Good morning!

For today’s One Click Survey, we’re asking why those who are wearing masks continue to do so.

But first, here is the Texas Minute.

– Michael Quinn Sullivan 

Thursday, March 18, 2021
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Several of you experienced problems with the new Texas Directory. Looks like all those bugs have been squashed, so I hope you’ll give it another try with my apologies!

• Facing imminent threat of a federal takeover of elections by Democrats in D.C., Republican state lawmakers have filed bills to “decouple” Texas’ elections from federal contests. Erin Anderson reports on measures authored by Republicans Jacey Jetton (Sugar Land) and Mike Schofield (Katy).
      
• The federal measure known as H.R. 1 is a top Democrat priority that seeks to transform how American elections are run by federally mandating a left-wing litany of lax voting processes. The bill would seize power from state legislatures and lock in DC-mandated voting rules similar to those that created chaos in 2020. Having already passed the Democrat-run U.S. House, the measure is now in the hands of the U.S. Senate, which has a 50-50 party split.
       
• “Given how poorly the federal government manages many other agencies, I have no confidence in their ability to oversee elections across the country.” – Jacey Jetton

• As the Biden Administration loosens border security, Texas is cracking down on human trafficking related to illegal border crossings. Jeramy Kitchen has the story.
   
• Gov. Greg Abbott announced yesterday an expansion of Operation Lone Star, a project overseen by the Texas Department of Public Safety dealing with illegal border activity.
     
• “President Biden’s reckless open border policies have created a humanitarian crisis that is enriching the cartels, smugglers, and human traffickers who often prey on and abuse unaccompanied minors.” – Gov. Abbott

• Policy analyst Bill Peacock explains that the Public Utility Commission had no authority – or even a good reason – to hike Texas electricity prices during the February storm. This is merely par for the course at the PUC, he adds.
     
• “For much of the last decade, seemingly no regulation, no subsidy was beyond the PUC’s consideration for what once had been the most competitive and successful electricity market in the world.” – Bill Peacock

• Speaking of Bill Peacock... be sure to check out the latest edition of his podcast The Liberty Cafe. He discusses how our faith should influence our thinking about public policy.

• After a marathon meeting filled with hours of public testimony earlier this week, Jacob Asmussen reports the Texas Senate Committee on State Affairs approved seven pro-life bills that could eventually enact numerous protections for Texas children.
   
• “We have to admit Texas is behind. This bill will protect the lives of our most precious Texans starting at the moment that little heart is beating,” said Sen. Bryan Hughes (R-Mineola), an author of Senate Bill 8, in describing the marquee measure.
     
• Nearly 53,000 Texans’ lives were ended by abortion in 2017, according to the latest state data. The legislative package will now head to the full Senate chamber for debate; if passed, the measures will be forwarded to the Texas House for consideration.

• A company that has proposed a “bullet train” to connect passengers from Dallas to Houston has had to overcome a number of political obstacles lately, reports Michael Swirsky. Those have ranged from eminent domain authority to fiscal feasibility, but now some are questioning the outsized strain “Texas Central” could place on the state’s power grid.
   
• Data presented by The Texan indicates the proposed train would consume enough electricity each day equivalent to powering nearly every home in El Paso. 
   
• Despite rural opposition and other concerns, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has nonetheless given the venture his “full support.”

• In addition to a mask mandate on city property, Farmer’s Branch is mandating citizens show proof of receiving a coronavirus vaccination in order to use the city’s “active senior center” that offers exercise and computer classes, arts and crafts, and other services. Robert Montoya reports that one council member has explained there are “no exceptions” for the vaccine mandate, not even on religious or medical grounds.
     
• The city’s requirement would seem to run afoul of Gov. Greg Abbott’s recent executive order regarding the kinds of restrictions local governments can impose.

ONE CLICK SURVEY

If you are still wearing a mask... are you doing so because you believe: