Senator Eliot Shapleigh - El Paso, Texas

Retired Army Sgt. Angela Peacock once was outgoing, competitive and athletic. These days, she barely functions, trusts no one and suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder that prevents her from working.

On Monday Rep. Leo Berman, R-Tyler, introduced a series of bills aimed at putting the brakes on illegal immigration in Texas, including one that would make English the official language of the state. And although a number of legislators and legal analysts don't think Berman's bills will go anywhere, all sides agree that the proposed legislation is likely to trigger legislative infighting.

As school districts prepare for college readiness assessments that will be released by the Texas Education Agency later this month, administrators hope to begin closing the gap that exists between El Paso students' scores and the rest of the state's scores.

The Texas Legislature should file legal briefs backing the lawsuits that several El Paso governmental and environmental entities filed in federal court declaring the border fence unconstitutional, County Attorney José Rodríguez told members of the Mexican-American Legislative Caucus on Thursday.

El Paso County Attorney José Rodríguez was in Austin last week talking with members of the Mexican-American Legislative Caucus. He asked that the Texas Legislature file legal briefs in support of lawsuits lodged by El Paso governmental and environmental bodies.

One idea that keeps coming back is the proposal to turn local police into immigration officers — to pursue and arrest illegal aliens. That’s a bad idea on many dimensions.

The Texas Sunset Advisory Commission is recommending that the state essentially shutter its juvenile justice system and start over from scratch. Gov. Rick Perry and the Texas Legislature would do well to heed that advice.

Texas already has many of the tools needed to become a leading player in the development of the next generation of energy technology, including natural resources, energy industry expertise, business-friendly environment and a large base of potential customers.

An overwhelming majority of science professors at Texas' public and private universities say they're against a state policy requiring that weaknesses in the theory of evolution be covered in public school science classes, according to a new study released Monday.

Advocates for a crackdown on illegal immigrants, apparently undaunted by their failures in the last Legislature, have filed a slew of bills for the upcoming session that are even stronger in tone and approach.

They’re asking for "unlimited" corporate and personal contributions to raise money and finance strategy sessions this week at the fancy Lost Pines Resort & Spa, where donations and access to top leaders go hand in hand.

Nearly 20 percent of human-trafficking victims found nationwide have been in Texas, according to a report released by Attorney General Greg Abbott. The 57-page report, mandated by the Legislature in 2007, also identifies Interstate 10 as a major route through Texas for human-trafficking rings.

Most college biology professors in Texas see little controversial about evolution, according to a survey commissioned by an advocacy group seeking to influence Texas’ public school science curriculum.

Under a regulation that took effect Oct. 1 in the name of national security, the state has tightened its license policy more by requiring foreign nationals to prove they are lawfully here before they can get an original, renewal or duplicate driver's license or ID card.

With an estimated 2,500 votes still outstanding and other election certification steps still to take place, Mark Begich, the Democratic mayor of Anchorage, had taken a lead of 3,724 votes out of more than 315,000 cast, and he declared victory.

As a top adviser to Mr. Obama, he has long been considered the front-runner for the job of attorney general because of his extensive record as a prosecutor and a judge and a well-honed reputation inside Washington. Mr. Obama’s advisers appear to have overcome concerns that Mr. Holder’s involvement in a presidential pardon scandal as President Bill Clinton left office in 2001 might cloud his nomination for the job.

Facing a barrage of complaints from Democratic lawmakers that he was ignoring the will of Congress, Mr. Paulson dug in his heels and said he wanted to put money only into financial institutions.

In an exchange with Representative Barney Frank, the Massachusetts Democrat who is chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, it quickly became apparent that it was Mr. Paulson who did not understand the intent of Congress as expressed in the bailout bill. And in subsequent testimony by another witness — Sheila Bair, the chairwoman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation — Mr. Paulson’s simplistic distinction between direct spending (bad) and investing (good) was demolished.

The heated hearing before the House Financial Services Committee offered a preview of the pressures the Obama administration will face from Congress. Democrats, who are urgently pressing for aid to homeowners at risk of foreclosure as well as to the auto industry, said Paulson gave Congress a misleading sales job about how he would use the bailout.

The Environmental Protection Agency is finalizing new air-quality rules that would make it easier to build coal-fired power plants, oil refineries and other major polluters near national parks and wilderness areas, even though half of the EPA's 10 regional administrators formally dissented from the decision and four others criticized the move in writing.