The Mars Curiosity Rover may find strange signs of life. Copyright © 2012 Richard Bartholomew, All Rights Reserved See more cartoons from Richard Bartholomew at Bartholoviews.

This week, the National Council of La Raza and the Sierra Club released a poll conducted by Project New America and Myers Research to “gauge Latino voters’ opinions on a range of environmental issues.” The results clearly show an increase in environmental awareness among Latinos, and they are...

In our ongoing coverage of equality news, here's the latest from Texas and the Nation. Openly-gay woman nominated to U.S. District Court. Gay man denied marriage lincense arrested for refusing to leave Dallas County Clerk's office. “They’re making us go to the back of the bus,” Major 'Mark'...

Voting advocates scored a major victory this afternoon when U.S. District Judge Gregg Costa enjoined enforcement of Texas laws passed in the 2011 legislative session which require that deputy voter registrars be Texas residents and prohibited performance-based compensation for voter registration...

Every time a new part of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) kicks in, it becomes harder to deny its positive impacts or to continue to pretend it's part of a tyrannical socialist take-over. And the slate of August 1 benefits is no exception. You're probably well aware that insurers are now required...

Democratic Congressman Lloyd Doggett got into the Olympic spirt on the House floor today in a speech opposing the GOP's proposed extension of the Bush Tax Cuts for those making over $250,000 a year. The GOP proposal would also allow other tax credits that help working families expire, including...

It's over. Ted Cruz defeated David Dewhurst tonight.. Let's pretend for a moment that both of these candidates are running to represent Texans, not the corporations that paid for their campaigns and that will make them rich after leaving office. Let's pretend David Dewhurst is actually sad...

Texas Democratic Party Chairman Gilberto Hinojosa released the following statement in response to the results of the Primary Runoff Elections, with Paul Sadler winning the Democratic nomination for US Senate and Ted Cruz seemingly on Cruz-control to win the Republican nomination: "We could not be...

At long last, on this 31st day of July, our Texas primary season will conclude with some lingering runoffs. Polls close at 7:00 p.m. If you are in line at 7:00 you will be allowed to vote. Early vote should be in shortly after 7:00 p.m. Election Day results will trickle in throughout the night....

First, today is the Primary Election Run-off! Go Vote! Second, this last weekend I had the privilege of block walking in San Antonio for Tina Torres. I suspect this might be the closest race we see tonight on either side of the primary ballot. Tina is in a run-off with Philip "Creepy"...

The day has finally arrived after a long, drawn out, really lowbrow campaign. Tonight, Texas Republican primary voters are probably going to put us on Cruz Control for the next six years. A third poll came out on Sunday showing Cruz ahead...this time by ten points. From Public Policy Polling:...

After initially reaffirming its stance against marriage equality the PR department at Chick-Fil-A released a statement on Facebook saying, "Going forward, our intent is to leave the policy debate over same-sex marriage to the government and political arena." The new official position of the...

Long-shot former solicitor general Ted Cruz is poised to upset sitting Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst in the Republican Senate primary, and it might not be a bad thing. Shocking, sure, to the insiders and Perry power brokers who figured The Dew was a lock back in the fall, before...

From the get-go (by which we mean the second filing deadline for the primary), the question was which other candidate would join Paul Sadler in the run-off given the four-way race between four under-funded candidates. Few onlookers expected it to be Yarbrough, who perhaps coasted on his...

Today the DNC announced that San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro will deliver the keynote address Sept. 4th at the 2012 Democratic National Convention in Charlotte. Currently the youngest mayor of a major US city, he will be the first hispanic to deliver the speech and it comes in a year when the...

In recent days, Texas Democrats have received two communications from the Texas Democratic Party regarding US Senate runoff. Largely overshadowed by the Dewhurst v Cruz TV onslaught (and Yarbrough's 25k TV ad buy), the runoff between Paul Sadler and Grady Yarbrough will be decided today and the...

As we go into this last week of early voting for city council elections in Austin, and we get ready for primary elections in just a few short weeks, let's take a quick look at the mechanics of voting. Over the past few months, we've looked at voter identification laws, the ensuing lawsuits, and...

Wither the hairy legged moderate man of the State Senate? Jeff Wentworth, who hasn't always kowtowed the Republican Party line, may be at the end of his two-decade career in the Senate, which spans 7 terms and began in 1993 when Ann Richards was still Governor. Wentworth, loathed by this...

The winner of this runoff -- itself the by-product of an 11-way Democratic primary -- will go to Congress. This minority-opportunity district was designed to elect a Democrat. The only question is whether Marc Veasey or Domingo Garcia gets the win. Veasey is a current State Rep, Garcia a former...

On the Democratic side, this is the race that has the biggest consequences for November, and possibly for the ability of the Blue Team to reclaim the US House of Representatives. Former Congressman Ciro Rodriguez faces off against State Representative Pete Gallego for the chance to oust incumbent...

The race for the dismantled and now open CD-25 will likely be decided in the primary tomorrow, as former Secretary of State Roger Williams and Tea Party activist Wes Riddle square off in this sprawling Central Texas district. Redistricting warped CD-25 from an Austin-anchored district that ran...

Yesterday, the "Hispanic Leadership Network" held a summit in San Antonio featuring Rick Perry and Quico Canseco. They're trying to mobilize conservative Latinos... The Texas Democratic Party reminds us that it should be too little, too late. Hispanic voters ought to look at the actions of these...

Mitt Romney is not ready to be president. Copyright © 2012 Richard Bartholomew, All Rights Reserved See more cartoons from Richard Bartholomew at Bartholoviews.

As you've probably heard, Mitt Romney's horse will be representing Team USA in London, and now the horse's rider is pushing back against allegations that the sport is "elitist." Other competitors include royals -- yes, like relatives of "kings and queens" royals -- from Saudi Arabia, Denmark, and...

In our ongoing coverage of equality news, here's the latest from Texas and the nation. There are 21 openly gay and lesbian athletes competing in the London Olympics. Sally Ride, the first American Woman to fly into space, passed away on Monday. She came out posthumously in her obituary,...

This is a cross post from Think Progress. On her Facebook page last week, Texas State Rep. Debbie Riddle (R-Tomball) explained her view that schools would be acting wisely and constitutionally if they start forcing students to read Christian Proverbs: Formal prayer has been taken out of our...

The Democratic US Senate candidate who is often perceived as a joke, Grady Yarbrough, is apparently releasing an ad. "I will support the Dream Act 100%," he says as the ad begins. He also proposes to "grant citizenship to all undocumented workers living here for more than 7 years without a...

We all know that Texas cities are both sprawling and car-based, and we know some of the accompanying negative impacts: it's bad for the environment, and there are few things worse than sitting in traffic while still having 40 miles to go before you're home. But a recent paper by the Brookings...

Palin At Bat for Cruz in Houston Today, crazy less-than-one-term former governor Sarah Palin will be in Texas to support her chosen runoff candidate Ted Cruz. The two will appear together at an event in The Woodlands, where they will be joined by Republican Senator Jim DeMint. Is Dewhurst...

Busy tomorrow? If you've got time to help take back the State House, get on the Annie's List bus from Austin to San Antonio. Volunteers are needed to head down to HD-117 and help blockwalk for Tina Torres, the Burnt Orange Report endorsed candidate in this crucial race. Torres is the strongest...

Quick wrap-up of news pertaining to the ongoing Republican primary runoffs here in Texas: Crazy People for Cruz! Sarah Palin, Jim DeMint, Rand "Son of Ron" Paul an Mike Lee are coming to Texas to campaign for Ted Cruz. Also actively supporting him is shamed radio psychopath Glenn Beck and one-man...

Judge Reverses Air Permit For Dirty Las Brisas Power Plant, Protects Corpus Christi * District Court Judge Stephen Yelenosky signed a long awaited order yesterday which invalidated the state issued air pollution permit for the proposed Las Brisas (which means, ironically, ‘the breezes’ in...

_The Austin Chronicle_ announced today that they are changing their endorsement in the Constable 2 runoff, from "no endorsement" to supporting incumbent Adan Ballesteros. They write: It is only in rare circumstances that we change our opinion about the candidates in a race. In the first round of...

