September 29, 2026: All Newsclips

Lead Stories

The Trump-loving Texas Republican sounding the alarm on data centers

By sheer numbers, Texas’ stock of existing and planned data centers is bigger than China’s. The state, under the auspices of three-term Republican Governor Greg Abbott, has become an incentive paradise for tech companies looking to capitalize on the AI boom. It might be backfiring. As lawmakers across the country throw the doors open to tech giants — including behemoths like Amazon Web Services, Microsoft, Alphabet, Oracle, and Meta — an enticement war is taking shape between states. Subsidized or discounted utility rates, easy environmental approvals, property tax abatements, and payroll credits are just some of the sweeteners local officials are offering to get data centers built in their backyards. As it turns out, Americans hate it. Enter Sid Miller, the outgoing Texas Commissioner of Agriculture, and one of the most vocal Republicans in the state — if not country — clamoring for increased data center regulation. His opposition to the datafication of Texas has placed him at odds with Abbott, currently caught in a closer-than-comfortable reelection campaign, and at times even Donald Trump, despite the president endorsing him multiple times.

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Backlash to the data center bonanza has become an electoral fissure in the run up to November’s midterm elections. A survey published by Gallup earlier this month found that 7 in 10 Americans would oppose the construction of a data center in their communities. State-level polling conducted in August by the Texas Politics Project found that roughly 57 percent of respondents opposed or strongly opposed the construction of data centers in their communities, with the proportion of opposition being much higher in rural areas. They suck up water and energy resources, take up land, disrupt the peace and quiet of the intentional distance you take from the city slickers, and they’re popping up like weeds. In a white cowboy hat and a matching Texas drawl, Miller has been sounding the alarm about the looming voter backlash to the industrial AI boom, even going so far as to warn that it could cost Abbott his chance at reelection. Miller lost his own bid for reelection in the Republican primary earlier this year, and with nothing left to lose, he gave Rolling Stone his perspective on the potential make-or-break issue of the midterms. "I started this way before the primary election, way back probably a year, a little over a year ago. My first concern was all the good farmland that was disappearing. Data centers, crypto mines, solar farms — they want to locate them on our very best, most fertile farmland. The reason they do is that it’s cleared, it’s flat, it’s got electricity. Most of the time, it’s got water, irrigation, everything. They can just rev up and go. It’s in the county, most of the time, so there’s no oversight or regulation or guardrails, no permits needed. Once they pave that [land] over, we’re not getting it back — it’s gone," he said.

Gov. Greg Abbott declares statewide disaster proclamation over diesel shortages

Governor Greg Abbott announced a statewide disaster proclamation over diesel shortage on Monday, following recent record-high prices. The proclamation permits the use of dyed diesel on roads and lifts weight restrictions for agricultural, timber and fuel loads. It also suspends Texas Low Emission Diesel rules to the extent allowed by the Environmental Protection Agency. Dyed diesel — regular diesel with red pigment — is reserved for off road use only, usually by farm and construction equipment. Unlike regular diesel, it is untaxed. With the proclamation, the governor's office aims to alleviate skyrocketing prices at the gas pump. While it increases the supply of diesel, it does not affect the fuel tax, which is 20 cents per gallon.

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"Texas agriculture and freight run on diesel," Abbott said in a press release. "Record prices put both industries at risk and raise costs for every Texas family. Farmers and truckers can now use dyed diesel on Texas roads, and fuel, crop, and timber loads can move at a higher weight. These steps cut costs on the farm, on the road and at the store." Seven months into the U.S. and Israel's war with Iran, the U.S. continues to suffer from a major upset in exports of oil and gas from the Middle East, due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and damaged infrastructure. According to AAA, diesel prices reached a record high of $6.53 on average last week. This time last year, diesel average $3.69 a gallon. President Donald Trump recently vetoed a proposal by Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz, and talks to end the war have continuously deteriorated. Politicians across Texas have sought to capitalize on voters' affordability concerns, in response to continued inflation. Abbott, who is seeking re-election, will face Democratic State Rep. Gina Hinojosa in November. Hinojosa has asked the governor to waive the state gas tax.

ICE operations are making it hard for vulnerable Republicans fighting for their political survival

Battleground Republicans across the country are on defense as ICE operations keep finding their way into local headlines. A flurry of ICE activity in four rural Kansas towns this week prompted businesses to shutter and public schools to urge families to identify who could pick up children from schools in case their parents were detained. Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kansas) — a normally staunch MAGA defender who finds himself in a tougher-than-expected election — took to social media to say he was “closely following” the situation, signaled his displeasure that ICE wasn’t working more closely with local law enforcement, and said he had phoned Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin. Battleground Republicans across the country are on defense as ICE operations keep finding their way into local headlines. A flurry of ICE activity in four rural Kansas towns this week prompted businesses to shutter and public schools to urge families to identify who could pick up children from schools in case their parents were detained. Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kansas) — a normally staunch MAGA defender who finds himself in a tougher-than-expected election — took to social media to say he was “closely following” the situation, signaled his displeasure that ICE wasn’t working more closely with local law enforcement, and said he had phoned Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin. Later, he complained that ICE’s failure to communicate with local law enforcement caused “mass disruptions to local communities and businesses.” “We must keep our communities safe, but it has to be done in a responsible and secure manner,” he said in a statement Thursday evening.

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Mullin took over DHS in March with a mandate to keep immigration enforcement out of the news following a public outcry over the killing of two Americans by immigration agents during enforcement operations in Minneapolis. No subsequent incidents have generated the same type of national attention — but ICE’s recent record-high arrest rate is still landing hard in some communities. “It does cause quite a disruption in the community,” said Scott Fischer, the GOP chair in Ford County, one of the counties where ICE activity was reported this week. “We don’t want our community disrupted.” In Florida, local officials are warning about the impact of ICE raids on businesses, and a Republican incumbent is on air with a Spanish-language ad denouncing Trump’s crackdown. In Michigan, Democrats are calling for an investigation after a man crashed his car and died while fleeing ICE. In Maine, the fallout from a fatal ICE shooting of a 25-year-old from Colombia continues to loom over GOP Sen. Susan Collins’ reelection race. In Texas, last week’s nonfatal shooting of a Venezuelan in Austin is just the latest of several highly publicized ICE operations that have fueled wall-to-wall media coverage. “There’s already been some blowback associated with what people feel is a little bit of a heavy hand when it comes to immigration enforcement,” said Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas). “Obviously, border security is critical, but I think the administration maybe has miscalculated a little bit. … It is going to be one of the factors people are weighing in the election.”

Texas weather: State prepares for heavy rainfall, flooding threats

A large portion of the state is facing heavy rainfall and flooding threats later in the week. The message from state leaders was simple: prepare now before the rain arrives. What they're saying: "We want to make sure that our fellow Texans know about the volume of rain that's about to hit their region," said Governor Greg Abbott. State officials issued an early warning Monday urging Texans to get ready for what could be a significant flooding event. Abbott says the weather could be similar to July’s deadly flooding. He says there’s still time to prepare. "Please take whatever action you can to prepare yourself, your family, your home for the heavy rain that may come," said Governor Abbott.

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It begins Monday night with a slight risk of flooding and possible flash flooding in far west Texas and El Paso. By Tuesday, the rain is expected to spread across much of west Texas and the Panhandle from Amarillo to Lubbock to Midland. "Fash floods should be anticipated. Rain of five to seven inches coming down. Wind. In those areas up to 60 miles per hour, including the potential for tropical tornadoes with wind up to 80 miles per hour," said Governor Abbott. On Wednesday, the impact will be felt across the majority of Texas, according to Abbott. Heavy rain could reach the I-35 corridor from north Texas through central Texas. The cold front pushing into those regions could bring significant rainfall. "There is a possibility that the front could stall. And if it stalls, it could result in an extraordinary amount of inches of rain falling in those regions that might be incalculable at this time," said Governor Abbott. The flash flooding risk continues into Thursday with 10 inches of rain expected from areas north of Dallas to south of San Antonio.

State Stories

Ted Cruz scores Senate win on college sports bill. What happens next?

Sen. Ted Cruz took a big step forward Monday in his effort to impose order on what he describes as college sports chaos, as the Senate approved his proposal to impose new rules on player eligibility, transfers and compensation deals. Cruz said before the vote the bill is necessary to preserve a vibrant environment for the student athletes on the field and the fans cheering for their favorite teams. “This bill is about protecting what makes college sports uniquely American,” Cruz said before the bipartisan 77-22 vote to approve the measure. Cruz, chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee, said the bill isn’t perfect and represents the product of intense negotiations with the panel’s top Democrat, Sen. Maria Cantwell of Washington.

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It now goes to the House, which is set to be on recess through the midterm elections in November. Cruz has suggested Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., bring the House back before November to pass the bill and give Republicans a bipartisan accomplishment to brag about on the campaign trail. He also floated a unique victory lap: having President Donald Trump sign the bill on ESPN’s College GameDay. It’s not clear Johnson would be inclined to pull his Republicans away from their reelection efforts for an issue such as college sports. Johnson could receive some pressure from Trump, who has made the issue a priority and talked about its importance during an interview Saturday with Clay Travis at the Texas-Tennessee football game. “We have to get it voted on and we're counting on the House, and I think the House will come through too,” Trump said of the bill. The legislation sets transfer and eligibility rules, granting athletes one “free” move during their careers. Additional transfers are restricted, with exceptions for circumstances such as a coaching change or program termination. The bill provides a “targeted” antitrust exemption and allows teams to pool TV rights, with some requirements. It preserves the right of players to receive compensation from name, image and likeness deals while placing new guardrails on those agreements.

Harris County Treasurer cited after allegedly causing 4-vehicle crash on I-45

Harris County Treasurer Carla Wyatt was cited Sept. 18 after she caused a four-vehicle crash on Interstate 45, according to a Texas Department of Transportation crash report. The incident marks Wyatt’s fourth run-in with the law since she took office at the start of 2023. The embattled Democrat was twice arrested for drunken driving, and in December was charged with burglary of a vehicle, though a grand jury later declined to indict her on that charge. Commissioners are actively seeking to abolish Wyatt’s position, which critics consider antiquated, and voted earlier this year to strip her office of a key oversight role after an attempted fraud went undetected. One state lawmaker said commissioners may get their wish if voters reelect Wyatt in November. “This will come down to what happens in the election,” said state Sen. Paul Bettencourt, R-Houston. “If she stays in the job, it will be effectively a signal for removal.”

