Report on HD 17 Campaign and Special Sessions

Today, September 3, 2025 is exactly 6 months away from the March 3, 2026 Texas Republican primary. By the end of that day, we will know whether we have prevailed in our quest to continue to change the culture of the Texas House from one that is beholden to the voters and the principles, priorities, and platform of the Republican Party of Texas instead of to the Democrats and the Austin swamp.

This is a report on the status of my campaign for Texas House, District 17 in Milam, Burleson, Lee, Bastrop, and Caldwell Counties and on the high (and low) lights of the special sessions of the Texas Legislature.

Tom Glass for Texas House District 17

At this stage of the campaign, we are building campaign infrastructure and fund raising:

• Our new campaign manager, a home-schooling mom and volunteer firefighter living in the district, starts work on Friday. Her primary role will be to coordinate the volunteer efforts across the five counties of the district. I figure no one knows how to juggle and coordinate like a home-schooling mom!
• We have printed and started distributing our first updated literature with a reformulated slogan and prioritized issues.
• We are keeping the Let Texas Run Texas in the logo because that is a core part of my approach to my contribution to the Texas Legislature, but have reformulated the lead for my campaign.
• The new slogan:

To Make America – and Texas – Great Again,
we must drain the Austin swamp!

• You cannot prevail if you fight the last war. You have to skate to where the puck will be. The issues on the top of the mind of the voters are different this cycle because so much has changed from two years ago. So we have reformulated the priority issues on our literature to be used in talking to the GOP primary voters in the district. The issues are listed on the back of our printed business card circular:
  
• For the first time, I have hired a commission fundraiser, and I am spending a substantial amount of time fundraising, so we can do the advertising and volunteer efforts necessary to flip the 2,000 votes to our side in this election.
• We will be block walking very soon.

People have asked me how this campaign will be run differently from the last two so that we can prevail this time. President Trump says that never quitting is an essential part of victory. I agree, but doing the same thing the same way over again and expecting different results is not the path to victory. I won’t give away all of our secrets here, but the big three differences are:

1. We have started earlier on a bigger base. I started this campaign on June 25. I started my second campaign on August 30, and my first, if you can believe it, on November 4.
2. We will focus on coordinating the grassroots, volunteer effort. Nothing works better than word of mouth from neighbor to neighbor in campaigning.
3. We are raising more money for the volunteer coordination and advertising needed to take us over the top.

How can you help in the campaign?

• Donate! -  at tomglass.org/donate

• If you want to help reach out to HD 17 primary voters systematically, whether through networking, block walking, sign distribution, or other, reply to this email to let us know. The campaign manager will need that info as she builds our organization.
• If you live in the district, get me in front of your neighbors by hosting an event or inviting me to speak or attend your organization’s meeting.
• Forward my posts on X or Facebook. Although most of my voters are not on social media, many are.

The Good and the Bad of the Special Sessions

Redistricting

The redistricting of the US House seats in Texas and the fleeing of the Dems is, of course, the biggest news of the two special sessions. The first special session passed nothing because of the Dem walkout.

I will not focus on the national arguments over Texas leading the pushback on the game the Dems in other states had already rigged or the changes in the judiciary that allowed this wonderful start to fight back against the Dems for control of the US House. I will focus on the dynamics in the Texas House, specifically, the attempts by Team Burros and the swamp to talk about “unity.”

Of course, the Texas House Republicans had to unify against the Dems to achieve this victory. Burrows was in the hard spot of having been installed by mostly Dems and a minority of betraying Republicans. Ever since his ascension to the speakership, he has been acting to get his GOP team ready for the upcoming challenges in the primary by trying to deliver enough conservative results to stave off conservative challengers.

There are two aspects to the way the Burrows team acted during this fight that are worthy of note. First, the link between the Trump endorsements of all but two Texas House incumbents, including the Speaker Burrows, himself, and redistricting. Second, the failure of consensus (and therefore “unity”) in the Texas House Caucus on delivering real punishments to the Dems for walkout.

If you follow me, you know I have been critical of the capture and cheapening of the Trump endorsements of all Texas House incumbents. I had always been puzzled about how Trump could be bamboozled into endorsing on one vote on one issue, even if it meant endorsing the worst of the Austin swamp who are definitely no friends of MAGA. The Trump endorsement of my swampy opponent makes my challenge to him that much more difficult. But I have now heard from several well-placed sources that Trump was not bamboozled, after all. They tell me that Trump was doing a deal with those endorsements. And Trump’s price for the endorsements was the redistricting of the US House!

While I don’t like the deal’s impact on the future of the Texas House and our campaign to drain the Austin swamp, this view is much more understandable and believable to me. It was not just Trump that had to drag Burrows and his team into getting redistricting done. Governor Abbott and Attorney General Paxton had to push hard, too.

The grassroots have got to realize that the rallying cry of the swamp during primary season is “Republican unity.”  By talking “unity” during the primary, the swamp incumbents are seeking to stop themselves from being held accountable.

The time for party unity is during the general election. Primaries are the time to hold incumbents accountable for betraying their party and voters. One big lie that establishment incumbents and their mouthpieces tell is that to win the general election, the most squishy, moderate Republican must be elected in the primary. Rush taught us long ago how wrong that is. Unity does NOT mean backing the swam betrayers in the primary! Unity has to mean agreeing on pushing the principles, priorities, and platform of the RPT. It CANNOT mean agreeing to follow the swamp in the betrayal of such.

One of the pieces of evidence that “unity” was VERY short lived after passage of the redistricting bill was that the Texas House Republican Caucus met to plan how to punish the Dems for their waste of taxpayer resources by fleeing to the worst gerrymandered states to protest Texas redistricting. Sadly, 27 “Republicans” voted against substantive punishments in a secret ballot in caucus. We cannot know for sure which 27 voted against holding Dems accountable, but we cannot help but notice that the number is almost the same as the 26 who walked out of the Caucus back in December over the speaker selection vote, only to go join with the Dems to select the speaker. To be honest, even if they deny voting against Dem accountability in a secret ballot, I will continue to believe that most of the original betrayers also voted against unity on Dem punishments.

Property Tax Relief

It appears that one of the big fails of the second special session is that no substantive relief will be provided. I have not been able to keep up with the detailed ins and outs, but it appears that the only bill that might pass is one to once again slow the rate of increase, instead of providing real consequential cuts. Even an amendment by grassroots House member, Brent Money, to expand the slowed increase rate without a vote of the people to small counties appears to have gone down in flames.

So far, I do not see leadership allowing any progress to bind future legislatures to using future surpluses on buying down the maintenance and operation (M&O) portion of the school tax to zero over time. It also appears that leadership will do nothing to return the $11 billion federal refund to Texas for border security expenditures solely for property tax relief.

One of the key messages of my campaign is that to get either elimination of property tax – or merely substantive property tax relief – we are going to have to have new House leadership to replace the current Ways and Means Chair, Morgan Meyer, who blocks such efforts at every turn. That is accomplished by voting out the betrayers who put him into power in their alliance with the Dems.

Election Integrity

We have had two key victories in election integrity. I have played a small part in both.

State Level Enforcement of Election Law

First, a bill by Senator Brian Hughes (SB 12) that restores the ability of the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) to independently prosecute crimes defined in the Election Code has been sent to the governor!

Ever since the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals filed its State v Stephens opinion in 2021, opining that the OAG did not have constitutional authority to independently prosecute crime, despite having done so for violations for over 70 years, I have been pushing to get independent, state level prosecution of election and other vital Texas law, working with Senator Hughes to do so.

The governor put the issue on the call during the first session, limiting the option to a constitutional amendment which would have required support from the Dems to pass. I posted on social media after that call, asking for a revision of the call to allow more options and gratifyingly, the governor did so in the second session, allowing SB 12 to pass.

Note that this approach may be challenged again in the Court of Criminal Appeals (CCA), but this time it is likely to pass CCA muster. The original decision was 8 to 1, but only three of those eight justices will be on the court come January, 2027. Three were defeated in the 2024 primary over this issue due to the leadership of Ken Paxton and President Trump. Two more have seen the writing on the wall, and are not running again in 2026. Justice Kevin Yeary, the one justice who dissented in State v Stephens is running again in 2026 and will likely be on the court again come 2027.

BTW, the Texas House tried the constitutional amendment approach the governor put on the first session call, too, during the second session (HJR 1) and as I predicted, it failed due to lack of Dem support.

Reversing Same Day Voter Registration from Bad Amendment in Regular Session

On Thursday evening, August 21, long time Harris (and Lee) County election integrity activist called me to tell me about an amendment that had slipped through in the late days of the regular session that threatened the implementation of the redistricting effort the Texas Legislature had just passed.

The amendment allowed organized efforts within the big counties to “move” voters out of Democrat majority districts to newly created US House districts to be able to stop the implementation of the flip of US House seats to Republican in the 2026 election. Ed asked my to spread the word about that and urge Texans to contact the governor to ask to add this topic to the second special session.

I did such a post on both X and my Texas Legislative Priorities Facebook group on Friday afternoon, August 22.

Usually, when you post on a Friday afternoon, you don’t get much traction on social media. But to my surprise, my post on X went viral. Within 24 hours, my post had over 40K views. That post is currently sitting at 54K. Facebook always delivers less for me, but my original post there now has 3.8K.

Monday morning, the governor added the topic to the second special session call, and as of yesterday, September 2, the bill chosen out of a number to implement this (SB 54) has passed both chambers and is about to be sent to the governor!

Several commentators on Texas politics have given me credit for this, but I was just the lucky messenger. Over that weekend at a statewide gathering of grassroots conservatives, I learned that at least three SREC members, Andrew Eller, the head of the Election Integrity Legislative Priority Committee, Debroah Fite, and Christin Bentley were already working the issue behind the scenes. And, of course, Ed Johnson, the man who identified the issue and sounded the alarm, was not mentioned, either. Grassroots effort is a team and a band of brothers and sisters, all working for the common good. There are LOTS of unsung heroes in this effort, and every once in a while, they deserve credit.

Medical Freedom

One of the big victories this session was getting over-the-counter ivermectin. Texans for Vaccine Choice pushed the governor to add it to the call, and Joanne Shofner’s HB 25 has already passed, been shepherded through the Senate by Bob Hall and been sent to the governor. The debate on the floor was wonderful. Shelley Luther showed up the Dems for the virtue-signaling wannabe dictators that they are on medical issues. Note that Wes Virdell deserves credit for being the first to file this bill in the regular session. Because Joanne Shofner was on the Public Health Committee, she was picked to carry it, and she did so ably.

For those who want an hour of entertainment watching progressives virtue signal on the subject and multiple grassroots people, including myself, making the case for medical freedom, check out the hour long regular session hearing, here.

Taxpayer Funded Lobbying

It appears that ending taxpayer funded lobbying is another big fail of the second special session. And the blame for that can clearly be laid at the feat of Ken King, House State Affairs Chair and one of the inner sanctum members of the Burrows team.  SB 13 by Senator Bob Hall, implementing this RPT legislative priority passed the Senate, but is languishing in State Affairs, despite many calls to release it. King also has refused to hear Mike Olcott’s companion to Hall’s SB 13, HB 186.

Do you detect a theme, here? If Texas Republican primary voters and the Republican Party of Texas wants to actually get their most important issues passed, we must replace the betrayer Republicans like my opponent who put into power the Burrows team that is thwarting us.

On this Labor Day, I remember one of the core tenants that my father taught me:

"Any work is honorable work."

To celebrate work, especially work that I call “up against reality,” I link to one of my favorite songs about labor, Working Man's PhD by Aaron Tippin. https://youtu.be/2t7ECnE43QE?si=9pMFVrlcbXyr-vm8

While my father was a school teacher, he did handyman work during the summers, taking me with him starting when I was 7. He later turned fulltime handyman after he quit school teaching because they would not let him exercise corporal punishment, anymore.

He thought unions had become institutions that helped men NOT do an honest day's work. That, and the fact that the unions funded Dems put a negative cast on his and my view of unions.

I gave a speech in Toastmasters once, called "War Stories," stating that instead of serving in the military as so many young men have done, I worked in my youth in big industrial workplaces like gas plants, offshore platforms, and a steel mill, telling stories from my experiences.

I have worked with OCAW and United Steelworkers unions in a gas plant and one summer on a blast furnace. I gave a speech in Toastmasters once, called "War Stories," stating that instead of serving in the military as so many young men have done in our history, I worked in big industrial workplaces like gas plants, offshore platforms, and a steel mill, telling stories from my experiences.

(BTW, one of the many differences between my Texas House opponent and me is that I have had a career in business, whereas his career has been politics.)

As I got older and studied history, I understood that unions have been important in stopping corporate abuses, but I still have a watchful eye for abuses by unions.

One of the wonderful things about MAGA is that I think those who do the work of making our society run, union and independent alike, have realized that properly oriented markets reward ALL people who work, both blue and white collar.

MAGA is an embodiment of my father’s motto. The left and the Democrats have become a haven for those who don’t want to -- as Aaron Tippin says “pull their weight.”

MAGA, the GOP, my campaign, and now Labor Day is for those who do an honest day’s work.

It's Official!

I am running for Texas House District 17 in the March, 2026 GOP primary!

I officially announce that I am running in the March 3, 2026 Republican primary to be the State Representative from House District 17 (Caldwell, Bastrop, Lee, Milam, and Burleson Counties)!

Texas families must be free, safe, and financially secure. That won't happen when we compromise or share power with Democrats, who want to teach destructive ideas to our children and open our borders. Our Texas House Republicans must assert strong leadership to push a Republican agenda, and yet too many Republicans still prioritize special interest and Democrat issues rather than focus on our conservative priorities.

Our current representative sided with Democrats to select House leadership and ignored the majority of the Republican caucus. That betrayal is unacceptable because that won't help our families be free, safe, or financially secure.

It's not a matter of whether we got a few wins after lots of grassroots effort, despite the Uniparty leadership of the Texas House. It's a matter of whether we did everything that had to be done. Issues such as real property tax relief, election integrity, and stopping taxpayer services to illegals remained unresolved at the end of the session. We must do better.

That starts with getting a fighter with clear vision into office, and I am that fighter. As a citizen, I've been championing these issues harder than our current representative who often copies my positions and mimics my activity. For the future of our children and grandchildren, I ask you to join me to work for a MAGA Texas House that prioritizes our issues and values.

I cannot serve you without your help. I have had more offers of volunteer help and financial support than ever before. The challenge of my campaign is to effectively coordinating your help to reach the GOP primary voters in the district who do not focus on what is going on at the Texas Legislature.

I have several plans for how to step up the game in terms of reaching the voters we need to reach in order to win. More on that as we go.

At the moment, the most important way you can help is to donate what you can before the end of Monday, June 30. You can donate online at www.tomglass.org/donate or mail checks payable to Tom Glass Campaign to P.O. Box 720, McDade, TX 78650.

We can transform the Texas House from one beholden to the Democrats and the swamp to one beholden to the voters of HD 17 and the principles and priorities of the Republican Party. I look forward to going on that quest with you, working . . . .

Toward liberty,

Tom Glass

Today is the 250^th anniversary of what is known as the Battle of Bunker Hill just north of Charlestown, Massachusetts. The night before the battle, the Americans had built breastworks and placed cannon on the heights of Bunker Hill and Breed’s Hill overlooking the Boston Harbor and Boston, itself, threatening the British warships in the harbor and army stationed in Boston.

General Gage could not allow such a strategic advantage to the Americans and immediately ordered an assault.

Government troop casualties were 1054 (226 dead), consisting disproportionately of officers.  Among the British dead was Major Pitcairn, who had led the British troops in the battle at Lexington that started the revolution less than two months earlier.

The only reason for the defeat was that the militia ran out of ammunition, allowing the third British assault on the redoubt at Breed’s Hill to prevail. American losses were 450 (140 killed). Among the dead was the irreplaceable Doctor Joseph Warren, intellectual leader and author of the Suffolk Resolves which outlined the reasons for the resistance to British tyranny.

Note that this battle was fought and lead entirely by Massachusetts militia. The Colonial Army had just been authorized by the Continental Congress three days before, and I am pretty sure that no one in Massachusetts was yet aware of that action when the battle was fought.

An order issued (probably by Militia General Israel Putnam) during the battle became famous:

"Don't fire until you see the whites of their eyes!"

Although technically a defeat for the American militia, British General Clinton wrote: "A few more such victories would have shortly put an end to British dominion in America."

The British became cautious about venturing out of Boston after Bunker Hill, and when the following spring, the cannon provided by Henry Knox was placed by General Washington on Dorchester Heights, producing a similar strategic advantage that had precipitated Bunker Hill, the British withdraw from Boston, never to return.

RPT Legislative Priorities Results

June 5, 2025 

This is my personal assessment / report on the successes and failures of the Republican Party of Texas Legislative Priorities in the 89^th Texas Legislature, chosen by the delegates to the RPT 2024 State Convention.

While I testified at the Legislative Priorities Committee meeting at the RPT State Convention and I served as a volunteer on two of the Priority Committees, this is not an official statement of the RPT. It is purely my own.

High Level Summary:

No Democrat Chairs – FAIL

Border Enforcement – FAIL

End Taxpayer-Funded Lobbying – FAIL

Secure Texas Elections – 10%

End Federal Overreach – 30%

Stop Sexualizing Texas Kids – 45%

Secure the Electric Grid – 67%

Texas is Not for Sale – SUCCESS

The Details:

No Democrat Chairs - FAIL

The Republican-controlled Texas Legislature shall end the practice of awarding committee chairmanships to Democrats and require all committees to be majority Republican.

Comments: I always considered this priority to be one aimed at reforming the Texas House rules and culture to be more decentralized member driven serving voters and the principles and priorities of the RPT rather than centralized speaker driven serving the special interests and beholden to the Democrats.

The implementation of this priority centered around the commitment of the speaker candidates to this reform and a broader set of decentralizing reforms and the House Rules implementing them.

The speaker candidate that refused to pledge to reform or even the RPT platform call for choosing a speaker within the Republican Caucus won with a minority of Republicans and a larger number of Democrats.

