Good afternoon, John –

I’m told the rumor around the Capitol this summer has been that Empower Texans is going away. Of course, that rumor – often spoken as a hopeful prayer by establishment politicians – has existed almost since we began in 2007! 

Thanks to thousands of donors and supporters around the Lone Star State, we have together advanced the cause of self-governance, promoted liberty, and helped citizens hold politicians accountable.

We’ve operated from the position that we must not seek a seat at the backroom tables of power where politicians and lobbyists negotiate away Texans’ liberties. Instead, we are about the work of overturning that table!

As a media operation, we have constantly innovated new ways to communicate with citizens what lawmakers are doing – which is often in contradiction to the promises those politicians made on the campaign trail. Someone is always keeping score; we think it ought to be the citizens.

As a result, politicians can no longer lie with impunity about their records. The politicians’ enablers in the corrupt Austin lobby are finding it harder to hide in the shadows; the establishment media has been exposed as their mouthpieces.

At the urging of our Board of Directors back in January, I stepped away from the daily activities of our work this summer to focus on “what’s next” – how to grow the successful brands we have built and activities we have engaged in, while shining an even brighter light on every level of government in the Lone Star State.

So I have some bad news: All the things establishment politicians and their lobbyist puppet-masters hate about “Empower Texans”... WILL BE GROWING. 

In the coming weeks, I will be detailing the different ways all of these activities will be  expanding.

When we launched Texas Scorecard on January 1, 2015, we had no idea it would prove so popular with citizens in the grassroots movement. We have been covering state and local government with an emphasis on “what the citizens can do about it.”

Of course, this has been met with hatred and scorn from office-holding conservatives of convenience. Why? They really don’t want an informed and empowered citizenry; it terrifies them.  They would rather preen on national cable shows than actually govern like the conservatives they claim to be.

So I am excited to announce that Texas Scorecard is being launched into its own separate non-profit organization, known corporately as ScorecardMedia. Everything you already like in the current Texas Scorecard content offerings will be there... and then some... all at TexasScorecard.com. (Yes, we will also continue offering the print edition to our donors!)

In the coming months Texas Scorecard will be expanding our local coverage partnerships, while sharpening the focus on helping citizens cut through the legislative session clutter so they can meaningfully impact public policy. 

We’re also going to be expanding our podcast and video projects. For example, we’ll be announcing a couple new shows in early September which we think you will really enjoy.

Texas Scorecard’s brand promise, guiding all we do, will be…

• Never personal.
• Always trustworthy, with the facts in context.
• Relentlessly pro-citizen, unabashedly pro-liberty.
• Pursuing our heritage of self-governance.
• Inspiring, without venting.

I will be serving on the Board of Directors for ScorecardMedia, and publisher of Texas Scorecard; my fellow Directors include Tim Dunn, Bo French, and Keith Uhles. The president is Ross Kecseg, and Brandon Waltens will be the managing editor. (Over the next few weeks, I’ll be introducing Texas Minute readers to the rest of the Scorecard team.)

Thank you for letting us partner with you these last 14 years. We are honored to be by your side in the fight going forward for a better, stronger Texas!

Respectfully,
Michael Quinn Sullivan

P.S.  Please consider making a special “summer donation” to the work of Texas Scorecard!