Texas Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham announced the Winners & Finalists of the 2024 Save Texas History Essay Contest, sponsored by the Texas General Land Office’s "Save Texas History" Program. Fourth and 7th Grade Students from across Texas answered the important question, “What history in your community is worth saving?” The education effort seeks to rally public support for the preservation & promotion of more than 35 million historic maps and documents.

At last week's House Homeland Security Committee impeachment hearing of Secretary Mayorkas, I spoke with two mothers grieving the loss of their daughters due to Sect. Mayorkas' dereliction of duty. As they testified to the committee, they hold him – and his failed border policies – personally accountable for their family's irreparable loss. So do I. He took an oath to Defend & Protect the Constitution and the American people – and has utterly failed to do so.

“Texas is America’s – and the world’s – premier economic destination because of our dedication to cultivating a business-friendly environment. And, there's great potential for us to expand industry & trade partnerships with India," said Gov. Greg Abbott, noting that India is 9th among all nations for the number of Foreign Investment Projects in Texas. In the last decade, companies from India have invested $1.4 billion through 59 projects in Texas, creating more than 10,300 jobs.

Governor Greg Abbott today celebrated the strength and resilience of the Texas economy following the release of December's employment data showing Texas continues to outpace the nation in Annual Job Growth. Texas also again set new historic highs for total jobs, the number of Texans working, and the size of the Texas labor force. December marks 34 months of uninterrupted job growth in Texas.

U.S. Congressman Henry Cuellar joined a Washington Post event, moderated by Washington Post reporter Leigh Ann Caldwell, to discuss the urgent need for border security measures. During the discussion, Cuellar emphasized the need to address the pull factors that are contributing to the record number of encounters at the U.S. Southern Border

In December, the state’s seasonally adjusted job count reached 14,103,300 jobs, an increase of 19,100 over the month—marking 27 consecutive months of new series employment highs. Texas' employment growth rate continued to outpace the nation by a full percentage point, with 2.7 percent annual growth in the state from December 2022 to December 2023, compared to the nation’s 1.7 percent.

Coverage will be automatically reinstated for individuals who are not current Medicaid or CHIP recipients, but who were enrolled in Medicaid or CHIP in Texas while pregnant and are still within their 12-month postpartum period, as long as they are still residents of Texas. Their coverage will be reinstated for the remainder of their 12-month postpartum period.

“The Biden administration made an immediate decision to dismantle terrorism sanctions against the Houthis and their leaders. That decision was reckless, driven by ideology and partisanship, and ignored the threat that these Iran-controlled terrorists pose to the national security of the United States.

Despite all the self-congratulations, the routinely-violated hand-shake treaties committing nations to emission reductions, China and India are committed to doing exactly the opposite: massively INCREASING their greenhouse gas emissions. In 2022 and 2023 global use of fossil fuels rose to their highest levels in history. Kerry promised the opposite.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has announced that in fiscal year 2023, the “Office of Attorney General” recovered more than $200 million from entities and individuals who defrauded the Texas Medicaid System or were accused of doing so. The OAG’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit and Civil Medicaid Fraud Division released the findings in a joint annual report with the Texas Health & Human Services Office of the Inspector General.

In my 25 years of dealing with the border – as a former Federal Prosecutor in Texas charged with border security, and as the former chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security – I've never seen the border more chaotic and out of control. Time and time again, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas has intentionally failed to enforce the law, damaging public trust and placing our country in grave danger. Americans are tired of it.

“I served 20 years in the U.S. Navy – military leadership should be no further than a phone call away," said Texas Cong. Tony Gonzales, as it was discovered last week that Joe Biden's Sect. of Defense Lloyd Austin had been secretly admitted to an Intensive Care Unit for multiple days – and was unable to perform his duties – while Mr. Biden and his National Security Council were totally unaware of his whereabouts. "The President of the United States should've been in the loop from the beginning. The way this was handled was completely unacceptable."

U.S. Congressman Henry Cuellar Ph.D. (TX-28) and the Department of Interior today announced nearly $80 million in federal funding for orphan well plugging and site mediation in Texas. This major investment will spur economic revitalization, create good-paying jobs, and help mitigate the environmental and health impacts of methane leaks from toxic abandoned oil and gas wells.

Gov. Greg Abbott announced that over 100,000 illegal immigrants entering the United States via the South Texas & Mexican Border have now been transported to so-called "Sanctuary Cities" across the nation as part of Texas’ migrant transportation strategy designed to relieve the state's overwhelmed border towns. The Texas Dept. of Public Safety and the Texas National Guard are continuing to secure the border, stop the smuggling of drugs, weapons and people, and prevent or interdict trans-national criminal activities.

Georgia was one of the few states that we and other education freedom advocates targeted for victory in 2023. But we fell short in the legislature. Fortunately, the prospects have vastly improved this year as the Governor, Lt. Governor, and the Legislature's House Leadership has in recent days made ringing endorsements for School Choice.

Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar announced today he will send cities, counties, transit systems and special purpose districts $1.1 billion in local sales tax allocations for January, 3.3 percent more than in January 2023. These allocations are based on sales made in November by businesses that report tax monthly.

Produced water is a byproduct of what comes to the surface during oil and gas production, and the produced water recycling framework will provide a regulatory program for operators to assess the effectiveness and the suitability of applying treated produced water for beneficial purposes. 

Beginning in early December, Critical Infrastructure Division inspectors spread across the state to ensure natural gas facilities on the state’s electricity supply chain map are weatherized and in compliance with RRC’s weatherization rules. All of what are known as Tier One facilities have already been inspected, in addition to ongoing inspections of other facilities on the map.

“Texas is one of the top travel destinations for visitors from across the nation – and the world,” said Governor Abbott, adding that “Travelers to and within our Lone Star State contributed more than $187.5 billion in economic growth while supporting some 1.2 million jobs. Every region of Texas offers endless opportunities to experience the natural beauty, rich history, and true Texas hospitality that draws visitors from around the world,"

“The 15 major military installations in Texas – in addition to the headquarters of Army Futures Command – add over $114 billion to the Texas economy, and support more than 622,000 direct and indirect jobs. The men & women serving on these installations are integral members of their communities, and their missions are critical for national defense," said Gov. Greg Abbott earlier today, announcing $15.4 million in grant funding from the Texas Military Preparedness Commission for infrastructure projects in the state's military communities.