Then the Rules package that was introduced created Rule-created subcommittees which allowed Democrat chairs and resulted in half being chaired by Democrats. The Rules also allowed Chairs to create their own subcommittees and notably Appropriations Chair Greg Bonnen made half of his subcommittee chairs Democrat.

Because the Rules package provided for high level committees to be chaired by Republicans, the Speaker team and his members spun the rules as meeting this RPT priority. But because of the mandatory creation of all Vice Chairs as Democrats while increasing power and funding for those Democrats and because of subcommittee Democrat chairs, the SREC (State Republican Executive Committee) soundly rejected that claim, stating in a resolution that this priority was definitely NOT fulfilled. 

Border Enforcement  - FAIL

To repel invasion and deter illegal immigration:

• Creating a Texas Department of Homeland Security to prevent illegal entry and trafficking, and to deport illegal aliens to Mexico or to their nations of origin. FAIL
• Prohibiting, with mandatory fines and jail time, individuals, corporations, non-profits, governments, and social media entities from assisting or inciting illegal entry. FAIL
• Requiring the use of E-Verify by all employers in Texas with significant penalties for business owners who violate this requirement. FAIL
• Ending all subsidies and public services, including in-state college tuition and enrollment in public schools, for illegal aliens, except for emergency medical care. FAIL

Comments: While the subcommittee added a bail reform amendment that passed to the list of endorsed bills in this category, I personally think that was a stretch. Not a single border related bill that the RPT endorsed passed this session. State Senator Tan Parker passed a bill (SB 36) that creates a Texas Department of Homeland Security, but it is not focused on preventing illegal entry and trafficking and deportation. Rather it is an intelligence and coordination operation. While a step in the right direction, the subcommittee decided that it did not meet the criteria of the priority.

Bail Reform including for Human Trafficking Offenses – (SJR 5 Joan Huffman / John Smithee) – Passed.

DEAD

End Taxpayer Services for Illegals – (HB 4745 Mike Olcott) Never heard in House State Affairs.

Generic End Taxpayer Services for Illegals (except schools) – (HB 5602 Ellen Troxclair) – Never heard in House State Affairs.

Reorganize State Guard including Border Defense – (HB 4914 Andy Hopper) Apr 30 heard in House State Affairs. But no vote in House State Affairs.

Border Protection Unit – (HB 354 Briscoe Cain) Never heard in House State Affairs.

E-Verify for All – (HB 1308 Carl Tepper) Never heard in House State Affairs.

E-Verify for All – (SB 324 Lois Kolkhorst / HB 3210 Mike Olcott ) Apr 30 SB 324 Passed Senate. DEAD due to no hearing in Ken King’s House State Affairs.

End In-State Tuition for Illegals – (SB 1798 Mayes Middleton) May 21 Passed Senate. Arrived in House State Affairs on May 23. DEAD due to late arrival from Senate and no hearing in Ken King’s House State Affairs.

DPS Can Detect, Deter, Repel, and Prosecute Illegals During Invasion – (SB 81 Bob Hall) DEAD. Never heard in Senate Border Security.

Texas Division of Homeland Security – (SB 135 Bob Hall) DEAD. Never heard in Senate Border Enforcement.

End Taxpayer-Funded Lobbying - FAIL

Prohibiting all forms of taxpayer-funded lobbying, including the use of tax dollars to hire lobbyists and payment of tax dollars to associations that lobby the Legislature.

Ban Taxpayer-Funded Lobbying – (SB 19 Mayes Middleton / HB 4860 Jared Patterson) Mar 19 passed Senate in watered down bill. Mar 25 referred to House State Affairs. DEAD due to no hearing in Ken King’s House State Affairs.

Comments: The fact that the tax-funded lobbyists were able to water down the bill in the Senate and completely stop it in House State Affairs, one of the most lobbied committees in the Texas House is proof of the importance of the passage of this priority. There is a chicken and egg circularity here, but it looks like it will require enough legislators committed to the RPT priorities to change the culture of the legislature before we can get this priority passed in the future.

Secure Texas Elections – FAIL ONLY 10% SUCCESS

Securing elections from each citizen’s registration to the final count of legal votes by:

• Requiring proof of citizenship to register to vote. FAIL
• Requiring the Counties and the Secretary of State to update the voter rolls at least quarterly. Partial 3 bills out of 5.
• Requiring a mandatory photo ID for every election, without exception. FAIL
• Restricting mail-in ballots to disabled, military, and eligible citizens who are out of their county for the entire voting period. FAIL
• Using only hand-marked, sequentially numbered paper ballots on anti-counterfeiting paper that are signed on the back by the election official at the voting location. FAIL
• Standardizing in-person voting, with early voting limited to a period of no longer than nine (9) days, no gap before Election Day, and assigned-precinct voting locations only. PARTIAL
• Counting ballots in precinct using a dumb-scanner method as soon as the ballot is returned by the voter and with publication of the results prior to submission to the County. FAIL
• Closing party primaries for only registered Republicans. FAIL
• Explicitly codifying the ability of the Attorney General to prosecute violations of the Election Code. FAIL
• Removing existing Secretary of State waivers to comply with current Election Code. FAIL

Comments: The resistance to passage of election integrity bills by Uniparty House leadership is probably the most visible payoff this session to the Democrats for their support of the Burrows speakership. This failure primarily on the part of the Texas House leadership is the most glaring disconnect between the Austin swamp and the grassroots and rank and file voters. The fact that we can’t even pass a bill requiring proof of citizenship to register to vote this session in Texas is proof of out of step the Texas House leadership is with MAGA.

Proof of Citizenship to Register to Vote

Proof of Citizenship to Register to Vote – (SB 16 Bryan Hughes / HB 5337 Carrie Isaac) Apr 1 – Passed Senate! May 12 Substituted bill in Calendars. DEAD due to slow walk by Matt Shaheen’s House Elections.

NOT ELIBIBLE TO VOTE on Non-Citizen IDs – (SB 964 Bryan Hughes) Apr 24 – Passed Senate! May 12 in Calendars. DEAD due to slow walk by Matt Shaheen’s House Elections.

Constitutional Amendment Clarifying That Voter Must Be Citizen – (SJR 37 Brian Birdwell / HJR 161 Candy Noble) Apr 1 Passed Senate! May 12 Passed House! May 15 Filed with Secretary of State, on the way to the voters in November!

Voter Roll Cleanup

Notification to Other States of New Voters on Texas Rolls – (SB 1862 Bryan Hughes) June 1 Sent to Governor!

DPS Share Data for Voter Roll Integrity – (SB 1470 Bryan Hughes) May 27 Sent to Governor!

Requirements for Voter Registrar to Comply With Law – (SB 510 Paul Bettencourt / HB 1478 Briscoe Cain) June 1 Sent to Governor!

Required Verification of Anomalies Every Two Year  – (SB 396 Lois Kolkhorst / HB 2272 Matt Morgan / HB 4253 Stan Gerdes) Apr 1 – Passed Senate! May 5 SB 396 and HB 4253 in Calendars. DEAD in House Calendars.

Challenges To Voter Registrations From Known Reliable Source – (SB 2681 Paul Bettencourt / HB 5362 Mano DeAyala) May 8 SB 2681 Passed Senate! May 20 SB 2681 Passed out of House Elections. DEAD by being placed on House Calendar too late.

Standardizing In-Person Voting with Early Voting

Standardizing In-Person Voting, with Early Voting – (SB 2753 Bob Hall) June 3 Sent to Governor!

Explicitly codifying the ability of the Attorney General to prosecute violations of the Election Code

AG Prosecute Election Law After 6 Month Inactivity by DA  – (HB 5138 Matt Shaheen / SB 1206 Bryan Hughes) DEAD due to House conferee intransigence (Geren, Darby, Bucy, Turner, Shaheen).

Removing existing Secretary of State waivers to comply with current Election Code

Unlawfully Altering Election Procedure -- (SB 618 Kevin Sparks / HB 2773 Jeff Leach) DEAD after passing Senate, but being placed on the House calendar too late. It was heard right after midnight on May 27 and killed on a POO as too late.

Miscellaneous

Insure that Election Supplies Are Available -- (HB 1661 Cody Vasut / SB 507 Paul Bettencourt) May 28 HB 1661 Sent to Governor!

Increased Testing of Electronic Voting Equipment -- (SB 2166 Tan Parker / House Sponsor Matt Shaheen) May 27 Sent to Governor!

Consolidated Precincts -- (SB 985 Paul Bettencourt / HB 342 Richard Hayes) May 24 Signed by  Governor!

Right to Request Explanation for Irregularities -- (SB 505 Paul Bettencourt / HB 3491 Steve Toth) Apr 16 – SB 505 Passed Senate! DEAD May 27 House substitute was objected to by Talirico POO on sub not being germane. Swanson killed bill by postponing beyond end of session.

End Federal Overreach - 30% Success

Resisting unconstitutional federal acts and mandates that restrict transportation, including mandatory kill switches in vehicles, road diets, and restrictions on the owner’s right to repair vehicles and equipment. Ensuring that Texans have medical freedom and can give or withhold consent for any vaccine or medical treatment without coercion, are not discriminated against based on vaccine status, and are not faced with any vaccine or medical mandate by public or private entities.

Comments: I served on the subcommittee selecting the bills to endorse, and I can say that this priority was difficult to navigate because it added freedom to travel and medical freedom into the pushing back on feds mix. We decided to separate the priority into three subcategories with different members of the team providing subject matter expertise. With my Texas Constitutional Enforcement background, I contributed most to the resisting the feds section.

Each of the subcategories has their own challenges. The hardest to pass is Freedom to Travel. Most of the bills end up in establishment/swap oriented Transportation committees in both chambers. The leadership of those committees care very little about RPT priorities or grassroots arguments. And only one of the endorsed eight bills passed. Sadly, the federally mandated kill switches that will install cameras and other sensors in vehicles starting in the 2026 model year  is going to shock a lot of Texans when they arrive. These warnings by the grassroots, especially Terri Hall have gone on deaf ears in the Texas legislature and the governor’s office when we asked for a special session in 2023 to try to stop them.

Medical freedom bills give the progressive Dem true-believers a chance to chub while opining and virtue signaling about how good they are because they want to force others to take the vaccines and medicine they want to push on us. And we had a Burrows appointed chair of House Public Health who is hostile to medical freedom this session.

On the push back on DC front, we smoked out some hard core federal and judicial supremacists in the Republican ranks of the Senate this session, especially with the Texas Sovereignty Act. That would not have happened had the Burrows team been looking for ways to demonstrate that they are not all bad by passing selected RPT priority bills. I am convinced that the RPT backing for ending federal overreach led to House passage of several of the bills this session for the first time, especially the Texas Sovereignty Act.

Bills Resisting Unconstitutional Federal Acts (4 out of 14 Bills)

Anti-Red Flag Act – Criminal penalty for any “person” attempting to serve a extreme risk protective (red flag) order in Texas (RPT Platform Plank 19 b) (SB 1362 Bryan Hughes House sponsor Cole Hefner / HB 162 Briscoe Cain). June 1 SB 1362 Sent to Governor!

Disconnects Texas Firearms Law from Feds – removes prohibition of short barrel rifles from Texas law. (RPT Plank 19) (HB 259 Richard Hayes / SB 1596 Brent Hagenbuch) June 1 SB 1596 Sent to Governor!

Protect County and District Attorneys From the Feds – Allows Attorney General to defend county and district attorneys in actions taken against them by the feds for enforcing state law, if the county/district attorneys request. (RPT Platform Planks 5 and 20) (SB 888 Lois Kolkhorst / HB 2460 Jeff Leach). May 24 SB 888 Signed by Governor!

Concurrent Jurisdiction with Texas on Military Installations – Established process where Texas and subdivisions can exercise jurisdiction on military bases. (HB 2337 James Frank / SB 1271 Kelly Hancock) May 27 SB 1271 Signed by Governor!

DEAD – the following RPT End Federal Overreach Priorities are dead:

Texas Sovereignty Act – Joint legislative committee recommends unconstitutional federal acts for declaration by legislature and governor. (RPT Platform Plank 20) (HB 796 Cecil Bell, SB 80 Bob Hall). May 7 – Passed Texas House! Senate State Affairs, led by Brian Birdwell and significant behind the scenes support from others gutted the Texas Sovereignty Act, falling just third reading short of sending gutted bill to Texas House. DEAD.

Don’t Mess With Texas Elections – limits on funding from outside Texas for Texas races. (RPT Platform Plank 202) (SB 405 Mayes Middleton / HB 3592 Dade Phelan ). May 14 Watered Down HB 3592 Passed House. DEAD due to lack of hearing and vote out of Senate State Affairs.

Protect the Texas National Guard (RPT Platform Plank 247) (HB 930 Briscoe Cain). House Homeland Security Mar 17 hearing. DEAD due to Cole Hefner refusal to hold vote, despite sufficient votes to pass.

Resist FBI Weaponization Against Texans -- Require feds to get sheriff and AG permission for arrests and searches in county. (RPT Platform Plank 5) (HB 1982 & HB 3932 Andy Hopper.) DEAD due to House State Affairs Ken King refusal to hold hearing.

Run Texas Elections Separately from Federal Elections – (RPT Platform Plank 221 g) (HB 209 Mike Schofield, SB 106 Bob Hall). DEAD due to House State Affairs Ken King refusal to hold hearing and lack of hearing in Senate State Affairs.

Refuse to Cooperate With Federal Health Emergencies – (SB 131 Bob Hall). DEAD due to lack of hearing in Senate State Affairs.

Protection of Intrastate Firearms Manufacture/Sale – Exempts most firearms and accessories manufactured and staying in Texas from federal law or regulation. (SB 130 Bob Hall / HB 1617 Valoree Swanson). DEAD – HB 1617 heard but not voted out of Ken King’s House State Affairs and due to lack of hearing in Senate State Affairs.

Resisting Global Interference – Denying jurisdiction to World Health Organization, UN, and World Economic Forum in Texas – (RPT Platform Plank 244) (SB 129 Bob Hall / Charles Schwertner SB 386 / HB 706 Terri Leo Wilson, HB 1377 Wes Virdell, HB 2887 Carrie Isaac). None got hearings in Senate and House State Affairs, respectively.

Come and Take It – Add to Texas Bill of Rights: “This state does not recognize any authority purportedly held by the federal government to regulate the manufacture, possession, sale, or use of firearms, firearm accessories, and ammunition in this state.” (RPT Platform Plank 19 a and b) (HJR 116 Wes Virdell). DEAD due to lack of hearing in Ken King’s State Affairs.

Freedom to Travel (1 out of 8 bills)

Right to Repair – for digital electronic equipment including vehicles (RPT Platform Plank 49) (HB 2963 Gio Capriglione / SB 2428 Bob Hall / HB 4555 Pat Curry / SB 2748 Bob Hall) June 2 HB 2963 Sent to Governor!

Right to Drive Act – Prohibits manufacture and sale of vehicles with installed remote kill switches mandated by federal law starting 2026. Includes addition of right to drive gas-powered vehicles and right to human driving. Planned add of right to repair. (RPT Platform Plank 49) (SB 381 Mayes Middleton / HB 2547 Briscoe Cain. See also HB 1074 Nate Schatzline). DEAD due to lack of hearing in Robert Nichols’ Senate Transportation and Ken King’s House State Affairs.

Anti-Road Diet – (HB 4348 Gio Capriglione / SB 1993 Bob Hall) DEAD. HB 4348 died in Calendars. SB 1993 never heard in Robert Nichols’ Senate Transportation.

Intrastate Shield for Texas Vehicle Manufacture – Exempts vehicles made in Texas for Texans from federal regulations on kill switches, electric vehicle mandates, mileage standards, etc. (RPT Platform Plank 5) (HB 1725 Andy Hopper). DEAD due to lack of hearing in Ken King’s State Affairs.

Toll Collection Reform – (HB 1333 Brian Harrison / SB 137 / HB 4907 Ana-Maria Rodriguez Ramos / SB 756 Mayes Middleton). DEAD due to lack of hearing in Ken King’s State Affairs.

Cessation of Tolls on Toll Projects – (HB 2323 Matt Shaheen / SB 2324 Angela Paxton / HB 2948 David Lowe). DEAD in Dem Terry Canales House Subcommittee Chair on Transportation Funding. Tom Craddick was Chair of House Transportation and did not elevate it out of the Dem controlled subcommittee. SB 2324 never heard in Robert Nichols’ Senate Transportation.

Prohibition of Tolls on Highways Subject to Comprehensive Development Agreement Terminated by a Toll Project Entity – (HB 2552 – Briscoe Cain). DEAD without hearing in  Dem Terry Canales House Subcommittee Chair on Transportation Funding.

Preemption of Prohibition of Types of Vehicles on Roadways – (SB 2238 Paul Bettencourt / HB 4316 Cecil Bell). DEAD due to lack of movement by author and Chair of Senate Local Government. Dead in Tom Craddick’s House Transportation for lack of hearing.

Medical Freedom (6 out of 15 bills)

Liability for Vax Manufacturers Who Advertise in Texas – (HB 3441 – Shelley Luther). May 30 Sent to Governor!

Internet Downloadable School Vax Exemption Forms – (HB 1586 – Lacey Hull). May 28 Sent to Governor!

MAHA Texas – Comprehensive bill pushing nutrition education, requiring warning labels for food dies, and requiring physical education in schools. (SB 25 Lois Kolkhorst / HB 25 Lacey Hull). June 1 SB 25 Sent to Governor!

SNAP Reform – Limiting junk food for supplemental nutrition assistance program. (SB 379 Mayes Middleton / HB 5243 Stan Gerdes / HB 4970 Briscoe Cain / HB 3188 Richard Raymond). June 3 SB 379 Sent to Governor!

Right to Try – Expands right to try investigational treatments. (SB 984 Paul Bettencourt / HB 3318 Ken King / HB 975 Brian Harrison) May 29 Signed by Governor!

Prohibiting Organ Transplant Recipient Discrimination for Vax Status – (HB 4076 Jeff Leach). May 26 Sent to Governor!

