Government

Former House Majority leader Tom DeLay and his attorneys argued the merits of whether Delay’s 2010 money laundering conviction should remain overturned or if the original punishment should stand.

DeLay was found guilty of taking money donated to his political action committee and feeding it into a number of Texas Republican's campaigns.

In 2013 his conviction was overturned because checks are not considered funds, therefore the prosecution lacked evidence. But earlier this year the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals agreed to hear an appeal of that overturned conviction.

A group of state lawmakers concerned with the surge of unaccompanied minors making their way to Texas are petitioning Gov. Rick Perry to call a special session to address the issue. But the governor is showing no sign that he will oblige.

A group of state lawmakers have draw up some estimates of what it would cost the state to use Department of Public Safety state troopers to run 24/7 border operations: about $67 million. One of the only ways to get the money appropriated is for the governor to call a special session.

Landmark reforms that could lead to a deregulation of the Mexico oil industry has a Texas state lawmaker wanting to explore how the state could benefit.  

Early this year Mexico passed one set of reforms in regard to the country’s oil exploration and now the state-run oil company PEMEX is seeking investors and private companies with the skill to help extract one of the biggest oil reserves in the world.   

San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro will go before a Senate confirmation committee Tuesday, the first step in the process of becoming the new leader of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

In May, President Barack Obama nominated the three-term San Antonio mayor for the job, replacing Shaun Donovan.

If confirmed, Castro said while he'll be focused on housing in his new role, he's always been a strong supporter of education and hopes that's how he'll be remembered.

Speaking outside the opening of a new medical center at Fort Hood, Gov. Rick Perry announced a plan that uses groups of hospitals to provide speedier medical services to military veterans who have waited months to be seen by a doctor at U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs medical clinics.   

That plan includes hospitals throughout the state willing to work with the federal government to speed up the time it takes for a veteran to be seen by a doctor.

Texas Rep. Pete Sessions, who had been see as a possible replacement for outgoing House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, issued a statement late Thursday saying he was pulling his name from consideration.

"After thoughtful consideration and discussion with my colleagues, I have made the decision to not continue my run for House Majority Leader," Sessions said in a statement quoted by Politico.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry has been in California all week for a series of meetings, one of which was a stop at the Commonwealth Club of California in San Francisco.

During an extended Q&A session, Perry was asked whether he thought homosexuality was a disorder. This was his response, filmed by San Francisco CBS affiliate KPIX-TV:

The Mexican-American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF) has filed a federal civil rights lawsuit on the behalf of the League of United Latin-American Citizens, alleging the state of Texas isn’t doing enough to advance English language learner (ELL) students in public schools.

The lawsuit also names San Antonio-area school districts North East ISD and Southwest ISD as defendants and references continuing state education reports to show ELL students are not given as many opportunities as other students.

Staffing issues, longer wait times for doctor’s appointments and lack of medical vouchers are just some of the problems at veteran medical clinics in the U.S.

One South Texas veterans support group has seen firsthand the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs clinic in Harlingen, which has the country’s second longest average wait time according to a federal audit.   

In an -out-of-court settlement, University General Hospital in Dallas has restored the admitting privileges of two area doctors after they were revoked because the doctors perform abortions.

In April, Dr. Lamar Robinson and Dr. Jasbir Ahluwalia filed suit against the hospital for revoking their admitting privileges, which are now required for doctors performing abortions under House Bill 2, which was passed last summer.