The Texas Signal
@texassignal.bsky.social
Nonprofit newsroom devoted to creating truthful public interest reporting by and for the new Texas majority. Subscribe to our free newsletter: https://texassignal.com/newsletter/
Dispatches from the start of James Talarico's New American Dream tour, which outlined specific policies in Arlington ("the American dream city")
Jessica Montoya Coggins@jessicamcoggins.bsky.social · 2h agoTaking the stage in Arlington is @jamestalarico.bsky.social to talk about a new vision of the economy and to restore the American Dream.
After an hours long meeting (that turned chaotic), the Tarrant County Commissioners Court voted unanimously to delay a vote on closing Election Day and early voting polling sites in the state’s third most populous county
Tarrant County Postpones Election Site Closures Vote
The Commissioners were considering a proposal to reduce the number of Election Day polling sites from 316 to 176, and the number of early voting sites from 50 to 42
texassignal.com
"If they believed they were doing the right thing, they should have had the courage to look survivors in the eye and tell us why. The message was unmistakable: They wanted us to go away. We are not going away.”
Jonathan Cohn @jonathancohn.bsky.social · 7h ago"Republican Senators Thom Tillis and John Cornyn each reneged on their promises to meet with victims of Jeffrey Epstein, with Tillis even leaving them waiting in his office for 45 minutes before they gave up." newrepublic.com/post/213959/...
The Trump administration has sent bulldozers to plow through Big Bend National Park for the construction of border barriers and roads.
Attorney General Ken Paxton, who is also running for Senate in Texas, announces his office is investigating the American Academy of Pediatrics for promoting and recommending vaccines for children
Attorney General Ken Paxton Investigates the American Academy of Pediatrics for Deceptively Promoting Childhood Vaccines for Financial Gain
Attorney General Ken Paxton launched an investigation into the American Academy of Pediatrics (“AAP”) over concerns that the organization may be promoting and recommending childhood vaccines for finan...
texasattorneygeneral.gov
BIG PLOT TWIST in TX: Tarrant County's GOP officials, faced with intense public outrage about huge cuts to the battleground county's polling locations in November, have decided to delay their final vote on the plan so more polling places can be added
Jen Rice@jenrice.bsky.social · 3d agoThey're probably hoping you won't hear about this. But tomorrow in TX, Tarrant County officials meet to vote on a GOP plan to cut almost HALF of Election Day voting locations, plus 8 early voting locations, some of them on campuses. Not hard to guess why. fortworthreport.org/2026/07/30/t...
Sorry, y'all for being MIA but I had to get an MRI (yuck!) but this is a good dispatch about the chaos that happened at Tarrant County Commissioners Court today when Judge O'Hare kicked out protesters speaking out against voting closures
Tarrant County judge removes attendees during public meeting about voting site reductions
Former state lawmaker Lon Burnam was carried out of the courtroom by sheriff deputies after O’Hare called speakers disruptive.
fortworthreport.org
INBOX: Agriculture Commissioner candidate @claytontuckertx.com calls Governor Abbott’s decision to halt approvals for AI data centers "progress," but still believes a special session should be called
With three months until Election Day, Democratic challengers in Texas are uniting with an anti-corruption message
The Candidates Running Against Corruption
For many of the Democratic challengers in Texas, combating corruption is taking center stage in their campaigns.
texassignal.com
A lot of places in Texas would disagree with this statement
Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · 6d agoHassett: "Data centers are very good for towns bc they create so many jobs & bring people in with high incomes that can buy houses & stuff like that. So if you take a sleepy town that hasn't seen much in the last 30 years & put a data center there, there are gonna be a bunch of happy residents."
As Data Center Week of Action churns on, Texans from all backgrounds and all regions are seemingly uniting against a shared enemy
Data Centers Meet Their Skeptics
In nearly every corner of Texas, bipartisan activists are voicing their disapproval of data centers
texassignal.com
Some good news: Jose Trinidad Rojas Pliego, one of the witnesses in the killing of Houston dad Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, has been freed from ICE. "The other two should and must follow because they deserve to be w/their families as well," said one of Salgado Araujo's sons. www.khou.com/article/news...
The Trump administration launched a plan Tuesday to channel hundreds of thousands of asylum seekers directly into deportation proceedings, a change that some attorneys said could lead to people being removed from the United States without a hearing. www.washingtonpost.com/immigration/...
Asylum seekers could be sent directly to deportation under new federal rule
The Trump administration rule, which took effect immediately, could transfer nearly 450,000 cases to immigration judges, who could dismiss the asylum petitions.
washingtonpost.com
Last night, a federal judge ordered ICE to release one of the men in the van who witnessed the shooting of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo. Judge Ellison's ruling states Jose Trinidad Rojas Pliego must be released within 48 hours and in a public setting and with notice to his attorneys.
Judge orders release of witness to Houston ICE shooting
A federal judge mandated Jose Trinidad Rojas Pliego be released within 48 hours. He was one of three passengers in the van Lorenzo Salgado Araujo was driving when he was fatally shot by ICE.
texastribune.org
While Houston is certainly the epicenter of protests, there have been sizable demonstrations against ICE around the whole state
Continued Calls For ICE Accountability In Texas
Protesters are demanding not only accountability for what happened to Salgado Araujo, but an end to what they see as systemic violence from a federal immigration enforcement agency
texassignal.com
The cost of getting close to President Donald Trump is falling. Texas Republicans have slashed the price of their premium convention packages, cutting thousands of dollars off the price of a coveted spot at the Trump-led September gathering in Dallas.
Texas Republicans cut ticket prices to Trump’s unconventional convention
State parties have adopted sharply different methods for picking who can attend the GOP gathering in September.
bit.ly
This oversight forum about Lorenzo Salgado Araujo is currently taking place in Houston:
Jessica Montoya Coggins@jessicamcoggins.bsky.social · 2w agoHAPPENING NOW: Rep. @sylviagarcia.house.gov is hosting a congressional oversight forum with other members, Houston DA Sean Teare, Ronaldo Salgado, Lorenzo Salgado Araujo Jr, and others over the shooting of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Houston by an ICE officer
“The faith leaders at the Texas Capitol noted that recent violent actions from ICE go against their religious traditions and beliefs while calling for specific reforms.”
Jessica Montoya Coggins@jessicamcoggins.bsky.social · 2w agoWe had a larger story as well! texassignal.com/faith-leader...
In Texas, a Border Patrol agent was just indicted by a local grand jury for aggravated assault for running down a migrant with his car on January 31, 2025. Video from a homeowner showed the agent driving straight into a man who was calmly walking on the side of the road. myrgv.com/local-news/2...
myrgv.com
Grace Bonilla with Texas Impact, a grassroots religious network, presented several reforms that Texas lawmakers can demand from ICE. “Texas leaders are not powerless, they can demand better from federal agencies and how this state cooperates with federal enforcement."
Faith Leaders Condemn ICE Violence In Texas
The faith leaders at the Texas Capitol noted that recent violent actions from ICE go against their religious traditions and beliefs while calling for specific reforms
texassignal.com
In May, we spoke with No Kid Hungry Texas, the statewide anti-hunger organization run by the nonprofit Share Our Strength, for further insights into these SNAP cuts, and what it means for overall food insecurity in the lone star state.
The Impact Of SNAP Cuts In Texas
With HR 1, Congress has forced some of the biggest cuts to SNAP in the program’s history. And the impacts are just starting to be felt in Texas, which has the second highest rate of food insecurity in...
texassignal.com
Yesterday, Governor Abbott issued an executive order meant to deter "birth tourism" in Texas. "I issued an executive order directing state agencies to investigate these birth tourism schemes and hold every provider that facilitates them accountable."
Today members of Congress introduced a bipartisan discharge petition to pass the Dream and Promise Act in the House. It has a real chance of passing, although it is unlikely to clear the Senate filibuster.
Congressman Greg Casar@repcasar.bsky.social · 2w agoWhat Donald Trump has done to Dreamers is a national disgrace.
In his first ad of the general election, Paxton accused his opponent James Talarico of being "low-T" and weak
Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · 2w agoWow -- Ken Paxton and his team abruptly shut down a news conference and bail after journalists try to ask him about his various scandals
“These are the actual dominoes that Jesse Lott used,” said Jillian Simpson, the chief administrative officer of HMAAC. “This space is meant for people to come in, touch, look through it and see some of the inspirations.”
New Show Reframes Black Art As A Comprehensive American Story
Instead of trying to capture a particular artist’s statement, Bayou City Stewards is an extremely broad collection of art by Black creators that spans multiple disciplines and dozens of styles
texassignal.com
"On Monday morning, the Pentagon said in a news release that 19-year-old Army Pvt. Isabella Gonzales of Carrollton was killed in action on Friday, during an Iranian strike on Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan."
Isabella Gonzales, 19-year-old Army private from Carrollton, killed in Iranian strike on Jordan, Pentagon says
Gonzales was killed in action on Friday during an Iranian strike on Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan, the Pentagon said.
cbsnews.com
Checked in on Houston's favorite seafood mogul and how he's doing as the U.S. Ambassador to Italy: www.chron.com/culture/arti...
Italians aren't loving Tilman Fertitta's diplomatic tour on his $450M yacht
"This display of opulence is not right."
chron.com
INBOX: #TX15 candidate Bobby Pulido announces he outraised incumbent Monica de la Cruz in the second fundraising quarter. He's now raised over $3 million with over about 16,000 individual donations.
