Good morning,

The foundation of our republic rests on the radical notion that the people can govern the affairs of state without the need for a potentate or monarch. I end the week reflecting on the fact that our experiment in self-governance ends when we are unable or unwilling to govern ourselves as individuals.

This is the Texas Minute for Friday, March 8, 2024.

– Michael Quinn Sullivan 

PROGRAMMING NOTE: The Texas Minute will return on Tuesday, March 12, 2024.

UPDATE: Dade Phelan Came in Second

• With the final numbers in, Dade Phelan placed second in the House District 21 Republican primary election this week. Finishing first was David Covey, who received a thousand more votes than Phelan.
     
• That's a very poor showing for the incumbent speaker of the Texas House.
      
• According to tallies presented by the Texas Secretary of State, Phelan received 14,547 votes compared to Covey's 15,579. Since neither received a majority of votes in the three-person contest, the Republican nominee will be decided in the May 28 runoff.

Illegal Alien on Terror Watchlist Tried to Cross Border

• Although the number of encounters with illegal crossers has dropped significantly at the southwest border, an individual on the FBI's terror watchlist was apprehended last month trying to do so. As Emily Medeiros reports, the fact the man even tried to cross is evidence that more needs to be done to secure the border.
    
• The suspected terrorist, Carlos Obed Yepez-Bedoya, was apprehended not by federal agents but rather by the Texas Department of Public Safety.
       
• “This underscores the need for border security measures as potential threats to both public safety and national security are evident and exploit security vulnerabilities.” - Lt. Chris Olivarez, Texas DPS

Conservative Candidates Have Big Impact in State Board of Education Races

• One challenger knocked off an incumbent in the March 5 Republican primary for the State Board of Education, while two others forced their opponents into runoffs. Luca Caccairore reviews the outcomes of the often-overlooked SBOE.

    
• The SBOE consists of 15 members elected from geographic districts in the state containing twice the population of a state senate district.
      
• Central Texas' District 10 saw incumbent Tom Maynard pushed into a runoff against education reformer Mary Bone.
        
• In the Fort Worth-based District 11, youth pastor Brandon Hall beat incumbent Patricia Hardy, a retired educator, by six percentage points.
      
• In District 12, which stretches from Dallas to northeast Texas, incumbent Pam Little was forced into a runoff against Jamie Kohlmann.
       
• "From zero name ID ten weeks ago to getting nearly 50,000 votes, your support accelerated my campaign to the top 2 in a crowded field. This is more than a campaign about a single person – it’s a movement." – Jamie Kohlmann

One ISD Removes More Than 100 ‘Inappropriate’ Library Books

• Trustees in Princeton Independent School District have removed more than 100 “inappropriate” library books from circulation for review in response to concerns raised by education advocates. Erin Anderson has the details.
    
• The content of some of the books was exposed at Princeton ISD’s school board meeting in late February. In response, school officials have removed the books from circulation pending review.
       
• The audit was conducted by Citizens Defending Freedom using guidelines set out in a new law enacted last year. CDF has found many of the inappropriate titles entered schools by way of promotion from the American Library Association and the bookseller Scholastic.
       
• “For decades, districts and parents have relied on these institutions to recommend quality educational material. Most people don’t realize those same institutions have dramatically shifted against the values of most parents.” – Shannon Ayres, Citizens Defending Freedom

Drag Teacher Resigns

• A North Texas high school teacher who was exposed on social media for dressing in drag in front of his students has resigned. Brandon Waltens follows up on a recent story.
    
• A video shared on X just last month showed the male teacher, identified as Rachmad Tjachyadi of Hebron High School in Lewisville ISD, roaming the halls of the school while wearing a pink dress and pink cowboy hat. He attended the school's prom in a sparkly red dress and high-heeled shoes at the school’s prom.

Abbott and Patrick Endorse Katrina Pierson in House Runoff

• With State Rep. Justin Holland failing to earn the support of a majority of Republican voters in the primary election this week, Gov. Greg Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick have endorsed the incumbent's opponent in the runoff. 

       
• Holland received just 38.8 percent of the vote in Tuesday’s election, well short of the majority needed to win the nomination. He also didn't even make first place. That honor fell to former Trump campaign spokesperson Katrina Pierson. She earned more votes than Holland, taking first place with 39.4 percent.
      
• “Katrina Pierson is a proven, battle-tested conservative who will never stop fighting for the conservative values that help make Texas the land of freedom and opportunity.” – Greg Abbott

‘Democrats for Cruz’

• U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz' campaign has announced a new coalition to get Democrats to cross party lines and re-elect him into office. “Democrats for Cruz” will be working against U.S. Rep. Colin Allred (D-32), who won the Democrat nomination earlier this week.

    
• Presidio County Sheriff Danny Dominguez—an elected Democrat sheriff for 28 years—is supporting Cruz because his party has "gone out of control" on border security issues.

Friday Reflection:
Governing Ourselves

No notion in the history of government is as radically revolutionary as that of self-governance. The idea that commoners can be entrusted to rule a republic is hated and despised by those who would prefer to be our benevolent masters.

Self-governance was first described in Scripture, with God instructing His people to govern themselves under His precepts and law. 

In what could be considered the first national election in recorded history, the people chose to reject God and embrace a human king, despite knowing it would lead to misery. You can read about it in the book of First Samuel.

Put simply, self-governance is defined as a system in which people manage their own affairs. They are not ruled by a distant foreign potentate, a local monarch, or any other strong man in between.

But self-governance also means living personally with the consequences of your civic actions and inactions – even when you are a lone voice among many deciding the affairs of state.

This is the uncomfortable truth: To be a self-governing republic, we as individuals must first govern ourselves. That was, of course, the lesson God was giving His people. It is a lesson we still find ourselves needing to learn generation after generation.

Self-governance as a broad, overarching concept in a republic can work only when the people literally govern themselves in their daily actions and affairs. This was the common view of our nation’s Founding Fathers.

John Adams said it best. “Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.”

This is why government is downstream from culture, which is itself a reflection of the collective morality of the people. When one thinks of culture as “what is honored, shamed, and tolerated,” we quickly get a sense of why our government is in shambles today.

As individuals, we tolerate the disintegration of the family while mocking fathers who seek to protect their children from vice. We honor greed, reward debt, and subsidize laziness. Social media “influencers” are depicted as the pinnacle of achievement, while those who labor in the trades are treated like invisible serfs.

The dissolution of society benefits those who seek to exalt themselves. By not taking seriously our civic duties, we open the door to those who would rule over us. When we refuse to exercise self-control, we will find ourselves controlled by those who will.

Advancing self-governance as a framework for civic life requires that each of us first govern ourselves. We can only shrug off tyranny when we first embrace God. Restoring our republic begins, quite literally, in the heart of every citizen.

Quote-Unquote

“Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.”

– John Adams​