texas, like many states create special license plates for a feet. but the texas division of the sons of confederate veterans had their request for the license plate with the confederate flag denied after the vehicle board determined it offensive. the sons argues that is a violation of the right to free speech. >> your argument first this morning, john walker vs. the texas division of the sons of confederate veterans. >> thank you mr. chief justice. may it please the court. message's on texas plans plates are government speech. the state of texas etches its name on each license plate and texas law gives the state sol control and approval authority of everything that appears on a lance -- license plate, texas is

today we forget there is this connection to how we developed in the country and in the state of texas, in particular. we think of it as being a 20th century state and area with large cities in land. but if not for the gulf coast this transportation and the viability of bringing in ships we would not exist. in galveston you have to think about it as being the point of creation in texas for what we see as a modern state. announcer: all weekend, american history tv is featuring galveston, texas. the oldest known celebration commemorating the end of slavery and the united dates originated in galveston. on june 19, 1867, major general gordon granger and union soldiers landed at galveston with news the civil war was over and slaves were free. our comcast cable partners worked with c-span cities tour staff when we travel to galveston to explore the city's history. learn more about galveston all weekend on american history tv. ♪ [klaxon sounds] announcer: in 1917, the submarine force was battling public opinion as well as the enemy. both submarines were -- but war under the sea was unfair and

the case before the court has to do with a six-inch space on the texas state license plate. request for sons of the confederacy on grounds the flag was offensive. they said their aim is to preserve quote, the history and legacy of the soldiers who fought for the confederacy. nine states across the country let drivers choose specialty plates featuring the confederate flag. it costs an extra $30 and generated almost $18 million in texas state revenue last year alone. the court's decision is expected by june. joining me now is paul butler. thank you for joining us. >> it is great to be here. >> do you think the state of texas has the right to refuse this plate, especially given the fact that they sell pro-religion plates anti-abortion plates over 450 kinds of specialty plates? >> yeah. so the legal issue is when you see one of those tag lines on the license plate, is it the government that is doing the talking or is it the individual? most say it is the individual. texas can't pick and choose which points of view it likes. we're not trying to defend the sons of the confederacy.

>> it would not be unusual to see a specialty plate in the state of texas but the state of texas, by etching its name on it, can keep control of what appears on license plates. still the state's message. >> what is the limit of this arguement? that what concerns me. your answer to my billboard question was disturbing but suppose people still did good to parks and the state had an official state soap box at the park, and every once in a while a state official would mount the soap box and say give some official state announcement, but other times people who paid a fee would we allow goad up there and say something they wanted provided it was approved in advance by the state. would that be official state speech? >> i think we're starting to cross over interest a situation what is called a subterfuge. if you are abridging traditional free speech rights and limiting access to a traditional public forum, the government speech is crowding out public speech. >> why hasn't this become traditional? i don't mean to interruptity alead to -- alito because over on the same point. >> i don't think i

texas, like many states create special license plates for a feet. but the texas division of the sons of confederate veterans had their request for the license plate with the confederate flag denied after the vehicle board determined it offensive. the sons argues that is a violation of the right to free speech. >> your argument first this morning, john walker vs. the texas division of the sons of confederate veterans. >> thank you mr. chief justice. may it please the court. message's on texas plans plates are government speech. the state of texas etches its name on each license plate and texas law gives the state sol control and approval authority of everything that appears on a lance -- license plate, texas is not abridging free speech rightsful motorists me remain free to speak with a bumper sticker or window decal but the first amendment does not mean a motorist can compel any government to place its imprimatur on a battle flag. >> one of the problems of the standard whether it is regarded as offensive to many people. is it government speech to say

. ♪ ♪ >>> the texas state legislature meets every other year on odd numbered years. this is 2015. as lawmakers are in session, they're making laws, giving speeches, having meetings, doing the lobbying, all of it. they are in session. this week texas legislators got a visit from the anti-abortion lobby which handed out these signs for lawmakers to use identifying each one of them a not just a current lawmaker but also a former fetus. hey. mazel tov. one proudly placed it up by his door. that ran afoul of the people who enforce the rules about what you can and can't put up on the walls at the state capitol. they took it down saying, quote, we don't decorate the halls. that made the former fetus lawmaker angry. he said, quote, i think the kumbaya is about to be over. the texas state legislature famously is not a land of kumbaya. it's not a land of subtlety either. but even by texas' slash and burn political standards, the republican fight against women's health care in texas and planned parenthood in particular stands out over the last few years. in 2011 republicans slashed state fund

message's on texas plans plates are government speech. the state of texas etches its name on each license plate, and texas law gives the state sol control and approval authority of everything that appears on a lance -- license plate, texas is not abridging free speech rightsful motorists me remain free to speak with a bumper sticker or window decal but the first amendment does not mean a motorist can compel any government to place its imprimatur on a battle flag. >> one of the problems of the standard whether it is regarded as offensive to many people. is it government speech to say, mighty fine bourbon to advertise a project? >> yes, the government can approve the messages, just because it has endorsed messages or is accepting and generating revenue to proven gait the messages doesn't defeat the fact it is government speech. when the library of congressship takes sponsorship for the national book festival, that's still government speech on the web site. >> suppose texas erected 500 electronic billboards around the state, and on the billboards they

the state of texas refused. control license plate messages because it is a government speech. the group says their purpose is to promote heritage. the case is before the supreme court which will hear arguments monday. with us now domenic romano and fox news legal analyst lis wiehl. i want to show an example what we're talking about maybe difficult for you to imagine. here is the confederate flag tag that's at issue. you can see "the willis report" on the right there. okay. lis start with you. is this free speech? >> it is free speech. the court ruled back in 1977 the supreme court ruled that licenses are private. private speech on private property, not government speech. and later in new hampshire ruled slightly differently, that new hampshire people should not -- new hampshirans should not be forced to have the logo live free or die. whether you like the message or not it's private speech on private property. gerri: this is a state thing right? >> yes. gerri: tell me your view. >> i think texas got it right. si

so what version of texas did patrick's map show? >> just north of the state line of texas is an area referred to on the map as indian territory which we know today as oklahoma. there's a strip on the left side of the map that's santa fe territory. so at that point, that was that eureka moment of this is actually an 1849 decordova map. >> joe ups his initial appraisal. >> he said yours is a first edition therefore we think it would be $60,000 to $80,000. so i called my sister and decided to sell the map. >> joe tells patrick the value could go up or down depending on the map's condition and previous sales. he wants to hold on to the heirloom for more research. joe gets on a plane to dallas to show the map to sandra palamino, who specializes in texana artifacts. all she needs is one look. what kind of condition was the map in when you got it? that's next on "strange inheritance." >> here's another quiz question. what role did future army general and u.s. president ulysses s. grant play in the mexican-american war? was it quarter master? sniper? or medic? the an

a texas state legislature has introduced a bill making it illegal to videotape police officers close up. the law would keep the public at least 25 feet away from police and armed citizens would have to stand 100 feet back. >>> wednesday on america tonight, switching sides. >> what did you witness here? >> i witnessed my son-in-law founded. >> michael oku on why a sheriff from may berry became a one-man police watch dog >>> up next, profiling, what's the risk in all these secrets you've already given away. >> the stream, >> your digital community >> you pick the hot topics and express your thoughts the stream it's your chance to join the conversation only on al jazeera america >>> now to the lure of the internet and the online dangers we're complisit in exposing ourselves too. we also may actually be helping some of the brokers who track and trade information. >>reporter: where you shop, what you buy, how old your children are or whether you might drink too much. you would think that's all private information but you'd be wrong. these personal details are being collected. categorized

