November 2, 2026: All Newsclips

Lead Stories

9 killed after jet from Austin bound for Bahamas crashes in Florida

A private jet that took off from Austin-Bergstrom International Airport bound for the Bahamas crashed in Florida Sunday afternoon, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. A Learjet 60 crashed in a residential area near Cresthaven, Fla., around 12:50 p.m. local time Sunday, the FAA said. Nine people were on board. U.S. Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy confirmed on X all nine people were killed in the crash. It is unknown if any bystanders were injured. The aircraft departed Austin-Bergstrom International Airport and was headed to North Eleuthera Airport in the Bahamas, the FAA said. Jim Reynolds, a spokesperson for Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, could not immediately provide details about who was on the flight. He confirmed to the American-Statesman it was a private flight, not a commercial one.

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“Our thoughts go out to all of those impacted by this tragedy,” he said. The National Transportation Safety Board confirmed to the Statesman that the jet’s tail number was N722BD. Federal records show the aircraft was registered to LR60271 LLC, a Delaware corporation. Before the plane was heading east at 35,000 feet when pilots reported turbulence, icing and precipitation and requested to climb 2,000 feet. According to air-traffic control recordings, a pilot reported ice accumulating on the jet and turbulence that was moving the jet as much as 700 feet. After requesting to climb, the pilot declared an emergency issued distress calls as the plane entered a steep dive. “We’re descending 8,000 — mayday, mayday — we’re descending 10,000 feet per minute,” the pilot radioed. The pilot then reported "an overspeed condition descending 20,000 feet per minute” before saying, "We're going to crash into the ground."

Ken Paxton’s last stand

When Ken Paxton rolled up outside an airplane hangar in Rockwall, Texas, this October, he was putting three hard years in his rearview mirror. Paxton had faced some serious setbacks at work (impeachment); he’d weathered legal troubles (accusations of securities fraud); and his wife had filed divorce papers. But Paxton wasn’t going to be held down. The 63-year-old Texas attorney general left these setbacks behind, got in a freshly painted new vehicle and hit the open road. Instead of a Porsche or Corvette, Paxton opted for a tour bus. In between getting impeached and getting divorced, Paxton had announced a run for U.S. Senate, and on Oct. 17, he invited supporters to the small airport in Rockwall to kick off a 17-day trip across Texas. AC/DC’s “Thunderstruck” played over the loudspeakers as the hangar’s huge bay door opened to reveal Paxton’s bus parked just outside.

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Right-wing pastor Daniel Hayworth’s amplified voice bounced in a tinny echo as he introduced “the next United States senator from the great state of Texas, my father-in-law, Ken Paxton!” The bus’s door swung open, and Paxton, dressed in his go-to blue sport coat, walked down its stairs. The crowd let out a sustained cheer. Paxton’s Democratic opponent, state Rep. James Talarico, has drawn huge crowds and wall-to-wall coverage with his promise to change Texas. Paxton has gotten less positive attention, and that’s in part because what he offers the state isn’t change; it’s continuity. Democrats haven’t won a statewide race here since 1994; no other state party, in any other state, has had a longer drought. Paxton is one of the Republicans who has managed to keep the Democrats at bay by constantly evolving his message; even after nearly 24 years in elected office, he has managed to portray himself as antiestablishment by persistently tacking to the right. Since he first entered politics in 2002, he has deftly transformed from a Bush-era conservative to tea party stalwart to MAGA warrior. That ideological nimbleness has kept Paxton and other Republicans in power. As once-red Arizona and Georgia turned into swing states, Texas held the line.

Final rating changes: 63 races move toward Democrats, 1 toward Republicans

In the closing days of the midterm campaign, the fight for the House and Senate is taking place on traditionally Republican turf, including states and districts that would have been unthinkable Democratic targets at the beginning of the cycle. In total, Inside Elections has made a total of 64 race rating changes this week – 45 in the House, nine in the Senate and 10 for governor. All but one of those contests shift in a direction more favorable to Democrats. While President Donald Trump’s negative job approval rating is mostly to blame for Republican woes around the country, the rating changes don’t all fit a single mold. Some of the shifts are in swing districts, where it’s clearer that the Democratic nominee has at least a narrow advantage. But GOP candidates are struggling to pull away from their Democratic opponents in red districts and states as well.

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Now, there’s a chance that the polls are underestimating Republican support or that GOP-leaning undecided voters will turn out and reluctantly support GOP candidates. But as I wrote two months ago, 2026 feels similar to 2006, when an unpopular Republican president and war in the Middle East created the conditions for a Democratic wave election. The final results could be remarkably the same. Twenty years ago, Democrats flipped both chambers, gaining six Senate seats and 30 House seats. Democrats appear well on their way to winning the House majority. While they only need a net gain of three seats, Inside Elections’ latest projection is that the party will gain between 20 and 30 seats. That’s the most bullish projection for Democrats at any point this cycle and a byproduct of the president’s standing and a shifting House battleground. In March 2025, when Inside Elections debuted its House ratings for the cycle, there were 64 races rated as competitive, including 30 Republican-held seats and 34 Democratic seats. Now the battleground has expanded and shifted into GOP territory, with 82 competitive races in all – 55 seats held by Republicans and 27 by Democrats. The Senate landscape has changed as well, with the latest rating changes all favoring Democrats. The party needs to flip four seats for a Senate majority, and Inside Elections now projects Democrats to gain between four and six seats.

How Rep. Haley Stevens turned against a fellow Democrat—and became a party pariah

Rep. Haley Stevens’s journey from team player to pariah showcases some of the Democratic Party’s deepest divisions and the potential for politics to deliver the unexpected. Stevens stunned Democrats on Sunday when she withdrew her endorsement for her Democratic primary opponent, Abdul El-Sayed, and threw her backing behind Republican Mike Rogers in Michigan’s U.S. Senate race. The move required significant political gymnastics for Stevens, who in the span of less than three months has gone from bashing El-Sayed to praising him to bashing him again. She has had to perform a similar feat regarding her views of Rogers, a former congressman. In February, she said he “filled his campaign with bigots.” In June, she said his record on LGBTQ rights is “repulsive.” In August, she said he was a “rubber stamp for Donald Trump’s dangerous agenda.” As recently as Saturday, she sent out a flurry of texts telling allies she was still on team El-Sayed.

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Then, just two days before Election Day, she blindsided her allies, her staff and the Michigan Democratic Party by publicly endorsing Rogers. In a 98-second social-media video, she criticized El-Sayed for recent rifts between them and said she was voting for Rogers but promised supporters she remained a “proud Democrat.” Her reversal sparked condemnations from Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D., N.Y.), who called it a “despicable betrayal,” and from her own state’s Democratic Party, who said she was no longer welcome as a member. By Sunday evening, when she said on CNN that her decision was “a weight off my shoulders,” she had become a pariah in her own party, which badly needs to win Michigan to keep alive its chances of taking back the Senate. Stevens didn’t respond to a request for comment. Stevens, a moderate Democrat and staunch supporter of Israel, narrowly lost the party’s primary for Senate to El-Sayed, a progressive who has campaigned on Medicare for All, taxing billionaires and ending unconditional aid to Israel. Stevens endorsed El-Sayed’s candidacy at the time. But their relationship remained strained, and in private, Stevens signaled her hesitation over the race. In September, writer Ray Wert recruited Stevens to put her name on an opinion piece criticizing Rogers and his candidacy. After initially agreeing to publish the piece, Stevens backed out, according to Wert, and didn’t let him submit the piece under her name. Wert is married to state Sen. Mallory McMorrow, who came in third in the Democratic Senate primary after exiting the race.

State Stories

Cold front to send severe storms to Texas Monday. Here’s where.

After what will be a warm Monday across much of Texas, a cold front is expected to push through the state during the evening and overnight hours. While many won’t see a drastic temperature drop immediately, the front is expected to bring strong to severe thunderstorms to parts of North and Central Texas. The front won’t arrive in South Texas until early Tuesday morning, which will keep the severe weather threat lower locally. However, scattered showers and thunderstorms will still be possible in the Alamo City, along with the rest of the Interstate 35 corridor. Here’s an overview of what to expect.

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A mild and very muggy morning is expected across South-Central Texas on Monday. Temperatures in San Antonio will sit in the upper 60s, and there is a high chance of patchy, dense fog across the region. Visibility could fall to less than a quarter-miles at times, especially between 5 a.m. and 9 a.m. By the late morning, the fog will finally clear, allowing temperatures to rise steadily. San Antonio is expected to reach 80 degrees by noon before high temps top out at 82 to 83 degrees. The incoming cold font will start to push through North Texas during the evening. Along the front, strong to severe storms are expected to form and progress eastward throughout the night. The highest risk of severe storms will be in North Texas, which is where a level 2 of 5 risk of severe weather has been issued. This includes cities such as Wichita Falls, Denton, Sherman, and the DFW metroplex. Damaging winds are the top threat with these storms, but isolated large hail and a few tornadoes are also possible.

Republican group says it was wrongly linked to trans mailer campaign

A Republican women’s group says it was wrongly named in court filings this week over a scheme directing messages to Texas voters from a fake transgender student union. The Republican Women's Caucus Fund is a national political action committee focused on electing conservative women to Congress. A lawyer for the group said in an email Sunday that federal spending limits on PACs make it impossible that it could have paid for the text and mailing campaign, which sent messages and brochures to potentially millions of Texas voters. Civil district court Judge Jan Soifer had ruled on Wednesday that a real advocacy group named in the campaign and that brought the legal action, the Transgender Education Network of Texas, or TENT, had no role in it and is "suffering injuries, including harassment, threats, diversion of resources, and frustration of operations" as a result. Soifer said TENT should be able to depose the parties involved in the scheme.

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The lawyer for the RWC Fund said Sunday that a phone number for the group was identified in the proceedings by a third-party vendor called Infobip, which was hired to send the text messages to Texas voters purporting to be from a transgender advocacy group. He said Sunday that “it’s not clear why the service provider claimed that a telephone number associated with RWCF was involved.” “My client vehemently denies the accuracy, authenticity, and attribution of any reporting that it was involved in activity targeting Texans,” wrote the lawyer, Steve Roberts. Infobip said in a statement that it had no involvement in authoring or creating the text messages, which it received from its customers and routed to telecommunications operators. The company said it was complying with a court order “requesting the identification of its customer and other information relating to the relevant telephone numbers.” “For reasons of confidentiality, we are unable to disclose more information,” the company said. “The name of Infobip customer is under confidentiality protection, therefore Infobip nor any other person is legally able to reveal it publicly.” TENT's lawyer, Mimi Marziani, said the court filings identified the RWC Fund, but “it’s not immediately clear where this association leads.” Marziani said they may have been implicated “because of some shared right-wing vendor.” Marziani said it remains unclear who ultimately was behind the messaging campaign and TENT is considering its next steps, including possibly suing the Texas Transgender Student Union. “All the evidence points to this being some sort of false flag, right wing operation and whoever did it went to great lengths, seemingly with great resources, to cover their tracks,” she said. “A lot of people have gotten injured in the process.”

Watchdog accuses Texas State of ‘egregious’ First Amendment breach over paid advertisement

The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) on Friday accused Texas State University of “egregious” First Amendment violations after school officials removed paid advertisements from the student newspaper’s news stands. School officials seized the print advertisements on independent student newspaper The University Star’s newsstands on Oct. 23 because Democratic gubernatorial candidate Gina Hinojosa purchased ad space. Although the paper consulted free speech experts about whether the ad violated school policy, campus officials maintain that running the ad violated the university’s ban on “electioneering” within campus buildings.

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“Simply put, the university has no right to deprive the University Star of its independence in advertising decisions or the revenue it would have earned had Texas State University not unconstitutionally interfered,” FIRE’s Student Press Counsel Marie McMullen said in a statement. McMullen continued: “By removing its advertisements, Texas State has not only harmed the University Star’s advertising revenue, but is also inflicting irreversible harm to its expressive rights. We therefore urge Texas State to immediately rectify its unconstitutional actions by restoring the signs to the University Star’s news racks.” It’s worth noting that Hinojosa’s campaign purchased ads through the same college media buyer at four other public Texas univerisities including UT El Paso, Texas A&M, the University of Houston and UT Dallas without issue, the University Star reports. It’s not the first time Texas State has found itself in the crosshairs of free speech advocates. Faculty members Thomas Alter and Idris Robinson both sued the school this year, alleging they were unfairly fired for expressing their political beliefs while off campus. Those firings were among the factors that prompted FIRE to rank Texas State as the nation’s worst college for free speech in its 2027 College Free Speech report. “The overall state of free speech on campus is grim,” FIRE President and CEO Greg Lukianoff said in a statement. “Too many college administrators wield their power to cancel controversial speakers, cave to government or student calls for censorship and limit academic freedom. This report emphasizes the need for colleges to embrace their constitutional obligations wholeheartedly.”

Texas energy companies urged to boost cyber resilience

Texas oil and gas regulators are urging the state’s energy industry to prepare for evolving cyber threats. Railroad Commission of Texas Commissioner Wayne Christian cited recent cyberattacks involving Texas-bound energy tankers in calling on producers, pipeline companies and other energy companies to strengthen their cybersecurity defenses.

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“Texas is the energy capital of the world, and that makes our energy infrastructure a prime target for foreign adversaries,” Christian said in a statement. “When the cost of hesitation exceeds the cost of preparation, common sense says we act now to protect vital energy infrastructure from cyber threats. We must invest, test, monitor and strengthen our defenses now, before adversaries like China or Iran exploit a weakness and disrupt America’s energy security.” From the wellhead to the pipeline, oilfield equipment is increasingly connected to the internet. Companies are also using more artificial intelligence. All of this introduces more vulnerabilities. Vulnerabilities may allow hackers to steal proprietary drilling information, for example. Operators whose computers have been compromised may have to shut down operations while the intrusion is investigated. This spring, the agency issued a notice warning that cyberattacks could cause operational and financial disruptions. The notice came after the Environmental Protection Agency and Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency issued new advisories warning of an increased possibility of cyberattacks targeting internet-facing operational technology devices. That includes programmable logic controllers across the U.S.

What happens if federal election monitors show up in El Paso? County officials say they’re ready.

As the U.S. Department of Justice sets out to monitor counties throughout Texas and other states during Election Day on Tuesday, El Paso officials said they’re prepared to keep county voters and their ballots safe should federal officials show up and overstep their authority. El Paso County has not received notification that it’s among the counties being monitored, but officials haven’t ruled out the possibility. “We’re not anticipating any issues, but if there were to be any interference, the public should feel confident and assured that their votes are going to count, and if necessary, a response will be made quickly to make sure their votes are protected,” El Paso County Attorney Christina Sanchez said. Without disclosing details, she said her office is ready to file lawsuits or pursue other legal remedies should they be needed.

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The Department of Justice regularly monitors federal elections to ensure compliance with voting laws – monitoring, documenting and reporting compliance problems – without intervening to address issues directly at the polls. The monitors cannot enter polling places without the consent of state or local election officials and cannot prevent voters from entering polling sites. The Justice Department recently said it was expanding its monitoring program, planning to send more than 1,000 monitors to jurisdictions across the country, including attorneys and others outside its Civil Rights Division that typically serve that role. Concerns have grown that the Justice Department, under President Donald Trump’s authority, could interfere with voting and “target certain voters based on their race, ethnicity, primary language or perceived political affiliation, and ultimately sow distrust in election results,” the nonprofit Campaign Legal Center said in an October fact sheet. Through executive orders, Trump has sought to restrict mail-in voting and implement new voter registration requirements – including asking for additional citizenship verification under some programs. The provisions were blocked by federal courts. Trump, who repeatedly claims without evidence that election fraud is widespread, maintains that the 2020 election that he lost to President Joe Biden was rigged.

Lone Star developers make a case for public infrastructure funding to help support long-awaited project

The latest owners of Lone Star Brewery are planning a full-scale makeover of the blighted industrial site that encompasses 57 acres in a mostly residential neighborhood south of downtown. In addition to building new for-sale and rental housing, retail and restaurant spaces, and music venues, Southstar’s president and CEO said it plans to improve streets, create new green space and trails, and restore the iconic brewery structures. To do that, the developer is seeking more than $63.7 million in public funding that will go toward $75 million of planned public space and upgraded infrastructure within the Lone Star neighborhood along the San Antonio River. Southstar’s Thad Rutherford told the board of the Westside Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone recently that the TIRZ expects to spend an estimated $575 million on a full-scale makeover of the neglected 32-acre property.

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“We’re trying to create these public spaces and … [where] you can just walk into the district every day, and you could park there and feel like that’s not a spot that someone else from out of town will be,” Rutherford said, adding the district should be for everybody. The project will generate a projected $340 million in new tax revenue through 2050, including over $97 million for the San Antonio Independent School District, Rutherford said. Southstar projects the development to be assessed at almost $729 million by 2050, up from $24 million in 2026. Southstar, which developed the Mission Del Lago and Verano neighborhoods on the South Side, has so far been meeting with area neighborhood residents and other community groups for their input on the project. It’s also reviewing with the city the planned improvements to Lone Star Boulevard. That work could start in early 2027, Rutherford said during a recent community meeting. An online survey soliciting input on the project remains open to the public. The project is situated within both the Westside and Innercity TIRZ boundaries. Southstar plans to request a portion of the $63.7 million in public money from the Innercity TIRZ, Rutherford said, and another $20.7 million through a municipal management district (MMD) for the site, something that Southstar is pursuing through the state. An MMD is a government entity that allows a commercial property owner to issue bonds to help pay for public improvements such as landscaping, parks and sidewalks. The council approved an MMD for McCombs Enterprises’ Jones Avenue development, a 5.9-acre retail project underway just south of the Pearl. The developer’s TIRZ requests must be endorsed by the respective boards before going to council for final approval. Councilwoman Teri Castillo (D5), who chairs the Westside TIRZ, said she appreciated the opportunity to listen to area residents talk about what they wanted in the project, which has gained steam after 20 years of ownership changes and unmet promises for redevelopment. “I see this as a citywide project because, as we mentioned, it’s hugged by District 3, District 2, and District 1, and then of course it is the majority within D5,” she said. “It’s just at this really interesting intersection of our districts that folks from all throughout the city will eventually access.”

Travis County Expo Center site considered for NHL expansion

The site of a future National Hockey League franchise in Austin could also be a nod to its past. As officials continue to evaluate both Austin and Houston for a potential NHL team, representatives from prospective franchise owner Pursuit Sports have circled in on the Travis County Exposition Center site in Northeast Austin as a top locale, several sources told the Austin Business Journal. It's most notably the home of the annual Rodeo Austin that happens every March. Discussions are said to be ongoing, but it was described by one source with knowledge of the situation as "one of the top sites under consideration."

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It remains unclear where else the company – which is tied to the Friedkin Family – has looked in Austin and Houston as it narrows in on making a pitch to the NHL for the league's 33rd franchise. It is believed that if any decision comes, it will at the earliest be in December when the league's board of governors would have to vote to approve a new franchise. The 128-acre Expo site off Decker Lake Road and adjacent to Lake Walter E. Long has an unusual arrangement. It is owned by the city of Austin but is leased to Travis County to handle operations for a variety of uses, including concerts and agricultural events, as part of an agreement that ends in 2033. The Expo site has a long history of sports uses. It's home to the 6,400-seat Luedecke Arena that previously housed the city's last professional ice hockey team, the Austin Ice Bats, which played there as part of the Central Hockey League until 2006. It's also served as the home arena for a variety of indoor football league teams.

‘There’s a lot of hate’: rightwing racism stirs south Asian mobilization in Texas

Last winter, while Pooja Sethi was canvassing to become the Democratic candidate for the Texas house of representatives, she received a text from a staff member alerting her to a post on X. The Turning Point USA influencer Savanah Hernandez – a Trump supporter known for creating videos that target immigrants – had posted a photo of Sethi’s campaign banner with the caption: “Welcome to politics in Texas.” The post went viral. The responses were so vile, Sethi said, “that I called my team and I said I’m going to go home because I need to be with my son. I’m a little scared about what’s happening right now.” The far right even turned her name into a racist slogan: “Don’t Pooja my Texas.” If elected, Sethi will become the first Asian Democratic woman and south Asian woman in the Texas legislature.

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“I didn’t run to have to sit here and combat anti-Indian hate. I didn’t know that this was going to be a thing,” said Sethi to a room of about 50 south Asians gathered at a private community listening session on anti-south Asian hate in Austin at the height of election season in October. The event, which included Washington congresswoman Pramila Jayapal, was hosted by Indian American Impact, a nonpartisan group that supports south Asian candidates and voter engagement. Across the country, anti-south Asian hate has spiked since Trump took office. According to the Center for the Study of Organized Hate (CSOH), online rhetoric against south Asians surged by 240% between January 2024 and June 2026. In addition to citing xenophobia and racism, the report finds that economic resentment casting south Asians as “invaders” and “job thieves”, increased visibility in politics, and anti-migrant policies that include Trump’s prohibitive annual fee on H1-B visa applications, have contributed to the sharp rise in hate against south Asian communities of all faiths and nationalities. Rightwing public officials too have ramped up the xenophobic and racist rhetoric ahead of the midterm election: in September, on X, the Department of Homeland Security posted an AI-generated image resembling a movie poster that featured a Sikh man facing off against a character that looked like Optimus Prime from Transformers.

Goldman Sachs exec says Dallas is 'the future of the country'

Goldman Sachs Group Inc.?'s top executive in Dallas could not be more bullish on the city's future as a global financial center as the financial giant prepares to open its massive $709 million campus in 2028. "The reason why Goldman Sachs has invested so heavily in Dallas is we very much see the city as the future of the country," Aasem Khalil, head of Goldman Sachs' Dallas office, told Bloomberg TV? anchor Dani Burger during an on-stage interview at the inaugural Bloomberg Invest Dallas conference. Khalil, who is also global head of investment banking services for Goldman, was one of the many top finance leaders who gathered to discuss Dallas-Fort Worth's growing influence and the outlook for dealmaking during the event, which took place at the Joule Hotel in downtown Dallas on Oct. 26 and 27.

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The conference drew senior executives from many of the top financial and commercial real estate firms like New York-based JPMorgan Chase & Co.?, Swiss financial giant UBS Group AG? and Dallas-based Crow Holdings, highlighting the Texas wealth wave and DFW's rise as "Y'all Street." Goldman Sachs' 800,000-square-foot building under construction in the North End development in Victory Park has topped out and is expected to open in 2028. The building will serve as a regional base for the financial giant, expected to house more than 5,000 employees across a wide range of functions and roles Khalil noted that Goldman had fewer than 900 employees when he moved to North Texas a decade ago. He cited DFW's population growth, deep talent pipeline, economic diversity and growing status as a financial center as factors that make the region compelling for investment. He also said Dallas has a "magnetism" that continues to attract companies and workers from across the country.

Houston to require better wages, health benefits for businesses receiving tax breaks

An $18 minimum wage, health insurance and workers' compensation for injuries — those are among the new requirements for businesses receiving tax abatements from the city of Houston. "Tax abatements are an important tool that cities can use, but we have to use them wisely," council member Alejandra Salinas, who spearheaded many of the provisions, told Houston Public Media. "We have to use them in a way that benefits all Houstonians, not just the companies that receive the tax break." The new rules approved by the Houston City Council on Wednesday tie workers' pay to the city's minimum wage for municipal employees — $18 an hour as of July — or to prevailing wages for construction work. The updated program also strengthens and expands requirements for apprenticeship training opportunities.

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The city has approved 20 tax abatements since 2004, including for Chevron, Kroger, Memorial Hermann, Halliburton and UPS. For each project, companies promised to create jobs and generate community benefits in exchange for a negotiated amount of property tax relief — up to a maximum of 90% over ten years. Under the slate of new rules, contractors with a recent history of violating the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's rules or committing wage theft will be barred from participating in tax abatement-related construction projects. Council member Fred Flickinger pushed to limit such sanctions to OSHA violations in the Texas, Oklahoma and New Mexico region. Mayor John Whitmire supported the limit, but it failed in an 8-8 vote. Flinkinger was the sole vote against the overall tax abatement update. "In a perfect world, we wouldn't give out tax abatements," council member Fred Flickinger said. "We've muddied the water with a lot of different wish lists from people who want stuff done." During the city council's public comment session last week, Jennifer Hernandez, director of government affairs for the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades district council 10, said the city "should expect more than a promise of economic growth" in exchange for tax breaks. "We should expect good jobs, fair wages, safe working conditions and benefits that help working families make ends meet," Hernandez said. "From labor’s perspective, economic development should not come at the expense of the people who build our city or the taxpayers who help make these projects possible."

Proposed international bridge divides border residents ahead of midterm election

In this Texas border city where international trade is the lifeblood of the local economy, a proposed commercial border crossing has mushroomed into a fierce debate. Developers and supporters of the Puerto Verde Global Trade Bridge envision "next generation commercial port of entry" for the region that includes Maverick County, Texas and Coahuila, Mexico and the border cities Eagle Pass and Piedras Negras. The proposed Puerto Verde bridge has become one of the most contentious local issues for the midterm elections despite not being on the ballot and it appears to be driving voter interest in a region wrestling with fundamental economic development issues. During a townhall hosted by Puente News Collaborative and Pulitzer Center, the Puente Verde controversy, The Puente Verde controversy, took center stage. The community engagement meeting followed a story by Hearst newspapers and the Puente News Collaborative.

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In the story, Ruben Garibay, chairman of the Puerto Verde Binational Industrial Complex and Transportation, explained in an interview with Puente News and Hearst newspapers, why Puerto Verde is key for the future of the Eagle Pass-Piedras Negras region. "This is a golden opportunity for Eagle Pass, whether they see it or not," he said. "They will eventually see it. And that's OK. Sometimes it takes a man that is a trailblazer, that's going to do his own thing regardless of what happens, because I know I'm not hurting anybody." But the argument isn't simply whether Eagle Pass voters recognize the need for more economic development or have failed to appreciate Garibay's efforts. Few residents in this busy commercial corridor, which connects Mexico's industrial base to markets in the U.S. and Canada, dispute the importance of trade development. What's at stake is what that development should look like, where it should be allowed to flower and, most importantly for voters, who gets a say in the decision-making. For Maverick County Republican Party Chair Sandy Sassano, the Puente Verde project has raised concerns, from its proposed location and its impact on nearby residents to its environmental effects and what it will cost taxpayers.

National Stories

US awards last of Trump’s massive strategic oil reserve drawdown

The Trump administration awarded contracts for nearly 41 million barrels from the nation’s emergency oil reserve, completing a massive oil exchange aimed at curbing soaring energy prices after the war with Iran. Trafigura Trading LLC and ExxonMobil Holdings Corp., were among the winners, according to the Energy Department. The sale marks the last of a 172 million-barrel emergency release from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, the second-largest in its history. The release was the US contribution to a broader International Energy Agency plan to put 400 million barrels onto global markets. The US has released a total of 174.1 million barrels since the war started, exceeding its initial 172 million-barrel pledge made with the IEA.

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Crude, gasoline, diesel and jet fuel prices have surged since military operations against Iran began on Feb. 28, intensifying pressure on President Donald Trump to address rising fuel costs ahead of November’s midterm elections, which could determine control of the House and Senate. Still, Energy Secretary Chris Wright has signaled another drawdown from the reserve is unlikely. “I think the releases will spill into January and soon after that, you’ll see the refill start,” Wright said in an interview earlier this week. The SPR has already fallen to its lowest level since 1982, in part because former President Joe Biden’s administration withdrew roughly 290 million barrels from the system through a series of releases, including after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Because the release was structured as an exchange, essentially a loan that companies must repay with interest, the Energy Department has said the reserve will ultimately be replenished with about 200 million barrels, or roughly 20% more than what was released, over the next year.

More public schools are closing. Will the midterms speed or slow the process?

Public school closures are accelerating across the country, and voters in several states have a chance to speed up or slow down the process on Tuesday. Closures are largely determined by school board members and affected by a district’s funding situation, which itself is downstream from state legislatures and governors’ mansions. With school board seats up for grab and more than 12 states with ballot initiatives affecting school funding, these midterms could bring some relief to parents dissatisfied with plans to shut down more school buildings. “This is one of the least popular things a district can do, and so it would be very difficult for a candidate to run on a pro-closure platform. On the other hand, you do have some candidates who have said, “We have steep, declining enrollment. We need to align the number of schools we have with the number of students we have. We need to shrink to match our circumstances,'” said Carrie Hahnel, a partner at Bellwether, an education research nonprofit.

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“It’ll be interesting to see if there are communities that are sympathetic to that,” Hahnel added. The enrollment crisis is a problem across the country, affecting major cities including Chicago, Los Angeles and Seattle. Researchers found public schools lost 1.83 million students between the 2019-2020 school year and the 2023-2024 one, a shift fueled by the pandemic. The National Center for Education Statistics projects public school enrollment will drop 7.5 percent from 2019 to 2031. And there is not much districts can do about it as most of the decline is from falling birth rates in the U.S., although some is also coming from shifts in education and greater participation in school choice programs. Since enrollment is directly linked to funding, schools start to feel the pinch in their pockets pretty quickly. Minneapolis Public Schools (MPS), a district that serves more than 29,000 students, tabled plans to talk about school closures until next year after years of funding declines took away popular programs and fears of immigration enforcement have impacted enrollment.

Big Tech promised to lead on climate. Now it’s driving a fossil fuel boom.

Not too long ago, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos was pledging to use his company’s size and scale to galvanize corporate America to confront global warming. If Amazon “can meet the Paris agreement 10 years early, then any company can,” Bezos said in 2019, laying out how the company would eliminate its planet-warming emissions much faster than the timeline agreed to by the world’s governments. (Bezos also owns The Washington Post.) Microsoft, Google and Meta subsequently vowed to move even more aggressively. But now Amazon and the other tech behemoths are setting a very different example. Rather than racing toward their net-zero targets, they are driving emissions sharply higher with their quest to expand AI and cloud computing.

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To support their data centers, tech firms are driving construction of a new generation of supersized, gas-fired power plants that could lock in hundreds of millions of tons of climate pollution for decades to come, according to corporate disclosures and an analysis conducted for The Post by a researcher at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Industry estimates show these projects have put the tech sector on course to grow from a modest driver of industrial carbon pollution into one of the world’s biggest emitters of greenhouse gases. Some anticipate that its share of global carbon emissions will increase as much as fivefold from 2020 to 2030. That would leave the tech industry churning out more than half the climate pollution created by global aviation or shipping — sectors long associated with driving warming. “AI may feel completely digital, immaterial, but its infrastructure is very physical. It needs land, power plants, transmission, water and fuel, and those choices can last for decades,” said the Harvard researcher, Gianluca Guidi, who based his analysis on air permits, corporate disclosures, community presentations and other materials collected largely by the research firm Cleanview.

What's it like to run for Congress when the odds are stacked heavily against you?

Much ink has been spilled this election cycle about the competitive races that could determine which party controls Congress. But tossup districts represent only a fraction of congressional races. The vast majority — 80% — are rated solid Republican or solid Democrat. Candidates running against the political grain face an uphill battle, with campaigns marked by limited resources, dwindling donors, and scarce staff. What's it like to run for Congress when political wisdom says you'll probably lose? It's a question Lisa Kinney has heard again and again. She's running as a Democrat for the lone House seat in Wyoming. Since the late 1970s, it has only sent Republicans to Congress. "I don't think the people of Wyoming always hear both sides," Kinney says during a day of campaigning in Casper. "I'm glad to give another opinion. And I'm a Wyomingite, so I'm still moderate no matter what."

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You wouldn't know it from an ad from her opponent that places her next to progressive figures Bernie Sanders, the independent senator from Vermont, and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani. Kinney says she finds it funny, albeit bemusing. "What's he thinking — that we all get together and do socialist stuff?" she chuckles as she walks into Johnny J's to talk to early risers. After perusing the pecan and cinnamon rolls, Kinney makes her way through the crowded diner. She's met with some hasty "nopes" from people who want to keep politics away from their pancakes — along with a gentleman who says he can't support a party that doesn't back Immigration and Customs Enforcement and a woman who doesn't like Democrats' stance on trans issues. Then she meets Joe Beck, who doesn't identify with either party. He says he's fed up with the Trump administration, but is skeptical Kinney could make a difference. "How are you going to turn things around?" he asks, eyebrows raised. "You need a person in there — that's me — who's a moderate who can talk to Republicans, who can talk to Democrats," she says. "I swear to you we're going to make a difference."

In Alaska fishing community, the Dan Sullivan episode brings in FBI

In the sleepy Alaskan fishing community of Petersburg, nobody has seen Dan J. Sullivan for weeks. His rustic home stood dark a day after FBI agents visited friends who donated to his quixotic campaign to unseat the Republican senator with the same first and last name — Dan S. Sullivan. The only display of politics at his home was a yard sign from the League of Women Voters: “Stand Up for Democracy: Vote 2026.” What may have begun as a ploy to harm the reelection prospects of Sen. Sullivan has taken a serious turn as the Trump administration weighs criminal charges over a campaign tactic known as “ballot stacking.”

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“It just seems like such a waste of our taxpayer money,” said Sharon Hunter, a Petersburg resident who, with her husband, donated $1,000 to Dan J. Sullivan, a former elementary school teacher. FBI agents knocked on her door Saturday during a round of interviews with the campaign’s dozen contributors. “I’m a bit incredulous about their whole angle,” Hunter said, “because they’re targeting a person who’s been a real contributor in this community.” Recruiting candidates to draw votes away from an opponent has been a part of Alaska’s quirky politics for years. This time around, the state’s open primary and ranked choice voting systems add another wrinkle, making it easier for lesser-known candidates to play spoilers when no contender secures a majority. The tactic has drawn fresh scrutiny as the incumbent Sullivan fights off a serious challenge from Democrat Mary Peltola, a former U.S. representative, in a race that could determine control of the Senate.

To tame the fastest drivers, states deploy speed-limiting devices on cars

We’ve all seen them: cars flying down the highway at breakneck speed, weaving through traffic as if the rules of the road don’t exist. State officials even have a name for such drivers: super speeders. Now there’s a growing push to harness GPS technology to slow them down. Virginia is pioneering the use of speed-limiters as an enforcement tool. Other states have similar plans to tackle a roadway scourge that the government says contributes to more than 10,000 deaths a year nationwide. Since Virginia’s program began in July, about 100 speed-limiters have been installed in cars. Most users were charged with or convicted of reckless driving, often for topping 100 mph; installing the device was an alternative to license suspension. Think of it as speeding’s version of ignition-interlock devices, which force people convicted of DUI to pass a breathalyzer test to start the engine. One aims to stop drunken driving, the other egregious speeding.

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Virginia’s devices use GPS and a map database to determine speed limits—then prevent drivers from surpassing those limits even if they hit the gas. Limited overrides are permitted for merging or emergency maneuvers. “We are talking about a small subset of drivers who are disproportionately causing harm on our roadways, and we finally have a tool that works,” said Amy Cohen, president of advocacy group Families for Safe Streets. “The big game-changer is that now all the roads are mapped for what their speed limits are.” Virginia’s first-in-the-nation program has hit some early bumps. One driver said a device inexplicably cut his car’s top speed to 35 mph on a highway, forcing him to pull over, according to the person’s lawyer. Another reported that the car’s device wrongly applied a cross street’s speed limit when passing through an intersection. State officials and a device supplier acknowledge some glitches caused by “GPS drift,” in which the device picks up lower speed limits on nearby roads. They say a fix will be in place soon. One driver tried tampering with the device, a potential crime; that person later complied and is no longer in the program, officials said. Even ardent advocates of the devices, called Intelligent Speed Assistance, say they know capping a car’s speed can raise concerns.

Sen. Chris Murphy is in the hospital after having a stroke, his office says

Sen. Chris Murphy is in the hospital after having a stroke and is “awake and alert” as he receives treatment, the Connecticut Democrat’s office said Sunday. Murphy’s chief of staff, Allison Herwitt, said in a statement the 53-year-old senator “started experiencing numbness in his arm while at his son’s hockey game” on Saturday. “He was taken to a local hospital, where it was discovered he had experienced a stroke,” she said. “He was transferred to Johns Hopkins for further monitoring and is responding well to treatment. The doctors are encouraged by his progress, he is awake and alert, and we are optimistic he will make a full recovery.” Murphy was elected to the House in 2006 and to the Senate in 2012. He is not on the ballot Tuesday.

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In the Senate, he serves on the Appropriations Committee and is a leading voice on immigration and gun policy. He is considered a contender for more senior leadership positions in the Senate and among the many Democrats seen as potential 2028 candidates for the White House. Three other Senate Democrats have had strokes in recent years. Sens. Ben Ray Lujan of New Mexico and Chris Van Hollen of Maryland had strokes in 2022 and have since recovered. Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman had a stroke while campaigning for his seat that same year and now uses adaptive technology in the Senate, including live captioning on a phone or tablet that transcribes words as people speak to him and helps him process the conversation. Fetterman said on social media Sunday that his family “is rooting for Chris and his family for a full and speedy recovery.” Several Republican senators, including Chuck Grassley of Iowa and Pete Ricketts of Nebraska, also offered prayers for Murphy.

Copyright November 02, 2026, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved