Later this week the Texas Senate’s Nominations Committee will consider the appointment of David J. Beck to the University of Texas Board of Regents. He should not be confirmed without undergoing some very strict – and uncomfortable – scrutiny.
For the most part, Beck’s name is mostly unknown to Texans. Quite frankly, Gov. Greg Abbott’s staff did their boss and taxpayers a disservice to taxpayers by recommending him and Common Core advocate Sarah Tucker for appointment to the UT Board of Regents
David Beck’s law firm, Beck Redden, has had numerous contracts representing government agencies, including the University of Texas. That creates the potential for quite a conflict…
Worse, his firm has been instrumental in advising the rogue Texas Ethics Commission in efforts to impose unconstitutional rules on political speech.
If David Beck’s name sounds vaguely familiar, it might be as a “founding member” of the misnamed Coalition for Excellence in Higher Education, an entity formed to fight reforms in the state’s public colleges and universities.
Or, maybe it’s because Beck was specifically mentioned in an Attorney General’s report as having an ignoble role in the “forgivable loan” scandal at the University of Texas Law School.
To say David Beck is no friend of conservatives, education reforms, or Texans’ constitutional speech rights, is to put it mildly. As it stands today, David Beck is simply unacceptable.
Members of the Texas Senate’s Committee on Nominations include:
Brian Birdwell (chair), Van Taylor (vice chair), Konni Burton, Troy Fraser, Craig Estes, José Rodríguez, and Kirk Watson.