Texas
Greg Abbott reelected Texas governor, defeating Beto O’Rourke
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MCALLEN — Greg Abbott decisively gained a 3rd time period as governor of Texas on Tuesday, defeating Democratic challenger Beto O’Rourke after a tumultuous few years marked by the COVID-19 pandemic, a lethal energy grid failure, new restrictions on voting rights and abortion and the Uvalde college taking pictures.
Determination Desk HQ known as the election for Abbott at 9:23 p.m. Central time.
Abbott, 64, a former state lawyer basic and Texas Supreme Court docket justice, confronted his hardest opponent but in O’Rourke, who repeatedly outraised the incumbent and broke a state fundraising report. However Abbott campaigned relentlessly on border safety and capitalized on nationwide headwinds favoring the GOP by tying O’Rourke to President Joe Biden, who’s unpopular nationwide however particularly in Texas.
O’Rourke sought to make the race a referendum on Abbott’s eventful second time period, emphasizing the grid failure and arguing Abbott had change into too excessive on points like weapons and abortion. Each the Uvalde bloodbath and overturning of Roe v. Wade bolstered O’Rourke’s case, as Abbott resisted any new gun-control measures and his near-total abortion ban took impact.
Abbott largely ignored these points as he campaigned extra on the border, the economic system and public security. And he usually reached again to feedback that O’Rourke made throughout and round his unsuccessful 2020 presidential marketing campaign, arguing O’Rourke confirmed he was too liberal for Texas.
O’Rourke formally launched his problem to Abbott in November 2021, however the race had been lengthy anticipated. The governor spent months prior rallying the state’s Republicans in opposition to O’Rourke, portray him as too liberal for Texas after his unsuccessful 2020 presidential run.
As soon as politically unknown statewide, O’Rourke made himself the state’s high Democrat by his near-miss loss to U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz in 2018. His White Home bid that adopted didn’t acquire as a lot traction, nevertheless it led to him adopting positions to maintain tempo with the leftward bend of the first.
The stance that might outline his White Home bid got here after the 2019 Walmart taking pictures in his hometown of El Paso. O’Rourke emerged from the tragedy with a proposal to mandate buybacks for assault weapons, declaring at one debate, “Hell sure, we’re going to take your AR-15, your AK-47.” Republicans mentioned the remark would doom any political future O’Rourke had in gun-loving Texas.
O’Rourke was additionally a a lot completely different political setting in Texas than he was in 2018. Scarred by persistent GOP assaults, O’Rourke’s favorability ranking was the other way up in polling, and he was going through the primary midterm underneath a brand new Democratic president who was deeply unpopular in Texas.
O’Rourke didn’t surrender his help for the buyback proposal as he started his marketing campaign in opposition to Abbott, however he centered his marketing campaign on much less polarizing points within the preliminary stretch. On the high of the listing: the 2021 energy grid collapse that killed a whole lot of Texans.
O’Rourke went on a statewide street journey in February to mark the one-year anniversary of the grid failure. Abbott had insisted that every little thing that wanted to be accomplished to repair the grid was handed in the course of the 2021 common legislative session. However O’Rourke argued the measures did far too little, proposing that the state hook up with the nationwide grid, amongst different issues.
Additionally in February, Abbott megadonor Kelcy Warren sued O’Rourke for defamation over his criticism of the $1 million donation that Warren gave Abbott after his pipeline firm reaped windfall income from the facility disaster. O’Rourke held a information convention in March to publicize the lawsuit, vowing to not again down, and it stays pending to today. Abbott’s marketing campaign has denied any position within the lawsuit.
O’Rourke simply gained his major in early March, although Abbott confronted a extra aggressive contest. He finally prevailed with two-thirds of the vote, however he spent months shifting to the precise on points like abortion and weapons as he confronted challengers together with former state Sen. Don Huffines and former Texas GOP Chair Allen West.
Because the official Democratic nominee for governor, O’Rourke gave fellow Democrats hope that he had discovered from his 2018 marketing campaign. He was not hesitating to criticize Abbott after pulling punches in opposition to Cruz, and he pledged to be extra of a workforce participant for the occasion.