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Wyatt’s office did not respond to a request for comment Monday. In a Sept. 25 screening with the Houston Chronicle editorial board, Wyatt said her legal troubles have no impact on her professional ability. “Car accidents happen every day,” Wyatt said. “As far as my personal life is concerned, it has nothing to do with my ability to do my job.” After the I-45 wreck, Houston Police Department officers cited Wyatt for failing to control her speed, but officers found no indication she was intoxicated, according to the report. Footage of the incident first shared by KPRC 2 showed a Black Nissan Xterra aggressively changing lanes before rear ending another vehicle. A diagram of the crash included in the crash report alleged Wyatt rear ended two additional vehicles before coming to a stop. No one was badly injured in the crash, according to the report. Wyatt was first charged with driving while intoxicated in December 2023. That charge was later dismissed after she completed a pretrial diversion program, despite twice violating the conditions of her bond. Wyatt was charged again with drunken driving in May after she was found asleep at the wheel in Galveston County. That case is pending.

Why Fort Worth ISD couldn’t stop a state takeover

One day last spring, Laura Craig’s elementary-aged child came home distressed. Everything at their Fort Worth ISD school was changing, they said. The desks had been moved out of the pod formation they liked. Pajama day, a prize for students meeting their reading goals, was canceled. “There were a lot of things they were looking forward to,” Craig said, “and they were not allowed to do them.” Soon she would hear about a canceled field day at another elementary school in the district. Another parent reported that practice time for sports at their school had been cut short. These were seemingly small losses, but for Craig, they were confirmation of what she’d been dreading for almost a year. Things were changing for the worse, and her kids’ schools would not be exempt. In March, the state completed its takeover of the 67,000-student district on the western side of the Metroplex, replacing the elected board with an appointed board of managers, replacing the superintendent with a recruit from out of state, placing them under the guidance of a conservator to oversee reforms. Craig knew the district had challenges—one school had received an F letter grade from the Texas Education Agency for five straight years before closing in 2023, 77 had received some mix of D’s and F’s, and eight had not met state passing standards since 2018.

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But she’d been hoping that, whatever remedy the newly appointed leadership chose, her kids’ schools—all A- and B-rated campuses—would be left to carry on as usual. But what’s best—for students, their schools, and the entire Texas education system—is more complicated than it sounds. It’s easy to agree that students should learn to read, write, and work with numbers in a safe, supportive, joyful environment. “I know of no school system leader, be it a school board member or a superintendent, who doesn’t possess a desire for our students to thrive,” TEA commissioner Mike Morath wrote in a May 2025 letter announcing his agency’s intent to consider the possibility of interventions into Fort Worth ISD. The disagreement arises when someone tries to figure out how to make that happen for every child in a district with dramatically variable income levels, adult educational attainment, and neighborhood cultures. In a state that is loath to spend more money and increasingly ready to institute top-down reforms, the reins of change have landed in one pair of hands: Morath’s. “But if that desire does not translate into student learning, the only moral response is to change practices,” his letter continued. He said he planned to evaluate the district over the coming months and then, if forced to by the district’s underperformance, intervene. Public school advocates and parent organizations fearing state intervention often point to Houston ISD, the state’s largest district, where a TEA takeover has led to the departure of 21,000 students. In 2023, Morath installed Mike Miles, a former Dallas superintendent, to lead the district and gave him broad authority to remake it using his philosophy of reform. Miles quickly rolled out his New Education System, or NES, a highly centralized instruction model built around scripted curriculum, tightly timed lessons, frequent testing, and intensive teacher evaluation. It started on a few targeted campuses, but by the 2024–25 school year, NES was in operation on 130 of the district’s 274 campuses. Teachers and parents fiercely resisted the changes, citing staff turnover, library closures, and the fact that the reforms were imposed by an unelected, state-appointed administration; Houston Public Media reported that 633 HISD teachers had resigned by early 2024, nearly twice the number the previous year, while a standing petition demanding Miles’s removal gathered more than 21,000 signatures.

The GOP made protecting Title IX their signature issue. The lives of two Texas athletes show they're not.

This fall, Ryann Allison is finally a senior at Stephen F. Austin State University, a midsize public university in Nacogdoches, a town in rural East Texas, where the men’s and women’s Division I sports teams are known as the Lumberjacks and the Ladyjacks, respectively. The mascots are a nod to the school’s proximity to the state’s timber and forestry industries as well as to good old-fashioned gender roles. A driven and organized young woman who grew up in Texas, Allison usually looks forward to returning to campus and her intense schedule. But not this year. For the first time since she arrived on campus, she isn’t playing on the school’s beach volleyball team. In a way, she feels she’s lost an important part of her identity. In May, just after the end of the spring season, Allison was called into head coach Gretchen Hand’s office. She assumed it was a conversation about a scholarship that she’d been promised for the following year—she didn’t think anything of it.

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“But before I could say anything, I was informed that I would not be renewed for next year, and that I wasn’t a fit for the team anymore,” Allison said in a recent interview. Allison, who was one of the team’s top players and had helped Hand recruit and organize new players the previous fall and winter, was stunned. “I remember being absolutely shell-shocked and not knowing what to even say. I remember continually saying, ‘I don’t understand.’ And she was like, ‘Well, you actually don’t have to understand.’ ” When Allison’s best friend and teammate, Brynn Dowd, called to ask how it had gone, Allison replied: “I was cut.” “Ha, ha. You’re funny. What actually happened?” Dowd said, because the concept was so out of touch with reality. But Allison wasn’t joking. And later that day, when Dowd went into her meeting with Hand, she was told that she, too, would no longer be on the roster. Representatives from Stephen F. Austin State University and Coach Hand did not respond to requests for comment. Neither Dowd nor Allison was ever told explicitly why they were cut from the team. But they have a strong suspicion: retaliation. Though Allison and Dowd were shocked to be dumped from the roster, the future of the school’s beach volleyball program overall had been precarious. It wasn’t the first time they had received abrupt and destabilizing news. Back in May 2025, Ryann Allison signed on to a Zoom meeting along with 20 of her teammates where they were unceremoniously told that their program would no longer exist due to the university’s “financial constraints.”

2 Atmos Energy contract workers hospitalized in pipe explosion days after Dallas apartment gas lea

Two Atmos Energy contract workers were hospitalized Monday morning after a pipe exploded during routine maintenance at a Dallas apartment evacuated earlier this month for a gas leak. Dallas Fire-Rescue says a contractor was pressure testing a gas line near 1200 Turtle Creek Boulevard when the line exploded during the process. The incident happened at the Alexan Riveredge Apartments, where hundreds of residents had been displaced by a separate gas leak more than a week earlier. The contract workers were taken to a hospital. Fire-Rescue described their injuries as non-critical. No civilians or firefighters were hurt, and the fire department said there was no impact to the nearby apartment complex or neighboring businesses. Atmos Energy said the work involved testing the pipeline with air and did not involve natural gas. The company also said natural gas service to the area was not affected and there was no damage to its pipeline.

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Orlando J. Pérez: Trump sealed his Venezuela policy: Oil is ahead of the ballot box

(Orlando J. Pérez is a professor of political science at the University of North Texas at Dallas. The opinions expressed represent those of the author and not necessarily those of the university or its leadership.) What did Donald Trump and Delcy Rodríguez settle when they met on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly last Tuesday? The meeting was a brief pull-aside at a reception Trump hosted, closed to the press. A source briefed on the 15-minute conversation told Axios that Trump said, “You have to have elections at the end of the day,” without insisting on a date. That same night, Rodríguez posted a photo of herself flashing a V for Venezuela beside Trump’s thumbs-up and called the encounter historic. That image put a presidential seal on a policy Washington chose months ago: work with the government that inherited power from Nicolás Maduro and keep the uncertainty of an open election at arm’s length. A Meganálisis poll taken before the trip had already found that 91% of Venezuelans opposed the meeting.

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Even Rep. Mario Díaz-Balart of Florida, who defends the administration’s approach, said the photo hit him like a kick to the liver. Hours earlier at the General Assembly podium, touting the August oil deal, Trump had spelled out his priorities to world leaders: “To the victor belong the spoils.” By the administration’s account, that deal gives a U.S.-backed venture 100-year rights to 17 oil fields holding an estimated 65 billion barrels. There is another recent deal: On Sept. 2 Energy Secretary Chris Wright stood beside Rodríguez in Caracas as Houston-based Chevron committed more than $7 billion to double its Venezuelan output. That same day, Trump said Venezuela is “not ready yet” for elections and praised Rodríguez for “doing a very, very good job.” A process is underway between part of the opposition and the current government that will run through December, without yet setting a date for a presidential vote. Human rights groups still count about 328 political prisoners at the end of August. On the day of the New York meeting, María Corina Machado, the opposition leader who won the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize, tried three times to return home and was turned away each time.

Port Houston’s economic impact nears $1 trillion milestone

A new study by Martin Associates shows Port Houston is closing in on a massive financial milestone. In 2025, the waterway generated $987 billion in economic impact nationwide. Often referred to simply as City Docks, the Turning Basin Terminal is the oldest part of Port Houston, dating back to 1914 when the Houston Ship Channel first opened. Jordan Frisby, Port Houston’s chief of staff, says nearly 290 million tons of cargo moved through the waterway last year, making it the nation’s busiest by cargo volume. Out of roughly 200 terminals along the 52-mile stretch, Port Houston operates eight public ones.

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At the Turning Basin Terminal, the cargo is breakbulk, which means it is handled as individual pieces rather than in containers. Most of it consists of steel, pipes and oversized equipment, which are primarily used to support oil and gas production activity. Frisby says most of what is imported into the Port goes straight into the Texas landscape to fuel regional growth. "There’s an insatiable demand for cement. We’re really just moving a huge amount to support all construction in Houston and Austin and the surrounding areas,” said Frisby. While much of the heavy material stays domestic to support infrastructure and energy production, Frisby says international exports include overseas shipments of frozen beef and poultry. With economic impacts reaching 98% of counties across Texas and nearly $1 trillion nationwide, port officials say the growth could soon reach a historic milestone. "We continue to see increases in both our energy cargo and our container traffic,” said Frisby.

