Again Monday morning, President Donald Trump made it clear that he’s willing to use one of the few absolute powers belonging to him as president in ways that benefit him as he fights special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into his campaign and administration. Trump has pardoned political lackeys who kept…
Despite the best efforts of the city of Dallas and the Citizens Homeless Commission, the city’s homeless population is up almost 10 percent from 2017-18, with the number of unsheltered homeless in the city increasing even more, by 23 percent, over the same period. In order to quickly address the…
This could come as a shock from the newspaper that offended so many snowflakes with its claim that Globe Life Park and the Rangers are North Texas’ safe space for conservatives, but the Observer sincerely believes that you should stick with the Dallas Cowboys this season. Despite controversies that have…
The Mexican-American Legislative Caucus and Texas Senate Hispanic Caucus are adamant that Texas residents should not have to answer questions about their immigration status when census takers come to their doors in 2020. The groups, which comprise the majority of Latino and Latina representatives in the Legislature, sued the Department…
After the twin highs of primary victories and better-than-expected poll numbers carried them through the last couple of months, Democratic electoral hopefuls Lupe Valdez and Beto O’Rourke got a reality check Wednesday afternoon. According to a new poll from Quinnipiac University, both candidates face double-digit deficits in their bids to…
Two days after wrapping up the Democratic nomination for governor, former Dallas County Sheriff Lupe Valdez faced her first bit of general election adversity Thursday as information emerged that she is delinquent on 2017 taxes for seven properties in Dallas and Ellis counties. According to information first reported by the…
Some of the most vulnerable people in Texas could be facing a health care crisis if a new rule proposed by the Trump administration goes into effect. Rolled out in full late Tuesday, the proposed change to the Department of Health and Human Services Title X family planning program would…
At around 8 p.m. Tuesday, just five votes separated Lupe Valdez and Andrew White in the runoff for the Democratic primary for Texas governor. By 10 p.m., White, speaking from his home in Houston, was congratulating Valdez for her win while Valdez supporters packed a banquet room inside Ellen’s in…
Five-and-a-half months from now, on another Tuesday night and after another watch party, Colin Allred and his merry band of supporters will know if all the hope they felt as they gathered in North Dallas on primary runoff night was real. They’ll know whether or not longtime incumbent Congressman Pete…
Under the old rules at City Hall, the term “economic development” meant “friends of City Council members looking for money.” Dallas pursued an economic development strategy based on heavily subsidizing grocery stores, funding race car museum startups and making large grants to chicken joints, even though similar concepts had not…
In dribs and drabs over the first part of the year, numbers from Dallas’ cite-and-release pilot program have come out, painting a portrait of marijuana enforcement in the city. Over the first five months that the program, which allows those busted with pot to receive a citation to come to…
Maybe you think this falls under the heading of “lots of luck,” but I wish the first thing the Dallas City Council would do, after we achieve regime change, is a forensic audit of the money spent on the Trinity River project, including the missing sailboat lakes and that stupid…
? 01:08 Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings was in Houston Friday morning when, about 40 miles away in Santa Fe, another person with a gun opened fire on another school, killing at least 10 as of Friday afternoon. Rawlings said in a tweet Friday that officials should spare Texans their thoughts…
More than 300 people lined the sidewalk of Dealey Plaza on Dec. 9. Honking car horns and chants from the crowd filled the air as protesters wielded Palestinian flags and signs that read, “Hands off Jerusalem.” The Rally for Jerusalem, Capital of Palestine was organized by the Dallas Palestine Coalition,…
Deep Ellum and downtown Dallas meet right around 2200 Main St., where a nightclub called Purgatory used to sit. It was a great concept — three floors with different designs, one heaven, one purgatory and the other hell — that quickly went wrong, and the club served as a touch…
It’s unfair for me to spend time here tearing into the city’s old rich white elite and never say anything about other people’s elites. Everybody’s got one. It’s hard to generalize about the city’s Hispanic leadership because they’re very diverse politically, and frankly, I really don’t see them doing much…
In the shade of towering trees on a warm April afternoon, the tiny Joppa community in southern Dallas seems like a sleepy country town. Thick greenery surrounds the small homes in quiet despite the buzz of traffic on Interstate 45 and Loop 12 a mile away. About 500 people live…
Last week, we learned that the Margaret McDermott suspension bridge over the Trinity River in downtown Dallas, designed by Santiago Calatrava and supposedly completed two long years ago, still can’t be opened to foot and bicycle traffic because engineers won’t certify its safety. We really need to pause and think…
This spring, as workers’ rights advocates began their push for mandatory paid sick leave for every worker employed in Dallas, one of the biggest questions that bubbled to the surface is just how many people in the city need paid sick leave. New data from the nonpartisan Institute for Women’s Policy…
Two days after lamenting middle-class residents’ flight from Dallas, the City Council did something about it. By a 15-0 vote, the council passed Dallas’ first comprehensive housing policy, which it hopes will bring 20,000 new homes to 13 of the city’s 14 council districts. Through zoning and financing initiatives, the…
Interesting item in my email titled “Do you want to run the Dallas Convention Center?” My first thought: “No.” Second thought: “Thanks for asking.” Third thought: “Wait. How much do I get?” A thoughtful reader forwarded the document to me from the city of Dallas procurement page. It’s a 25-page…
Euless lawyer Salman Bhojani did it. After a losing run for City Council two years ago, he scored an apparent victory Saturday night, finishing 37 votes ahead of Molly Maddux when all the ballots were counted. While he still faces a potential recount — Maddux has not conceded, talked to…
