Latest news with #LoneStarState
National Post
2 days ago
- Business
- National Post
Ernie Clement drives in a career-high five runs in Blue Jays' rout of Athletics
The Blue Jays didn't get in from their stay in the Lone Star State until 4:30 a.m., on Thursday. Article content Article content Perhaps future early-morning arrivals are in order. Trying to make any sense of this baseball team amounts to an exercise in the absurd, knowing one has no clue what will play out from one series to the next. Article content The randomness of the sport might explain how a team can score a combined 24 runs in a three-game sweep of the San Diego Padres and then push across a total of six runs during a six-game road trip. Article content Article content Go figure. Article content Against a struggling visiting Athletics team, the Blue Jays were presented with the ideal panacea. Article content Offence was not an issue in Thursday night's 12-0 series-opening rout as the Jays scored eight runs in the second inning — two more than they managed on the six-game road trip — with Ernie Clement piling up a career-high five RBIs. Article content Toronto recorded 18 hits on the night. Article content The following are three takeaways on a night the Blue Jays went deep four times in posting their second consecutive shutout win, improving their record to 28-28, and sending the Athletics to their 14th loss in their past 15 games. Article content 1. Berrios buries A's Article content Hard to believe a pitcher would set the tone on a night when the Jays' bats came to life as it did on Thursday night. Credit Jose Berrios for showing his teammates the way. Article content His night began by striking out A's leadoff hitter Lawrence Butler on three pitches. Article content And when his offence provided Berrios with an 8-0 lead through two innings, his second win of the season — and first since early April — became a certainty. Article content Article content Despite the comfortable lead, Berrios kept attacking the strike zone. The right-hander finished with six shutout innings, allowing just two hits — a season-low — and two walks while striking out nine, a season-high. No numbers, however, can do justice to how locked in Berrios was in making his 12th start. Article content 2. Bo-dacious Article content One swing helped salvage a road tip that was teetering on disaster. Article content The swing was provided by Bo Bichette, who came into the ninth inning as a pinch-hitter and promptly stroked a two-run homer in a 2-0 win over the host Texas Rangers on Wednesday night, a victory that gave the Blue Jays their series win and a 2-4 record on a trip that began in Tampa.
Bloomberg
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Bloomberg
Are You Ready for Some Big, Bold, Boozy Whiskey?
Greetings, Top Shelfers, and welcome to another exciting installment of whiskey wonder. It's your resident expert on the category, Brad Japhe. I was recently down in Texas to host a tasting of big, bold bottles worthy of the Lone Star State—cask-strength offerings that are all the rage right now. But before I get into that, here's some industry news from across the whiskeysphere:
Daily Mail
6 days ago
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Texas Republicans make BIBLICAL mistake as they order teachers to post Ten Commandments in classrooms
Texas lawmakers are on the verge of requiring all public schools in the Republican state to display the Ten Commandments. While the constitutionality of the bill will certainly be challenged in court for separation of church and state, SB 10 is expected to be sign into law by the governor. While lawmakers voted on the measure over the weekend, one Democratic state representative grilled Rep. Candy Noble - the bill's sponsor - over what his perceived to be hypocrisy in a viral video. 'What is the fourth commandment,' Democrat James Talarico asked his Republican colleague. 'Keep the sabbath,' Noble responded after fumbling through paperwork to look the commandment. 'Part of keeping the Sabbath holy is not working on the Sabbath,' Talarico went on. 'Yeah, yeah, that is, that the Republican admitted awkwardly. 'What day is the Jewish sabbath,' the Democrat asked. 'It is on Saturday,' she answered sheepishly. 'And what day is it today,' the Democrat pressed. 'It is Saturday. Here we are,' Noble added. Talarico pointed out that Lone Star State politicos were expected to work on the Christian Sabbath, Sunday, in order to finalize the bill. 'Would you be willing to postpone your bill so that we're not breaking the Ten Commandments,' Talarico asked to laughter from others in the room. 'You're saying that you'd rather tell people to follow the Ten Commandments than follow it yourself.' Once it becomes law, as expected, all state-funded schools will be forced to display the Ten Commandments after September 1. Texas wants the King James version, the same as the Ten Commandments statue on the ground of the State Capitol in Austin. 'This monument and the words on it have already been approved and upheld by the Supreme Court in a 2005 case, so the wording won't need to be subject to a new court case objection,' Noble explained Saturday. However, Talarico, a rising voice of opposition against the state's GOP majority, did not give up an opportunity in the spotlight to try to embarrass his political opponents. 'The ninth commandment is "Thou shalt not bear false witness." Are you aware of any legislators who have lied about anything,' he asked a flustered Noble. 'Well there might be one coming up in a minute if you keep talking,' she shot back. 'Do you think that members of the legislature should focus more on trying to follow the Ten Commandments rather than telling others to follow them,' Talarico pointed out.