Paxton backs fuel tax break, offers no detailed plan for lost revenue

Republican Senate nominee Ken Paxton defended his call Monday to permanently repeal federal fuel taxes that help pay for the nation’s roads and bridges, but offered no detailed plan for replacing the lost revenue. “I know people need money in their pockets,” Paxton said at a United States Hispanic Business Council forum. “Gas prices are high. Let’s give them the opportunity, at least for the time being, to give them a little relief.” Paxton was responding to a question from Javier Palomarez, the group’s president and the forum’s moderator. Asked how his plan would pay for the upkeep of “Texas roads,” Paxton shifted to Texas’ state fuel taxes, saying some of that money had been improperly diverted to other uses.

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After the forum, a Paxton spokesperson pointed to a statement the attorney general issued Saturday calling for an end to federal fuel taxes. Paxton said Washington should “cut waste” to fund road maintenance rather than “taxing Texans at the pump.” The federal tax is 18.4 cents per gallon on gasoline and 24.4 cents on diesel, with most of the money going toward highway construction and repairs. Palomarez, a Democrat, responded, “God bless you,” after Paxton said drivers needed relief. Paxton’s proposal came after his Democratic opponent, state Rep. James Talarico, called for suspending federal gas and diesel taxes and ending the war in Iran, which he said is a major contributor to soaring fuel costs. Talarico urged Paxton to support both measures. Talarico will appear before the same group Wednesday in the Rio Grande Valley. Paxton was also asked about the growing number of data centers in Texas. He said the state has “plenty of open space” for them but said new facilities should generate their own electricity without burdening the grid, recycle water through closed-loop systems, exclude Chinese hardware and software and locate away from neighborhoods.

Morgan Stanley officially picks Dallas for new regional HQ, 3,800-plus jobs

Morgan Stanley has made it official: the financial giant has picked Dallas for a new regional headquarters, the latest major win cementing the region's status as "Y'all Street." After months of speculation, the New York-based firm confirmed the decision in a Sept. 28 announcement from Gov. Greg Abbott revealing a state grant backing the project. The state awarded Morgan Stanley a $43.85 million grant from the Texas Enterprise Fund, along with a $40,000 Veterans Created Job Bonus. Morgan Stanley will invest $684 million and is expected to create more than 3,800 jobs. The state's TEF grant is the third-largest since 2004 and the largest for a financial services company, according to records from the governor's office.

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"Morgan Stanley's expansion in Dallas reflects our commitment to investing in markets that offer exceptional opportunities for growth, innovation, and talent. With a thriving financial services industry in Texas, we are excited to establish Dallas as a strategic hub for our firm to serve clients and attract top talent in the years ahead,” Eric Grossman, executive vice president, chief legal officer and chief administrative officer said a in a statement. “We greatly appreciate the support of the State of Texas, the City of Dallas, and Dallas County and look forward to deepening our roots and contributing to economic growth in the state.” The phased approach will see Fountain Place in the Dallas Arts District serve as Morgan Stanley's temporary home while the firm partners with Trammell Crow Co., a subsidiary of CBRE Group Inc., to develop a $1.3 billion tower at the corner of McKinney Avenue and Fairmount Street. Morgan Stanley will lease about 255,000 square feet at Fountain Place for a little more than four years before moving into its new hub at 2401 McKinney Ave. around 2031 under a 16-year lease.

CPS Energy board names Frank Almaraz as the San Antonio utility’s new CEO

CPS Energy’s Board of Trustees has identified a new CEO and it’s a familiar face. San Antonio’s publicly-owned utility company announced plans to hire interim CEO Frank Almaraz as its full-time leader at a Monday board meeting. CPS Energy made Almaraz interim CEO in June. Before that, he had served as chief operating officer for five months. He worked at CPS Energy between 2011 and 2021. Board Chair Francine Romero said the utility had initially launched a broader search before deciding to keep Almaraz on permanently.

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“We need a leader who understands the funding requirements and infrastructure demands that support our own growing community and the statewide grid,” she said. “We determined that Frank Almaraz is the president and CEO that CPS Energy needs now, because in addition to meeting the requirements above, Mr. Almaraz has more than a decade of leadership within the municipal energy model.” Romero added that a one-month contract negotiation period would begin now. CPS Energy spokesperson Milady Nazir emphasized that nothing is finalized until Almaraz formally accepts the job. “Contract negotiations are still in process,” she said. Almaraz would replace Rudy Garza, CPS Energy’s previous CEO, who left to lead the Lower Colorado River Authority at the beginning of June. Almaraz has already overseen a busy summer, butting heads with state officials after Gov. Greg Abbott announced a proposal to get rid of municipally-owned utilities.

New coalition warns data center growth could strain Texas water supplies

A new coalition of civil rights leaders, rural advocates and community groups launched Monday at the Texas Capitol, warning that the rapid expansion of data centers across the state could threaten Texas’ already limited water resources. The group, called We the People Texas, announced its formation alongside the release of public records it says reveal additional data center developments and water-related negotiations involving publicly owned water resources. The coalition includes the Texas NAACP, Save Rural Texas, the Texas Coalition Against Data Centers, Don’t Drain Texas and other grassroots organizations. Members are calling for an immediate pause and review of water commitments tied to future data center projects. “We are a politically diverse group, but water is something that affects every Texan,” speakers said throughout the event.

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Texas NAACP President Gary Bledsoe said his concerns center on what he believes is a growing disconnect between Texas’ long-term water outlook and the state’s increasing number of data centers. “There is a clear and present danger to the survival of the conditions in our state,” Bledsoe said. He pointed to existing projections showing future water shortages and argued state leaders should proceed more cautiously before approving additional large-scale developments. “We already had the projected shortages and so this is akin to building your state capitol building on quicksand because we know that it’s going to happen at some point,” Bledsoe said. Bledsoe said the coalition is seeking greater public awareness and involvement in decisions surrounding water use and future industrial development. “We want people to feel alarmed because it’s right around the corner in your community,” he said. “Don’t think because I live in this large city or I live here and there, that you’re insulated from the problem.”

Following voter fraud acquittal, Crystal Mason sets her sights on Tarrant DA

The decade-long litigation of a Fort Worth woman accused of illegally voting in 2016 was resolved last week, but her fight lives on until the Tarrant County District Attorney Phil Sorrells is unseated. Crystal Mason, a mother and grandmother who cast a provisional ballot in Tarrant County 10 years ago while ineligible to vote, saw her case resolved Sept. 24 by the highest criminal court in the state. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals dismissed state prosecutors’ appeal of her acquittal in a 5-4 decision.

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“Today we celebrate victory, but next we’re coming for accountability,” Pamela Young, executive director of United Fort Worth, said Monday. “We’re coming for accountability, and that starts Oct. 19 through 29 with early voting. We can be a part of that accountability by kicking Phil Sorrells right out the door.” In 2024, District Attorney Sorrells asked the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals to convict Mason of voting illegally and send a message to all “would-be illegal voters.” She was initially found guilty by the 432nd Judicial District Court in 2018, but the ruling was overturned by the Second Court of Appeals. Mason, who lived in Rendon at the time, used a provisional ballot while on supervised release for a 2012 tax fraud conviction. The vote did not count, but she faced five years in prison for casting the provisional ballot. “The facts are undisputed that Crystal Mason was on federal felony probation when she cast her illegal ballot. That’s against the law,” Sorrells said in a comment Monday. “Elections are the cornerstone of our democracy and anyone who attacks them with an illegal vote will be prosecuted.” “Anyone who knows Crystal Mason, first of all, knows that they are registered to vote,” Grinter Allen said. “But second of all, has been absolutely bowled over by her faith and her optimism that Texas can be the place that we deserve, and that it can happen slowly, it can happen peacefully, it can happen at the ballot box.”

National Stories

New Democrats back candidates in deep-red districts

The centrist New Democrat Coalition is expanding its endorsements into firmly Republican territory, another sign of the party’s ballooning confidence in their midterm prospects. The group’s campaign arm, NewDem Action Fund, is endorsing seven candidates running in seats currently held by the GOP — including several that President Donald Trump won by double digits in 2024. They are Chris Backemeyer against Rep. Mike Flood in Nebraska, Kristina Knickerbocker against Rep. Mike Turner in Ohio, Mitchell Berman against Rep. Bryan Steil in Wisconsin, and Raymond Smith against Rep. Greg Murphy in North Carolina. They are also endorsing Nancy Lacore in South Carolina, Teresa Benitez-Thompson in Nevada and Blake Gendebien in New York, who are running for open seats.

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“I spent 21 years serving our country in national security roles, where the focus is on the mission and getting the job done,” Backemeyer said in a statement. “That’s the pragmatic approach the New Dems bring to Congress, and it’s what Nebraska’s First District deserves.” Rep. Greg Stanton of Arizona, who chairs the fund, said that the endorsed candidates will have access to money, support and advice, as well as likely future visits from New Democrat members. Stanton said he intends to campaign with candidates in Arizona and Iowa. The new endorsements come as President Donald Trump campaigns in deep-red regions ahead of Election Day. Stanton and his fellow New Dems see the move as a sign Trump and House Republicans are on their back foot. “I’m not sure where friendly Trump territory is in the United States of America,” Stanton said in an interview. “Americans are very upset at the poor decisions of this president … but they’re even more mad at the Republicans in Congress who have rolled over and let him do whatever he wants without any resistance.” The more New Dem-endorsed candidates that flip their seats, the more influential the already 100-plus-member caucus will be next term. The coalition will be well positioned to have would-be-speaker Hakeem Jeffries’ ear and his back, Stanton said. “Every single endorsed candidate supports Hakeem Jeffries for speaker of the House,” Stanton said in an interview. “We will be a strong governing partner with Hakeem Jeffries to make sure that his speakership is as successful as possible.”

This Senate Democratic candidate is making a play for RFK Jr.’s MAHA supporters

The Make America Healthy Again movement has been closely associated with Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and the Trump administration, but at least one Democrat in a closely watched Senate race is making a play for MAHA supporters. Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic candidate for Michigan’s pivotal Senate seat, on Tuesday is releasing a “Building a Healthier America” policy agenda focusing on cracking down on pesticides, changing drinking water standards and boosting access to healthy food. However, El-Sayed, a former public health official, does not share some MAHA supporters’ skepticism of vaccines, saying in an interview that he “believe[s] in vaccines.” El-Sayed said the country needs to “severely, severely rethink” how much pesticides are used and in what context. He said he would seek to draft “broad legislation led by science to limit pesticide use” if he wins in November.

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His newly released policy agenda says he would fight against legal immunity for pesticide manufacturers — a divisive issue after the Supreme Court this year ruled to limit lawsuits over a popular weed killer’s potential health impacts. He said he would also aim to ban pesticides already prohibited in Europe, though the document didn’t specify if he was targeting particular chemicals. Polls show that while 4 in 10 adults say they support MAHA, the majority are Republicans or Republican-leaning and supporters of the Make America Great Again movement. Republican operatives have credited Kennedy with helping woo some left-leaning and independent voters to support the GOP. Recently, some influential MAHA leaders, particularly those focused on pesticides, have become disillusioned with the White House, warning the administration risks losing voters in the midterms if they don’t reduce the use of pesticides. White House officials have said delivering on the MAHA agenda is a “top priority,” but some Democrats, like El-Sayed, are seeking to capitalize on the split.

Contradicting Trump, Pope Leo says artificial intelligence safety concerns not 'fake news'

Pope Leo dedicated his first encyclical to artificial intelligence and protecting humanity in its wake. Pope Leo XIV said Monday that concerns about artificial intelligence going rogue are not “fake news” and should be taken seriously, insisting that safety issues raised by AI experts should be discussed and acted on. Leo, who dedicated his first encyclical to AI and protecting humanity in its wake, was asked during a news conference about what the United States and China especially should be doing to prevent AI from posing catastrophic risks to humanity. President Donald Trump has called concerns about AI going rogue a “hoax.” “This is a problem that I think we need to sit down and talk about,” the American pope told reporters returning home from France. “We can’t just sit back and pretend nothing is going to happen.”

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Trump has been a champion of AI, often warning that the United States must remain ahead of China in the technological arms race. He has said efforts to limit the technology were part of a “conspiracy” by his political opponents. Several AI giants, including Anthropic, have called for a slowdown in development to give safety measures time to catch up to the fast-moving technology. Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, for example, has warned that within six to 12 months, AI could be capable of leading a swarm of agents that could take over the entire internet. Trump said on Sunday he planned to have a late dinner with Amodei, but he has not yet commented on the meeting. “If someone were to ask me ‘Am I in panic mode?’ No I’m not. I sleep at night,” Leo said. “I do think that the concerns raised by many of the experts, specialists in AI should be taken seriously.” “I don’t think that that is ‘fake news’ as some have said to try and cause whether financial or other some other kind of benefit,” Leo said.

RFK Jr.’s push to revamp American food runs into White House resistance

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s efforts to revamp America’s food system have hit their biggest hurdle yet: the White House. Two years ago, the Trump campaign joined forces with Kennedy, embracing his ambition to wage war on chronic disease. But concerns about whether his ideas on food are even feasible have prompted clashes within the administration, casting uncertainty over a once-potent political agenda that drew support from millions of voters. At a July meeting convened by senior White House officials, tensions were running high. Up for discussion was a definition of ultraprocessed food—a wonky but critical part of Kennedy’s plans to overhaul the U.S. food supply—and whether it should undergo a layer of further review by White House staff. The definition that health officials pushed for: Processed food should be considered ultraprocessed if it contains ingredients such as artificial colors, nonnutritive sweeteners or chemical preservatives, with exemptions, according to people familiar with the matter and a document viewed by The Wall Street Journal.

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White House staffers were concerned the definition could cover most food in U.S. grocery stores and support existing efforts to sue food companies over bad health outcomes. One of Kennedy’s top aides, Calley Means, accused White House officials of trying to block the definition to cater to special interests, some of the people said. Means, a fiery influencer and wellness author, raised his voice and repeatedly asked why the definition required additional review, saying it wasn’t open for further debate. He said Kennedy’s health department had already worked on it for months and had vetted it with scientists. In response, White House officials highlighted concerns that the definition could be exploited by the plaintiffs’ bar and be grounds for a lawsuit against the government. They also pointed to its potential impact on the food industry and international trade agreements. The internal discord has stalled three separate efforts to curb the country’s reliance on ultraprocessed foods, a cornerstone of Kennedy’s agenda to remake the U.S. food supply. Means has mounted an expansive effort to roll out policies in Trump’s second term, saying the administration needs to deliver for its “Make America Healthy Again” supporters. White House officials have often viewed him as overly aggressive, pushing policies that aren’t feasible and seeming unwilling to compromise to make them more achievable, officials said.

'Pseudo-journalism': Partisan 'news' sites target US midterms

It bills itself as an "independent journalism" outfit, but the innocuous-sounding North Carolinian is among hundreds of partisan sites that researchers say masquerade as local news outlets in battleground states ahead of the US midterm elections. The so-called "pink slime" sites -- many secretly backed by partisan groups on both sides of the political aisle -- appear to be fueling an explosion of polarizing or false narratives ahead of the November 3 elections. Their backers are splurging hundreds of thousands of dollars on advertising their articles on social media, expanding their otherwise limited readership while authentic media outlets grapple with financial woes, layoffs, and record low public trust. The Senate Leadership Fund (SLF), a political action committee that describes itself as "solely dedicated to protecting and expanding the Republican Senate majority," apparently launched the North Carolinian in July, according to disinformation watchdog NewsGuard.

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The North Carolinian said the site was "paid for by SLF" and was "not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee." But the site appears focused on opposing Democrat Roy Cooper's campaign for US Senate and boosting his Republican opponent in the southern state, Michael Whatley. It carries headlines with phrases such as, "Roy Cooper's disastrous crime record" and "Whatley highlights Democrat Cooper's dangerous soft-on-crime record." SLF spent between $34,700 and $46,715 promoting the site's articles on Meta platforms through late August, garnering at least 3.6 million views, according to NewsGuard. SLF did not respond to AFP's request for comment. NewsGuard has identified 21 pink slime outlets that launched this year, bringing the total number of such sites to 1,179. By comparison, only 937 daily newspapers were operating, according to Northwestern University's Local News Initiative. "These pink slime sites can be confounding to news consumers who may not be aware of their agendas and confuse them with authentic independent news websites in their area, thereby undermining trust between journalists and their readers of all political persuasions," said NewsGuard's Sam Howard. NewsGuard said two pink slime networks -- One Nation on the right, and the American Independent on the left -- collectively spent at least $801,500 on advertising in the first eight months of this year to promote their articles on Facebook and Instagram. Their growing online reach could potentially affect the responses of AI chatbots, which are now popularly used for online searches, researchers say. One Nation, an affiliate of SLF, has launched six sites posing as independent news portals in states with key Senate races -- Georgia, Alaska, Maine, Iowa, Ohio, and New Hampshire -- according to the independent newsletter Popular Information.

Second prosecutor resigns from DOJ probe targeting Trump foes

A lawyer who backed President Donald Trump’s false 2020 election claims has resigned from a Justice Department investigation into whether former government officials conspired against the Republican president, a person familiar with the matter said on Monday. Kurt Olsen’s resignation from the so-called “grand conspiracy” probe represents further turmoil in a meandering investigation that has proceeded in fits and starts since its inception as prosecutors pursue an ill-defined right-wing theory of a conspiracy against Trump. It comes just weeks after the departure of another Trump ally, Joseph diGenova, who had been leading the closely watched investigation in Florida. The person who confirmed Olsen’s resignation spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss personnel matters. Olsen didn’t immediately respond to an email on Monday.

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Olsen’s prominence as an election denier elevated his profile in the Trump orbit, but his absence of experience as a Justice Department prosecutor made him an unconventional pick for such a high-profile investigation. Investigators have focused attention on multiple major investigations of Trump, including the probe into Russian interference in the 2016 election and his retention of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, and have demanded testimony from officials from both of those probes as they search for any signs of a potential conspiracy to deprive Trump of his rights. Olsen’s role in the investigation came into focus earlier this month when an attorney for former CIA Director John Brennan revealed that he had discussed with Olsen a subpoena compelling Brennan to testify before the grand jury in Fort Pierce on Oct. 25. Wainstein said Olsen told him that Brennan also remains a “target” of a narrower false statements investigation. It’s the latest sign of upheaval in the yearlong conspiracy investigation. Last April, a lead national security prosecutor in the Brennan investigation was replaced on the team after raising questions about the strength of the case. Days later, diGenova was sworn in.

Freak chain of events leads to a Tennessee election with zero candidates

A Tennessee state legislative district will have no candidates on the ballot in November, ensuring whoever wins will have to carry out a write-in campaign — and it's unclear who that might be. G.A. Hardaway, the Democratic lawmaker who had previously represented the district, died in April. But even if he had lived, it was eventually determined that he didn't submit enough ballot signatures to qualify for the August primary, coming up just one short of the required 25. According to The Commercial Appeal, the local paper in Memphis, the Shelby County Commission appointed Hardaway's son, T.J. Hardaway, to serve in the seat.

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The younger Hardaway was planning to launch a write-in campaign, but suspended those efforts earlier this month. Ballot access snafus have caused surprising issues around the country in multiple states. In April, New Mexico GOP state Rep. Rebecca Dow was booted from the ballot after a judge determined the way she submitted her nominating petitions did not adequately give voters a chance to review or withdraw their names, which would have potentially left that district with no candidate, although the state Supreme Court ultimately reversed this decision and let her back on the ballot. Then in June, Democrats de facto won a Republican-held seat in Florida after Rep. Paula Stark failed to file her campaign finance disclosures on time, disqualifying her from the ballot and leaving only Democrats cleared to run.

Copyright September 29, 2026, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved