Good morning,

Taking a cue from the Book of Nehemiah, I have been thinking about what it means for us to be a self-governing people in the midst of this national turmoil.

First, here is today's Texas Minute.

– Michael Quinn Sullivan 

Friday, January 15, 2021
Update your email preferences.

• Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has issued civil investigative demands to Google, Facebook, Twitter, Amazon Web Services, and Apple wanting answers about their censorship policies and their recent termination and blocking of the social media application Parler. Jacob Asmussen as the details.
   
• “The public deserves the truth about how these companies moderate and possibly eliminate speech they disagree with.” – Attorney General Ken Paxton

• Yesterday’s debate on the Rules of the Texas House went as expected, which is to say... conservatives’ efforts to promote reform were railroaded by Speaker Dade Phelan’s lieutenants.
       
• The prevalence of major committees being chaired by Democrats is one of the chief reasons the priorities of the Republican Party and conservative grassroots have been left unaccomplished for the two decades the GOP has controlled the Legislature.
     
• Freshman State Rep. Bryan Slaton (R-Royse City) led an effort to save conservative priorities from being killed by Democrat committee chairs. House Republicans voted it down.
     
• Brandon Waltens has details from the Capitol.

• Texas Scorecard’s election integrity expert Erin Anderson noted of social media: “Right out of the gate, Texas House Democrats are focused like a laser on Redistricting, using today’s debate on rules amendments to lay groundwork for federal court challenges to Republican Redistricting maps.”

• Public transparency was front and center yesterday in the Rules debate. For example, the new Rules allow the chairman of a committee to prohibit citizens from using their cellphones to record the proceedings or activities of lawmakers. An amendment was put forward to change that, letting citizens exercise their First Amendment right to operate as “the press.” That move was struck down.
     

• So you can whip out your cellphone to record a police officer making an arrest, but not a legislator making a law.
     

• What are House members not wanting citizens to capture and disseminate? Napping...? Slurred words...?

• Speaking of Brandon Waltens, join him live on The Headline at 11 a.m. today for a discussion with freshmen State Reps. Jeff Cason (R-Bedford) and Bryan Slaton (R-Royse City) about the opening days of the 87th Session of the Texas Legislature.
   
• As a reminder: if you cannot watch live, the archived video and podcast will be available after the program ends.

• Sources have told Texas Scorecard’s Robert Montoya that the Fort Worth establishment has picked Mattie Parker – outgoing Mayor Betsy Price’s former chief of staff – as their choice to next hold the office.
   
• Parker’s husband, David, is a lobbyist who once counted the City of Fort Worth among his clients.

• Although the races for the Amarillo City Council are barely underway, Thomas Warren reports local voters can expect to see a packed ballot when they head to the polls in May.
   
• Filing is underway around Texas for local government elections to be held in May. Individuals interested in running have until Friday, February 12, to secure a place on the ballot.

Friday Reflection

The first three words of our Constitution make it clear who is supposed to be in charge: “We the people.” Our Republic only works when the citizens take an active and engaged role in civic life. As the ancient Israelites learned, the blessings of self-government only flow when the people are actively vigilant. 

After begging for a king, the people of Israel saw their once peaceful and prosperous (because it was self-governing) nation collapse. When they recognized God as King and lived under His law, they prospered, but – just as they had been warned – the rule of man under a king didn’t work out so well. 

After a period of exile, God called them back to Israel and Nehemiah was tasked with rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem.

There were any number of enemies who wanted to thwart the return of the Jews, and so in the Book of Nehemiah (4:9) we’re told that the people “prayed to our God and set a guard as a protection against them day and night.” 

Everyone prayed, everyone worked, everyone guarded the work. As a self-governing people, everyone was involved. And, as a result, the wall was rebuilt and the nation was on the path to restoration.

Too many of us have forgotten that simple lesson. If this nation conceived in liberty will long endure, it will only be because we – the people – are wholly committed to being self-governing leaders actively engaged in the hard, exhausting work of practical governance. 

If we are to emerge from this current crisis, it will be because we are praying for each other and our fellow countrymen. And also because each of us has done more than pray; we will have been faithfully and practically at work. 

We as citizens must be actively engaged in the work of guarding liberty, and building the culture of self-governance.

We must with joy accept the awesome responsibility of self-governance, so that we and our children can enjoy the fruits of Liberty. So let’s pray, stand at guard, and get to work!