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[MustReadTexas.com]([link removed]) – [@MustReadTexas]([link removed])
BY: [@MattMackowiak]([link removed])

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**WEDNESDAY** || 1/15/25

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* **TOP NEWS**

“**Rep. Dustin Burrows voted Texas House speaker in blow to insurgent GOP movement,**” Texas Tribune's** James Barragan**,** Jasper Scherer**,** Renzo Downey **and **Robert Downen **— “Rep. **Dustin Burrows**, R-Lubbock, was elected speaker of the Texas House on Tuesday, concluding a bitter and intense power struggle within the Republican Party that came down to an extraordinary floor vote to decide who would fill one of the most powerful positions in state government.

In his acceptance speech, Burrows focused on his desire to keep the House an independent institution, where lawmakers could feel free to disagree with one another without fear of repercussion.

“This is the people’s House,” said Burrows, who was joined by his wife Elisabeth and three sons for his swearing-in ceremony.

He promised to work with every member of the Legislature, leaving his door open even to those who opposed him.

“I commit to you today, every member will have a voice,” he said. “Every district will have a seat at the table.”

Burrows’ win marks a disappointing defeat for the insurgent wing of the party, which has spent years working to wrest control of the lower chamber away from establishment Republicans. That faction, which aims to push the House further to the right, ousted more than a dozen GOP members in last year’s primaries who were aligned with Burrows and his predecessor, Rep. **Dade Phelan **of Beaumont, riding a wave of conservative backlash over the House’s impeachment of Attorney General **Ken Paxton** and failure to pass a private school voucher bill.

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After the record turnover, hardline conservatives saw this year’s speaker race as perhaps their best chance ever to depose the current House leadership. They selected as their standard-bearer Rep. **David Cook** of Mansfield, who vowed to follow through on insurgent demands to strip power from Democrats — including barring them from chairing committees — and weaken the speaker’s means of controlling the chamber.

But while the insurgent crowd succeeded in forcing Phelan to give up the gavel, the elevation of his close ally signals a similar power structure will likely remain in place.

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Burrows won the speaker’s race after two rounds of voting, edging out Cook by a vote of 85-55. During the first round, Rep. **Ana-María Rodríguez-Ramos**, a Richardson Democrat, received 23 votes from fellow Democratic members — enough to keep Burrows and Cook from reaching the majority threshold of 76.

In the ensuing runoff round, twelve Democrats who had voted for Rodríguez-Ramos switched to Burrows. He also netted two more GOP votes from members who defected from Cook. Nine members marked themselves present without voting for either option, and one member, **Yvonne Davis** of Dallas, was marked as absent.

Burrows’ winning coalition was made up of 49 Democrats and 36 Republicans, drawing instant backlash from hardline members and activists who vowed revenge in next year’s primaries.

“Today, the RINO (anti-MAGA) Establishment laughed in the faces of our Republican grassroots. They chose Democrat chairs and Lobbyist buddies over their voters,” Rep. **Shelley Luther**, a freshman Republican from Tom Bean who had vowed to oppose the Phelan-Burrows leadership team, [wrote on social media]([link removed]). “I look forward to seeing if they’re still laughing after the next round of primaries. The fight starts today.”

Burrows’ support from Democrats will likely become major ammunition for his Republican critics aligned with the party’s right wing who warned that the new speaker should be chosen by a majority of GOP votes. On Tuesday, conservative activists sent buses full of Cook supporters to the Capitol to urge their lawmakers to support their preferred candidate.

Activists wearing red shirts that read “Ban Democrat Chairs” and “Betrayed by Dade” referencing Phelan filled the halls of the Capitol.

Paxton, a top state Republican leader who had [traveled the state urging people to pressure their lawmakers to vote for Cook]([link removed]), criticized Burrows for winning the speaker’s gavel with Democrat support and for going against Cook who had been the House Republican Caucus’ endorsed nominee. He called on Burrows to prove his conservative bona fides and warned that he would keep fighting to “reform the Texas House.”

“It is now important that Speaker Burrows and his leadership team pass every conservative legislative priority in a timely manner to make our state more secure and more prosperous,” he said. “That is what Texas Republicans expect.”

