There is a common question being fearfully contemplated by establishment Republicans in these early days of the 2016 accountability season: “Do I want to go down fighting?” But make no mistake: they know they are going down. Some prefer retirement to an out-right...
Conservatives have taken heat in Texas for refusing the ObamaCare Medicaid expansion favored by Democrats and liberal Republicans. But that decision is looking better every day with the Associated Press this weekend reporting that more than a dozen states now face...
One of the most common questions I get about the Fiscal Responsibility Index is “Why doesn’t Joe Straus have a session rating?” Much of the answer lies in simply the way the Index is calibrated – we only rate lawmakers based on the votes they take. By tradition,...
A video was released last week showing State Rep. Byron Cook (R-Corsicana) purposefully trying to trip a citizen in the halls of the state Capitol. Why? Because Cook is a bully. He’s the kind of guy who threatens business owners in his district if they put up...
Certain perks are supposed to come with being one of the most powerful members of the Texas House – most notably, passing your district’s legislative priorities. Yet on that count, State Rep. Byron Cook of Corsicana failed his constituents miserably. Only one measure...
In the days since the legislative session ended, House Speaker Joe Straus and his coalition government of Democrats and liberal Republicans has been bragging about passing the very tax cuts they had opposed. “We cut taxes,” Straus bragged in a statement issued by his...
On his first vote as a state senator, Dan Patrick voted alone. In the recently concluded legislative session, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and the state senate substantively delivered on every measure he campaigned on last year. A main stay of Patrick’s policy agenda, since...
Texas' business community got a rude awakening. After playing nice with the Texas House coalition leadership of Democrats and liberal Republicans, they expected some meaty policy reforms. Unfortunately for them, they wanted reforms that conflicted directly with the...
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott made Ethics reform a centerpiece of the legislative session. He wanted measures "requiring elected officials to disclose contracts they have with public entities, prohibiting lawmakers from voting on legislation from which they could profit, and...
Education reformers were again thwarted by the Texas House leadership. The only substantive “reform” to make it through was a bill designating schools and districts with a letter-grade rating. That replaces the current system of rating districts as "acceptable,"...