Texas delegation urges Congress to withhold aid to Mexico over water treaty dispute
A bipartisan group of Texas lawmakers are demanding appropriators withhold funds for the country until Mexico lives up to its end of a 1944 water treaty that requires it to send 1.75 million acre-feet to the U.S. every five years.
Democrats embrace tougher border enforcement, seeing Trump's demolition of deal as a 'gift'
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer says Democrats plan to โconstantly over the next yearโ remind voters that it was Donald Trump, the likely Republican presidential nominee, who torpedoed a bipartisan bill on border enforcement.
โIf they die, thereโs no more chancesโ: Mom who lost son applauds federal bill to legalize fentanyl test strips
Texas is one of a few states where fentanyl strips are still illegal, considered drug paraphernalia. Federal lawmakers are trying to change that. Senate Bill 2569 is continuing to gain bipartisan support, an update applauded by local families who lost loved ones to fentanyl.
Sen. Cornyn tells KSAT heโs confident rape kit backlog bill will pass
It's been made clear, party lines don't matter when it comes to rape kit testing. Two weeks ago, the U.S. House passed a version of the Debbie Smith act of 2023, which would continue funding to end the backlog of untested DNA evidence in sexual assaults.
Texas congressional Democrats say impeaching Biden is โnot comparableโ to Trump impeachments
Speaker Kevin McCarthy announced his plans Tuesday to launch an impeachment inquiry, saying it was the โlogical next stepโ after months of probing by House Republicans into the Biden family. The investigations have so far yet to turn up evidence that the president violated the law.
McConnell tries to reassure colleagues about his health, vows to serve out term as Senate GOP leader
Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell declared again that he plans to finish his term as leader despite freezing up twice at news conferences over the summer, brushing off questions about his health as he sought to reassure colleagues heโs still up to the job.
Part 1: In 1998, a legal revolution was quietly born in Texas. It would pull Americaโs courts rightward.
With his election as Texas attorney general, U.S. Sen. John Cornyn planted the seeds of conservatism. Gov. Greg Abbott used his tenure to cultivate them into an aggressive strain of right-wing activism aimed at driving the nationโs courts and laws to the right.
Part 3: Under Trump, Texasโ foot soldiers became federal judges, securing a conservative stronghold in the courts
A federal judiciary full of ideological allies is helping Texas block Democratic priorities and advance right-wing legal doctrines. But the bigger prize is conservative control of the rule of law itself.
Part 2: Texas backlash to Obama fueled conservative drive to reinterpret U.S. Constitution
Barraging the Obama administration with lawsuits, the Texas attorney generalโs office wasnโt just trying to block policies. It was injecting disruptive, overtly Christian legal philosophies into the mainstream, and grooming a generation of conservative legal warriors.
U.S. Sen. John Cornyn eyes the seemingly impossible: a bipartisan deal on immigration
Riding the success of his historic congressional session last year where he helped pass the first gun safety bill signed into law in a generation, Cornyn is hopeful that his ability to strike deals across the aisle will help Congress achieve another elusive legislative goal: an immigration deal.
Cruz: โOf courseโ Trump was wrong to call for terminating Constitution
U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz condemned the comment by the former president, but he also said that reporters were overblowing the story and should instead โfocus on what matters.โ Sen. John Cornyn called the move โirresponsibleโ on Monday.
Manchin rails against 'revenge politics' on permit plan
Sen. Joe Manchin on Tuesday railed against what he called โrevenge politicsโณ being used against him, as liberals in the House and Senate team up with Republicans to oppose his plan to speed permits for natural gas pipelines and other energy projects.
Bexar County GOP hasnโt censured Cornyn & Gonzales, but chairman says it could still happen
Resolutions to censure the two Texas Republicans ultimately didnโt pass. But the local party chairman says itโs not because they were voted down; itโs because a procedural issue meant they couldn't be voted on at all.
Surprise Senate vote would overturn Biden environmental rule
In a surprise victory for Republicans, the Senate on Thursday voted to overturn a Biden administration rule requiring rigorous environmental review of major infrastructure projects such as highways, pipelines and oil wells โ a victory enabled in part by Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia.
U.S. Senate approves bill containing Texasโ โIke Dikeโ coastal protection project
The U.S. Senate voted to authorize the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to begin planning for a massive coastal barrier project in Galveston Bay meant to protect against hurricanesโ storm surge. Funding is not yet secured.
John Cornynโs disapproval among Texas voters worsened dramatically as he negotiated a bipartisan gun bill, new poll shows
The Republican U.S. senator shepherded landmark gun legislation through the Senate last month. Between April and June, his disapproval rating went from 39% to 50%, according to a Texas Politics Project poll.
GOP unity? Some aim for reconciliation after tough primaries
Two days after losing a bitter primary to a rival she once deemed a โselloutโ for occasionally working with Democrats, Katie Arrington appeared at a โunity rallyโ to urge South Carolina Republicans to come together and back Rep. Nancy Mace in the fall general election.
Texas is unlikely to adopt key provision of bipartisan gun bill โ a red flag law to take guns away from people deemed dangerous
Red flag laws likely remain a nonstarter among Republican leaders in Texas, where Gov. Greg Abbott already faced a conservative backlash after he asked the Legislature to consider them four years ago.
Texas Republican Convention calls Biden win illegitimate and rebukes Cornyn over gun talks
Some 5,100 delegates and alternates voted on a party platform that also calls for ending the federal income tax, requiring education about fetal gestation and limiting the Legislatureโs right to regulate guns.
Caught between an A+ NRA rating and a nation reeling from shootings, John Cornyn is key to whether gun safety deal advances
The bipartisan gun legislation could end up being a career definer for John Cornyn, Texasโ senior senator. Heโs shown a past willingness to compromise but faces critics further to his right, including his fellow senator Ted Cruz.
U.S. senators reach deal on gun legislation in aftermath of Uvalde shooting
Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, was one of the lead negotiators for the proposal, which would expand background checks for people under 21 and encourage states to enact โred flagโ laws. President Joe Biden and House Democrats had wanted to go further.
Federal investigation into law enforcementโs response to Uvalde shooting wonโt be criminal, DOJ says
Authorities have been criticized for waiting over an hour to enter the school and confront the shooter. U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland said law enforcement agencies have promised to cooperate with the federal inquiry.
Former Rep. Giffords tells Congress 'be bold' on gun reform
Eleven years after her own life was massively altered by gun violence, former congresswoman Gabby Giffords stood in front of the Washington monument and once again lobbied for stricter gun laws after yet another string of mass shootings in America.
Some Texas GOP donors urge Congress to act on gun control measures like โred flagโ laws, expanded background checks
More than 250 self-declared gun enthusiasts, including donors who have contributed to Gov. Greg Abbottโs campaigns, have signed on to an open letter supporting Sen. John Cornynโs efforts at bipartisan gun reform legislation.