MRT 6/6/25 (free): Burrows Leaned into ‘Conservative’ Agenda // Space Commission Given $300M for Grants // First Trial for Illegal Trespassing on Border Military Zone Ends in Acquittal // J. Jones for CD-18?

MustReadTexas.com – @MustReadTexas
BY: @MattMackowiak 

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FRIDAY | 6/6/2025 & SATURDAY | 6/7/2025

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• TOP NEWS

“First trial of immigrant accused of trespassing on Texas border military zone ends in acquittal,” Texas Tribune's Uriel J. Garcia – “A federal jury and judge acquitted a 21-year-old woman from Peru on Thursday of illegally entering a national defense area and military reservation after she crossed the Rio Grande from Mexico into Texas last month, in what lawyers say is the first trial of an immigrant since the Trump administration declared parts of the New Mexico and Texas border as a military zone.

Adely Vanessa De La Cruz-Alvarez was detained by soldiers and arrested by a Border Patrol agent on May 12 after they found her alone sitting next to the gate on a bollard wall near Tornillo, 40 miles east of El Paso.

“Hopefully, this sets the tone for the federal government,” said Veronica Teresa Lerma, one of her defense attorneys, adding, “so they know what the El Paso community will do with these charges.”

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Earlier this year, the Trump administration designated 180 miles of the New Mexico border with Mexico and 63 miles in West Texas as a national defense area, overseen by U.S. Army commands based out of Fort Huachuca in Arizona and Fort Bliss in El Paso.

At the start of the trial, De La Cruz-Alvarez, who has been in immigration agents’ custody since her arrest, faced three misdemeanor charges: entering the country illegally, violating national defense property and trespassing onto a military base. She was found guilty of entering the country illegally and was already facing deportation as soon as she was arrested.

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She was sentenced to time served plus one business day by U.S. Magistrate Judge Laura Enriquez. Even though she was acquitted of trespassing onto a military zone, De La Cruz-Alvarez will most likely get deported, said Shane Michael McMahon, her public defense attorney.

“She knew exactly what she was doing,” Phillip Douglas Countryman, the federal prosecutor, told the judge, asking for a 45-day jail sentence. Crossing the border illegally “should come with some sort of punishment.”

The verdict is the latest blow to the Trump administration, which pursued additional misdemeanor charges in addition to the usual misdemeanor charge of entering the U.S. improperly or the felony charge of reentering the country after being denied. Tacking on the trespassing charges, is the latest tactic the administration is trying in its attempt to deport and punish 1 million immigrants annually, including some who have entered the country legally." Texas Tribune

• #TXLEGE

“Speaker Dustin Burrows, once tagged as “liberal,” kept skeptics at bay by leaning into a conservative agenda,” Texas Tribune's Kayla Guo – “Back in December, Rep. Dustin Burrows’ grasp on the speakership was, at best, tenuous.

His main rival, Rep. David Cook of Mansfield, had already won the endorsement of the House Republican Caucus, a victory his backers argued should’ve clinched his ascent to speaker of the GOP-controlled Texas House.

Instead, Burrows, surrounded by Republicans willing to defy caucus rules, claimed just minutes later that the race was over and that he had the 76 votes needed to lock up the gavel. He touted an even mix of Democratic and GOP support, though some Republicans immediately asked for their names to be removed, pushing him back under the threshold to win.

The competing pronouncements deepened a bitter, months-long power struggle within a Republican Party that had churned through three speakers in four sessions, and it amplified demands by grassroots activists to sideline Democrats and lean into the party’s most partisan impulses.

Cook carried the banner of the hardline, so-called “reformers,” whose allies outside the chamber maligned Burrows as a “liberal” intent on empowering Democrats. Burrows, in fact a staunch conservative and a key player in the inner circle of House leadership, represented a continuation of the establishment that the party’s rightmost faction had spent years fighting to depose.

Burrows won the race, finally, on the first day of the legislative session, with a coalition made up of 49 Democrats and 36 Republicans. His reliance on the minority party prompted immediate attacks from his right flank and fueled charges that he would cater to the Democratic bloc that drove his victory. Some of the newly seated “reformers” openly threatened retribution in next year’s primaries for colleagues who had backed him.

The speaker’s race was over, but now Burrows would have to govern a House wracked by months of acrimony, raising questions about how much could get done with one chamber of the Legislature at war with itself.

Instead, the Lubbock Republican emerged 140 days later from his first session wielding the gavel with a laundry list of new conservative laws to point to, having almost entirely avoided the turmoil his election portended.

“With 150 members, you’re always going to have 150 perspectives — that’s part of what makes our chamber unique,” Burrows said in a statement. “But the speaker’s job isn’t to force uniformity or go to battle with the Senate on every topic, it’s to protect the institution by making sure members have the tools and support they need to succeed on behalf of their districts and go home to show real accomplishments to the people they represent. I think we accomplished that.”

Burrows began the session with a clear eye toward retaining the speakership and detaching himself from the tenure of his now-politically radioactive predecessor, Beaumont Rep. Dade Phelan. He aligned the House closely with Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, the powerful presiding officer of the Senate and frequent antagonist of past speakers, and built goodwill with Gov. Greg Abbott by prioritizing school vouchers, the governor’s top priority. And he worked methodically to win over skeptical members of his caucus, giving some committee chairmanships and making sure others saw their pet issues reach the floor.

A careful tactician with years of experience in House leadership, Burrows managed to deliver almost all major Republican priorities, including vouchers, tougher bail laws and a raft of socially conservative policies. Yet he did so without fully alienating the Democrats who powered him to the speaker’s chair, even as they saw their party’s priorities die and failed to stop most of the GOP’s top items.

“We really didn’t know what to expect because of how he was elected,” said Rep. Mitch Little, a Lewisville Republican and Cook devotee who once slammed Burrows’ supporters for making a “brazen attempt to circumvent the will of the voters.”

“But to be quite honest,” Little said at the end of the session, “if he had been elected by all Republicans, I don’t know how this session would have really gone any differently.” Complaining about the few unfinished items, he added, would be “picking nits more than anything.”" Texas Tribune

• STATE GOVERNMENT

“Legislators give Texas Space Commission $300M for grants and the power to close highways and beaches,” Houston Chronicle's Andrea Leinfelder – “Texas legislators approved $300 million in grant money for the Texas Space Commission and gave it new authority to close highways and beaches “to promote space-related industries” during the final days of the state’s 89th Legislative Session.

The ability to close public areas was a last-minute addition after a different bill languished in the House.

“The future is being shaped right here in Texas,” state Rep. Greg Bonnen, R-Friendswood, said Sunday when trying to pass the bill. “What is happening in our state is literally equivalent to what happened at Kitty Hawk in 1903 when the Wright brothers first flew.”

Bonnen led the legislation that created the Texas Space Commission during the 2023 legislative session, and he authored House Bill 5246 this session to clarify the commission’s powers and duties. The bill still needs to be signed by Gov. Greg Abbott.

This legislation covers a wide variety of topics, but the ability to close highways and beaches caught legislators’ attention. HB 5246 gives the commission’s board the power to close highways, venues and beaches – with approval of the city where these are located – to keep the public safe during rocket launches.

This most directly relates to Elon Musk’s SpaceX, which needs to close a public highway and beach when it launches its Starship rocket in South Texas. Cameron County has been in charge of closing the road and beach, and starting Sept. 1 the Space Commission will work with the newly created city of Starbase – not the county – to shut down access.

“Who is in the best position to have the public interest in mind in closing a public beach?” said state Rep. Rafael Anchía, D-Dallas. “It’s not the people in the company town that is effectively a wholly owned subsidiary of SpaceX. And it’s not the Space Commission. It is the elected officials who are closest to the people, and that is county government.”

Cameron County Judge Eddie Treviño Jr. told the Brownsville Herald that he was disappointed with the change, which he described as widely unpopular. He wants the Space Commission and Starbase to respect the public’s environmental concerns and beach access – though the county has received its share of criticism regarding these topics.

“I think this is raising a lot of questions and concerns with regards to the future authority and regulation of the closures,” Treviño said. “As county judge I’m responsible for the people. A lot of people are upset.”

Starbase did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A spokesperson for the Texas Space Commission said it’s reviewing the legislation “to be prepared when those new laws take effect.”" Hou Chron ($)

• 2025

“Early votes up, but voter turnout for June 7 mayoral runoff ‘still abysmal’,” San Antonio Express-News' Molly Smith – “After the field of 27 mayoral candidates was cut to two last month, San Antonio voters have gotten more excited about selecting the city’s next leader.