Right of Conscience for Health Care Providers – (HB 2816 Tom Oliverson) (House Public Health). DEAD due to lack of hearing in Gary VanDeaver’s House Public Health.

Informed Consent for Health Care Services – (HB 3472 Mike Olcott). DEAD due to lack of hearing in Gary VanDeaver’s House Public Health.

Fetal Tissue Labeling – requiring labeling of food, medical products, and cosmetics containing fetal tissue in Texas (RPT Platform Plank 140) (HB 1304 Andy Hopper). DEAD due to lack of hearing in Gary VanDeaver’s House Public Health.

Prohibiting Vax Mandates by Private Employers – (HB 5622 Cody Vasut). DEAD due to lack of hearing in Angie Chen Button’s House Trade, Workforce & Economic Development.

Prohibition of Employee Mandate for COVID-19 Revision – expands prohibition on employer COVID-19 vax mandate to keep the mandate from applying to all persons. (RPT Platform Plank 114) (HB 383 Brian Harrison). DEAD due to lack of hearing in Angie Chen Button’s House Trade, Workforce & Economic Development.

MRNA Labeling – required labeling of food and meat containing MRNA products in Texas (RPT Platform Plank 117 & 159) (SB 119 Bob Hall). DEAD due to lack of vote in Senate Water, Agriculture & Rural Affairs.

Right to Refuse Medical Treatment – “[R]ight to refuse any medical treatment, including a procedure, vaccine, medical device, or prophylactic, and a person may not interfere with or impede that right in any manner.” (RPT Platform Plank 114) (SJR 10 Bob Hall). DEAD due to lack of hearing in Senate Health & Human Services.

Right to Refuse Vaccination – “An individual has the unalienable and natural right to refuse vaccination . . . cannot be made a condition of employment, travel, school or other educational institution attendance, conducting business, receiving governmental services, or any other action . . . “ (RPT Platform Plank 114) (HJR 91 Andy Hopper). DEAD due to lack of hearing in Ken King’s State Affairs.

Intrastate protection for Texas lab tests during Fed Health Emergencies – (RPT Platform Plank 5) (HB 964 Brian Harrison). DEAD due to lack of hearing in Ken King’s State Affairs.

Opposed Bills that Reduce Freedom to Travel

Authorizes Texas subdivisions to Deploy License Plate Readers – For use in parking enforcement, toll collection, uninsured or unregistered drivers, investigating missing persons, controlling access to secured areas, and investigating felonies. (RPT Principle 1 and Platform Planks 152, 153, and 199) (HB 2083 John Bucy). DEAD.

School Bus Infraction Cameras (Similar to Red Light Cameras) – Undoes part of red light camera prohibition law to allow schools to install cameras on buses to record vehicles passing buses while stopped. (RPT Principle 1 and Platform Planks 152, 153, and 199) (SB 744 Donna Campbell / HB 1282 Richard Raymond/ HB 3034 Tom Craddick). DEAD.

School Bus Infraction Cameras (Similar to Red Light Cameras) – Unfunded mandate on schools to install cameras that record vehicles passing school buses while stopped and for school districts to send pictures to law enforcement. Undoes part of red light camera prohibition law. (RPT Principle 1 and Platform Planks 152, 153, and 199) (HB 723 Barbara Gervins-Hawkins). DEAD.

Establishing Digital Driver License IDs – Creates digital drivers license ID. Passed House last session to die in Senate. (RPT Platform Planks 49 and 208) (HB 1976 Terry Canales). DEAD. Never got hearing.

Stop Sexualizing Texas Kids – 45% SUCCESS                                       

Stopping the sexualization of minors, which leads to abuse, exploitation, and trafficking, by:

• Prohibiting taxpayer funding to any entities that permit or promote sexually inappropriate content to minors and legislatively banning instruction on sexual orientation and gender ideology in schools and libraries. Partial Success. Two big and one minor bills passed. Six lesser bills failed. I call this category a 70% success.
• Repealing affirmative defenses in Texas Penal Code (43.24, 43.25) and redefining “harmful materials” to remove loopholes provided by the modified Miller Test. HALF SUCCESS. Repealed affirmative defenses to showing porn to children. Failed to pass the Miller test loopholes in the definition of “harmful material.”
• Establishing an independent Inspector General for Education to investigate fraud, waste, abuse, and criminal conduct within schools and refer findings to prosecutorial authorities. FAIL
• Compelling superintendents to report sex crimes within schools to outside law enforcement and removing immunity from civil liability for schools and their employees. HALF SUCCESS. Compelled reporting failed. Removing immunity passed.

Comments: In my opinion the Stop Sexualizing Texas Kids priority is a showcase for the increasing success of the RPT legislative priority process. Under previous speakers who were driven to serve the special interests and were culturally influenced by the Dems, there was an open hostility to social issues. The RPT has had its greatest success in changing that attitude in the establishment leadership of the legislature.

The current Uniparty House leadership is still beholden to the Dems and the lobby, but now understands the power of these issues to move the grassroots. I also think that Burrows and most of his team truly care about these issues more than previous teams.

The problem facing both chambers of the Texas Legislature at this moment in time is that every victory comes at the cost of a lot of legislative time. These are the issues that the Dems obsess and scream about both as representatives chubbing and delivering speech after speech about both in committee as well as the floor. And the left’s activists, many of them Austin-based, descend on every hearing, making them very long and tedious to sit through.

The Burrows team did not trade victories for the Dems in stopping these bills this time. They gave the Dems time to vent and virtue signal and grandstand for their base, but not ultimate victory.

Stop funding for entities that promote sexually inappropriate content to minors or teach gender or orientation ideology.

Parental Rights and Banning of DEI & Gender Transitioning – (SB 12 Brandon Creighton / House sponsor Jeff Leach) Sent to Governor June 3!

School Library Cleanup – (HB 100 Terri Leo Wilson / SB 451 Mayes Middleton) HB 100 Sent to Governor June 1!

School Library Advisory Councils – (SB 13 Angela Paxton / House sponsor Brad Buckley) Sent to Governor June 3!

Move Dirty Books in Public Libraries Out of Children’s Section – (HB 3225 Daniel Alders / SB 2101) Apr 28 SB 2101 heard in Senate State Affairs. May 10 HB 3225 Passed Texas House! May 15 – heard in Senate State Affairs. DEAD due to slow action in Senate.

Prohibiting Use of National Sex Ed Standards in Texas – (SB 1396 Bob Hall) Apr 8 Passed Senate! May 23 in Calendars. DEAD due to slow action by Chair Brad Buckley of House Public Education. Got to Calendars late and died there.

Parental Approval for Sex Ed – (SB 371 Donna Campbell / HB 1158 Lacey Hull) Apr 1 Passed Senate! Apr 9 referred to House Public Education. DEAD due to no hearing by House Public Education Chair Brad Buckley. This language incorporated into HB 12.

Limits on Flags Displayed in Schools – (SB 762 Donna Campbell) Apr 15 Passed Senate! Apr 22 referred to House Public Education. DEAD due to no hearing by House Public Education Chair Brad Buckley.

Protects School Employees and Students when Using Proper Pronouns – (SB 1999 Bryan Hughes) May 8 Passed Senate! May 12 referred to House State Affairs. DEAD due to late hearing in Ken King’s State Affairs, dying in Calendars.

Prohibiting school employees from assisting students in transitioning – (HB 1655 Nate Schatzline) DEAD due to slow walk by House Public Ed Chair Brad Buckley and slow treatment in Calendars. (Arguably, SB 12 addressed this topic.)

Repeal Affirmative Defenses for Showing Porn to Children / Eliminate Miller Text Loopholes

Repeal Affirmative Defenses for Showing Porn to Children – (SB 412 Mayes Middleton / HB 237 Jared Patterson) May 7 Sent to Governor! First RPT Priority Bill to Pass! Signed by Governor on May 19.

Removing Miller Test Loopholes in Definition of Harmful Material  – (SB 88 Bob Hall / HB 1012 Steve Toth) DEAD due to lack of hearing in Senate Criminal Justice and Ken King’s House State Affairs respectively.

Schools Report Sex Crimes to Law Enforcement and Removed Immunity from Civil Liability

Liability of Public Schools and Employees for Sexual Misconduct – (HB 4623 Mitch Little) June 2 Sent to Governor!

Reporting School Employee Misconduct to Law Enforcement – (SB 1224 Kevin Sparks / HB 2206 Ben Bumgarner) May 5 Passed Senate! May 6 referred to House Public Ed. DEAD due to no hearing by House Public Education Chair Brad Buckley.

Other

App Regulation to Protect Children – (SB 2420 Angela Paxton / HB 4901 Caroline Fairly) May 27 – SB 2420 Signed by the Governor!

Prohibit Creation/Promotion of Obscene Material Depicting a Child – (SB 20 Pete Flores) May 28 – Sent to Governor!

Designation of Spaces for Biological Sex – (SB 240 Mayes Middleton / HB 239 Valoree Swanson) Apr 24 Passed Senate! DEAD due to no hearing in Ken King’s House State Affairs.

Restricting retail obscene devices – (HB 1549 Hillary Hickland / SB 2399 Angela Paxton) DEAD. Neither bill heard in committee. Angie Chen Button’s Trade, Workforce & Economic Development and Senate Criminal Justice.

Biological Sex Placement in Children’s Correctional Facilities – (HB 437 Valoree Swanson) DEAD in Calendars. Got reasonable treatment in John Smithee’s House Criminal Jurisprudence.

Civil Liability for Obscenity – (HB 1375 Nate Schatzline) May 8 voted out of House Judiciary & Civil Jurisprudence. DEAD in Calendars due to late hearing and vote by Jeff Leach’s Judiciary & Civil Jurisprudence.

Secure the Electric Grid – 70% SUCCESS

Securing the integrity of Texas electricity production and delivery of abundant, reliable, and resilient energy, ensuring that the Texas grid can withstand any natural or manmade threat to include weather, cyber, physical, electromagnetic pulse (EMP) and geomagnetic disturbances (GMD).

Comments: This was the first time this priority made it into the top eight. The genesis of the push for this priority was the efforts on behalf of State Senator Bob Hall, started in 2015, to harden the grid against electromagnetic pulses (EMP) that can bring down the grid caused by high altitude nuclear explosions or solar disturbances. Over the decade, Senator Hall expanded his efforts to protect the grid against all hazards.

I think that it was the RPT priority status that was the extra push that enabled us to finally pass Senator Hall’s grid resilience bill on the sixth session of trying. To prove its respect for at least some RPT priorities, the Burrows team finally told the transmission industry lobby that they were no longer kill this vital initiative for the people of Texas for the lobby.

The subcommittee expanded the core mission of the priority beyond resilience into reliability and to address the safety, environmental, and nuisance aspects of the rapidly growing Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) being deployed in many smaller population counties all over Texas. It is my opinion that the reliability measures would have passed without RPT involvement. The success in fire safety and end-of-life cleanup of BESS probably was helped by RPT involvement and education.

Grid Resilience (3 out of 4 bills)

All-Hazards Grid Resilience – (SB 75 Bob Hall / HB 941 Briscoe Cain – House sponsor of SB 75 Terry Wilson) May 28 Sent to Governor!

Required Tabletop Exercises for Physical Attack on Grid -- (SB 2148 Bob Hall / HB 4851 Shelby Slawson) May 27 Sent to Governor! Also amended into SB 75.

Standards for Transmission Critical Components Resilience to EMP and Solar Disturbance – (SB 1740 Tan Parker) Stuck in Senate B&C without hearing. DEAD. Essence included in SB 75.

Incentivizing Reliable Thermal over Less Reliable Solar/Wind on ERCOT – (SB 715 Kevin Sparks / HB 3356 Jared Patterson) – HB 3356 Voted out of House State Affairs. DEAD in Calendars. May 8 – SB 715 passed Senate. DEAD due to no hearing in Ken King’s House State Affairs.

Promoting Reliable Energy (8 out of 10 bills)

Nuclear Energy Support – (HB 14 Cody Harris – Senate Sponsor Charles Schwertner / SB 2060 Tan Parker) June 2 Sent to Governor!

Texas Workforce Commission Advanced Nuclear Energy Workforce Development Group – (SB 1535 Judith Zaffarini) May 28 Sent to Governor!

Requiring Wind Generation Companies to Provide for End-of-Life Cleanup – (HB 3228 Stan Lambert / SB 2657 Charles Perry) May 26 HB 3228 Sent to Governor!

Required Reporting on Recycling of Wind/Solar/BESS -- (HB 3229 Stan Lambert / SB 2659 Charles Perry) May 29 HB 3229 Signed by Governor!

Orphaned Oil & Gas Wells -- (SB 1762 Cesar Blanco / HB 5568 Drew Darby) May 22 SB 1762 Sent to Governor!

Charging and Regulating New Large Load Customers -- (SB 6 Phil King) June 1 Sent to Governor!

Requires New PUC Regulations Setting Standards for Routine Inspection/Replacement of Transmission Infrastructure -- (SB 1789 Charles Schwertner / HB 4627 John McQueeney) May 28 SB 1789 Sent to Governor!

Changed Regulations of Transmission Company Temporary Mobile Power Units -- (SB 231 Phil King) May 22 Sent to Governor!

PUC Permission for 10MW or Larger Renewable Power Facilities -- (SB 819 Lois Kolkhorst) Apr 15 Passed Senate! Apr 22 assigned to House State Affairs. DEAD due to no hearing in Ken King’s House State Affairs.

Imposing State Tax on Solar and Wind to Offset Federal Subsidies – (HB 3017 Brent Money) DEAD – Never heard in House Ways & Means.

Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) Regulation (2 out of 4 bills)

BESS End-of-Life Cleanup Required – (HB 3809 Drew Darby / SB 1824 Charles Schwertner) May 29 HB 3809 Signed by Governor!

Required PUC Fire Standards for BESS – (HB 3824 Ken King / SB 1825 Charles Schwertner) May 31 Sent to Governor!

Distance Requirements for BESS – (HB 1378 Wes Virdell) Apr 30 heard in House State Affairs. DEAD. No vote in committee.

PUC Regulation of BESS for Safety – (HB 1343 Ellen Troxclair / SB 1519 Donna Campbell) DEAD – Never heard in House State Affairs or Senate Business & Commerce.

Texas is Not for Sale - SUCCESS

Banning the sale of real property in Texas, and discontinuing taxpayer funding and incentives, to governments, entities, and proxies of China, Iran, North Korea, and Russia, and to individuals from these nations who are not legal permanent residents or citizens of the United States.

Comments: I consider the subcommittee for the Texas is Not for Sale priority as the most successful of the subcommittees this session. The bills started out with a large number of deficiencies which the committee and RPT leadership skillfully and persistently communicated to the players in both chambers. And as the session ended, the major players incorporated the suggestions of the RPT into the bill that passed, turning what would have been a weak-sauce shell into the strongest state bill in the nation on this topic. Congratulations to Deborah Kelting Fite, the SREC member leading that subcommittee, and all her volunteers for such a glorious victory!

Prohibitions on Purchase/Lease/Ownership of Real Property By Certain Aliens – Significant work and input by RPT strengthened bill into a win. (SB 17 Lois Kolkhorst / HB 17 Cole Hefner) June 1 Sent to Governor!

Regulation and Prohibitions on Lobbying for Foreign Adversaries – (HB 119 Stan Gerdes / SB 1875 Bryan Hughes) June 2 Sent to Governor!

Here are bills being heard this week related to the RPT Legislative Priorities with a few that relate to Texas Constitutional Enforcement, stopping a massive subsidy for the film industry, and stopping growth from ruining the quality of life of Texans. This is the last week that bills starting in the Texas House can be heard and have a shot at passing. Some House bills that are companions to bills that have passed the Senate are being heard to expedite final passage.

Monday, April 21

House Public Health -- Starts at 12:00 pm in E2.030.

Online comments: https://comments.house.texas.gov/home?c=c410

Hearing notice: https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/89R/schedules/html/C4102025042112001.HTM

HB 3219 – Joanne Shofner – Ivermectin without prescription in Texas!  Supported by Texas Constitutional Enforcement.

Tuesday, April 22

House Licensing & Admin Procedures – Starts upon adjournment in E2.016.

Online comments: https://comments.house.texas.gov/home?c=c350

Hearing notice: https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/89R/schedules/html/C3502025042210301.HTM

HB 1382 – Wes Virdell – Prohibition on weather modification and control in Texas. Will Texas follow Florida and Tennessee’s lead in banning what was once dismissed as conspiracy theory, but is now known as a fact that concerns many Texans?

Senate Business & Commerce – Starts at 8:00 am in E1.012.

Hearing notice: https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/89R/schedules/html/C5102025042208001.HTM

SB 324 – Lois Kolkhorst – Texas employers required to use E-verify.  RPT Border Enforcement Legislative Priority. Companion to HB 3210 by Mike Olcott, which has not moved at all in House State Affairs.

SB 1978 – Bob Hall – Prohibition of connecting the Texas grid (ERCOT) to electrical networks that are wholly or partly outside the state. This is a Texas sovereignty bill supported by Texas Constitutional Enforcement.

Wednesday, April 23

House Culture, Recreation & Tourism – Starts at 8:00 am in E1.030.

Online comments: https://comments.house.texas.gov/home?c=c430

Hearing notice: https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/89R/schedules/html/C4302025042308001.HTM

OPPOSE HB 4568 – Todd Hunter – Enabling legislation for $500 million subsidy for film industry. Companion to SB 22 which has already passed the Texas Senate. Check out this X poll with 5,331 votes that is 98% opposed to this bill ( https://x.com/tomgglass/status/1909326045469089940 ). Procedural trickery was used to stop an amendment to strip this subsidy out of the budget. Stopping this bill is the next line of defense. Of course, subsidies like this violates Principle 9 of the RPT Platform, “A free enterprise society unencumbered by government interference or subsidies.” The GOP primary voters are VERY hostile to what they see as Hollywooding Texas and supporting values and people that they abhor.

