On Saturday, former President Donald Trump again weighed in on the progress of forensic election audit legislation during the ongoing third special legislative session.
In a statement, Trump said:
Texas Speaker of the House Dade Phelan is another Mitch McConnell. He is not fighting for the people of Texas. Speaker Phelan should immediately move the Forensic Audit bill, SB 47 by Senator Bettencourt that passed out of the State Senate this week, to the floor. The Speaker knows the bill will overwhelmingly pass the House with Republican support.
The legislation Trump refers to passed the Senate on October 5. Though it was received by the House of Representatives the following day, they chose not to refer it to a House Committee when they convened thereafter, making the prospects for the legislation look increasingly bleak given that only about 10 days remain in the ongoing special session. Trump lauded the Senate last week for moving quickly on the legislation.
While standing in the way of a real election audit, Speaker Phelan just weakened the penalty for voting illegally in the state of Texas from a felony to a misdemeanor, siding with Democrats and calling their amendment that makes a mockery of our election laws “thoughtful.” After the 2020 Presidential Election Scam we need tougher penalties for cheating in our elections, not weaker ones.
Trump alluded to an issue that was recently added to the ongoing special session agenda by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott relating to re-increasing the penalty for illegally voting, something that was lowered in the last special legislative session via an amendment that was adopted in the House.
Texans are tired of Phelan’s weak RINO leadership in the State House. Texas is a very red state, even more than people know. If this doesn’t pass soon, we look forward to seeing him in the Texas primary. It will get done one way, or the other!
What Does it All Mean?
Saturday marks Day 20 of the ongoing special session. The session has the ability to last 30 total days (until October 19).
It is unclear whether House Republican leadership will prioritize legislation that is not on the agenda for the special session. Thus far, they have not considered any of the other items on the agenda. Compare that to the Senate, which has passed the better part of seven of the eight agenda items from their chamber.
