September 17, 2026: All Newsclips

Lead Stories

The Fed raised rates. What comes next?

After four months of talking tough about inflation, Kevin M. Warsh finally followed through. On Wednesday, the chairman of the Federal Reserve announced with his colleagues that the central bank had raised interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point to a new range of 3.75 percent to 4 percent. The move was widely expected, with financial markets ascribing over 90 percent odds to an increase ahead of the gathering. The question now is what comes next. Mr. Warsh, in an abridged news conference, sought to keep the Fed’s options open. He underscored his aversion to providing guidance about what the future path of policy might be and said plainly that he did not want to “prejudge any future decisions we make.” But in parsing through Mr. Warsh’s comments on Wednesday, and a new set of economic projections from officials that accompanied the rate decision, it was clear that the Fed was not done raising rates.

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It showed that 16 of the 18 policymakers who submitted projections expected at least one more quarter-point move by the end of the year. That would push rates to a range of 4 percent to 4.25 percent. Most wanted rates to stay at or above that level throughout 2027. They also raised their estimates for rates for 2028 and beyond compared to three months ago. Mr. Warsh, as in June, did not submit projections, in keeping with his opposition to the dot plot as a communications tool. But he appeared aligned with the message that the Fed’s work was not complete. Mr. Warsh struck an upbeat tone about economic growth and the labor market, emphasizing that the Fed’s focus had to be on inflation at this juncture. He emphasized the unanimity around the rate decision, which he said showed “we’re serious about this.” And he made clear that he was unsatisfied with the recent trend in the data that showed lackluster progress toward the 2 percent inflation goal. The comment that garnered the most attention, however, was his description of Wednesday’s move as the Fed having “removed a dose of accommodation so that financial and credit conditions would be more consistent with our ultimate objectives.”

Karl Rove: Why I’m voting for a Texas Democrat

It was a moment every student in Darrell K. Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium will remember for life. Forty-one seconds into the final quarter on Saturday, No. 4 ranked University of Texas at Austin was down 23-3 against No. 1 ranked Ohio State. Quarterback Arch Manning brought the Longhorns alive with a 91-yard drive that ended with a touchdown pass to wide receiver Ryan Wingo. That cut the margin to 13. And the Longhorns weren’t done. Mr. Manning picked apart Ohio State’s defense with a 72-yard drive followed by a 73-yard drive, each ending with running back Hollywood Smothers scoring. Texas went up 24-23. The Buckeyes had 25 seconds on the clock, time enough for their explosive offense. But Texas held, leaving Ohio one second to try for a miracle with a long bomb. That’s when Longhorn defensive back Graceson Littleton made the interception, the clock ran out, the cannon boomed, and the stadium went wild.

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So how did Bo French—a UT grad and Republican statewide candidate for Texas Railroad Commission, which regulates the oil and gas industry—mark this special moment? He posted a picture of screaming, joyous, celebrating burnt-orange-clad students. Referring to students who appeared to be South Asian or Hispanic in the photo’s foreground, he declared, “I heard UT graduation this year looked like this. I didn’t believe it. The problem is now obviously far worse than anyone imagined.” Mr. French’s not-so-subtle claim that UT has too many Hispanics and South Asians—he later said his issue is too many “foreigners”—is raw, uncut bigotry. UT admissions are based on merit, not race, and 90% of each class comes from Texas. Some Republican leaders immediately denounced Mr. French. U.S. Sen. John Cornyn condemned his “intolerance and racism,” warning “this is how great political parties self-destruct.” State House Speaker Dustin Burrows said Mr. French’s post “crossed the line” by “demeaning people because of their race or ethnicity.” Other GOP state legislators called the post “racism, plain and simple,” “disgusting” and “well below the standard set by Christ.” One said it made him “sick.”

Consumers hit by one-two punch of oil and rates from Iran war. The estimated bill is $1,700 per household

Consumers are facing a double-whammy of jumping oil prices and Treasury yields amid the U.S. war with Iran that is leaving them increasingly cash-strapped. Crude prices reaccelerated in recent weeks as fighting between the U.S. and Iran has ramped back up, a development that will lead to higher prices at the pump. On top of that, the 10-year Treasury yield jumped this week to its highest in 19 years, threatening to intensify affordability challenges for consumers as borrowing costs rise for items like homes and cars. “Consumers are under a lot of financial pressure,” said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics.

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The total bill per household since the U.S.-Iran conflict began is around $1,760, according to an analysis from Moody’s Analytics as of Sept. 11. Zandi said $930 — or more than half — of that total bill for households comes from higher costs for energy, a category that includes pressures from rising prices on items like gasoline, diesel and jet fuel. Cumulatively, Moody’s found that U.S. consumers have spent more than $121 billion extra on energy since the war began. Another $425 of that $1,760 stems from higher interest rates since the war broke out. The final $405 comes from higher military spending, which Zandi said consumers will foot the bill for through either national debt expansion or increased taxes. U.S. crude oil prices topped $105 per barrel on Tuesday, its highest closing level since mid May. Tuesday’s jump came despite Energy Secretary Chris Wright’s assurance to CNBC that the closure of a Saudi Arabian pipeline would only last a few days.

These groups are driving the DeFlock movement in Austin. Now, they're ready for statewide action

"Big Brother is watching you." The slogan from George Orwell's famous novel, 1984, has reverberated through popular culture for decades. The book is what first came to mind for Lydia Fortuna when she learned about Flock Safety and its automated license plate readers, or ALPRs, in 2024. Fortuna said she had a roommate who was stopped by police due to a misread license plate about a year after she learned of the technology. She had already found the readers concerning, but after learning that ALPRs and cameras were set up around the city, Fortuna joined a local group called No ALPRs. The coalition has become an important force in the anti-Flock movement. In August, she participated in a “Flock Walk," an event where people walk to different cameras and learn more about their usage.

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“The reason that I'm out here today is because of the history of fascism and what it means to take a stand in the beginning before you see everything — anything — criminalized,” Fortuna said. “To the individuals that don't care if it doesn't affect them, it's only a matter of time.” The pushback against automated license plate readers, known as the "DeFlock" movement, is growing. Who’s behind the local 'DeFlock' movement? The No ALPRs coalition is made of groups like the Texas Civil Rights Project, Local Progress, Austin Democratic Socialists of America, and Grassroots Leadership, which have been organizing against the readers. There are also residents, like Fortuna, who joined the coalition. The DeFlock movement isn't new. In June of last year, Austin City Council voted to end its contract with Flock. At the time, Council Member Mike Siegel was one of the local representatives who voted against a contract renewal in Austin. He is also a member of Local Progress. "Ever since then, as an elected official and member of national organizations, I've been trying to recruit folks from around the country to join us in opposing Flock Safety and opposing ALPRs," Siegel said. "And one of the most important things that came out of the Austin movement was a collection of community-based organizations that formed what they call the No ALPRs Coalition."

State Stories

Texas House candidate no-shows at debate after unearthed crude social media posts

Republican Jorge Borrego bailed on the League of Women Voters’ candidate forum Wednesday evening — forcing the group to cancel one of the only opportunities voters have to hear from both candidates ahead of a highly contested Texas House race. Borrego and Democrat Kristian Carranza are running to replace state Rep. John Lujan (R-San Antonio) in Texas House District 118. In gerrymandered Texas, it’s one of the only state legislative districts that remains competitive enough to go either way in November, and Democrats consider it a must-win in their efforts to gain power in the Texas House. In a nod to the race’s significance, roughly 60 people were waiting at 6 p.m. in the Sydney Board Room at Brooks City Base on Wednesday evening, including some of Borrego’s supporters.

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Around 6:20 p.m., however, the League of Women Voters’ San Antonio Chapter President Jill Tolbert came out and announced that they wouldn’t be able to continue as planned. “I am so thrilled that so many people came out to see a candidate forum tonight … but Jorge Borrego is a no-show,” Tolbert told the crowd. “The League rules are that we cannot proceed with just one candidate.” Borrego’s supporters in the audience spoke to him on the phone and said he got stuck at an event on the other side of town. When they contacted him, he said he wouldn’t be able to make it in time. After, Borrego followed up to say he’d had an “incident” that he wasn’t able to resolve, but had tried to contact the League earlier in the day. Event organizer Claire Oxley confirmed later Wednesday night that she’d received an email from him saying he wouldn’t be able to make it at 4:13 p.m. She’d said she’d already left for the event at that point, didn’t have access to her email until she got home. His email said the group could “try to reschedule for another date.”

Rural Texans hope to derail a proposed battery-storage site in the heart of wine country

Six miles outside the tourist hot spot of Fredericksburg, past idyllic vineyards, wildlife trails, and ranches, visitors turning onto Country Creek Lane are greeted by a rectangular red sign propped up against a fence: “Stop Dangerous Solar/BESS in Gillespie Co.” Nearly every yard on the mostly residential street, home to eighteen families, has a smaller red sign with the same message. Here, between the rolling hills and clear streams that locals say their tourism-heavy economy depends upon, hundreds of residents have united in opposition to a roughly thousand-acre solar farm and accompanying battery-energy storage system—BESS, for short—called the Marshall Springs project. John Love, a father of two, has lived on Country Creek Lane for nearly a decade and become a leader of the opposition movement. In October, he started Fight FBG Solar, a group dedicated to halting the project’s construction. As of September, its Facebook group has amassed nearly five hundred members.

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The development, located in the Marshall Springs neighborhood, is still in its early stages—the site developer, Ampyr Energy, has a lease for a local family’s land and has secured an interconnection agreement, but it has yet to file a formal application with the county. Residents who oppose the development believe it’s just a matter of time. The development in Marshall Springs is part of a larger trend, as rural parts of Texas become prime real estate for those seeking to build data centers, solar and wind farms, and battery-storage sites. Battery storage, in particular, has skyrocketed in recent years. Earlier this year, Texas surpassed California to become the country’s leader in battery-storage capacity. As of August, that capacity is 18,275 megawatts—enough energy to power over 3 million homes—according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. BESS sites play a critical role in stabilizing the state’s power grid, releasing stored energy when demand exceeds supply and intermittent energy sources go offline—Texas currently has 255 utility-scale BESS sites, including 55 built last year. These consist of rows of large metal containers or blocks filled with lithium-ion battery racks, paired with cooling fans, battery inverters (which convert electricity into usable form), and transformers (which transfer electricity from one circuit to another). In 2021, a winter storm caused a days-long failure of the Texas power grid, leaving at least 246 people dead. In response, lawmakers approved bills to overhaul the electric grid and prioritize reliability, such as that year’s Senate Bill 3, which required power plants to weatherize, making them able to withstand extreme weather events. Battery storage, energy experts say, is part of this solution, providing power when the grid is most strained.

Texas oil and gas regulator doubles down and defies state legislature

A chair with Railroad Commissioner Wayne Christian’s name on it sat empty Tuesday in the hearing room of the Texas House Committee on Energy Resources. Committee Chairman Drew Darby had called Christian to testify before the panel, which oversees the Railroad Commission, regulator of the state’s powerful oil and gas industry. Christian failed to appear before the committee and wrote in a letter that he had a scheduling conflict. Darby, a Republican from San Angelo, opened the committee meeting with stern words for the commissioner. “I do not recall my request for his presence as being optional,” he said. “It is beyond clear that Commissioner Christian has willfully chosen to defy this committee.” Disagreement over a change in the Railroad Commission’s public participation policy threatens to spill over into a larger dispute between the oversight committee and the oil and gas overseer, whose three members are elected statewide.

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The tensions come as Texas faces a growing backlog of abandoned oil and gas wells it’s on the hook to plug, and large volumes of oilfield wastewater injected underground are causing blowouts and leaks. Meanwhile, Republican Bo French and Democrat Jon Rosenthal are locked in an unusually close race for a seat on the Railroad Commission. Christian has doubled down on the new public participation policy that he introduced last month at a commission meeting, as first reported by Inside Climate News. The new policy increases the frequency of listening sessions but leaves it to the discretion of the commissioners whether there will be a public comment period at each meeting, which previously had been standard. Darby had criticized the new policy and called on Christian to testify. In written testimony provided to the House committee, Christian wrote that the policy should be judged by its results over time. He also called out the nonprofit Commission Shift, which advocates for reforms to oil and gas oversight in Texas, for accepting funding from national foundations that support climate activism.

Chris Brown addresses Texas lawmakers’ recognition and backlash

Chris Brown is pushing back after Texas lawmakers honored him during his Arlington concert, saying he never asked to be recognized and criticizing one lawmaker who later apologized. U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett and state Rep. Venton Jones took the stage with Brown during the second show of The R&B Tour's three-night stop at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, according to the Dallas Morning News, where they presented him with congressional and state legislative recognition. Usher did not appear onstage at the time, though the Congressional Record entry recognized both Brown and Usher. Shortly after Crockett honored Brown and Usher with an entry in the Congressional Record, the recognition drew online criticism over Brown’s history of domestic abuse.

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Jones issued a statement Tuesday, apologizing to his constituents and saying the honor was intended to encourage voter turnout in the November midterm election. Brown then pushed back on the recognition and said he "never asked to be honored." "YALL CAME TO ME WITH THIS! NOT THE OTHER WAY AROUND," Brown wrote in an Instagram story posted Tuesday. "I was minding my damn business. My shows in Dallas were already sold out. I ain't ask to be honored because I knew some s—t like this would happen and (Jones) immediately started tap dancing and apologizing because he didn't wanna lose voters and support. "I have a great idea.. how about y'all leave me the f—k alone and let me focus on the fans that spent their money to actually see and support me." Though Brown pleaded guilty in 2009 to felony assault in connection with an assault involving Rihanna, his then-girlfriend, he has continued to attract significant fan support, including audiences at sold-out shows.

Blue Energy submits NRC application for Texas nuclear project

Blue Energy Global Inc. has begun an application to install a small reactor at a Texas power plant it’s developing to supply a Crusoe Inc. data center, which will initially run on natural gas before adding nuclear power. The company said it had submitted the first part of its application for a construction permit to the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission. A second portion is expected to follow in the second half of 2027, it said in a statement. Blue Energy plans to install gas turbines at the project in Port of Victoria, 140 miles (225 kilometers) southwest of Houston, before adding as many as five small modular reactors. It’s one of several companies pursuing nuclear power for data centers, betting on round-the-clock clean energy from reactor designs that are still unproven. The company has said its plan to begin with gas turbines could help it to deliver power faster than relying solely on nuclear systems, which may take years to approve and construct. The company already has deals in place to use GE Vernova Inc. gas turbines, and a 300-megawatt reactor design from GE Vernova Hitachi Nuclear Energy.

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UT Austin plans to cut Mexican American, African, women's and gender studies majors

The University of Texas at Austin is planning to eliminate four majors: African and African diaspora studies, Mexican American and Latina/o studies, women's and gender studies, and the race, indigeneity and migration major. Danielle Pilar Clealand, the interim chair of the Social and Cultural Analysis Department, told faculty Tuesday that "the Provost's office rejected our proposal to keep our majors," in an email obtained by KUT News. University officials announced plans to consolidate seven ethnic and gender studies departments at the College of Liberal Arts into two new departments in February. David Sosa, then the interim dean of the college, said the university would continue to look at changes to majors, minors and course offerings within the college. The university also said students would be able to finish their current majors, but these new changes have faculty questioning if that will be the case.

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Mike Rosen, a university spokesperson, confirmed UT is no longer enrolling new students into the Mexican American and Latina/o studies, African and African Diaspora studies, and women's and gender studies programs. "Students currently enrolled in those majors will be able to complete their degree," Rosen said. Julie Minich, a professor in the Department of Social and Cultural Analysis who teaches Mexican American and Latina/o studies, said faculty were given two weeks in August to come up with a proposal for what majors to offer. She said they proposed a new social and cultural analysis major and asked to keep most of the now-eliminated programs. Minich said many institutions across the country offer these majors because, to better prepare students for many professional fields, it is essential for them to engage in deep study about people of different races and gender orientations. “Eliminating a major in this way is censorship. It is reducing what students are able to study,” Minich said. “As these classes become less available to students, one, it curtails student freedom to learn, but two, it curtails students' career prospects.”

Texas universities purge core courses as political pressure takes its toll

Public universities in Texas have dropped hundreds of courses from their core curricula — or altogether — amid rising political pressure over the last two years. Texas A&M University has removed 350 core listings across its system, many dealing with gender, race and other popular GOP targets. The University of Houston has nixed 133 classes from its core curriculum, and the University of Texas at Austin has dropped 113. Professors say students are missing out on subjects relevant to their future careers, and some educators are moving on to private schools, where political winds are less fierce. Students are required to take a select number of core classes in college in order to graduate. They typically choose from an array of courses to satisfy this requirement, but public universities are increasingly making optional selections that focus on women’s studies, LGBTQ issues, climate change and other left-leaning concepts, leading to the possibility of less student interest in the topics.

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While these efforts have been ongoing in multiple red states, colleges in Texas are on the front lines as Gov. Greg Abbott (R) is able to appoint the members of the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, which oversees all public universities in the state. Universities also must take into consideration a new law known as S.B. 37, passed last year, that says core classes at public universities need to cover “foundational” concepts for entering the workforce and civic life. The combination of the conservative board, the new law and threatening remarks from state lawmakers has led universities to take a proactive approach on removing courses aligned with traditional liberal values, despite no official directive to do so. And while the majority of changes have been to core curricula, some classes and indeed entire degrees are simply no longer being offered. Texas A&M announced early this year it was eliminating its entire women’s and gender studies degree program. Texas State University completely removed a course called LGBTQ+ Communication Studies after backlash. Asked for comment, Texas A&M pointed The Hill to an email to faculty and staff in which it said the recommended changes to its core classes were the result of a review committee that was made up of more than 20 faculty members, administrators, community leaders and industry representatives.

Texas won’t release first maternal death report since overturning of Roe v. Wade until after midterms

The Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) announced last week that it would not release its biannual maternal mortality report until December, pushing the release date to after the November election. The report, which had traditionally been released every other year on or near Sept. 1, was expected to contain the first full year of data on maternal mortality in the state since its near-total abortion ban went into effect. Texas officially banned nearly all abortions in August 2022, just two months after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. One year prior, in 2021, the state had passed the Texas Heartbeat Act, which banned any abortions at six weeks. Researchers, such as Faith Fletcher, a public health and bioethics expert, said the report provides essential data.

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"We need the data so that we can understand why women are dying [and] what are some solutions that we can propose," Fletcher told Houston Public Media. Fletcher, along with Kari White — a nonresident fellow in maternal and reproductive health at Rice University's Baker Institute for Public Policy — authored an opinion in the Houston Chronicle last week criticizing DSHS's decision to push back the release date. Fletcher said the report will be key to understanding what effect the state's abortion ban has had on maternal health. "Based on what the trends have been, yes, we did expect an increase [in maternal mortality], but without having the comprehensive data specifically in Texas, it's hard to really make those assumptions," Fletcher said. In Texas, Black and Hispanic women are disproportionately impacted by maternal deaths, Fletcher said.

As Texas Republicans target Islam, a once-quiet Muslim community fights back

Inshira Daher waited hours to speak at a June Texas State Board of Education meeting. When her turn finally came around 7 p.m., the social studies teacher of 15 years was direct. “These children cannot yet distinguish a fact from an opinion,” she told the board. “And yet here we are prioritizing politically charged content over the fundamentals.” Daher, who is Muslim, was one of nearly 500 people who came to the Austin meeting to weigh in on a proposed social studies curriculum that would introduce Bible readings into classrooms and teach Islam through the lens of fundamentalism and medieval conquest. Outside the hearing room, the day’s battle lines were already visible: In one overflow room, women in hijabs and many interfaith organizers strategized; in another, attendees clutched Bibles, some wearing hats that read “No Sharia allowed!”

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That sentiment found perhaps its most direct expression from Tony Robertson, a local Republican party leader, who pleaded with the board: “Please do not Shariah our Texas” — warning, without evidence, that rejecting the curriculum would ultimately open the door to Islamic law replacing the U.S. Constitution. The Republican-led board would go on to adopt the elementary and middle school curriculums four days later and a similarly controversial high school curriculum in early September. But by the time the 15-hour June meeting ended, one thing was already clear: While anti-Muslim rhetoric had become commonplace in Texas, a growing group of Muslims in the state was also pushing back, determined not to let anti-Muslim activists set the narrative. As some national G.O.P leaders have made Islamophobic rhetoric a cornerstone of their 2026 midterm campaigns, Texas Muslims have increasingly found themselves in the eye of the storm. They have also faced a barrage of attacks, most led by state officials, from a ban on an Eid swim party to the Texas governor designating a Muslim civil rights group a terrorist organization. On the ground, activists, attorneys and ordinary Muslim residents are packing city council meetings, staging protests, filing lawsuits and building interfaith coalitions. So far, they have had mixed success. Still, many said they are engaged in an existential fight.

San Marcos council member charged after Austin security guard incident

San Marcos City Council Member Lorenzo Gonzalez was arrested Sunday in downtown Austin and charged with assault on a public servant, a third-degree felony, after authorities said he bit a security guard outside a downtown restaurant, according to an arrest affidavit. Austin police responded to a report of a physical disturbance at 301 Lavaca St. When officers arrived, witnesses described two separate altercations outside a restaurant. The affidavit does not identify the restaurant or specify when the incident occurred, but the Austin Police Department’s incident reports database shows an “assault with injury” call at the address at 6:24 p.m. Sunday.

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The first incident involved a man identified in the affidavit as Richard, who was allegedly struck in the face by an unidentified assailant who left before officers arrived. Officers said that while Richard was speaking with security guards, Gonzalez, 38, walked up and began arguing with the guards, according to the affidavit. The affidavit does not specify whether Gonzalez knew Richard or the unidentified assailant. Investigators reviewed surveillance video from a neighboring bar that, according to the affidavit, showed Gonzalez arguing with a security guard. The video allegedly shows Gonzalez pushing the guard twice before the guard pushed him back. Seconds later, according to the affidavit, additional security guards approached Gonzalez. Investigators allege Gonzalez bit one of the guards on the webbing between his left thumb and index finger. Officers observed a puncture wound and bleeding, according to the affidavit. The affidavit states the guard was wearing a tactical security vest displaying his company’s name and logo, “clearly distinguishing” him as a security guard. Investigators determined the incident met the elements of assault on a public servant. Gonzalez, who was elected to his first term on the San Marcos City Council in 2024, was released from the Travis County Jail on Monday after posting a $5,000 bond, according to court records. Gonzalez and his attorney, Sandra Ritz, did not return requests for comment Wednesday. San Marcos Mayor Jane Hughson declined to comment Wednesday.

Dallas pioneered specialty criminal courts decades ago. Are they still working?

The women streamed into the Dallas County courtroom in a single-file line. Fourteen in all, they fanned out across the gallery’s wooden pews just after 2 p.m. and burst into conversations. Most women here knew one another, and they knew how the next hour would go. That mid-August day, they knew the face staring back at them, too. “Where you been?” one woman called out. “In trial,” Judge Nancy Mulder replied from the bench. “I know, I know. All the auxiliary court judges were all busy, so I couldn’t find somebody to take over for me.” “I haven’t seen you in so long,” the woman said. “I thought you retired.” Unlike usual court proceedings, this session is for celebration, not judgment. But in the last year and a half, these biweekly 60 minutes haven’t been guaranteed because of how often court has been canceled. This is STAR (Strengthening, Transition, and Recovery), a diversion program for women with felony prostitution charges. It is one of 14 Dallas County courts that steer adults away from incarceration and toward supervision and treatment.

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People who volunteer to enroll prior to their trials are eligible to have their charges dismissed. The others can receive services during probation and reduce their fines or community service requirements. It takes 18 to 24 months for most to complete the programs. Studies show these courts can lessen the likelihood of someone committing another crime and guide them to self-sufficiency so long as the judge ensures they are receiving required drug tests, counseling, and probation check-ins. Judges usually schedule two to four court hearings a month to encourage participants and admonish any who have veered off track. But in Dallas, problems abound. The Lab Report obtained specialty court grant applications, benchmark reports, and peer reviews; observed court proceedings; and interviewed nine people either enrolled or involved in operating the Dallas programs. State adjudicators subjected seven of the 14 courts to rigorous peer reviews last year, which are requested if they spot inconsistencies in court paperwork or have questions about how the courts are operating. Records from the third-party reviews included the following shortcomings: Some courts were overly punitive with jail sanctions for participants who did not follow all the program’s requirements. Eligibility criteria was subjective or warranted a review because of low participation. Court staff needed better understanding of how past trauma can impact participant behavior. Participants struggled to keep their jobs while enrolled in the programs. Judges didn’t always hold court consistently or spent less than the minimum of three minutes recommended per person. Three of the Dallas specialty courts — Felony DWI, a drug program called STAC, and the STAR prostitution court — shared multiple findings. But judicial experts say the judges have autonomy as to how their courtrooms run, even when their decisions undercut the goals of the specialty programs.

