Good morning!

Yesterday, we asked about Donald Trump's proposal to send kill teams after cartel leaders in Mexico. Today, we have readers' responses.

This is the Texas Minute for Tuesday, May 14, 2024.

– Michael Quinn Sullivan 

PROGRAMMING NOTE: I'll be out for the next week, so Brandon Waltens and Sydnie Henry will take over the Texas Minute duties. Be nice to them!

Frederick Frazier Falsely Claims His Criminal Charges Have Been Dismissed

• After being criticized for lying about the House’s impeachment of Attorney General Ken Paxton, embattled State Rep. Frederick Frazier (R–McKinney) is being called out for dishonestly whitewashing his legal troubles. Brandon Waltens has the details.
       
• Frazier has faced nearly two years of legal battles surrounding an incident in which he impersonated a code compliance officer and ordered a local business to remove his primary opponent’s signs. The indictment on these charges led to his dishonorable discharge from the Dallas Police Department.
       
• Late last year, Frazier pleaded guilty to one count of criminal mischief, a Class C misdemeanor, for vandalizing campaign signs. He also pleaded no contest to two counts of attempted impersonation of a public servant, a Class A misdemeanor. That's not what he's telling voters, though.
      
• In a social media post last month, Frazier announced that the case had been “dismissed.” Not true.
       
• Frazier faces a runoff election on May 28 against opponent Keresa Richardson. Early voting begins May 20.

Texas Scorecard LIVE

• The next stop for the 2024 Texas Scorecard LIVE events will be on Tuesday, June 4, in Midland.

Smugglers Ditch Vehicles in Rio Grande

• Will Biagini reports on smugglers' newest tactic for escaping Texas law enforcement: ditching vehicles in the Rio Grande.
          
• In one video posted to social media by the Texas Department of Public Safety, a smuggler in a black pickup truck can be seen fleeing local law enforcement in a high-speed chase. The smuggler pilots the vehicle straight into the Rio Grande, bails out, and swims the remainder of the distance back to Mexico.
         
• A second video shows a different smuggler, after ditching his vehicle in the river, being rescued by a cartel water raft. 

School Administrators Delay Criminal Electioneering Cases

• Two Denton Independent School District administrators facing criminal electioneering charges delayed court appearances set for yesterday. Jesus and Lindsay Lujan are the first Texas school officials to have been criminally prosecuted for using public resources to electioneer. Erin Anderson has the latest on their cases.
         
• The Lujans—husband and wife, who are both Denton ISD administrators—were scheduled to be arraigned yesterday morning in Denton County criminal courts, but that was moved to June 18. The Lujans have both been charged with unlawful use of an internal mail system for political advertising, a Class A misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail and a $4,000 fine.
           
• Both were indicted on April 2, after local voters submitted affidavits to Denton County District Attorney Paul Johnson that alleged the Lujans engaged in criminal election interference. Those affidavits included evidence that the Lujans used Denton ISD’s email system to incentivize employees to vote in the March 5 primary for anti-school choice Republicans.

Tarrant County GOP Wants Court to Dismiss Democrat’s Election Contest

• With a Democrat suing the Tarrant County GOP and its Chairman Bo French in an effort to become part of the party’s governing board, the party is asking the court to dismiss the election contest. Emily Medeiros has the story.
        
• During the March Republican primary election, Chris Rector won a precinct chair position for the Tarrant County GOP. Precinct chairs are members of their county party’s executive committee, which assists in governing the party.
         
• The problem? Rector has been a long-time Democrat activist and candidate.
          
• The Tarrant County GOP's chairman declared Rector to be administratively ineligible for the position after it was discovered that Rector was affiliated with the Democrat Party. For example, Rector was a candidate for Congress in this election cycle... in the Democrat's primary.

Special Needs Aide Accused of ‘Inappropriate Behavior’ with Student

• An educational aide who worked with special needs students in the Alvin Independent School District is facing two felony charges following accusations he engaged in “inappropriate behavior” with a student.
       
• Chason Bailey was arrested following a grand jury indictment and charged with indecency with a child and improper relationship between educator and student.
     
• According to the district, Bailey resigned shortly after Alvin ISD police began investigating the allegations. The alleged incident occurred on April 9, but parents reportedly said they only learned about it a month later in the form of an email from the district.

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 is what makes Texas Scorecard possible!

Quote-Unquote

"Everyone wants to live at the expense of the state. They forget that the state lives at the expense of everyone."

– Frédéric Bastiat​

Y'All Answered

President Donald Trump has reportedly said that if he is reelected this fall, he will send kill teams to enter Mexico and target cartel leaders.

Yesterday, we asked readers if they agreed with this policy. Just over 77 percent of readers agreed with the idea of sending in teams to target and kill cartel leaders, while 22.6 percent did not.

Here is a sampling of the responses we received...