More than 98,000 city voters cast in-person ballots during the eight-day early voting period, which ended Tuesday. That’s up 33% from the nearly 74,000 Bexar County voters who voted early for the May 3 election, which featured municipal races in San Antonio, Balcones Heights, Olmos Park, Kirby and Von Ormy, in addition to a slew of school board elections and an Alamo Community College District bond.

Only five San Antonio city races are on the June 7 runoff ballot: the open mayor’s seat and four City Council seats.

Gina Ortiz Jones, a one-time Air Force undersecretary, and Rolando Pablos, a former Texas secretary of state, are battling to succeed term-limited Mayor Ron Nirenberg.

The in-person votes and the nearly 4,000 mailed-in ballots exceed the 101,150 San Antonians who voted in the May election, both early and on election day.

One possible reason?

“Now that it’s whittled down to two, you don’t have to do as much work to understand who they are and what they stand for,” said campaign consultant Laura Barberena. “You’re asking a little bit less of the voter and I think that they’re more receptive to participating in a place where they don’t feel like they’re making an uninformed vote.”

Barberena managed Councilman Manny Pelaez’s unsuccessful mayoral campaign (he came in fifth place) and is currently managing Ivalis Meza Gonzalez’s campaign for Pelaez’s open District 8 seat on the Northwest Side.

Campaign spending could be another factor behind the bigger early voting totals.

“A lot of money has been put on the ground to raise peoples’ awareness that this election is going on,” Barberena said.

Political action committees, many of which have a partisan bent, have spent more than $1 million in recent weeks trying to get their preferred candidate elected by blanketing voters with mailers and television and digital ads." SAEN ($)

“Jolanda Jones jumps into race for Houston's 18th Congressional District,” Houston Chronicle's Taylor Goldenstein – “Houston Democratic state Rep. Jolanda Jones is throwing her name in the hat for a run in Texas' 18th Congressional District, formerly held by the late Sylvester Turner.

Jones, who has represented the south and southeast Houston in the Texas House since 2022, was waiting until the end of the legislative session on Monday to make a decision about whether to run.

"After much encouragement and serious consideration, I have decided today to become a candidate for Congress in the historic 18th district," Jones said in a statement Thursday.

Jones joins an increasingly crowded field that includes Harris County Attorney Christian Menefee, former Houston City Council member Amanda Edwards and a former senior advisor to the late U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, Isaiah Martin. The district leans heavily Democratic and has a long history of being represented by Black legislators.

In 2023, as a freshman, Jones made headlines after her entire House staff resigned, alleging she created an "abusive and hostile" work environment. They claimed in a leaked resignation that Jones hid an inappropriate relationship between her son and an intern and allowed him outsized say in state business.

Jones never addressed the allegations directly, saying she could not discuss personnel matters.

In this latest legislative session, she authored successful bills ensuring low-level criminals are not held in jail pretrial for longer than the maximum term of confinement for their alleged crime and requiring high school students to learn about civics as part of their social studies curriculum.

Jones previously served on the Houston City Council from 2008 to 2012 and Houston ISD's school board from 2016 until 2020. The criminal defense attorney also owns her own firm." Hou Chron ($)

• 2026

“Can an astronaut, pastor or linebacker help Democrats finally win in Texas?” Houston Chronicle's Jeremy Wallace – “A pastor, an astronaut and a linebacker walk into a bar.

Actually, it’s not a bar, but the potential Democratic primary looming in 2026 for John Cornyn's U.S. Senate seat.

And don’t count out the former punk rock guitarist who might just have another run in him.

With Austin state Rep. James Talarico, a 36-year-old former teacher and pastor, telling Edward McKinley this week that he is thinking about getting into the race, that colorful primary field is starting to look more plausible.

“The legislative session just ended, and I am having conversations about how I can best serve, and that does include the Senate race,” Talarico said.

In Houston, Terry Virts, a former astronaut and retired fighter pilot, has been building up potential staff and using social media to give a flavor of the type of campaign he might run on if he gets in.

“Our draft-dodger in chief is throwing himself a $50M birthday party with Tanks, APCs, Missiles, and 6,600 soldiers — all while cutting kids' cancer research,” Virts, 57, wrote in one post last week blasting President Donald Trump.

The linebacker, of course, is Colin Allred, the 42-year-old former Dallas Congressman who ran against U.S. Ted Cruz in 2024. He has already said he is considering running for the seat, which Cornyn has held since 2002.

Meanwhile Beto O’Rourke, the former punk rock guitarist and El Paso congressman, was just in Humble for a rally that drew 1,500 people, making clear he hasn’t ruled out taking another shot at higher office.

“The bottom line for me is I’m gonna do whatever I can that is most helpful and most useful — if that’s running, if it’s not running. I have no pride in this,” the 52-year-old said." Hou Chron ($)

• BUSINESS NEWS

“New Linde facility in Freeport expected to double liquefied carbon dioxide production,” Houston Chronicle's Yvette Orosco – “Linde, an industrial gases and engineering company, will add a second carbon dioxide-producing facility at its Freeport site, according to a company announcement.

Once completed in 2027, the facility would liquefy carbon dioxide collected at MEGlobal American's Oyster Creek ethylene glycol facility, which is supplied with oxygen by Linde's air separation plant.

Linde says the new facility would feed growing demand for carbon dioxide production.

“Our investment further strengthens Linde's robust CO₂ network, enabling reliable supply to customers throughout the region while positioning us for future growth,” Linde CEO Amer Akhras said in the company's news release.

Linde said capturing and reusing carbon dioxide from industrial production prevents it from being emitted into the atmosphere.

Carbon dioxide is used to create the fizz in carbonated beverages. It can also be used in food preservation and in making dry ice.

Carbon dioxide is a colorless, odorless gas that naturally forms in the Earth's atmosphere, according to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

CO2 emissions, however, are recognized as pollutants that contribute to climate change, are regulated by the EPA under the Clean Air Act.

Environmental advocacy groups such as the Natural Resources Defense Council and Environmental Health Project, have cited a study in 2024 by the U.S. Department of Energy that details potential environmental threats created by liquefication plants, including carbon and methane emissions and the possible effects on air and water quality." Hou Chron ($)

• TRUMP ADMINISTRATION

“Young UTSA grad’s first big job? He’s head of federal counterterrorism office,” San Antonio Express-News' Sig Christenson and Scott Huddleston – “At 22, Thomas Fugate III is going places fast in the Trump administration.

A MAGA loyalist, he’s risen from working on Donald Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign to heading up, apparently on an interim basis, a counterterrorism office in the Department of Homeland Security — a job that in the past required the boss to have a thicker résumé.

Fugate, who graduated magna cum laude from the University of Texas at San Antonio in 2024, has no previous experience combating terrorism.

DHS defended the decision to hire Fugate, saying he’s a self-starter who has impressed the department’s higher-ups.

“Tom Fugate has performed well in his current role as a confidential assistant in our Immigration & Border Security suboffice,” a DHS official told the San Antonio Express-News. “Due to his success, he has been temporarily given additional leadership responsibilities in the Center for Prevention Programs and Partnerships office (CP3). This is a credit to his work ethic and success on the job.”

Bill Braniff, the director Fugate replaced, is an Army veteran who’d previously served as director of the University of Maryland’s National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism. He is currently the executive director of American University’s Polarization and Extremism Research and Innovation Lab.

He stepped down as CP3 director on March 3 as the Trump administration began cutting his staff.

“Over the course of the weekend prior, eight dedicated and effective public servants were wrongfully terminated via email due to their probationary status,” Braniff said in a statement posted on his LinkedIn page. “As my term appointment was ending, the best thing I could do for them and for CP3 was to resign alongside of them, as some agencies and departments have rehired people in mission critical offices once they were made aware of the implications of those terminations.”

ProPublica, a nonprofit news organization that broke the news of Fugate’s appointment, reported that CP3 staffers expressed shock at how little Fugate knows about the basics of his role and likened meetings with him to “career counseling.”

DHS did not address questions from the Express-News about his experience." SAEN ($)

• NEWS FROM AROUND THE STATE

> TX TRIB: "Texas lawmakers pull funding for child identification kits again after newsrooms report they don’t work" TX TRIB

> TX TRIB: "Texas reined in recreational THC for more medical marijuana this legislative session" TX TRIB

> EP TIMES: "Sodas, candy to be banned from Texas food stamp purchases" EP TIMES

> SA REPORT: "Texas’ undocumented college students no longer qualify for in-state tuition" SA REPORT

> THE TEXAN: "AI, Technology, Social Media Legislation Roundup: Bills Taken Up During 89th Session" THE TEXAN

> HOU CHRON: "ICE changes course, releases names of some deported individuals in Houston" HOU CHRON

> AAS: "Medical marijuana eligibility could soon expand in Texas. Here's what's included in HB 46" AAS

> AAS: "SB 37 on faculty senates, curriculum review passed this session. Here’s 10+ higher ed bills you missed." AAS

> SAEN: "'I will own that': SAPD chief walks back claim that Jonathan Joss' death wasn’t hate crime" SAEN

> SAEN: "US declines to label China a currency manipulator, but blasts its transparency policies" SAEN

> MRT: "Gov. Abbott signs $123M Beacon Project to boost Permian Basin growth" MRT

> THE TEXAN: "State Rep. Jolanda Jones to Seek Houston Congressional Seat" THE TEXAN

> EP TIMES: "Migrants face charges for entering Trump's military zone near border" EP TIMES

> MRT: "Gov. Abbott visits Midland to sign oilfield theft legislation into law" MRT

> SA REPORT: "Explainer: Here's how political campaigns got your phone number" SA REPORT

> THE TEXAN: "Precedented Times: One Candidate is Better than Two" THE TEXAN

> FWST: "Fort Worth man gets 50 years in federal prison on child pornography charges" FWST

> HOU CHRON: "We're professors. We're parents. HISD students don't deserve AI slop." HOU CHRON

> FWST: "Palo Pinto Mountains State Park opening date is a moving target. Here’s a preview" FWST

> FWST: "The most dangerous roads in America" FWST

> HOU CHRON: "Possible contamination of Topo Chico prompts recall by Coca-Cola" HOU CHRON

> DMN: "Only 2 women have won the Cliburn piano competition. Would narrow keyboards change that?" DMN

> DMN: "Tom Rafferty, a Dallas Cowboys stalwart known for ‘doing the right thing,’ dies at 70" DMN

> AAS: "Texas woman dies from brain-eating amoeba after clearing sinuses with campground tap water" AAS

> DMN: "Schutze: Downtown homeless feedings aren’t a simple mercy" DMN

> COMMUNITY IMPACT: "Central Health seeks to close care gaps through new clinics, services" COMMUNITY IMPACT

> SA REPORT: "SAPD investigates sexual hazing at Central Catholic High School" SA REPORT

• EXTRA POINTS

Recent Texas sports scores:
Thurs
> MLB: Houston 8, Pittsburgh 2
> MLB: Tampa 4, Texas 3
> NCAAW: Texas Tech 4, Texas 3
Fri
> MLB: Houston 4, Pittsburgh 2
> MLB: Washington 2, Texas 0
> NCAAW: Texas 10, Texas Tech 4 (2-1)
> WNBA: LA 93, Dallas 79

This weekend's Texas sports schedule:
Sat
> 3:05pm: MLB: Texas at Washington
> 3:10pm: MLB: Houston at Cleveland
> 8:30pm: MLS: Austin at Colorado
Sun
> 12:35pm: MLB: Texas at Washington
> 12:40pm: MLB: Houston at Cleveland
> 3pm: WNBA: Minnesota at Dallas

TEXAS / TEXAS TECH SOFTBALL: “Texas beats Texas Tech 10-4 in decisive 3rd game of WCWS to win its 1st national championship" AP

TEXAS SOFTBALL: "Texas softball WCWS title celebration Saturday set for McCombs Field" AAS ($)

HOUSTON ASTROS: “Peña extends hitting streak to 12 games, Gordon gets 1st win in majors as Astros beat Guardians 4-2” AP

HOUSTON ASTROS: "Why Houston Astros' Jose Altuve is seeing more starts at designated hitter this season" Hou Chron ($)

NCAA ATHLETICS: "The NCAA sports are now 'professional.' How federal settlement impacts UH, Texas and Texas A&M" Hou Chron ($)

DALLAS STARS: "Dallas Stars part ways with head coach Pete DeBoer" DMN ($)

DALLAS STARS: "What Jim Nill’s previous coaching hires tell us about the Stars’ current head coach search" DMN ($)

DALLAS WINGS: “Azura Stevens’ 21 points, career-high 5 3-pointers lead Sparks past Wings 93-79 to snap 3-game skid" DMN ($)