North Texas businesses outpace New York, L.A. in AI use, report finds

More than a quarter of North Texas businesses are using artificial intelligence — a higher percentage than in New York or Los Angeles, according to a recent analysis of U.S. Census data conducted by WeWork. The report found that 26% of D-FW-area firms were using AI in July, up from just over 20% in January. D-FW’s usage rate ranked above the national average, which registered around 22% in July, and higher than the usage rate in the nation’s three largest metro areas. In greater New York, the rate was around 18%, in greater LA it was around 20% and in greater Chicago it was around 22%.

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Broadly, the report also reiterated a prevailing business trend, whereby AI has become widely adopted by large firms and in certain sectors, while other sectors and smaller businesses have been slower to embrace the technology. “Read together, the numbers point to unevenness," WeWork’s report noted. “For all its revolutionizing potential, AI is still a relatively new technology that continues to advance unevenly and at an unpredictable pace.” It also offers additional evidence of D-FW’s emerging status as a national tech hub: Earlier this summer, a different analysis of BLS data, from the IT company CompTIA, found that D-FW had nearly 11,000 tech-related job postings, a number that ranked third among all U.S. metro areas. Another recent analysis, from the commercial real estate firm CBRE, ranked D-FW as the eighth best market for tech workers in North America, three spots behind Austin and ahead of Vancouver, Denver and greater LA.

Fill your hypocrisy meter in a new video game starring Ken Paxton

When Austin musician and software developer Mark Sean watched Ken Paxton win the Republican senate primary, a lightbulb went off. Something about the attorney general got under Sean’s skin, he told me. “People in his own party don’t even like him,” Sean said. “He’s a classic example of the corrupt politician.” So Sean made a game. “I grew up on South Park. I have a subversive sense of humor,” he said. “I wanted to do something that would be more interactive and engaging with people.”

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Sean describes Biblical Grounds as a “Game Boy-style RPG.” You play as present-day Ken Paxton, battling your soon-to-be ex-wife Angela Paxton, political opponents James Talarico and Ted Brown, the hemp industry, reporters, and a process server calmly trying to hand you an envelope. You begin in the AG’s office. Your first objective: do not get served. Back to front, the game is about hypocrisy. “Paxton’s is such a unique case study in political hypocrisy,” Sean said. “If you look at his history, he’s been indicted and impeached.” As you learn more about Paxton’s menagerie of run-ins with his own published statements, you fill your “Hypocrisy Meter.” Chances are upon hearing the concept, your mind went to Paxton’s ongoing divorce. “The title comes from his wife’s reasoning for divorcing him,” Sean said. “On biblical grounds.”

National Stories

Trump says he backs Warsh after Fed raised interest rates

President Trump said he was standing by Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh and that he spoke to him just before the central bank unanimously voted to raise interest rates. “I’m relying on Kevin. But he has a very tough board,” Trump told reporters Wednesday in response to a question on whether he had confidence in Warsh. “I talked to Kevin. I said ‘You might as well vote with the board because it’s not going to matter.’ ” He added, “I said ‘Do what you want.’ ” Trump has spoken repeatedly with Warsh since he became chairman of the Fed, The Wall Street Journal previously reported. The Federal Reserve raised rates earlier Wednesday for the first time in three years, a reversal that began taking back cuts it made last year and implicitly undercut the White House view that inflation isn’t a concern.

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Trump’s conversation with Warsh before the decision to raise rates will likely heighten scrutiny around the independence of the Fed. During Warsh’s Wednesday press conference, the Fed chair addressed questions around his relationship with the president by making the case for the central bank’s independence. “Part of the independence of the Federal Reserve is we stay in our lane,” Warsh said. “Independence is a two-way street. We let people that do trade policy and fiscal policy stay in their lane too. That’s how we can stand up here and call them the way we see them.” In his comments to reporters Wednesday night, Trump said he wants Warsh to be independent. The Fed declined to comment. The increase, approved unanimously, will raise the benchmark federal-funds rate range by a quarter point to between 3.75% and 4%. In addition, most officials penciled in one more hike this year in interest-rate projections released after the meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee. Trump’s continued alliance with Warsh comes after he regularly criticized former Fed Chair Jerome Powell and even weighed trying to fire him.

Paramount is looking for Nashville office space as it weighs leaving LA

Paramount Skydance is actively looking for office space in Nashville — a sign the company is seriously considering moving at least some operations from Los Angeles amid the legal fight over its purchase of Warner Bros. Discovery, according to two people familiar with the search who were granted anonymity to discuss it. Paramount, headquartered in Hollywood, has sought about 400,000 square feet of space in the Tennessee capital that it could move into in two to three years, according to one of the people. However, no existing building there has a vacancy that aligns with the company’s needs and timeline, the person said. Representatives of the studio have also reached out to at least two real estate developers about constructing new offices in Nashville that the company could occupy in three years, the person said. Paramount representatives were recently shown a vacant multi-acre parcel outside of downtown Nashville where the company could build new headquarters, according to the other person with knowledge of the matter. Paramount declined to comment.

