Texas GOP civil war reaches bruising climax with leadership battle

Long-simmering tensions within the Texas GOP are spilling out into the open amid a heated battle for the state House Speaker seat. 

The fight underscores long-standing friction between the rump of what was once the Texas party’s establishment and the rising far-right faction that now controls most of the state’s government.  

It pits state Rep. Dustin Burrows, a top ally to outgoing Speaker Dade Phelan (R), against state Rep. David Cook, who was voted the state GOP’s Speaker nominee last month...