The State of Texas: Mobilizing the troops

Plus: A new mandate for immigration judges could make the backlog of cases worse. No Images? [Click here]( [Broadway in Aggieland: Get tickets to see Chicago, April 17-19, 2018]( [Texas Monthly]( April 5, 2018 QUOTE OF THE DAY "Today’s action by the Trump administration reinforces Texas’s longstanding commitment to secure our southern border and uphold the rule of law, and I welcome the support." —Governor Greg Abbott [responding to President Donald Trump's decision]( to deploy National Guard troops to the U.S.-Mexico border. Abbott also noted that since he's been governor, the National Guard has had a "continuous presence" at the state's border with Mexico. THE LATEST [Trump to Deploy National Guard Troops Along the Border]( LEIF REIGSTAD Presidents Obama and Bush, as well as former Texas Governor Rick Perry, made the same decision several times before. [Read Story]( [Broadway in Aggieland: Get tickets to see Chicago, April 17-19, 2018]( OUR TOP STORIES [Scenes From the Dallas 40th Reunion Party]( Cast members joined roughly 1,300 fans from 40 states and 30 countries in North Texas to celebrate the show’s anniversary. [Read Story]( [Beto O’Rourke Hits Pay Dirt With Bernie Sanders Money Machine]( The Democratic Senate nominee raked in $6.7 million and paid more than $2.6 million to former Sanders fundraisers. [Read Story]( [Much-Anticipated Loro Is Open: This Bite Sums It Up]( The bavette, or flank steak, exemplifies Aaron Franklin and Tyson Cole’s ambitious collaboration. [Read Story]( MEANWHILE, IN TEXAS... Order in the Court Judges are concerned that [a new Trump administration mandate]( designed to reduce the backlog of cases in immigration courts will instead exacerbate the problem. The U.S. Department of Justice announced Tuesday that immigration judges must process 700 cases annually to receive satisfactory ratings. Some experts say that the quota could potentially lead to rushed judgments that could give defendants grounds for appeal, further clogging the courts. “This is going to invite unnecessary scrutiny and undermine the very integrity of the court,” Judge A. Ashley Tabaddor, the president of the National Association of Immigration Judges, tells the Texas Tribune. “Parties who appear before the court will be wondering: ‘Is the judge issuing the decision because she’s trying to meet a deadline or a quota? Or is she really applying her impartial adjudicated powers?’” The Tribune notes that of the 684,000 immigration cases awaiting decisions across the country, more than 105,000 are in Texas. In November, two Texas cities [promised to provide residents]( facing deportation a lawyer. Only 37 percent of immigrants have representation in immigration court. A Final Gift Patricia Ivy's eighteen-year-old grandson Patrick was killed in a drive-by shooting in Dallas's Oak Cliff neighborhood last summer. On Wednesday, she "adopted" new grandchildren: two of the beneficiaries of Patrick's organs. Ivy and her family met the men [in an emotional ceremony]( at Baylor University Medical Center. Richard New, a minister, told the Dallas Morning News that he felt guilty about the circumstances that gave him a kidney and a new lease on life, but said that feeling accepted by Patrick's family helped. “I’m claiming y’all as my grandsons, whether you like it or not,” Ivy told the men at the ceremony. The wait [to receive an organ]( can be harrowing. Vote or Die The American Civil Rights Union accused the Texas attorney general's office of [making false statements]( about a judge voting from beyond the grave, the latest incident in an ongoing voter fraud investigation in Starr County. In February, Deputy First Assistant Attorney General Brantley Starr testified before a Senate Select Committee on Election Security that a former Starr County judge had voted after his death. But the civil rights group said those statements "are patently false." Voting records obtained by the McAllen Monitor support the ACRU's claim, but the attorney general's office is not backing down. “At this juncture, our office can confirm there are dead voters on the rolls in Starr County," spokesman Marc Rylander said. "But more importantly, we can confirm at least one instance of a dead person actually voting in Starr County. We will pursue the individuals responsible for any fraudulent votes and strive to bring them to justice.” The [debate over the pervasiveness of voter fraud]( goes way back. THE CULTURE [Meanwhile, in Lufkin… March 2018 Edition]( SONIA SMITH Our favorite recent items from the police blotter of the ’Lufkin Daily News.’ [Read Story]( [Guiltless Pleasures]( [Guiltless Pleasures]( [Sponsored by Laura's Lean Beef]( Everybody loves a good burger, including Texas chef Claire Smith, who owns Alice Blue, in Houston. Claire shows us how she makes simple, yet delicious patty melt sliders. Watch the video for the full recipe. [Watch Now]( [Broadway in Aggieland: Get tickets to see Chicago, April 17-19, 2018]( MORE FROM TEXAS MONTHLY [Life After ‘Fixer Upper’]( DAN SOLOMON [Does a Great Taco Require a Handmade Tortilla?]( JOSÉ R. RALAT [Small Town Smokers: Castell General Store]( ANNA DOLAN [Talk Like a Texan: To Chunk, or to Chuck?]( JOHN NOVA LOMAX [Subscribe to Texas Monthly and Save!]( Get Texas Monthly for $1 an issue. 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