Good morning!

I’m ending the week with a reflection on the idea that facts must always be presented in context.

Here is today's Texas Minute.

– Michael Quinn Sullivan 

Friday, April 16, 2021
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• Yesterday the Texas Senate passed Senate Bill 10, banning the controversial practice of taxpayer-funded lobbying. Iris Poole reports the legislation would ban counties and cities from spending taxpayer dollars “to directly or indirectly influence or attempt to influence the outcome of any legislation pending before the Legislature.”
      
• City and county governments that violate SB 10 can be held financially liable for litigation expenses, and citizens will be allowed to seek an injunction prohibiting further lobbying activity. Though SB 10 doesn’t prohibit city or county officials from personally lobbying for or against pending legislation and does not require them to register as a lobbyist under state law, they would be unable to be compensated with taxpayer dollars.
        
• Amarillo’s Kel Seliger was the only Republican to oppose the ban. No Democrat supported the ban.
   
• “This principled conservative reform is long overdue and I look forward to it becoming law. I congratulate Sen. Bettencourt and the Texas Senate on the passage of SB 10 and for taking a principled stand on behalf of Texas taxpayers.” – Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick
   
• A ban must now be passed by the Texas House and signed by Gov. Greg Abbott.

• Meanwhile, the Texas House voted 84 to 56 to advance “constitutional carry” legislation by Matt Schaefer (R-Tyler). The measure – House Bill 1927 – ensures law abiding adults can carry firearms without a government permit. Jeramy Kitchen has the details.
     
• This has been a top priority for conservative activists and the Republican Party of Texas for several years. Dallas’ Morgan Meyer was the only Republican to vote against the measure; seven Democrats voted for it.
      
• Despite the vote generally breaking down along partisan lines, one of the strongest proponents was Terry Canales (D-Edinburg). He described the measure as “a criminal justice reform bill” because it did away with the legal inconsistencies around gun ownership. He noted that Texas has a “hodge-podge” of laws that let Texans keep a gun everywhere around them except on their person.
      
• Constitutional carry faces an uncertain future in the Texas Senate. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has refused to allow debate on the issue in the past. This week I heard from law enforcement and Capitol sources that Patrick was asking police officials to oppose Schafer’s legislation.

• Join in a live conversation about yesterday’s House debate on “constitutional carry,” as well as other items in the news, on The Headline at 11 a.m. The video archive and podcast will be available shortly after the program ends.

• Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is warning that the Biden administration’s “failure to curb illegal immigration” has lead to more than 170,000 people attempting to illegally cross the southern border – just in the month of March. Jacob Asmussen has the details.
   
• “Over the past year, U.S. Border Patrol reported a 400% increase in encounters with illegal aliens at the southwest border. In the past month alone, encounters have increased by 72%.” – Ken Paxton

• The Texas Senate passed SB 29 yesterday, barring boys from competing in girls sports. Because it is 2021 and such things apparently have to be stated.

• Earlier this week 20 Republicans in the Texas House joined with Democrats to ensure “puberty blockers” would be part of a prescription drug savings program. Jeramy Kitchen has the full story, including a list of those 20 Republicans.

• Frisco parents and school officials sparred this week over whether public board meetings are for citizens or elected officials. Tera Collum reports the exchange highlighted a perceived lack of transparency and leadership within the district’s school board.

• In case you missed it earlier in the week... Check out Luke Macias’ conversation with U.S. Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas). They touch on the broken system of governance in Washington, D.C., and spend time talking about the crisis unfolding at Texas’ southern border.

• The Texas Scorecard Journalism Fellowship is expanding! This is a comprehensive program designed for Texans under the age of 25 with an interest in public policy, effective civic engagement, political accountability, and Texas history. The fellowship program is available for the Summer 2021, Fall 2021, and Spring 2022 terms.
      
• The program offers three tracts. While individuals will be exposed to all three, applicants will apply for a particular area of emphasis: writing, research, and administration.
      
• Get all the details, and download an application.

Friday Reflection: Truth In Context

Not a day goes by in which I don’t get bulk emails and text messages from someone passing on information they know isn’t completely accurate but send it anyway hoping it will shock people into action. That’s not fair to anyone. As co-laborers in the fight for liberty, we owe it to each other to honestly share real facts in proper context. 

Rather than wake people up, embellished stories too often have the effect of pushing people into a deeper sleep.

In my experience, most people working around politics rarely tell outright lies. Instead, we find a different kind of deceit: taking some facts out of context, while ignoring others. Sometimes it is done to make a particular politician look bad, other times to make one look good. 

The daily assault of half-truths and missing context is in many ways more common, harder to catch, and possibly even more damaging than complete fabrications to the effectiveness of unsuspecting recipients. 

Skipping over an inconvenient fact or two might help shape a particular narrative, but it doesn’t serve our friends and allies well.

I’m reminded of the story of Abraham and Sarah found in Genesis 20. This is when Abraham, trying to protect his own backside, introduced Sarah as his sister to the king of Gerar. Rather than trust God to protect the two of them, Abraham decided to bend the truth. While she was a relative on his father’s side, he chose to hide that they were, in fact, married. 

The king had Sarah brought to him and was planning on taking her for his wife. Fortunately, the king’s plan was derailed by God, who appeared to him in a dream and revealed the deception.

I’ve heard every excuse imaginable over the years for this behavior. 

Whether it is the publicity-seeking politician who jumps from parade to parade, losing track of which policy proposals he previously championed, or a volunteer who decides not to mention key facts about their political hero’s record when asked. Conveniently ignoring inconvenient facts fails to serve our fellow citizens. 

So often it comes down to power — getting it or keeping it. In the rush to hold or be close to someone with power, or deny power to someone else, facts and context get trampled.

We must decide who we serve. We must decide if we value power over principles. Too many people are too insecure in their principles, fearing that a discussion of facts will topple the house of cards upon which their power is built.

As a self-governing people, we must acquire a principled taste for reality – and a willingness to share it with our friends and allies. 

By confining ourselves to working with all the facts, convenient or not, we increase our effectiveness in the fight for the preservation of our republic.