Editorial writer | Austin American-Statesman | Escríbeme: [email protected]
Austin, TX
Joined January 2013
- Tweets2.3K
- Following3K
- Followers884
- Likes1.6K
Pinned Tweet
The @TxCommJailStand "shall appoint" 3rd-party law enforcement agencies to investigate jail deaths, per 2017 Sandra Bland Act. It hasn't done so for almost the entire time the law has been in force.
@startelegram
star-telegram.com/news/polit…
Cody Copeland retweeted
We will not have a state income tax because it was effectively made impossible by lawmakers in 1993.
You’ll never guess which party ran Texas in 1993.
I'm seriously in shock. I don't know what just happened in my country. What I know is that our children are no longer safe. Our borders are gonna be wide open. We're gonna have a state income tax. Our churches, Christianity—it's all gone. And let's not even talk about public education. What did we just do?
Readers added context they thought people might want to know
Texas does not have and has no concrete plan for a state income tax. Its constitution prohibits the legislature from imposing one on individuals, requiring a two-thirds vote in both chambers plus voter approval to change; winning candidates have stated opposition.
ballotpedia.org/Texas_Proposit…
factcheck.org/2026/10/paxton…
ustaxx.com/state-income-t…
taxfoundation.org/location/texas/
Cody Copeland retweeted
Rosenthal declares victory over Bo French in race for TX railroad commissioner star-telegram.com/news/polit…
Cody Copeland retweeted
Kind of weird how this candidate seems totally uninterested in the gals, you know, more than half of all voters
Cody Copeland retweeted
Small scooplet in this story:
Jim Wright, the outgoing Republican chairman of the Texas Railroad Commission, said he did not vote for @bofrench
Wright lost to French in May's GOP runoff. He didn't say if he voted for @Jon_RosenthalTX
dallasnews.com/news/politics…
Cody Copeland retweeted
Comptroller Don Huffines omitted on disclosure forms that he's manager of a venture capital firm that invests in SpaceX.
His ofc administers tax breaks worth >$1B dollars to SpaceX, awarded prior to Huffines' tenure. But his ofc still oversees compliance.
texastribune.org/2026/10/28/…
Cody Copeland retweeted
Water scarcity won’t only leave Texans high and dry, it’ll be bad for business -- @copycopeland @statesman
statesman.com/opinion/column…
Cody Copeland retweeted
These editorial writers can't read or think.
The state didn't force Austin or other cities into a contract. The cities signed a contract to get money from the state. After they got the money, the cities refused to comply with the contract terms. Those terms include a requirement that the cities repay the state all the money they got if they don't comply with the contract.
Enforcement of the contract doesn't defund police. I signed a law preventing defunding the police. Under that law the cities still have to fully fund their police--they just have to find other funds in their budgets to pay for it.
If the cities didn't like the contract terms, they should have never entered into it.
By the way, the contract is just one page, with clear requirements and consequences for failing to comply.
As to local control, entering into the contract was a local decision. Breaching the contract is a local decision.
statesman.com/opinion/editor… via @statesman
Cody Copeland retweeted
Background here: star-telegram.com/news/local…, story by @copycopeland
Bo French’s words do not reflect my values nor the values of the Republican Party. Antisemitism and religious bigotry have no place in Texas. I am calling for the immediate resignation and replacement of @bofrench as @tarrantgop Chairman.
#txlege
sacurrent.com/news/north-tex…
Are you or is someone you know affected by the expiration of the contract between Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas and Southwester Health Resources?
If so, I want to hear from you. Send me an email: [email protected]
star-telegram.com/news/state…
The list’s publication comes after a @startelegram investigation found that the TX Commission on Jail Standards had not been following state law requiring it to make the appointments for the last seven years.
star-telegram.com/news/polit…
This just in:
Keller school board kills plan to split district
star-telegram.com/news/local…
Cody Copeland retweeted
I have been reporting on Jeffrey Epstein and the criminal and civil lawsuits surrounding him for several years.
Here is the truth about "The Epstein Files."
🧵
Tarrant County Sheriff's Office: We don't brief county commissioners on open investigations.
ST: Didn't the sheriff do exactly that last month?
Tarrant County Sheriff's Office: ...
star-telegram.com/news/polit…
Cody Copeland retweeted
Also, @fwstliz, @copycopeland and myself are looking into reports that @KellerISD wants to spin off some of the district.
star-telegram.com/news/local…
They claim Johnson & Johnson's baby powder gave them cancer. The company worth over $372B has used an obscure TX law to try and bury their lawsuits by filing for bankruptcy.
It's now bringing the tactic to a TX court.
My latest for @startelegram
star-telegram.com/news/state…
Cody Copeland retweeted
Tarrant commissioners to request state Legislature fund mental health facility in county #txlege
Read more in the @startelegram story by @copycopeland: star-telegram.com/news/polit…