Good morning, 

Here is the Texas Minute for Tuesday, July 2, 2024.

– Michael Quinn Sullivan 

UPFRONT: In yesterday's Quote-Unquote section, I misspelled the last name of the composer of “You’re a Grand Old Flag,” George M. Cohan. I apologize for any confusion!

Abbott, Patrick Sound Alarm on Future Power Grid Stability

• Gov. Greg Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick are raising urgent concerns about the future stability of Texas’ power grid. Brandon Waltens has the details.
      

• A joint statement released yesterday follows recent testimony from ERCOT CEO Pablo Vegas, who warned that Texas might need 150,000 megawatts of power to support its grid by 2030—just six years away. 
      
• As a point of reference, Texas currently has around 85,000 megawatts of power available. It is generated by a mix of reliable producers (like natural gas, coal, and nuclear) and unreliable sources (such as wind and solar).
     
• The potential shortfall has prompted Abbott and Patrick to call for an immediate review of all policies related to the grid.

Chip Roy Urges VP Harris to Invoke 25th Amendment, Remove Biden

• U.S. Rep Chip Roy has filed a resolution urging Vice President Kamala Harris to assemble the Cabinet and declare President Joe Biden unfit as Commander-in-Chief. Debra McClure has the report.
      
• During a national debate last week, Biden appeared to struggle cognitively, alarming Democrats and Republicans alike who questioned his ability to perform the role of President and Commander in Chief. Roy characterized Biden’s performance as demonstrating that he is “unable to faithfully discharge the duties” of the presidency.
       
• When a president is unable to fulfill the duties and obligations of office, section 4 of the 25th Amendment, ratified in 1967, triggers the process that enables the vice president to become acting president.

Texas A&M Chancellor Announces Departure Amid Scrutiny

• Texas A&M Chancellor John Sharp has announced he will be leaving the role next year, at a time when the university has been criticized for its leftward lunge towards embracing radical liberal ideology.
      
• A former Democrat member of the Texas Legislature, Sharp was appointed to oversee the Texas A&M system in 2011.
       

• As the state legislature has pushed to rein in leftist indoctrination such as "diversity, equity, and inclusion" programs in Texas’ taxpayer-subsidized universities, Texas A&M has increasingly found itself in the spotlight for leading the state in hiring DEI positions. Earlier this year, Sharp told lawmakers A&M had removed eight DEI positions; at the same time, the University of Texas fired and eliminated hundreds of DEI-related positions.
      

• In 2023, Texas A&M attempted to hire a DEI-promoting professor as the head of its journalism program at their main College Station campus. She eventually turned down the offer amid a firestorm of controversy that resulted in the institution's president being forced to resign.
     

• Most recently, A&M was forced to suspend its Title IX Director and begin an investigation after Texas Scorecard revealed his radical pro-DEI views and public disappointment that the Biden administration’s changes to Title IX did not go far enough in forcing schools to accept "transgender" athletes.

Fort Worth Uses Taxpayer Dollars for LGBT Event

• Last month, the City of Fort Worth used taxpayer dollars to host a leftwing event celebrating sexual identities and the LGBT political agenda. Emily Medeiros reports the event was hosted on city property. 

      
• City tax dollars were used to pay Spectrum Ensemble to provide music. According to the group's website, Spectrum Ensemble promotes efforts to “transition” gender-confused minors.
     
• “It is bad enough that the City of Fort Worth acknowledges the Marxist ‘pride’ movement, but it’s even worse when our taxpayer money is spent hosting them. They even went as far as to celebrate the founder of the child genital mutilation movement.” – Tarrant County GOP Chairman Bo French

Quote-Unquote

"Our fathers' God, to Thee,
Author of liberty, to Thee we sing;
Long may our land be bright
with freedom's holy light;
Protect us by Thy might,
Great God, our King."

– Samuel Francis Smith​

Y'All Answered

As we head into Independence Day, we asked which of two modern patriotic songs our readers preferred: Lee Greenwood's "God Bless the USA" or Toby Keith's "Courtesy of the Red, White, and Blue."

Greenwood's anthem got the nod from 75.1 percent of readers.

Here is a sampling of comments readers sent back after taking the survey...

• “Both are fantastic, very moving songs, but Lee Greenwood's ‘God Bless The USA’ takes the winners circle for me.” – Roger Taylor 
      

• “I loved Lee Greenwood’s ‘God Bless the USA’ song the first time I heard it when it first came out many years ago. I still think it is wonderful.” – Kathy Powe
      

• “Wish you had Both as an option.  They are both great.” – Howard Benham
      

• “While Toby Keith’s song ‘Courtesy of the Red, White, & Blue’ is definitely the best classic modern patriotic song, ‘Made in America,’ also by Toby Keith, is the runner-up!” – Dana Krasinski
      

• “All these songs are great- wish they all had more play time on the radio, although  I still get a little misty-eyed when I hear some of the oldies (National Anthem, ‘America The Beautiful,’ ‘Stars and Stripes Forever,’ ‘God Bless America’).” – Charles Koenig III
      

• “GOD Bless the most important words in the song. We must bring everyone to know that by the grace of GOD we have a country.” – Teresa Soll
      

• “Decided in between those two songs was a very hard choice. I stuck with Lee Greenwood because our country needs God's blessings more than ever.” – Gary Hunt
      

• “I love BOTH of them.” – Doreen Cardenas
      

• “Kate Smith singing 'God Bless America' will forever be my favorite patriotic song.” – Shelby Trial
      

• “I voted for Greenwood, because it always chokes me up, but I would listen to just about any Toby Keith song, especially this one!” – Barbara Bussey

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