Texas Governor Greg Abbott Launches Teacher-Driven Texas Classroom Commission

Texas Commission on Judicial Conduct Suspends Two Justices of the Peace

The State Commission on Judicial Conduct announced today that two Texas judges have been stripped of their duties. Brandon Wayne Barrera, Justice of the Peace in Kleberg County, has been suspended without pay after being charged with one count of possession of a controlled substance, a 3rd Degree Felony. Barrera was arrested in Kingsville in January after he as found with at least 1 gram of methamphetamine. Barrera took to his Facebook page in May to announce that he completed rehab saying, “I took responsibility, got the help I needed, and have remained focused on my recovery and service to Precinct 2 ever since. I’m committed to being the best leader and person I can be for our community. Thank you for your support as we move forward together.” The Commission ALSO suspended Judge Donald Joseph Clark, a Justice of the Peace in Colorado County, after he was indicted on three charges: one count of Official Oppression, a Class A Misdemeanor, and one count of False Report to Peace Office, a Class B Misdemeanor, and one count of False Report to Induce Emergency Response, a Class B Misdemeanor The indictment against Clark says he knowingly made an arrest that was unlawful, then called 9-1-1 with a false report of an emergency surrounding that arrest. Clark is suspended with pay. The Commission says the suspensions will remain in effect until charges are dismissed, the men are acquitted, or upon further order of the Commission.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott Asks Texas Health and Human Services Commission to Investigate South Texas Hospital Offering So-Called “Birth Packages”

Texas Governor Greg Abbott is asking the Texas Health and Human Services Commission to investigate reports that a South Texas hospital is offering so-called “birth packages” to foreign nationals. On Tuesday, Abbott sent a letter to Executive Commissioner Stephanie Muth directing her to look into reports that the Mission Regional Medical Center, a hospital facility regulated by the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC), is advertising the packages in an apparent effort to profit from securing United States citizenship for their children. The hospital — located in Mission, Texas — is less than 6 miles from the Texas-Mexico border and allegedly had billboards and a website advertising the packages. “Birth tourism” refers to the practice of foreign travelers coming to the United States to give birth and secure citizenship for their children. In his letter, Abbott says he will do everything in his power “to assist federal officials to stop this fraudulent practice. Therefore, I direct HHSC to immediately and thoroughly investigate Mission Regional Medical Center for any violations of state law and contractual obligations. Any violations will immediately be referred to the Attorney General for civil enforcement and to the appropriate District or County Attorney for criminal prosecution. Additionally, HHSC shall take appropriate administrative actions against Mission Regional Medical Center, including, but not limited to, assessing sanctions and penalties. American citizenship is not for sale and Texas will not permit our healthcare system to be used as a magnet for birth tourism.” Abbott also says he plans to work with the Texas Legislature next session to strengthen laws and eliminate birth tourism in Texas. ————————————————————- Attached media: Screenshot of letter from Governor Greg Abbott to Executive Commissioner Stephanie Muth + Screenshot from former U.S. Congresswoman Mayra Flores Twitter/X account @MayraFlores4TX showing alleged billboard promoting birth tourism.    

Texas A&M Receives NIH Funding to Study Effects of Addiction on Cognition

Texas A&M will receive more than $6 million in NIH funding to study how alcohol and cocaine affect cognition. The goal of the study is to improve addiction treatment. The National Institutes of Health awarded $6.27 million to be utilized over five years for two proposals: $3.25 million from the National Institute on Drug Abuse for a study on cholinergic dysregulation and cognitive flexibility in cocaine use disorder $3.02 million from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism will examine cholinergic modulation of striatal circuits in alcohol use disorder Jun Wang, PhD, with the Naresh K. Vashisht College of Medicine at Texas A&M Health wants to know if these substances can dull cognitive flexibility. He says the idea behind the research is that addiction hijacks the brain in a way that causes loss of cognitive flexibility, which is critical to daily life. Wang says, “Addiction is often viewed as a disorder of reward, but it is also a disorder of flexibility, and the brain loses the ability to update behavior when circumstances change. This is a key issue because, currently, we think addiction is just exaggerating or enhancing the reward. Normal, non-addicted reward is quite important. It’s important for survival and for motivation. Addiction is just a hijacked rewards pathway.” He says the hijacking can make the brain less flexible, and flexibility is what enables decision making, task management, problem solving, among others. “These two grants gave us an opportunity to ask whether alcohol and cocaine, despite being different substances, both disrupt related chronology circuits that support addictive decision-making. That’s actually the core of this study,” Wang said. “The long-term goal is to identify brain circuit mechanisms that could eventually guide new strategies to restore cognitive control in substance use disorders.”