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Good morning,

Yesterday, we asked readers about the Texas Senate's push to take on THC-infused products. You will find the survey results and reader responses below.

This is the Texas Minute for Tuesday, March 25, 2025.

– Michael Quinn Sullivan 

• You'll find us at 9 a.m. today on 𝕏, YouTube, and Facebook.

Federal Judge Blocks Voter ID Requirement for Texas Mail Ballots

• A federal judge has ruled that a 2021 Texas law requiring voter ID for mail-in ballots unconstitutionally discriminates against disabled voters. Erin Anderson has the full report.
     
• U.S. District Judge Xavier Rodriguez ordered that the state cannot require mail-ballot voters to provide an identification number that matches the person applying for a ballot to the person’s voter registration form. Plaintiffs argued that disabled voters are disproportionately impacted by the ID requirement.
      
• Judge Rodriguez, who was appointed by George W. Bush, previously ruled that Texas election officials could not reject mail-in ballots with wrong or missing identification numbers. In that ruling, Rodriguez asserted that providing a correct voter ID is “not material in determining whether voters are qualified under Texas law to vote or cast a mail ballot.”
        
• The voter ID requirement will remain in effect for the upcoming May elections. Federal court precedent prescribes that voting rules should not be changed close to an election.

Federal Judge Orders Texas A&M to Host Drag Show

• A federal judge has temporarily blocked the Texas A&M University System regents’ ban on drag shows across all of its campuses. Valerie Muñoz reports that the ruling allows an annual drag event, “Draggieland,” to proceed this week.
       
• In her ruling, Judge Lee H. Rosenthal, a George HW Bush appointee, said that the Queer Empowerment Council was likely to succeed in its claim that the ban violated the First Amendment.
      
• The Texas A&M regents cited compliance with executive orders by President Donald J. Trump and Gov. Greg Abbott prohibiting taxpayer funds from promoting “gender ideology” among their reasons for the ban. 
      
• “Texas universities have every right to dictate what events are held on their campuses,” wrote Gov. Abbott on 𝕏. “Drag shows promote radical gender ideology. They are not welcome at Texas universities.”

Cornyn & Cruz Warn That Texas' Lobbying Law Threatens Political Speech

• Texas’ John Cornyn and Ted Cruz have filed an amicus brief urging the U.S. Supreme Court to take up a case against the Texas Ethics Commission, warning that Texas’ lobbying laws pose a serious threat to core political speech protected by the First Amendment. Brandon Waltens has the details.
     
• In their brief, Cornyn and Cruz argue that the TEC’s enforcement of the law burdens core political speech and that the time has come for the Supreme Court to provide clarity on how lobbying regulations should be reviewed when they implicate First Amendment rights.
      
• “Political speech is the primary object of First Amendment protection and the lifeblood of a self-governing people,” they write, quoting prior Supreme Court rulings.
     
• The senators urge the Court to resolve ongoing confusion among lower courts about what level of constitutional scrutiny should apply to laws like Texas’ lobbying statute. They argue that strict scrutiny—the highest level of judicial review—is appropriate when the law affects political advocacy by ordinary citizens.

Texas Senators Tackle Squatter Problem

• Two measures aimed at addressing the growing squatter crisis across the state were taken up for consideration in a Senate committee hearing yesterday, reports Sydnie Henry. Taken together, the legislation—authored by Paul Bettencourt (R-Houston) and Bryan Hughes (R-Mineola)—streamline eviction processes and provide property owners with more tools to reclaim illegally occupied properties.
      
• Bettencourt emphasized that his legislation aims to fix the process to ensure courts can swiftly return possession to rightful owners. He cited the example of a justice of the peace who kept a squatter in a home during Christmas despite clear evidence of unauthorized occupation.
      
• Hughes, meanwhile, wants to empower homeowners by enabling faster property reclamation through law enforcement action and reducing reliance on lengthy court proceedings. His legislation would allow property owners to request that the county sheriff or constable remove unauthorized occupants.

Harris County LGBTQIA+ Commission Sets Date for ‘Banned Book’ Fair

• Harris County’s LGBTQIA+ Commission will hold a “banned book fair” in June. As Joseph Trimmer reports, it will focus on books that have been removed from government school libraries, typically because they contain inappropriate content not suitable for the library’s targeted age group.
      
• Far-left activists have pushed the narrative that concerned citizens are seeking to “ban books” when parents have protested the presence of sexually explicit materials in children’s libraries. These “banned books” are actually available in nearly every bookstore and online, and children may even take them to school.
       
• The taxpayer-subsidized event will be open to children.
       
• No one has ever been able to give an innocent explanation as to WHY adults feel the urge to share sexually explicit content with children. There is a reason for that...

Quote-Unquote

"I once was lost but now I'm found, was blind but now I see."

– John Newton
Slave trader turned Christian abolitionist​

Y'All Answered

Recently, the Texas Senate voted to prohibit all THC-infused product sales, close existing smoke shops, and prevent new ones from opening. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick even threatened to keep the legislature in session until the legislation moved through the House.

Patrick and the senators cited health concerns, noting the THC-infused products—sold through "loopholes" in state and federal law—are more dangerous than marijuana on the streets. Opponents of the legislation have claimed it will benefit black marketeers by making these currently legal products inaccessible.

We asked readers what they thought of the Senate's efforts. Just over 69 percent of readers believe THC-infused products should be banned in Texas, while 30.9 percent do not.

Here is a sampling of the responses from folks who participated in the survey...

• “House Republicans should side with our kids, parents, teachers, and doctors. Not the addiction-for-profit THC vendors peddling a brain-damaging substance and campaign contributions.” – Matt Poling, MD 
      

• “We don't need any more drugs in our state. Too much has already come here and is killing our families.” – Donna Langston
      

• “Returning to the Reefer Madness scare tactics of decades past is inappropriate, not credible, and will be ridiculed and rejected by the majority of Texans.” – Ronny Keister
     

• “Please take into consideration medical THC, which is not adequately available in Texas.” – Denise Benedict
      

• “As an intoxicant, alcohol alone is very damaging to individuals, families, and society. We don't need another legal intoxicant.” – Tim Rhodes
      

• “Rule is eight hours from bottle to throttle after drinking alcohol. No one knows how long it will take to get THC out of your system after consuming these products. How many people impaired with THC in their system do we meet on the highway daily? Safety matters.” – Danny Thompson 
      

• “The big problem is the smoke shops are located by schools, AND THEY DO NOT CHECK ID. So, kids are getting hooked on high nicotine vape pens and hemp products which steal motivation!” – Jodi Malanga
      

• “As a nation, we have failed to move forward in treating chronic pain. I'm a disabled veteran, live in chronic pain, and have no medical relief. The Army did the studies on THC. They could make medical pills with a low THC content that works. They did all the testing. Pain relief without getting high. The fed gov NEVER wanted that because it would affect the big pharma lobbyists’ payments to them. As for recreational weed? Kill it off.” – Michael Sisley
      

• “My son has epilepsy, and the THC helps with his seizures.” – Brenda Davis
      

• “Marijuana or THC is never the issue; enforcement of basic social norms is. Let people do what they want while not subjecting others to poor behavior.” – Larry Morris
      

• “Cannabis prohibition has failed, just as alcohol prohibition did. The government is banning a product that the people choose to use recreationally and medicinally.” – Nina Kruzan
      

• “Legal THC should be limited to rare, prescription-only circumstances. Recreational use should be outlawed in most cases and classified as a Schedule 1 drug. Society needs to reward productive work and not promote couch potatos.” – Thomas Camardo
      

• “The Lt. Governor and senators are obviously overreacting. Details can be updated and/or clarified. Crashing small businesses is a very bad look.” – Melinda Harris 
      

• “Name one red state that stayed red after legalizing cannabis (I’m looking at YOU, Colorado)!” – Brian Heitman
     

• “An outright ban on THC is a knee-jerk reaction from establishment dinosaurs who fail to recognize how many of these products are helping people out of depression and alcoholism. The state has no problem with alcohol! I am in favor of removing packing marketed to look like candy. I'm for regulations and taxing it. I am NOT in support of an outright ban! What is this? 1910?” – Charles Flinn
      

• “THC abuse continues to ruin lives, not unlike alcohol abuse. At least alcohol has regulation on its potency. I know of no such regulations on THC.” – Michelle Petersen
      

• “Our lazy lawmakers should make THC illegal by closing the loopholes the lawmakers put into the laws in the first place.” – Steve Sullivan
      

• “Most states have legalized medical marijuana. Texas needs a proper method to distribute this product to those who benefit from this natural remedy.” – Sylvia McLeod
      

• “Knowledge about cannabis and all related products is skimpy at best. Until the actual research catches up, we should not be aiding the industry with our agreement to allow mostly unrestricted distribution of any of it.” – Darell Reichel

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