Southwest
Texas Gov. Abbott signs $1 billion voucher program into law, capping off win for school choice advocates
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, signed a school choice bill into law on Saturday that will allocate $1 billion for a voucher program that allows parents to use public funds to pay for their child’s private school tuition.
The program’s implementation caps off a yearslong effort by Republicans who have been advocating for school choice. Voucher supporters have long focused on Texas, where previous efforts failed amid resistance from Democrats and rural Republicans.
Last month, President Donald Trump called on state lawmakers ahead of a key vote on the bill to finally send the measure to Abbott’s desk. The Texas Senate passed Senate Bill 2 by a party-line 19-12 vote on April 24 after the state House approved the bill by an 86-63 vote the week before.
“When I ran for reelection in 2022, I promised school choice for the families of Texas,” Abbott said before signing the bill at the governor’s mansion. “Today, we deliver on that promise.”
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Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, signed a school choice bill into law on Saturday. (REUTERS/Callaghan O’hare)
Abbott was joined by Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, state House Speaker Dustin Burrows, bill author and state Sen. Brandon Creighton, U.S. Senator John Cornyn, school choice advocates and students and their families.
“From here forward, [Texas students] will have unlimited potential and unlimited options in education to pursue for the rest of their path and education and what their families do best, and that in of itself was worth the journey,” Creighton said.
Texas joins more than 30 other states that already have similar programs. The Lone Star State will have the largest voucher program in the country.
School vouchers have been Abbott’s main focus this year, following last year’s election cycle in which he called for Republican primary voters to remove from office GOP lawmakers who voted against a similar bill in the last legislative session that the governor had supported.
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The Lone Star State will have the largest voucher program in the country. (Montinique Monroe/Getty Images)
Supporters of the bill say it will give parents more options by allowing them to take their children out of poor-performing public schools in favor of alternative public or private school choices.
“Gone are the days that families are limited to only the schools assigned by government,” Abbott said. “The day has arrived that empowers parents to choose the school that is best for their child.”
Democrats and Republicans in rural districts who have criticized the program argue that it will pull financial resources from Texas’ public school students and subsidize the private education of wealthy families.
“Let’s be clear: this bill is only best for the richest people in the state, and rural Texas especially will get the shaft,” Texas Democratic Party chairman Kendall Scudder said in a statement. “To top it all off, Abbott’s school shut-downs are in full-swing with no end in sight.”

Texas joins more than 30 other states that already have similar programs. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images)
Starting next school year, families can receive $10,000 per year to help pay for their child’s private school tuition or costs for home-schooling and virtual learning programs. Children with disabilities can qualify for as much as $30,000 per year.
The program will be capped at $1 billion for the first year and cover up to 90,000 students. But by 2030, it could cost up to $4.5 billion per year.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Southwest
Pritzker says Trump ordering 400 members of the Texas National Guard to Illinois, Oregon and other locations
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Illinois Governor JB Pritzker announced on Sunday that President Donald Trump will deploy 400 members of the Texas National Guard to Illinois, Oregon and other locations.
The deployment came as protests against federal law enforcement ramp up across the country, particularly in Portland and Chicago.
In the Windy City, multiple people were arrested in recent days for reportedly ramming their vehicles into DHS and ICE agents’ cars.
After announcing Trump’s deployment on X late Sunday, Pritzker wrote that “no officials from the federal government called me directly to discuss or coordinate.”
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Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker criticized President Trump’s decision to deploy 400 Texas National Guard troops to Illinois and Oregon. (Getty Images)
“We must now start calling this what it is: Trump’s Invasion,” the Democratic governor wrote.
“It started with federal agents, it will soon include deploying federalized members of the Illinois National Guard against our wishes, and it will now involve sending in another state’s military troops.”
Pritzker also disclosed that he called Texas Governor Greg Abbott to “immediately withdraw any support for this decision and refuse to coordinate.”
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Police clash with demonstrators during a protest outside an immigrant processing and detention center on Oct. 3, 2025 in Broadview, Illinois. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)
“There is no reason a President should send military troops into a sovereign state without their knowledge, consent, or cooperation,” the governor added.
“The brave men and women who serve in our national guards must not be used as political props. This is a moment where every American must speak up and help stop this madness.”
In response, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott defended his decision, writing on X that he had “fully authorized the President to call up 400 members of the Texas National Guard to ensure safety for federal officials.”

Law enforcement officers stand in tear gas outside a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility during a protest on Saturday, Oct. 4, 2025, in Portland, Ore. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)
He then added that federal and state leaders must “either fully enforce protection for federal employees or get out of the way and let the Texas Guard do it,” while praising the Guard’s “training, skill and expertise.”
Abbott also noted that thousands of Texas National Guard troops have remained along the southern border to assist with security operations.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom claimed the U.S. is “on the brink of martial law.”
In recent days, large numbers of protesters have rioted against immigration enforcement actions across the country. ICE shared a video of a Portland protester being wheeled into custody on Sunday.

