Good morning!

This morning I reflect on a simple question most of us bristle at being asked.  

But first, here is today's Texas Minute.

– Michael Quinn Sullivan 

Friday, April 23, 2021
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• With little in the way of real debate, the Texas House moved quickly through their proposed $247 billion budget plan for the coming two-year biennium. Jeramy Kitchen notes that what the House approved last night is far from a done deal. The House budget comes in $3 billion lower the Senate plan, with a variety of differences.
   
• House Speaker Dade Phelan and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick will now appoint members to conference committee that will work behind closed doors to iron out the differences between the two chambers’ plans. 

OTHER HOUSE BUDGET DEBATE HIGHLIGHTS...

• Allows Taxpayer-Funded Lobbying. House members voted 84-54 to allow Regional Education Service Centers and local school districts to use tax dollars for the purpose of hiring lobbyists.
      
• This included 22 Republican lawmakers voting for taxpayer-funded lobbying: State Reps. Trent Ashby (Lufkin), Ernest Bailes (Shepherd), Travis Clardy (Nacogdoches), Drew Darby (San Angelo), Jay Dean (Longview), Charlie Geren (Ft. Worth), Sam Harless (Spring), Dan Huberty(Humble), Kyle Kacal (College Station), Ken King(Canadian), John Kuempel (Seguin), Stan Lambert(Abilene), Lyle Larson (San Antonio), J.M. Lozano(Kingsville), Geanie Morrison (Victoria), Chris Paddie(Marshall), Four Price (Amarillo), John Raney (Bryan), Glenn Rogers (Cisco), Hugh Shine (Temple), John Smithee (Amarillo), and Gary VanDeaver (New Boston).
      
• Reminder: The Texas Senate voted for a ban on taxpayer funded lobbying – but did not include school districts.
      
• Corporate Welfare Gutted. During the House debate on the state’s biennial budget, lawmakers agreed to amendments defunding two major corporate welfare programs – the film subsidy and the Texas Enterprise Fund, both of which are administered by the governor’s office. The amendment by freshman lawmaker Bryan Slaton (R-Royse City) emptied dollars from the Texas Enterprise Fund and put them toward the state’s existing property tax relief fund. This represents the only attempt to do new property tax relief this session.
   
• As a reminder, the Texas House similarly voted to defund the Enterprise Fund in 2017 but budget conferees later put the funding back by the end of the session.
       
• In other words, don’t celebrate the end of corporate welfare just yet; there is still a lot of time left for lawmakers to play with your money.
      
• School Choice Banned. Advocates for school choice were dealt a major blow during the budget, with House members voting 115-29 to prohibit any dollars being used to support “a school voucher, education savings account, or tax credit scholarship program.”

• The Texas House has passed only one Republican-priority election integrity measure, while the Senate has passed five. Erin Anderson reports none of the Senate’s measures have been scheduled for hearings in the House.

• With pressure building to pass a constitutional carry bill, new legislation has been filed in the Senate. Jeramy Kitchen reports it is unclear why a bill was suddenly and conspicuously filed after the stated legislative deadline. The Senate could have either acted on the constitutional carry bill passed by the House or taken up the bill already filed in its chamber.
       
• Constitutional carry is a legislative priority of the Republican Party of Texas. With fewer than 40 days left in the 87th Legislative Session, the window is starting to close on the prospects for bills to get through both legislative chambers.

• Activist-leader JoAnn Fleming sent an email to her statewide conservative grassroots network last night describing the legislative session thus far as “embarrassing & disgraceful.” 
   
• As she points out, “not one” of the Texas GOP grassroots’ legislative priorities have been sent by lawmakers to the governor’s desk for his signature.

• Central Texas’ Round Rock Independent School District board voted 5-2 to continue forcing masks on all kids at school. As Jacob Asmussen reports, the board decision came despite guidelines from the Texas Education Agency recommending that masks be optional for children under the age of 10 and that mandates not apply to students who are outside or exercising indoors.
     
• More than 125 school districts across the state have removed mask requirements, leaving the decision up to the individual students’ parents.

• In a new commentary, Rachel Bovard explains how Big Tech is working to shield progressive activists and politicians from criticism and accountability by blocking circulation of certain content.

Friday Reflection: Serving Up Our Masters

No question causes more discomfort than this: “Who do you serve?” Not long ago, I asked that question to a politician who bristled with indignation and replied, “I serve no one!” His answer told me a lot.

If we cannot acknowledge who we serve, we cannot possibly build them up or serve them well. And I’m not talking in some deep, theological sense of serving God. I mean this literally: Who do you serve?

Two of my favorite books of the Bible are Joshua and Nehemiah. Both present great case studies in practical leadership and self-governance. Undergirding both stories is the question of “who do you serve?” In Joshua, that question is explicit; in Nehemiah, it is implicit. Yet the answer is equally consistent: We must all live lives of service to each other.

I am reminded of that Roman Centurion in the Gospel of Matthew, a man of great power, who correctly told Jesus that everyone is under authority—even that politician I mentioned.

The politician wanted me to know he served no one, which meant he served himself. The correct answer would have been the people of Texas, but I would have had a little more respect for him if he’d honestly named off a crony lobbyist or two. Instead, all I saw was a man deluded by his own appreciation for his temporary power. 

In a republic established under the principles of self-governance – where the law, not a man, is king – we are each in the curious position of being each other’s masters and servants. It is a difficult duality for our modern hierarchal minds to process. I hear well-meaning people praying for our country’s leaders ... and they proceed to name off the president, the mayor, the governor, and so on. 

“No, no, no!” I find myself wanting to scream. The people are the leaders in our republic.

No title in our nation should be more exalted than that of “citizen.” Every “honorable” person with their fancy title is merely one of the servants. The people are in charge; the people are the masters. The politicians are not the leaders of, but rather the servants to, the people.

When we want to pray for our nation’s leaders, we should first and foremost be praying for each other. When we see insurmountable problems facing the republic, we shouldn’t wait for the politicians to figure out a solution ... we should get to work and encourage others to join us.

We must stop idolizing elected officials, and instead take an active role in leading our communities. We must remind those in office that they work for us, and we must remind ourselves of that as well.

We all serve someone. Yes, we must serve God – but we serve Him in large part by serving each other. As a self-governing people, serving each other is a critical component in our civic life. It is up to each of us to build each other up as the real leaders we are each meant to be as citizens.