Good morning, 

A Democrat returned from his quorum-busting trip to D.C. and was in the Texas Capitol, then the Republican leadership just let him go… So the Democrat went back to D.C.

With that in mind, the One Click Survey asks: Do you think House Speaker Dade Phelan (R) is working for or against grassroots Republicans?

First, here is today's Texas Minute.

– Michael Quinn Sullivan 

Tuesday, July 27, 2021
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Phelan Let The Democrat Go… 

• The special session of the Texas Legislature has been paralyzed by House Democrats having “busted” the constitutional quorum requirement for conducting business by leaving the state. Late last week, news broke that a Democrat had left his caucus’ Washington, D.C. hotel and returned to the Texas Capitol. But just a few short days later word came that the Democrat, State Rep. Philip Cortez (D-San Antonio) had gone back to D.C.
     
• Did Cortez slip out the window of a Capitol bathroom, or get airlifted by a stealthy helicopter? Nothing so dramatic; as Jeramy Kitchen reports Republican House Speaker Dade Phelan simply gave the Democrat permission to leave.
      
• That, of course, is despite the “call of the House” requiring all members to be present on the chamber’s floor at all times.
     
• Yet folks watching the slow-motion train wreck of the Phelan speakership know that hasn’t been the case. In fact, Speaker Phelan has made a big show of issuing color-coded permission slips letting all the House members – Democrats included – simply come and go. (For example, yesterday’s was announced as Texas topaz blue.)

• By the way, Mr. Cortez was appointed by Phelan to serve as chairman of the House Urban Affairs Committee – a position Cortez still holds.

…And Then Signed An Arrest Warrant

• If all that isn’t frustrating enough, imagine the surprise Cortez got when Phelan – under increasing pressure from voters and conservative lawmakers – issued an arrest warrant for the San Antonio Democrat.
       
• Of course, Phelan waited to issue the warrant until after Cortez was (safely) back in D.C. – and the warrant was specifically written to have no effect outside Texas.
       
• Interestingly, no other arrest warrants have been issued for the obstructionist Democrats; only for Cortez. Last week, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott had declared on live TV that Democrats returning to Texas “will be arrested” – but none have been.
         
• And, yes, Cortez is still a committee chair.

Abbott Border Wall… Is A Fence

• A month after Gov. Greg Abbott said he was ordering the construction of a border wall with Mexico, retired U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agent Victor Avila and citizen Al Zito tell Texas Scorecard’s Robert Montoya that the wall is just a chain-link fence.
        

• “The fence won’t deter any illegals from entering,” said Avila. “We could not believe that [Gov.] Abbott is thinking that a chain-link fence is going to replace a wall-type fence that was originally planned and was being built by [former President Donald] Trump.”

       
• “These people cut through fences like this like it’s butter,” added Zito. “While any fence is going to be a deterrent, a chain-link fence is basically useless and a waste of taxpayer money.”

Wright versus Ellzey

• When a special election to fill the unexpired congressional term of the late Ron Wright was called earlier this year, two dozen candidates had less than four weeks to make their case to voters. The runoff election – pitting the top two vote-getters – has dragged on for months.
     
• The next federal lawmaker from Congressional District 6 will be one of two Republicans: State Rep. Jake Ellzey (R-Waxahachie) or Susan Wright, Ron’s widow.
   
• Conservatives have lined up behind Wright, while Ellzey has drawn his support from the crony establishment. Polling has shown Wright with a comfortable lead, but the only polls that matter close at 7 p.m. tonight throughout the district.

Homicides Reach Record High In Austin

• Texas’ capital city is fast approaching a record number of homicides after the Democrat-held city council defunded its police force. Jacob Asmussen has the story. 
        
• In 2020, the City of Austin experienced 48 homicides – a record number up from 36 the year prior. But the citizen activist group Save Austin Now announced there have been 48 homicides already, with five months left in the year – a trend they say could put the city on track to “suffer 86 homicides this year.”
       
• The record killing spree came after the city council controversially legalized unrestrained homeless camping throughout the city, and then defunded the Austin Police Department by nearly one-third of their budget.

ONE CLICK SURVEY

It turns out House Speaker Dade Phelan is letting Democrats come and go from the Capitol without consequence. Do you think House Speaker Dade Phelan is working against grassroots Republicans?
 

     
Once you’ve clicked an answer, reply to this email with any thoughts you’d like to share!