Texas Lottery investigation, latest in legislative session: TWITP
The Brief
The Texas Lottery investigation and the latest discussions in the legislative session were hot topics in This Week in Texas Politics
FOX 7 Austin's chief political reporter Rudy Koski and our panel of analysts have a look at some of the top stories this week.
AUSTIN, Texas - This Week in Texas Politcs we saw several top issues that could turn into big fights, and a few topics that seemed to come out of left field.
FOX 7 Austin's chief political reporter Rudy Koski and our panel of analysts have a look at some of the top stories this week.
Local perspective
RUDY KOSKI: It was an extremely busy week This Week in Texas Politics. Let's get our headlines now from our panel. And we begin first with Patrick. Svitek with the Washington Post. Patrick, what's your headline?
PATRICK SVITEK: Well, here in Washington, it was another suspenseful and dramatic week for President Trump's legislative agenda. That's my headline.
RUDY KOSKI: Brad Johnson with the Texan. Brad, what's your headline?
BRAD JOHNSON: Meet the new legislature's whipping boy and the Texas Lottery Commission.
Local perspective
RUDY KOSKI: Well, a lottery reform bill did move out of the Texas Senate and to the House this week. But did the lotto avoid getting defunded or is it just game over for the lotto? Brad, what do you think?
BRAD JOHNSON: I don't think this is going away. I don't think the lottery commission is going to be sunsetted, but we might see some substantial changes in the Sunset Bill that they are currently under right now. They need to get renewed by the legislature in order to keep going. And if they don't, well, you know, that's, that's it.
PATRICK SVITEK: But something that has stood out to me, just watching it from a distance is how this does not bode well, you know, just I think, atmospherically, for the efforts to expand gambling in Texas.
Local perspective
RUDY KOSKI: Support in the House, we got that confirmed now for school choice. But the question is, is a which plan? Brad, the House has got a plan. The Senate's got a plan. They're not the same. Is that trouble?
BRAD JOHNSON: Well, I actually don't think this is the top candidate for calling a special session. I think that's bail reform, whether that can get across the line in the House. But on this issue specifically, I think we get something. They're going to have to figure out. There's no bridging that gap. They go with one or the go with the other. Maybe there's some other, other creative way to do this. But yeah, it's not across the line yet. There's a lot of negotiating to happen. This thing is definitely going to conference committee.
RUDY KOSKI: On Capitol Hill and D.C. The House passed its big budget reform bill. Some members of the Texas congressional delegation are catching a little heat on how they voted. Patrick, who stays on that hot seat?
PATRICK SVITEK: One of the most controversial parts of it was its instructions for federal spending cuts to a House committee that oversees Medicaid. Some vulnerable Republicans who voted for this said that they weren't voting for it to support cuts to Medicaid. And so when you talk about vulnerable Republicans in Texas, you're thinking about someone like Congresswoman Monica de la Cruz and South Texas and then some vulnerable Democrats who opposed this, were attacked for Republicans for being in favor of raising taxes.
RUDY KOSKI: We saw the return of drag show bans another DEI ban discussion and a package of parental right's Bills at the Texas Capitol. You know, guys, do all these Bills or just some of these Bills make it to the governor? What do you think, Brad?
BRAD JOHNSON: Yeah, you probably see most of them make it to the governor. But the question has always is, what do they look like when they finally make it to his desk?
RUDY KOSKI: And the biggest devil of a detail is defining what DEI is. Patrick, do you think that at some point in time, someone's really got to just sit down and say, this is what DEI is and get away from this broad definition?
PATRICK SVITEK: You know, I agree, there's certainly a definition that could be up for debate there. You've seen some institutions and Republicans have tried to call them out on this. You've seen some institutions realize how politically vulnerable they've become from just using those words they've tried to reclassify or re describe some of those positions just to get away from that language. And that's upset some Republicans even more.
RUDY KOSKI: Political Running Back Ken Paxton suited up and is taking on the NCAA this week. He wants a court to order the organization to revise its transgender rule and immediately start screening the sex of student athletes. Brad, who wins this fight?
BRAD JOHNSON: Well, I think ultimately right now, the Republicans and Paxton probably do. But I heard there's I heard rumblings of some controversy between the White House and the Attorney General or other random activists like Riley Gaines on this issue.
PATRICK SVITEK: But there are, you know, steps you can take, like this latest lawsuit by Paxton that could make it look like you're trying to, you know, steal some of the glory from the White House or try to push their policies a little further in terms of interpretation.
RUDY KOSKI: Certainly, a lot of political grenades being tossed and one of the most recent grenades landed here in Austin. HB2 74 was filed this week that would create Austin, DC. But Patrick, didn't we learn a lesson with Washington, D.C., that that's not exactly a good idea.
PATRICK SVITEK: Yeah, I mean, obviously, Republicans, state leaders and lawmakers in Texas have dreamed forever about having more control over Austin. As Rick Perry called it, I think, the blueberry and the tomato soup or something like that. But this idea of having a district controlled by the state still seems a little unrealistic to me.
Local perspective
RUDY KOSKI: All right, you can catch this discussion, our full discussion on FOX 7 YouTube and Fox Local. But let's wrap it up now with our final word for the week. And we'll begin with Brad Johnson.
BRAD JOHNSON: Budget.
PATRICK SVITEK: I'll say Medicaid, as an extension of that budget fight, because that was the most politically hot issue this week in D.C.
RUDY KOSKI: And that is This Week in Texas Politics.
The Source
Information from interviews conducted by FOX 7 Austin's Rudy Koski
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
25 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Trump is under water on some of his top issues — including immigration, poll shows
President Donald Trump is under water on some of his most favorable issues — immigration and the economy — according to a new Quinnipiac University poll released Wednesday. The poll shows Trump's approval rating at 38 percent among registered voters, a three point drop from April. He's also losing support on subjects that were crucial to his November victory. On immigration — an issue that the president hammered on the campaign trail — Trump's approval rating dropped five points from April, to 43 percent. His already low approval rating on the economy did not budge, remaining at 40 percent. The results show a majority of voters, 54 percent, disapprove of Trump's handling of the issue. The poll surveyed 1,265 self-identified registered voters from June 5-9, and has a margin of error of plus or minus 2.8 percent. The results come as Trump's approval has been steadily picking up since it dropped significantly in April, according to RealClearPolitics' polling average. The negative polling did not stop at the president himself. A majority of the voters polled also had objections to his premier piece of legislation, the 'big, beautiful bill' making its way through Congress. Fifty-three percent of the voters polled did not support the legislation. Divided among party lines, 67 percent of Republicans supported, while 89 percent of Democrats and 57 percent of independents opposed it. On Medicaid funding, an issue that has become Democratic messaging priority, 47 percent of those surveyed thought funding should increase, while 40 percent think it should stay about the same, and just 10 percent think federal funding should decrease. The bill as passed by the House is estimated to end Medicaid coverage for millions of people. Quinnipiac also asked voters what they think of billionaire Elon Musk, and his approval rating is crashing among Republicans following his very public breakup with Trump. Among Republicans, 62 percent had a favorable view of Musk, a 16 point drop from April. But while Trump's approval languishes, it's not clear Democrats will be able to take advantage of it. A vast majority of voters — 70 percent — disapprove of the way Democrats in Congress are doing their jobs, while 20 percent approved. That's 12 points lower than how voters viewed Republicans in the survey.
Yahoo
25 minutes ago
- Yahoo
How Trump's ‘big beautiful bill' could wreck Utah's groundbreaking AI laws
Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said President Donald Trump's 'big, beautiful' budget package could derail the state's groundbreaking artificial intelligence laws unless it is changed. The 1,000-page bill that passed the House last month includes a 10-year prohibition on AI regulations. An updated Senate version removed the all-out ban but conditioned $500 million in AI infrastructure grants on states pausing enforcement of AI laws. Behind these provisions is a desire by some lawmakers to prevent a nationwide patchwork of AI regulations that hampers innovation amid competition with China. But Cox, and Utah's top tech policymakers, said the approach taken by Trump's bill interferes with the state's right to react to rapidly evolving technologies. 'Our hope is that the last version of this bill that passes, whatever that looks like, will allow for the smart type of regulation that we're doing in Utah, and prevent the bad kind of regulation that would stop AI from reaching its fullest potential,' Cox said Tuesday during a monthly PBS broadcast. Utah has been recognized around the world for having the 'first and smartest of the AI regulations that have been proposed,' according to Cox. These policies include bills that create a state-run AI policy lab, clarify consumer protection liability for AI and require AI disclosures in industries like finance and mental health. The governor said that multiple members of the U.S. House have told his team that they were not aware of the AI moratorium when they voted on the bill. Members of the White House and Senate have also said that they don't want the 'BBB bill' to eliminate Utah's law, Cox said. 'AI companies actually support what we're doing because they recognize that this is the right way to do AI regulation as opposed to just piecemeal,' Cox said. Cox agreed that 'a hodgepodge' of AI laws around the country would cause the U.S. to 'fall behind and we would lose this global race that is happening right now.' But he said a moratorium on AI policy shouldn't come at the expense of Utah's novel approach which doesn't actually tell AI companies how they can develop their models. Utah Rep. Doug Fiefia, R-Herriman, said the problem goes beyond counterproductive policy. It targets the foundation of states rights that has allowed Utah to lead out on so many issues, according to Fiefia, a freshman lawmaker who previously worked at Google. 'States are laboratories for innovation when it comes to policy, and I believe that the federal government should not overreach on this process and allow it to work,' Fiefia said. 'We will not give over our control because the federal government believes that it's the right thing to do to win this race.' On Tuesday, Utah House legislative leadership, and 62 state senators and representatives, sent a letter authored by Fiefia to Utah's congressional delegation arguing that the moratorium hindered 'Utah's nationally recognized efforts to strike the right balance between innovation and consumer protection.' Not only would the moratorium harm state efforts to legislate guardrails, it would also hurt businesses that are using AI responsibly by allowing their competitors to engage in unethical behavior, according to Fiefia. States have shown they are more nimble than the federal government when they need to adapt to change, Fiefia said. And this is the approach Fiefia believes Utah has demonstrated in opening up legal pathways for innovation while updating the law for the threats posed by AI. 'Just because we want to move fast in this global arms race of AI doesn't mean we can't do so with a seat belt,' Fiefia said. 'I believe that we can both win this AI race, but also doing it in a thoughtful and meaningful way.' The AI moratorium faces procedural hurdles in addition to ideological pushback. Utah Sen. Kirk Cullimore, R-Sandy, pointed out that reconciliation bills are meant only to amend the annual budget and not make substantive policy shifts. Some senators have alleged that the AI moratorium does not comply with the 'Byrd Rule,' a procedural requirement that prohibits 'nonbudgetary' additions during the budget 'reconciliation' process. Cullimore, who was the sponsor behind most of Utah's AI legislation, was in Washington, D.C., last week, speaking with members of the House Commerce Committee, which oversaw the inclusion of the AI moratorium provisions. The intentions behind the moratorium, Cullimore said, were to prevent states from implementing what are called 'foundational regulations' that restrict the kind of technology AI companies can develop. Utah's laws do not do this, according to Cullimore, who also signed Fiefia's letter, but they would still be sidelined by the 'big beautiful bill' even if the moratorium is replaced by the conditioned federal funding. 'I think the drafting of the moratorium was so broad that it potentially encompassed all of that stuff,' he said. 'So I hope that that we can refine the text a little bit, and then if they want to put those conditions in on foundational regulation, I think that'd be appropriate.'
Yahoo
26 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Cramer: GOP has no ‘stomach' for Medicare changes in Trump megabill
Senate Republicans appear less likely to try to make changes to Medicare Advantage as part of their massive tax and spending bill, Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) said Wednesday. Cramer raised the idea of targeting Medicare Advantage for additional savings last week after a closed-door caucus meeting, saying the program is ideal for reform because it is rife with waste, fraud and abuse. The House-passed bill would cut more than $800 billion from Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program, but some GOP lawmakers argue that other mandatory spending programs, such as Medicare, should also be reviewed for 'waste' to further reduce the cost of the bill. But Medicare has long been considered a political third rail, and Cramer on Wednesday said he doesn't think Republicans want to try to go near it — even though Medicare Advantage changes have bipartisan support. 'I don't think there's a stomach for it. I think that the president doesn't want to touch Medicare,' Cramer said. When Republicans first floated the idea of Medicare changes last week, Senate Democrats jumped to open a new line of attack. Politically, it didn't matter that Republicans were discussing bipartisan legislation sponsored by Sens. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) and Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) that would save billions of dollars by reducing overpayments to private Medicare Advantage plans. The legislation would crack down on a practice called 'upcoding' through which insurers classify patients as sicker so the government will reimburse them at a higher rate. Cramer noted it's difficult for members to try to talk about the changes. 'To be honest, I'm the only one I know that talks about it,' Cramer said. 'I just don't know how we get to where we want to get without going after some of the bigger drivers of the debt and deficit.' Senate Republicans will be briefed by Senate Finance Committee Chair Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) on Wednesday afternoon, ahead of the release of legislative text. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
