New Wrinkle at Texas Governor's Office: The Texas Data Exchange

The Texas Observer is releasing a fascinating story this week about a new intelligence database called the “Texas Data Exchange” (aka, “TDEx”). The stated purpose of this database is to catch criminals, hunt down terrorists and allow law enforcement agencies throughout Texas to share valuable information. Close to $4 million has been spent so far on this behemoth, and it’s already chock full of records. Now, the existence of this database is hardly news; such databases are often necessary for effective law enforcement these days, assuming they're used ethically for their intended purpose. The real story here is that TDEx isn’t being run by the state's top law enforcement agency, the Texas Department of Public Safety, as required by current law. It’s being run by Gov. Rick Perry’s office.

Intrigued? The story is here.

Photo of Gov. Perry courtesy of Wikipedia.