Good morning, 

Yesterday, we asked what political "label" best applies to our readers. Find out below how y'all describe yourselves.

First, here is the Texas Minute for Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2023.

– Michael Quinn Sullivan 

Got Your Tickets?

• The annual Conservative Leader Awards dinner is Saturday, Dec. 9, in Irving. Get your tickets today!

House (Finally) Musters a Quorum

• For the first time in a week, the Texas House finally had a quorum available to conduct business yesterday. Their business, though, consisted of adjourning until 10 a.m. today, when House members will consider two border security measures previously passed by the Senate.

Paxton Calls on Texas House to Reveal Cost of Impeachment

• Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is calling out the Texas House leadership for dragging their feet in providing the cost of their impeachment trial against him. An audit of both chambers’ expenses was requested after the trial by Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick. Brandon Waltens has the details.
   
• Patrick wanted the state auditor to provide a full accounting of all expenses, starting with the secret proceedings in the House through the conclusion of the trial.
   
• "The Senate and the AG’s office have turned over their records," wrote Paxton in a statement on social media. "The House is refusing to turn the records over. Where are they?"

Pro-Palestine Protestors March in Austin

• An estimated 10,000 protesters took to the streets of Austin on Sunday, chanting anti-Jewish slogans. Soli Rice has the story. 
      
• One chant during the protest was, "From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free." That has been widely described as a call for the genocide of Jews in Israel.
       
• The Texas GOP condemned the protesters, but the Democrat Party has been silent on the issue. Republican chairman Matt Rinaldi took to social media to note the Democrats' silence.

U.S. Rep. Fallon Seeks Return to State Senate

• Surprising political observers, U.S. Rep. Pat Fallon announced yesterday he would not be seeking re-election to Congress but instead run for the Texas Senate in the GOP primary.
       
• This would mark a homecoming for Fallon, who represented Senate District 30 for two years before being elected to Congress in 2020. He was replaced in that seat by Drew Springer, who announced earlier this month he was not seeking re-election.
   
• Fallon immediately earned the endorsement of Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick. "Pat was a solid member when he served in the Senate, and now he returns from Washington with a wealth of new experience."

Wise County GOP Censures State Rep. Lynn Stucky

• Ahead of the March 2024 GOP primary, the Republican Party of Wise County has censured their incumbent state representative, Lynn Stucky of Sanger. Get the story from Sydnie Henry.
        
• According to the censure resolution, Stucky has engaged in “a pattern of action demonstrably opposed to the U.S. Constitution, the Core Principles of the Republican Party of Texas’s Platform and the Legislative Priorities.”
       
• The censure lists numerous examples to support the party's claim, including Stucky's support for allowing Democrats to chair committees in the GOP-dominated House.
       
• Stucky is now one of three House Republicans who have faced censure in their home districts. The other two are Andrew Murr of Junction and Speaker Dade Phelan of Beaumont.
      
• Challenging Stucky in the March primary is Andy Hopper.

School Employee Charged with Grooming Teenage Student

• An athletic trainer in the Pilot Point ISD has been arrested and charged with allegedly grooming a teenage student. Emily Medeiros reports the 35-year-old man has been fired.
        

• The exact nature of Javier Errisuriz's alleged criminal misconduct has not been released to the public.

       
• Employed by Pilot Point since July, Errisuriz previously worked at Canyon Lake High School in Comal ISD and Keller High School in Keller ISD.

Support Texas Scorecard?

Will you make a special, tax-deductible contribution to support the mission and work of Texas Scorecard? We don’t take government grants or corporate sponsorships, and we don’t put our content behind a paywall. Your support makes Texas Scorecard possible!

Quote-Unquote

"A political party cannot be all things to all people. It must represent certain fundamental beliefs which must not be compromised to political expediency or simply to swell its numbers."

– Ronald Reagan​

Y'All Answered

With filing underway for the 2024 primary election season, we asked readers what label best describes their political leanings.