House Insurance – Starts at 8:00 am in E2.026

Online comments: https://comments.house.texas.gov/home?c=c320

Hearing notice: https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/89R/schedules/html/C3202025042308001.HTM

SB 495 – Senator Kevin Sparks, presumably carried by Dennis Paul -- stops Texas Department of Insurance from implementing rules that implement ESG. Expands upon what Tom Oliverson and Ken King accomplished last session. Anti-ESG bill supported by Texas Constitutional Enforcement.

House Judiciary & Civil Jurisprudence – Starts at 8:00 am in E2.030

Online comments: https://comments.house.texas.gov/home?c=c330

Hearing notice: https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/89R/schedules/html/C3302025042308001.HTM

OPPOSE HB 2988 – Mano DeAyala – Removes mandatory recovery of attorney fees when you win against vindictive plaintiffs. Undoes balance put into law to protect against strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPP).

HB 4803 – David Spiller – Creates district attorneys for four regional districts: Northeast (including Dallas and 23 other counties), Central (including Travis and 41 other counties); Southeast (including Harris and 19 other counties), and South (including 51 other counties). 116 counties, including Tarrant County, North Central, the Panhandle, and far West Texas counties do not get an extra layer of prosecution. I presume that this bill is intended to provide more opportunity to insure that we get law enforcement in the big counties where district attorneys choose not to protect Texans by prosecuting significant numbers and types of crime.

HB 1387 – Wes Virdell – allows people with sufficient, defined legal experience, but without a law degree, to sit for the Texas Bar exam and become licensed attorneys if they pass.

OPPOSE HB 3964 – Cody Vasut – Prohibits common law nuisance suits if regulatory framework exists. All over Texas, growth and change is creating damage to the way of life of Texans. In many cases, the regulatory framework of Texas is failing, allowing the new uses of adjoining properties to damage their neighbors, leaving only common law nuisance as a remedy. Now even that remedy is in danger. Examples include the nuisance of loud buzzing created by battery energy storage systems and in my own Lee County, the dumping of noxious, disease ridden, buzzard and pest attracting municipal “composting” facilities. Art I, Sec 13 of the Texas Constitution says: "All courts shall be open, and every person for an injury done him, in his lands, goods, person or reputation, shall have remedy by due course of law." HB 3964 closes the courts and juries of our peers and turns the well being of Texans over to bureaucrats. Worse, the Senate companion, SB 779 has already passed the Senate, so unless the people let our House members know we oppose this, it is likely to pass.

House Natural Resources – Starts at 8:00 am in E2.036

Online comments: https://comments.house.texas.gov/home?c=c390

Hearing notice: https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/89R/schedules/html/C3902025042308001.HTM

HB 1523 – Stan Gerdes – Prohibits City of Austin from injecting water into the aquifer under Bastrop County. Austin says they want to store lake water there, but there are many concerns about the threat to the groundwater that supplies the entire region.

HB 2109 – Gary VanDeaver – Stops the regional warfare of the Marvin Nichols Reservoir plan, which is intended to provide water to Dallas-Fort Worth by seizing and flooding 72,000 acres in Red River, Titus, and Franklin Counties, and under unconstitutional federal “mitigation” law would require the seizing of an additional 200,000 acres of private land in Morris, Fannin, and Bowie Counties.

HB 5188 – Janie Lopez – Exempts brackish groundwater wells from obtaining permits from groundwater districts. Removes red tape for desalinization of brackish groundwater.

HB 3898 – Richard Raymond – allows Texas Water Board to provide financial assistance to brackish water desalination for Webb County.

House State Affairs – Starts at 8:00 am in JHR 140 (Reagan Building on north end of Capitol Complex)

Online comments: https://comments.house.texas.gov/home?c=c450

Hearing notice: https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/89R/schedules/html/C4502025042308001.HTM

HB 1907 – Dennis Paul – Prohibition on Texas governmental contracts with Chinese companies or companies controlled by China selling information and communications technology. RPT Texas is Not for Sale Legislative Priority.

SB 871 – Brian Birdwell -- Modifies the Texas Disaster Act and State of Emergency Chapter 433 of the Government Code to prohibit lockdowns by executive fiat in disasters or emergencies, limit the suspension of certain election law, to preempt local executives from expanding or limiting state declared disasters, and to remove authority from the executives to suspend alcohol or explosives sales. Ties to constitutional amendment (SJR 40) that requires the legislature to be called into session to extend widespread disasters. Does not fix the separation of powers provisions of the Texas Disaster Act that is fixed in Shelley Luther’s HB 5464. Am still trying to decide how to approach this bill. I note that the accompanying SJR 40 is not set for hearing, which raises eyebrows Since the bill allows the governor to suspend the Code of Criminal Procedure which contains a number of due course of law protections, that needs to be worked, as well. I may testify on the bill and recommend amendments.

Trade, Workforce & Economic Development – Starts at 8:00 am in E2.014

Online comments: https://comments.house.texas.gov/home?c=c473

Hearing notice: https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/89R/schedules/html/C4732025042308001.HTM

HB 4555 – Pat Curry – Right to repair motor vehicles. Note that this follows on Gio Capriglione’s HB 2963, heard on April 15 in the same committee, whose bill description addresses the broader scope of right to repair digital electronic equipment, but includes motor vehicles. Curry’s bill is more precise and transparent on the issue while Capriglione’s bill non-transparently references a memorandum of understanding by the auto industry in its language for motor vehicles. Still deciding on how to approach. Both bills are APPROVED by the RPT End Federal Overreach Legislative Priority (the Freedom to Travel segment).

Thursday, April 24

House Elections – Starts upon adjournment in E2.012.

Online comments: https://comments.house.texas.gov/home?c=c240

Hearing notice: https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/89R/schedules/html/C2402025042410301.HTM

HB 5337 – Carrie Isaac – Requires proof of citizenship to register to vote. RPT Secure Texas Elections Legislative Priority. Companion to SB 16 (Bryan Hughes) which has already passed the Senate.

HJR 161 – Candy Noble – Adds positive statement that non-citizens cannot vote to Texas Constitution. RPT Secure Texas Elections Legislative Priority. SJR 37 by Birdwell has already passed Senate 28 to 3 (the three nays being radical Dems Cook, Eckhardt, and Gutierrez). Last session, enough Democrats voted Present Not Voting in the House to deny the 100 votes needed to take the amendment to the voters.

House Criminal Jurisprudence – Starts at 8:00 am in E2.014.

Online comments: https://comments.house.texas.gov/home?c=c220

Hearing notice: https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/89R/schedules/html/C2202025042408001.HTM

HB 3061 – Tom Oliverson – Increases penalties for commission of certain crimes including the robbery, burglary, arson, criminal mischief, disturbing the peace, and riot while wearing masks.

House Environmental Regulation – Stan Gerdes – Starts upon adjournment in E2.016.

Online comments: https://comments.house.texas.gov/home?c=c260

Hearing notice: https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/89R/schedules/html/C2602025042410301.HTM

HB 4086 – Stan Gerdes – Law allowing counties to prohibit municipal, commercial, or institutional composting facilities within 3,281 feet of stream, drain, recharge feature, recharge area, or tributary that my constitute or recharge the source of water supply of any municipality. Companion to SB 2078 by Lois Kolkhorst which has already passed Senate. This bill is known in Lee County as the Stop the Slop bill.

HB 4271 – Stan Gerdes – Requires TCEQ to hold a hearing on composting facilities upon request of a legislator. Companion to SB 2240 by Lois Kolkhorst which has not yet had a hearing. Came out of the controversy in Lee County where TCEQ refused to hold a hearing despite input from over 2,000 people. Not as likely to pass, and not near as effective to resolve the problem facing Lee County as HB 4086/SB 2078.

Here are bills being heard this week related to the RPT Legislative Priorities with a few that relate to Texas Constitutional Enforcement and that interest me.

Will post a status report on other legislation separately.

Monday, April 7

SB 1190 – Charles Perry – Required audits of water leaks in large municipal water utilities. Companion to HB 29 already voted out of House committee. Senate Water, Agriculture & Rural Affairs. Starts at 8:00 am in E1.012.  Hearing notice: https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/89R/schedules/html/C7002025040708001.HTM

SB 1862 – Bryan Hughes – Requires voter registrars to give notice to out-of-state election officials when new, formerly out-of-state voter registers in Texas.  RPT Secure Texas Elections Priority. Senate State Affairs. Starts at 8:00 am in Senate Chamber.

Hearing notice: https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/89R/schedules/html/C5702025040709001.HTM

SB 2681 – Paul Bettencourt – Expands common sense circumstances in which citizens can challenge voter roll discrepancies. Senate State Affairs. Starts at 8:00 am in Senate Chamber.

Hearing notice: https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/89R/schedules/html/C5702025040709001.HTM

Tuesday, April 8

SB 2119 – Kevin Sparks – Prohibits med school vax mandates. Texas Constitutional Enforcement support of medical freedom. Senate Health & Human Services – starting after Senate session in Senate Chamber.

Hearing notice: https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/89R/schedules/html/C6102025040814001.HTM

Wednesday, April 9

HB 2773 – Jeff Leach – Civil penalties for unlawfully altering election procedures – RPT Election Integrity Legislative Priority – Texas House Elections – starting after House session in E2.012.

Hearing notice:  https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/89R/schedules/html/C2402025040910301.HTM

Online comments: https://comments.house.texas.gov/home?c=c240

SB 407 – Mayes Middleton – Health care facilities shall honor reasons of conscience to refuse vaccination. Texas Constitutional Enforcement support of medical freedom. Senate Health & Human Services – starting at 8:00 am in Senate Chamber.

Hearing notice: https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/89R/schedules/html/C6102025040908001.HTM

SB 269 – Charles Perry – Texas reporting on adverse vaccine events. Texas Constitutional Enforcement support of medical freedom. Senate Health & Human Services – starting at 8:00 am in Senate Chamber.

Hearing notice: https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/89R/schedules/html/C6102025040908001.HTM

Here are bills being heard this week related to the RPT Legislative Priorities with a few that relate to Texas Constitutional Enforcement and that interest me.

The big ones for me are grid security bills and the protection of doctors from the Texas Medical Board for saving lives during COVID on Wednesday. Also on Wednesday, David Spiller is taking an important step to get us independent, state-level prosecution of statutes of statewide importance.

I also am very much interested in stopping Stan Gerdes' extension of tolls on SH 130 tomorrow. Note the online comments links for Texas House hearings for use if you are not in the Capitol.

Monday, March 31

House Transportation Subcommittee on Funding, chaired by Democrat Terry Canales. Starts at 10:00 am in E2.014.  Hearing notice.  Online comments for all bills in hearing: https://comments.house.texas.gov/home?c=c479

In favor of one bill and opposed to three:

HB 2323 – Matt Shaheen – Removes tolls from toll roads once debt is paid and prevents toll entities from obligating surplus toll revenue to other projects.

OPPOSE HB 2876 – Stan Gerdes – Extends toll contract on SH 130 another 20 years to 2062 beyond the first 50 years. Note that the debt on SH 130 has already been wiped out in bankruptcy.

OPPOSE HJR 58 and HB 542 – John Bucy – Diverts dedicated tax money for roads to mass transit, bike paths, and sidewalks.

OPPOSE HJR 63 – Armando Walle -- Diverts dedicated tax money for roads to mass transit, bike paths, and sidewalks.

SB 119 – Bob Hall – Requires labeling of food containing MRNA vaccine material. In Senate Water, Agriculture & Rural Affairs starting at 8:00 am in E1.012. RPT Legislative Priority End Federal Overreach - Medical Freedom.

Hearing notice.

OPPOSE SB 22 – Joan Huffman – The enabling bill to subsidize the film industry. Dan Patrick has prioritizing devoting half a billion dollars to this subsidy instead of property tax relief.  In Senate Finance starting at 10:30 am in E1.036.

Hearing notice.

Tuesday, April 1

SB 75 – Bob Hall – The big grid resilience bill. In Senate Business & Commerce starting at 8:00 am in E1.012. RPT Legislative Priority Secure the Electric Grid.

Hearing notice.

SB 715 – Kevin Sparks – Changes applicability of a regulation to increase grid reliability. In Senate Business & Commerce starting at 8:00 am in E1.012. RPT Legislative Priority Secure the Electric Grid.

Hearing notice.

SB 2148 – Bob Hall – Requires tabletop exercises for coping with physical attacks on high value transformers. In Senate Business & Commerce starting at 8:00 am in E1.012. RPT Legislative Priority Secure the Electric Grid.

Hearing notice.

SB 2422 – Bob Hall – Stops harassment of doctors by the Texas Medical Board for prescribing or advocating for hydroxycholoroquine, ivermectin, or budesonide or for speaking out against or not wearing masks. In Senate Health & Human Services starting at 1:00 pm or upon adjournment in Senate Chamber. Texas Constitutional Enforcement support of medical freedom.

Hearing notice.

Wednesday, April 2

HB 933 – David Spiller – Gives Texas Supreme Court final say over Texas Court of Criminal Appeals on interpretation of the Texas Constitution. In House Judiciary & Civil Jurisprudence starting at 8 am in E2.030. A step towards insuring we have independent state-level prosecution of penal statutes of statewide importance. This is companion to SB 1210 by Bryan Hughes, which is out of Senate State Affairs and on its way to the Senate floor.

Hearing notice. Online comments:  https://comments.house.texas.gov/home?c=c330

HB 3809 – Drew Darby – Requires initial agreement for end-of-life removal of Battery Energy Storage System.  In House State Affairs starting at 8 am in JHR 140 (John Reagan Building on north end of Capitol Complex). RPT Legislative Secure the Texas Grid.

Hearing notice. Online comments:  https://comments.house.texas.gov/home?c=c450

OPPOSE HB 17 without substantial closing of loopholes – Cole Hefner – Restrictions on ownership of Texas land by hostile powers. In House Homeland Security starting 10:30 am or upon adjournment in E2.016. RPT Legislative Priority Texas Land is Not for Sale

Hearing notice. Online comments:  https://comments.house.texas.gov/home?c=c308  If I get more info on why the RPT Legislative Priority Committee opposes, will pass along. I think it is because it does not cover existing land ownership and it has other gaping loopholes like allowing CCP citizens living “domiciled” in Texas or anywhere outside the CCP to own. I think leases are not prohibited, either.

Here are bills being heard this week related to the RPT Legislative Priorities with a few that relate to Texas Constitutional Enforcement and that interest me.

The big ones for me are the Texas Sovereignty Act and Transactional Gold bills on Wednesday. Note the online comments links for Texas House hearings for use if you are not in the Capitol.

Monday, March 24

SB 618 - Kevin Sparks – Requires Secretary of State to upon receipt or discovery of election law procedures by public or election officials, to investigate and report to the attorney general for imposition of civil penalties. In Senate State Affairs starting at 9:00 am in Senate Chamber. RPT Legislative Priority Election Integrity.

Hearing notice.

SB 1436 - Paul Bettencourt – Creates Class A misdemeanor for suspending legal requirements for processing mail ballots. In Senate State Affairs starting at 9:00 am in Senate Chamber. RPT Legislative Priority Election Integrity.

Hearing notice.

SB 1626 - Bryan Hughes – Updates bill to protect free speech of Texans from social media companies in light of litigation from HB 20 passed in 2021. In Senate State Affairs starting at 9:00 am in Senate Chamber. Part of Texas Constitutional Enforcement pushback on the Great Reset.

Hearing notice.

SB 1999 - Bryan Hughes – Prohibits schools from retaliating against school district employees or students for addressing others in terms consistent with their biological sex. In Senate State Affairs starting at 9:00 am in Senate Chamber. RPT Legislative Priority Stop Sexualizing Texas Kids.

Hearing notice.

HJR 138 by Daniel Alders – Constitutional amendment to prohibit imposition of carbon tax.

In House Ways & Means starting 2:00 pm in JHR 140.

Hearing notice. Online comments:  https://comments.house.texas.gov/home?c=c490

Wednesday, March 26

HB 796 – Cecil Bell, Jr. – Texas Sovereignty Act. See txce.org/Texas_soverignty_act. In House State Affairs starting at 8 am in JHR 140 (John Reagan Building on north end of Capitol Complex). RPT Legislative Priority End Federal Overreach.

Hearing notice. Online comments:  https://comments.house.texas.gov/home?c=c450

HB 1056 – Mark Dorazio – Transactional Gold. See transactionalgold.com. In House State Affairs starting at 8 am in JHR 140 (John Reagan Building on north end of Capitol Complex).

Hearing notice. Online comments:  https://comments.house.texas.gov/home?c=c450

HB 1544 – Richard Raymond – Instructs Comptroller to bill the federal government for back Texas border security costs. In House State Affairs starting at 8 am in JHR 140 (John Reagan Building on north end of Capitol Complex).

Hearing notice. Online comments:  https://comments.house.texas.gov/home?c=c450

HB 3228 – Stan Lambert – Requires wind and solar lease agreements to address end of life cleanup costs. In House State Affairs starting at 8 am in JHR 140 (John Reagan Building on north end of Capitol Complex).

Hearing notice. Online comments:  https://comments.house.texas.gov/home?c=c450

HJR 98 – Cody Vasut – Removes expiration date from Texas Convention of States application. In House State Affairs starting at 8 am in JHR 140 (John Reagan Building on north end of Capitol Complex).

Hearing notice. Online comments:  https://comments.house.texas.gov/home?c=c450

OPPOSE SB 744 – Donna Campbell companion to HB 3034 – Amends law eliminating red light cameras (passed by Jonathan Stickland) to allow school bus cameras and automatic ticketing. In Senate Transportation starting at 8:00 am in E1.016. RPT Legislative Priority End Federal Overreach OPPOSES due to restriction on freedom to travel and due process grounds.

Hearing notice.

HB 29 - Stan Gerdes - Mandates big city water utilities audit their distribution system leaks. All of the water being pumped out of Burleson County (and negatively impacting Lee and Milam Counties) that is being piped to San Antonio is being lost in the San Antonio system leaks. This bill seeks to address that outrageous problem. In House Natural Resources starting at 8:00 am in E2.036.

