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MustReadTexas.com – @MustReadTexas
BY: @MattMackowiak |
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WEDNESDAY | 4/98/2025 |
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“If something of importance is known in Texas, Matt knows it. With a decline in the number of credible news organizations, the Must Read Texas morning email is indispensable for anyone that wants to continue to be informed.” – Former U.S. Senator Phil Gramm (R-TX) |
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“Texas measles outbreak tops 500 cases, including multiple at a day care in Lubbock,” AP's Jamie Stengle — “A day care facility in a Texas county that’s part of the measles outbreak has multiple cases, including children too young to be fully vaccinated, public health officials say.
West Texas is in the middle of a still-growing measles outbreak with 505 cases reported on Tuesday. The state expanded the number of counties in the outbreak area this week to 10. The highly contagious virus began to spread in late January and health officials say it has spread to New Mexico, Oklahoma, Kansas and Mexico.
Three people who were unvaccinated have died from measles-related illnesses this year, including two elementary school-aged children in Texas. The second child died Thursday at a Lubbock hospital, and Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. attended the funeral in Seminole, the epicenter of the outbreak. |
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As of Friday, there were seven cases at a day care where one young child who was infectious gave it to two other children before it spread to other classrooms, Lubbock Public Health director Katherine Wells said.
“Measles is so contagious I won’t be surprised if it enters other facilities,” Wells said.
There are more than 200 children at the day care, Wells said, and most have had least one dose of the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine, which is first recommended between 12 and 15 months old and a second shot between 4 and 6 years old. |
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“We do have some children that have only received one dose that are now infected,” she said.
The public health department is recommending that any child with only one vaccine get their second dose early, and changed its recommendation for kids in Lubbock County to get the first vaccine dose at 6 months old instead of 1. A child who is unvaccinated and attends the day care must stay home for 21 days since their last exposure, Wells said.
Case count and hospitalization numbers in Texas have climbed steadily since the outbreak began, and spiked by 81 cases from March 28 to April 4.
On Tuesday, the state added another 24 cases to its count and two additional counties, Borden and Randall. One more person was hospitalized since Friday, with 57 total.
Gaines County, where the virus has been spreading through a close-knit Mennonite community, has the majority of cases, with 328 on Tuesday. Neighboring Terry County is second with 46, followed by Lubbock County with 36.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention met with Texas officials Monday to determine how many people it would send to West Texas to assist with the outbreak response, spokesman Jason McDonald said Monday. He expected a small team to arrive later this week, followed by a bigger group on the ground next week.
The CDC said its first team was in the region from early March to April 1, withdrawing on-the-ground support days before a second child died in the outbreak." AP |
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MustReadTexas.com – @MustReadTexas
BY: @MattMackowiak |
Subscribe to the daily email here |
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WEDNESDAY || 4/9/2025 |
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Good Wednesday evening.
Thank you for reading as a FREE subscriber. |
» Become a PAID SUBSCRIBER here for $7mo or $70/yr and SAVE TIME and be BETTER INFORMED. |
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“If something of importance is known in Texas, Matt knows it. With a decline in the number of credible news organizations, the Must Read Texas morning email is indispensable for anyone that wants to continue to be informed.” – Former U.S. Senator Phil Gramm (R-TX) |
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AUSTIN NEWSLETTER LAUNCHED |
Are you one of the 100,000+ subscribers to ATX Pulse, a newsletter that delivers EVERYTHING you NEED TO KNOW about Austin? |
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Subscriptions are $5/mo, $50/yr or $199/lifetime here: ATXpulsepremium.com. |
> Read the most recent FREE subscriber email here.
> Become a PAID subscriber for $5/mo or $50/yr here. |
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“Texas AG Ken Paxton launches Senate primary challenge against Republican Sen. John Cornyn,” AP's Nadia Lathan — “Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is running for the U.S. Senate in a primary challenge against Republican Sen. John Cornyn, setting up what is likely to become one of the GOP’s most contentious and expensive contests of 2026.