The Independent
6 days ago
- Politics
- The Independent
Texas House approves bill requiring Ten Commandments to be displayed in public schools
The Texas House of Representatives passed a Republican bill on Sunday requiring that the Ten Commandments be displayed in every schoolroom across the Lone Star State, bringing it a step closer to becoming law. After a week of debate, in which Democrats attempted to introduce amendments enabling individual districts to opt out and to list the commandments in languages other than English, the bill, known as SB 10, was finally voted through by 82 votes to 46. The legislation will next be voted on in the state Senate and, should it pass, will be sent to Governor Greg Abbott's desk for his signature. The Senate waved through an earlier draft in a 20-11 party-line vote. The bill demands that all public elementary and high schools 'display in a conspicuous place in each classroom of the school a durable poster or framed copy of the Ten Commandments,' which must be no smaller than 16 inches by 20 inches and carry the complete text of the decalogue, as emblazoned on the stone tablets held aloft by Moses on Mount Sinai in the Book of Exodus, according to scripture. If it becomes law, all Texas schools will be required to accept any appropriate displays that are privately donated from the 2025/26 academic year onwards. It is not clear what the consequences might be for a headteacher or teacher who refuses to comply. Still, a House committee's analysis concluded that the bill itself 'does not expressly create a criminal offense.' 'By placing the Ten Commandments in our public school classrooms, we ensure our students receive the same foundational moral compass as our state and country's forefathers,' Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick said. 'The Ten Commandments are part of our Texas and American story,' said state Senator Phil King, the bill's co-lead author. State Rep. James Talarico, a Democrat and a Christian, has opposed it on behalf of the state's non-Christian students by saying simply: 'Forcing our religion down their throats is not love.' Emily Witt of the Texas Freedom Network, which advocates for religious freedom, said the wave of conservative-led legislation across Texas and other southern states is part of a wider 'coordinated strategy' to instill the Bible within public school education. 'The message this sends to kids is that they're being told their religion doesn't matter and isn't as important as this one,' she said. 'We worry that leads to bullying and other-ism – all things in public schools that we try to prevent.' Equivalent bills in Louisiana and Arkansas ordering public displays of the Commandments have been met with legal complaints that could end in the U.S. Supreme Court, which ruled in 1980 that such mandates were unconstitutional.
Fox News
24-05-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
McCaul touts money in Trump tax bill to pay Texas back for fighting Biden border policies
There's a provision tucked into President Donald Trump's broadly ranging "big, beautiful bill" that could see Texas get billions of dollars in funds that it spent on the state's border security under the Biden administration. The legislation earmarked $12 billion for a grant program allowing states to be reimbursed for costs they incurred trying to stem the flow of illegal immigration during the Democratic administration. The measure was added to the bill hours before the final vote – but Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, the former chairman of the House Homeland Security and Foreign Affairs Committees, told Fox News Digital it was a product of months of negotiation. "Early on, [Homeland Security Committee Chair Mark Green, R-Tenn., and I were discussing reconciliation going through the Homeland Security Committee. And, you know, there was about $70 billion for the border," McCaul said. "Texas bore the brunt of the federal mission the last four years and deserves to be reimbursed. And so he agreed, had a conversation with Governor Abbott, and he agreed." While the text does not name Texas specifically, Fox News Digital was told that the measure's inclusion was primarily sought by the Lone Star state's congressional delegation. The state of Texas, Fox News Digital was told, had incurred just over $11 billion in costs from Gov. Greg Abbott's efforts to keep the border in his state secure. "The fact of the matter is, when you look at the costs that were borne, Texas had the lion's share of [the burden] carrying out the federal mission when the Biden administration completely failed to deliver on border security," McCaul said. "My state built the border wall and built detention facilities. We bore a lot of costs." Operation Lone Star alone cost Texas $11.1 billion, according to The Texas Tribune. Rather than add it to the initial text of the bill, McCaul said, leaders opted to include it in a "managers amendment" that was added on Wednesday night along with several other issues that lawmakers needed more time to negotiate. "The legislative process, it's something I've gotten to know over my 20 years and how to get things done up here. And I thought, you know, the way we worked it was strategically very smart," McCaul said. "It's going to the Senate now. And Senator Cornyn is going to take it up, be the champion in the Senate." The Texas Republican first met with Abbott and Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., on the matter in early February, Fox News Digital was told. McCaul said he also worked closely on the push with Republican Study Committee Chairman August Pfluger, R-Texas, who told Fox News Digital that "no state" carried more financial burden from the border crisis than Texas. "Texas spent $11.1 billion on border security, including $5.87 billion on personnel costs and $4.75 billion on border wall and barriers. When the federal government failed to secure our border and protect our communities, Texans stepped up," Pfluger said. Johnson, for his part, thanked McCaul for his efforts in a public written statement. "Thanks to Rep. McCaul, states that stepped up to protect Americans in the face of Biden's border catastrophe will be reimbursed for doing the work the Biden Administration refused to do," the speaker said. "Had those patriotic governors not taken action and used the resources of their state, the devastation from Biden's wide-open border would have been significantly worse." Green said of the need for the measure, "In the absence of help from the Biden-Harris administration, states were forced to take extraordinary measures to mitigate the crisis and protect their communities by building barrier systems and increasing law enforcement activity." And while McCaul and his colleagues' efforts in the House do not guarantee that Texas will ultimately see those funds, it puts them one step closer to success. The measure is one aspect in a multi-trillion-dollar bill that Republicans are working to pass via the budget reconciliation process. By lowering the Senate's threshold for passage from 60 votes to 51, reconciliation enables the party in power to pass certain fiscal legislation while completely sidelining the minority – in this case, Democrats. Trump directed Republicans to use reconciliation to advance his policies on taxes, immigration, energy, defense, and the national debt. The Senate and House must pass identical versions of the bill before it gets to Trump's desk. McCaul told Fox News Digital that he was confident the measure would stay in the Senate bill after conversations with the Trump administration on the matter. "I anticipate it will go forward," McCaul said. "I'm, just proud that we were able to get this done. I'm very proud of what my state did to stop the flow of illegals and dangerous actors coming into the country." When reached for comment, Abbott told Fox News Digital, "This is a national issue that Texas was proud to address, and we are grateful for the allocation that reduces the financial burden that Texas incurred."
