News
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott doesn’t want you reading his emails with the world’s richest man — not because he doesn’t want the public knowing about Elon Musk’s rapidly growing influence in the state. They’re simply too “intimate” and “embarrassing,” Abbott has claimed. In April, The Texas
Perspectives
Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past week, you know that a young democratic socialist just swept away establishment opposition in the New York City mayoral Democratic primary election. Zohran Mamdani, a 33-year-old state assemblyman in New York defied polling odds — and conventional wisdom
Crime & Justice
Social media influencer Brian Johnson, better known as the “Liver King,” was arrested at his hotel in Austin on Tuesday night after posting dozens of bizarre, rambling videos “picking a fight” with famous podcaster Joe Rogan, KXAN first reported. He is facing a misdemeanor charge of making a terrorist threat,
Crime & Justice
In a civil trial beginning Monday, the city of Austin will respond to allegations of a “culture of impunity” in the city’s police department — after a lawsuit claimed misconduct has gone relatively unchecked. In 2021, Alex Gonzales Jr. was fatally shot in an “apparent road rage incident” with officers
News
Tesla is “tentatively” rolling out its robotaxi service next week, as Elon Musk finally follows through on his decade-old promise to develop a self-driving Tesla taxi. “We are being super paranoid about safety, so the date could shift,” Musk said on X — which means the launch could be
News
Texas will spend $50 million to research a naturally occurring but illegal substance, ibogaine, that induces “mind-bending hallucinations” and is heralded by advocates for potential treatment of addiction and brain trauma. Because psychedelics are fine, but recreational THC for pain relief is not.Yee haw. Former Texas governor and
Immigration
Gov. Greg Abbott issued an additional warning to Texans who this week have been protesting ICE and immigration enforcement — he’s sending in the National Guard. On Tuesday, Abbott posted on X that the National Guard will be deployed across the state “to ensure peace & order,” less than 24
News
Local lawmakers in Texas are responding to recent reports that some law enforcement agencies are using automated license plate reader technology to support Immigration and Customs Enforcement actions. Last week, The Barbed Wire delved into data first reported by 404 Media and found that at least five law enforcement agencies
Immigration
While federal authorities crack down on immigration across the country, Texas has emerged as an epicenter, as federal officials snatch up immigrants and protesters organize in response. Across the state in the past month, ICE has detained a mother of five outside of a San Antonio immigration court. Outside an
News
Four years ago, Williamson County — a “big red sea” of a district, with a population just over half a million — held its first-ever Pride celebration in Taylor. Now, the annual celebration is facing jeopardy on its fifth anniversary: the mayor won’t issue a Pride proclamation. These proclamations, issued
News
Soon, all Texas public schools might be legally required to display the Ten Commandments on their walls after Texas lawmakers voted for a bill that will bring more religion into public schools. A Florida activist has one thing to say: “Thou Shalt Not.” Well, one more: “Bite me, Greg.” Self-
Culture
Life was a little different when HBO’s “The Leftovers” premiered in 2014. Carrie Coon wasn’t an A-lister. Joe Rogan hadn’t brought a certain type of attention to Austin. No one had heard of Covid-19. But the show, based on Tom Perrotta’s novel of the