White House insiders testify, Plano drug makers big move: Your Tuesday evening roundup

A career Army officer testified Tuesday that President Donald Trump’s call with Ukraine was “improper,” as Republicans in the impeachment inquiry tried to undercut the national security official with remarkable exchanges questioning his loyalty to the U.S.  [Evening roundup]( 11/19/2019 By Wayne Carter Good Evening! Here is a look at the top headlines of the day. 🔎 Prefer the online view? It's [here.]( Jennifer Williams, an aide to Vice President Mike Pence, and National Security Council aide Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, left, are sworn in to testify Tuesday before the House Intelligence Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington. (Jacquelyn Martin/Associated Press) IMPEACHMENT HEARINGS [Republicans question Army officer’s loyalty during impeachment testimony]( A career Army officer [testified Tuesday that President Donald Trump’s call with Ukraine was "improper,"]( as Republicans in the impeachment inquiry tried to undercut the national security official with remarkable exchanges questioning his loyalty to the U.S. Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman said that it was his "duty" to report his concerns about the phone call, but deflected repeated Republican efforts to divulge everyone he told about it — an attempt by GOP lawmakers to identify the anonymous whistleblower who spurred the impeachment probe. Plaudits for Perry: Rick Perry is ending his stint as energy secretary [showered with praise from fellow Texas Republicans and]( Donald Trump.]( Commentary: When most of us stop caring about politics, [the extremists run amok]( writes Abby McCloskey. ADVERTISEMENT  BUSINESS [Plano-based drug developer Reata raises $505 million, expects to double to 400 employees by end of 2020]( Plano-based drug developer Reata Pharmaceuticals Inc. raised more than $505 million in a stock sale Monday to speed its transition from a clinical-stage biotech startup [to a company that makes treatments for life-threatening diseases.]( The publicly-traded company will use the money to register and commercialize its first two treatments: one for Alport syndrome, a genetic disease that can cause kidney disease and failure, and the other for Friedreich’s ataxia, a genetic disease that often begins in childhood and leads to brain and nervous system damage.  Commentary: Obamacare 2020 has [more offers and lower rates, even in Texas]( writes business columnist Mitchell Schnurman.   Shiny objects: Dallas’ landmark gold Campbell Centre towers [are up for grabs](.  SPORTS [After getting ‘duped’ at UTSA, Charles Cannon completes years-long journey to football as SMU’s kickoff specialist]( It was fall of 2017 at UTSA – Charles Cannon’s first day of college. He was walking to pick up his pads to mark the official start of his college football career. The reason Cannon chose to go to UTSA was for football. This was the school that had offered him a chance to play. A chance to compete to be the team’s placekicker and kickoff specialist. But as he was walking to pick up his pads, already enrolled and committed, Cannon got a call from his coach asking him to come in. [That’s when he found out they didn’t actually have a spot for him.](  Also: Highland Park’s Clayton Kershaw and Topgolf are partnering [to raise awareness of sex-trafficking.](   What are those? The Dallas Mavericks have officially [unveiled their new City Edition uniforms]( and will wear them 22 times this season.  ADVERTISEMENT (Lynda M. Gonzalez/Staff Photographer) PHOTO OF THE DAY Herbed roasted turkey is the centerpiece of [a Thanksgiving menu that is herbal and aromatic, with flavors of thyme, garlic, rosemary, lemon and cinnamon.]( Simplifying the Turkey Day routine with a Mediterranean, mezze-style twist keeps you face-to-face with family and friends. EDITORS' PICKS - Hot-tober: Dallas-Fort Worth got off easy [during the second-hottest October on record worldwide.]( - Editorial: Dallas County gambled tens of millions building its own software. [Is it time to fold TechShare?]( - Police blotter: A Fired Denton attorney was arrested [after returning to]( workplace with gun.]( FINALLY... [What workers say about the top CEOs in The Dallas Morning News Top 100 Places to Work 2019]( Bold. Straightforward. Humble. Authentic. Transparent. Collaborative. Strategic. Passionate. Supportive. Fair. These were among the repeated responses we got when we asked our Top 100 executives to describe their leadership styles. Employees consistently tell us that [a leader with vision, mission and purpose outweighs everything else.]( 👋 That's all for this afternoon! For up-to-the-minute news and analysis, check out [DallasNews.com](. Share the love! If you like this newsletter, please forward this email to a friend and [check out our other newsletters here](. Do you have feedback? Send your thoughts, questions, praise and corrections to [newsletter-feedback@dallasnews.com](mailto:newsletter-feedback@dallasnews.com?subject=). STAY CONNECTED WITH US [Unsubscribe]( | [Free newsletters]( | [Dallasnews.com]( | [Subscriber login]( | [Privacy Policy]( | [Contact us]( Copyright 2019 - [The Dallas Morning News, 1954 Commerce Street, Dallas, TX 75201, United States](