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The studio, which faces an antitrust lawsuit from 12 states including California, has said for months that it is considering leaving the state, while also acknowledging its ties to Los Angeles. Critics have cast Paramount’s possible relocation as an attempt by the company to gain leverage in settlement talks with the attorneys general. “His intent is to be committed to California,” Paramount Chief Legal Officer Makan Delrahim said of Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison at POLITICO’s The California Agenda: Sacramento Summit in August. But, Delrahim noted, “There is a point at which you have a fiduciary duty to shareholders.” Paramount, whose assets include a namesake streaming service and CBS, is the last major studio to maintain its headquarters in Hollywood. The departure of the company from its historic Melrose Avenue studio would be a psychic and economic blow to a region that is already grappling with the ongoing runaway production crisis. More than 42,000 film and television jobs were lost in Los Angeles County between 2022 and 2024. Tennessee has actively courted Paramount, and other states including Georgia have been floated as possible destinations for the company. Oracle, the tech company co-founded by Larry Ellison — who is a financial backstop to his son’s Warner Bros. acquisition — announced its move to Nashville in 2024. The company has yet to open its new headquarters there.

Trump wanted Canada as the 51st state. He ended up pushing it toward the European Union.

Early in his second term, President Trump wanted Canada so entwined with the United States that he even set out to make it the 51st state. Instead, he has driven Canada into the arms of the European Union, after antagonizing the Canadians for months, taunting the country’s prime minister and waging a relentless trade war. The invitation by the European Union on Wednesday for Canada to become an “associate member” is a sign of the knock-on effects of Mr. Trump’s brand of diplomacy, which often involves threatening countries that once were considered America’s closest friends. And even if the gesture by the E.U. ends up being more symbolic than substantive, it shows how Mr. Trump is upending global relationships in ways that will be difficult to undo.

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“We should see this action from Canada and the E.U. as a direct consequence of Trump’s actions and rhetoric,” said James Batchik, a deputy director at the Atlantic Council’s Europe Center. “The rhetoric around making Canada the 51st state, and the threats against Greenland, which are still highly, highly, controversial and remembered in Brussels, are really reminders for both sides that the United States is not necessarily that trusted ally that it once was.” At every turn, Mr. Trump’s bullying approach to Canada has appeared to backfire. His trade war stirred up trouble for embattled Republicans in swing states, endangering G.O.P. control of the Senate. And his hostility toward Canadian leaders helped surge the country’s struggling liberal party, no friend of Mr. Trump’s, to electoral victory. President Trump responded to the E.U.’s overture to Canada with fury while speaking to reporters Wednesday night. “Canada’s been a terrible trade partner,” he said. “No, I don’t see that. If they do that, if I think it’s at all a hostile act, I will put very serious tariffs or stop trading with Europe on many things. So, if they do that, if Europe does that, with a bad intention — if it’s a good intention, that’s fine — if it’s a bad intention we’ll put very heavy tariffs on Europe, which is a possibility.”

Trump’s arch will harm historic sites but must proceed, federal officials say

Federal officials acknowledge that President Donald Trump’s planned triumphal arch will unavoidably harm historic sites if built as planned, but they say the project must move forward, according to a National Park Service document and emails obtained by The Washington Post. Trump’s 250-foot-tall proposed arch would be built in Memorial Circle, a traffic roundabout tucked inside Washington’s boundaries near Arlington National Cemetery. Historic preservationists, veterans groups and others have called on the administration to shrink the monument’s planned size or build it elsewhere, warning that the towering structure would overshadow the cemetery, interrupt the solemn corridor that was intended between the cemetery and the Lincoln Memorial, and create other disruptions. National Park Service officials agree that the arch would adversely affect the cemetery, the Lincoln Memorial and several dozen other historic sites.

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The “adverse effects cannot be fully avoided,” Park Service officials wrote in a document circulated Tuesday and obtained by The Washington Post. But, they said, the project cannot be constructed somewhere else because “the proposed location at Memorial Circle is central to the undertaking,” according to the NPS document. The document is a proposed agreement that the administration wants local historic-preservation officers to sign onto as part of a federally required process to offer feedback on the project. The NPS proposal says that since the harms cannot be avoided, federal officials would pursue efforts that they contend would mitigate the arch’s impact, such as creating new signs and webpages to explain the project to the public. Officials also said they would manage construction to reduce interference with burials at the cemetery and document the current landscape before construction begins. “NPS recognizes that Memorial Circle is located within a highly sensitive historic and commemorative landscape and that the Undertaking’s location contributes to adverse effects to historic properties whose significance is associated with setting, design, feeling, association, spatial organization, circulation, and contributing views and vistas,” the proposed agreement says.

OpenAI discloses six new incidents of ‘concerning’ A.I. behavior

OpenAI on Wednesday disclosed six new instances in which artificial intelligence systems hid mistakes, made up data and moved files onto the open internet without permission, amid an ongoing industrywide debate about A.I. safety. The San Francisco company revealed what it said was the “unexpected or concerning” behavior of its A.I. models as part of a new framework for reporting “misalignment,” which is when the goals or actions of A.I. systems diverge from human intentions and values. OpenAI said it did not believe the industry “has solved alignment and monitoring to a sufficient degree to continue responsibly scaling at maximum speed for much longer.” Decisions about how A.I. should advance, the company said, must rest on evidence that people outside the labs building it “can examine for themselves.”

