Phelan used state plane for personal benefit and campaign fundraising ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌

Good morning,

It was 23 years ago today that nearly 3,000 people were murdered in New York City, in a field in Pennsylvania, and at the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., setting in motion a "global war" that gripped the nation and world for two decades.

This is the Texas Minute for Patriot Day—Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2024.

– Michael Quinn Sullivan

SPECIAL NOTE... At the bottom of today's Texas Minute, you'll find a special One Click Survey asking about last night's debate between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris.

REPORT: Phelan Used Government Plane for Personal Benefit and Campaign Fundraising

On at least one occasion, Texas taxpayers picked up the tab for House Speaker Dade Phelan to jet around the state for campaign fundraising purposes. Sydnie Henry reports on new information uncovered by KHOU TV in Houston.
According to state law, the jets owned by the Texas Department of Transportation cannot be used for attending “an event at which money is raised for private or political purposes.”
In 2022, Phelan used one of the TxDOT planes to get from his home in Beaumont to attend a speaking engagement at the leftwing Texas Tribune's fundraising "Festival" in Austin.
From there, taxpayers paid to fly Phelan to Lubbock, where he watched the football matchup between the University of Texas and Texas Tech. While there, he also engaged in political fundraising—raking in $37,522 in campaign donations on the trip.

RELATED NEWS

On the day the Texas House voted to impeach Attorney General Ken Paxton in 2023, East Texas' Cole Hefner was listed among the 60 Republicans joining 61 Democrats in the secretive impeachment based on unsworn testimony and hearsay. But was he there?

According to footage and state records uncovered by KHOU-TV, it turns out Hefner was not on the House floor. He was instead using a government jet, paid for by the taxpayers, to get home for his daughter's high school graduation. According to a video obtained by KHOU, Hefner's vote to remove the Attorney General of Texas was cast by his seatmate in a practice known as "ghost voting."
While Hefner clearly intended to join Democrats in impeaching Paxton and has defended his vote, he was not present for either the debate or the vote.

James Frank Challenges Phelan for Speakership

Yesterday, State Rep. James Frank (R-Wichita Falls) officially became the fourth Republican challenging incumbent Dade Phelan (R-Beaumont) to be the speaker of the Texas House. Brandon Waltens has the story.
In a letter to current and incoming members, Frank wrote that it has become clear to him that voters and other lawmakers want to move the state in a different direction than where Phelan has been taking Texas.
Frank voted for Phelan in both 2021 and 2023 and was appointed by the speaker to chair the House Committee on Human Services.
"It is crucial that we review every practice in the House that consolidates power into the hands of the speaker and find intelligent ways to return these powers to the individual members." – James Frank
Already in the hunt for the GOP caucus' nomination are Tom Oliverson of Cypress, Shelby Slawson of Stephenville, and David Cook of Mansfield.

Leander ISD Middle School Publicly Shared Students’ Vaccine Records

Parents in Leander ISD are concerned for their children’s privacy after students’ vaccine records were publicly shared at one of the middle schools. Addie Hovland reports that this is not the first time district staff have revealed private health information related to vaccines.
During lunch last week, about 30 students who were not up to date on their vaccinations had their names projected on a screen by the vice principal of the middle school for all to see.
The parents later received an emailed letter from the principal of Danielson Middle School, apologizing for the "misstep."
Michelle Evans, political director for Texans for Vaccine Choice, said she believes the incident was purposeful. Last year, the parents of 200 students at a different Leander campus were sent an email telling them their child's vaccine records were not complete—with all the names and email addresses visible.

McLennan County Sheriff Investigated for Alleged Misuse of Funds

A grand jury in McClennan County has asked the Texas Rangers to investigate allegations that Sheriff Parnell McNamara ordered a deputy to work at his farm while on the county payroll. Ian Camacho has the details.
Allegedly, a deputy who was supposed to work at the department’s Mental Health Unit was instead tasked with working on the sheriff's farm for three years.