Abby Church

As Mayor John Whitmire passed a $7 billion budget complete with cuts, a voluntary retirement program and consolidations this summer, he issued somewhat of a warning to his colleagues on the City Council.

When Mayor John Whitmire prepared to oversee the final Houston City Council meeting of his first year in office, he said he’d keep his comments “short and sweet.” It was a strange departure for the mayor, who often finds himself in a passionate tailspin once he starts speaking on topics of importance for Houston.

"The gentleman that passed tragically was in contact with the outreach group,” Mayor John Whitmire said during Tuesday’s public comment session at City Hall. “He denied assistance, certainly a mental-health case, and it's a real tragedy. I think it's too early to determine the actual cause, but we were in contact with him and it became an issue of, he resisted care."

More than 24,000 years of experience and institutional knowledge walked out the doors of Houston City Hall as a result of Mayor John Whitmire’s voluntary retirement program, according to a Houston Chronicle analysis of data on the employees who participated in the $30 million cost-cutting initiative.

Most of the dozens of residents had already left, but some sat in police cars. One woman was carried away from the site yelling by her arms and legs. As police officers and other officials bustled through the encampment, a representative with Houston Television walked the site recording.

Two candidates for Houston City Council for are waging a war over who used AI to create their list of campaign priorities.

In a statement, Democratic precinct chairs said the Houston mayor's agenda is "indistinguishable from that of a MAGA mayor."