Only a few days after Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst threatened to have us arrested, some of the best and brightest of the Texas legislative press corps will gather tonight for an open discussion at the North Door. Oh, and the Chronicle will be there too.

Organized by the Texas Observer, the Texas Legislature Very Special Session Panel will talk about how the 83rd session and the resulting special sessions have gone/are going. Expect a lot of talk about the ongoing abortion fight, education funding, the rise of Democratic Sen. Wendy Davis, and what the ongoing political conflict means for the future of Texas.

Moderated by Observer editor Dave Mann, the panel will include Patrick Michels of the Observer, Aman Batheja from the Texas Tribune, Erica Grieder from Texas Monthly, and Richard Whittaker of the Austin Chronicle. Which would be me.

The panel starts at 6pm at the North Door, 501 Brushy. RSVP to walthall@texasobserver.org.

This article appears in June 28 • 2013.

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The Chronicle's first Culture Desk editor, Richard has reported on Austin's growing film production and appreciation scene for over a decade. A graduate of the universities of York, Stirling, and UT-Austin, a Rotten Tomatoes certified critic, and eight-time Best of Austin winner, he's currently at work on two books and a play.