How Trump’s ICE Is Locking Up Longtime Texans with Paths to Legal Status
The case of one Houston man, nearly deported to India after a quarter-century here, shows what happens when prosecutorial discretion is abandoned.
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Opinion ⋆
My Home Is Treated Like a War Zone. That Militarization Expanded to Minnesota.
There have been many violent murders at the hands of Border Patrol agents. This is not an aberration but part of a broader federal apparatus built and refined over decades.
How Radioactive Oil and Gas Waste Could Lie Beneath a North Texas Elementary School
A massive Dallas-Fort Worth subdivision and a school have risen atop layers of oil and gas drilling waste. One worker who helped spread the material is speaking out.
Local Environmental Groups Are Still Reeling from Trump’s DOGE Cuts
Since last year, the EPA has cut millions of dollars in grants previously awarded for environmental initiatives in Texas during the Biden administration.
Politics ⋆
Does Taylor Rehmet’s Victory Foreshadow an Anti-MAGA Wave?
As the dust settles, Texas Dems and Republicans weigh the lessons from the shock upset in Senate District 9.
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Politics
How to Cause a Dysfunctional Government
On RFK Jr., Trump v. Slaughter, and the serious flaw of the right’s unitary executive theory.
In Ink and on Airwaves, Texas Media Grows Ever More Concentrated
Hearst’s acquisition of struggling newspapers in the state may seem like welcome news. But bigger doesn’t always mean better.
Could This State Senate Runoff Be a Tipping Point for Tarrant County?
The special election in Senate District 9 pits “people power” against mountains of conservative cash and the rising influence of Christian nationalism.
Border and Immigration
When Local Police Collaborate with ICE, Children Pay the Price
I know exactly what message the recent deportation of an Austin mom and her 5-year-old sends to kids. They learn that calling 911 is dangerous.
Trump’s Plan for Venezuelan Oil Raises Prospects of Paramilitary Violence
Latin America has lots of experience with private military contractors protecting foreign companies in lawless conflict zones. It seldom goes well.
Congressman Tries to Cut Pay of ICE Prosecutor with Racist X Account to $1
Last week, the prosecutor James Rodden returned to Dallas immigration court a year after the Observer’s original investigation into his social media. Congressman Marc Veasey’s amendment did not receive a committee vote Wednesday.
Culture
Austin’s Willy Baltazar Is a Man of Many Masks
From Veracruz to Texas, he keeps a centuries-old tradition alive.
In Dallas, Spanish-Inflected Shakespeare Adaptations Experiment with Language
Two plays challenge their source material and speak to today’s audiences.
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