Texas
Texas Republicans say they have a
Starting January 20th, Republicans will have the trifecta in the nation’s capital. Senator Ted Cruz, who won re-election for a third term, discusses the main priorities lawmakers will tackle first. Congressman-elect Brandon Gill, who will represent the 26th Congressional District in North Texas, talks about how he will help pass President-elect Donald Trump’s agenda. Plus, for the first time since some controversial charter amendments passed in the City of Dallas, Mayor Eric Johnson is speaking out about the results. He also answers the question about whether he’s had conversations about serving in the Trump administration. Jack Fink covers these stories in the latest episode of Eye On Politics. (Original air date: December 8, 2024.)
Looking Ahead
On Tuesday, Senator Ted Cruz spoke with political reporter Jack Fink about the most urgent priorities voters expect Republicans to work on in the new session of Congress starting next month. They include border security, deporting violent criminals in the U.S. illegally, reducing prices and boosting the economy.
“We have a real obligation to deliver on our campaign promises,” said Cruz. “And if you lok at the election, there are a number of things that came out of the election that, I think are a real mandate and a mandate for change.”
Watch Jack’s full interview with Senator Ted Cruz:
One on One with the youngest Republican in the next Congress
At the age of 30, the youngest Republican to serve in the next Congress will be Brandon Gill. He will represent the 26th Congressional District in North Texas. He was also elected Freshman Class President.
Gill said he and his fellow Republican freshmen ran on the Trump agenda: securing the border, unleashing American energy and cutting wasteful federal spending to bring inflation down. He told Jack what he hopes to accomplish as the president of the incoming class in the House.
“I said I want to do everything I possibly can to make sure we are all in the best position to execute on the Trump agenda,” said Gill.
Watch Jack’s full interview with Congressman-elect Brandon Gill:
Dallas Mayor discusses controversial charter amendments
Jack also spoke with Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson in an exclusive interview Tuesday.
He discussed the controversial charter election and his recommendation to residents to vote down all the propositions. He called two measures that were part of the Dallas HERO Initiative that passed “workable.”
“The reality is, I’m not very worried about it,” said Johnson.
He played down concerns by opponents, including former Mayors, that prop U will negatively impact the city finances and services by requiring the city to hire and maintain 4,000 police officers. It’s a move that city leaders and advocates for the measure estimate will cost between $175 and $185 million dollars.
“It’s not going to destroy the city of Dallas,” said Johnson. “It’s not going to bring us to our knees financially. It does force us to put our money where our mouth is on public safety and I don’t think that’s a bad thing.”
He said Prop S, which allows residents to file suit against the city if it doesn’t comply with the charter, city ordinances, and state law. He did express concern about what he called “enforcement through litigation.”
“We don’t want to be tied up in court constantly of paying lawyers’ legal fees to bring lawsuits against us to do what we’re trying to do anyway. So that’s my concern about prop s – it’s a litigation bonanza potentially.”
The Mayor said his recommendation to Dallas residents was to vote down all of the charter amendments, not just certain propositions. “If none of them passed, I had a legal opinion from our city attorney that said we’ve got to have an immediate do-over, an immediate do-over. That’s what I wanted. I wanted to be able to come right back and come up with some well-thought out charter amendments that actually would have accomplished what props S, T, U wanted to do but more effectively.”
One of the Mayor’s friends from serving in the Texas Legislature, former Republican Representative Scott Turner, has been nominated by President-elect Donald Trump to serve as HUD Secretary. Jack asked the Mayor if he’s had any conversations about joining the Trump administration.
“I love my city, I’ve had no greater honor in my life being elected Mayor of this city,” said Johnson. “Whether or not I’d be willing to serve our country, I think that would depend on a lot, but my focus is on being Mayor of Dallas.”
The Dallas Mayor said that he told Turner that he would like Dallas to be at the front of the line for anything HUD will be doing to help cities. Johnson delivered his State of the City address Thursday. He said he wants the city’s progress reducing violent crime and reducing property taxes to continue.
Watch Jack’s full interview with Dallas Mayor Eric Johson:
Saturday started out a bit warm and sticky outside in North Texas, but there will be plenty of sunshine in the afternoon. Temperatures are expected to climb into the upper 80s. Most of the area will stay dry today, but there is a chance for an isolated storm that could reach severe criteria late tonight for counties to the northwest of the metroplex.
Make sure you have an indoor plan for Mother’s Day celebrations tomorrow! Sunday morning will start warm, muggy, and dry for most with the exception of an isolated storm possible along the Red River.
A First Alert Weather Day is in place on Sunday due to a front that will swing across North Texas in the late afternoon through the evening. All modes of severe weather will be likely, but the main threat includes a significant risk of hail up to 2 inches in diameter and winds up to category 1 hurricane strength.
