Texas

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/47886746

Crossposted from https://lemmy.world/post/47971255

Anthony was convicted of killing 17-year-old Austin Metcalf last year at a Frisco track meet.

An endorsement by Donald Trump gives Democrats their biggest opportunity in a generation to finally win in Texas. Star senate candidate James Talarico is leading in the polls thanks to a unique blend of faith and centre-left politics with roots in a century-old political movement. This video is about that movement, how Talarico can use it to win, and how Trump's endorsement of Ken Paxton could have paved the way for Texas finally becoming a purple state.

I made this video partly because I find James Talarico's connection to the Social Gospel movement, and the broader progressive-populist movement of the 1900s, to be unique and interesting. It's not necessarily a one-to-one comparison, but his political beliefs, platform and strategy seem inspired by those movements. So here is some expansion and clarification about the progressive-populists. It'll probably make more sense after the video, and it'll hopefully answer some questions you may have:

I refer to the movement as "centre-left populist," as opposed to their more ideologically left-wing socialist counterparts in Europe. A lot of that difference can be attributed to the kinds of supporters they were attracting, and the types of people who led them. Although urban labour was an important part of the old North American populist movement, it was initially most powerful in the agrarian West and Midwest. The movement was supported by farmers and small business owners in the resource sector, so it was more pro-private property than European socialists and it fought monopolistic big business rather than capitalism as a whole. Talarico is similarly trying to appeal to people who we don't really think of as left-of-centre voters (Republican-leaning Independents) by appealing to an anti-elite populism rather than traditional centrism or political triangulation. Talarico is clearly more of a modern centre-left politician, but a lot of his rhetoric blends those same anti-elite, anti-inequality ideas with a Social Gospel-style interpretation of the Bible. That's what makes him a really interesting, modern reinterpretation of the old progressives.

Chapters: 00:00 (Talarico's Social Gospel) 03:38 (Paxton vs. Cornyn) 05:57 (Talarico's Path to Victory)

Academic Sources: Social Gospel - Timeline Movement | The Association of Religion Data Archives Populism and Agrarian Discontent | Michael Kazin. The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History

Data Sources: The Cook Political Report

News Sources: John Cornyn undone by past Trump misgivings after decades as a loyal party man | Sahil Kapur. NBC News. 2026/05/26. James Talarico puts his faith in Texas voters | Tad Friend. The New Yorker. 2026/02/23. Letter from Washington: Why James Talarico may be the future of Democratic foreign policy | Chris Hermann, Jeremy Shapiro. European Council on Foreign Relations. 2026/03/17. Texas Sen. Angela Paxton seeks divorce from AG Ken Paxton on "biblical grounds" | Eleanor Klibanoff. The Texas Tribune. 2025/07/10. Texas AG Ken Paxton reaches deal to end securities fraud charges after 9 years | Associated Press. 2024/03/26. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton impeached by fellow Republicans | Serio Martínez-Beltrán. NPR. 2025/05/27. Trump says he will endorse "soon" in Texas Primary | Bridget Bowman, Frank Thorp V, Garrett Haake. NBC News. 2026/03/04. The SAVE Act threatens voting rights | Trey Walk. Human Rights Watch. 2026/02/10.

Crossposted from https://pawb.social/post/45202378

In May 2025, the Texas App Store Accountability Act made it mandatory for companies like Apple and Google to verify the ages of their Texas-based users. As the law is set to be enforced starting Thursday, Apple has outlined an update to its App Store rules.

On the Apple Developer website, the company explained that new Apple Accounts in Texas will be subject to "age assurance and parent or guardian consent on behalf of minors under the age of 18 for downloads, Apple In-App Purchases, and significant changes associated with an app."

In practice, this means that anyone who wants to create an Apple Account in Texas must verify that they are 18 or older. Those under 18 will need to join a Family Sharing group, and parents will be able to revoke access to previously approved App Store apps.

The Texas Department of Public Safety on Monday lifted a restriction on commercial drivers licenses and permits for immigrants with temporary agriculture work visas and removed the Spanish language option for CDL tests following changes in federal requirements.

In September, Texas halted commercial drivers licenses for many immigrants, including refugees, people with asylum and DACA recipients. The change on Monday will allow those with H-2A visas, designed for temporary agriculture workers, to again hold valid CDLs in Texas. Those eligible who have current CDLs may continue to use them until their expiration date, and those with expired licenses can file to renew them, according to a DPS press release.

DPS indicated the shift was made in line with a new federal guideline from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration published in mid-March, which permits H-2A workers to hold CDLs alongside H-2B and E-2 visa holders, which are temporary non-agricultural workers and treaty investors, respectively.

Under the new federal guidelines, Texas has only been approved to grant H-2A visa holders commercial drivers licenses for now, the DPS release said. Eligibility for H-2B and E-2 visa holders in Texas “will be announced at a later date,” according to the release.

The limitation to the three types of visas was implemented to prevent “dangerous foreign drivers” from being given licenses, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said in a February statement, claiming that bad actors had previously been abusing access to commercial drivers licenses.

The reinstatement came hours after DPS announced it would offer CDL license and permit knowledge tests only in English, removing the Spanish option previously offered, according to a DPS press release announcing the change.