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Good morning,

On this day 189 years ago, most people would have bet against the future of Texas. Below, I end the week reflecting on the power of boldness.

This is the Texas Minute for Friday, March 7, 2025.

– Michael Quinn Sullivan

Speaker Burrows Turns Over House Records for Audit of Impeachment Expenses For over a year, disgraced former House Speaker Dade Phelan refused to turn over to state auditors the expenses his chamber made in its failed impeachment of Attorney General Ken Paxton. House Speaker Dustin Burrows has now done so, giving the records to Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick. Brandon Waltens has the story [[link removed]].

According to Patrick, the House—under Phelan—spent more than $4.4 million in its persecution of Paxton. A significant portion of the money went to outside attorneys who acted as "prosecutors" on behalf of Phelan's leadership team.

The lieutenant governor asserted [[link removed]] yesterday that Phelan kept the spending secret so the "total waste of taxpayer money" couldn't be an issue in the 2024 elections.

In contrast, the Senate spent approximately $435,000 on the impeachment proceedings before eventually exonerating Paxton of the House's charges. Abbott on Texas Lottery: Investigation Will Determine Next Steps While Gov. Greg Abbott declined to say [[link removed]] whether the Texas Lottery should be shut down amid growing scrutiny, he said yesterday that an ongoing investigation [[link removed]] will determine what reforms—or prosecutions—may be necessary.

Last month, Abbott called on the Texas Rangers to investigate the lottery following revelations about unregulated courier services, suspicious jackpot wins, and allegations of money laundering. During a press conference yesterday, Abbott pointed to possible criminal action if wrongdoing is uncovered and suggested the Texas Lottery Commission itself may need reforms.

“If the investigation turns up information that would lead to a potential prosecution, that should be undertaken,” said Abbott [[link removed]]. “If the investigation leads to, let’s say, inadequate measures that they have at the commission, those measures need to be reformed.” House Considers $8 Billion Bump for Government Schools When all funding sources are combined, Texas public schools have already been set to receive $93 billion in the new budget. This week, the Texas House Public Education Committee began work on legislation that would add another $8 billion [[link removed]].

The legislation has drawn mixed reactions. Supporters of House Bill 2 argue it is necessary to address school funding concerns, while critics warn it could make it harder to implement broader reforms—including property tax relief and school choice.

State Rep. Brian Harrison (R–Midlothian) is among those raising concerns [[link removed]] about the bill’s impact. In a post on X, Harrison called HB 2 a “liberal trainwreck.” Meanwhile, Texas Policy Research has called it “a massive expansion of government-run education” that increases spending without introducing structural reforms.MORE SCHOOL NEWS Fort Cavazos Orders Investigation Into Incident at Killeen ISD School [[link removed]]

A teacher has been accused by Army families of inappropriate conduct towards girls at the school, including one as young as four years old.

Former San Antonio Teacher Receives Probation for Improper Relationship With Student [[link removed]]

Miguel Angel Nava Jr. was also charged with distribution of harmful material to a minor.

Texas Aggie Democrats Host ‘Day of Drag’ Protest The Texas Aggie Democrats at Texas A&M University-College Station hosted a “Day of Drag” rally Thursday evening in response to the cancellation of “Draggieland.” Will Biagini covered the protest [[link removed]]. Only around 100 students showed up—with many in drag—to protest the Texas A&M System Board of Regents’ decision to ban on-campus drag shows at all system universities.

"Draggieland was not only probably the biggest event for the LGBTQ community on Texas A&M’s campus, but it’s also one of the proudest and loudest examples of Aggies exemplifying their free speech," said Kevin Pierce, president of the Texas Aggie Democrats. Legislator Wants to Codify Ban on Race-based Scholarships A new measure by State Rep. Tony Tinderholt (R-Arlington) seeks to stop higher education institutions from awarding financial assistance to students based on race or sex. Valerie Munoz has the details [[link removed]].

Race-based scholarships have already been interpreted as illegal by some under Texas’ anti-DEI law. For example, Texas A&M University has provided its administrators with legal guidance warning against awarding financial aid based on race, sex, ethnicity, or gender.

