AUSTIN (Nexstar) – The assassination of Charlie Kirk is leading to an examination of civil discourse and free speech in Texas. In the aftermath of the shooting, some school districts and universities have dismissed employees over public comments related to Kirk’s death, raising questions about the boundaries of free expression on educational campuses.
The Texas Education Agency has investigated nearly 300 complaints about public school employees following the assassination. Commissioner Mike Morath issued a letter to districts pledging swift disciplinary action against educators who post inappropriate or inflammatory remarks.
The conservative advocacy group Project 1776 PAC is collecting and amplifying statements made by teachers, aiming to inform and mobilize parents.
“We are not targeting individuals with legitimate criticism,” PAC executive director Stefano Forte said. “We are focused on those who appear to celebrate political violence.”
Governor Greg Abbott publicly endorsed the TEA’s actions. However, civil liberties advocates have expressed concern.
“The individual who assassinated Charlie Kirk sought to silence a voice. And engaging in cancel culture is trying to silence someone,” Adam Goldstein, an attorney with the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) said.
Goldstein emphasized that most opinions expressed by public school teachers are protected under the First Amendment. However, he noted that speech which disrupts the educational environment may warrant administrative action.
“If you have a bunch of parents saying we don’t feel comfortable with this person teaching our children, the school has to do something. Now, whether that something is terminate the teacher as a first step is another question,” Goldstein said.
The controversy has also reached higher education. At Texas State University, a student reportedly seen mocking Kirk’s death is no longer enrolled. The university’s announcement came shortly after Governor Abbott publicly called for the student’s expulsion. In a statement, the university confirmed the individual is “no longer a student at Texas State.”
The Texas House and Senate each formed select committees to examine civil discourse and free speech in higher education. State Senator Paul Bettencourt, a co-chair of the Texas Senate committee, spoke in an interview with NBC 5 in Dallas and indicated that the committee may consider revisions to social media laws.
“People think they’ve got a license to say whatever they want on this,” Bettencourt said, holding up his mobile phone. “That’s not true.”
“Civil discourse has to be maintained,” Bettencourt added. “Just because you can say it somewhat anonymously, or maybe anonymously, but you can’t say that taking somebody’s life is a good thing.”
Democratic lawmakers have cautioned against overregulation.
“A loss of life is not something that, you know we’re going to say that is something that should be celebratory,” State Rep. Lauren Ashley Simmons (D-Houston) said. “But again, people are entitled to their feelings, and we have first amendment rights in this country.”
The legislative committees are expected to issue reports addressing bias, freedom of speech, and restrictions on campus protests. Hearings have not yet been scheduled.
District posts Ten Commandments, Bill of Rights in classrooms
The Ten Commandments are now posted in schools across the Hays Consolidated School District after a Christian nonprofit donated more than 2,500 posters. With the passage of Senate Bill 10, school districts are required to accept and display any privately donated posters showing the religious text.
Not all Texas school districts are currently required to comply with the new law. U.S. District Judge Fred Biery temporarily blocked the law after a group of families filed a lawsuit arguing that SB 10 violated the First Amendment by promoting a specific religious viewpoint.
The order only applies to the 11 districts named in the lawsuit, including Austin ISD, Lake Travis ISD, and Dripping Springs ISD. Attorney General Ken Paxton said his office appealed the injunction and instructed all districts not included in the ruling to comply with the law.
Hays CISD officials told KXAN that a Fort Worth Christian nonprofit, My Faith Votes, donated the posters. The organization’s website said its vision is to “see God honored in the public square.”
Records obtained by KXAN show a representative of My Faith Votes emailed the school district in July asking for the total number of classrooms within the district. The donation acknowledgement form shows the same representative from My Faith Votes donated the posters in August, but listed the donor as Million Voices.
According to a news release, the two organizations joined into a partnership in Feb. 2025.
“[My Faith Votes] asked how many classrooms. We told them we have 2,539 classrooms and so, then they donated 2,550 posters of the Ten Commandments,” Hays CISD Chief Communications Officer Tim Savoy said.
My Faith Votes did not respond to KXAN’s request for an interview or questions about whether it gifted posters to other Texas school districts. The bill’s primary author, Texas Sen. Phil King, R-Arlington, was also unavailable for comment.
In a letter to parents, the district told parents it would not defy state law and planned to approach the mandate as a “learning opportunity.” The district decided to put posters showcasing the Bill of Rights next to the Ten Commandments in classrooms.
“The district intends to do this to give students a broader understanding of not only the responsibilities by which they might choose to live, but also the important individual freedoms they enjoy as Americans or while on American soil,” Superintendent Eric Wright wrote to parents.
at Lehman High School. (KXAN Photo/Kelly Wiley)
District classrooms also share a note next to every poster explaining the new requirements under SB 10 and explaining that it did not use taxpayer funds for the posters.
English teacher Laura O’Dea has the Ten Commandments and the Bill of Rights hanging up next to her door. She said the posters, which were delivered on Wednesday, have already sparked questions from students. O’Dea said one student asked her if students would be required to recite the commandments after the pledge.
“I said I really don’t think that is what is coming but I don’t have clear answers for her,” O’Dea said. “As the teacher I am here to facilitate learning, but I am certainly not a preacher or on my soap box trying to convince anyone of anything. My job is to bring everyone together.
The new requirement to post the Ten Commandments has sparked conversations amongst students at the district’s campuses. Lehman High School Junior Nevaeh Lyons said her friends have discussed what the posters mean for their school community.
“I am a Christian myself – I like love all that type of stuff, but we’re kind of setting, we are making other people feel they are not welcome in a spot that they need to be welcomed in.”
It’s unclear how many districts have received donations of posters displaying the Ten Commandments, but some Central Texas districts said they have received smaller donations of posters – including Fayetteville, Cherokee and La Grange ISD.
Some districts reported not receiving any donations since the law went into effect.
“We have people who love the Ten Commandments and want them in schools. We have people that love the Ten Commandments but think, ‘hey that is probably a lesson better taught at home or in the church.’ We have people that are not Christian that other faiths. We have people that have no faith at all. The frustrating part about a law like this is it makes it look like the district is picking a side,” Savoy said.
‘It’s time,’ Rep. McCaul on not seeking reelection, evolution of U.S. politics
After more than two decades in office, Rep. Michael McCaul announced he won’t be seeking reelection.
The republican congressman currently serves Texas District 10, which stretches from Austin to College Station and south of Interstate 10. He chaired the Homeland Security and Foreign Affairs committees, leading several counter-terrorism and foreign policy initiatives. His term ends in January 2027.
On Monday, McCaul said it’s time for a new chapter.
“I don’t think our founding fathers intended for us to be here for a lifetime,” he said, “I’m just ready for a new challenge, a new opportunity in the same space.”
Entering Congress in 2005, McCaul said he’s seen how both the legislature and the Republican party have changed over time, particularly since President Trump’s first term.
“It’s not as civil,” the congressman said. “There are Congress men and women who want to be constructive and get things done, and then there are others who just like to get attention, and I think the attention crowd is growing.”
So far this year, 27 representatives and 10 senators have announced they won’t be seeking reelection.
McCaul is the third representative from Texas with plans to retire, joining Morgan Luttrell (TX-08) and Lloyd Doggett (TX-37). Rep. Chip Roy (TX-21) said he is forgoing reelection to run for Texas attorney general.
Out of the 27 representatives leaving, 17 are Republican and 10 are Democrat.
A 2022 Pew Research Center study based on congressional votes found that, on average, Democrats and Republicans are farther apart now than any time in the past 50 years.
In an increasingly polarized environment, McCaul said he found success by collaborating with the opposition.
“You have to work across the aisle to pass legislation,” McCaul said. “Otherwise they’re just political messaging bills, and they’re not going to turn into, you know, real legislation that can make a difference.”
In a 2024 study, however Pew reported that compared to five other voting issues, the public finds the most common ground on foreign policy — McCaul’s specialty.
McCaul said the Republican party is “evolving,” especially when it comes to being involved with overseas conflict. He said he is a proponent of “America First” principles, but also encourages the Trump Administration to avoid isolationism.
“I hope America First doesn’t mean America is absent in the world. I think it’s important we still lead as a nation,” McCaul said. “We don’t have to pay for all of it, but they’re looking at us for leadership, and I think we can’t abdicate that responsibility.”