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The disclosures land amid intensifying scrutiny over whether A.I. development needs to be slowed to address the technology’s potential dangers. The escalating debate was driven partly by OpenAI’s systems going rogue earlier this year and attacking the A.I. start-up Hugging Face. OpenAI was not aware of the hack until it was informed by Hugging Face weeks later. Since then, A.I. leaders such as Dario Amodei, the chief executive of Anthropic, have called for a pause in the technology’s development to provide more time to build proper guardrails. His call has been echoed by Sam Altman, OpenAI’s chief executive, as well as Elon Musk, the chief executive of SpaceX and Tesla, and Demis Hassabis, the chair of Google DeepMind. Other A.I. executives have said no slowdown is needed. (The New York Times has sued OpenAI and Microsoft, claiming copyright infringement of news content related to A.I. systems. The two companies have denied the suit’s claims.) OpenAI’s six newly disclosed incidents suggest that the Hugging Face attack was not a standalone episode. OpenAI said the incidents covered behavior observed over roughly the past six months and that they largely emerged while its systems were being developed and tested.

How Jon Ossoff won the algorithm – and garnered Obama comparisons ahead of 2028

Delivering a speech in Atlanta last month, Jon Ossoff accused Donald Trump of corruption, incompetence and fecklessness, and peppered his remarks with substantive observations of dates and times and places. But the comment that ricocheted across the internet – a clip of just a few seconds – was an almost-throwaway reference about how the US president wants to “travel with Natalie” onboard Air Force One. The crowd cheered the US senator, who is running for re-election in battleground Georgia and is increasingly seen as a potential Democratic candidate for president in 2028. But his target audience that day – and this year – spanned far beyond the concert hall. After his remark went viral, stories about Trump’s young, exceptionally devoted, presidential aide Natalie Harp rippled through social and established media. Often enough, they were accompanied by an image of Ossoff, his sharp jawline captured from below as he looks into the middle distance.

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This photographic framing has increasingly been referred to as the “Ossoff angle”, perhaps in a disservice to myriad politicians from John F Kennedy to Barack Obama who also employed the technique, snapped at a low angle from a camera pit over the past century. While the approach is not new, it has helped the senator for Georgia to reach the social media feeds of users far beyond his state. Kathleen Hall Jamieson, professor of communication at Penn’s Annenberg School, likened Ossoff to Kennedy. The first millennial senator has mastered the medium of the moment, she suggested, much as Kennedy was the first president who really understood television. “How do you communicate that this is a new generation of leadership?,” Jamieson asked. “And how do you do that rhetorically? Because you can’t just stand up and say, ‘This is a new generation of leadership.’ “You have to have people draw that conclusion about you. And part of the way you do that is you master the media of the time, and you demonstrate that in the process you have leadership capacity and that you have the capacity to deal with the old order.” At 33 years, 11 months and four days, Ossoff was the youngest US senator sworn into the 117th Congress. At 39 today, and ever so slightly gray at the temple, he remains the youngest in a chamber with an average age of 65. The value of good lighting, a good background and a good angle in a social media post is not lost on a film-maker, as Ossoff was before turning to public office. The former documentarian has a knack for winning the algorithm with plain language, surfacing absurdities in an era of absurdities.

Nebraska Senate candidate responds to leaked audio criticizing Trump voters: ‘We’re all angry right now’

Nebraska independent Senate candidate Dan Osborn on Wednesday appeared to confirm the authenticity of a leaked recording in which he is purported to criticize voters who support President Donald Trump. “Billy Bob in f**king Red Cloud, Nebraska, who lives next door to the f**king Trump store as you pull into town and is waving the Trump flag … all he knows is he’s like on the winning team,” a speaker said in audio obtained by the Omaha World-Herald. “He’s been so effective at taking Billy Bob and his wife Mary Jane or Mary Jo and telling them, look we’re winning. You’re on the winning team. And that’s all they care about, because their lives probably suck so f**king.” Asked by CNN’s Dana Bash on “Inside Politics” if he was the speaker, Osborn replied, “It sure sounds like me.”

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“I don’t remember the context of this one particular conversation, but it certainly does sound out of character for myself,” he said, adding, “I would apologize to those people that might be offended, but I gotta tell them, I feel their pain. I absolutely feel their pain. We’re all angry right now and sometimes when you’re angry you say some things.” Osborn, running as an independent in ruby red Nebraska, is challenging Republican Sen. Pete Ricketts. Democratic party leaders decided to stand down and support Osborn, leaving no Democrat on the ballot, in hopes of ousting the incumbent in a state Trump carried by roughly 20 points in 2024. A Navy veteran and former union leader, Osborn is running on a populist, working-class message, blending support for labor and some abortion rights with backing for gun rights and tougher immigration enforcement. Osborn defended his outreach to voters across the state, including those who support Trump. He told CNN he’s visited 55 counties on his tour with less than two months until Election Day.

Copyright September 17, 2026, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved