Pols Paint by Numbers in Vision of Texas
The Austin American-Statesman
Most anyone pursuing state office crabs that Texas leads the nation in bad things and trails in good. Democratic gubernatorial hopeful Tom Schieffer says Texas is in a race for the bottom. Kinky Friedman frets about trailing Louisiana and Mississippi. And GOP U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison launched her gubernatorial run by proclaiming five areas in dire need. Any candidate could plumb such details.More

Founder Sells Cavalier Homes
The Times Record News
Barry Donnell, who has spent his entire business life in the manufactured housing industry, has joined the ranks of the retired. The business the lifelong Wichita Falls resident founded in 1984 Cavalier Homes merged with Southern Energy Homes, which is owned by Berkshire Hathaway, a Warren Buffett company. "I officially retired today," Donnell said from his home. "I can go out and work on my golf game...And my golf game needs work."More

House Panel: Stimulus Saves Construction Jobs
Reuters
The number of jobs created or saved by infrastructure projects funded by the U.S. economic stimulus plan increased by more than 50 percent in July from June, according to a report. By the end of July, 77,470 jobs had been "created or sustained" by water, highway and public transportation projects, compared to slightly less than 50,000 jobs at the end of June, said the report from a House of Representatives committee.More

Hutchison Says Election is Battle for Future of GOP
The Fort Worth Star Telegram
Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison framed her high-profile challenge to Gov. Rick Perry as a fight for the future of the Republican Party. Hutchison delivered a speech on federal issues to the Dallas Friday Group, a nonpartisan organization of businesspeople. In response to questions from an audience member, she said her bid for governor is being watched as a bellwether for where the GOP is headed nationally.More

Auditor: Mexican Truck Safety Rules Still Not Met
The Associated Press via The Houston Chronicle
Some Mexican passenger buses are not being inspected when they enter the U.S. because they cross the border on evenings and weekends, there are no inspectors or the crossings lack safe places for inspections, according to a government audit made public Wednesday.More

BP Taps Vast Pool of Crude in Gulf
The Associated Press via The Dallas Morning News
Nearly seven miles below the Gulf of Mexico, oil company BP has tapped into a vast pool of crude after digging the deepest oil well in the world. The Tiber Prospect is expected to rank among the largest petroleum discoveries in the United States, potentially producing half as much crude in a day as Alaska's famous North Slope oil field.More

New Jobless Claims Dip Less Than Expected
The Associated Press via The Dallas Morning News
New jobless claims fell slightly last week while the number of people receiving unemployment benefits rose, a sign the job market's recovery will be long and bumpy. While most economists believe the recession has ended, they predict the jobless rate will keep rising until at least next summer as the country struggles to mount a sustained recovery.More

Opinion: Successionist Getting More Republican Votes
The Fort Worth Star-Telegram
If any Texas Republicans had never heard of Larry Kilgore, they probably have now. Now he's the video star of the nightly TV news report "Texas: Outta Here or Not?" In the last two elections, 275,848 Republicans have voted for a candidate who wants Texas to secede and once called for the state to "reinstate biblical justice: restitution, floggings and execution."More

Some Object to Presidential Speech to Students
The San Antonio Express News
Some Texas parents are asking school principals to excuse their children from listening to a speech that President Obama will make to schools next week on the grounds that it smacks of political indoctrination. Obama will deliver an address directly to students on the importance of education beginning at 11 a.m. (CST) on Tuesday.More