TEXAS MONTHLY invited state senator Dan Patrick and state representative Donna Howard to tweet chat with executive editor Mimi Swartz about our August cover story on women's health.
During a speech Monday, the governor laid out a five-point, budget-cutting pledge for no new taxes. But what was he really saying?
As we head into the most critical legislative session in decades—maybe ever—the question is not just, Who are the people with the most clout at the Capitol? It’s also, What do they want?
Who’s the toughest opponent for Republicans who want to crack down on illegal immigration? Other Republicans.
Tomball state representative Allen Fletcher is on his way to a second term. His former business associate may be on his way to the federal penitentiary.
The school board voted 5-1 to approve the measure, making Pflugerville the first district in the state to offer such benefits.As many readers are no doubt aware, state senator Dan Patrick has asked attorney general Abbott to rule on whether domestic partner benefits are legal under the state’s
State senator Dan Patrick accuses fellow senator John Carona of spreading vicious rumors about the Patrick marriage, resulting in an email exchange that might make CW producers jealous.
“We are going to have to make serious decisions in the future because we can’t keep stretching the nickel,” Patrick said. “How do we fund education long term? I think we should add 2 cents to the sales tax, and dedicate that to education. The reason I think that is:
Once upon a time, not so long ago, in a faraway land called Pennsylvania, a woman named Sarah Palin brought 200 protest cookies to school for children at the Plumstead Christian School - because she had read a report – mistaken as it turns out – that the state was
I was sitting in the Senate gallery yesterday, listening to the debate over the sonogram bill, when Dan Patrick said something that got my attention. He said that he had asked Speaker Straus to recommend someone to carry the sonogram bill, and Straus had recommended Geanie Morrison. He repeated this
I drove to Houston for the rally yesterday. The event was held at a huge complex called the Richard E. Berry Educational Support center on Barker-Cypress Road in northwest Houston. The surrounding area is entirely outside the Houston city limits and is unincorporated. A colleague at Texas Monthly who lives
Senator Patrick e-mailed me a report about Perry’s appearance at the Greater Houston Partnership. I posted it in the comments to “Let them eat Chili.” Readers are invited to read Senator Patrick’s comments and reach their own conclusions.
I confess that I didn’t pay a lot of attention to Dan Patrick’s reelection announcement last week, but one thing struck me as very peculiar. Here are the first three paragraphs of the release: “During the past few weeks there has been speculation I might run for, or be appointed
Yesterday’s Senate debate on Sen. Jeff Wentworth’s driver’s ed bill highlighted one of the remarkable stories of the session: Dan Patrick’s transformation into a real player who is having an impact on legislation. Wentworth’s bill would have required 18 to 25-year-olds to take a driver’s ed course before obtaining a
Sen. Leticia Van de Putte’s bill permitting teen mothers to get contraception without parental consent to reduce repeat teen pregnancies produced a tie-breaker on an amendment by Dan Patrick which required notification of parents for those teens still living at home. Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst was summoned to break the
Doctors would be required to offer ultrasounds to women seeking abortions, and women would have the choice to view or not view the tests, under a compromise accepted today by Sen. Dan Patrick and adopted by the Texas Senate. “It is really inform and consent. It is women’s health. It
Sen. Dan Patrick, apparently attempting to compliment Sen. Bob Duncan, said that the mesothelioma bill would not even be getting debated except for the “political capital” and respect Duncan enjoys among his colleagues. Okay, so far, so good. “I don’t think that one senator voting with you really knows what
The fallout from the State Board of Education's debate over the teaching of evolution continued this morning in the Senate Education Committee, which held a spirited discussion on Sen. Kel Seliger's SB 2275 transferring authority for textbook adoption from the State Board of Education to the state's Education Commissioner. How spirited?
Rep. Mark Strama and Sen. Kirk Watson chose to recognize Pro-Life Lobby Day by introducing a “Prevention Works Act” aimed at reducing abortions by reducing unwanted pregnancies. Wait…so how would this work, exactly? The press release for the Watson and Strama bill claims that “Prevention Works is a real pro-life
Just got a notice from Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst’s office that tomorrow, on Pro-Life Lobby Day, Dewhurst “will speak in support of legislation which would require all women considering abortion be offered an ultrasound image of their unborn child and the opportunity to hear its heartbeat prior to receiving an
Deep into the State of the State address, Gov. Rick Perry endorsed a proposal by Sen. Dan Patrick and Rep. Frank Corte to, in Perry’s words, “require those wanting to terminate a pregnancy to review their ultrasound before proceeding.” Perry told the assembled lawmakers today that “as we consider the
Senator Dan Patrick responded to my post about the future of the 2/3 rule by e-mailing me his observations, which he requested that I post. They appear below. The only way the two-thirds rule can survive is if the minority, regardless of party, understand that if they totally refuse to
That would be the “Pottery Barn” rule as invoked by Secretary of State Colin Powell to warn against the then-proposed invasion of Iraq. “You break it, you own it,” he reasoned. This morning, Dewhurst told reporters that he mentioned the Powell axiom to senators who wanted to change the two-thirds
Sen. Tommy Williams assures the Senate that he believes the two-thirds rule “is a good thing. I have been a House member who lost his entire package in Calendars Committee. It would be a travesty if we went to that method.” Then he recounted the “ugly scene” that occurred last
Sen. Leticia Van de Putte: “I am often asked why doesn’t the Senate fight like the House. I usually reply we don’t often fight or argue because we genuinely like each other. We believe in… diplomacy and compromise. This is what is best for Texas and its citizens.” “We don’t
What rules govern when the Senate is debating what rules govern? That’s Sen. Eliot Shapleigh’s question to Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst. This debate has slowed down Sen. Tommy William’s resolution, which would change Senate rules to suspend the two-thirds rule for the Voter ID bill. Dewhurst’s answer was a little
Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst just walked by the Senate press table and informed us: “I’m taking Colin Powell’s advice. If you break it, you own it.” We just thought you should know.
At least that’s what Sen. Royce West predicted when grim-faced senators emerged from their 1 hour caucus behind the closed door of the Betty King room. He was followed by John Whitmire, who was shaking his head angrily. Paul and I think we saw steam coming out of his ears.
In his post-session Q and A with reporters, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst predicted that proposals for changing the Texas Senate’s two-thirds rule will evaporate if senators find middle ground on the Voter ID bill. “With agreement on that issue, it (a rules change) becomes moot,” he said. In fact, each
Ed. Note: We’d like to welcome back Patricia Kilday Hart, who will be covering and blogging the Legislature with Paul. This is her first post. Ah, opening day of the 81st Session, where the mood in the Capitol is one of grand expectations for Peace on Earth, now that Tom
Dan Patrick is causing nervous breakdowns of various size and duration—and he’s not even in the Texas Senate yet.
Executive editor Mimi Swartz talks about Dan Patrick, Houston’s celebrity-talk-show-host-turned-politician.
