4 h. ago Judge restrains Beto O’Rourke’s group from sending funds to Democrats outside Texas

Ex-congressman’s Powered by People fundraised for lawmakers who left state to prevent redistricting voteA Texas judge has expanded a restraining order against former congressman Beto O’Rourke and his political organization over its fundraising for Democratic state lawmakers who left Texas to prevent a legislative session on congressional redistricting.Tarrant county judge Megan Fahey, a member of the conservative Federalist Society and past president of the Fort Worth Republican Women’s Club, said in a four-page order published on Saturday that O’Rourke and his political group, Powered by People, are barred from sending money out of Texas. Continue reading...

Politics

64 h. ago Conservative TV host crashes Jasmine Crockett town hall to call Democrat a ‘fake ghetto hoodrat’

Blaze TV anchor Sara Gonzales berates Democratic congresswoman at public meeting for her Texas constituents for having the audacity to come from Missouri

Events

3 d. ago Newsom vows to ‘meet fire with fire’ as he brings California into Texas redistricting war with Trump and Republicans

Democratic governor’s effort comes as Republicans in Texas, Florida, Indiana and Ohio all seek to add GOP seats to their congressional maps

Politics

3 d. ago Texas Democrats say they are prepared to return to state after two

Chair of state’s house Democratic caucus said they will return once California submits new congressional map to offset losses in TexasUS politics live – latest updatesTexas Democrats said on Thursday they are prepared to return to the state under certain conditions, ending a nearly two-week-long effort to block Republicans from passing a new congressional map that would add five GOP seats.The lawmakers said they would return as long as the legislature ends its first special session on Friday, which Republicans have said they plan to do. Texas’s governor, Greg Abbott, has said he will immediately call another special session. Continue reading...

Politics

3 d. ago California moving forward with partisan redistricting effort to counter Texas' move

California Gov. Gavin Newsom is calling for a special election on November 4 to introduce new U.S. House maps

Events

5 d. ago Texas attorney general seeks jail for O’Rourke as senate passes Republican

Ken Paxton asks judge to fine and jail ex-congressman for defying order to halt political fundraisingThe Texas attorney general, Ken Paxton, has asked a local judge to consider jailing Beto O’Rourke, saying the former congressman was openly defying a judicial order blocking him and his political group from fundraising and paying the costs of Democrats who left the state to stop Republicans from passing a new congressional map.Tarrant county district judge Megan Fahey granted a request from Paxton last week halting O’Rourke and a group aligned with him, Powered by People, from fundraising. The order bars the group from using funds to pay the costs of Texas lawmakers during the special session or paying the $500 daily fines the lawmakers face for each time they are absent. Continue reading...

Politics

5 d. ago Some Democrats want to use gerrymandering. That’s a bad idea | Carlo Invernizzi

When a house is on fire, more fire won’t helpWhen Texas Republicans unveiled yet another contorted congressional map last week – one that would all but erase Austin’s Latino-led seat and increase the Republican party’s federal House tally by up to five seats in total – the outcry from Democrats was immediate and justified. But beyond the Democratic state legislators’ brave effort to stymie the proposal by boycotting the vote, a different refrain has also been heard by leading Democrats in other states: if they do it, why can’t we?Governor Gavin Newsom of California has vowed to “fight fire with fire”, advancing a proposal that would redraw California’s own congressional map to offset Republican gains in Texas. New York’s Kathy Hochul has also embraced the prospect of aggressive gerrymandering in Democratic-controlled states, sidestepping the independent commissions that Democrats themselves had once championed and successfully implemented in both California and New York. Continue re...