"Liberty for All," the Paulite SuperPAC funded by a 21-year-old from Nacogdoches with his inherited fortune, is not the only enthusiast of our state's crazy Congressman Ron Paul who supports Michael Cargill. The _Burnt Orange Report_ has learned that Texans for Accountable Government (TAG) is...

On Monday night, Ted Cruz and David Dewhurst met in Houston for their second final debate. This one is actually the last one; there's simply no more time. That's right: we're less than a week away from the runoff election. On Tuesday, we'll which one of these cretins is our next senator. The...

Yesterday the Obama campaign released a new TV ad laying out two very different courses our country could take this November. The video titled "The Choice" will air in 9 swing states. In it, the President focuses on the ideological battle between giving tax cuts to the the wealthy and investing...

With the runoff less than a week away, here's a run-down of endorsements in some of our Texas races. HD-11: Rick Perry has announced his fervent support of State Rep. Chuck Hopson. Governor good hair joins Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott, Texas Alliance for Life, and the NRA in supporting...

If Senator Jon Kyl's accusation that Obama talks too "incessantly" about the middle class wasn't enough of an indication, Republicans aren't very concerned with the middle class lately. And in their latest tax plan, it really shows. It came as no surprise that when President Obama proposed a...

Rick Perry wasn't happy about President Obama's visit to Texas last week. His office released this statement: Gov. Rick Perry released the following statement on President Barack Obama's visit to Texas: "Perhaps while the President is visiting Texas, he can take a break from big-dollar...

_Cross-posted from SarahEckhardt.com. You can follow Commissioner Eckhardt on twitter @Sarah_Eckhardt or facebook.com/SarahEckhardtAustin. _The good news is that our air is still designated as in “attainment” according to the federal standards set in 2008 for eight-hour Ozone (75 parts per...

After a brief pause in Presidential politics following the terrible events in Colorado, the mendacious Mitt Romney is back on the campaign trail distorting the President's record and saying just about anything to get elected. To rebut mendacious Mitt's mischaracterization of the President's...

With runoff early voting kicking off on Monday, major newspaper editorials are weighing in on the contentious races throughout the state. Republican Senate Runoff: Dallas Morning News: David Dewhurst Houston Chronicle: David Dewhurst San Antonio Express-News: David Dewhurst Austin...

Now that SCOTUS has ruled that the Affordable Care Act is mostly here to stay, Republican state leaders, with Rick Perry at the forefront, are doing everything they can to avoid implementation. Despite the 4.5 million Texans insured through Medicaid who otherwise would not be able to afford...

In recent years, Americans have seen right-wing politicians and groups complaining about how alleged voter fraud is destroying the integrity of our elections. This recent trend started with the witch-hunt against low-income advocacy group ACORN, which insane conservatives accused of stealing...

Few things are more popular in Austin than food trucks and local pride and on Saturday the Department of Agriculture's Go Texan program hosted a food truck competition at the South 1st Food Court in Austin. The event was partly to promote the Go Texan Restaurant Round-up. The week long program...

Paul Sadler is the only candidate in the race on either side of the aisle who could add anything of value to our US Senate. We enthusiastically endorse him in the Democratic run-off. Sadler's extensive legislative experience in public education and professional work on renewable energy give him a...

Adan Ballesteros is the only real Democrat in the runoff, and is our only chance to hold this seat come November. We endorse him in the runoff for Travis County Constable Precinct 2. Ballesteros is not without his flaws, but opponent Michael Cargill is so totally unacceptable that we cannot sit...

Tina Torres is the best candidate to serve the people of HD-117, and the strongest candidate to reclaim this seat from the Republicans this November and keep it in 2014. We unanimously and enthusiastically endorse her in the runoff. Torres has a long history of public service to the people of San...

Nicole Collier's inspirational personal story and commitment to her community make her the best choice in HD-95. We unanimously endorse her in the run-off. Collier is an attorney, small business owner, and Democratic activist in Fort Worth. Despite having her first child at age 16, she worked her...

Burnt Orange Report Endorses Marc Veasey in CD-33 Runoff Marc Veasey is a rock-solid progressive with a history of fighting for his constituents and working with the Democratic caucus. In this Democratic district, he is by far the best choice, and we urge voters to support him in the run-off. We...