Mnuchin Seeks to Calm Fears of Economic Fallout From Tariffs

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said U.S. tariffs and China's retaliatory actions haven't dented the domestic economy, as he sought to calm fears from Republicans in Congress that a trade war is hurting American consumers and companies. Mnuchin, speaking before the House Financial Services panel on Thursday, said he and administration officials are available for talks with China over trade.

As Trump backlash continues, STEM professionals in Texas run for office

Clockwise from bottom left: Allison Lami Sawyer, Michelle Beckley, Joseph Kopser, Carla Morton, and Rick Kennedy are Democrats with backgrounds in STEM running for office this year. As a child growing up in small-town Alabama, Sawyer spent five consecutive summers at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville, where she built model rockets and began to envision herself as a scientist.

Lawmakers search for school safety solutions

This week on State of Texas: lawmakers discuss "red flag" laws and mental health as part of ongoing school safety hearings, a University of Texas pollster examines how Texans feel about the root cause of school shootings and a new look at the significance of the Wendy Davis abortion filibuster, five years later. With the Santa Fe shooting still fresh in the minds of Texans, House members held a new round of school safety hearings.

The Latest: Cloud wins Texas race to succeed Farenthold

Former Republican county chairman Michael Cloud has emerged from a crowded field to win a special election to replace U.S. Rep. Blake Farenthold. Farenthold resigned from Congress in April amid past sexual harassment allegations and revelations that he used $84,000 in taxpayer funds to settle them.

News Guide: Texas special election remains low profile

Texas' 27th Congressional District is holding its third election of the year with Saturday's special election to replace Republican U.S. Rep. Blake Farenthold. He resigned in April amid allegations of sexual harassment, and word that he used $84,000 from a special House fund to settle a 2014 lawsuit stemming from them.

House backs $675 billion spending bill for Pentagon

U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, left, is welcomed by China's Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission Xu Qiliang at the Bayi Building in Beijing Thursday, June 28, 2018. less U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, left, is welcomed by China's Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission Xu Qiliang at the Bayi Building in Beijing Thursday, June 28, 2018.

Death row inmate’s attorneys argue for firing squad, nitrogen gas instead of lethal injection

A Texas death row inmate who confessed to four slayings and at least nine rapes is set for lethal injection Wednesday amid concerns from his lawyers that his health issues make it likely his execution will cause him unconstitutional pain. No one disputes Danny Paul Bible's guilt for a Houston woman's slaying nearly 40 years ago that went unsolved for two decades before a jury convicted him and sentenced him to death.

Mayor Turner says “No!” to the child detention warehouse

Mayor Sylvester Turner called on the owner of a building east of downtown Houston and the nonprofit hoping to operate the former warehouse as a detention center for immigrant children separated from their families at the nation's southern border to reconsider their plans. The mayor also said he is in no rush to issue city permits at the site, and called on the state not to issue a childcare license to the 54,000-square-foot facility two blocks north of BBVA Compass Stadium for use by federal contractor Southwest Key Programs.

Trump wants to send undocumented immigrants back without hearings: What we know now

President Donald Trump pressed his case for cracking down on undocumented immigrants on Sunday, tweeting that "zero tolerance" is fair and gives preference to those who "legally wait their turn." He tweeted: "We cannot allow all of these people to invade our Country."

After passionate convention, Democrats look to sway average Texas voters

Now that the hype has subsided, Democrats must figure out how to use their enthusiasm to craft a winning message in a decidedly Republican state. It's clear to most of the 7,500 delegates who gathered in Fort Worth Thursday, Friday and Saturday what must be done.

The Latest: Congressman says kids at center get good care

The Latest on the separation of immigrant children from their parents following President Donald Trump's order allowing them to remain with their parents : Kansas Rep. Roger Marshall is returning from a visit to the Texas border saying that several hundred immigrant children detained in a center there are getting good care. Marshall traveled Saturday to the El Paso area as part of a bipartisan congressional group to meet with U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials and to tour a center holding 400 young immigrants near the Tornillo port of entry.