The Texan Podcast - Daily Rundown - April 16, 2026

Starting point is 00:00:04 Howdy folks, today is Thursday, April 16th, and you're listening to The Texans Daily Rundown. I'm the Texans managing editor Rob Lauchess, and here is the rundown of today's news in Texas politics. First up, State Representative James Tala Rico, this cycle's Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate, raised a record-breaking $27 million in the first quarter of 2026, nearly triple that of incumbent U.S. Senator John Cornyn. The U.S. Senate race in Texas continues to heat up as Talarico, Cornyn, and Attorney General Ken Paxton build up their war chests. Talariko brought in $10 million since the March 3rd primary election, and he showed nearly $9.9 million in cash on hand at the end of March,

Starting point is 00:00:52 according to the Federal Election Commission, after taking in $19.6 million in receipts and spending $14.5 million in disbursements during that reporting period. His campaign announced on Wednesday that it has received more than 970,000 donations from over 540,000 donors, raising a whopping $40 million this election cycle. Of those donations, 97% were said to be $100 or less, spanning 246 of Texas 254 counties. The two Republican candidates, who head into a primary runoff election on May 26th, have less gargantuan capital reserves, though the incumbent significantly outraised his challenger. Cornyn is reporting $9 million raised and Paxton $2.2.2 million, who also reported $2.6 million in cash on hand compared to Cornyn's $8 million. In other news, the federal April quarterly financial reports are in for the

Starting point is 00:01:51 2016 election cycle, revealing how candidates are faring following their primary elections as some prepare for runoffs in May and others stock up for the November general. While Texas' U.S. Senate race grabbed most of the spotlight on the reporting deadline on Wednesday, the latest numbers include Texas' congressional district contests, several of which will have major implications for both parties. The April quarterly filings cover the window between February 12th through March 31st and were due by April 15th. This picks up where the pre-primary reporting period left off. Visit the texan. dot news for a look at the latest numbers in some of Texas' biggest races. Last but not least, a recent federal lawsuit doesn't dispute the value of a gold bullion coin, but questions who has

Starting point is 00:02:39 the right to put the image of Texas on its face. Texas precious metals, a Texas company based in Shiner with its own private precious metal bullion brand, has sued acting comptroller of public accounts Kelly Hancock for infringing on its intellectual property rights and exceeding his statutory authority in operating the Texas Bullion Depository by offering its own gold and silver coins. A preliminary injunction hearing is scheduled for April 16th in the U.S. District Court in Austin, with U.S. District Judge David Ezra presiding. Tarek Saab, the chief executive officer and co-founder of Texas precious metals, believes that the case is fundamentally about the state's involvement in for-profit enterprises. He pointed to Governor Greg Abbott's promotion of Texas as a

Starting point is 00:03:27 business-friendly state, yet questioned what kind of precedent the state's offering of its own bully and coinage for commemorative and investment purposes sets, quote, for small and medium-sized businesses who are having to defend their right to the free market against state overreach. Thanks for listening. To support the Texan, please be sure to visit the Texan. News and subscribe to get full access to all of our articles, newsletters, and podcasts.

The Texan Podcast - Daily Rundown - April 16, 2026

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