ICE shared a video showing a suspect being rolled away on a flatbed cart in Portland, Oregon. (@ICEgov via X)
In Broadview, Illinois, on Friday, more than a dozen people were arrested by federal agents during protests at an ICE processing facility. Agents were seen firing pepper balls, tear gas and rubber bullets to clear crowds.
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Southwest
Dallas train shooting leaves 1 dead, second homicide on DART transit system in a week
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One person is dead after a shooting on a Dallas Area Rapid Transit train Sunday night, marking the second deadly incident on the Texas train system in the past week.
The shooting happened near the Pearl/Arts District Station on Bryan Street around 7 p.m., according to FOX 4.
DART police responded after a caller reported an active shooter at the station, the outlet reported. One person was found dead from a gunshot wound on the train.
Details surrounding the incident are limited, but FOX 4 reported a suspect is in custody.
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Police responded to the DART train near Pearl/Arts District Station on Bryan Street after a passenger was shot and killed. (Jordan Bickerstaff via FOX 4)
Fox News Digital reached out to DART for comment, but did not hear back by the time of publication.
The deadly shooting comes less than a week after a man was killed on the DART train last Monday. DART police responded to the Market Center Station on Harry Hines Boulevard at around 10:15 p.m., FOX 4 reported on Wednesday.
Daniel Tom Gormley, 53, was found inside a train car with multiple gunshot wounds to his chest. He was pronounced dead at the scene after first responders attempted life-saving measures.
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One person is dead after a shooting on a DART train in Dallas, Texas, on Sunday, Oct. 5, 2025. (Jordan Bickerstaff via FOX 4)
Gormley was a Marine veteran, according to a GoFundMe page aimed at helping the family pay for funeral costs.
“He was a victim of a senseless act of violence while aboard a train in Dallas, Texas, and was taken from us far too soon,” the fundraiser reads. “Our family is heartbroken and completely unprepared for the financial burden of planning a funeral and managing the associated costs. We are reaching out to our community for support during this devastating time.”

Daniel Tom Gormley, 53, was shot and killed on a DART train in Dallas on Monday, Sept. 29, 2025. (GoFundMe)
A DART rail operator reported to police that Gormley told the suspect to get off the train before the suspect fired a gun three times, according to FOX 4. It’s unclear what led to the exchange.
Gormley’s accused killer was identified as Christopher Clemson Akins and was taken into custody quickly, police said.
DART Police Chief Charles Cato said last Wednesday that such incidents are “extremely rare” and “taken very seriously.”
“DART Police remain deeply committed to the safety of our riders, employees, and the communities we serve,” Cato said, via FOX 4.
DART is a transit agency serving the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, offering multiple travel options: Light Rail, Trinity Railway Express commuter rail, bus routes, GoLink on-demand services and paratransit services.
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Southwest
Army veteran-turned-MAGA rising star jumps into fiery GOP Senate primary as polls tighten
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Republican Rep. Wesley Hunt of Texas announced Monday that he’s running for the Senate, jumping into an already bitter battle between incumbent Sen. John Cornyn and primary challenger Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.
“The U.S. Senate race in Texas must be about more than a petty feud between two men who have spent months trading barbs,” Hunt said in a statement as he launched his campaign. “With my candidacy, this race will finally be about what’s most important — Texas.”
Hunt’s entry into the race turns up the heat on an already combustible battle between Cornyn, who’s running in 2026 for a fifth six-year term representing red state Texas in the Senate, and Paxton, the MAGA firebrand who’s an ally of President Donald Trump.
Hunt, a West Point graduate who flew Apache helicopters during his Army service and a rising MAGA star who is in his second term representing a safe Republican district in the Houston-area, emphasized in his statement, “My record speaks louder than words. I am the most consistently conservative legislator representing Texas in Congress.”
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Rep. Wesley Hunt of Texas speaks at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on July 15, 2024. (Mike Segar – Reuters)
Cornyn, who is backed by Senate Majority Leader John Thune and the National Republican Senatorial Committee, trailed Paxton by double digits at the beginning of the summer.
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But Cornyn has narrowed the polling gap in recent weeks, thanks in part to a massive ad blitz by allies that spotlighted the numerous controversies that have battered Paxton over the past decade.
Trump, whose endorsement would make a major impact in the Texas primary battle, has remained neutral to date.

Republican Rep. Wesley Hunt of Texas opens a Trump 2024 campaign field office in Philadelphia, on June 4, 2024. (Paul Steinhauser – Fox News )
Hunt, pointing to his backing of Trump as the then-former president launched his 2024 White House comeback, touted that “I was the first person in the nation to endorse President Trump, and I have remained steadfast in my commitment to the people of Texas.”
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Hunt had been mulling a Senate run for months and sources confirmed to Fox News earlier this year that the congressman had made his case to Trump’s political team that he’s the only person who could win both a GOP primary and a general election.

Republican Sen. John Cornyn of Texas is running for re-election in 2026 for a fifth six-year term in the U.S. Senate. (Reuters)
And an aligned super PAC spent big bucks this summer to increase Hunt’s name recognition across the state of Texas.
Paxton adviser Nick Maddux, in a statement to Fox News, said that “Primaries are good for our party and our voters, and Paxton and Hunt both know that Texans deserve better than the failed, anti-Trump record of John Cornyn.”
But Cornyn campaign senior adviser Matt Mackowiak argued in a statement that “Rep. Wesley Hunt is a legend in his own mind. No one is happier this morning than the national Democrats who are watching Wesley continue his quixotic quest for relevancy, costing tens of millions of dollars that will endanger the Trump agenda from being passed.”
Hunt’s entry into the GOP nomination race could prevent the winner of next March’s primary from winning a majority of the vote, which would trigger a runoff election two and a half months later.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, seen at the Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on Tuesday, July 16, 2024, is primary challenging GOP Sen. John Cornyn in the 2026 election. (Hannah Beier/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Democrats are hoping for a Paxton victory in the primary, which they believe would make next year’s general election more competitive.
It’s been nearly four decades since a Democrat won a Senate election in Texas. You have to go back to the 1988 re-election victory by then-Sen. Lloyd Bentsen.
Former Rep. Colin Allred, who lost last November’s Senate election in Texas to conservative firebrand Sen. Ted Cruz by over 8 points, is running for the 2026 Democratic nomination, along with rising star Texas state Rep. James Talarico and former astronaut Terry Virts.
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