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We're halfway through the week; thanks for spending part of your day with the Texas Minute!

This is Wednesday, October 23, 2024.

– Michael Quinn Sullivan 

Trump, Cruz Continue to Lead Democrat Opponents in Texas

• According to data released by the University of Texas' Texas Politics Project, Republicans at the top of the ballot are leading their Democrat opponents. Emily Medeiros reports former President Donald Trump and U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz are both up in the polls among Texas voters. 
      
• Trump currently holds a five-point lead over Vice President Kamala Harris (51 percent to 46 percent). Polling finds Cruz has the support of 51 percent of voters, with Allred trailing at 44 percent.
      
• Voters said the country’s top issue is inflation and rising prices, followed by general concerns about the economy and immigration.

RELATED NEWS

• Their poll found that 67 percent of voters believe taxpayer-funded lobbying should be banned by the state legislature. Meanwhile, 75 percent want Texas lawmakers to pass legislation preventing China from purchasing land in the state.
      
• "Texas voters are fiscally conservative; they know property taxes are skyrocketing, and they want the Texas Legislature to focus on common-sense reforms that put citizens first." – Andrew McVeigh of Texans for Fiscal Responsibility

Biden-Harris Admin Accused of Faking Economy Comeback

• With the state of the economy pressing on voters' minds ahead of the General Election, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris are accused of injecting billions of debt dollars to give the appearance of prosperity. Will Biagini has the details.
      
• Recent analysis finds the total U.S. national debt has skyrocketed by $473 billion in just the past three weeks. The debt total is now $35.8 trillion—a new high. 
       
• The numbers have led many, including Fort Worth businessman Bo French, to conclude that the Biden-Harris administration is using debt to create a veil of fake prosperity as the General Election approaches. French, who is also the chairman of the Tarrant County GOP, said the debt spending amounts to "actual election interference."
      
• In a posting on social media, Donald Trump Jr. wrote that the current administration’s alleged fake economy comeback scandal should be criminal.

2.1 Million Encounters at the Southwest Border, Claim Feds

• Wrapping up the 2024 federal fiscal year, which ended in September, U.S. Customs and Border Protection has announced the number of southwest border encounters for the 12-month period. Sydnie Henry has the story.
       
• The agency reports 2,135,005 encounters with illegal border crossers, the lowest since 2021. That low number is believed by some experts to be the result of a deal made last December between the Biden-Harris administration and Mexico to slow traffic to the U.S.-Mexico border ahead of the election.
       
• Since February of 2021, there have been 8,427,854 encounters at the southwest border.
        
• Republicans have repeatedly blamed the border crisis on the Biden-Harris administration’s decisions to repeal many of the Trump-era policies that slowed down illegal traffic, such as the Remain in Mexico policy.

Rockwall ISD Ballot: Billion Dollar Debt and a Tax Hike

• Taxpayers in Rockwall ISD can expect some sticker shock, thanks to two items at the bottom of the Nov. 5 ballot. As Erin Anderson reports, the school district wants voters to ratify a double-digit tax increase and take on a billion dollars in new debt.
       
• With just the tax increase, the average homeowner will pay $877 more in taxes—a 25 percent increase.
       
• The debt burden would cost local property taxpayers $1.53 billion between principal and interest over the life of the proposed bond. Rockwall ISD taxpayers currently owe $1.65 billion in bond debt principal and interest.
       
• "The only good thing about the issue is that the taxpayers have the opportunity to tell the district 'no' and vote these increases down." – State Sen. Bob Hall (R-Edgewood)

Teachers Nabbed Hurting Children

• Georgetown Independent School District’s Board of Trustees voted to terminate its contract with Lisa Cantu. The teacher is accused of abusing an 11-year-old special-needs student. As Robert Montoya reports, the student's mother also alleges the district conspired to coverup the situation.
      
• Meanwhile, Carroll Middle School teacher Angela Dawn Barnes was arrested by Keller police earlier this week. Barnes has been charged with sexual assault of a child and improper relationship between an educator and student. According to Carroll ISD, the alleged offenses took place off campus.

Quote-Unquote

"What you northerners never appreciate… is that Texas is so big that you can live your life within its limits and never give a damn about what anyone in Boston or San Francisco thinks."

– James Michener​

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