The Texan Podcast - Daily Rundown - October 16, 2024

Episode Date: October 16, 2024

Want to support The Texan and help us continue providing the Lone Star State with news you can trust? Subscribe today: https://thetexan.news/subscribe/The Texan’s Daily Rundown brings you a quick recap of the latest stories in Texas politics so you can stay informed with news you can trust.Want more resources? Be sure to visit The Texan and subscribe for complete access to our in-depth articles, subscriber-exclusive newsletters, videos, podcasts, and more.Enjoy what you hear? Be sure to subscribe and leave a review!

Howdy, folks. Today is Wednesday, October 16th, and you're listening to the Texans Daily Rundown. I'm the Texans Assistant Editor Rob Lausches, and here is the rundown of today's news in Texas politics. First up, the first and only U.S. Senate debate between Senator Ted Cruz and Congressman Colin Allred featured clashes over the classic hits of the economy, border security, and the direction of Washington, D.C., along with a side of the top two wedge issues. The latest Hobby School of Public Affairs poll came out Tuesday morning, which put Cruz up four points on Allred among likely voters in the race.

Libertarian Ted Brown polled at 1%, and Undecideds totaled 3%. Cruz also led among Independents by 6 points, but All Red led by 3 points among Latino voters. This will be the only debate between the two candidates during the race. Early voting begins on Monday, October 21st, and runs through November 21st. Next, the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles has declined to commute the sentence of death row inmate Robert Roberson, who is scheduled to be executed on Thursday, October 17th. The vote was 6-0. The board voted by the same margin to not recommend a 180-day reprieve. Roberson was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to

death in 2003 in connection with the death of his two-year-old daughter Nikki Curtis in 2002. Over the past month, a bipartisan group of Texas lawmakers have questioned the conviction and have urged clemency for Roberson. In other news, the case of a citizen journalist in Laredo will continue after the U.S. Supreme Court granted her appeal, vacated the decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, and remanded it to the appellate court for further consideration. Priscilla Villarreal, a self-described plucky citizen journalist in Laredo, reports via Facebook with colorful commentary about local events like crime, missing persons, traffic, and other local issues. In 2017, she was arrested under a never-enforced section of the Texas Penal Code after Villareal asked a police officer to confirm details of a fatal car accident and a suicide. The officer voluntarily confirmed the facts, Villareal claims, and then she published them to her readers.

Also, the Harris County District Attorney's Office is seeking the recusal of a criminal court judge who is accused of issuing a false bench warrant, engaging in secretive proceedings, and creating evidence for the defense for death row inmate Ronald Lee Haskell. According to a motion to recuse, Judge Natalia Nata Cornelio issued sealed orders last June to have Haskell transported from a high-security unit for death row inmates to the Harris County Jail for a court setting on July 22, 2024 at midnight. But records indicate no court setting took place. Instead, Haskell was kept in the Harris County Jail until Cornelio's orders sent him to a private medical facility for a brain MRI on July 30th. Photographs submitted by the HCDAO show Haskell entering a waiting room with public citizens. In addition, Grapevine-Colleyville Independent School District has called a voter-approved tax ratification election for

November 5th because it is raising the maintenance and operations portion of its property tax rate from $0.72.9 to $0.73.69 per $100 valuation. The Board of Trustees unanimously approved the election in August so that more of the revenue generated can be used by the district and not sent to the state Robin Hood recapture scheme that transfers a portion of local property tax revenue from property wealthy districts to property poor ones. GCISD sent an estimated 22% of its M&O tax levy, or $31.33 million, back to the state in the form of recapture for the 2023-2024 school year. Plus, the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association's proposed 10% rate increase has been denied by its governing state agency following public opposition. Cassie Brown, commissioner of the Texas Department

of Insurance, issued an order on Monday rejecting the agency's proposal. TWIA is a state-sanctioned insurer of last resort for the Texas Gulf Coast, created in 1971 to fill a gap where the private insurance market would not go, an area of the state where risk of payout for natural disasters is not a question of if, but of when and how much. The agency covers over 250,000 policies across 14 countries. Last but not least, The Texan's reporter Mary Elise Cosgrave spoke with Congresswoman Beth Van Dyne for an interview covering her newly appointed position as Republican Party of Texas Victory Chair, the Texas GOP's stakes this November, and the border crisis. Visit thetexan.news for a transcript of that conversation. Thanks for listening.

To support The Texan, please be sure to visit thetexan.news and subscribe to get full access to all of our articles, newsletters, and podcasts.