Matthew Poling of the Rudder Association has argued that scholarship awards should be need-based because “race is a poor proxy for need and gender is completely unrelated.” ICE Makes Arrests in Houston-Area Sweep Following a five-day enforcement operation, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement announced the arrests of nine individuals in the Houston area for sex offenses and violent crimes. As Michael Wilson reports [[link removed]], 20 other individuals at a manufacturing plant in Spring were detained for immigration violations.

The illegal aliens were from El Salvador, Cuba, Mexico, and Vietnam.

This comes in addition to a raid conducted in the Colony Ridge development which resulted in 118 arrests. Colony Ridge has long been under investigation for its lending practices and alleged ties to illegal immigration. Texas Scorecard Fellowship Program Texas Scorecard is taking applications [[link removed]] now for our paid fellowship's [[link removed]] Summer 2025, Fall 2025, and Spring 2026 cycles. The program [[link removed]] is designed for individuals aged 18 to 25 to explore a career in journalism, research, or non-profit administration. Coming This Sunday on REAL TEXANS STEVE TOTH

In this Sunday's edition of REAL TEXANS, State Rep. Steve Toth talks about the importance of community oversight in public education.

Toth says that real reforms in schools will only happen when parents and taxpayers are fully engaged.

New interviews with REAL TEXANS [[link removed]] every Sunday!

Friday Reflection

Texas, Against The Odds [[link removed]]

by Michael Quinn Sullivan

Defeat usually begins in one of two ways: believing success to be impossible or assuming victory is assured.

On March 7, 1836, betting against Texas independence would have been a pretty safe call. The Alamo had just fallen the day before, on Sunday, March 6. A few days earlier, on March 2, 59 delegates had met to declare independence … but they quickly went on the run.

And then there was the Texian military: No one would have been impressed. They were ill-trained, under-prepared, and poorly outfitted. Over the next several weeks, the Texians engaged in a series of retreats. Not an inspiring sight.

And let us be equally clear about the Mexican forces in Texas: No one would have doubted their superiority to the rag-tag Texans. The Mexican military was disciplined, well-trained, and better armed. It was led by General Santa Anna, a ruthless butcher.

But here’s the rub. Here’s where history was made. The Mexicans were complacent, and the Texians had almost nothing to lose.

You see, those Texian retreats had been tactical, giving the men time to coalesce, to train, to plan. They were down but not out. And they were in it to win.

By now they all knew about William Travis’ final letter from the Alamo, which he concluded by writing, “Victory or death.” Every day, everyone had to decide if they were willing to pursue victory or watch liberty die.

So, on April 21, 1836, the Texians achieved independence at San Jacinto because they were willing to fight a last-chance, impossible battle against an enemy force certain it would never taste defeat.

The Texans demonstrated a bold, courageous commitment to their cause by exhibiting a shrewd willingness to exploit Santa Anna’s arrogance. It was a high-stakes gambit. Either independence would be secured through victory, or the cause of Texas would be lost in a disastrous defeat. There would be no draw.

In broad daylight, the Texians shouted, “Remember the Alamo!” and “Remember Goliad!” These were not clever slogans created by a marketing department but fresh grief blooming into righteous anger.

With Sam Houston himself leading the infantry, the Texians charged on the napping Mexican army.

To simply note that the battle lasted less than 20 minutes doesn’t do justice to the scale of the victory. Nearly 700 Mexican soldiers were killed, another 200 were wounded, and some 700 were taken prisoner—including Santa Anna himself. By contrast, the Texians lost just nine men and saw only 30 wounded.

Of course, on March 7, 1836, all of that was in the future. None of it could be known. Everyone had to make a choice based not on what they saw but instead on what they were willing to do. The safe option might have been to slink away. The right choice was to prepare for the fight.

What was true in 1836 is true today: Freedom doesn’t come in timid nibbles but through bold actions. Never in history has liberty been expanded in a gradual series of small steps over time; that’s how tyrannies take hold.

Liberty is born from boldness. When people decide they are willing to lose everything rather than live as serfs, that is when tyrants quiver and fall.

For the Lone Star State to shine even brighter in the years ahead, we must—like those Texians of 1836—commit daily to giving ourselves to the cause of liberty.

Quote-Unquote

"Tu ne cede malis, sed contra audentior ito."

Do not give in to evil, but proceed ever more boldly against it.

– Virgil

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