what version of texas did patrick's map show. show. >> nort of the state line of texan area that is refered to map as indian territory we know that today add oklahoma, a strip on lift side that is santa fe territory, that was that eureka phoeupltz of thimoment this is 9 decarkoba -- decardoba map. >> he said we think it could be worse 8worth 60 to 80 thousand . >> i called my sister,. jamie: he tells patrick the value could go up or down, he wants to hold to heirloom for research. >> no gets on a plane to deadlindallas,to show map to sao who specizeed in texana artifacts. all she needs was one look. what kind of condition was the map in? >> a "strange inheritance" quiz question. what role did grant play in the mexican-american war? >> so what role did grant play in the mexican-american war. a, quarter master. jamie: in birmingham, alabama, patrick martin awaits latest appraisal of his "strange inheritance," an 1849 first edition map of new state of texas, value pegged $80,000, if right that would go a long way to wiping out the debt patrick has run-up sinc

>> it would not be unusual to see a specialty plate in the state of texas. but the state of texas, by etching its name on it, keeping control of what appears on license plates. it's still the state's message. >> what is the limit to this argument, that's what concerns me. and your answer to my billboard question was disturbing. but suppose people still did go to parks, and the state had an official state soapbox at the park. and every once in a while a state official would mount the soapbox and say give some official state announcement. but other times people who paid a fee would be allowed to go up there and say something that they wanted, provided that it was approved in advance by the state. would that be official state speech? >> justice alito i think there we're starting to cross over into a situation what is called, what this court in suleiman called a subterfuge. if you are abridging traditional free speech rights if you're limiting access to a traditional public forum, that would be an instance where government speech is crowding out peach and, theref

to annex the state of texas.ally in 1844 during the election, it became a major issue. it gets revisited again. andrew jackson writes to his old friend, sam houston, basically saying it would benefit the future prosperity of texas and the united states for this to happen. he ends the letter saying, "god bless you and yours and grant is prosperity -- you prosperity in this life and the like to come. your friend, andrew jackson." the next document relates to the 1900 storm. the 1900 storm for galveston is a major event in the island's history. two has been a lot written about it -- there has been a lot written about it and set about it, but it still lingers today. it is still very much a part of galvestonians' history alive today. the letter is a recent acquisition. it is from francis mlister, a railroad agent, written to his sons. it is a letter describing what happened to him and his family during the storm. it goes into great detail about the water rising and the wind taking up -- picking up and what happened to

be a long fight for control of the city >>> in texas, people with gun licenses may soon be allowed to carry concealed handguns on college campuses. the state senate approved a bill today headed to the house of representatives. here's more. i was surprised to learn that texas is not the only state to allow this. >>reporter: that's right. it's already allowed in several states but if you ask people in texas whether carrying concealed weapons on campus people are split. >>> a shooting near texas a&m university killed three in 2012. less than a year later, another three wounded in a shooting at lone star college. those incidents sparking a movement in texas to allow some to carry guns on college campuses. today, that movement is one step closer to reality. >> one side of the story is bad but on the other hand it's bad because you never know what somebody is capable of. >> graduates or undergradings are going through a lot of stress so anything can cause a problem. >> that split was much more spirited in austin where law makers fiercely debated the campus carry gun law. in the end, it was party lines edging out democrats passing a bill allowing

a texas state legislature has introduced a bill making it illegal to videotape police officers close up. the law would keep the public at least 25 feet away from police and armed citizens would have to stand 100 feet back. >>> wednesday on america tonight, switching sides. >> what did you witness here? >> i witnessed my son-in-law killed by a swat team that i founded. >> michael oku on why a sheriff from may berry became a one-man police watch dog >>> up next profiling, what's the risk in all these secrets you've already given away. and lakes, it then gets into the food chain... >> that's hitting home >> it ends up on the dinner plate of people... >> techknow only on al jazeera america >> weeknights on al jazeera america. >> join me as we bring you an in-depth look at the most important issues of the day. breaking it down. getting you the facts. it's the only place you'll find... the inside story. >> ray suarez hosts "inside story". weeknights, 11:30 east >>> now to the lure of the internet and the online dangers we're complisit in exposing ourselves too. we also may actually be help

the new marketplace he represents third-party providers and says texas regulation brings competition and lower prices. >> i think the state of texas is bragging that their prices today to the consumer are significantly lower than they could have ever been under a regulatory regime. >> goodman says texas is the model and pointed us towards this report from the texas public utility commission, showing prices lower now than in 2001 when electricity was regulatessed but deregulated electricity has sparked allegations of deceptive masking and financial leapt practices in six states, connecticut energy plus agreed to pay a 4 1/2 million dollars fine after at the misled their customers. >> good. if they did, they should. we have been way out in in front in consumer bill rights. >> massachusetts energy just agreed to pay a $4 million fine. >> again -- >> new jersey the attorney general has actually filed lates against three companies. who is watching these couple ofs to make sure that they are behaving properly. >> apparently all these people are, everybody is watching them. >> electricity supplyers have caught the attention of t

texas. he became involved in the effort here to gain independence, the push for annexation and joining the united states. that issue had gone back and forth between prior presidents of texas and both sides at one point or another refusing, there were other issues going on. a state that accepted slavery was an issue great britain getting involved, kind of spurring the united states and the state of texas. finally in 1844, it became a major issue and it gets revisited again. andrew jackson writes to his old friend sam houston, basically saying it would really benefit the future prosperity of texas and the united states for this to happen, and he ends the letter saying, "god get -- god bless you and yours may it great you prosperity in this life and the life to come, your friend, andrew jackson." the next item relates to the 1900 storm. the 1900 storm is a major event in the island's history. there has been a lot written about it and set about it, but it still lingers today, though it is still very much a part of galveston the in history and life today. this letter is a requested -- recent acquisition. it

this is a guy who does not have texas state troopers.immigration and common core compared to romney, mccain, even to his brother to some extent, when he's asked about the stings, he does not get nervous, does not get defensive. even though his position will be controversial, i thought he handled it well. john: me, too. i think there will be some part of the republican party for whom his position will be amnesty and he will never win those people over, but for the people who are persuadable, i think he offered a solid an answer as you can have or the position he has. mark: after he finished, he got asked why he switched from supporting citizenship to legal status. again, he explained it pretty calmly. jeb bush in the roundtable on common core. jeb bush: because something is controversial or you have a view that the so-called political narrative has been built up, you do not abandon your core beliefs. you persuade people, as i'm trying to do right now, about why i'm for higher standards -- as i'm trying to do right now. there is political

the texas state attorney general is also suing saying radio shack explicitly promised its customers theold to a third party. if you have frequent flyer models from u.s. air they will soon be completely disappeared. but there is no reason to worry. they are scheduled to be converted into american airline miles this weekend. the two airlines have been running as one since they merged in december 2013. customers from the old u.s. air won't need to do anything. everything is supposed to happen automatically. supposed to happen automatically. more than 200 million miles, 150 million transactions are being transferred. the whole thing isn't expected to be complete until the first few days of april. now, those u.s. air passengers who have already booked flights on that airline will still get their miles through american. if you have problems, let me know about it. we'll be keeping close track of it. >> if it works it should be no problem. >> yeah, no problem. >>> east bay hike audio hikers won't be able to enjoy a popular park one day this week. for a good reason. all the trails at coyoty hill

before i was elected, i was the solicitor general of texas and the chief lawyer for the state in front of the supreme court. i served 5.5 years and texas led the nation defending conservative principles before the supreme court. [applause] we defended the 10 commandments monument on the capitol grounds and won 5-4. we defended the pledge of allegiance and the words, "one nation under god." we won unanimously. we defended the second amendment and won 5-4. we defended new hampshire's parental notification law before the u.s. supreme court and won unanimously. of all of the battles, the biggest is a horrific crime. two teenage girls murdered in houston. the judicial arm of the united nations issued an order to the united states to reopen the convictions of 51 murders across the country. it was the first time a foreign court has tried to bind the u.s. justice system. i argued before the supreme court twice. on the other side was the world court, the united nations, and 90 foreign nations that came in against the state of texas. on the other side, i am sorry to tell you, was the president o

