Texas Boys State News

by Cameron Fisher and Spencer Anderson Texas Boys State Press Corps After a eventful night at LBJ, filled with rousing debates, and greatly talented performers, the statesmen rose Friday morning for one last day at Boys State. At seven, the general election polls opened in the Flag Room, and the Statesmen lined up in droves to place their vote. At eight-thirty, a recreation period began, and the Statesmen were able to choose between a city Olympiad and a college fair. The Olympiad served as the tournament games for basketball, dodgeball and football. At the college fair, schools from all over Texas, and a few from outside of the state gathered to share information about their school with the Statesmen. At ten thirty, the general election closed, and an hour later, the final General Assembly began in the LBJ auditorium. Boys State officials greeted the Statesmen and their parents, and made their final remarks before the event everyone had been waiting for all week: election result...

by Cameron Fisher and Spencer Anderson Texas Boys State Press Corps Another full day has passed at Boys State, and as usual, the boys rose early in the morning, and made their way to breakfast. The days first activity was the first general assembly, where General Election Campaign speeches for all State officials, excluding Attorney General, Lieutenant Governor, and Governor, took place. Following this long assembly the boys ate a hearty lunch.         The Staters then assembled for the march to the state capitol, which is just a short walk away from Jester. The boys lined up outside by city, with the band and Color Guard spearheading the congregation. The Color Guard bore the standards of the United States, Texas, and the American Legion, among others. Upon arriving at the front steps of the capital, the band played a couple songs. The boys then made their way inside the building, where they visited various offices of elected officials and house and senat...

by Cameron Fisher and Spencer Anderson Texas Boys State Press Corps         Yet another fun-filled, exciting day has passed at Texas Boys State. The Statesmen woke promptly at six, and threw on their Boys State t-shirts. They ate a quick breakfast, before heading to the Jester dorm Flag Room to vote in their party's Primary Election. Afterwards, while the House and Senate convened, the other Statesmen rotated between three different activities. The activities included a party politics panel, a presentation on the significance of Lobbyists, and a a panel on the role of the media. In an interesting twist, a representative from the Libertarian party of Texas joined a Democrat and Republican on the party panel. This allowed the Statesmen to be exposed to Libertarian views, and a well-received quote that our reporters collected from this representative was: "I support a strong defense, but nine hundred overseas military bases is not defense -- it is offense." ...

By Cameron Fisher and Spencer Anderson Texas Boys State Press Corps Once again, the statesmen rose at six in the morning, and made their way to breakfast in Jester dining before heading on to their state party conventions. Federalists went by City to the Welch building, and Nationalists walked across campus to the LBJ Presidential Library auditorium. In these meetings, both parties elected party officers through their already-elected delegates, and observed enthusiastic, passionate speeches. Meanwhile, the House and Senate made their way to the state capitol, where they continued officer election and committee formation. After the morning's hard work, thunderous applause, and seemingly endless walks, the statesmen made their way to a well-deserved lunch. Following lunch, the statesmen again grouped into their Cities, and made their way to Clark Field, for the City Face-off. At the Face-off, cities attempted to out-do each other's enthusiasm and fervor. The state...

By Santiago Barrientos Texas Boys State Press Corps On June 8th, statesmen get the first taste of fatigue as they wake up at 6 a.m. after staying up late as they voted for Mayor, Color Guard, Olympiad Director, as well as Press Corps members. They line up by cities to get the first taste of breakfast here at Jester Center Cafeteria, eager to start their first day. After eating, the statesmen are led to their Precinct Convention meeting to listen to their respective party's House and Senate speeches. By 9:30 a.m. the statesmen meet as counties to elect their party voting delegates, and begin to form their state party convention. Lunch offers the statesmen a break from the intense schedule and lets them talk about their long day so far with their own party members as well as boys from the opposing party. By 12:00 p.m. the first elections of 2015 are held for House and Senate, only making the statesmen more and more anxious and excited for the night to come. Ho...

By Texas Boys State Media Staff Welcome to the official blog of the 2015 Texas Boys State! Here, we will keep you up-to-date with the events and happenings at this year's action-packed week. To learn more about Texas Boys State, click  here . The program got underway Sunday, June 7, as 1008 statesmen checked in to the Jester Center dormitory on The University of Texas campus in Austin. Statesmen began their experience with a meeting in their cities Sunday afternoon. From there, it was off to dinner before the first Texas Boys State assembly in the sunken garden at Jester Center. At the assembly, statesmen learned two integral parts to the Texas Boys State program: proper respect for the United States Flag and the Texas Boys State song. After the first general assembly, it was off to city orientation meetings where statesmen in each of the 22 cities elected mayors for each. Two other positions elected were color guard and olympiad director. The two members of the color gua...