Lt. Gov. **Dan Patrick**, an archconservative who presides over the Senate, was also critical of Burrows’ reliance on Democrat votes to win the speaker’s race. He said he expected Burrows to help the House pass legislation supported by social conservatives including: school vouchers, banning cities and counties from hiring lobbyists to advocate for them in Austin, bail reform, election integrity bills, putting the Ten Commandments in school classrooms, banning the teaching of Critical Race Theory in the state’s colleges and universities and banning people from countries that are adversaries of the United States from owning land in Texas.

“Each of these bills will be passed again by the Texas Senate,” Patrick said in a statement. “The voters will hold our new speaker accountable to keep his promise of being the most conservative speaker in Texas history.”" [Texas Tribune]([link removed])

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* **TOP NEWS**

AAS: “**Former Austin developer Nate Paul pleads guilty to federal financial crime**” [AAS]([link removed]) ($)

* **#TXLEGE**

DMN: “**GOP will watch Dustin Burrows' actions as new House speaker**” [DMN]([link removed]) ($)

AP: “**Supreme Court will hear Texas anti-pornography law that challengers say violates free-speech rights**” [AP]([link removed])

* **STATE GOVERNMENT**

HOU CHRON: “**Abbott takes shot at Houston judges as legislative session kicks off**” [Houston Chronicle]([link removed]) ($)

* **LOCAL GOVERNMENT**

DMN: Editorial: “**In messy city manager search, Dallas council failed in its fundamental job**” [DMN]([link removed]) ($)

HOU CHRON: “**Harris County will study idea of putting small parks over Katy Freeway**” [Houston Chronicle]([link removed]) ($)

SA REPORT: “**San Antonio ISD leaders scrutinize budget, aim to reduce deficit**” [SA Report]([link removed])

FW REPORT: “**Fort Worth puts $26M toward road improvements, land additions**” [FW Report]([link removed])

* **BUSINESS NEWS**

HOU CHRON: “**Houston City Council denies CenterPoint's latest rate hike**” [Houston Chronicle]([link removed]) ($)

* **2025**

SAEN: “**'Full of common sense': John Courage endorses Adriana Rocha Garcia for San Antonio mayor**” [SAEN]([link removed]) ($)

SAEN: “**Real estate developer Robert Melvin enters race for San Antonio mayor**” [SAEN]([link removed]) ($)

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* **NEWS FROM AROUND THE STATE**

> TX TRIB: "**Gov. Greg Abbott threatens Texas A&M president’s job over claim that university broke DEI ban**" _[TX TRIB]([link removed])_
_ _> TX TRIB: "**EPA report says “forever chemicals” in sewage-based fertilizer pose cancer risk**" _[TX TRIB]([link removed])_
_ _> TX MONTHLY: "**The Texas Legislature Is a Mess. Here’s Why You Shouldn’t Look Away.**" [_TX MONTHLY_]([link removed])
_ _> TX TRIB: "**Gonzalez, Cuellar only Democrats in Congress to vote for bill restricting trans athletes**" [_TX TRIB_]([link removed])
_ _> TX TRIB: "**See how Texas House members voted in the speaker race**" [_TX TRIB_]([link removed])
> TX MONTHLY: "**Oui-Haw! Let’s Frenchify the Texas Economy**" [_TX MONTHLY_]([link removed])
_ _> AP: "**Border crossings in December trend low as Biden administration wraps up**" [_AP_]([link removed])
_ _> DMN: "**Abbott threatens Texas A&M president over DEI controversy**" [_DMN_]([link removed])
> DMN: "**What to know about Dustin Burrows, the next speaker of the Texas House**" _[DMN]([link removed])_
_ _> TX TRIB: "**Texas GOP chair denies church-state separation as lawmakers, pastors prep for ‘spiritual battle’**" [_TX TRIB_]([link removed])
_ _> DMN: "**Fermín Castillo Gómez from Linares was killed in Dallas**" [_DMN_]([link removed])
_ _> FWST: "**Tensions erupt at Tarrant Commissioners Court during jail deaths briefing**" [_FWST_]([link removed])
_ _> AP: "**John Ratcliffe, tapped by Trump to lead the CIA, will face questioning in the Senate**" [_AP_]([link removed])
_ _> HOU CHRON: "**Abbott threatens to force out A&M president over alleged DEI actions**" [_HOU CHRON_]([link removed])
_ _> HOU CHRON: "**Southwest pausing some hirings, internships as the airline looks to reduce costs**" [_HOU CHRON_]([link removed])
_ _> TX TRIB: "**The air in 12 Texas counties exceeded federal soot standards. Only four may face consequences.**" [_TX TRIB_]([link removed])
_ _> FWST: "**Property owned by one of the first female ranch owners in Texas is for sale. See it**" [_FWST_]([link removed])
_ _> DMN: "**California wildfires destroy home of Dallas developer**" [_DMN_]([link removed])
_ _> HOU CHRON: "**Bangladesh Supreme Court acquits ex-Prime Minister Zia, clearing the way for her to run in elections**" [_HOU CHRON_]([link removed])
_ _> FWST: "**Fort Worth tire shop made latest ‘Landman’ episode. See all the North Texas references**" _[FWST]([link removed])_
_ _> FWST: "**Mice droppings found in Tarrant County health inspections. 3 restaurants temporarily close**" _[FWST]([link removed])_
> FWST: "**Two-time Olympic medalist to be honored in Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo parade**" _[FWST]([link removed])_
_ _> HOU CHRON: "**The tax deadline for some small businesses affected by disasters in 2024 is drawing near**" _[HOU CHRON]([link removed])_

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* **EXTRA POINTS**

Last weekend's Texas sports scores:
> NBA: Denver 118, **Dallas** 99
> NHL: **Dallas **4, Toronto 1
> NCAAM: #8 Kentucky 81, #11 **Texas A&M** 69
> NCAAM: Arizona 81, #25 **Baylor** 70
> NCAAM: **Texas Tech **61, Kansas State 57
> NCAAM: **North Texas **69, East Carolina 60
> NCAAM: **UTSA **90, **Rice** 84

Tonight's Texas sports schedule:
> 7pm: NBA: **Dallas** at New Orleans
> 7pm: NBA: Memphis at **San Antonio**
> 7pm: NCAAM: West Virginia at #10 **Houston** (ESPN+)
> 7pm: NCAAM: Georgia State at **Texas State** (ESPN+)
> 7pm: NCAAM: Utah at **TCU** (ESPN+)
> 8pm: NBA: **Houston** at Denver
> 8pm: NCAAM: **SMU **at Virginia (ACCN)
> 9pm: NCAAM: **Texas **at Oklahoma (SEC Network)

**HOUSTON TEXANS**: "Why the KC Chiefs are the best matchup for the Houston Texans" Houston Chronicle ($)

**DALLAS COWBOYS**: "Here's the main reason Deion Sanders couldn't be Cowboys head coach" [DMN]([link removed]) ($)

**DALLAS COWBOYS**: "Eagles OC Kellen Moore addresses Dallas Cowboys head coach opening" [DMN]([link removed]) ($)

**HOUSTON TEXANS**: "Houston Texans release veteran receiver Diontae Johnson after 2 games" [Houston Chronicle]([link removed]) ($)

**TEXAS FOOTBALL**: "Texas football: 5 key questions facing the defense ahead of 2025" [AAS]([link removed]) ($)

**TEXAS FOOTBALL**: "Texas football safety Michael Taaffe returns for senior season" [AAS]([link removed]) ($)

**DALLAS MAVERICKS**: "Jamal Murray scores 32 of his season-high 45 points in the 1st half as Nuggets beat Mavs 118-99" [AP]([link removed])

**TEXAS A&M MEN'S BASKETBALL**: "Texas A&M men's basketball faltets in second half loss at Kentucky" [Bryan Eagle]([link removed])

**BAYLOR MEN'S BASKETBALL**: "Veesaar scores 19 as Arizona knocks off No. 25 Baylor 81-70 for 7th straight win" [AP]([link removed])

**TEXAS RANGERS** / **DALLAS STARS**: "Texas Rangers to join Dallas Stars on VIctory+, but it'll cost you" [DMN]([link removed]) ($)

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