North Dakota Ethics Commission Has No Authority to Punish Officials Violating Ethics Laws, State Leaders Argue
Voters created an ethics watchdog agency seven years ago. But officials keep pushing to weaken it, even as North Dakotans…
May 2026
admin Inside Elon Musk’s Stellar Year at the Texas Capitol
While Elon Musk took Washington, D.C., by storm, his company representatives and lobbyists were also notching up big political wins…
Elon Musk Hired a Dozen Texas Lobbyists This Year. State Law Keeps the Extent of Their Influence Under Wraps.
Musk, the billionaire businessman behind Tesla and SpaceX, influenced several new Texas laws this year. How his lobbyists came about…
Utah Sen. Mike Lee Says Selling Off Public Lands Will Solve the West’s Housing Crisis. Past Sales Show Otherwise.
Last month, Lee introduced a now-removed amendment to Trump’s policy megabill that mandated the sale of up to 3 million…
Why Gov. Greg Abbott Won’t Release His Emails With Elon Musk
We asked Abbott for his and his staff’s emails with Elon Musk and Musk’s companies. The governor’s office won’t turn…
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton Is Outsourcing More of His Office’s Work to Costly Private Lawyers
Despite having an office of hundreds of attorneys, Ken Paxton is frequently opting for private lawyers — many to whom…
The IRS Says Churches Can Now Endorse Candidates. That Could Give Texas Pastors More Power Than Ever.
While the IRS move applies across the country, Texas — with more than 200 megachurches — will be the epicenter…
These GOP Lawmakers Referred Constituents to the CFPB for Help. Then They Voted to Gut the Agency.
Many of the same Republican lawmakers who have targeted the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau for cuts have collectively directed thousands…
How We Tracked Workforce Reductions at Federal Health Agencies
When the Trump administration refused to reveal how many workers had left federal health agencies, ProPublica turned to a federal…
The Texas Redistricting Fight Has Been the Testing Ground for the Trump Administration’s Latest Legal Strategy
The administration has been testing a strategy of using the courts as leverage to force political outcomes. In Texas, the…