Once the front moves through, cooler temperatures will settle into the forecast on Monday. However, the cool down won’t last long. A warming trend returns and temperatures climb into the 90’s once again at the end of the next week. Stay tuned!
Just days before Mother’s Day, a North Texas father is grieving the sudden loss of his wife and unborn son after she died unexpectedly, only days before her due date. Avi Carey said he is still in shock over the death of his wife, Tiffany, whom he described as his “rock” and “soulmate.”
“Tiffany’s smile, her radiance, her presence … she didn’t meet a stranger,” Carey said.
Nearly two decades together
The couple had been together for nearly two decades, raising two children, Kingston and Kasyn, and preparing to welcome their third child, a baby boy they planned to name Kylo.
Carey said Tiffany began complaining of a severe headache just days before she was due to give birth. He recalled her sitting on the couch, dozing off multiple times – something he said was unusual.
A short time later, Carey found her unresponsive.
“I saw her face … her lips were blue. And I already knew,” he said with tears in his eyes.
A celebration turned to heartbreak
Tiffany Carey and her unborn son died May 2, leaving behind a grieving husband and two children. The loss came less than a week after the family had celebrated a baby shower.
“We went from celebrating the baby shower to planning a funeral in less than five days,” Carey said.
A crisis affecting Black mothers
Health officials say cases like this highlight a broader crisis. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Black women in the United States are more than three times as likely as white women to die from pregnancy‑related causes, and most of those deaths – around 80% – are considered preventable.
Carey said he is still searching for answers and now lives with questions about whether warning signs were missed.
“I would say educate yourself. Take everything seriously,” he said. “That should have been a red flag … the headache.”
Honoring Tiffany’s legacy
Now, surrounded by baby supplies meant for a child who never arrived, Carey said he is focused on honoring Tiffany’s memory and raising their children with the values she lived by.
“She always said, ‘You’ve got to lead with love,’” he said. “She did that in everything.”
Trump administration to release UFO files soon, president says
President Trump said his administration plans to release information and materials relating to UFOs.
Ever look up at the vast Texas sky and see something move across it? It could be a shooting star, a satellite — or a UFO.
The Pentagon released several documents Friday, May 8, detailing sightings of unidentified flying objects, or “bogeys,” in U.S. airspace, including reports from Texas.
The documents were released by the U.S. Department of Defense at the directive of President Donald Trump, marking the release of government files related to “alien and extraterrestrial life, unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP)” and UFOs.
“These files, hidden behind classifications, have long fueled justified speculation — and it’s time the American people see it for themselves. This release of declassified documents demonstrates the Trump Administration’s earnest commitment to unprecedented transparency,” said U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth in a statement.
Here’s a look at the files related to Texas.
UFO spotted in 1948 above Abilene, Texas
A DoD incident summary shows that on Jan. 1, 1948, a man identified as “Mr. A. Schroeder” reported a UFO in the 1100 block of Highland Ave in Abilene, Texas.
Schroeder reported seeing a stationary bright blue-green bell-shaped object in the western sky above Abilene at 1:25 a.m. and 1:30 a.m.
Fort Worth man sees UFO above Alaska
Also in 1948, Lt. Aytch Johnson noticed a silver flat disk in the sky in Fairbanks, Alaska.
According to the incident report, the Fort Worth man observed the object flying over Alaska at around 1:06 p.m. on April 18, 1948, at an estimated speed of 250 to 300 miles per hour.
The report also noted that the sighting “may have been the reflection of sun from wings” of aircrafts flying in the area at the time.
Possible UFO sighting during the NASA Gemini 7 space launch
The DoD released the transcript and audio file of NASA’s Gemini 7 mission in 1965 when astronaut Frank Borman reported to NASA mission control in Houston his sighting of an unidentified object, which he referred to as a “bogey.”
While the launch didn’t take place in Texas, the report came back to space control in Houston.
The conversation occurred on Dec. 5, 1965 — 4 hours and 24 minutes into the flight — when Borman notified space control that there was a “bogey” on their left-hand side.
When asked to clarify what they are seeing, Borman said he was seeing “hundreds of little particles” on their left, about three to four miles away.
As NASA Public Affairs clarified, the bogey was an unidentified object, along with the particles.
Pentagon documents report of other possible sightings in Texas
Some documents have connections or reports of possible UFO sightings in Texas, but are missing details to understand the situation.
For example, the DoD received a clipping from the Yoakum Times-Record reporting UFO sightings by Mrs. Anna Banys in 1947, but it is unclear why she was writing to the DoD.
This is a developing story. Check back for more updates.
Mateo Rosiles is the Texas Connect reporter for USA TODAY and its regional papers in Texas. Got a news tip for him? Email him at mrosiles@usatodayco.com.
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