Texas
In Texas visit, second gentleman Douglas Emhoff raises more than $1 million
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Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff raised more than $1 million at a San Antonio fundraiser for Kamala Harris presidential campaign Monday night, the largest presidential fundraiser in the city’s history.
San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg made the announcement at a reception hosted by Frank and Cecilia Herrera that was attended by prominent area Democrats like Henry Cisneros, a former San Antonio mayor and former U.S. Secretary of Housing and Development, State Sen. José Menéndez, and U.S. Rep. Greg Casar.
“We have to work, even here in Texas,” Emhoff told the guests at the fundraiser. “We can’t take any state off the map. We gotta make sure we’re doing the work here. And even if we can’t turn Texas blue this time around you have a good chance of sending [U.S. Rep.] Colin Allred to the Senate.”
Emhoff also said that voters could also make “serious changes” to the state by flipping some statehouse races and their statewide leaders.
He acknowledged that the presidential election was very close and urged the guests to knock on doors, register to vote and help raise more money for the campaign to continue its fight all over the electoral map.
Earlier in the day, Emhoff attended a rally organized by Texas Democrats in San Antonio. He stumped with down-ballot Texas Democrats and railed against Republican efforts that he said were “attacking the right to vote.”
“Under the guise of election integrity, they have made it harder to vote,” Emhoff said. “They know the only way they can win is if fewer people vote. … Texas, unfortunately, has been ground zero for unchecked MAGA power grab.”
Emhoff, who was making his first visit to Texas since his wife, Vice President Kamala Harris, became the Democratic presidential nominee, said if Trump returned to the White House it would usher a national abortion ban, more inaction on mass shootings and policies that benefited only the wealthy.
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But he sounded a note of confidence even as a New York Times/Siena Poll Monday morning showed Trump leading Harris in Arizona by five percentage points and also ahead in the battleground states of North Carolina and Georgia.
“I am really excited about Texas. Are you?” he said to applause from about 1,200 people in the gymnasium at the Candler Physical Education Center at San Antonio College. “Are we going to send my wife Kamala Harris to the White House?”
The rally included brothers Julián Castro, a former San Antonio mayor and U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, and U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro of San Antonio.
The effort was part of the Texas Democratic Party’s “Texas Offense,” an effort to coordinate rallies and political resources from the top to the bottom of the ticket. Comedian and actress Cristela Alonzo and social media influencer and political activist Olivia Julianna also attended the event.
The Democratic speakers attacked Republican state officials for what they said were efforts to suppress the votes of people who do not align with their political views. They pointed to recent investigations by Attorney General Ken Paxton on Latino groups who work to register people to vote. The speakers urged the crowd to make their voice heard in November by casting ballots for Democrats.
Texas Democratic Party Chair Gilberto Hinojosa told the crowd that Republican officials like Attorney General Ken Paxton were “attacking the vote” because of the tight races for president and U.S. Senate.
“He knows they’re in trouble,” Hinojosa said.
Emhoff’s visit is a boost for Texas Democrats. National politicos may not see the state as a battleground — despite the state party’s best efforts — but any boost to down-ballot candidates could help the minority party make up ground in state elections. It also gets those candidates in front of new potential voters.
Texas political leaders tried to energize the crowd through Emhoff’s visit.
“Texas is in play and if you need proof of that, we’ve got second gentleman Douglas Emhoff here,” Casar said.
The event also included Kristian Carranza and Laurel Jordan Swift, two San Antonio Democrats vying to unseat Republican incumbents in crucial statehouse races.
Republicans hold a majority in the Texas House and are likely to push for legislation that would allow for the use of public money to pay for private education at least in some way. The issue is a top priority for Republican Gov. Greg Abbott. Democrats are trying to make dents in the majority to hold the line against that type of legislation.
Carranza’s race against Republican John Lujan is seen as one of the top targets for Democrats and Swift is running for a seat that is vacant because moderate Republican incumbent, Steve Allison, was defeated in the primaries by Marc LaHood, a Republican challenger who is further to the right.
John Harrison, 72, of Kerrville who drove about an hour to attend the event with his wife Jo, said Emhoff’s visit showed that national Democrats were still throwing some support behind the state.
“It means they haven’t given up in Texas and that they can turn some races blue,” Harrison said. “I hope we can beat Cruz and Trump. It’ll be tough but still possible.”
Texas
Texas Supreme Court allows State Fair of Texas gun ban to take effect
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Texas
Texas A&M Commit Cancels Visit With Texas Longhorns
After coming up short to the Texas Longhorns in the race for a pair of highly-touted players on the 2025 recruiting trail, the Texas A&M Aggies have secured a win over their heated rivals.
Per Ryan Brauninger of TexAgs, Texas A&M three-star defensive line commit Chace Sims has cancelled his official visit to Texas this weekend. The Randle High School (Richmond, TX) product was set to visit the Forty Acres for the Longhorns’ SEC opener against Mississippi State on Saturday, but has instead decided to cross Texas off his list barring a change of heart at some point down the line.
This development comes after the Aggies fell short to Texas in the recruiting races for a pair of five-star players in receiver Kaliq Lockett and safety/linebacker Jonah Williams.
Sims originally committed to Texas A&M on July 2 after taking his official visit to College Station on June 21. He also took OVs to Texas Tech (June 21), Kansas (June 14), Washington (May 31) and SMU (May 17).
Texas A&M recruiting analyst Jaxson Callaway reported Thursday that Sims’ decision to cancel his Texas official visit “had been trending this way.”
“Pretty big development for the Aggies recruiting class, as Chace Sims has cancelled his previously scheduled official visit to Texas,” Callaway tweeted. “Had been trending this way after his trip to College Station this past weekend, but now decided upon.
The Aggies offered Sims in February. He received offers from other programs like LSU, TCU, Kansas State, Arizona, Baylor, Pittsburgh, California and more.
According to 247Sports’ rankings, Sims is the No. 69 defensive tackle and No. 91 overall player in the 2025 recruiting class.
Sims is currently a part of a 2025 that’s highlighted by five-star quarterback Husan Longstreet and four-stars like cornerback Adonyss Currie, defensive linemen Kiotti Armstrong and DJ Sanders, athlete Noah Mikhail, edge Marco Jones and many more.
During the 2023 season, Sims posted 11 sacks. He’s tallied 120 tackles (26 for loss), 12 sacks and two forced fumbles over the past two seasons combined.
Texas
AG Paxton takes State Fair gun ban challenge to Texas Supreme Court
After losing arguments in a Dallas district court and a state appeals court, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton took his challenge of the State Fair of Texas’s gun policy to the state supreme court on Wednesday.
Paxton filed a petition with the Texas Supreme Court to prevent the city of Dallas from assisting the State Fair of Texas in enforcing their ban on firearms at Fair Park.
In early August, the State Fair of Texas announced that it would screen for weapons at the gate and that only active or retired law enforcement officers would be allowed to carry weapons into the fairgrounds.
The attorney general argued the fair’s policy unlawfully prohibits licensed gun owners from carrying their weapons in places owned or leased by governmental entities unless otherwise prohibited by law.
The city of Dallas owns Fair Park and leases much of the fairgrounds to the State Fair of Texas each year.
In the city’s response to the appeals court earlier this week, interim Dallas City Manager Kimberly Bizor Tolbert said the State Fair was a ticketed, private event and that the fair had exclusive control over some of Fair Park during its 24-day run. A board of directors runs the State Fair with no city oversight or approval, and the State Fair, as a private event, has exclusive authority to decide who it will admit. Tolbert said the city did not take a position on the correctness of the fair’s gun policy and said they had received no complaints from citizens about the fair’s policy.
The appeals court ruled Tuesday that there was not enough evidence showing that the State Fair or the city of Dallas would break any laws with the policy on firearms, and Paxton’s motion for a temporary injunction pending the appeal was denied.
“The City of Dallas and the State Fair of Texas cannot nullify state law by banning firearms. And a government entity cannot contract away our rights by offloading this policy to a private entity. Texans who are licensed to carry have a right to defend themselves, and I will fight every step of the way to protect it,” Paxton said in a statement Wednesday.
Amid the legal battle to get the fair to rescind their policy, Paxton pulled a 2016 opinion in which he supported a nonprofit’s right to ban firearms on government-owned land. During the appeal, Paxton said the opinion was pulled because handgun laws had changed and that the opinion was now outdated and inapplicable.
The fair is set to open its gates on Friday, so a decision by the Texas Supreme Court could come sometime Thursday.
The State Fair of Texas runs from Sept. 27 through Oct. 20.
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