Paxton, a close ally of President Donald Trump, made the announcement Tuesday after spending more than a year openly flirting with a Senate challenge. During that time, Paxton has sought to position himself as a national leader among the GOP’s ascendant hard right, launching some of the first criminal investigations in the U.S. over abortion bans and gender-affirming care for transgender youth.
His entry into the race, which he made official in an interview on Fox News’ “The Ingraham Angle,” comes as Paxton is no longer shadowed by legal troubles that had hung over him for nearly a decade but did not weaken his ability to win reelection twice. |
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“I’m running for U.S. Senate to fight for President Trump’s agenda and take a sledgehammer to the D.C. establishment,” Paxton said in a post on X. “Together, let’s send John Cornyn packing.”
Cornyn’s campaign responded by calling his challenger a “fraud” and leaning into Paxton’s historic impeachment in 2023 after eight of his closest aides accused him of corruption and reported him to the FBI. Paxton was later acquitted in a trial the Texas Senate, where his wife is a state senator but was not allowed to cast a vote. |
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“This will be a spirited campaign and we assure Texans they will have a real choice when this race is over,” Cornyn’s campaign said in a statement.
Paxton’s decision to enter the race highlights his political resiliency and popularity among Texas Republicans after a decade of legal woes that, at times, seemed to imperil his future: felony securities fraud charges, impeachment after an extraordinary revolt by his closest aides and an FBI corruption investigation. Paxton reached a deal to end the criminal case and the Biden administration quietly decided not to prosecute him.
Cornyn, a respected and popular senator within the GOP conference in Washington, will likely now have to face his most competitive campaign since taking office in 2002.
He recently lost his bid to lead the GOP as Senate majority leader in November after he spent several years as Sen. Mitch McConnell’s No. 2 in leadership. A former Texas attorney general and state Supreme Court justice, Cornyn has helped the party raise millions of dollars throughout his decades-long career and has worked with Democrats on bipartisan bills.
Cornyn has received criticism from Paxton and other Republicans after he suggested that Trump might not be the best Republican candidate for the 2024 presidential election.
Paxton has also expressed discontent with Cornyn’s support of a 2022 bipartisan gun bill that strengthened background checks for buyers under 21, increased prosecution for unlicensed sellers and funds for youth mental health services in the wake of the Uvalde, Texas, elementary school shooting that killed 19 children and two teachers.
Amidst several legal battles, the Texas attorney general has become a well-known figure on the right for his litigation against former President Joe Biden. Notably, Paxton led a lawsuit attempting to overturn Trump’s loss to Biden in 2020, an effort that the U.S. Supreme Court rejected.
In 2023, the GOP-controlled Texas House voted to impeach Paxton for bribery offenses related to a wealthy real estate donor before his acquittal in the Senate, where Paxton was once a lawmaker. The Justice Department decided not to pursue its investigation into Paxton over the allegations in the final weeks of former President Biden’s term, according to two people familiar with the matter who spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity.
Earlier this month, a district court awarded a combined $6.6 million to four former senior Paxton aides in a whistleblower lawsuit after they were fired shortly after reporting Paxton’s actions to the FBI. Paxton’s office has said he will appeal.
In 2022, when Paxton was last on the ballot, Republican George P. Bush made Paxton’s legal troubles the cornerstone of a primary challenge. Paxton won easily in a runoff.