of texas etches its name onto each license plate and texas law gives the state sole controlnd final approval authority over everything that appears on a license plate. texas is not abridging any traditional free speech rights. motorists remain free to speak through all sorts of ways including through a bumper sticker right next to their license plate or a paint job or window decal but the first amendment does not mean a motorist can impel any government to put a confederate battle flag on its license plate. >> well, one of the problems that we're seeing the nebulous standard would be regarded as offensive to many people. is it government speech to say mighty fine brokers to advertise a product? >> the government -- yes justice ginsburg. the government is allowed the choose the messages that it wishes to, and simply because it has approved messages or endorsed messages or is accepting and generating revenue propagate those messages doesn't defeat the tact that it is government speech. when the library of congress stakes sponsorship from "the washington post" or wells fargo fo

i have to admit it is an unusual situation for the state of texas to be litigating against the president of the united states who is a texan, a former governor of texas, a republican, and a friend. yet, i sat down with the attorney general and stood before the supreme court with george w. bush's lawyer on the other side. we argued that the united nations and the world court has no authority over our justice system. >> that's right! [applause] senator cruz: no president of the united states, democrat or republican, can give up the sovereignty of the american people. [applause] senator cruz: we won, 6-3. [applause] senator cruz: this deal matters for a lot of reasons. it is an acute threat to the national security. a nuclear iran is an existential threat to the nation of israel. it does not mean a french man chain-smoking. it is a grave threat to the national security of this country. new hampshire will play a critical role in the 2016 elections. any candidate who shows up in front of you, republican or democrat, ask the simple question, if obama negotiates a bad deal with iran that underm

texas, there was a full-blown trial and the judge in that case found intentional racial discrimination by the statexas, unlike in wisconsin that case is now on appeal in the sixth circuit and expected whoever loses will take it to the supreme court. so as of today, we really don't know how the justices think about some of these laws. >> ifill: but additionally this was put on hold because it was too close to an election, not the merits. >> exactly, the court does not like to see changing to election law shortly before elections. the wisconsin law was going to go in effect right before midterm elections. today the aclu and other groups that challenged wisconsin's law immediately went to the lower court to ask again that bit put on hold temporarily because there is an april 6, i believe election and, again, they haven't had time to implement the changes. >> ifill: let's move on to the arguments of the case today because we can never get away from a debate periodically politically, legally, about the confederate flag this time on a license plate. >> right. a really interesting case a very interesting

they say they had a deal with radio shack to park debt phones and the texas state attorney general is suing saying radio shack explicitly promised the customs the data would not be sold to a third party. >>> two powerhouse companies are creating what is going to be the third largest food and beverage company in north america. heinz is buying kraft food. it will include kraft and heinz and the bars unanimously approved the deal unanimously. >> tesla's next car the all electric model x has been spotted in palo alto. a video was posted on youtube, and tesla confirming the s.u.v. is indeed a beta version of the model x. you can look at the car here it is disgazed but they did not do too much the design is unfinished and the company name is on the truck with the model x expected to be unveil this year and the first deliveries begin at the same time so it pays to drive on 280. you never know what you will spot. >> i didn't spot the price tag and we will find out. >> you may not want to look. >> you will want to know what the weather is like. >> mike? >> inland east bay temperatures danville

this is a big shift for the company and potentially a problem for a state like texas where the officeovered with execution drugs is still bare, but they still have that other drug. we don't know if their supply came from akorn, but if it is, then hey, state of texas, right now you're looking at a request from the company that they want it back. and so is alabama. they, too, have stockpiled that same drug. over the past few days, we have been asking every company that makes midazolam about their policies on this. of the nine we have found and talked to, six of them told us they will not sell it for executions or allow it to be sold for executions. three others have not responded but we think they will. the drug in question is now the subject of a u.s. supreme court challenge because of the spate of recent gruesome executions. they're expected to hear that case in the next few weeks. there is that to watch out for as well. in the meantime, the next execution is scheduled for wednesday. if that happens, that will use up the last dose of the drug they have been using in that state to kill

a texas court must decide if that evidence is powerful enough to reopen the case and keep him from being put to death by the statetexas. >>> when rodney reed was convicted, he was represented at trial by state appointed lawyers who had just months to prepare his case. now he is being represented by the innocence project. one of the biggest organizations helping people who they believe have been falsely convicted. joining me now is barry scheck. great to have you here. there was a stay granded last -- granted last week, i guess it was. how rare is a stay like that granted by the texas court. >> you have to have a lot of good evidence and the timeline evidence, the forensic evidence, not just the rigor mortis. she was no longer stiff, and there was purge coming out of her mouth. these are very esteemed medical examiners. she was decomposed for 20 hours. it is rare for a texas court, the court of criminal appeals, to grand this kind of a stay, but we just got a statute passed in texas that allows people to go back into court when there is forensic evidence that can prove evidence that was not originally brought forw

bay coe and a deep fried oreo with graham crackers drizzled in chocolate part of a tribute to the texas state sushi and lobster rolls so... >> that sounds good, too. >> now we just need the chicken fries. >> there is now a billion dollar emergency plan to help california deal with our drought and only a third of the money goes to measures directly related to the drought and the rest to flood control including food for workers would have lost their job because of the detroit. >> turn off your faucet while you brush your teeth and you will save two gallons a minute and each minute off of a shower saves 2.5 gallons. we have other steps to take to conserve water right now. >>> a rare sight for sky watchers across the world. a total solar eclipse. it took several hours town fold as it covered the sun and it lasted just a few minutes. this was not visible in the united states anywhere but people in europe and russia and north africa saw a partial eclipse. the faro islands and in norway on some islands it was a total eclipse. do not take a selfie of the eclipse. >> why? >> not unless you are kim kar

i'm sorry. >> i'm just wanting you to respond to the fact that the state of texas says that it shouldequired to endorse all sorts of what they call distasteful messages, this is the state's argument, and that specialty license plates are the government speech, not that of the car owner. so what do you say to that? >> it doesn't represent the government's point of view. and i don't think that the sons of confederate veterans are in the least distasteful. we're an honored heritage group. we want reconciliation in the south and among the races. that was what dr. king wanted. and these tactics that they're using are very divisive. they're very offensive to us. and yet we try to turn the other cheek. but don't paint us as something we are not. that's what the state of texas is saying and doing that we are somehow by nature of our dna offensive. well i find that offensive. and i was very active in the civil rights movement. i went through the whole thing, randi, with dr. king and others. and he said, i have a dream that some day on the red hills of georgia the sons of former slaves and the

may flower compact, the immediate political context of this for those who might not know is the texas state board of education standards for 2010 which are now leading to text books which mark chancy will talk about later this afternoon, require the connecting of moses as sort of an original thinker for the creation of the united states and so this is something that texas teachers are grappling with right now, how to put moses into a process that by any reading he was very distant from. so the connecting happens in part through the may flower compact and it happens in two ways. if moses is seen as a law giver and the may flower is seen as an original law that creates a union and law goes to foundational constitution and connected to our constitution. so the process is through that and not actually through any of the specific content of any of those documents. the may flower compact doesn't hold up to that kind of scrutiny if you look at the actual text. so it has to be a description of the document rather than an examination of the document. the other way this happens is through the interna

, the chief lawyer for the state of texas in frontand led every appeal for the state of texas in a 4,000-person agency with over 700 lawyers. over the course of 5 1/2 years over and over again texas led the nation defending conservative principles and winning. >> you talk about sticking to principles and defending principles. obviously that is your calling card. but if you were to achieve the next level, the presidency of the united states you have to get beyond that and you have to really learn how to compromise. give me an example where you have successfully compromised in the united states senate with democrats. >> well, if you look at some of the legislation that has passed that i've been able to pass when i was there, for example, if you look to about a year ago when iran named hamadi bouta labi as their ambassador to the u.n. he was a known terrorist. he had just participated in holding americans hostage. and that was intended to be and was in fact a slap in the face to the united states. i introduced legislation barring him fro

state and the nation's highest court. tech text wants the supreme court to keep the couldn't federal flag off texas license plates. >> as fox'sa watkins reports it's a freedom of speech issue the state might lose. >> reporter: state of texas generally argues against government intervention but it's found a line it doesn't want the public to cross. it hopes the supreme court will let it say no to couldn't federal flag license plates. >> i don't think they should be allowed. >> reporter: there are plenty of people in texas who agree. >> to me it so many bowl lies racism. >> reporter: sons of confederate veterans say the confederate flag is simply a symbol of southern heritage. some agree with that, too. >> state of texas is a couldn't federal state you got a lot of confederate people so if they want it, yeah, it should be an option. >> reporter: intentions have nothing nothing to do with it. >> under the first amendment government doesn't have the right to regulate our speech. even if it speech a lot of us do and like. >> reporter: the court ruled against the state even when the state argued but -- but it's a state issue item.

before i was elected to the senate, i was the solicitor general of the state of texas. the chief lawyer for the state in front of the united states supreme court. i served in that role 5 half years and over and over again texas led the nation in defending conservative principles before the u.s. supreme court. we defended the ten commandments monument on the state capitol grounds and won 5-4. we defend the pledge of aplea gans, the words one nation under god, and won unanimously. we defended the second amendment, the right to keep and bear arms and won 5-4. we defended new hampshire's parental notification law before the u.s. supreme court and won unanimously. but of all the battles the biggest was a case metahen versus texas. it began with a horrific crime. two teenage girls murdered in houston. and the case took a very very strange court because the world court, the judicial arms of the united nations issued an order to the united states to reopen the convictions of 51 murderers across this country. it was the first time in history a foreign court has tried to bind the

there were no rail connections between texas and the rest of the united states in 1860. you could not get on a train in texas and travel to other parts of the country so texas, texas primary link to the rest of the united states or after 1861 the rest of the confederacy was by sea. galveston was the best natural harbor on the texas coast. galveston was the largest city. so a lot of -- everything involved trade and blockade running, went through galveston for the most part and other small ports along the texas coast. galveston was the primary. even before the confederates fired on fort sumter in april of 1861 in charleston the union was preparing and thinking about what happens if this becomes -- if secession becomes a shooting war. one of the things they considered was establishing a blockade of southern ports. the idea of a blockade is an old traditional technique used in warfare to blockade an enemy court to keep ships and vessels from coming in and out, prevent the enemy from getting support from outside. the union union forces declared a blockade on april 19, 1861. th

sons o confederate veterans because they wanted to have a license plate to raise money for the state of texas to keep up which was the purpose of their process this case. the state of texas has gone about issuing an open invitation to everybody to submit to them public designs for license plates and to create a limited public forum for these license plates. >> can texas formally by a joint resolution of the legislature endorsed the grand army of the republic? can they do that? >> the legislature can endorse anything it wants. >> can they endorse this? >> they have created a confederate heroes day in people on this side -- >> what about others? >> they created a holiday. >> you acknowledge that they can do all of these things. so long as it is texas speech. if it is all of these things can be said. >> this does not seem like a significant issue. >> if texas is it okay, but if you put it on a license plate, i don't understand what the theory is. >> the state has created successful program in which it solicits people to come and and to submit their design for their license plate so that they can

. >> all right, iowa state/texas. six seconds left. ate inbounding they have not led the all game -- they once trailed by 16 dave fleming, speak louder. >> five seconds, here's morris morris the shot to win it. good! >> i mean, texas was just a major fold down the end, texas played theirself out of the ncaa tournament according to our bracketologist joe lufardi whose hair is real. >> that's all we got. back to you. >> how can you not love this time of year? that stuff happens every night. >> bracketologist. who knew. >> that's a real thing. >> mixologist okay but bracketologist. >>> will ferrell. >> 19 at shortstop. will ferrell. >> being introduced with the oakland a's, first of ten major league teams he suited up for. played all nine positions in the feel and when it was over he still had his trademark humor. >> i know exactly what tiger woods feels like when his gluts aren't firing. right now my gluts have ceased to fire and probably won't fire for the rest of 2015. >> he's funny but this was a serious cause. the whole thing was a fu

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why wouldn't cruz announce his campaign in his home state of texas?rol, there are 10,000 reasons why. those are the 10,000 students of liberty university who are filing into this basketball arena right now. you can see them behind me. you can see this crowd warming up. this is the message that senator cruz wants to send. he'll talk about that he's trying to appeal to a new generation of conservatives and establish himself against the establishment. ted cruz has been in washington only two years. he's trying to fill the vacuum here by eeg the first candidate out of the box. he definitely faces long odds. he definitely faces an upzilhill challenge. he picked this spot here so it would look for a made for television rally complete with students and others. it's hard not to draw comparisons when barack obama drew crowds like this. that's why senator crews is here. this may be the easiest day of his campaign. he's facing a dozen other republican challengers but by getting in the race first, he gets a head start. >> we'll get back to you in just a second. t

the state of texas chose not to allow the plates the group sued. ch and states right advocates supported the sons of confederate veterans. we asked the question should government issued license plates be considered free speech? the majorityist folk whose weighed in said no. you can see there, 66%. >>> the white house science fair is going on right now. president obama is touring the exhibits of dozens of specially selected kids at the white house. he's scheduled to speak any minute and announce major doan angs angs donations to help science and math. this year an emphasis on girls and women in those fields. chuck? >>> outside, we have sunshine for now. get to keep it the remainder of date. future weather here through the course of the afternoon, bright sunshine. again, temperatures staying about ten degrees cooler than average. by 11:00 tonight, clouds on the increase and the little alberta clipper that brought snowflakes to chicago could bring nothing more than passing flurries early tomorrow morning. 8:00 a.m. a couple flurries around between 3:00

messages on texas license plates are government speech. the statets name onto each license plate and texas law gives the state's sole control and final authority over everything that appears on a license plate. texas is not any traditional free-speech right, motorist remain free to speak and always including on a bumper sticker. but the first amendment does not mean that a motorist can compel any government to place its information with the confederate flag on the license plate. >> one of the problems with this theme is it can be regarded as offensive. >> the government is allowed to choose the messages that it showed, it is accepting and generating the revenue to propagate those messages and does not defeat the fact that it is government speech. on the library of congress takes sponsorship for the national book festival, that is still government speech when i put it on the website. >> supposedly elected 500 electronic billboards around this statement on those billboards they have posted some government messages and then at the bottom people could p

. >>> and developing right now here in the united states and in texas. islamic tribunal using sharia law what is this about? >> well, greta, people may be surprised about this. first of all, one of the kind in the united states. first let's be clear, this is not a clear. we already have those in place obviously. the website advertises it as an islamic tribunal that practices sharia law. it consists of three local imams and a doctor of study but none licensed to practice law in texas according to the state bar association. they serve more of an arbitration role, issuing binding decisions on muslim divorce cases. and then a licensed attorney they work with filed the official paperwork with the courts. i'm told by the group's leader that this is no different from tribunals in the catholic church regarding annulments or the rabinic courts used by the jews. >> this is just for divorce cases because muslim woman cannot divorce just to find the decree in the civil courts -- >> critics are worried this could become a problem. in other parts of the world as you kn

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