Teen Calls ICE Treatment ‘inhumane,' Senate Hopeful MJ Hegar in Dallas, Mueller Testimony, Texas' Redistricting Path Cleared

Good morning! Here are the top political headlines from Austin, Washington, the campaign trail and Dallas.Points from Austin1. Campaigning in rival Royce West's backyard, Senate hopeful MJ Hegar said she was the Democratic Party's best chance to unseat Republican incumbent John Cornyn. "I'm the fighter it's going to take to beat John Cornyn," Hegar told about 80 people at a Dallas County Democratic Party luncheon. "Texas is tired of voting for politicians. They want one of us."West said he agreed Texans needs a fighter against Cornyn -- but that fighter is him.2. Democratic presidential candidate Beto O'Rourke has unveiled another policy plan. He said he wants to eliminate racial inequality in the education system through a proposed $500 billion fund that aims to shrink funding gaps. We're reporting what the plan would do and how he proposes to pay for it.3. Former state Sen. Wendy Davis raised more than $250,000 within 24 hours of launching her campaign to unseat Republican Sen. Chip Roy in Texas' 21st Congressional District, her campaign announced Tuesday. Here's how the donations broke down.Gromer's gaugeGromer Jeffers Jr. is the political writer for The Dallas Morning News. The Howard University graduate and Chicago native has covered three presidential campaigns and written extensively about local, state and national politics. You can catch Gromer every Sunday at 8:40 a.m. on NBC 5's Lone Star Politics.The rush of candidates trying to challenge Sen. John Cornyn -- state Sen. Royce West of Dallas, former Army helicopter pilot MJ Hegar of Round Rock, Houston council member Amanda Edwards and former U.S. Rep. Chris Bell -- signals that Democrats, once relegated to Texas' political wilderness, are finally ready to win a statewide race. But are they? Democrats will try to cast Cornyn as a patsy for President Donald Trump and hope that anti-Trump sentiment outside the core Republican base dooms the incumbent senator. Whether that strategy works or not remains to be seen. The most pressing question is how a competitive primary will impact the viability of the Democratic Party nominee in the general election against Cornyn, a campaign veteran who'll have money and resources to burn.Points from San Antonio1. Federal judges made a big decision Wednesday in Texas' long-running battle over voting rights. They denied a request by minority voters, voting rights organizations and Democratic lawmakers to place the state back under federal supervision for the next redistricting cycle, dealing disenfranchised voters a significant blow. But the San Antonio court judges said they remain concerned about Texas' track record ahead of the 2021 redistricting cycle, which will determine representative districts for the statehouse and Congress.2. The population of migrant children at the newly opened Carrizo Springs facility for migrants has plummeted, and the man in charge of operating the shelter says it may soon close. "By this weekend, we should have discharged all the children," Kevin Dinnin, CEO and president of San Antonio-based BCFS Health and Human Services, which runs the shelter, told VICE News. The prospect of the facility closing highlights a criticism of the Trump administration's response to the child migrant crisis that it did "too much, too late."Points from Washington  Continue reading...