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Connecting today’s news with the research & opinion you need.

Our Better Angels

What to Know: President Trump has ordered the establishment of a National Garden of American Heroes for monuments to the best of us.

The TPPF Take: A National Garden of American Heroes is an appropriate antidote to destructive iconoclasm we see all around us.

“Imagine—if you can—if our national conversation no longer centered around who in history needs to be canceled next, but instead who in our history should be celebrated in stone and included in our solemn new National Garden?” asks TPPF’s Kevin Roberts. “Elizabeth Ann Seton, educator and the first American Catholic saint? Mary Jackson, who was portrayed in the film Hidden Figures? Who would you suggest?”

Heat Wave

What to Know: A heat wave could stress much of the nation in the next few days, straining our energy reserves.

The TPPF Take: Bad decisions—and so-called “green” energy—have put energy reserve margins in Texas at risk.

“News headlines claim wind and solar projects will help Texas meet its growing power needs,” says TPPF’s Jason Isaac. “However, recent experience says Texans should be skeptical about giving credit to renewables, especially given last summer’s ‘emergency situations’ when officials asked most Texans, and forced others, to conserve electricity to avoid blackouts. We must have reliable energy for when wind and solar fail us.”

Win in Court

What to Know: TPPF has secured a victory in court for a Georgetown homeowner who wished to see documents behind the city’s claims about its energy contracts.

The TPPF Take: This is a win for open records and government accountability.

“TPPF’s client, Terrill Putnam, has been vindicated by the court’s ruling that the ‘payback analysis’ document is public and should not have been withheld by the City of Georgetown,” says TPPF’s Robert Henneke. “The law presumes the right of the public to government records, and all Mr. Putnam wanted to know was the return on investment from one of the City’s solar panel projects. The court’s order is not only a win for Mr. Putnam, but a win for transparency in government that benefits all Texans.”