The State of Texas: RIP, Billy Graham

What Texas is talking about today No Images? [Click here]( [Kissing Tree - San Marcos, Texas]( [Texas Monthly]( February 21, 2018 QUOTE OF THE DAY "Before you know it, we’re going to be shooting the ball out of the sky with lasers like Cyclops from X-Men." —Astros pitcher Charlie Morton on [new rules in Major League Baseball]( designed to speed up the pace of play. According to Morton, increasing digitization will lead to some dystopian changes. BIG NEWS [The Power and the Glory of Billy Graham ]( WILLIAM MARTIN The evangelical minister, who preached to millions in stadium "crusades" and counseled presidents, died on Wednesday at 99. Today, we're revisiting Texas Monthly's 1978 profile on Graham. [Read Story]( [Kissing Tree - San Marcos, Texas]( OUR TOP STORIES [2018’s 10 Best New Restaurants in Texas]( The state’s best chefs are serving up quail egg shooters, smoked chocolate cake, and a sense of adventure.. [Read Story]( [Suite Dreams: A Look Inside Some Decadent Hotel Rooms]( Move over, minibar. Check out some of the most luxurious presidential suites to be found across Texas. [Read Story]( [Willie Nelson’s New Music Video Is Another Jaunty Look at Mortality]( Willie says goodbye to his friends, and acknowledges that hanging around beats the alternative. [Read Story]( MEANWHILE, IN TEXAS... A Culture of Sexual Harassment at the Mavs On Tuesday night, Sports Illustrated published an [exposé of sexual harassment and assault within the Mavericks organization]( that has been happening for decades. The report focuses on Terdema Ussery, the team president and CEO from 1997 to 2015. Multiple former female staffers alleged that Ussery harassed them, from requests for sex to touching women’s thighs during meetings. The article also details the culture that enabled Ussery, including an ineffective HR department and a staffer who continued to be employed at the Mavericks after pleading guilty to family violence assault. Mark Cuban, known for being hands-on with his team, insists that [he had no knowledge of the harassment](, and has taken steps to address it since being made aware of the allegations on Monday. Read Skip Hollandsworth’s [profile of Mark Cuban]( from 2017. Suing to Foster Kids Fatma Marouf and Bryn Esplin, married professors at Texas A&M, [want to foster a refugee child](. But Catholic Charities, which is the only organization working with the federal government to settle refugee kids in Texas, turned the lesbian couple away. Marouf and Esplin are suing the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (which oversees the organization) and U.S. Health and Human Services for violating the Constitution, alleging that Donna Springer, chair of Catholic Charities’ board, told them that foster parents must “mirror the Holy Family.” Read about two women who [fought for same-sex marriage]( in Texas. Clemency on Death Row On Tuesday, the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles voted unanimously to give [clemency to Thomas Bartlett Whitaker](, who is scheduled to die on Thursday. Whitaker was convicted of murdering his mother and brother in 2003 in a plot to get inheritance money. His father Kent Whitaker, who was also shot in the attack, has begged for a life sentence for his son. Recommending a lesser sentence for death row inmates in Texas is rare—the board has not done so since 2007. The decision now rests with Governor Greg Abbott. Read Pamela Colloff’s Texas Monthly classic on [Michelle Lyons](, who observed the final moments of death row inmates as her job. FOOD & DRINK [M]([y Quest to Conjure Up Devil Sauce]( DANIEL VAUGHN Using history as a guide—especially Frank X. Tolbert’s priceless Texas reporting—I set out to create the ideal BBQ complement. [Read Story](. [Tastemakers: Dallas]( [Tastemakers: Dallas]( Supported by [Kissing Tree]( Find out what attorney Rachel Lindsay, the first African American lead of ABC’s The Bachelorette, has been up to as she takes us on a fun-filled tour of her go-to spots for shopping, sushi, coffee, "healthy" cocktails, and art inspiration. [Watch now]( [Kissing Tree - San Marcos, Texas]( MORE FROM TEXAS MONTHLY [Dan Patrick Says He Will Block the Filming of Let Her Speak from the Texas Senate Chamber]( R.G. RATCLIFFE [A Home Library Built for 10,000 (Or So) Books]( LAUREN SMITH FORD [T]([he Astronaut Who Might Actually Get Us to Mars]( KATY VINE A Texas Televangelist Says You Don’t Need a Flu Shot if You’ve Got Jesus LEIF REIGSTAD [Subscribe to Texas Monthly and Save!]( Get the best of Texas with Texas Monthly. [SUBSCRIBE TODAY]( [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Instagram]( [Website]( Texas Monthly PO Box 1569 Austin, TX 78767 Texas Monthly has sent you this alert because you signed up to receive it either online at texasmonthly.com, at the website of one of our business partners, or when you filled out a reader response card. You may cancel your subscription to this and other Texas Monthly newsletters at any time. Please see our Privacy Policy. [Like]( [Tweet]( [Forward]( [Preferences]( | [Unsubscribe](