The Immigration and Nationality Act contains a powerful border enforcement tool known as the 287g program. It allows ICE “to delegate to state and local law enforcement officers the authority to perform specified immigration officer functions under the agency’s direction and oversight.” Those functions include arresting, detaining, and deporting illegal aliens. Right now, to be...
When Magdalena Evans experienced stomach pains that started to spread to the rest of her body, she immediately consulted her direct primary care doctor. The follow-up CT scan showed she had a gastrointestinal stromal tumor in her small intestine. Her direct primary care physician (DPC) referred her to Ascension Dell Seton for a surgery to...
Later today, the Texas House will take up and consider its version of the 2026-27 state budget, which promises to be quite a long and interesting affair consider that almost 400 amendments were filed. In anticipation of that debate, it’s helpful to see where things stand numbers-wise. For its part, the Texas House’s proposed budget...
OPINION: Texas clings to the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges like a relic of the past. It’s time for flexibility and competition. Texas stands at a crossroads with two companion bills winding their way through the Lone Star Statehouse that aim to reform accreditation by allowing public institutions to choose from...
It must feel overwhelming to be a young person these days. In a world with headlines that pulse with debates over government reach, individual rights, and the promise of economic freedom, the future of liberty hangs in a delicate balance. The air hums with urgency— while some voices push for centralized control, others champion personal...
Kicking, headbutting, and thrown objects. The loss of an eye from a coat hangar. These are not scenes from a movie or novel, but the stories of educators, administrators, and teachers who shared their experiences in Texas public schools with the House Committee on Public Education. Texas has a crisis of discipline in its schools....
Why should we keep a moniker tied to a faded empire when America’s imprint is what matters now? On Monday, I had the privilege of testifying before the Texas Senate in favor of two bold legislative measures: Senate Bill 1717 (SB 1717) and Senate Joint Resolution 63 (SJR 63), both introduced by Republican Sen. Mayes Middleton of...
Austin is a cultural and economic hub of Texas (and arguably even the United States); however, in recent years, the city has proven incapable of managing critical issues that affect the safety and well-being of its residents. The city’s crime rate is still above 2019 levels, with murder, rape, and assault rates trending higher than...
Over the past several decades, the Left has been engaged in a relentless project of slowly closing off the American Frontier to recreationists, and to motorized recreation in particular. Under the Biden Administration alone, 2,978 miles of wilderness roads, two-track, and single-track (motorcycle) trails were permanently closed by career bureaucrats working in conjunction with “conservation”...
A recent op ed in the Austin American-Statesman voiced substantial objections to Texas Senate Bill 37. It contends that the bill imposes redundant bureaucracy via the Office of Excellence in Higher Education, diminishes faculty governance by restricting faculty senates to tenured members and requiring half to be elected, curtails student academic options by eliminating low-enrollment...
Every Friday morning, I join the Cardle & Woolley Show on 1370 Talk Radio in Austin to announce the week’s Winners & Losers. With less than 60 days to go in the Legislative Session and two Texas teams in the Final Four tournaments this weekend, the already-hectic pace is approaching light speed. Here’s who made...
The Texas Education Agency (TEA) has just updated its superintendent salary database, revealing some eye-popping new detail about public executive compensation. According to TEA’s latest salary data, there were approximately 1,200 superintendent positions in Texas during the 2024-25 school year, which were either filled in a full-time or part-time capacity. For full-time administrators, the median...