A&M and NFL linebacker Antonio Armstrong and his wife died Friday in Houston, the university said in a statement issued Friday evening. According to police, the two were shot by a teenager in their home near Houston.

One of the largest newspapers in all of Texas, which previously endorsed Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney, has now officially endorsed Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton.

Federal officials said a hot air balloon carrying at least 16 people caught on fire and crashed in Central Texas on Saturday. Caldwell County Sheriff’s Office said there doesn't appear to be any survivors. "The balloon was occupied and it does not appear at this time that there were any survivors of the crash," Caldwell County Sheriff Daniel Law said in a statement. "Investigators are determining the number and the identities of victims at this time." Lynn Lunsford with the Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement that the accident happened about 8:40 a.m. Saturday near Lockhart, Texas, when the...

A McDonald's employee in Brenham has been fired after she refused to serve an off-duty police officer ordering food for himself and his family. When the officer and his two children tried to order at the burger chain near U.S. 290, the woman behind the counter, whose son is currently in custody, told the officer she wouldn't serve him. Another employee stepped in to take the order.

It’s been a long and contentious week so let’s close out the day on something positive. A mom in Texas decided to celebrate the anniversary of the day a local police officer saved her daughter’s life by hiring a professional photographer to capture their tea party reunion. Corporal Patrick Ray saved Bexley Norvell’s life last year when the girl choked on a coin. From CNN: “Her lips were completely blue,” her mother, Tammy Norvell, 41, told CNN. She called 911, and Ray was there within minutes. “I could not believe how fast he got here,” Norvell said. He was able...

This is the cutest thing you'll see all day -- maybe even all week. A fully uniformed police officer sitting in a tiny chair, at a tiny table, with a tiny girl -- having a tea party. Corporal Patrick Ray, 30, saved 2-year-old Bexley's life a year ago when she choked on a coin at her home in Rowlett, Texas. "Her lips were completely blue," her mother, Tammy Norvell, 41, told CNN. She called 911, and Ray was there within minutes. "I could not believe how fast he got here," Norvell said. He was able to pry Bexley's mouth open...

MATAMOROS, Tamaulipas — The failed strategy by the Mexican government has created a new issue in this border city where organized crime has tried to diminish common crime in an effort to lower public attention. Drug cartels appear to be succeeding in lowering common crime, something that the State of Tamaulipas has failed in. “They cut my fingers off for being a thief,” the tattoo on the forehead of a suspected criminal explained. Information obtained by this outlet points to the victim being connected to a series of burglaries in the city. His kidnapping and torture appear to be a...

Reveling in the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision to strike down a Texas abortion law, a leading abortion rights activist on Monday cast the ongoing political battle as nothing short of a fight over "American values." Ilyse Hogue, president of NARAL Pro-Choice America, told a breakfast meeting of the Texas Democratic delegation that the "fight is not about abortion." Rather, she said, "this is a clash of fundamentally different ways of looking at the world." She then pointed to Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and other top GOP leaders. "You have men like Donald Trump, Mike Pence, Rick Perry and...

An Austin man who is accused of beating a turtle to death with a hammer told authorities he was acting in self-defense, his arrest-warrant affidavit says. Terry Washington, 55, told police that the turtle lunged at him and repeatedly tried to bite him after it had been hooked on a fishing line on the edge of Lady Bird Lake, KVUE-TV reports. According to the affidavit, he said he killed the turtle in self-defense and in order to get the fishing hook back, then dragged it under a bridge to get it out of the view of passers-by. The June 21...