McCaul has not announced what is next in his career, but said he is going to stay involved in public service.
“I’m not going away,” he said. “I’ll serve my term, but I’ll still be very vocal. I’ll have a voice, you know, to, you know, to speak on these issues that I dedicate my life to.”
After deadly floods, National Weather Service Austin vacancies increase
As Texas heads into its second rainy season of the year, regional vacancies at the National Weather Service Austin/San Antonio office are only increasing two months after deadly flooding killed at least 135 people, a KXAN investigation found.
“This isn’t the last natural disaster we will have,” said Congressman Lloyd Doggett, D-Austin. “We want to be better prepared for the next one.”
A week after the July 4 flooding in Kerr County, Doggett wrote a letter urging the NWS to fill 126 job openings he said were described as “permanent, mission-critical field positions.” However, more than two months later, the agency’s Austin/San Antonio office, located in New Braunfels, is operating with even fewer resources. About 26% of the positions it once had are currently vacant, according to online staffing disclosures.
Doggett’s district covers Travis County, where July flooding killed nine people.
Since May, he has sent a half dozen letters to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the parent organization of the NWS, and its umbrella agency, the U.S. Department of Commerce. Doggett spoke directly with NWS Director Ken Graham a week after the flooding to discuss the agency’s “reduced capabilities,” he said.
In July, KXAN first reported the Austin/San Antonio office had six vacancies. Those positions still haven’t been filled. Since then, an electronic systems analyst is no longer publicly listed as being part of that office, according to an internet archive comparison of public staffing records from July and September. KXAN reached out to the analyst to ask if he is still with the NWS but did not immediately hear back. This article will be updated with any response we receive.
That analyst has more than 18 years of experience with radar and IT systems, according to his LinkedIn profile. Online, he described his role as overseeing “the management, maintenance, and technical support for critical weather surveillance systems, including the WSR-88D Doppler radar and Automated Surface Observing Systems.”
“My role involves supervising a team of technicians, managing IT networks, and ensuring the reliability of equipment essential for meteorological analysis and public safety,” the analyst said in his biography.
‘Evaluating the need for additional personnel’
Today, the Austin/San Antonio office now lists seven “vacant” positions in the following sectors: management and administrative, lead meteorologist, meteorologist, hydrology and observations and electronic technician.
Those openings are an increase from the three vacancies listed in March and four in July 2024, according to an internet archive search.
“The National Weather Service is carefully evaluating the need for additional personnel and posting jobs to fill positions deemed necessary for operational continuity,” said National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration NWS spokesperson and meteorologist Erica Grow Cei. “These jobs are being offered as needed to ensure both the safety of Americans and the responsible use of tax dollars.”
The NWS Austin/San Antonio office’s public staffing records only lists “vacant” next to the open positions. The agency would not confirm the job titles for the positions yet to be filled.
“We don’t have any additional information at this time,” Grow Cei said.
‘Why hide these documents?’
For Doggett, the ongoing lack of answers is a problem.
“There’s no excuse for not at least identifying the positions that are vacant,” he said in response to the NWS’ statement.
While the NWS wouldn’t confirm job titles, a KXAN Investigates review of archived staff records found the following Austin/San Antonio office staff positions that were previously listed but aren’t currently: Warning Coordination Meteorologist (WCM), Lead Meteorologist, Meteorologist, Science & Operations Officer (SOO), Electronic Systems Analyst (ESA), Observing Program Leader (OPL) and Electronic Technician.
In his letters, Doggett asked for records related to these vacancies, including all chat, call and shift logs and radar archives from July 2-July 5 at the NWS Austin/San Antonio office.
“Texans still do not have a complete and accurate understanding of the NWS’s actions before, during, and after the disaster,” Doggett wrote in a Aug. 27 letter to U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, who oversees NOAA and the NWS.
Doggett says his requests to see records are being “stonewalled.” He accused the administration of having “something to hide concerning its handling of this tragedy.”
“If there is nothing to hide,” Doggett wrote this week in a letter dated Sept. 15, “why hide these documents?”
