Good morning,

In yesterday's One Click Survey, we asked about a Biden administration proposal requiring foster parents to "affirm" the LGBTQ agenda. Find readers' responses below.

But first, this is the Texas Minute for Tuesday, Dec. 19, 2023.

– Michael Quinn Sullivan 

Dan Patrick: Dade Phelan is Breaking State Law

• On Monday, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said House Speaker Dade Phelan is violating state law by withholding expenses to the state auditor. As Brandon Waltens reports, the government code lists interference with audits as a class A misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail.
        
•  The audit is in regard to the impeachment of Attorney General Ken Paxton. Last week, open records requests revealed a cost of at least $4.3 million for the impeachment, including money given by the House to a public relations firm before and after the trial.
      
• Patrick said yesterday he believes the actual total spent by the House is “much more.”
        
• The Senate and the Office of the Attorney General have responded to the state auditor's requests for information but the House has not, Patrick added.
      
• Phelan himself has not commented on the audit. A spokesman issued a statement yesterday saying that the House was being transparent.

Federal Tyranny Threatens Texans

• A new investigation by Texas Scorecard's Robert Montoya finds that certain state officials are increasingly more interested in working with the federal deep state than they are in finding ways to defend Texans from it. 
         
• From ongoing mass surveillance to targeting conservative groups, the federal government has weaponized agencies against the citizenry. Texans need their state officials to take greater action to shield them from this tyranny... But are they? 
       
• Part 2 of the investigation will be released at noon today. It looks at multiple agreements the state government has with the federal government—and the next steps Gov. Greg Abbott could take to protect Texans.

Customs & Border Protection Suspends Rail Operations in Eagle Pass and El Paso

• The U.S. Customs and Border Patrol’s Office of Field Operations temporarily suspended railroad operations in Eagle Pass and El Paso Monday morning as illegal aliens continued flooding across the southern border. Will Biagini has the story.
      
• In a statement, CBP officials explained they are using "all available resources to safely process migrants" who are illegally entering the country.
        
• "Process"?! Maybe instead, they should focus on securing the border and repelling the illegal aliens...?

More Than Half of Texas Students Are Failing

• A majority of students in Texas government schools continue to perform below grade level, according to the latest data released by the Texas Education Agency. Erin Anderson has the details.
      
• A new TEA report shows more than half of all students statewide fail to meet grade-level standards on the state’s standardized academic achievement tests. In fact, just 49 percent of Texas students met or exceeded grade level across all grades and all subjects during the 2022-23 school year.
      
• “The failing scores explain why some parents want school choice legislation. No matter how one feels about education savings accounts, Texas parents have real, legitimate concerns with the education their children are getting.” – Tara Petsch

Jetton Aligns With Haley and Bushes in Re-election Bid

• Bucking a recent trend among GOP voters, Republican State Rep. Jacey Jetton told a liberal publication in a puff piece that he has “always been a fan” of the Bush dynasty.

          
• Facing two primary challengers from the right, Jetton was quoted as criticizing former President Donald Trump and explaining he prefers politicians like Nikki Haley and Marco Rubio.
       
• Republican U.S. Rep. Troy Nehls, whose district overlays Jetton's, is opposing the state lawmaker's re-election. “He voted to raise taxes, became a sell-out to corporate tax breaks, forcing the bill on property taxpayers, and has consistently voted against conservative issues such as election integrity and allowing taxpayer-funded social transitioning of children.”

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Quote-Unquote

“It will be of little avail to the people, that the laws are made by men of their own choice, if the laws be so voluminous that they cannot be read, or so incoherent that they cannot be understood.”

– James Madison​

Y'All Answered

A rule proposed by the Biden administration would require foster parents to "affirm" LGBTQ lifestyles. This is being seen as a direct assault on Christian foster parents and faith-based placement organizations.

Yesterday, we asked readers if they thought foster parents should be required to affirm homosexual and queer lifestyles. Nearly 97 percent replied "no," while 3.3 percent said "yes."

Here is a sampling of the email responses I received...

• “Texas already has a difficult time keeping enough Foster Families. Now, the DC left-leaning idiots want to handcuff them even more. I want DC to stay out of Texas business and politics. Most of these children are very young and there is no reason for this even to be an issue with them.” – Corrine Jung 
      

• “Maybe the most appropriate response to the survey can be found by looking no further than Christmas itself: a father, mother, and child. The Holy Family is the perfect model, as it has been for centuries, throughout the civilized world.” – Lewis Edinburgh
      

• “Regardless of religious convictions, affirming such lifestyles compares with affirming drug abuse or alcoholism.  There are so many physical and mental health issues associated with alternative sexual behaviors that it is actually cruel to support them. The better way is to love, care, and pray for them, explain the issues, and help them overcome the reason they feel that they must live a self-destructive life.” – Arthur Potter
      

• “I believe the family was established by God as a father, a mother, and children. Requiring the LGBT views to be accepted by foster parents is another ‘woke’ agenda and shows discrimination against Christians and others who don’t believe in this leftist movement.” – Sandi Stephens
     

• “I can not understand the mindset of indoctrinating children into a belief and support of a lifestyle that has suddenly become ‘required.’  Other than destroying our country from within, it seems there is no gain.” – Kent Kirby
     

• “The Biden Administration is pushing a political agenda to promote immoral and sinful behaviors that have dire consequences on both sides of the grave.” – Anthony Cieszkiewicz
      

• "Do the kids need a loving home or not? Why is EVERYTHING about a very small percentage of the population?" – Tara Souther
       

• “It is utter nonsense to continue to push these liberal views upon those who are opening up their homes to provide some stability to children who have lived in less-than-desirable conditions! The children continue to be harmed when this sort of lifestyle is imposed upon them! Stop this madness!” – Deb Hillis 
      

• “Prospective foster parents should NOT have to affirm gay lifestyles. Here’s a better idea. Clean out Washington DC of all these low-life, morally corrupt politicians.” – Nancy Wood
      

• “Faith-based placement organizations have kept a toe hold in the foster care system, maintaining some sense of sanity in a system that is already a bastion of corruption.  Children are frequently needlessly placed in foster care because of the money involved.  The Biden administration wishes to open another avenue to expand moral corruption as well.” – Roger Taylor
      

• “Federal government intrusion has already driven most Catholic charities out of the adoption business. They were, I believe, the largest adoption agency in the US. So the Fed either wants to have all orphans collected in government-run propaganda mills or transformed into the cadres of perversion it is increasingly relying on for its support.” – Micheal Nash
      

• “I’m so sick of these people trying to normalize deviant behavior.” – Mary Matthews
      

• “Once again, Biden plays to the extremists and ignores middle America. Common sense has left Washington!” – Priscilla Love
      

• “Democrats want all our children in the hands of those that will sexualize them!” – Johnny Nail
       

• “Not only should the Biden administration not have a say in the beliefs of foster parents, but I am unaware of how the Biden admin can even have a say about foster parents at all. Where in the Constitution is the responsibility for fostering children given to the federal government?” – Philip Johnson
       

• “Not only no but anyone that has or affirms homosexual or queer lifestyles should NOT be a foster parent.  Is that really hard to understand?” – Garry Ludwig 
       

• “Foster parenting should be more than food, shelter, and government regulations. Foster parents are entrusted with dispossessed children and are responsible for raising good citizens. Otherwise, they are no more than state-sanctioned institutional facilities operated at the retail level. It takes moral and righteous parents to moral and righteous children to adulthood.” – Dale Huls
   

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