In the order of reader preference, the choices were: "Conservative" (76.9%), "Republican" (12%), "Libertarian" (6%), "Democrat" (0.9%), "Liberal" (0.4%), and "Green" (0.2%). Meanwhile, 3.8% chose "Other."

Here's a sampling of the responses we received.

• “As I have often said, ‘Christian, first. Conservative second. Republican, third.’ Therefore, ‘Conservative’ fits best.” – Glenda Piacenti
       

• “Conservative is a better choice than Republican these days. When politicians like Phelan can run as Republicans, it makes people like me distance themselves from the party. Let's get back to a time when Republican means the only adults in the room.” – Thomas Camardo
       

• “Christian patriot conservative.” – Sheila Domstead
      

• “I chose 'libertarian' because most elected Republicans aren't republican, no Democrats are democrat, Greens are watermelons (green on the outside, red on the inside), Liberal means communist, and Conservative is just an undefined buzzword for the Cornyn types to claim they're one of us.” – Chris Breaux
      

• “Let's just say ‘Common Sense.’” – Arthur Potter
        

• “I vote Republican but consider myself a conservative.” – Jaqueline Hobson
       

• "I answered ‘Republican,’ but after some intense internal debate (about 10 seconds worth), I realized that ‘Conservative’ is a better choice. That term embodies all my core values, ones that I will never compromise. Republican is a political term and as such has no meaning apart from the political party. So you now have 2 votes from me. I feel like a Democrat!!” – Ed Scruggs 
       

• “I’m called a ‘We the People right-wing extremist’ and ‘YeeHaw-ist’ by those within my local Republican Party with whom I disagree. These are labels I’m proud to wear in our war against Liberalism.” – Helen Herd
       

• “While I call myself Libertarian because I firmly endorse less government interference in citizen’s lives, I vote Republican because, in these times, I don’t feel I can cast a vote that won’t actually count when it could very easily be a determining factor in a majorly important election.” – Mozelle Barr
       

• “I answered ‘conservative,’ but I'm sure that none of the choices are really appropriate for our population that pays so little attention to the political climate. Until a vast majority of our citizens stop bowing to the State and begin to manage the State, societal deterioration will continue.” – Tobie Hall
       

• “I'm a limited government, moral conservative. I'm more conservative than the vast majority of conservatives, and my moral stances and border policies keep me from being a true libertarian.” – David Vargha
       

• “I am conservative because a lot of Republicans are RINOS. They say they are in the party, but do not adhere to the platform of the party. Dade Phelan would make any Republican sick. Democrat in Republican dress!” – June Criner
       

• “In my opinion, Republicans and Democrats are the same beast. I am an Egalitarian Iconoclast. Political Parties are anathema to American Freedoms.” – Jim Lowry
       

• “Libertarian....but with a small ‘l.’ The LP has become a joke and does not represent the views of actual libertarians.” – Jason Kerr
       

• “I prefer to call myself conservative, as far too many Republicans act and vote like Democrats. Republicans are too weak to get things done. Just look at what is happening in the House, with nobody showing up for work yet collecting a paycheck from the taxpayers.” – Landon Capozzi 
      

• “I picked conservative because I used to be a Republican. After watching the Republican representatives act like Democrats in the Texas House, I decided I do not want to be part of that club.” – Gary Alford 
       

• “In my mind, I should have picked liberal because I'm a traditional liberal (free speech, right to property, etc.). But nobody calls us liberals anymore, they say we're conservative. So be it.” – Bruce Delater
      

• "I listed 'other' as my party preference.  I generally vote for Deserving Republican candidates, but would never, ever vote for the likes of Dade Phelan and his cronies." – Olli Coker

Directory of Your U.S. & Texas Lawmakers

This information is automatically inserted based on the mailing address you provide to us. If you'd like to update your contact information, please visit our subscriber portal.