Politics

7 d. ago ‘Texas law does not apply in Illinois’: Gov. JB Pritzker draws line in sand as FBI ‘hunts down’ runway Democrats

Illinois, New York among Democratic states threatening counter-measures over Texas redistricting

Politics

9 d. ago Texas House again fails quorum as governor escalates threats and Democrats face second bomb threat amid redistricting battle – live

Hotel where several Texas Democrats are staying has second bomb threat this week, police say; Greg Abbott says he will keep calling special sessionsAccording to new reporting by the New York Times, the president has secretly signed a directive to the Pentagon to begin using military force against certain Latin American drug cartels that the Trump administration considers terrorist organizations.According to the Times’ sources, US military officials have started drawing up options for how the military could go after the group. The Times also notes that this escalation would be the most “aggressive step” in the administration’s “campaign against cartels”. They also noted that this continues the president’s preference for using “military forces to carry out what has primarily been considered a law enforcement responsibility to curb the flow of fentanyl and other illegal drugs”. Continue reading...

Events

1 week ago Democrats condemn Texas senator over alleged FBI role in locating lawmakers

John Cornyn claims FBI agreed to help return Democrats to state, sparking backlash amid GOP map pushUS politics live – latest updatesDemocrats harshly criticized Donald Trump and Republicans on Thursday after a US senator said the FBI had agreed to assist in locating Texas Democratic lawmakers who left the state to block Republicans from enacting a gerrymandered congressional map that would likely add five more Republican seats before next year’s midterm elections.Senator John Cornyn’s claim that the FBI would assist Republicans’ effort could not be independently confirmed. The FBI declined to comment. An administration official told NBC News this week the government did not plan on using federal agents to arrest Texas lawmakers and a federal law enforcement official told the outlet that as of Thursday morning, the agency had not assisted with trying to locate the lawmakers. None of the lawmakers have been charged with a crime. Continue reading...

Politics

1 week ago Democrats respond to FBI agreement to locate Texas lawmakers: ‘We will not be intimidated’ – live updates

House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries accuses Trump administration of attempting to ‘weaponize law enforcement to target political adversaries’Vance urges Republicans in Indiana to redraw map to help tighten House gripDonald Trump on Wednesday celebrated a commitment by Apple to increase its investments in US manufacturing by an additional $100bn over the next four years.Apple’s plan to up its domestic investment comes as it seeks to avoid Trump’s threatened tariffs, which would increase the tech giant’s costs as it relies on a complex international supply chain to produce its iPhones. Apple’s CEO, Tim Cook, warned during an earnings call in May that the tariffs could cost the company up to $900m that fiscal quarter alone. Continue reading...

Society

1 week ago Democrats slam Texas senator Cornyn over alleged FBI role in locating fleeing lawmakers

Cornyn claims the FBI agreed to help return Texas Democrats, sparking legal and political backlash amid GOP map pushUS politics live – latest updatesDemocrats harshly criticized Donald Trump and fellow Republicans on Thursday after a US senator said the FBI had agreed to assist in returning Texas Democratic lawmakers who fled the state to stop a Republican effort to redistrict.US senator John Cornyn’s claim that the FBI will assist Republicans’ effort could not be independently confirmed. The FBI declined to comment. An administration official told NBC News this week the government did not plan on using federal agents to arrest Texas lawmakers and a federal law enforcement official told the outlet that as of Thursday morning, the agency had not assisted with trying to locate the lawmakers. Continue reading...

Politics

1 week ago Democrats slam Texas senator over alleged FBI role in locating lawmakers

John Cornyn claims FBI agreed to help return Democrats to state, sparking backlash amid GOP map pushUS politics live – latest updatesDemocrats harshly criticized Donald Trump and fellow Republicans on Thursday after a US senator said the FBI had agreed to assist in returning Texas Democratic lawmakers who left the state to stop a Republican effort to redistrict.Senator John Cornyn’s claim that the FBI would assist Republicans’ effort could not be independently confirmed. The FBI declined to comment. An administration official told NBC News this week the government did not plan on using federal agents to arrest Texas lawmakers and a federal law enforcement official told the outlet that as of Thursday morning, the agency had not assisted with trying to locate the lawmakers. Continue reading...