Hearing notice. Online comments: https://comments.house.texas.gov/home?c=c390

Thursday, March 27

OPPOSE HB 3034 – Tom Craddick – companion to SB 744 – Amends law eliminating red light cameras (passed by Jonathan Stickland) to allow school bus cameras and automatic ticketing. In House Transportation starting at 8:00 am in E2.010. RPT Legislative Priority End Federal Overreach OPPOSES due to restriction on freedom to travel and due process grounds.

Hearing notice.  Online comments: https://comments.house.texas.gov/home?c=c470

HB 1478 – Briscoe Cain – Secretary of State can withhold funding to county registrar for failing to follow parts of the Election Code. In House Elections starting at 10:30 am or upon adjournment in E2.012. RPT Legislative Priority Election Integrity.

Hearing notice.  Online Comments: https://comments.house.texas.gov/home?c=c240

HB 1661 – Cody Vasut – Creates criminal penalty for intentionally providing election precinct with ballots required by law. In House Elections starting at 10:30 am or upon adjournment in E2.012. RPT Legislative Priority Election Integrity.

Hearing notice.  Online Comments: https://comments.house.texas.gov/home?c=c240

Texas House hearings considering bills start this coming week, and the deadline for filing bills is end of day Friday. I am overdue in providing a status update on the Texas Legislature.

I have often said that the Texas Legislature is like a fifty-ring circus. There is so much happening at one time, that it is virtually impossible for one person to keep up with it all. I certainly can’t. And I do not even have the space and time to tell you everything that I have seen.

I will focus in this report on the areas that I personally prioritize. That includes the Texas Constitutional Enforcement legislative agenda and a few of the Legislative Priorities of the RPT including End Federal Overreach, Secure the Electric Grid, End Taxpayer-Funded Lobbying, Border Enforcement, and Texas is Not for Sale.

At the end, I will also discuss what I have seen in the Texas House about the likelihood of passage of bills.

Texas Constitutional Enforcement Legislative Agenda

1. End Federal Overreach

Texas Sovereignty Act – Joint legislative committee recommends unconstitutional federal acts for declaration by legislature and governor. (RPT End Federal Overreach Priority). (RPT Platform Plank 20) (HB 796 Cecil Bell, HB 898 David Spiller, SB 80 Bob Hall) RPT Endorsed

Resist FBI Weaponization Against Texans -- Require feds to get sheriff and AG permission for arrests and searches in county. (RPT Platform Plank 5) (HB 1982 & HB 3932 Andy Hopper.) HB 1962 RPT Endorsed, HB 3932 Pending.

Don’t Mess With Texas Elections – limits on funding from outside Texas for Texas races. (RPT Platform Plank 202) (SB 405 Mayes Middleton) RPT Endorsed

Run Texas Elections Separately from Federal Elections – (RPT Platform Plank 221 g) (HB 209 Mike Schofield, SB 106 Bob Hall) RPT Endorsed

Protect the Texas National Guard (RPT Platform Plank 247) (HB 930 Briscoe Cain) RPT Endorsed

Protect County and District Attorneys From the Feds – Allows Attorney General to defend county and district attorneys in actions taken against them by the feds for enforcing state law, if the county/district attorneys request. (RPT Platform Planks 5 and 20) (SB 888 Lois Kolkhorst). RPT Endorsed. TCE testified. Passed out of Senate State Affairs.

Protection of Intrastate Firearms Manufacture/Sale – Exempts most firearms and accessories manufactured and staying in Texas from federal law or regulation. (SB 130 Bob Hall / HB 1617 Valoree Swanson). RPT Endorsed

Resisting Global Interference – Denying jurisdiction to World Health Organization, UN, and World Economic Forum in Texas – (RPT Platform Plank 244) (SB 129 Bob Hall / Charles Schwertner SB 386 / HB 706 Terri Leo Wilson, HB 1377 Wes Virdell). RPT Endorsed

Refusal to Assist Officers of the Union – Legislature declares unconstitutional federal acts and state agencies and subdivisions prohibited from assisting feds. (RPT Platform Planks 20 and 70) (SB 707 Phil King). (Needs modification to require majority instead of 2/3.) TCE testified. Passed out of Senate State Affairs.

Rule-of-Law Enforcement – Give a statewide official independent prosecutorial authority in addition to DAs for election law, public integrity, official oppression, abortion, maybe other like riot and sedition. (RPT Platform Plank 165) (SB 846 & SB 1026 Bryan Hughes).

2. Fighting Inflation, CBDC, Globalism, and ESG

Currency Choice Amendment to protect the natural right to hold and trade with any medium of exchange including cash, coin, digital currency, and scrip. (RPT Platform Plank 30 d and 80). (SJR 55 Tan Parker / HJR 177 Andy Hopper).

Transactional Gold – expand Texas Bullion Depository function to provide ability for Texans to use a credit card or digital app to spend stored gold or silver in ordinary transactions (RPT Platform Plank 80). (HB 1062 & 1049 Mark Dorazio / SB 2002 & 665 Bryan Hughes) See comments below regarding committee assignments for these bills

Prohibit Discrimination in Lending by Financial Firms based on ideology/ESG/nature of business  - (RPT Platform Plank 31). (HB 1516 Mike Schofield / SB 512 Lois Kolkhorst) Repeat of last session, stopping Paypal and other money services businesses from imposing fines due to speech.

Anti-ESG Bill – Prohibit companies doing business in Texas from implementing ESG standards or forcing suppliers to implement ESG standards required by foreign statutes that require companies to do so for access to those markets. (SB 495 Kevin Sparks – stops Texas Department of Insurance from implementing rules that implement ESG. Expands upon what Tom Oliverson and Ken King accomplished last session.) TCE testified. Out of committee and on intent calendar.

3.  End Texas Executive Overreach and Protect Texas Medical Freedom

Stop Mandatory Vaccinations - Constitutional amendment to add provision to Texas Bill of Rights to protect natural, unalienable right to decline vaccination. (RPT End Federal Overreach Priority) (RPT Platform Plank 114). (HJR 91 Andy Hopper, SJR 10 Bob Hall). RPT Endorsed.

Stop Executive Overreach -- Amend Texas Disaster Act to insure that we never get lockdowns or mask mandates again and to stop open-ended criminal penalties for which executives define offense. Put conditions on delegation of power that legislature must approve emergencies after short time. (RPT Platform Planks 8 and 114). Working.

“Gain-of-Function” Accountability – ban gain-of-function research in Texas (RPT Platform Plank 159) (SB 1488 Bob Hall).

 4.  Texas Freedom to Travel

Stop Federal Vehicular Kill Switches (RPT End Federal Overreach Priority) (RPT Platform Plank 49) (SB 381 Mayes Middleton, HB 1074 Nate Schatzline).

Stop Mileage Tax

Stop Digital Licenses/ID – (RPT Platform Planks 208 and 49) (Oppose HB 1796 Terry Canales)

5.  Border Enforcement

Stop the Magnet – cut off taxpayer services to illegal aliens (RPT Platform Plank 232) (RPT Priority). Working.

Note that the End Federal Overreach Legislative Priority endorsed bills are pretty much embedded in the list above.

Secure the Electric Grid Legislative Priority

Protection of Critical Grid Components from Solar Flares and EMP (RPT Platform Plank 41 c & d) (SB 1740 Tan Parker).

All Hazards Grid Resilience (RPT Platform Plank 41) (SB 75 Bob Hall / HB 941 Cain).

Prohibit Grid Components from Hostile Nations (RPT Platform Plank 41) (SB 934 Bob Hall).

Texas Tax on New, Large Solar & Wind Projects to Offset Fed Subsidies (RPT Platform Plank 47) (HB 3017 Brent Money).

Note that the Secure Electric Grid Legislative Priority Committee has endorsed other bills, but the ones above have caught my eye.

End Taxpayer-Funded Lobbying Legislative Priority

End Taypayer-Funded Lobbying (RPT Platform Plank 212) (SB 19 Mayes Middleton / HB 309 Terri Leo Wilson, HB 1189 Troxclair, HB 1294 Jared Patterson, also HB 571 Briscoe Cain, HB 671 Matt Shaheen, HB 755 David Spiller, HB 3257 Mike Olcott). I testified for SB 19. Out of committee. On intent calendar.

Texas is Not for Sale Legislative Priority

Banning Texas Land Ownership by Hostile Entities (RPT Platform Plank 201) (SB 17 Kolkhorst). I signed in support of SB 17 in committee. No committee vote yet. I have not heard whether Texas is Not for Sale Legislative Priority Committee has officially supported any bills, yet. I was in Texas House Homeland Security, Public Safety & Veterans’ Affairs Chair Cole Hefner’s office last week and they told me they have their own bill that differs in several respects from the Senate bill. I don’t know the particulars.

Reading the Tea Leaves on Whether Conservative Legislation Will Pass

Given the Uniparty speaker in the Texas House, the new House Rules giving power to Democrats, a Calendars Committee chair that has told members in the past that his job was to help non-transparantly kill bills, and the slow start in the House, the burning question for the grassroots is whether conservative legislation, especially RPT legislative priorities will pass this session. I have several observations.

Transferring Conservative Bills from Grassroots to Team Burros

First, I am hearing that a number of bills are being involuntarily being transferred from the grassroots legislators to be carried by Team Burros Republicans. While this is quite irritating to the grassroots legislators, the silver lining in this is that the apparent motive for this action is to create talking points for embattled Uniparty Republicans in their upcoming primary challenges. It means that some of those bills are probably going to pass. The worry is that they may be watered down, but the likelihood of them passing under this situation is better than if the grassroots members got to carry the bills.

Milton Friedman said, “The way you solve things is by making it politically profitable for the wrong people to do the right things.” Ronald Reagan said, “There is no limit to the amount of good you can do if you don’t care who gets the credit.” Lets hope those maxims pay dividends in this sad situation.

Committee Assignments

Second, so far, the House Parliamentarian is assigning end federal overreach bills to the crowded State Affairs which only has vague high level jurisdiction for bills of that nature in this set of Rules. The far superior committee from clear jurisdictional language in the rules and a under-crowding perspective is the new Intergovernmental Affairs Committee or its State-Federal Relations Committee.

The most outrageous assignment of those bills is the assignment of Cecil Bell’s Texas Sovereignty Act away from the Intergovernmental Affairs Committee he chairs to State Affairs where that bill has died the last three sessions. I have sent an email to the Parliamentarian’s office, the Speaker’s staffs, the respective committee clerks, and the authors of the misassigned bills.

We will see whether the situation is rectified. It will be a big deal if not because if for no other reason the end federal overreach bills are likely to be crowded out in the large press of work in House State Affairs.

Transactional Gold Committee Assignments

Finally, I have not gotten the inside story on this yet, but I note that the Transactional Gold bill has been introduced twice by Mark Dorazio in the House and twice by Bryan Hughes in the Senate. In the House, the first version has been assigned to the busy State Affairs Committee where it was last time, receiving a hearing late enough to cause the bill to not make it to the House floor for a timely vote. But the second bill has been assigned to Pensions, Investments & Financial Services.

In the Senate, Hughes’ first Transactional Gold bill was assigned as it was last session to Finance, which makes no sense at all if the bill is favored. Last session, Finance Chair Joan Huffman waited until the budget was done and gave the bill a hearing on the last hearing of the Committee, then did not hold a vote to move it out of committee. Hughes’ second bill has not been assigned. Hopefully, it too will be assigned differently than the first, hopefully to Hughes’ own State Affairs.

Committee assignments matter.

In my last summary communication, I gave the results of the speaker race on January 14. This is a report on the unprecedented, deceptive, outrageous rules smackdown of the grassroots and Republican Party of Texas (RPT) by the Uniparty speakership of Dustin Burrows, henceforward also known by Brett Rogers’  Team Burros, Robert Pratt’s BurrowCrats, or just the Betrayers. I have been posting the commentary and story of the Team Burros rules charade on a granular basis on X and my Texas Legislative Priorities Facebook group, but this is designed to give the big picture with a few details of the action.  I also discuss the actions the grassroots need to take in this long war between the Austin swamp and the grassroots for control of our state government.

“Nuclear” War Launched on Conservatives in the Texas House

Before any amendments could be offered or debate had on the rules, Burros team leader Jared Patterson was recognized to use a motion cutting off amendment and debate that has only been used eight times in Texas House history. Because such a motion denies voices speaking for the voters and because it negates the very essence of representative democracy, it is called the “nuclear option.”

One of the eight times the motion has been used was in a special session in 2023. It was used after hours of offered amendments by Democrats with debate by a bill they opposed and were seeking to delay. When the motion to cut off debate was finally offered by frustrated Republicans, the Democrats melted down.

In the one comment allowed against the use of the motion, grassroots champion Mike Schofield gave the history, and declared that this will lead to more suppression of deliberation the rest of the session.

This was an aggressive smackdown on the traditions of the Texas House and the conservatives who are not part of the Uniparty coalition. One indicator of this as a raw power move was that 47 Republicans and 42 Democrats were given enough advance notice of the motion to be able to sign on to the motion which requires a minimum of 25 to be introduced. Yet the 34 Republican grassroots members who voted against the suppression were blindsided by the move. They had spent their morning scrambling to craft amendments to the package. I saw the grassroots members hustling to confer with each other that morning, but there was strangely very little visible action by the Uniparty. They knew what was coming.

I consider signing onto the motion to suppress fellow members and the vote for the suppression to be much more grievous offenses than voting for the wolf-in-sheep’s-clothing rules described below.

The Rules Empower Democrats While Being Spun to Republicans Voters as Fulfillment of a Priority Designed to Reduce their Power

Team Burros released the rules to the Texas House early in the morning of Thursday, January 23, and by 3:30 pm, that package was brought up by surprise before the expected housekeeping resolution and adopted after a dictatorial motion to cut off amendments and debate before any opportunity for them was started.

The rules changed more this session than in any in memory and had a number of unprecedented aspects. First, two new committees (Intergovernmental Relations and Delivery of Government Efficiency) and six committees were eliminated and consolidated into others. Second, standing subcommittees under a number of standing committees were created. Then the games began.

By rule, the top level committees have to be chaired by Republicans and only Democrats can be vice chairs. But the rules do not specify the party of the subcommittee chairs who will usually control what bills are heard. And the rules require the top-level Republican committee chairs by stating that they shall “schedule the work of the committee and determine the order of consideration of measures and matters referred to the committee in direct consultation with the vice chair,” and “arrange to ensure that . . . measures are promptly scheduled for a public hearing under this rule.”

This rule has been spun by members of Team Burros to their districts as delivering on the RPT No Democrat Chair priority. But this is deceptive because subcommittee chairs are chairs, too. And Democrats have been given so much power over process that they had a press conference to celebrate their increased power. All but one Democrat voted for the rules. Twenty five grassroots Republicans voted against. Outrageously, the Republican betrayers have tried to spin that the grassroots members pushing the priorities the most and who voted against these rules, voted against the priority.

The Democrat Empowerment Act of 2025 Was Drafted by Dade Phelan’s Democrat Parliamentarian

Late Saturday afternoon, January 25, Tarrant County Chair Bo French broke on X his realization that the former Obama administration attorney, Travis County Democratic Party parliamentarian, and Dennis Bonnen/Dade Phelan parliamentarian, Hugh Brady drafted the Democrat Empowerment Act rules. Brady was exposed last session for advising Phelan to sustain points of order from Democrats against conservative legislation that his own law firm had been paid to craft.

Monday morning, from the back microphone, Steve Toth got Burrows to confirm that fact. Despite Brady being listed on the speaker’s website as being the current House parliamentarian at that moment, Burrows stated that the decision had not been made to appoint Brady as parliamentarian for this session. Shortly thereafter, Brady’s name was no longer on the website. We will see.

The news about Hugh Brady’s history and his involvement in the drafting of the rules have struck a discordant chord with many Texans. I have gotten above normal interest and reach on my rendition of the story with 20K reach on X and an amazing 8.7K reach on Facebook. Bo French got 231K reach on his X post breaking the story.

What Republicans Are the Heart of the Problem?

Thirty two Republicans participated in all of these Republican betraying actions – voting twice for Burrows for speaker, signing the motion to suppress their fellow conservatives, voting to suppress their fellow conservatives, and voting for the deceptive Democrat-empowering rules. Todd Hunter did not sign the closure petition or cast a vote on the motion. Dustin Burrows is not on the list because as speaker he normally does not vote. The names other than Burrows and Hunter in alphabetical order, are:

Of the 34, I consider the core team of Burrows to number 20, including Burrows himself, Dade Phelan, Charlie Geren, Todd Hunter, Greg Bonnen, Jeff Leach, Jared Patterson, Cody Harris, Carl Tepper, Cole Hefner, Will Metcalf, Jay Dean, Gio Capriglione, Morgan Meyer, Angie Button, Brooks Landgraf, Terry Wilson, Ken King, Lacey Hull, and Brad Buckley. An additional 10, Stan Gerdes, Stan Kitzman, Gary Gates, Gary VanDeaver, Keith Bell, Angelia Orr, Drew Darby, Stan Lambert, John McQueeney, and Jeff Barry are dug-in Uniparty members. I consider Janie Lopez, Denise Villalobos, and Caroline Fairly to be inexperienced members who chose poorly. Cecil Bell voted with Team Burros at the end in hopes of not being suppressed.

My Unexpected Anger

The unprecedented actions of the establishment Republicans in the speaker race and the establishment of an even stronger speaker dictatorship serving the swamp and Democrats has increased my usually slow burn disapproval into white hot anger. I could not resist posting on social media this vulgar, but most descriptive response to what has been done to us: “Don’t piss down my back, and tell me it is raining!” Fletcher in Outlaw Josey Wales.

I have always intellectually known that the swamp loves its precious power and despises the voters, the grassroots, and the RPT. But they usually try to hide that disdain by doing their dirty work in non-transparent ways. This cycle, the hatred of you and me and the desire to prove that they have power over us is open for anyone who has eyes to see. No more velvet gloves over iron fists. It is bare, iron knuckles, baby.

It was Speaker Dennis Bonnen’s raw, open contempt for conservatives that led me to start Boot Bonnen PAC in 2019. This time, it is not just the speaker engaging in the bashing of you and me. It is most of those on Team Burros. We have seen Cody Harris, the Third Coast Bank employee of Burrows, the Bonnens, and Phelan, use lawfare to file an outrageously frivolous criminal complaint against the RPT Chair representing us in this fight, Abraham George. We have seen Carl Tepper all over social media bashing conservatives so much that it drew Dan Patrick’s ire and response. We have seen Stan Gerdes forget that he is a public servant and presume that he is the boss of the county Republican Parties in his district that dared to petition him to vote with Republicans instead of Democrats for speaker. Multiple members all over the state have engaged in sneering disrespect for RPT leadership and the grassroots.

Also part of my anger, I think, flows from raised expectations of a real prospect of reform in the Texas House to decentralize power away from the speaker (and therefore the swamp and the Dems) and to return it to the members (and therefore the voters), only to see those high hopes dashed. It also flows from the juxtaposition with the wonderful new day in DC and with the clear mandate from Texans to fix the mess the Dems have made, not play nicey-nice with them.

I have and am struggling to keep my eye on the ball, and attempting to channel my righteous indignation into effective action toward our common goal of implementing conservative solutions and protection of liberty into law and policy.

Where Do We Go From Here?

Never retreat. Never surrender. Of course we will not stop fighting, because our posterity, our state, and the union depends on us winning against those who work to take everything we hold dear.

How Much Time Spent on This Legislative Session – And on What Actions?

The question we have to ask is given the raw hatred we get back when we ask for what we want, whether expending effort on trying to move forward with our conservative priorities wasted effort. One has to ask the question of whether relatively more time should be spent now on removing the betrayers from office in the 2026 primary, so that we actually get reform in 2027.

The indicators are that this session, the bills most likely to pass are not our priorities, but bills to further turbo-charge via subsidies economic growth that is higher than what it would organically happen. That turbo-charging, of-course, further worsens the increasing prices Texans pay and the decline in quality of life. Rather than playing offense for conservative legislation, which is what we wanted this session, we may need to focus more of our legislative action on defense.

But the grassroots have, through pressure, pushed through a number of conservative priorities against Uniparty control under Phelan. All hope is not lost. It remains to be seen whether the Betrayers will simply spin and lie about their 2025 “accomplishments” in 2026 as they have already done regarding Dem chairs, or whether they will feel motivated to actually deliver some substantive results on some of our priorities. I am comforted by this Milton Friedman wisdom: “The way you solve things is by making it politically profitable for the wrong people to do the right things.”

Because of the rules allowing Democrats to have their bills heard, even though they are unlikely to pass the Senate if they pass the House, hearings for conservatives are unlikely this session to be pleasant experiences. Even if we don’t go join the zoo in the hearings, we can still deliver massive amounts of phone calls and emails to the right committee members at the right time when needed.

I hope to provide you with information as we go about when and who to communicate with.

How Much Time Spent Looking Forward to the 2026 Primaries?

Many in the grassroots are burning to start the 2026 primary now.

Rule 44 Censures with Teeth

One important way to do that is to work with your county Republican County Executive Committee consisting of the precinct chairs and county chair to pass Rule 44 censure with disciplinary action (including now, instruction to the proper chair to refuse to place censured members on the primary ballot.)

Rule 44 requires that the member being disciplined must have committed at least three censurable acts during a legislative term. Censurable acts must include either acting to violate the principles of the party or thwart the priorities of the party. I believe that 4 censurable acts have been committed by the 32 members listed above:

• Voting against the Republican Caucus speaker choice, violating personal accountability and responsibility
• Signing a motion cutting off meaningful representation of at least 7 million Texans violating the bedrock principles of our Constitutions and representative republic
• Voting for a motion cutting off meaningful representation of at least 7 million Texans
• Voting for a rules package that did not deliver on the intent of the No Democrat Chairs priority.

There are sure to be more censurable acts committed by most of Team Burros. I will do what I can to report on them as I see them. I am sure you will be watching, too.

Preparing for Primary Challenges

It is never too early for challengers to incumbents to start building their organization, reaching out to the community, and raising money. And it is never too early for the grassroots to be recruiting and vetting challengers to the betrayers. Brett Rogers has recently released a book called The Goal is to Win, which is written to help the grassroots organize to support grassroots candidates win. It can be ordered by clicking here.

The key to victory in the Republican primary is to capture the attention of the people who vote in those primaries, but normally do not pay attention to the Texas Legislature. One important action for every person who knows about what is going on is to educate the people around you about what has happened and the importance of correcting it to our future.

I plan to reign in and channel my righteous anger into effective action. I hope you, too, will pursue the effective path that best fits your talents and motivation. This speaker race and session may have been Operation Market Garden in World War II, as enacted in the movie A Bridge Too Far. But we have the momentum and a growing, motivated army. We just have to grind it out to ultimate victory for our posterity, the grassroots, and Texas.

One of the things I said at the Texas Constitutional Enforcement Legislative Agenda Workshop on November 9, 2024 was that there was going to be so much good happening in DC in 2025 that maintaining focus on what needs to be done in the Texas Legislature during the 89^th Legislature was going to be difficult.

I spent my time this morning and into early afternoon focusing on the joyous celebration of “Liberation Day” in DC. But it is time to focus on the ball we can have influence over here in Texas, and not only do we have bills to get filed and research to do in the Texas Legislature, we have a big day or days later this week that will focus on much needed reforms of the Texas House when the housekeeping resolution and rules are debated and passed.

Although, I have posted on social media about the results in the speaker race on January 14, I have not updated those of you reading my emails on those results and my thoughts on the outcome. I do so at the bottom of this communication.

We Still Have a Shot at Reforming the Texas House!

I have said along the way that the RPT Legislative Priority of No Democrat Chairs is a smaller, more understandable piece of the larger list of reforms needed in the Texas House. The overall goal of reform is to increase the power of the voters via increasing each individual member’s power relative to the speaker. That by necessity decreases the power of the swamp which has historically controlled the speaker. The Contract With Texas laid out twelve points of reform, at least 6 of which I think can be implemented by rule, rather than the practice of the speaker.

Three of the points of the Contract With Texas include requiring that the majority party receive preference over the minority party can be implemented by rule:

• Ending the practice of awarding the minority party with chairmanships (aka the No Democrat Chairs RPT Legislative Priority).
• Requiring all committees have a majority from the majority party
• Selecting a Speaker Pro Tempore from the majority party

We should be urging Republican Texas House members to introduce amendments to the proposed rules package to implement all three, as well as amendments to:

• Allow audio/video recording of all House proceedings, including point of order debates
• Reform the Calendars Committee to increase transparency and accountability
• Prohibit distribution of political funds from the speaker

I would also like to see an amendment to allow a discharge of a bill from committee to be rapidly placed on the Calendar if a sufficient number of House members support such a move. It was pointed out that establishment Republican chairs blocked lots of conservative legislation and RPT priorities last session. A discharge rule can counter that.

A Rule Implementing the No Dem Chairs Priority Can Pass

The No Dem Chairs Legislative Priority Committee focused its efforts on helping pick a speaker committed to reform, including the No Dem Chairs reform, because the committee members figured that having a speaker committed to that priority was the most likely way to implement it.

Along the way, the RPT and grassroots realized that it was, in the words of RPT Chair Abraham George, “not too much to ask” to ask Republican members of the Texas House to support the rules of their own caucus (and RPT platform) designed to unite Republicans to pick a speaker instead allowing Democrats to pick the speaker as was done on January 14. In fact, the SREC and a large number of county GOP organizations around the state declared aligning with Democrats instead of Republicans to pick a speaker to be a betrayal and a censurable act.

Some county GOP organizations, like Bastrop County’s resolution, went further and declared that both voting with Dems AND voting against No Dem Chairs to both be censurable acts. I am fairly confident that the overwhelming body of the SREC sees it that way, too.

Interestingly, a number of Burrows team members have said they planned to vote for Burrows, but if given a chance, will vote for No Dem Chairs. Burrows, himself, has implied that he, unlike Phelan, will not engage in Phelan parliamentary tricky-tricks to squelch a vote, and will allow a vote this session on No Dem Chairs this week. Burrows members steaming about the pressure and condemnation they received for their speaker vote betrayal are eager to try to blunt the anger against them by casting a vote for No Dem Chairs. We will see whether there are enough Burrows betrayers who think that way who will be allowed to put the amendment over the top.

I will not go into the details of the tricky trick pulled by Charlie Geren and Dade Phelan last session to stop a vote on No Dem Chairs. I know that grassroots members are debating how to act so that the play run in the last war by the establishment is not successfully run again. If all else fails, I know there will be more than ten members who will challenge the ruling of the chair if the play is run again. And THAT vote will be used as a proxy when the RPT is considering what constitutes censurable acts.

Analysis of Bills and Drafting of Bills Ongoing While Likelihood of Conservative Success Debated

After the speaker vote, I had conversations with a number of grassroots House members and activists, trying to predict how this session will play out, given the results of the speaker race.

I have pointed out that when the grassroots stayed engaged last session, we delivered some impressive gains last session, even though we did not get everything we want. It is my impression that the grassroots are ready to engage even more in this session to see that the RPT priorities and other conservative legislation is accomplished. There are lots more Texas House members that will be working together to see that happen. And many are saying that because of the primary targets on members who voted for Burrows, both he and his team might bend over backwards a bit more to try to blunt the current anger of the grassroots.

When people tell Steve Deace that he cannot succeed in pursuing a policy goal, he gives a sports-based response to the challenge, “Let’s Find Out!” My philosophy of action in the political arena is to repeatedly ask for what I want. I intend to do so this session. I intend, just like the Trump team in DC, to push as hard and fast for the reforms that Texas needs to prepare for the future.

I intend to make this a “Let’s Find Out” session.

Hopefully, next week, I can start laying out the details of the bills that I and my Texas Constitutional Enforcement group will be working.

The Results of the Speaker Race and Grassroots Energy for the Next Primary

There are many analogies that can be made to the long war between the grassroots and the swamp for control of the Texas Legislature. You can think about the WWII island hopping campaigns of the South Pacific or the advance of the Allies in the WWII European Theater.

I am not sure about whether the speaker race is better comparable to Operation Market Garden or the Battle of the Bulge, but what I know is that this speaker race educated even less engaged Republican primary voters about what goes on at the Capitol and the betrayals of them. The race has energized the base and identified the targets for the next primary season, guaranteeing that the 2026 primary and the 90^th Texas Legislature in 2027 are likely to produce ultimate victory for the voters and the grassroots. It may even deliver us more conservative gains this session than we would have otherwise gotten.

See below the best graphical representation of the second and final vote in the speaker race that I have seen.  The significant changes from the first to the second speaker race is that former Speaker Tom Craddick and Sam Harless, who had voted for Cook on the first round, switched to vote with Burrows on the second round. Interestingly the Dem candidate for speaker, Representative Ana-Maria Rodriguez Ramos, voted in the second round where she had been eliminated, for Cook, not Burrows. Of the rest of those Dems voting for her in the first round, 10 voted Present Not Voting or were absent with 12 Dems moving from Ramos on the first round to Burrows on the second round, putting Burrows over the top.

It was very clear from the nominating and seconding speeches appealing to the Dems that the Burrows betrayers set up the situation whereby the Dems picked the speaker. One especially outrageous, arrogant move since the vote is that at least two Burrows team members (Jared Patterson and freshman Jeff Barry) have tried to blame delivering the vote to the Dems on Cook and the reformers, saying that the Cook team following the very caucus rules and party platform that Burrows designed and to produce Republican unity and broken by Burrows and his betrayers, were the cause of delivering the victory to the Dems!

I have never seen a more aroused and angry grassroots, who are yearning to start the 2026 primary season. I personally have received more communications than I did after the Paxton impeachment, urging me to take on Stan Gerdes in HD 17 again.

I think I am going to follow the lead of Dan Patrick who was recently interviewed about the session and asked about the next primary season, given the result in the speaker race. He said that he was going to put that aside for now, focusing on delivering the best legislation possible this session. The key to long term success is channeling passion into productive activity.

This is legislative season, now. Time to respectfully ask for what we want now with the deck that has been dealt, keeping the eyes open and embers stoked, ready for censure and primary fights later.

As I write this on Sunday evening, Jan 12, it is less than two days until the vote on the Texas House speaker race on the first day of the Texas Legislature on Tuesday, Jan 14. At this moment, the outcome of this most fascinating and consequential race is not known.

Before I get into the possible ways the speaker race will turn out, let’s bring us up to date on big events that have occurred since right after Christmas, the last big summary I wrote on the race:

• One more Democrat, Richard Raymond of Laredo, has said that he should not be on the Burrows list, and has actually committed to Cook. This leaves Burrows with 36 Democrats he says are with him and only 30 Republicans that have not in some way indicated that they are not on Burrows list. Two Republicans (Jeff Barry and Janie Lopez are on both Burrows’ and Cook’s list without to-my-knowledge clarifying publicly which way they plan to vote.)
• Reports on X and elsewhere have been highlighting that current speaker Dade Phelan, wannabe speaker Dustin Burrows, and the Bonnen brothers (Dennis – former speaker and Greg - current Appropriations Chair) are owners with the big World Economic Forum implementers of their globalist hostility to the oil & gas industry, Blackrock and Vanguard, of Third Coast Bank. And that State Rep Cody Harris is their employee at the bank.
• The Third Coast Bank connection was publicized after Cody Harris of HD 8 in East Texas filed a criminal complaint for bribery against Republican Party of Texas Chair Abraham George. Harris’ ridiculous claim is that by using party resources to publicize the party’s opposition to a minority of Republicans aligning with a majority of Democrats to select a speaker and giving notice of potential censure for such is a criminal offense. So we now know that the employee of a globalist controlled bank and Dustin Burrows and Dade Phelan wants to put the Republican Party of Texas Chair in jail for opposing them. I posted about how such abusive lawfare violates our rights to petition for redress of grievances, free speech, and the bedrock principle of our representative republic that all power is inherent in the people here.
• Many more Republican county organizations have issued resolutions urging their representatives to unite with the majority of their fellow Republican party members and party to vote for the Texas House Republican Caucus. The resolutions are tracking the language of the State Republican Executive Committee resolution that warns that a vote against the caucus choice or a vote for secret ballot in the speaker race will be considered a censurable act. More than half of the GOP county chairs (and all of the most populous counties) have also signed onto a similar letter from Tarrant County chair, Bo French.
• Social media posts from Lubbock’s State Rep Carl Tepper were so disrespectful, not only of the Republican Party, but of the voters and the governor and lieutenant governor, that Dan Patrick issued two scathing replies to Tepper on X.
• Republican Party primary voters have been receiving a deluge of texts from PACs on both sides of the race and from the RPT on the Cook side. I detailed in one piece about how a text from HD 17 Stan Gerdes was filled with misrepresentations. The most frequent tactic of the Burrows supporters is to deflect from their betrayal of fellow Republicans and the party. Rather, they try to make a failed case that Burrows is more conservative than Cook, despite independent ranking by Rice University that shows Cook far more conservative than Burrows. In fact, if you average the Rice ranking of the Cook team versus the average of the Burrows team, where 1 is the most conservative, and 85 is the least, the average ranking of the Cook team (28 out of 85) is far more conservative than the Burrows team (47 out of 85).
• In another embarrassing statistic showing that the hypocrisy of the Burrows team on false messaging about the relative conservative credentials of Burrows, Grassroots America has done some analysis that shows nine of the Burrows team that voted more often with Cook during the last session than they did with Burrrows! That includes members Carl Tepper, Jared Patterson, Cole Hefner, Terry Wilson, Will Metcalf, Stan Gerdes, Gio Capriglione, Lacey Hull, and Jay Dean.
• Attorney General Ken Paxton and Abraham George went on a Republican Accountability Tour to four venues in two days, each seeing overflow crowds. Some paraphrased quotes: Ken Paxton: "We want Republican reps to vote with fellow Republicans to vote with the Republican caucus and Republican Party to deliver Republican results in the Legislature." Abraham George: "Is that too much to ask of a Republican representative?"
• Since this is the hottest speaker race in Texas history, it has received so much coverage, not only in Texas, but nationally, that I cannot keep up with it. Back during the scandal in 2019 which brought down Dennis Bonnen and caused Dustin Burrows to resign as the Republican House Caucus presidency, then Texas Tribune columnist said, “Former House Speaker Pete Laney once told a reporter that speakers are usually in political trouble if more than 10% of the voters can name them.” Phelan certainly passed that threshold with GOP primary voters. Burrows has now, as well.

One thing is for sure, the BurrowCrat betrayers have put the decision for who the next speaker will be into the hands of the Democrats. Neither the reformer/caucus choice group, nor the betrayer group has enough pledged support Democrat and Republican to get the majority of 76 needed if all members vote.

Currently, Burrows claims support from 36 Democrats and one Democrat has pledged to Cook. That leaves 25 Democrats undeclared between the two Republicans if the process reaches a two-way race between the Republican caucus choice, Cook, and Burrows. Those 25 can go with Cook, Burrows, or vote present not voting. The 36 Democrats that Burrows put on his list might continue to bleed for Burrows, either going to Cook or to a present-not-voting stance.

I do not have enough insight into how the Democrats will act. It is not just the Republicans that are playing the speaker race differently than last time. It is the Democrats, who have historically voted in lock-step, who are acting differently this time, as well.

Regardless of how the race turns out on Tuesday (and by the way, I have heard one member predict that the race may not be concluded on Tuesday, but continue on for another day or more), the culture of both the Texas House and the interaction between the Republican Party of Texas has changed. Despite the intensity of the wishes of the establishment-serving Republicans, that is not going to change back.

Even if Burrows or some other Uniparty speaker wins, conservatives will no longer be sidelined and denigrated by the Uniparty. Warfare between the reformers and the betrayer Republicans will continue throughout the session and then the 2026 primaries are likely to end many a career of establishment Republican.

A voter and member driven Texas House is coming. The only question is whether it comes this session on Tuesday, or after a mopping up action in 2026.

BurrowCrat Lawfare Violates Right to Petition for Redress of Grievances

Throughout this most fascinating and important speaker race in Texas history, the spokesman for the swamp-controlled group of Republicans backing the Phelan replacement, Dustin Burrows, have been displaying their contempt for their fellow Republicans, their caucus, their party, and their voters. But the latest and greatest outrage of the race became known, yesterday.

BurrowCrat State Rep Cody Harris of HD 8 that includes Anderson, Navarro, Cherokee, and eastern Henderson Counties filed a grievance/criminal complaint against the duly elected chair of the Republican Party of Texas, Abraham George, alleging that by promising that the Republican Party would campaign against Republican elected officials who go against the party’s principles and platform, George was engaged in bribery!

This charge, of course, is the essence of lawfare, which is the abuse of the law and judicial system to misapply the law to a political enemy. Of course, a citizen telling an elected official what he or she wants and making a statement of the intent to oppose that official in the next election is not the serious crime of bribery. Such false equivalence is Orwellian and destructive of the good.

I have seen people claiming that this BurrowCrat lawfare violates Abraham George’s right to free speech. While true, I think the most on-target right being violated is the right of Abraham George and the members of the Republican Party to petition for redress of grievances.

It took me a long time to understand what this right was all about and its importance to liberty. This is to talk about the right, its importance, its history, and how Cody Harris and his fellow BurrowCrats have violated that right of Abraham George and all Republicans.

First, let’s define the right to petition for redress of grievances. The Texas Bill of Rights, which is the one that is most applicable in this situation, has this to say:

Article 1, Sec. 27. RIGHT OF ASSEMBLY; PETITION FOR REDRESS OF GRIEVANCES. The citizens shall have the right, in a peaceable manner, to assemble together for their common good; and apply to those invested with the powers of government for redress of grievances or other purposes, by petition, address or remonstrance.

The U.S. Constitution also includes a protection of the right from the federal government in the First Amendment:

Congress shall make no law . . . abridging . . . the right of the people . . . to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

The essence of the right is that you should not be punished when you ask a government official for what you want. If you are punished merely for asking for what you want, or for asking for it in the wrong way, the punisher is violating the right to petition for redress of grievances. Even when a person who is not arrested for asking for what they want, public condemnation, mischaracterization, and demonization of a person doing so is a violation of the spirit of the right.

Antonin Scalia said that when you are trying to understand the meaning of the Constitution, you should look to the history known and understood by the framers that motivated them to add a provision to the Constitution.

When it comes to the petitioning the government for the redress of grievances, there is no more concrete example of its violation than the Trial of the Seven Bishops. This story was solidly in the framer’s minds when they set up the original states and federal government.

This trial that concluded on June 30, 1688 with a jury delivering an acquittal of seven bishops of the Church of England was the crystallizing event leading to the Glorious Revolution of 1688 against King James II.

The story started with King James decreeing that all churches read a statement of religious tolerance to their members. The Archbishop of Canterbury wrote a letter to the king urging him to change his mind because they believed the king was not constitutionally permitted to interfere in religious matters. Six other bishops signed the letter and the seven bishops personally presented it to the king. For respectfully asking for what they wanted, the bishops were arrested, refused a grand jury review, and tried for seditious libel.

King James was really seeking to punish the bishops for asking for what they wanted. In doing so, he violated the bishops’ right to petition for redress of grievances.

The jury was stacked by the king, and three of the four judges that oversaw the trial told the jury that all the prosecution had to do was prove that the “seditious” letter had been written and therefore the jury had to convict. One judge told the jury that the ultimate decision was left “to God and your consciences.” The jury listened to the one judge and their consciences.

The trial and the resistance to the king by the seven bishops was the biggest news of the day, and throngs were gathered around the courthouse to hear the verdict. When the “not guilty” verdict came back, there was widespread rejoicing in the streets, and King James II soon left the throne.

In addition to the right to petition for redress of grievance, the other bedrock principle of our Republic is found in Sec. 2 of the Texas Bill of Rights:

All political power is inherent in the people, and all free governments are founded on their authority, and instituted for their benefit.

Cody Harris is abusing his power invested in him as an elected official to squelch redress of grievances by the people of Texas. Other representatives on the Burrows/Phelan team, in their truculent language about the Republican Party and the voters, are violating the spirit of that right, and through their behavior are rejecting the notion that We the People of Texas are in charge, and that they are public servants.

There are many reasons why Dustin Burrows is not fit to be speaker of the Texas House. But this lack of respect for the people of Texas and his violation of the Texas Bill of Rights by him and his supporters is the most egregious of his failings.

This egregious behavior on the part of the core of the BurrowCrat team should cause any currently listed Burrows supporter to run away screaming from this train wreck, for fear of being tarred with the shame of this betraying, disrespectful behavior.

Although it was not sent directly to me, I have been told that the attached text was sent by State Rep Stan Gerdes to voters in the House District 17 he represents that includes Bastrop, Lee, Burleson, Milam, and Caldwell Counties.

The Gerdes text responds to the Bastrop County Republican Party resolution passed unanimously on December 30, 2024, urging Gerdes to vote with the majority of his fellow Republicans for David Cook and against the Democrat-supported Uniparty speaker Dustin Burrows (aka Phelan 2.0/Straus 4.0). See also this KBTX news report on reactions to the Bastrop resolution.

The text packs a lot of misrepresentation into a small package. Here is a list of those misstatements or implications with a correction using the facts:

Misrepresentation 1:  Burrows is the MAGA candidate for speaker -  This is the easiest to refute by displaying the attached post on Truth and linking to its X version from Don Trump Jr urging Gerdes to align with David Cook instead of the Democrats, claiming that the MAGA mandate that Trump led and which benefitted Gerdes demands that Gerdes back Cook, not Burrows. Further proof that Burrows is not the MAGA choice is that the statewide elected officials that have been the representatives between Trump and Texas, Governor Abbott, Lieutenant Governor Patrick, AG Ken Paxton, and Ag Commissioner Sid Miller have all backed Cook, not Burrows. Note that Gerdes is now going against Greg Abbott and Dan Patrick who endorsed him in 2024. And, finally, Burrows is the Dade Phelan substitute for the Uniparty swamp team that had been supporting Phelan. Trump, of course, was adamantly opposed to Dade Phelan’s speakership, so one cannot think that a Phelan-substitute like Burrows is MAGA.

Misrepresentation 2:  A Picture of Gerdes with Trump implies that Trump supports Gerdes – The over 8-year-old picture of an obviously younger Gerdes with Trump has been used to confuse voters that Trump backs Gerdes. Despite appeals from Gerdes’s patron and former employer, Rick Perry, Trump has refused to endorse Gerdes in both 2022 and 2024. Maybe the fact that the never-Trumper Koch-brothers backed PAC that was the primary source of backing of Nikki Haley also mailed in support for Gerdes in 2024 had something to do with it. Maybe Gerdes vote to impeach Ken Paxton and Trump’s vocal condemnation of that also had an impact.

Misrepresentation 3: The speaker race is about rural/small town v urban/suburban issues/values – This is easily disputed by looking at the districts and background of the Republican representatives in the majority for Cook and the minority for Burrows. In the majority Cook side, the prominent rural/small town reps are John Smithee, James Frank, Trent Ashby, Shelby Slawson, Caroline Harris Davila in neighboring Williamson County (Taylor), JM Lozano, Brian Harrison, Ellen Troxclair, Cody Vasut, Tom Craddick, and a host of freshmen, including neighboring Brazos/Washington Counties Trey Wharton and Paul Dyson and neighboring Guadalupe/Gonzales Alan Schoolcraft. In the minority Burrows camp are big city/suburban reps Carl Tepper (Lubbock), Lacey Hull (Houston), Morgan Meyer and Angie Chen Button (Dallas), Jeff Leach (Collins Co), Jared Patterson (Denton Co), Gary Gates (Fort Bend Co), Todd Hunter (Corpus Christi), and Gio Capriglione and John McQueeney (Tarrant Co). If you do a systematic analysis, it appears that the small town v urban/suburban mix is about the same in both camps. The real divide in the race is between swamp-influenced reps and grassroots reformists. Stated differently, it is it is between Republicans who prefer to ally with fellow Republicans versus “Republicans” who prefer to ally with Democrats.

Misrepresentation 4: “Billionaire special interests” “leverage” the Republican Party Against Burrows – Gerdes would have us ignore the log of billionaires backing Burrows and him to focus on the mote of much smaller funding by large grassroots donations for grassroots candidates and the party. People who live in glass houses should not throw stones. During the 2024 primary campaign, donors from outside HD 17 contributed 97% of the $838K in funds received directly or indirectly by the Gerdes campaign. Large donors (which I have called swamp donations) made up 86% of that total. In my failed campaign against Gerdes in 2024, I raised 64% more money from the district than Gerdes did. To think that the precinct chairs of Bastrop County that unanimously voted to urge Gerdes to vote with fellow Republicans and who are volunteers for the Republican Party are “leveraged” by some billionaire donors is laughably ridiculous.

Misrepresentation 5:  Gerdes Alleges That he Represents the Voters of HD 17 with his Speaker Choice – In 2022, more than 80% the Republican primary voters of HD 17 voted for the following ballot proposition: “The Republican-controlled Texas Legislature should end the practice of awarding committee chairmanships to Democrats.” In both the 2022 and 2024, the delegates to the Republican Party state convention voted to put “No Democrat Chairs” in the top 8 priorities of the Party. Although I have seen some Burrows supporters try to deny it, anyone who is paying attention to the speaker race and knows the history of the Texas House knows that the issue of reform that includes no Dem chairs is the heart of the issue separating the Cook reformers and Burrows Uniparty defenders. The surge for MAGA and Trump carried Gerdes to new heights in 2024. Does anyone seriously believe that the voters who were drawn to the polls to support the DC reforms proposed by MAGA and Trump were thinking as they voted down-ballot for Gerdes, “Boy, I sure hope my Republican state rep aligns with the Democrats and the swamp to select a speaker instead of working with fellow Republicans to do so.”? The very reason Gerdes used his campaign funds to fund the text is because he knows that the voters are against him, and he is trying to spin his way out of not voting as the overwhelming number voters in the district want him to.

Misrepresentation 6: Burrows is more conservative than Cook – Mark Jones of Rice University ranks Texas House members in every session from most liberal to most conservative in what is arguably the most unbiased ranking done of the Texas Legislature. In 2023, in his final, revised ranking or Republican House members, Cook was ranked much more conservative (37^th most conservative out of 85) compared to Burrows (74^th out of 85). In other words, only 11 Republicans were ranked more liberal than Burrows. Only 7 of the Republicans ranked below Burrows in 2023 are returning to the House this session. I would love to elect the most conservative speaker possible, and that is Cook, but the real issue of this race is which speaker is committed to move away from a despotic, swamp and Dem-serving speaker to one who will reduce his own power enough via reform, returning power to the members and voters, to make his ideology or opinions on issues far less relevant than under the Uniparty speakers of the last 15 years.

The political realities of the Texas House have changed. The misrepresentations of the swamp about what happens in Austin are being believed by fewer and fewer GOP primary voters. Will Stan Gerdes read the room and his voters? Or walk the plank for his establishment handlers? We will soon see.

Toward liberty,

Tom Glass
txce.org
Facebook: Texas Constitutional Enforcement

X: Texas Constitutional Enforcement community

Texas Legislative Priorities on Facebook

This is a third in a series of status reports on the Texas House speaker race that will be decided on Tue, January 14, 2025 on the first day of the 89^th Texas Legislature.

We have covered in great detail the results on December 7 of the Texas House Republican Caucus choice of David Cook for speaker, the boycott by the Dustin Burrows team, the fake news announcement from Burrows saying that because he had the votes "the speaker race is over," the blunders and bleeding of the BurrowCrats up through the last report, December 15, and the announced support for Cook and the Republican caucus speaker selection process from Donald Trump, Jr., Greg Abbott, Dan Patrick, 6 Texas Congressmen, the RPT leadership, and the grassroots.

The twelve days since has seen more good news for the grassroots and bad news for the beleaguered BurrowCrats.

Here are significant events since December 15, most of which that have more detail and commentary below.

• Matt Shaheen predicted that the Republicans would unite behind Cook before the January 14 vote.
• M. Lozano reminded the public and fellow Republicans of the back-stabbing behavior of Dustin Burrows back in 2019 when he and then Speaker Dennis Bonnen tried to target fellow Republicans in the 2020 primaries after declaring that no incumbent should help challenge incumbents of either party. That scandal caused Bonnen to not seek re-election and Burrows to resign his seat as President of the Texas House Republican Caucus that he is currently disrespecting.
• Three candidates have indicated they are challenging members of the Burrows team in the 2026 primary.
• A new PAC designed to target in the 2026 primaries House members that go against the RPT was announced and funded with $20 million by Alex Fairly.
• A poll was released finding “significant awareness” by GOP primary voters of the speaker race and opposition to representatives who enable Dem chairs.
• Several Burrows team members went public trying to justify their disrespect of their fellow Republican members, caucus, party, and voters. It did not go well.
• House members of the Cook team also appeared on talk shows and posted on social media in favor of unity.
• We now know that Dustin Burrows has been using his old close associate and retired speaker Dennis Bonnen to spy on Democrat Caucus meetings!
• More and more counties are urging their representatives to support the caucus pick and the party, many following the SREC lead, and clearly communicating that a vote against the caucus choice or a vote for secret ballot will be considered the first censurable act of the upcoming legislative session.
• Bo French, Tarrant County GOP Chair, released a letter calling the refusal by the Burrows team to support the caucus choice a “betrayal” and urging party unity via voting for Cook. As of Dec 18, French reported that he had 125 county GOP chairs signing. I know of more that are in the works.
• On Dec 17, Bo French claimed to know of 62 Republicans planning to vote for Cook. I try to keep a detailed list and have 55 votes for Cook with 4 uncommitted.
• On Dec 20, David Cook sent out a Christmas truce message, urging those within and without the chamber to cease fire on the speaker race until after Christmas. I forwarded that message on social media and committed to that gracious respect for the season.
• There appear to be more players behind the scenes sending text messages to voters about the speaker race than I can keep up with. Texts are even going into Democrat districts.
• The deadline for ordering Ban Democrat Chair T-Shirts to get them in time to wear them at the Capitol on January 14 is December 31.

Fact, Not Threat

In the classic western Chisolm, the John Wayne character confronts the big man that has been orchestrating a series of illegal maneuvers with the objective of gaining more wealth and power that has hurt John Wayne and his friends. Wayne tells the bad guy, that any future harm to others will be laid at the bad guy’s feet and justice will be visited upon the bad guy. The bad guy, asked, “Is that a threat?” John Wayne knocks him to the ground, and then says, “Fact. Not Threat.”

The grassroots have been repeatedly telling the Uniparty establishment of the Texas House that the betrayal of the party and the voters to the benefit of the swamp and the Dems cannot continue. Many in the Burrows camp have just survived a bruising primary season in the battle between the grassroots and the Uniparty with the aid of large quantities of swamp money. The money men behind them, their consultants, and their fellow BurrowCrats tell the incumbents that they survived 2024, so they can serve the Uniparty again and survive 2026 primaries, too.

On December 16, three candidates surfaced that are running in the 2026 primary campaigns against three members of the Burrows team:

Jon Bouche, long time grassroots activist, current Montgomery County GOP Vice Chair, and businessman, announced he would be challenging Will Metcalf in HD 16, who had pledged to support the caucus pick, but has betrayed that pledge and is on the Burrows team. Metcalf did not have a primary challenger in 2024.

Jack Reynolds, Fort Worth teacher, professor, and Army veteran, confirmed that he will challenge again the only remaining member in the House of the Republicans who put Joe Straus into power in 2009, Charlie Geren in HD 99.

Chris Woolsey, Corsicana City Councilman, filed to run against Cody Harris in HD 8.

But the big news making these announcements and others sure to come a fact that pain is coming to them, dropped the next day, December 17. Amarillo businessman Alex Fairly announced that he was funding a new PAC called the Texas Republican Leadership Fund with initial funding of $20 million.  That alone can easily pump half a million or more into the campaigns of grassroots challengers to Uniparty Republicans in 2026.

Alex Fairly has been involved in Panhandle politics and support for West Texas A&M in the past, but this announcement propels him onto the statewide stage. He is also the father of incoming grassroots freshman Rep. Caroline Fairly. Alex Fairly said in his announcement:

“In spite of the progress made in this past election cycle . . . toward conservative priorities, there may still be work to do in the next primary cycle. These funds will be available to help expand a true Republican majority.

Democrats don’t give their votes away for free; they want things in return. So, we end up with a House that’s not really run by the majority. It’s co-run by Democrats and a minority of Republicans. It puts Texas in such a weak position to accomplish what we could if we were truly led by a majority of Republicans. This time, we’re bringing this out into the light.”

And more facts surfaced to prove the Burrows team is being watched and disapproved by primary voters. A poll was released by Christopher Wilson conducted in five Burrows-supporter districts (Gary VanDeaver, Jay Dean, Stan Gerdes, Dade Phelan, and Jared Patterson), trying to determine awareness and sentiment regarding the speaker race. “What we found was a significant awareness of the race,” Wilson said. The range across districts was 62% to 76% of primary voters were aware. And GOP primary voters in those districts opposed Dem chairs in a range of 56% to 81%.

When You are Explaining, You are Losing

That is especially so when you are explaining betrayal.

Because the PR wars in the first week after the caucus loss were so devastating to the Burrows team, four members of the Burrows team chose to go public, explaining their betrayal of their fellow Republican members, their caucus, their party, and their voters.

Terry Wilson published a piece on December 17 for the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal, the hometown newspaper of Burrows and Carl Tepper, claimed that the caucus is “broken” and the results “illegitimate.”

In one of my comments about this article on X, I said:

[T]he only substantive argument of the Wilson article was that the third caucus vote after the Burrows-led walkout was "illegitimate" because the vote "failed to reach the 60% threshold to secure the endorsement." But that attempted rationalization of betrayal fails because that is an incorrect statement of the caucus rules.

The very rule that Burrows helped write was designed to produce a caucus vote and intentionally made the threshold 60% of the "votes cast," (Rule 9.02) not 60% of the entire caucus. That provision, making it necessary for a member to be present and not abstain to have his or her vote used in determining the threshold was designed to prevent defiant losers from invalidating the process via the very walkout the Burrows team engineered. Cook won 77% of those present and voting (the votes cast) on the third round (48 to 14), making him the legitimate caucus endorsee.

The rest of the article was sore-loser weak sauce, claiming that communication between members before the caucus and having come into the caucus with a pre-determined choice was somehow beyond the pale. As if the Burrows team did not do that. The article also claimed the process “compromised” due to Tom Oliverson, the President of the caucus running the meeting, having his own choice for speaker. Other than the previously addressed misstatement of caucus rules, there is no claim to support that Oliverson did not enforce caucus rules.

On December 19, Cody Harris sent an email to his district, responding to what he called being “flooded with calls” regarding speaker (and obviously for Cook), admitting that he sees the speaker “fight” as being “about control and nothing else.” He accused grassroots donors Tim Dunn and Ferris Wilks of being “political terrorists” for supporting the candidates of their choice. Somehow, other big donors who give more dollars to the Uniparty candidates are not. Rep. Ellen Troxclair was on KLBJ Austin talk radio on December 19 talking about the speaker race, and pointed out that Dunn/Wilks money was used against her in her primary, and her support for Cook “has nothing to do with them.”

Cody Harris also claimed Burrows is more conservative than Cook, despite two independent, fact driven analysis showing differently. First Rice University’s Mark Jones final, recalibrated 2023 ranking of the Texas House from most conservative to most liberal ranked Cook much more conservative than Burrows. There were 35 Republicans ranked below Cook and ahead of Burrows. The Rice survey ranked Burrows as the 12^th most liberal Texas House Republican in 2023.

(By the way, I have seen one commentator on X use the first 2023 version of the Rice survey that showed Cook ranked just ahead of Burrows. The big difference in rankings is explained in the methodology comments in the second released survey. Saying that a recalibration was done “primarily due to the calculated effort this year by a small number of Republican House members to make their Lib-Con Scores appear more conservative than they actually were.”

By the way, I took the average Rice rank number of the returning Burrows Republican team members versus that of the returning Cook team members. A lower number means an average higher conservative ranking. The Cook team had the more conservative average rank of 28.1 vs. Burrows 47.4.

The other independent analysis showing Cook more conservative than Burrows came from a grassrootspriorities.com tool comparing who different incumbents vote against. See results here:

Democrats Learn that Burrows Used Former Speaker Bonnen to Spy on Their Caucus!

As Republican support for Burrows erodes, his need for more Democrat support grows more urgent. His campaign puts him and his supporters in the middle between the conservative Republicans rock and the radical Democrat hard place. When the Burrows supporters spin to their voters that they are supporting Burrows because he is more conservative, the progressives become more justified in opposing Burrows. Sure, they know that Burrows is lying about his record to the grassroots, but the Dems also know that whatever promises he makes about preserving the bi-partisan culture of the House may or may not be true. And regardless, they know that Dem chairmanships will only go to a few of the more swamp-oriented Dems, not the hard-core leftists that make up an increasing number of their ranks.

So, when Republican State Rep J.M. Lozano broke the news on December 19 that a former member of the body lobbyist had conspired with a current Dem chair to spy on the Dem caucus meetings and report back to Bonnen, a bomb went off in the already weakened Burrows campaign.

The next day, Texas Scorecard revealed that the spy was none other than Burrows old buddy, former Speaker Dennis Bonnen!

Plans for showing the RPT banner for speaker on January 14

Plans are well along the way by the RPT No Dem Chairs Legislative Priorities Committee. To sign up and pay to ride a bus to the Capitol on Tuesday, January 14, go to bandemocratchairsinfo.com. Also found at that website are links to purchase Ban Democrat Chairs T-shirts and find out contact info and status of which reps need urging to move to the Cook team.

The permutations of how a speaker gets to 76 are almost infinite. The key to a grassroots victory is to peel enough of the Burrows team and those on the fence into the RPT fold, so that the Republicans can deliver the 76 votes for the win, or a combination of Democrats and Republicans will deny enough votes to Burrows on the first vote in a three-way vote to knock out Burrows (or replacement) and produce a two-way race between Cook and a Dem.

That is why continued pressure from us on the holdouts is so important.

Toward liberty,

Tom Glass
832-472-4726
txce.org
Facebook: Texas Constitutional Enforcement

X: Texas Constitutional Enforcement community

Texas Legislative Priorities on Facebook

It's been just over a week since I reported to you the results of the Texas House Republican Caucus choice of David Cook for speaker, the boycott by the Dustin Burrows team, and the fake news announcement from Burrows saying he had the votes and "the speaker race is over."

I was hoping to coast through to Christmas and New Years focused on the season and the home front, but a torrent of activity has happened in the last seven days that needs reporting. I have to admit that this is the most fascinating speaker race in my lifetime, if not Texas history. The stakes are high, the permutations of outcomes numerous, and the drama, unprecedented.

The Burrows betrayer team has taken hit after hit this week, bleeding supporters, and losing every PR battle.

This picture is the most comprehensive picture I have seen of the Republican members at the Dustin Burrows press conference on December 7.

Here are the numerous events from the last week:

Burrows losing support

I don't have the exact running count, but it has been reported that 8 of the 38 Republicans that Burrows put on his initial support list have said they support the GOP caucus nominee, David Cook. And one of the 38 Democrats on the Burrows list, Bexar County's Josey Garcia, has announced that she should not be on it.

Here are the Republicans that Burrows put on the list that have said they should not be on it now:

Don McLaughlin HD 80 - this former Uvalde mayor who just flipped his district red was one of the original signers of the Contract With Texas and had pledged to No Dem Chairs and to Cook. McLaughlin immediately went public, denying being on the list. His inclusion by Burrows was the most outrageous.

Pat Dyson HD 14 - Brazos County freshman who had campaigned for border security, school choice, and eliminating property tax. Had pledged to Cook before the caucus and immediately went public, denying Burrows support.

Sam Harless HD 126 - Harris County - one of only 2 incumbent Republicans on the fake news Burrows list that voted against Paxton impeachment. Harless had not pledged to Cook before caucus, was one of the 26 who boycotted the third vote in caucus. But, he did not appear with Burrows at his announcement press conference, and just after noon on Tue, Dec 10, the day after a Harris County GOP resolution supporting Cook, Harless posted on X that he supports the "caucus nominee, State Rep. David Cook." This is bigger news than most because Phelan had named Harless chair of a select committee during the 88th.

Charles Cunningham HD 127 Harris County - had pledged to Cook before the caucus and likely voted for him in caucus, Cunningham was pictured standing with Burrows when he announced on Dec 7, though, while also being put on Burrows list, creating doubt and confusion. In the runup to the Monday evening Harris County GOP CEC meeting, Cunningham communicated to enough people privately that he backed Cook and not Burrows, that the GOP considers him to still be on the Cook team. Cunningham was the other incumbent on the Burrows list that voted against Paxton impeachment.

Mano DeAyala HD 133 Harris County - Did not commit to Cook before caucus and voted for Burrows in caucus, but had committed publicly before caucus to honor the caucus choice. In the runup to the Harris County GOP CEC vote Monday night, he assured enough people privately that he is considered by the GOP to be on the Cook team.

Gary Gates HD 28 Fort Bend County - Militantly committed to neither candidate until the last, Gates had vociferously not committed to Cook before Caucus. He almost certainly did not vote for him in caucus, but did not join the boycott or the Burrows presser. The media reported that he denied being on the Burrows list. Given the evidence, Gates will make his decision at the last minute based on who he thinks will win.

There are two others, who were listed in the Burrows list that are in question because they stayed in caucus for all votes, not voting there for Cook, but allowed Cook to put their name on his support list because they theoretically will honor the caucus rules and pick:  freshman Jeff Barry HD 29 of Brazoria County and Janie Lopez HD 37 Cameron County.

The Whole Conservative Ecosystem Rains Down Fire on Burrows

Donald Trump, Jr posted Monday morning Dec 9 on X:

It’s unbelievable what is happening in Texas right now. There is a group of so-called Republicans cutting a deal with liberal Democrats to elect a speaker instead of uniting behind the Republican nominee, David Cook! Unbelievable! Republicans have a mandate!

Lt. Governor Dan Patrick posted Sat evening, Dec 7:

Congratulations to David Cook who was selected as the Texas GOP Caucus nominee. Cook and his supporters did this the right way. His vote count continues to climb.

Ken Paxton and Sid Miller have posted multiple times on X in support of the caucus process and David Cook.

Greg Abbott's support for Cook came later and deserves it's own independent comments below.

Six Texas Congressmen have issued statements supporting David Cook and the caucus results: Ronnie Jackson, Keith Self, Michael Cloud, Brandon Gill, Wesley Hunt, and Tony Gonzales. 

Talk show hosts Michael Berry, Chris Salcedo, Robert Pratt, Sara Gonzales, and Kambree rained devastating scorn on Burrows and his betrayers. Pratt called the Burrows team supporting Democrat chairs, BurrowCrats.

The few members of the Burrows team that try to spin for Burrows on X that allow comments on their X posts are being hammered by a large volume of negative comments, urging them to vote for Cook.

Along the way, I heard some swamp supporters blame all the opposition to Burrows on principled conservative donor Tim Dunn. To that, True Texas Project head Julie McCarty said on X:

Let me get this straight...

100 County GOP Chairs want to follow the pre-determined rules and elect Cook for Speaker.

So does a coalition of US Congressmen from Texas. So does the Trump administration. So does the state GOP Convention. So do the majority of Republican State Reps.

So do the Governor, Atty Gen, and Lt Gov. So do all the grassroots orgs around. And yet somehow this is an effort led by one boogeyman who has bought everyone off?

Who knew Tim Dunn had THAT much power, money, and influence!!!

Repeated Burrows Blunders Boomerang

Burrows has committed a number of blunders that have created a PR disaster for him and his supporters all week:

• Boycott and Betrayal of Texas House Republican Caucus
• Fake news press conference saying "the speaker race is over" claiming he had the votes of "76 or more" votes. He then released a list with only 76 which immediately was proven to be incorrect and eroding.
• Announced big-buck fund raiser from lobby for "Speaker-Elect" Burrows! Phelan appointed Chair J.M. Lozano who was an early announced reformer opposing Phelan and now Burrows, sent a letter to AG Paxton asking if Texas law against impersonating a public official had been violated. The mockery online was devastating. Matt Rinaldi, for instance, changed his X profile to identify as speaker elect, too, claiming he had as much right to the term as Burrows. Burrows re-issued a new invitation to the swamp, removing the ridiculous title.
• Misleading text from new PAC with image of Greg Abbott and Burrows, falsely implying Abbott support for Burrows - this caused Greg Abbott to issue a statement on X denying his approval for use of the image.
• J.M. Lozano resurrected the story of how Burrows and Bonnen secretly betrayed fellow Republicans in 2019, reminding Republicans that he cannot be trusted. Burrows is indeed leading his team to walk the political plank that will end many a career if they keep on the same path. This led me to repost my article from 2019 commenting on the corruption of the Bonnen/Burrows offer to Michael Sullivan.
• Burrows Admits to Texas Tribune that he Will Appoint Dem Chairs - In a direct question on that, he replied:

This is what I've told every member, regardless of their party affiliation, and this is the traditionalist view of the Texas House, which is in respectfulness of the institution, which is what I am trying to take it back to.

By the way, I am told that the staff of Rep. Stan Gerdes, who participated in the caucus boycott and is on the Burrows team, is telling callers that Burrows is not for Dem Chairs, something that the Texas Tribune interview clearly refutes.

Greg Abbott Endorses the Caucus Pick, and by Implication David Cook

As people started digging into who was behind the new PAC behind the deceptive text with a picture of Abbott with Burrows, they discovered that it was created by Mitch Carney, who had recently served on the Abbott campaign and is the son of a key Abbott advisor, Dave Carney.

Not long after this news came out and after Abbott had denied knowledge of the deceptive use of the picture with Burrows, he issued this statement on X:

Let me be clear:

I worked this entire year to elect conservative candidates who will pass conservative laws, including school choice.

To achieve that goal we need a Texas House Speaker chosen by a majority of Republicans in accordance with the Republican Caucus Rules.

Given that around 22 of the people on the BurrowCrat side were endorsed by Abbott, that is big news.

Being the look-on-the-bright-side kind of guy I am,I praised the governor for being the peacemaker that will produce unity, harmony, and productive conservative results, claiming it was leadership at just the right time.

I was told by some that the reps that should be listening to the governor are not taking him seriously because they think he was forced into the tepid statement by the Carney link, and that they don't think he will back up his statement with any negative consequences if the betrayers ignore him.

I believe that if the governor follows up the X post with enough phone calls containing sufficient resolve in the message, he can, indeed, create peace within the GOP by moving the 18 or so needed of his 22 endorsed holdouts over to Cook and unity.

The RPT Taking Action and Deploying Funds for Unity

After the December 7 SREC resolution declaring a vote for a secret ballot or against the caucus choice of Cook on January 14 to be a censurable act, the state party has taken a number of steps to urge the Burrows supporters to unify back into the Republican fold.

The state party is running this network TV ad against the Burrows hypocrisy in Lubbock. Multiple commentators on social media mention that Burrows, as past caucus president, wrote the very caucus rule for picking the speaker that he is breaking.

The swamp is showing that it knows that the key to making impotent any threats against those who join the Dems is to count on the Republican primary voters who screen out political news to remain ignorant about what is going on in the speaker race. They know that they can spend big bucks to distort the truth and the record of those they support. As a preemptive move, at least two PACs backed by usual swamp suspects are sending texts to GOP primary voters in the BurrowCrat reps to give them cover and maybe a few positive calls to their offices to give them courage to withstand the fire.

The RPT understands this, too, so it is funding texts into BurrowCrat districts around the state, too.

The GOP chairs in the largest counties of Harris, Dallas, Tarrant, and Bexar are sending clear messages with their CECs to the reps in their counties, urging them to unite with the party. Bo French of Tarrant County has put out a statewide letter urging party unity, signed by at least 113 chairs and growing. Only the Lubbock County GOP has issued a statement for the Burrows speakership. Bo French said on X that David Luther, a staunch swamp supporter, Waller County GOP chair, and president of the Texas Republican County Chairs organization has been calling county chairs urging them not to sign the Tarrant County letter.

I know that many resolutions at the county level are in the works. Here is the Harris County resolution that can be used as a template.

Plans for showing the RPT banner for speaker on January 14 are well along the way by the RPT No Dem Chairs Legislative Priorities Committee. To sign up and pay to ride a bus to the Capitol on Tuesday, January 14, go to bandemocratchairsinfo.com. Also found at that website are links to purchase Ban Democrat Chairs T-shirts and find out contact info and status of which reps need urging to move to the Cook team.

RPT Chair Abraham George is reaching out to Burrows holdouts, giving them an opportunity to unite with the rest of the Republican world and move to Cook before he sends direct mail into the district in support of Cook. (On a personal note, I am very pleased with my support of Abraham at the State Convention.)

By the way, to those few Republican county chairs and precinct chairs who are unwilling to use the new Rule 44 to make the wrong speaker vote a censurable act, I said this on X this week:

You don't keep tyranny at bay by not confronting it. You don't have rule of law without enforcing the law. You don't get party unity organized behind a common liberty purpose without disciplining those betraying the party.

Given Democrat and Republican Disunity, the Swamp is Desperately Floating Numerous Tricks to Win

This speaker race is unprecedented in Texas history. It is not just that the grassroots and reform has gained the ascendancy in the Texas Republican delegation, thereby creating the GOP split between the swamp side and the grassroots. Even more interestingly, the Democrat delegation is divided, too.

Every Uniparty speaker from Straus, to Bonnen, to Phelan has relied on a unified Democrat delegation to deliver the win. But Burrows only currently has 37 of the 62 Democrats on his side at the moment. There is a far left Dem candidate, Ana-Maria Ramos of Dallas, running for speaker. If as Burrows gets the Dems to do what he wants and unify behind him, while keeping even only 14 of his current 29 supporters, he can win. But, apprantly, that is looking less and less likely.

First, some on the Uniparty side started urging a do-over of the Caucus vote, not realizing that that ship has sailed. The universal response by the grassroots to the mushy middle who just want us all to get along is that we CAN get along, if only enough BurrowCrats will unite with the entire Republican world in Texas.

Even more interestingly, three names are being floated as a replacement for Burrows who replaced Phelan. Why? Not because the Uniparty thinks that it can switch any of the current Cook supporters who honor their caucus, their party, and their voters away from Cook. The thinking is that a more liberal Republican might get enough extra Dem votes to put the Uniparty over the top.

The names that have been floated are Todd Hunter, who Mark Jones of Rice ranked last session as the 10th most liberal Republican, Ryan Guillen who just converted last session from being a Democrat and is ranked by Jones as the most liberal of the Rpublicans, and Greg Bonnen, the brother of former speaker Dennis Bonnen, who recently said that he thinks Republican House members are willing to "cut off their leg" to defend Dem chairmanships.

The permutations of how a speaker gets to 76 are almost infinite. The key to a grassroots victory is to peel enough of the Burrows team and those on the fence into the RPT fold, so that the Republicans can deliver the 76 votes for the win, or a combination of Democrats and Republicans will deny enough votes to Burrows on the first vote in a three way vote to knock out Burrows (or replacement) and produce a two-way race between Cook and a Dem.

That is why continued pressure from us on the holdouts is so important.

Toward liberty,

Tom Glass
832-472-4726
txce.org
Facebook: Texas Constitutional Enforcement

X: Texas Constitutional Enforcement community

Texas Legislative Priorities on Facebook

Click on the following for PDFs of 8.5 X 11 signs for display to Texas House Republicans on the way to their Dec 7 caucus meeting: