James Osborne

Washington, D.C.

Washinton Energy Correspondent at Houston Chronicle

Washington Correspondent for @HoustonChron. Formerly Dallas Morning News, Philadelphia Inquirer. Retweets≠endorsements... just clicked on something.

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Articles

In Texas oil country, Trump enthusiasm wanes as prices plunge

3 weeks ago | houstonchronicle.com | James Osborne

Pumpjacks operate as a flare burns a few hundred yards from apartments Thursday, July 7, 2022, in Midland. Jon Shapley, Houston Chronicle / Staff photographerLast month, Kirk Edwards travelled from West Texas to the Mar-a-Lago Club in South Florida to celebrate with other donors to President Donald Trump. Edwards, the owner of an oil company in Odessa, had given $25,000 to Trump's inaugural committee, but he wasn't all that happy with his investment.
In Texas oil country, Trump enthusiasm wanes as prices plunge

3 weeks ago | expressnews.com | James Osborne

Last month, Kirk Edwards travelled from West Texas to the Mar-a-Lago Club in South Florida to celebrate with other donors to President Donald Trump. Edwards, the owner of an oil company in Odessa, had given $25,000 to Trump's inaugural committee, but he wasn't all that happy with his investment. Not only had the president begun enacting tariffs on steel and other materials used in oil drilling, but he was calling for $50 a barrel oil, below what U.S. companies say they need to turn a profit.
Texas tried to deregulate gun silencers. Now Congress will decide.

3 weeks ago | houstonchronicle.com | James Osborne

Firearms with silencers lie on the floor at a gun range at the NRA headquarters, in Fairfax, Va., on March 20, 2017. Ali Rizvi/TNSFour years after the Texas Legislature passed a bill attempting to get around a federal registration requirement on gun silencers, Congress is weighing whether to do away with it altogether.
Texas Republicans risk blowback in rural areas that rely on Medicaid, SNAP

3 weeks ago | houstonchronicle.com | James Osborne

A vacant room at Anson General Hospital, outside Abilene, one of a number of rural hospitals in Texas expected to be impacted if Republican's spending cuts pass the Senate. Ronald W. Erdrich/ContributorAlong the Louisiana border in East Texas, a rural area struggling with some of the highest unemployment rates in the state, government benefits for healthcare and food have become a necessity for many families, with among the highest participation rates in the state.
Texas Republicans risk blowback in rural areas that rely on Medicaid, SNAP

3 weeks ago | expressnews.com | James Osborne

Along the Louisiana border in East Texas, a rural area struggling with some of the highest unemployment rates in the state, government benefits for healthcare and food have become a necessity for many families, with among the highest participation rates in the state. It is also a deeply Republican area, where in many counties President Donald Trump carried the vote by more than a three-to-one margin in 2024.
Exxon's clean hydrogen project hit by Trump budget cuts

4 weeks ago | houstonchronicle.com | James Osborne

The Trump administration is cutting $3.7 billion in federal funding for clean energy and recycling projects, including more than $330 million designated for Exxon Mobil's clean hydrogen project at its Baytown facility. In all, 24 projects will losefederal funding, including $270 million for Calpine's carbon storage project in Baytown, $99 million for Orsted's clean methanol project east of Houston and $375 million for Eastman Chemical's plastic recycling project in Longview.
Thefts surge in the Permian Basin

1 month ago | expressnews.com | James Osborne

In March, a sheriff's deputy drove out to an oil field west of Odessa after the owner called in to report two of his storage tanks were short more than 400 barrels of crude, worth about $31,000. There was no evidence indicating what happened to the oil, but such incidents have become routine in the oil and gas fields surrounding Midland and Odessa, said Winkler County Sheriff Darin Mitchell. "I had a case last week.
The oil rustlers of West Texas: Thefts surge in the Permian Basin

1 month ago | houstonchronicle.com | James Osborne

In March, a sheriff's deputy drove out to an oil field west of Odessa after the owner called in to report two of his storage tanks were short more than 400 barrels of crude, worth about $31,000. There was no evidence indicating what happened to the oil, but such incidents have become routine in the oil and gas fields surrounding Midland and Odessa, said Winkler County Sheriff Darin Mitchell. "I had a case last week.
Chip Roy adds key vote for Trump's new tax bill, backing off opposition

1 month ago | houstonchronicle.com | James Osborne

U.S. Rep. Chip Roy on Thursday backed off his opposition to President Donald Trump's massive new tax and spending package, allowing the measure to narrowly pass the chamber despite ongoing objections from other Republicans that it would increase U.S. government debt.
Texas congressman Chip Roy and House Freedom Caucus hold up budget vote

1 month ago | houstonchronicle.com | James Osborne

U.S. Rep. Chip Roy and other members of the conservative House Freedom Caucus pushed back Wednesday against Republican leaders' plans to pass President Donald Trump's budget and tax package, saying further cuts are needed to Medicaid and clean energy initiatives before they will vote on it. In a press conference, Roy, of Austin, and U.S. Rep.