After months of nervous hemming and hawing from Democratic operatives and activists alike, President Joe Biden is expected to do the damn thing this week and officially launch his 2024 re-election effort, potentially setting up a rematch with Donald Trump, the...
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Things to Watch: Tuesday, April 18th, 2023
The closer we get to Sine Die, the official adjournment of the Texas Legislature, the faster things move in the Texas Legislature, and if the beginning of this week is any indication, the rest of Texas felt left out. Here’s a quick recap of what’s happening around the...
Signal’s Banned Books Club: The Perks of Being Curious
Here’s something I don’t understand. Somewhere in Texas today, a child can walk into their school library and thumb through a copy of Mein Kampf. While you could argue that the antisemitic manifesto does carry some historical significance, it is also irretrievably...
Whitmire’s Big Adventure
In November 2021, when he declared his intention to run for Mayor of Houston publicly for the first time, Texas State Senator John Whitmire immediately made himself the frontrunner in the race to replace term-limited Mayor Sylvester Turner, whose ascent from the Texas...
Hollins drops Mayoral bid, running for City Controller
When Sheila Jackson Lee recently joined the Houston Mayor’s race, speculation was rampant about how her entrance into the race could upend the prospects of fellow candidates like Senator John Whitmire, former Harris County Clerk Chris Hollins and former Houston City...
Musings: How Ted Cruz helped turn politics into pro wrestling
IN THE SPRING OF 2016, Ted Cruz and his closest advisers knew that he had a serious problem. Throughout the 2016 Republican presidential primaries, Cruz’s coronation had been disrupted. From the moment Cruz reached the United States Senate in January 2013 until...
Did Greg Abbott set up a presidential campaign this weekend?
Texas Governor Greg Abbott is running for President of the United States. Maybe. This weekend, someone took the first step for Abbott by filing the “Greg Abbott President Campaign,” with the Federal Election Commission, which allows candidates to officially solicit...
Could Sheila Jackson Lee Upend the Houston Mayor’s Race?
Howdy. This story about the 2023 Houston mayor’s race was originally published exclusively for members of our Patreon. You can support our work by joining us today. Becoming a member helps us invest in building the strongest progressive newsroom in the nation, and...
Is Donald Trump channeling David Koresh?
Disgraced former President Donald Trump and his nascent campaign to reclaim the office he lost to President Joe Biden in 2020 made a series of announcements over the past several days that have raised eyebrows for decidedly different, but equally disturbing, reasons....
Dan Patrick Can’t math
Last week, the Signal reported on comments recently made by Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick to a gathering of business community types in which the Lite Guv talked about his desire to pass a “parental rights” bill in Texas before bizarrely claiming that he would also...