View this post on the web at [link removed]

MustReadTexas.com [ [link removed] ] – @MustReadTexas [ [link removed] ]
BY: @MattMackowiak [ [link removed] ]
Subscribe to the daily email here [ [link removed] ]
MONDAY || 12/9/24
Good Monday morning.
Thank you for reading as a FREE subscriber.
» Become a PAID subscriber for $7/mo or $70/yr here [ [link removed] ] and SAVE TIME and be BETTER INFORMED.
“If something of importance is known in Texas, Matt knows it. With a decline in the number of credible news organizations, the Must Read Texas morning email is indispensable for anyone that wants to continue to be informed.” – Former U.S. Senator Phil Gramm (R-TX)
AUSTIN NEWSLETTER LAUNCHED
Are you one of the 100,000+ subscribers to ATX Pulse [ [link removed] ], a newsletter that delivers EVERYTHING you NEED TO KNOW about Austin?
Subscriptions are $5/mo, $50/yr or $199/lifetime here: ATXpulsepremium.com [ [link removed] ].
» Read this morning's (free) edition here [ [link removed] ].
>> SUBSCRIBE HERE: ATXpulsepremium.com [ [link removed] ]. ($5/mo or $50/yr or $199 lifetime)
TOP NEWS
“Dustin Burrows says he has votes to be Texas House speaker after David Cook wins GOP Caucus vote,” Texas Tribune's James Barragán, Renzo Downey and Jasper Scherer — “In a stunning turn of events, state Rep. Dustin Burrows of Lubbock claimed Saturday evening that he had the necessary votes to become the next speaker of the Texas House.
“The speaker’s race is over,” he said in a news conference that lasted less than two minutes. “I have secured enough to be speaker of the House for the next session.”
Burrows released a list of 76 supporters — 38 Republicans and 38 Democrats. However, three members say they should not be on the list, debasing Burrows’ claim to have the necessary votes to be elected speaker.
Burrows’ announcement came just minutes after Rep. David Cook of Mansfield, Burrows’ main rival for the speaker’s gavel, had been declared the endorsed candidate by the House GOP Caucus by a vote of 48-14 after a contingent of Burrows’ supporters dramatically left the meeting after the two rivals had stalemated in the first two rounds.
All 88 GOP caucus members are tied by the group’s rules to vote for the endorsed candidate, which would help Cook surpass the 76-vote threshold at the beginning of the legislative session in January to be elected speaker. But Burrows made his announcement surrounded by fellow Republican supporters indicating that those lawmakers were willing to go against the rules to back Burrows.
After the caucus meeting, Cook thanked the 62 members who remained “committed to the process” and stayed until the caucus chose a candidate. Additionally, he committed to unifying the caucus by working with those who walked.
“This is still a race,” Cook told reporters. “That was something obviously we were hoping for today. We were hopeful that the 88 Republicans in the Texas House Republican Caucus would come together and make a decision, to a unified decision, that unifies all Texas House Republicans so that the Texas House can move forward. So, no, it’s not over.”
Later, asked by the Tribune for his plan if Burrows puts out a list of 76 supporters, Cook said he would continue working with members to earn the majority.
After Burrows published his list, Cook published a list of 56 Republican supporters. The two lists contained several duplicated names, including Don McLaughlin, Charles Cunningham, Janie Lopez, Mano DeAyala, Jeff Barry and Paul Dyson.
McLaughlin said that he did not give permission to be on Burrows’ list and remained committed to Cook.
“I stand firm with my conservative colleagues — my vote for speaker is with David Cook,” McLaughlin said in a statement. “Any claim that I support Dustin Burrows is pure deception.”
Another newly elected lawmaker on both lists, Paul Dyson, said in a statement that he would support Cook for speaker.
“During the campaign, I pledged to support the caucus nominee, and I applaud David and the other speaker candidates for spending countless hours sharing their vision for a united Republican House caucus,” he said. “I look forward to working with you, David, to deliver conservative results for Texas.”
A GOP lawmaker familiar with the matter said they were aware of at least two other Republican members who were asking for their names to be removed from Burrows’ list.
Later in the evening, Democratic Rep. Josey Garcia, whom Burrows had included on his list, said she had not endorsed him.
“I have not endorsed a candidate for speaker of the House at this time,” the San Antonio lawmaker said in a statement. “Like all of my colleagues, I take great responsibility in electing our next speaker, and I look forward to casting my vote soon.”
After the GOP caucus meeting, Cook said that the race was not over and that he wanted to work with the 26 Republican caucus members who left to win over their support. Cook also said he was willing to talk to Democrats to earn their support.
The dueling claims of victory are a sign that the intraparty Republican war could continue into the next legislative session. On Saturday night, the Texas GOP put out a statement urging House Republicans to unite behind Cook and calling on other speaker candidates to drop out of the race.
House GOP Caucus Chairman Tom Oliverson, who withdrew his bid for speaker to support Cook, said he expected the group’s members to abide by its rules and vote for Cook. He said he agreed that the race was over but that it was Cook who was victorious.
“[Burrows] knows how that process works because he helped write that process” as former caucus chair, Oliverson said. “What has happened outside of the caucus meeting is very much what Joe Straus used to do and that is the reason why the rules were put in place.”" Texas Tribune [ [link removed] ]
FREE SUBSCRIPTIONS HAVE ENDED: As of July 11, 2022, we have moved to a paywall for free subscribers. Free subscribers will only receive the top story in their morning email. Free subscribers will need to become paid subscribers to receive full story summaries.
LUBBOCK AVALANCHE-JOURNAL: Dustin Burrows guest column: “Keeping the 'Representative' in the Texas House of Representatives” LAJ [ [link removed] ]
SAEN: “Report: Tax breaks for LNG plants don't benefit communities” SAEN [ [link removed] ] ($)
SAEN: “CPS adding another 120 megawatts of battery capacity in deal with OCI” SAEN [ [link removed] ] ($)
FW REPORT: “Fort Worth officials prepare to enforce ban on game rooms starting in 2025” FW Report [ [link removed] ]
DMN: “Texas Legislature will take on bread and butter issues” DMN [ [link removed] ] ($)
DMN: “Pushback after Texas group decides not to examine post-abortion ban deaths” DMN [ [link removed] ] ($)
HOU LANDING: “Civic duty meets bad timing: More than 21,000 in Harris County registered too late to vote” Houston Landing [ [link removed] ]
NEWS FROM AROUND THE STATE
> TX TRIB: "Bill aimed at increasing transparency could sow chaos for election officials, experts say" TX TRIB [ [link removed] ]
> MY RGV: "Innovation could revolutionize future of tick control" MY RGV [ [link removed] ]
> COMMUNITY IMPACT: "Investigation into state calculation leads to expected refunds for Texas school districts, including Conroe ISD" COMMUNITY IMPACT [ [link removed] ]
> COMMUNITY IMPACT: "Electrophysiology program offers personalized care, advanced technology in New Braunfels" COMMUNITY IMPACT [ [link removed] ]
> VALLEY CENTRAL: "Increasing Brownsville Ship Channel depth could boost …" VALLEY CENTRAL [ [link removed] ]
> COMMUNITY IMPACT: "Live, work, play all in one place at Austin’s EastVillage" COMMUNITY IMPACT [ [link removed] ]
> COMMUNITY IMPACT: "Shoot 360 opening in Leander next year: Revolutionizing basketball training in the Austin area" COMMUNITY IMPACT [ [link removed] ]
> MY RGV: "Tuberculosis exposure may have reached 600 people at Harlingen nursing homes" MY RGV [ [link removed] ]
> DMN: "Latinos hit especially hard by North Texas meth sentences" DMN [ [link removed] ]
> FWST: "A Texas lawyer explains what eliminating no-fault divorce would mean for families" FWST [ [link removed] ]
EXTRA POINTS
This past weekend's Texas sports scores:
Fri
> NBA: Sacramento 140, San Antonio 113
> NHL: Las Vegas 3, Dallas 2
> NCAAM: UAB 95, Prairie View A&M 66
Sat
> NBA: Dallas 125, Toronto 118
> NCAAF: #5 Georgia 22, #2 Texas 19
> NCAAF: #17 Clemson 34, #8 SMU 31
> NCAAM: #17 Houston 79, Butler 51
> NCAAM: East Texas A&M at Incarnate Word
> NCAAM: Arkansas 75, UTSA 60
> NCAAM: UTEP 88, Seattle 72
> NCAAM: Northwestern State 64, Houston Christian 57
> NCAAM: Texas A&M-Corpus Christi 67, Stephen F. Austin 48
> NCAAM: Sam Houston State 87, Texas Southern 71
> NCAAM: Lamar 84, UT-RGV 52
Sun
> NBA: San Antonio 121, New Orleans 116
> NBA: Houston 117, LA Clippers 106
> NHL: Dallas 6, Calgary 2
> NCAAM: #25 Connecticut 76, Texas 65
> NCAAM: #22 Texas A&M 72, Texas Tech 67
> NCAAM: Vanderbilt 83, TCU 74
> NCAAM: UCF 66, Tarleton State 51
> NCAAM: Texas State 75, Rice 66
> NCAAM: Mississippi State 91, Prairie View A&M 84
Tonight's Texas sports schedule:
> 7:15pm: NFL: Cincinnati at Dallas (ESPN)
DALLAS COWBOYS: "Cowboys-Bengals expert predictions: Can Dallas slow Joe Burrow?" DMN [ [link removed] ] ($)
TEXAS FOOTBALL: Sherrington: "Texas' path to a national title is clear, even without a bye week" DMN [ [link removed] ] ($)
TEXAS A&M FOOTBALL: "Texas A&M to play USC in Las Vegas Bowl on Dec. 27" Bryan Eagle [ [link removed] ]
SMU FOOTBALL: "No. 8 SMU falls short in comeback bid in the ACC title game" AP [ [link removed] ]
SMU FOOTBALL: "SMU makes College Football Playoff over Alabama, will face Penn State" DMN [ [link removed] ] ($)
TEXAS A&M MEN'S BASKETBALL: "No. 22 Texas A&M beats Texas Tech 72-67 in 1st meeting of former conference rivals since 2012" AP [ [link removed] ]
TEXAS WOMEN'S BASKETBALL: "Ashlyn Watkins dunks again and No. 3 South Carolina women overwhelm No. 9 TCU 85-52" AP [ [link removed] ]
HOUSTON ROCKETS: "Jalen Green scores 31 to lead Rockets past Clippers 117-106" AP [ [link removed] ]
SAN ANTONIO SPURS: "Wembanyama helps Spurs beat Pelicans, 121-116, as Paul moves into second in career assists" AP [ [link removed] ]
SAN ANTONIO SPURS: "3 takeaways as Chris Paul gets his flowers" SAEN [ [link removed] ] ($)
DALLAS STARS: "Hintz begins third-period goal barrage as Stars beat Flames 6-2" AP [ [link removed] ] ($)

Unsubscribe [link removed]?