Good morning,

There is a lot to be upset about in our fallen world, but I close out the week reflecting on the importance of being a happy warrior.

But first, in today’s Texas Minute you’ll find out that House Speaker Dade Phelan is publicly aligning with the Democrats and against Gov. Abbott, Lt. Gov. Patrick, and the Republican Party.

– Michael Quinn Sullivan 

Friday, October 1, 2021
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Troops Helping Illegal Aliens?

• Photos and an eyewitness account allege the Texas National Guard is being used to help illegal aliens in the southern border invasion. Brandon Waltens has the details.
   
• “Hundreds of illegal immigrants invade America every night; that is not shocking. That the Texas National Guard soldiers have obviously been ordered to assist the invasion is.” – former Collin County Judge Keith Self

‘Eliminate Property Taxes By 2033’

• At a hearing on property tax relief in the Texas House yesterday, lawmakers were told it would be possible to eliminate property taxes by 2033. Erin Anderson has the details.
     
• “Texans will never experience the peace of mind that comes with owning their home until property taxes are eliminated,” said Vance Ginn, chief economist at the Texas Public Policy Foundation. “Until then, Texans are simply renting their home from the government, always with the fear that taxes could become so exorbitant they can no longer afford to stay.”
     
• Eliminating property taxes does not require an income tax. Of the eight other states without income taxes, seven have lower property tax burdens than Texas.
     
• Instead, three elements need to be in place: limit government growth, force a reduction in school property taxes to zero by permanently using state surplus dollars, and redesigning Texas’ tax code so that local governments are funded primarily by sales taxes.
     
• The first element was put in place in the spring after years of grassroots’ pressure. The last two are under consideration this special legislative session.

Abbott Wants To Fix Election Bill Screw-Up…

• In a stunning turnabout, Gov. Greg Abbott has admitted the Legislature erred in allowing House Republicans to weaken penalties for election fraud.
      
• The issue was first raised by grassroots activists and reported by Texas Scorecard; politicians tried to minimize the issue but on Thursday Gov. Abbott expanded the special session agenda to shore up the penalties to what they had been previously. 
      
• “Who in their right mind would agree to reducing the criminal penalties for voter fraud,” said JoAnn Fleming, whose conservative advocacy group Grassroots America We The People was the first to call out the last-minute bait-and-switch in the bill.
   
• FWIW: Republican House members have still offered no explanation for why they agreed to downgrade the penalties for voter fraud in the first place.

…Speaker Phelan Says ‘No’

• While Dan Patrick was quick to commend Gov. Abbott’s addition of the fix, House Speaker Dade Phelan responded Thursday night via Twitter that he did not intend to “re-litigate” the legislation.
    
• That drew condemnation from the chairman of the Republican Party of Texas’ chairman, Matt Rinaldi: “The Republican Party urges the Governor to stand with Lt. Gov. Patrick and call special sessions until the House passes this important fix to the election integrity bill.”
   
• This will put Republican House members in a bind: Will they back Phelan and allow a weakened bill to stand? Are they all comfortable being aligned with Phelan and the Democrats against the GOP grassroots on such a major issue?

Social Media Censorship

• In the wake of social media platforms and large tech companies censoring citizens who happen to disagree with their worldview, various states are employing different approaches to curb such discrimination—and Texas is no exception. But as Jeramy Kitchen explains, Texas is taking a unique approach to prevent social media and email censorship.
   
• The law does not officially go into effect until December 2, 2021. In the House, it passed largely along purely partisan lines by a vote of 78-42, with only one Republican voting against (Giovanni Capriglione of Southlake). In the Senate, the law was approved purely across partisan lines by a vote of 17-13.
   
• When the measure takes effect, Texans who are wrongfully de-platformed or censored will be able to file a lawsuit against the social media site to get back online and make the site pay their legal fees. The law also allows the Texas attorney general to file a lawsuit on behalf of any Texan who is wrongfully de-platformed.

What Is DPD Hiding?

• Dallas police’s wrongful arrest of the wife of Republican gubernatorial candidate Allen West has become another battleground for transparency in local government. As Robert Montoya reports, the Dallas Police Department is seeking to prevent the release of unedited video of her arrest. 
      
• Texas Scorecard and other media organizations have asked for all footage of the August 20 arrest of Angela West, as well as all photographs and the arrest report.
   
• Mrs. West was vindicated of the charges when the DPD’s toxicology report came back negative for alcohol or drugs.
   
• Count me among those who suspect DPD is hiding the video and related materials because they show a pattern of mistakes and abusive behavior.

Friday Reflection: On Being Happy Warriors

Due to the passage of time and cultural differences, we often miss the cutting and sometimes subversive humor employed in scripture. That’s unfortunate for many reasons, not the least of which is that a healthy dose of humor is a good way to combat a fallen world.

Now, let’s be clear: Jesus wasn’t a standup comedian, nor were the ancient prophets performers on “Whose Soul Is It Anyway?” Yet they were effective communicators and didn’t shy away from employing that most dangerous of weapons: the wry chuckle.

The problem for us, as one author puts it, is that we in our very serious faith don’t want to appear impious by laughing in the presence of the Divine. And there is the practical challenge for us as modern readers of English Bibles translated from Greek, which – in Jesus’ case – had themselves been translated from the spoken Aramaic. We don’t catch the play of words, hear the lilt of the voice, or simply see the smile.

Everyone in earshot got the irony when Jesus said, after viewing a Roman coin bearing the image of the Roman emperor, “Render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s and unto God what is God’s.” You can easily imagine Jesus smiling as he said this, and every Jew listening would have smiled along with Him. They all know this basic truth: everyone, including Caesar, was made in God’s image… and everything in creation belonged to God, even Caesar’s coins. A nicely subversive dig at the ruling elite.

Jesus’ description of the ruling class as the blind leading the blind would have received a knowing laugh in an era not known for being particularly easy to navigate for the visually impaired. He would sarcastically confront hypocritical religious leaders with the cutting phrase, “Have you not read?” since, of course, their claim to authority was their learned status. 

Very often Jesus was saying out loud about the country’s rulers what many quietly believed. He compared them to “vipers” and said it was easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for Jerusalem’s political ruling class to make it into heaven. 

On one of the occasions in which Jesus was about to be stoned by those rulers’ sycophants, He not only kept his wits but employed them. He asked His would-be assailants, “I have shown you many good works from the Father. For which of these do you stone me?”

Yes, Jesus got angry – and with good reason. But more often than not, we find Jesus directing that righteous anger into loving action tinged with humor. He was the happy warrior in the battle for the souls of men.

What about you and me? There is no end to the litany of things about which to be angry – but it doesn’t mean we have to be endlessly upset. The issues facing our republic are deadly serious, but that doesn’t mean we always have to be.

I understand why the other side is a grim lot, driven as they are by greed and envy. They’re on the side of slavery and death. They know, deep in their hearts, that the best they can expect if they win is to be ruled over by tyrants who will destroy them last. I’d be grim, too.

We, however, should be of good cheer. In the eternal fight, our victory over death has been secured for us by Jesus. We’re now the adopted sons and daughters of the Most High King. In this world, we get the honor of fighting to expand the promise of self-governance and extend liberty – so we might as well do so with a smile on our face.