Good morning, 

We asked readers about President Donald Trump's promise to launch the "largest mass deportation in history." Below, you'll find out what they had to say.

This is the Texas Minute for Tuesday, October. 29, 2024.

– Michael Quinn Sullivan 

Defeated RINOs Now Campaigning for Democrats

• Republican State Reps. Hugh Shine and Steve Allison have encouraged their constituents to vote for Democrats in next week’s general election. Daniel Greer reports on their efforts to undermine the GOP candidates who defeated them.
      
• Both Shine and Allison were defeated by conservatives in the 2024 GOP primary cycle, with their opposition to school choice playing a key role in the races.
          
• Appearing on public radio last week, Allison endorsed Democrat Laurel Jordan Swift to replace him in the House. Meanwhile, Shine has encouraged anti-school choice voters to support Democrat Jennifer Lee for his old seat.

State Lawmaker's Texts to Judge on Death Row Case Sparks Legal Concerns

• As part of his ongoing bid to free a convicted child-killer from death row, State Rep. Jeff Leach (R-Allen) could find himself in hot water after texting a judge on the Court of Criminal Appeals in violation of Texas law. Brandon Waltens has the details.
       

• The case in question surrounds child-killer Robert Roberson. Leach and others have worked to delay Roberson’s execution through a series of legal maneuvers.
        

• It was revealed yesterday that Leach texted Judge Michelle Slaughter on the Court of Criminal Appeals in an apparent effort to sway her opinion and that of her colleagues. The messages were revealed by the Court, noting that Leach's actions violate disciplinary rules for lawyers. Such actions also violate state law, punishable by up to a year in jail. 

        
• Late yesterday afternoon, Leach confirmed he sent the text messages and said that he has retained legal counsel.

RELATED NEWS

• Nikki’s brother, aunt, and grandfather said they felt the need to come forward due to the committee’s actions. "Given the one-sided picture of Mr. Roberson that has been recently portrayed in the media, we feel obliged to speak up and defend the real victim in this case, whose life was taken by the hands of Robert Roberson, Nikki Curtis."

ICE Pressed For Answers After Intoxicated Illegal Alien Caused Fatal Collision

• An American citizen was reportedly killed in Bastrop County by an illegal alien driving under the influence—and Texans are pressing the federal government for answers. Will Biagini has the story.
         
• Jorge Peralta, now 35, had been deported twice in the past after illegally entering the country—once during the Obama administration and once under the Trump administration. He entered the U.S. illegally again in 2021, during the early days of the Biden-Harris Administration.
       
• U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz is pushing for information on why Peralta was allowed to re-enter the country after multiple deportations.
       
• “The failure of the Biden-Harris administration on our southern border has cost countless lives.” – State Rep. Stan Gerdes (R-Smithville)

RELATED NEWS

• As of September, 174 of those inmates with ICE holds were connected to sexual assault cases—most involving children under 14 years old.

Fifth Circuit Rules Election Day is a 'Day'

• A ruling by a federal appellate court returns the “day” to Election Day in at least three states including Texas. As Erin Anderson reports, the case centered on a Mississippi law that counts mail-in ballots that arrive up to five days after Election Day.
      
• The U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals issued an opinion Friday that federal law requires mail ballots to arrive by Election Day and preempts any state laws to the contrary. The Republican National Committee and Mississippi Republican Party sued in January to challenge the Mississippi law.
       
• The opinion does not apply to the 2024 General Election.

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Quote-Unquote

"National security begins with border security. Foreign terrorists will not be able to strike America if they cannot get into our country."

– Donald Trump​

Y'All Answered

Last week, Donald Trump was in Texas addressing the border crisis. He said that if voters return him to the White House, he would order the "largest mass deportation in history."

We asked readers what they thought of the proposal: oppose mass deportations (3.4%), start with criminals (26.6%), or deport all illegal aliens (70%).

Here is a sampling of the responses we received after readers click their survey answer.

• “For someone who was honored to immigrate to this great country, and who followed all the laws pertaining to LEGAL immigration, I find it very insulting that not only these INVADERS are allowed to come in as they please, but also in many instances are treated better than American citizens!” – John Makow
       

• “Criminals first then the rest as soon as possible.” – Dawn Gerstenberger
       

• “I think if you enter ANY country illegally, you should expect to be deported if you’re discovered. Our country is too soft on this issue and will ultimately be the end of our country if it doesn’t get solved asap. Enter legally or not at all.” – Dave Dorsey
      

• “Coming into this country illegally is a crime. So all illegal aliens are criminals. Deport them. The saved money and resources could be spent in upgrading and faster processing of those who want to come to this country legally.” – Pamela Millisor
      

• “ANYONE who has not legally entered this country should be deported.  Deporting criminals is a no-brainer.” – Fred Wooten
      

• “Absolutely start with the criminal illegal aliens but until we begin the mass deportation of ALL illegal aliens we will not stop their flow into this country! And furthermore, we MUST stop the flow of money to ALL entities who are paid with taxpayer funds to help “resettle” illegal aliens, including Catholic Charities!” – Sara Heizer
       

• “Deport all illegals.  We’re either a nation of laws or we aren’t.” – John Trudo
      

• “Deport them all since they shouldn't have been here from the start.” – Rachel Salajean
      

• “As a Libertarian I support open borders and allowing employers to hire whom they want. As a pragmatic Libertarian I support taxing non citizens at three times the rate of citizens.” – Mike Tayloe
      

• “All the criminal illegals need to be deported! As for the illegals here who are working hard, have families and have tried to assimilate, I think they should be given a reasonable amount of time to pursue citizenship. If they desire to be here so badly, they need to become citizens, pay taxes, etc.” – Cathy Blake
       

• “If we can let them in we can get them out!” – Richard Steenson
      

• “Remove the criminals first, including gang members!” – Glenda Piacenti
       

• “Deport all illegals and fix the legal process which takes YEARS to get through. And remove the crazy incentives that these illegals (and the cartel) take advantage of. It takes more than just deportation to fix this long-term.” – Jett Burns
       

• “By virtue of the fact a person crossed our border ILLEGALLY, they are already a criminal in the eyes of the law. Deport every single illegal, post haste. If these criminals want to come here, we have a legal route by which to do so.” – Allison Love
      

• “On any task, one needs to start somewhere. Immediately deporting the criminal migrants is a good place to start.” – Michael Belsick
      

• “We have enough home-grown criminals. We don't need those people in our country who are double criminals (entering illegally and then committing crimes.) This is not rocket science!” – Beverly Uhlmer Roberts
      

• “Allowing them to remain is an insult to those that are proceeding through the legal process!” – Robert Gardner
       

• “Could we go live in any of these other countries and expect to get free services and healthcare? Pretty sure if we tried we'd be facing jail time at a minimum.” – Cindy Armstrong
       

• “Deport illegal aliens, and prosecute the treasonous politicians that allowed them into the US.” – Tim Rhodes

Directory of Your Current U.S. & Texas Lawmakers

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