Politics

1 week ago Texas redistricting battle live updates: Beto O’Rourke’s group reportedly supporting fleeing Democrats’ expenses

Texas Tribune reports that the former Texas congressman has been a top funder covering the costs of Texas lawmakers’ exodus as they face a $500-a-day fineIn a post on his Truth Social platform, the president said he would “federalize” the city if local authorities failed to address crime, specifically calling for minors as young as 14 to be prosecuted as adults.Trump’s threat could theoretically take several forms. The constitution grants Congress broad authority over the federal district, though completely suspending local governance would likely require congressional legislation. Trump could also deploy federal law enforcement or national guard troops under executive authority, as he did during 2020 protests when federal forces cleared Lafayette Square outside the White House over local officials’ objections.Politically embattled Senator, Cryin’ Chuck Schumer, wants the Republicans to pay, as EXTORTION, TWO BILLION DOLLARS in order for the Radical Left Democrats to approve the hun...

Politics

1 week ago Texas Democrats receive bomb threat in escalating standoff over redistricting

Lawmakers had been sheltering in Illinois after denying Texas Republicans quorum for gerrymandering schemeTexas Democrats who left the state say they experienced a bomb threat at their Illinois hotel on Wednesday morning amid an ongoing clash with Republicans over their effort to block a new congressional map from going into place.John Bucy III, a Democrat who represents Austin in the state legislature, confirmed the threat on X on Wednesday and said the lawmakers were evacuated. “This is what happens when Republican state leaders publicly call for us to be ‘hunted down’. Texas Democrats won’t be intimidated,” he said. Continue reading...

Events

1 week ago The Latest: Putin hosts Trump envoy Witkoff for crucial talks on Ukraine peace deal

Russian President Vladimir Putin is hosting U.S. President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff for talks, days before the White House’s deadline for Russia to reach a peace deal with Ukraine or potentially face severe economic penalties that could also hit countries buying its oil

Politics

1 week ago Trump threatens to take ‘federal control’ of DC after Doge staffer attack – US politics live updates

President claims on social media that DC is ‘totally out of control’ and if the city doesn’t ‘get it’s act together’ he will have ‘no choice but to take Federal control’After taking six months to conclude that Vladimir Putin may not be a kindred transactional authoritarian leader but an ideological nationalist seeking the return of what “belongs to Russia”, the deadline Donald Trump set for the Russian president to agree a Ukraine ceasefire or face US sanctions on oil exports arrives on Friday.What Trump – who some had claimed was a Russian asset – does next to punish Putin could define his presidency. Continue reading...

Politics

1 week ago Bringing ‘a gun to a knife fight’ in Texas: Greg Abbott just gave Democrats the gut check they needed

Vowing to ‘bring a gun to a knife fight,’ Democrats sound like they may have rediscovered their leverage ... and maybe a willingness to use it over redistricting war, writes John Bowden

Politics

1 week ago Trump threatened with THIRD impeachment by widely mocked liberal as his colleagues roll their eyes

Texas Democrat Rep. Al Green has, once again, promised to impeach President Donald Trump, likely making him the most-impeach happy U.S. lawmaker to ever live.

Politics

1 week ago Texas senator asks FBI to help locate and arrest Democrats for leaving state

John Cornyn ramps us gerrymandering showdown between lawmakers and Trump administration seeking GOP seatsThe US senator John Cornyn of Texas has asked the FBI to aid Texas law enforcement in locating and arresting Democrats who left the state to forestall a plan sought by Donald Trump to aggressively redraw the state’s congressional map in a way that could help Republicans keep their House majority after the 2026 midterm elections.The senator’s request is a significant escalation in the fast-moving showdown that could set up a confrontation between the blue state leaders shielding the Democratic state lawmakerss and the Trump administration. Earlier on Tuesday, Texas Democrats denied a legislative quorum for the second day in a row by scattering across the country, with many decamping to Chicago, Illinois, where the Democratic governor, JB Pritzker, has vowed to protect them. Continue reading...

Events