That same day, the U.S. Department of Commerce responded to Doggett’s repeated inquiries dating back to May 20. The agency reiterated forecast offices in Austin/San Antonio and San Angelo had “extra personnel on duty to support operations and timely delivery of alerts.”
“Typically, NWS offices in the area would be staffed with one to two forecasters on duty overnight; however, NWS took proactive steps to significantly surge staffing to five personnel,” U.S. Department of Commerce Acting Assistant Secretary for Legislative and Intergovernmental Affairs, Will Turner, said in a letter to Doggett dated Sept. 15.
The regional weather forecast offices in Austin/San Antonio and San Angelo “were able to successfully provide decision support services to local partners, including those in the emergency management community, during the disaster,” Turner added.
“Outreach can hardly be called successful if the intended recipient, like the Kerr County emergency manager, was not reached,” Doggett countered in a response letter sent the same day. “I have reason to question this claim unless it is backed by NWS Chat and call logs that show successful attempts at contacting emergency managers and other local leaders, including camp directors.”
Kerr County Emergency Management Coordinator W.B. Thomas told lawmakers during a special legislative hearing held in Kerrville on July 31 that he was ill and asleep at the time. Kerr County Judge Rob Kelly said he was out of town at a house at Lake Travis. Sheriff Larry Leitha said he didn’t wake up until after people were already trapped on roofs. Kerrville Mayor Joe Herring said he was “not aware” of a July 3 “Situational Awareness Call for Severe Weather” with the Texas Division of Emergency Management and the NWS.
‘Contributing factor to at least some loss of life’
“As time passes,” former NOAA Administrator, Dr. Richard Spinrad, told KXAN in July, “I’m more and more convinced that we’re going to have to look carefully at, specifically, the impacts of the vacancy of the Warning Coordination Meteorologist.”
That WCM is a key position responsible for communicating directly with local officials, especially during severe weather, Spinrad said.
The role is described as the “primary interface” between weather forecast offices and local emergency management and public safety officials, according to a NWS presentation.
The Austin/San Antonio WCM position has been vacant since April 30 and is not listed under current staffing. The office’s previous WCM, Paul Yura, had more than 32 years of experience. He took an early retirement as part of federal budget cuts.
In April, Yura said he was “sad” to leave the agency “a few years earlier” than he had planned.
“I would be surprised if that vacancy is not a contributing factor to at least some loss of life,” Spinrad said.
In July, following the Kerr County flood, KXAN reached out to Yura – who referenced a hiring freeze in his retirement message to the media – but he referred questions back to the NWS.
A full-time WCM position is currently being advertised to fill an opening at the Austin/San Antonio office in New Braunfels. The job posting was listed on Sept. 10 — just over a week after KXAN asked NOAA why the position had not been filled — and is advertised to close on Sept. 23.
The WCM will “serve as the principal interface” between the offices and the public, conduct “area-wide preparedness planning,” serve as supervisor when designated and, not more than a quarter of the time, act as senior forecaster, according to the job description posted on USAJobs.gov.
The position pays between $124,531 and $186,700 per year, according to the listing.
‘Not doing the job’
Critics, like Doggett, have placed some blame for the death toll and flood response on the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency federal cuts. At the time, DOGE was led by Elon Musk.
“I believe that we’re seeing in the loss of life here some of the real cost of the slash-and-burn approach [of] just trying to build up a body count there of people removed from the National Weather Service,” Doggett said. “Vacancies never filled.”
The White House and NWS both have previously pushed back on that, saying the agency did its job, timely warnings were sent out and enough employees were on hand to support local emergency officials.
“These offices were well-staffed,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on July 7. “In fact, one of the offices was actually overstaffed. They had more people than they needed. So any claim to the contrary is completely false.”
As the NWS looks to re-hire essential positions, Spinrad expects immediate staffing needs to be filled first — like the southeast for hurricanes and the northwest for wildfires, he said in a recent phone conversation, reaffirming his belief that budget cuts played a role in the flood response.
“They’re not doing the job of filling these positions,” said Doggett, referring to the NWS. “And, I just hope we don’t have another disaster in the area — because they’re really not fully prepared to handle it.”
KXAN reached out to the White House for comment. An administration official reiterated what the NWS told us, saying the agency is carefully evaluating the need for additional personnel.