Why did State Reps. Jason Villalba (R – Dallas) and Marsha Farney (R – Georgetown) hold a fundraising reception with State Rep. Sarah Davis (R – West University Place), an openly pro-abortion legislator? Pro-life constituents of Villalba and Farney have a right to be concerned.
Davis, Villalba, and Farney held a fundraising reception together at the Warick Melrose Hotel in Dallas on October 9th, the Friday before the Texas-OU football game. Such receptions serve as glorified ring-kissing ceremonies for lobbyists, big businessmen, and others who come into town for the annual Red River Showdown.
Davis is infamously known in the Capitol as the only openly pro-abortion Republican in the Texas Legislature. She opposed HB 2, the landmark pro-life legislation that requires abortion clinics to meet the same health and safety requirements as other outpatient medical facilities and bans elective abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy, among other reforms.
Ethics reports show Villalba followed up his reception with Davis by donating to her campaign the very next week.
In terms of fiscal issues, Farney, Villalba, and Davis continue to vote as some of the most liberal Republicans in the entire Texas House. All three failed the 2015 Fiscal Responsibility Index, earning a score of 60, 59, and 52 out of 100, respectively. Davis scored only one point higher than the most liberal Republican in the House according to the Index.
A non-partisan analysis by a Rice University professor found that Davis ranks as the most liberal Republican in the House. Villalba and Farney rank below the median for House Republicans.
All three legislators are facing conservative challengers in the Republican Primary.
