Texas House Makes Quorum

The Texas House made quorum yesterday for the first time in two weeks after a sufficient number of Democratic lawmakers returned to the chamber following a cross-country campaign to build opposition to a Republican redistricting proposal.

“We are done waiting. We have a quorum. Now is the time for action,” Speaker Dustin Burrows (R-Lubbock) said. He insisted that while “the majority has the right to prevail, the minority has the right to be heard.”

Democratic Caucus Chair Gene Wu said his colleagues “killed the corrupt special session” and “rallied Democrats nationwide to join this existential fight for fair representation.” Wu said Democrats intend to “build the legal record necessary to defeat this racist map in court.”

The House will convene again tomorrow, and members who participated in the quorum break during the first special session will be monitored closely by state troopers to ensure their attendance.

Lesser Prairie-Chicken Stripped of Protections

The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas has removed federal protections for the lesser prairie-chicken, ruling the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service erred in listing its regional populations as either threatened or endangered in 2022.

Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas sued the agency after the listing was finalized in 2023. In a statement, Attorney General Ken Paxton said the “change in classification puts many of Texas’s conservation efforts at risk, all while bringing immeasurable harm to Texans’ property rights.”

In January, the Fish and Wildlife Service retracted its earlier identification of two distinct population segments, removing the justification for the different classifications under the Endangered Species Act.

U.S. Rep August Pfluger (R-San Angelo) praised the decision as “a major step forward in ending the years-long attack on farmers, ranchers, and energy producers across Texas.” The agency will conduct a new review and issue a revised finding by November of next year.

Houston Police Investigate Graffiti Artists

Police are looking for the individuals who painted the message “Be Someone” on an I-45 railroad overpass in Houston earlier this summer. Three anonymous Instagram users shared videos of their deed in June, and authorities have asked the social media platform for access to their data.

The bridge is a graffiti magnet and has displayed various messages over the years, but it is known for the recurring “Be Someone” message. Prior to the latest repainting, it read “Mog Coin,” a cryptocurrency reference.

“I was chilling in my bed one night, and I got pissed off that I saw ‘Mog Coin’ on this bridge. So I went to Home Depot and got some rollers,” one of the users previously commented to a local news outlet.

Earlier this month, a Harris County judge signed a warrant for police to obtain the requested information from Instagram. A statement from Union Pacific said the suspects were “putting their lives and the lives of motorists passing underneath at risk.”

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➤ Fort Worth: A woman’s car was stolen with her 5-year-old child inside Sunday evening as she returned a shopping cart. The thieves let the child out of the car shortly after driving off. (More)

➤ El Paso: Camp East Montana, an ICE detention center at Fort Bliss, began operations Sunday with a capacity for 1,000 illegal immigrants with deportation orders. The $1 billion facility is expected to expand to 5,000 beds by 2027. (More)

➤ Corpus Christi: More than 600 people walked across the old Harbor Bridge on Sunday before its impending demolition. A new bridge opened earlier this month to replace the original, which was completed in 1959. (Watch Video)

➤ Houston: Nine new trash and recycling trucks hit the streets yesterday morning following the city’s approval of $12.4 million to address ongoing service delays. Twenty-one more trucks will join the fleet in the coming weeks. (More)

➤ San Antonio: A Denver Broncos helmet signed by members of the Super Bowl XLVIII team was stolen during a June 17 burglary. The Seattle Seahawks defeated the Broncos 43-8 in the lopsided contest. (More)

➤ According to the Texas Department of State Health Services, there were 17,197 requests for a public school vaccine exemption form last month, a 36% increase from the same period two years ago. (See Details)

➤ Meanwhile, the agency declared the measles outbreak that afflicted parts of West Texas earlier this year is over after there were no new cases reported for 42 days. There were 762 confirmed cases, 99 hospitalizations, and two deaths. (More)

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➤ The Houston Astros retired Hall of Fame pitcher Billy Wagner’s No. 13 jersey on Saturday night. He’s just the 10th player in franchise history to have his jersey retired. (More)

➤ UT women’s basketball fell to Team Canada 72-65 in the GLOBL Jam gold medal game this weekend in Toronto. (More)

➤ No. 9 TCU women’s soccer beat UTSA 1-0 on Sunday night thanks to a clutch goal in the 81st minute from Cameron Patton. (See Goal)

➤ The Houston Texans traded wide receiver John Metchie III to the Philadelphia Eagles in exchange for tight end Harrison Bryant. Draft picks were also involved in the deal. (More)

Yesterday’s Results: MLB | Soccer | LLWS

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➤ Texas leads the nation in retail real estate construction, accounting for over 17 million of the nearly 48 million square feet currently being built nationwide. (More)

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➤ A Chapel Hill woman who purchased her home from an elderly couple in the early 2000s came across a document outlining the previous homeowners’ family tree dating back to the 1700s. She hopes to give the document to a member of the family in person. (More)

➤ Whataburger topped a ranking of late-night fast food options compiled by lifestyle website BroBible. (More)

➤ A San Antonio woman reunited with her dog that went missing during heavy rains over two months ago. A website that uses AI to match owners’ photos of their lost pets to those of animals in shelters reconnected them. “I looked on the site, and her picture was the first one that popped up,” Juliet Gonzalez said. (Watch Video)

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How do you feel about graffiti?

1. It’s all bad
2. Depends on the message
3. Not a big deal

Yesterday’s Results:

Have you ever made a homecoming mum?

1. Yes: 22%
2. No: 78%

What notorious Texas outlaw shares the name of a prominent 18th-century theologian?

Show me the answer