The Texan Podcast - Daily Rundown - September 10, 2026

Starting point is 00:00:04 Well, howdy, folks? Today is Thursday, September 10th, and you're listening to the Texans' Daily Rundown. I'm the Texan senior editor Rob Lauchess, and here is the rundown of today's news in Texas politics. First up, thousands of Republicans met in Dallas this week for the Republican National Convention. On Wednesday, the speakers at the 26th Midterm Convention included U.S. representatives Monica Dilla Cruz and Brandon Gill, Attorney General Ken Paxton and President Donald Trump. Follow the Texans reporters Meredith Dyer and Isaiah Mitchell for updates on day two of the convention. Next, Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and Democratic State Representative James Tala Rico released new attack ads against each other in the bitter contest for Texas U.S. Senate seat.

Starting point is 00:00:55 Paxton's ad, titled King James, features an AI-generated Tala Rico scribbling into a King James Bible and highlights controversial comments made by the candidate during his time in the Texas House, including that there are six biological sexes and that God is non-binary. According to Paxton, the ad will air nationally on Newsmax during the RNC in Dallas. The Tala Rico campaign also released an ad this week touting an endorsement from David Maxwell, a former employee of Paxton's whose accusations of wrongdoing against him helped precipitate the 23 impeachment of the Attorney General. Paxton denied allegations of wrongdoing and was acquitted by the Texas Senate. In other news, the budgets of Texas' biggest counties have grown by two-thirds in the last decade, though much of

Starting point is 00:01:43 the growth is concentrated in Harris, Travis, and Dallas counties. Local governments across Texas are in the process of setting budgets for the next fiscal year, which begins on October 1st for most counties. Of the five most populated counties in Texas, only Dallas County has adopted its fiscal year 27 budget, the other counties are still considering drafts. The consolidated budgets of Harris, Dallas, Tarrant, Bayar, and Travis counties, that is, their total planned expenditures, including their general funds, have grown from $8.7 billion in 2016 to $14.6 billion in 20206, an increase of about 67%. The cumulative inflation rate over the last 10 years was 39%. Meanwhile, the combined population of these counties has grown from 12.3 million in 2016 to 13.5 million in 2025,

Starting point is 00:02:38 an increase of just 9.4%. Also, Tarrant County Commissioner Matt Krause hosted a Data Center Town Hall this week and an effort to hear from his constituents regarding their concerns. He hoped to get feedback to share with legislators in Austin as they take on the issue during the 90th Texas legislature, while several attendees at the event on Tuesday recognized that the need for data centers because of society's increasing reliance on digital technology, they also express concerns about data centers' locations and the possible impact on their home values and quality of life. Recent news of a large-scale data center planned in the town of Westlake adjacent to the Keller border has heightened concerns of many precinct three residents.

Starting point is 00:03:23 Several affected residents were present at the town hall meeting to share their concerns and suggestions with Krauss, who intends to bring them to Austin next session. Last but not least, a Houston immigration attorney was arrested Wednesday after a federal grand jury indicted her on charges of mail fraud and making false statements related to her work on behalf of immigrants seeking work-related legal status in the United States. Al-Novievsky is a naturalized citizen from Russia and has practiced law in Texas since 2009, specializing in business immigration assistance, but she allegedly never submitted or only partially submitted paperwork for clients seeking to obtain work status or work visas. The indictment also alleges that Novaviski

Starting point is 00:04:08 provided clients with false documents or reference numbers tied to active immigration cases unrelated to her own clients to make them believe their applications were being processed. In 2003, Audubon Engineering Operations sued Novovsky for gross negligence and legal malpractice, in Harris County. The company alleged that although she had charged them more than $109,000 for immigration work on behalf of five employees, she never filed paperwork with federal immigration agencies. Thanks for listening. To support the Texan, please be sure to visit the texan. News to get full access to all of our articles, newsletters, and podcasts.

The Texan Podcast - Daily Rundown - September 10, 2026

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