• “As much as I would like to see the cartels taken down, this would set a dangerous prescience in regards to respecting the national sovereignty of other countries. Of course, on the other hand, the Mexican government is disrespecting our sovereignty by not controlling the flow of immigrants and the lawless acts against us by the cartels.” – Richard Cole
      

• “Whatever it takes to secure our border. Period.” – Dawn Gerstenberger
      

• “I think it would be a good start.” – Jim Moyer
      

• “It would be great to have an administration that's at war with someone other than the citizens of this country. Absolutely go after them and couple it with mass deportation or incarceration for drug dealers.” – Rick Goncher
      

• “I think it’s a great idea! The cartels show no mercy for anyone! It’s all money, money, money! In the meantime, they don’t respect our borders or our children.” – Wanda Wilcox
      

• “If you don't kill and cut the head off a snake, soon you have more and larger snakes.” – Danny Thompson
      

• “Trump is absolutely correct to insist that the cartel leaders be killed!” – Roger Taylor
      

• “Well…how different would this be from our military killing the Taliban leaders? Or other terrorist leaders overseas? The cartels are doing evil things at our southern border and inside America as well. Do we have a right to defend ourselves from them?” – Dana Krasinski
      

• “We need to do SOMETHING to help stop drug and human trafficking!” – Priscilla Love
      

• “I spent 23 years in the military and understand the urge. However, we talk about the sovereignty of our nation, we can not violate that of another nation. Now, if Mexico gives permission, then I am all for it.” – Greg Reinhart
       

• “Mexico is a sovereign country, that would be considered an invasion.” – Cheri Mertens
      

• “The better option, in my opinion, would be to bring them up on federal charges for human trafficking, or complicit in the deaths due to the fentanyl overdoses. Once that’s done, create a team to go into Mexico and bring them out to stand trial. The death penalty would be a bonus.” – Gilbert Hoelscher
        

• “This idea sounds too extreme, but living, literally, on the border, this is a practical and necessary solution. The Mexican government cannot control the cartels. In fact, the cartels have complete control in many parts of Mexico. The cartels are at war with our families, especially the young and vulnerable members of our families because of their drug distribution.” – Dorothy Strachan
       

• “This is war, and it's high time the federal government acts accordingly. We need to send the Mexican government the bill when it is done.” – Thomas Camardo
       

• “I've said this for years. Violence must be met with violence. As the lead members are taken out. After a few rounds, others will be reluctant to step into that position.” – Cathy Hess
      

• “The US needs to stop the extra-judicial and non-jurisdictional assassination/summary execution of people it does not like.” – Stephen Bailey
    

• “The USA needs to stop interfering in other countries' affairs and definitely needs to stop invading with our armed forces. Even if Mexico invites us to do so (which I doubt would be the case, as is the case currently in Niger and Syria—we remain in those two countries, UNINVITED, even though they have explicitly asked us to leave), our answer should be no.” – Hilda Maria
      

• “I think the Mexican government will be glad for the assist. Yes, kill them. They rule the cartel that way. That is the only thing they understand. Their only out should be to roll over on their US enablers.” – Louis Strohacker
       

• “The cartels are funded by our (unconstitutional) drug laws. We wag our fingers at Mexico while our holier-than-thou attitude is the root of the problem.” – Alton Moore
       

• “Mexican Drug Cartels are likely the largest terrorist organizations in the world, yet they operate freely by two corrupt governments. Both Mexico and the United States.” – Zack Dunnam
       

• “I have always had the understanding that the Mexican cartel was, on all counts, foreign terrorists. So, in all actuality, they should be treated as such. They have no problem with killing people whether it is through drugs, trafficking, or assassination at the border or on American soil.” – Michelle Rinard
      

• “There is a bright line that we must not cross! Once we begin to condone assassinations, we head down a path of retribution, retaliation, and revenge that has no end. Capture and convict through due process is the higher road to travel.” – Arthur Potter
       

• “Assassinating cartel leaders would be an exercise in futility. Someone else would just step up and take over operations. It would be like the Hydra - cut off one head, and two more would take its place.” – Christy Collins
      

• “Sending assassination teams across international borders is a good way to start a war, and probably illegal according to international law. We certainly wouldn’t want cartels doing that to Americans.” – Mac White
     

• “I disagree with President Trump's idea of going into Mexico to target and kill heads of cartel. That idea is un-American. Just as we have sovereignty of our country, so do they. That, in my mind, would be considered an act of war. I am absolutely against cartels, but as I stated above, that is another country. A better idea is to seal off the border and sever commerce with Mexico. Punish them economically until they do something about the cartel problem.” – Nita Sergent
      

• “The Mexican government is allowing people to cross their borders and then our borders. The cartels control the government officials. We must cut off the head of the snake. We’ve done it before in several countries why not Mexico?” – Steve Sullivan
      

• “I’m generally in agreement with Trump on matters of governmental policy, but this is not something I would be comfortable with. It seems like vigilante justice and would not stop the flow of drugs into America. Closing the border should be prioritized above all else.” – David Arnett
      

• “I'm really divided on this question. On the one hand, it would send a message, but on the other hand, it's not the moral high ground. Plus, you just cut the head off of one snake, and 3 more take its place.” – Cindy Armstrong
       

• “The cartels are guilty of the death of many Americans. We didn’t start this. They did!” – Glenda Piacent

Directory of Your Current 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.