The vast majority of those interactions happen outside the public’s view. So we used open records requests to get the official schedules for Gov. Greg Abbott, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, Attorney General Ken Paxton and others.
While not all meeting details or activities are recorded, even an incomplete look makes clear that these Texans are enjoying easy access in President Donald Trump’s Washington.
.@GregAbbott_TX alone has had scores of interactions with top brass in both the administration and on Capitol Hill since Trump took office in January 2017. That includes 19 calls, meetings or appearances with Trump.
Those ties could be key in the November election.
Abbott’s camp sees the bond as a plus. His opponent, @LupeValdez, sees the cozy relationship between Abbott and Trump as a negative, saying Abbott has put special interests over average Texans.
Check out our database to explore more about top Texas officials’ interactions with their federal counterparts – both in D.C. and back home in the Lone Star State. interactives.dallasnews.com/2018/texas-mee…
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1/ Imagine lighting a match or flipping a light switch – the space around you ignites in a ball of flame, severely burning you or your family...
2/ More than two dozen homes have exploded in North Texas since 2006. The state could put financial pressure on the gas company to improve safety – but it usually doesn’t. interactives.dallasnews.com/2018/time-bomb/
3/ Fires and explosions along a massive network of pipelines owned and operated in Texas by @AtmosEnergy have resulted in at least 9 deaths and more than 22 serious injuries since 2006. interactives.dallasnews.com/2018/time-bomb/
1/ Jon Lambert was a PhD student at @Cornell. One morning, he slipped on a patch of ice and slammed his head into the pavement. He lay on the concrete and cried out. dallasnews.com/life/life/2018…
2/ “I think this scream came from a part of me that realized something I’d only considered abstractly before,” writes @evolambert.
“These bodies and brains of ours — and the lives they enact — are fragile, and can be broken in an instant.” dallasnews.com/life/life/2018…
3/ Elbow. Apple. Carpet. Saddle. Bubble.
The doctor told Jon to repeat those five words back to him; he could only remember three. They became his inner mantra for the next few years, one he would recite out of an obsessive compulsion to make sure he was OK.
Forty years ago, The Dallas Morning News ran its first restaurant review with a star rating. Since then, through eight chief critics and thousands of reviews, the five-star system has remained pretty much the same.
But dining in Dallas has changed and shifted, particularly in the past decade.
So, we went back to the drawing board to create a new star rating system. Our goal: to create a system that reflects what we are looking for in a restaurant today, not the trappings of bygone eras.
1/ Earlier this year, 18-year-old NeQuacia Jacobs, an honor student at South Oak Cliff High School, was shot to death in what appeared to be a random act of violence. buff.ly/2KNVpwr
2/ Last year in Dallas County, 63 people under the age of 25 were shooting victims. buff.ly/2KNVpwr
3/ Shortly after 2:15 p.m. on Feb. 24, a gunman shot into NeQuacia’s home, fatally wounding her. buff.ly/2KNVpwr
1/ Remember when we showed you how North Texas cities use taxpayer money to compete against each other for jobs and investment? dallasnews.com/business/econo…
3/ Experts say what happened is a direct result of the state's approach to economic development, which puts Mineral Wells, located about 50 miles west of Fort Worth, in a tough spot.
1/ If you picture Jesus as a Scandinavian man with beautiful hair, it's likely due to this image. Professor @muerko digs deep into our cultural fixation with one artist's depiction of Christ. buff.ly/2NWPYOh
2/ Warhol or Pollock might come to mind as the most popular artwork from the 20th century, but with half a billion reproductions in circulation, “Head of Christ” has the widest reach. And now you can see works from the artist in Dallas.
3/ “Head of Christ” features a relatable Jesus with a kindly affect. The artist, Warner E. Sallman, never became widely recognized. But now his work is part of “The Face of Jesus,” an exhibition at The Museum of Biblical Art across from NorthPark Center.