A Democrat has yet to enter next year’s Senate race in Texas, where their party hasn’t won a statewide office in more than 30 years." AP |
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FREE SUBSCRIPTIONS HAVE ENDED: As of July 11, 2022, we have moved to a paywall for free subscribers. Free subscribers will only receive the top story in their morning email. Free subscribers will need to become paid subscribers to receive full story summaries. |
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“ERCOT power demand forecast shows huge increase” DMN ($)
“Crews start razing Texan Cultures Institute, planned arena site” SAEN ($) |
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"Texas Senate approves crackdown on residential solar industry” SAEN ($) |
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“‘Unnecessarily secretive’: Travis County DA settles security records case with Texas AG” AAS ($)
“Rail expansion expected to link Fort Worth’s TEXRail with Dallas, Denton systems” FW Report
“City spent $20K on Final Four tickets for council members” SA Report |
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“San Antonio mayor candidates spar on poverty, crime and Project Marvel in debate” SA Report |
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“Chip Roy says he'll vote no on tax break extension without more cuts” SAEN ($) |
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> THE TEXAN: "Bill Banning NDAs in Child Sexual Abuse Cases Passes Texas House Unanimously" THE TEXAN |
> KXAN: "Texas senators consider $10,000 fine for superintendents who don’t report suspected sexual misconduct" KXAN |
> KXAN: "Bill to repeal Texas’ ban on ‘homosexual conduct’ resurfaces in new session" KXAN |
> SA REPORT: "Democracy should be about participation, not exclusion. Vote ‘no’ on SAVE Act." SA REPORT |
> DMN: "Multifaith community leaders condemn EPIC City probes at North Texas news conference" DMN |
> DMN: "‘I dare you to arrest me’: North Texas man accused of threatening to kill ICE agents" DMN |
> KXAN: "Hays County voters to consider $1.6 billion worth of bond packages across 3 school districts" KXAN |
> AAS: "Texas Senate wants to ban all THC products in state. Here's what the House wants to allow." AAS |
> AAS: "Dispute over 19th-century Texas abortion ban complicates efforts to clarify new laws" AAS |
> THE TEXAN: "Ken Paxton Launches U.S. Senate Campaign, Challenging Sen. John Cornyn" THE TEXAN |
> AAS: "Texas lawmakers give initial OK to new agency that would axe ‘unnecessary’ regulations" AAS |
> DMN: "Dallas City Council candidates submit campaign finance reports" DMN |
> THE TEXAN: "‘Texas DOGE,’ Mid-Term Sunset Review Bills Pass State House" THE TEXAN |
> AAS: "Texas AG Ken Paxton launches investigation into Kellogg's over artificial food colorings" AAS |
> TPR: "Migrants who entered the U.S. via CBP One app should leave 'immediately,' DHS says" TPR |
> KXAN: "Austin Public Health outlines $15 million in funding, over 50 jobs lost due to federal funding cuts" KXAN |
> TPR: "Sen. Maria Cantwell says there is bipartisan support to rein Trump's tariffs" TPR |
> THE TEXAN: "UT Austin Scraps 'Flag' Courses, Including 'Cultural Diversity' Requirement" THE TEXAN |
> DMN: "When do the higher prices come? Texas braces for potential tariff impact" DMN |
> FWST: "Family friend accused of impregnating 12-year-old gets life sentence, TX cops say" FWST |
> FWST: "Man shoots ex and new boyfriend in murder-suicide at car meet, Texas cops say" FWST |
> SA REPORT: "San Antonio mayor candidates spar on poverty, crime and Project Marvel in debate" SA REPORT |
> HOU CHRON: "HISD will pay teachers based on performance, not experience in major shift" HOU CHRON |
> FWST: "Texas measles update: 505 confirmed cases as of April 8 as virus continues to spread" FWST |
> FWST: "Texas School Measles Outbreak Claims Second Child" FWST |
> TPR: "How should families navigate student loans and tuition these days?" TPR |
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Recent Texas sports scores:
> NBA: LA Clippers 122, San Antonio 117
> NHL: Vancouver 6, Dallas 5
> MLB: Chicago 10, Texas 6
> MLB: Houston 2, Seattle 1
Tonight's Texas sports schedule:
> 1:20pm: MLB: Texas at Chicago
> 3:10pm: MLB: Houston at Seattle
> 6:30pm: NBA: LA Lakers at Dallas (ESPN)
> 9pm: NBA: San Antonio at Golden State
> 9:30pm: NBA: Houston at LA Clippers
Tomorrow's Texas sports schedule:
> 7pm: NHL: Winnipeg at Dallas (ESPN+)
TEXAS MEN'S BASKETBALL: "Texas' Tre Johnson announces he'll declare for NBA draft after his stellar freshman season" AP
TEXAS WOMEN'S BASKETBALL: "Texas point guard Rori Harmon to return next season in bid to get Longhorns back to the Final Four" AP
DALLAS MAVERICKS: "What will Luka Doncic's return feel like for Mavericks fans?" DMN ($) |
