Good morning, 

The beautiful genius of the free market is the voluntary trades between people, free from coercion, allowing them to strive for their dreams and meet their needs. It is efficient, effective, moral, and just.

Yet in the current crisis government is deciding what makes a business essential, upending the free market by closing down those that don’t meet the definition. What’s a businessman and his employees deemed “non-essential” to do? And what about the customers who rely on them?

Here is today's Texas Minute.

– Michael Quinn Sullivan 

Tuesday, April 7, 2020
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• Tarrant County entrepreneur Buddy Saunders’ business is unique, but the consequences for him and his employees from government mandates during the coronavirus crisis are all too common. Read his open letter to Gov. Greg Abbott.
       
• Texas cities have yet to see the surge in Chinese coronavirus infections projected by health experts. Ross Kecseg reports that even in hot spots such as the Dallas area – where county officials have imposed the harshest restrictions on residents – patient volumes have dropped at many medical centers and emergency rooms. In Central Texas, meanwhile, St. David’s Healthcare has closed three hospitals due to a decline in patient demand.
     
• Dr. Robert Phelan, an emergency room physician, told Texas Scorecard that patients who may otherwise seek medical attention for serious health concerns are afraid to leave their homes. Phelan warns: “This could lead to unintended consequences … such as patients delaying serious diagnoses by using over-the-counter medication at home.”
      
• With much of the Lone Star State sheltered-in-place and many businesses forced to close as “non-essential” by city and county officials, the McKinney City Council spent 45 minutes just debating if golf courses are "essential" operations. Erin Anderson reports McKinney residents are left wondering why golf courses qualify as essential when other activities and businesses don’t... and if they can actually operate within the CDC safety guidelines being applied to other businesses.
      
• Meanwhile, Frisco’s elected school board trustees unanimously agreed to delegate decision-making authority to the district’s top bureaucrat during the course of the coronavirus closures. As Erin Anderson learned, taxpayer advocates there aren’t happy with the decision.
      
• “The board of trustees is the people’s representative and governance body for our public schools. Yet at the very moment when hearing our voices and priorities is most critical, the trustees have essentially abdicated their responsibility to unelected administrators.” – Tom Fabry
   
• Plano attorney John Meazell writes he is “shocked” by the breadth and scope of the latest executive order issued by Gov. Abbott: “The problems of New York City are not the problems of Texas. No city in Texas is like New York City.”
   
•  “From the evidence and the clear differences between our state and New York City, why in God’s name did you decide to shut down virtually the entire economy of Texas? From the evidence, the risk did not justify this action because people were already limiting their movement but continuing to survive. ... The citizens of Texas expect you NOT to panic but rather make reasoned, logical, and wise decisions. Nevertheless, your path is contrary to the path taken by President Trump.” – John Mezaell

• In a time of national crisis, the Kennedy Center for Performing Arts begged for and received a $25 million handout... and then kicked its staff to the curb. This is reflective of D.C.’s culture, writes Rachel Bovard, but it does not mirror the rest of America.
      
• And finally... In preparation for moving our central Texas office later this summer, we have established a new mailing address for public operations. All correspondence, including contributions, can be sent to:
  Empower Texans
  P.O. Box 248
  Leander, Texas  78646