It was not lengthy till gun management was once more on the middle of O’Rourke’s platform. On Might 24, a gunman opened hearth at Robb Elementary Faculty in Uvalde, killing 19 college students and two lecturers and injuring 17 others.
A day after the rampage, O’Rourke angrily interrupted Abbott’s information convention in Uvalde, telling him he was “doing nothing” to forestall gun violence. O’Rourke was finally escorted out.
Abbott initially praised the legislation enforcement response to the taking pictures, saying it “may have been worse” if officers had not been there. But it surely quickly turned clear that the response was deeply flawed, with officers ready on-site for over an hour earlier than breaching the classroom the place the gunman was holed up. Abbott mentioned he had been misled as O’Rourke continued to put blame for the carnage on the governor.
A Quinnipiac Ballot launched the subsequent month discovered the race was tightening, with Abbott’s lead down to five proportion factors.
With the state nonetheless reeling from the Uvalde bloodbath, one other history-making occasion arrived in June: the U.S. Supreme Court docket choice overturning Roe v. Wade. The ruling energized Democrats in all places however had particularly excessive stakes in Texas, the place Abbott had already signed a “set off legislation” guaranteeing an computerized, near-total abortion ban if the excessive courtroom ever reversed the landmark choice. O’Rourke jumped into motion to indicate how excessive the legislation was, emphasizing its lack of exceptions for rape and incest victims.
After the Quinnipiac survey, O’Rourke received excellent news in mid-July when marketing campaign finance stories have been launched for a interval beginning in February. O’Rourke had outraised Abbott, $27.6 million to $24.9 million, a once-unthinkable feat given Abbott’s fame as a prodigious fundraiser. And O’Rourke’s fundraising set a brand new report: probably the most cash ever raised by a candidate for state workplace in a single reporting interval. Abbott nonetheless ended the interval with almost twice as a lot money readily available, however O’Rourke’s haul made Democrats newly optimistic that he had a shot in opposition to the governor.
It was on the heels of the Uvalde taking pictures and Roe v. Wade ruling that O’Rourke launched his most bold barnstorm but: a 49-day street journey all through Texas.
It was a throwback to O’Rourke’s go-anywhere marketing campaign 4 years earlier. It produced loads of moments of O’Rourke discovering widespread trigger with Republicans in rural Texas, which his marketing campaign aggressively pushed out on social media. And it led to 1 notably memorable city corridor the place a protester laughed as O’Rourke was discussing the Uvalde taking pictures, describing the affect of an AR-15.
“It might be humorous to you, motherfucker, nevertheless it’s not humorous to me,” O’Rourke mentioned.
As O’Rourke ramped up his journey, Abbott stored a laserlike give attention to one subject: the border. He had already dispatched 1000’s of Nationwide Guard troops there, began development of a state-funded border wall and instituted a short business car inspection coverage that clogged ports of entry for days.
However in April, Abbott upped the ante by starting to bus migrants to Democratic-run cities, a program that escalated because the summer season went on. First he despatched the buses to Washington, D.C., then to New York Metropolis and Chicago. Most just lately, he’s been directing buses on to Vice President Kamala Harris’ residence in Washington.
This system earned Abbott numerous Fox Information appearances as O’Rourke tried to maintain voter consideration on abortion and weapons.
As summer season started to show to fall, it appeared like O’Rourke was having an affect. Abbott was giving complicated solutions when requested concerning the abortion legislation’s lack of rape and incest exceptions. On the similar time, near-weekly developments have been coming concerning the errors of legislation enforcement in Uvalde, together with from the state police, whose director, Steve McCraw, was an Abbott loyalist.
Abbott’s marketing campaign launched its first TV adverts in mid-August, considerably early for an incumbent. And the spots appeared aimed toward softening his picture after the 2 most rocky years of his governorship.
It took O’Rourke over three weeks to match Abbott on air, however his first advert confirmed the problem that he was betting massive on. The spot featured a pair — a Democratic spouse and a Republican husband — agreeing that the abortion ban was too excessive.
In late September, Abbott and O’Rourke had their first and solely debate, regardless of O’Rourke’s pleas for a number of conferences. It was contentious however largely predictable, as Abbott tried to tie O’Rourke to President Joe Biden and hammered him on the border, whereas O’Rourke sought to place Abbott on protection over abortion and Uvalde.
As early voting neared, a raft of polls gave Abbott a transparent — however not overwhelming — lead over O’Rourke.
On TV, Abbott had began operating damaging adverts in opposition to O’Rourke, together with about feedback he made in 2020 praising racial-justice protesters who had been pushing to “defund the police.” O’Rourke mentioned he didn’t help that as he campaigned in opposition to Abbott.
However on the similar time Abbott began assailing O’Rourke on air, the Democrat was getting large assist from a brand new group known as Coulda Been Worse LLC. The group was set as much as conceal the supply of its funding — generally generally known as “darkish cash” — and shortly pumped hundreds of thousands of {dollars} into the race, airing adverts that painted a dystopian image of Texas underneath Abbott. O’Rourke mentioned he didn’t know something concerning the group and known as on it to voluntarily disclose its donors, nevertheless it by no means did.
O’Rourke’s marketing campaign itself was not missing for cash. He continued to outraise Abbott on the ultimate two main campaign-finance filings earlier than the election. And he erased Abbott’s cash-on-hand benefit, one other achievement that after appeared a tall order.
Each candidates largely eschewed big-name surrogates within the remaining weeks of the race. Abbott skipped a Robstown rally with former President Donald Trump, citing an out-of-state fundraising journey. For probably the most half, O’Rourke didn’t name in any nationwide names till the day earlier than the election, when former President Barack Obama did a robocall for O’Rourke.
In McAllen, about 150 Abbott supporters gathered on the metropolis’s historic Quinta Mazatlán, a sprawling Spanish property engulfed in hovering palm timber and different tropical plants.
Abbott’s followers got here out to rejoice the rising Republican attain into the Rio Grande Valley, a border area which has lengthy been dominated by Democrats. Jesse Cerda, 46, mentioned he wasn’t a lot into politics earlier than, however he supported Abbott for his abortion stance and believed he wanted to make his voice heard with rising inflation.
“It’s an incredible turnout,” Cerda mentioned. “I feel it’s simply superior they have been capable of do one thing in South Texas as a result of it’s been so Democratic for thus lengthy.”
Cheers erupted from the gang when Fox Information declared Abbott a victor over O’Rourke, the primary main outlet to take action at round 8:15 p.m. Chelsea Howell Garcia, the chairwoman of the Republican Nationwide Hispanic Meeting of Texas applauded what she known as Texans opening their eyes.
“We expect a crimson wave like no different,” the 31-year-old mentioned, herself donning a brilliant crimson jumpsuit.
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Texas
Harris County attorney pushes for stronger laws to protect Texas renters from negligent landlords
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — It’s no secret that if you’re a renter in Texas, you don’t have the upper hand.
“It’s basically very friendly to landlords to be able to punish tenants, to evict tenants, and so it creates this, what I think is an overly favorable environment to landlords,” Harris County Attorney Christian Menefee said.
When problems go without repair for months, the law says you still cannot withhold rent, and there are hoops you have to jump through to hold your landlord accountable.
Through Action 13’s Renters’ Rights, we hear about these problems often.
So, what can be done?
It’s a long process and rare for a city or county in Texas to step in and hold negligent landlords accountable.
Harris County Attorney Christian Menefee is determined to change that. He says he knows what it’s like.
“Like many other folks in Harris County, I came up in a working-class family, and part of my upbringing was living in an apartment complex. This was a complex that had units that were routinely infested with roaches, that had cars being broken into all the time. My mother’s car was stolen multiple times from this apartment complex,” Menefee explained.
He’s seen it and wants to stop it.
“Here in the state of Texas, there just aren’t laws on the books that allow us the opportunity to go after landlords,” Menefee said.
He says that come January when the legislature reconvenes, he’ll be in Austin, pushing for a fix. “What I’d like to see is a law that allows the government to step in and immediately call these folks to account, whether that’s through an administrative procedure, through fines, through a lawsuit, anything to push them in the direction of doing the right thing,” Menefee explained.
His office found a creative way to sue a local complex earlier this year.
The Palms on Rolling Creek in north Harris County had severe sewage issues for years. Months after the lawsuit was filed, the owners did make progress in fixing it.
Menefee is putting negligent landlords on notice, and you can help.
“My ask to you is if you are living in an apartment complex that is not treating you right, or you know someone who is, have them report that to us and also reach out to your local, state representative or state senator,” Menefee said.
They need to know about the problems to help them make their case for why they believe these laws need to change.
“I understand your experience. I have lived through that myself. My family has lived through that. We hear you, and we are going to keep working on those issues,” Menefee said.
For more news updates, follow Courtney Carpenter on Facebook, X and Instagram.
Copyright © 2024 KTRK-TV. All Rights Reserved.
Texas
Nate Germonprez: Texas' Un-Real Breaststroker Becomes #7 Performer in History
2024 Texas Hall of Fame Invite
- November 20-22, 2024
- Where: Lee and Joe Jamail Swimming Center — Austin, TX
- When: 10 am CT prelims/6 pm CT finals
- Participating Teams: Pitt, Stanford, Texas (host), USC, Wisconsin, BYU, Cal Poly
- Meet Info
- Live Results
- Results on Meet Mobile: “Texas Hall of Fame Swimming Invite”
- Day 1 Prelims Live Recap | Day 1 Finals
The Texas Longhorns entered the summer with a lot of weaknesses on paper that needed to be addressed, and via the addition of high profile transfers and international recruits, they have addressed many of those.
The big question mark, though, was the breaststroke leg and whether the Longhorns had someone good enough to challenge for an NCAA title.
The group was led last season by 5th year Jake Foster, who swam 51.22 at a dual meet, and Will Scholtz, who was 52.09 at Big 12s. 52.0 is a nice time by almost any measure, but for a team hoping to climb several rungs on a ladder and challenge for an NCAA title, it wasn’t going to be enough.
The comments read things like “where are the Longhorns going to find a true breaststroker,” referencing the fact that Texas didn’t have a swimmer finish higher than 16th at NCAAs in the 100 breast last year.
But on Thursday morning, they may have found their guy as Nate Germonprez, now a sophomore, turned a corner with a 50.39.
That makes him the 7th-best performer in the history of the event with the 15th best performance ever in a flat-start 100 yard breaststroke. Every time ranked ahead of him was done at a season-ending championship, making Germonprez’s swim the best mid-season time in history.
Top 10 Performers all-Time, Men’s 100 SCY Breaststroke
- Liam Bell, Cal – 49.53 (2024 NCAAs)
- Ian Finnerty, Indiana – 49.69 (2018 NCAAs)
- Max McHugh, Minnesota – 49.90 (2022 NCAAs)
- Caeleb Dressel, Florida – 50.03 (2018 SECs)
- Kevin Cordes, Arizona – 50.04 (2014 NCAAs)
- Carsten Vissering, USC – 50.30 (2019 NCAAs)
- Nate Germonprez, Texas – 50.39 (2024 Texas Invite)
- Caspar Corbeau, Texas – 50.49 (2022 NCAAs)
- Van Mathias, Indiana – 50.57 (2023 NCAAs)
- Brian Benzig, Towson – 50.59 (2024 NCAAs)
Germonprez is a bit of a paradox as a swimmer. He was a very good breaststroker in high school, winning an NCSA title in the 100 breaststroke in 2023. But he was so versatile that his 52.59 as a high school senior was almost overlooked, when in most classes that would make him a big ‘breaststroke’ signing.
We wrote several articles and did interviews in tribute to his versatility (here and here, for example).
He didn’t even swim a breaststroke race at the Olympic Trials, instead opting for the 50 free (53rd) and 200 IM (12th). He would later swim the 100 free (49.46), 200 IM (1:58.11), and the 100 breaststroke (1:00.48) at the Austin Futures meet, winning and going best times in each. His 100 breaststroke time would have put him into the semifinals at Trials.
Is he a real breaststroker? He’s not a pure breaststroker, if that’s what we mean when we say “real,” which is understandable because for most of swimming history, breaststrokers were sort of a different breed.
But he broke the school record of Caspar Corbeau (50.49), who is most certainly primarily a breaststroker (though he can sprint a little bit too).
When Germonprez and Modglin both committed to Texas, it was fun to daydream about what that tandem of versatility could bloom into in the college ranks, and now we’re seeing it happen. As much as Texas needed guys like Chris Guiliano and Kacper Mawiuk and Hubert Kos to move back into the national title picture this quickly, they really needed a breatstroker, and now they have one.
Texas
How To Spend An Overnighter In Fort Worth, Texas
If you’ve been one of the 10.8 million annual visitors to Forth Worth, Texas, you already know it’s worth a multi-day stay. But sometimes, you don’t have that luxury, and the best you can swing is an overnighter. I’m here to tell you, that’s not a bad thing. Fort Worth, a pleasantly compact city in comparison to its sprawling neighbor, Dallas, turns an overnight stay into an opportunity to immerse yourself in Texan culture while luxuriating in the finer things in life.
Start with a semi-private flight via JSX, which operates out of its own terminal outside of Dallas-Love airport. This streamlined service provides private-flying ease and comfort at a fraction of the cost (a typical flight from Houston to Dallas costs about $500 round trip and gets you there in about an hour). After an extremely comfortable flight, you’ll touch down in Dallas, and it is a matter of minutes to deplane, collect your bag, and hail a ride. Opt for a rental car from JSX onsite provider Go Rentals or just use a ride app for the day.
The heart of Fort Worth is 40 minutes away – you’ll leave the hustle and bustle of the big city behind and find tree-lined (and impeccably clean) streets. You’ll also find the new Crescent Hotel Fort Worth, which Conde Nast Traveler recently dubbed the #1 Hotel in Texas. Service is on point – when I arrived feeling a little queasy, the staff managed to rustle up a bowl of soup and a grilled cheese sandwich, and that was with the dining room temporarily reserved for a television crew shooting on the premises.
Which apparently is a thing in Fort Worth. It’s becoming an increasingly popular destination for movie and TV filming, and it’s clear why. The landscape is quite pretty, made all the prettier in the Cultural District, where Crescent Hotel is located. It features lovely museum buildings and wide streets that will beckon you outside to explore, and that exploration should include the Fort Worth Botanic Garden, the oldest botanic garden in Texas. It boasts 23 specialty gardens, such as the Japanese Garden ideal for a serene stroll, along with sculptures, ponds, waterfalls, and a don’t miss greenhouse.
If you prefer the indoors, just across the street from the Crescent Hotel is the Kimbell Art Museum, which recently celebrated its 50th anniversary and features works by creative legends like Rembrandt, Picasso, and Cezanne. The Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth is a stone’s throw away, as is the Amon Carter Museum, currently featuring an exhibit entitled “Cowboy.”
And speaking of cowboys, you must set aside time to witness an authentic and historically accurate cattle drive, which takes place twice daily at 11:30 am and 4:00 pm on Exchange Street in the historic Fort Worth Stockyards. Watch as wranglers outfitted in boots, chaps, and hats reminiscent of the early American days drive cattle through the town. You can learn more about Fort Worth’s cowboy culture at The National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame, the Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame, and the Cattle Raisers Museum.
If you haven’t noticed by now, Fort Worth is a bit of a dichotomy with its attention to ranch life every bit as important as its evolution to modern city. That’s why a day here is a study in contrasts, and one of the best ways to see – and taste – that is through the food. Start with lunch on the hacienda-style patio at Joe T. Garcia’s, a popular Tex-Mex restaurant serving up margaritas and family recipes like bean chalupas since 1935.
For dinner, dive into Waters Restaurant for a fine dining experience helmed by Chef Jon Bonnell. Appetizers like crab cakes and tomatoes topped with fried goat cheese are about as close to perfect as you can get. And foods that depend on being cooked just right, like scallops and filet, are indeed just right. Waters is located in Sundance Square, a walkable entertainment and business district that is especially lovely at night and offers live theater, shopping, an historic Chisholm Trail mural, water features, and over 30 restaurants, in case you decide to stay.
That’s the only problem with Fort Worth – one day and night will give you a taste that will have you hustling to get back. So maybe not such a problem after all.
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