.@GovAbbott ordered Texas counties to reduce the number of ballot dropoff locations to one per county. An unprecedented number of absentee ballots are expected to be cast this fall.
Civil rights groups say it's an attempt to suppress voting. bit.ly/2Snwm9n
Harris County, the state’s most populous and a major Democratic stronghold, had designated a dozen locations where voters could deliver their own ballots — and already began collecting them this week.
In Travis County, also a major Democratic stronghold, officials had designated four locations where voters could deliver their ballots.
Abbott described his proclamation as an effort to “strengthen ballot security protocols throughout the state.”
A spokesman has not responded to questions about how allowing multiple drop off locations might lead to fraud.
Drop-off locations, advocates say, are particularly important given concerns about Postal Service delays, especially for disabled voters or those without access to reliable transportation. bit.ly/2Gs0ZrP
The move by the governor "raises a real concern that people are going to have just one more barrier to successfully submitting their ballot,” barriers that will disproportionately hurt voters of color and those with disabilities, said Mimi Marziani, president of @TXCivilRights.
Earlier this week, Houston Republicans asked the Texas Supreme Court to limit in-person and absentee voting options for Harris County voters during the pandemic. bit.ly/3jp3OZ2
Abbott also announced that election clerks may collect absentee ballots only if they also permit poll watchers to observe the delivery of those ballots.
1/ Overnight, House managers published nearly 4,000 pages of evidence ahead of next month’s impeachment trial of suspended Attorney General Ken Paxton.
2/ Included in the 3,760 pages are 150 exhibits. These documents give granular details of how Paxton allegedly abused his office to help Austin real estate developer Nate Paul.
3/ 📃In an interview, Paxton’s former personal aid said he ferried documents to Paul on Paxton’s behalf and witnessed conversations about the renovations to Paxton’s home that suggested Paul had paid for it.
1/ Over the past quarter century, a war machine was constructed inside the Texas Office of Attorney General, designed to push conservative legal doctrine through the courts.
Here’s how Texas got here — and what it means for the country's future. bit.ly/3KjCMC1
2/ Under three attorneys general, John Cornyn, Greg Abbott, and Ken Paxton, the office began assembling an all-star team to barrage the federal courts with state-funded lawsuits born of increasingly overt right-wing activism. bit.ly/3KjCMC1
3/ In 1998, John Cornyn became the first Republican attorney general in Texas since Reconstruction.
One of his first acts was creating the Office of the Solicitor General to handle state and federal appeals, all the way up to the U.S. Supreme Court. bit.ly/3KjCMC1
1/On May 24, 2022, 19 children and two teachers were killed in the Robb Elementary shooting.
The shooting also caused emotional and psychological damage to a generation of children in Uvalde. The Treviños are one of many families adapting to a new reality.texastribune.org/2023/05/22/tex…
2/ Three of the Treviños’ kids — Austin, Illiaña and David James — have been diagnosed with PTSD.
The kids attended Robb Elementary and were on campus on May 24 for an awards ceremony. Their mom, Jessica, picked them up from school shortly before the shooting began.
3/ Illiaña’s best friend was killed during the shooting. While visiting her friend’s memorial, Illiaña suffered cardiac arrest from acute stress.
“Nana was born with a heart of gold. So when it breaks, that’s how she reacts,” her mom Jessica says.
1/ Officers responding to the Uvalde shooting said they were afraid to immediately engage the gunman because he was using an AR-15, a Texas Tribune investigation has revealed.
This drove their decision to wait over an hour for a Border Patrol SWAT team. bit.ly/40lOYHX
2/ In never before released body camera footage and post-action interviews, officers described realizing the gunman had an AR-15 style rifle and concluding that confronting him would be too dangerous because of its firepower. bit.ly/40lOYHX
3/ Even though some officers were armed with the same rifle, they waited for a Border Patrol SWAT team that had more protective armor, stronger shields and more tactical training.
Bullets from AR-15s can penetrate standard body armor worn by police. bit.ly/40lOYHX
Many of the beloved trees across Texas’ Hill Country snapped under the weight of heavy ice that accumulated during multiple days of freezing rain this week.
They frequently damaged power lines, homes, and property on their way down.
While the historic drought last summer may have caused trees to have more dead limbs than usual, experts say it probably had less of an impact than the sheer amount of ice.
1/ Freezing temperatures and ice are expected in much of Texas through at least Thursday.
Here’s a running list of Texas warming centers, mutual aid and safety tips. If you know of any other resources in your community, please reply to this thread to share them with others.