ICE Agents in Churches ‘Does Not Bode Well for the Future of Religion’ in America
“They’re de facto endorsing government interference with the church—the very government interference with the church that they’ve complained about in the past.”
Featured Stories
The Latest
When a Death Penalty ‘Volunteer’ Changes His Mind
Richard Tabler is scheduled to be executed February 13, making him the second person set to be killed by the state in 2025.
New DEA Chief’s Background Includes Surveillance Tech and Border Misinformation
Derek Maltz formerly worked at PenLink, a Nebraska-based tech firm that has sold software that can track phone locations without a warrant to agencies like ICE and Texas DPS.
Counting Hate: At Least 61 Anti-LGBTQ+ Incidents in Texas Last Year
The LGBTQ+ advocacy organization GLAAD, which tracks incidents, warned that threats against the queer community are likely to worsen under the Trump administration.
Opinion ⋆
The ‘Texas Three-Step’: Defund, Demonize, and Privatize Public Schools
Vouchers become subsidies for families who had already decided to pay for private school, at the expense of public schools that must serve all students.
Opinion ⋆
Who Really Benefits from School Vouchers?
I do not pretend to know the motivation of Jeff Yass. But I do know that Mr. Yass is not a Texan, and I also know that Texas is not for sale.
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Politics
Public Education Bills: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
Conservative state lawmakers have filed hundreds of bills targeting the school finance system, LGBTQ+ students, undocumented immigrant children, and more.
Texas Foresees Strong Revenue, Full Rainy Day Fund. Who Will Benefit?
In his biennial budget projection, Comptroller Glenn Hegar says the state will have a healthy surplus, plus a full economic stabilization fund for the first time in history.
Trump’s Texas Tycoons
Meet the Lone Star megadonors, think tankers, and politicians poised to play big roles in Trump’s comeback tour.
Border and Immigration
Death in the Desert
Migrants’ bodies pile up in New Mexico after Texas cracks down in the sprawling El Paso sector.
Is Mexico Prepared for Mass Deportations?
Border states brace themselves, while the president insists on an optimistic view.
The Border Propagandist
Jaeson Jones, a former DPS captain-turned-MAGA influencer, is helping lay the groundwork for mass deportations and conflict with Mexico.
Culture
Lost in Transit: Russian Dissenters’ Perilous Path to America
Persecuted and unable to change anything, we were unwelcome in Russia. Then Mexican and U.S. policies brought more trouble.
From Houston to Lebanon, Seeking Truth and Music
Meet the DJ and journalist behind Houston’s Ice House Radio, who has mingled with jazz legends and reported abroad—and for whom recent violence in the Middle East is personal.
Uvalde’s Darkest Hour
A new book by the publisher of the Uvalde Leader-News illuminates events that forever altered lives in this small Texas city.
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January/February 2025
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