Texas

HOUSTON (AP) — The challenges facing Houston’s next mayor are familiar to many big cities: crime, crumbling infrastructure, budget shortfalls and a lack of affordable housing.

But in November’s marquee mayoral election in the U.S., the top candidates promising to turn Houston around are two Democrats who have held power in the city longer than almost anyone, leaving outsiders scrambling to get a foothold as early voting is set to begin Monday.

HOUSTON (AP) — A Texas judge has ruled that Infowars host Alex Jones cannot use bankruptcy protection to avoid paying more than $1.1 billion to families who sued over his conspiracy theories that the Sandy Hook school massacre was a hoax.

The decision is another significant defeat for Jones in the wake of juries in Texas and Connecticut punishing him over spreading falsehoods about the nation’s deadliest school shooting. U.S. District Judge Christopher Lopez of Houston issued the ruling Thursday.

HOUSTON, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Venezuelan state-run oil company PDVSA has begun contacting customers with crude supply contracts amid the temporary lifting of U.S. sanctions, two people familiar to the matter said on Thursday, moving to resume cash sales to global refiners.

HOUSTON, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- The American Petroleum Institute on Wednesday reported an increase of 12.940 million barrels of crude oil in U.S. inventories for the week ending Oct. 6.

Analysts had expected an increase of 1.300 million barrels for the week.

The institute reported a decline of 4.210 million barrels in the previous week.

Oil prices fell on Wednesday. The West Texas Intermediate for November delivery decreased 2.48 U.S. dollars, or 2.88 percent, to settle at 83.49 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

McALLEN, Texas (AP) — The Biden administration announced it waived 26 federal laws in South Texas to allow border wall construction on Wednesday, marking the administration’s first use of a sweeping executive power employed often during the Trump presidency.

Houston, Oct 4 (PTI) Two men of Indian origin in the US have pleaded guilty to their participation in a multi-million dollar fraud scheme by obtaining loans under an economic assistance plan following the Covid-19 pandemic in the country, the justice department said.

HOUSTON, Sept. 29 (Xinhua) -- Salt water moving up the Mississippi River from the Gulf of Mexico is threatening drinking water supplies in and around New Orleans, the biggest city of U.S. state Louisiana, triggering a big concern of potential lead contamination.

As of Friday afternoon, New Orleans' drinking water was safe, New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell said in a news release.

EAGLE PASS, Texas, Sept 28 (Reuters) - Billionaire Elon Musk waded into the U.S. immigration debate on Thursday, paying a visit to the Texas border with Mexico to meet with local politicians and law enforcement and obtain what he called an "unfiltered" view of the situation.

Musk's visit came as thousands of migrants have ventured to northern Mexico in recent days on freight trains and buses, then crossed the U.S. border into Texas, Arizona and California in an upswing in arrivals of people seeking asylum in the United States.

El Paso, Sept 24 (Reuters) Sept 23 (Reuters) - The dramatic increase in migrants crossing the U.S. border from Mexico has pushed the city of El Paso, Texas, to "a breaking point," with more than 2,000 people per day seeking asylum, exceeding shelter capacity and straining resources, its mayor said on Saturday.

"The city of El Paso only has so many resources and we have come to ... a breaking point right now," Mayor Oscar Leeser said at a news conference.

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Newly acquitted of impeachment charges, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is back on the job and getting back to the usual.

Promises to keep dragging the Biden administration into court. Support from former President Donald Trump. And coming soon, a sit-down with former Fox News host Tucker Carlson.