Good morning, John!

Should employers require their employees to get a COVID shot in order to be employed? Tell us what you think in the One Click Survey at the end of today's Texas Minute.

– Michael Quinn Sullivan 

Tuesday, October 12, 2021
Update your profile information.

Abbott Shifts Course: Prohibits Employer Vax Mandates

• Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced late Monday afternoon an executive order prohibiting compulsory COVID-19 requirements on employees. Get the details here.
   
• This action comes just four days after grassroots activists and the Republican Party of Texas urged the governor to make it a priority. It also marks a major tonal shift for Gov. Abbott, whose team has shied away from conversations about private-sector employer mandates on their employees.
      
• “No entity in Texas can compel receipt of a COVID-19 vaccine by any individual, including an employee or a consumer, who objects to such vaccination for any reason of personal conscience, based on a religious belief, or for medical reasons, including prior recovery from COVID-19,” wrote Abbott in his order.
   
• The governor specifically cited the Biden Administration’s recent vaccine mandate imposed on large companies and those with government contracts. [Learn how Sheree Flanagan, a single mother of two in North Texas, feels about being forced to comply with Biden’s order.]
   
• The governor also expanded the agenda of the current special session. He wants lawmakers to pass legislation codifying this latest executive order.
   
• AT&T, American Airlines, and Southwest Airlines are among the Texas-based companies that have announced that employees must receive one of the COVID-19 regimens or lose their jobs.
   
• Speaking of Southwest Airlines…

Southwest LUV’s Vax Mandates… Pilots, Not so Much

• Texas-based Southwest Airlines announced last week it would require all employees to receive the COVID shots or face termination, so as to maintain their contracts with the federal government. This weekend, the airline canceled more than 2,000 flights. Sydnie Henry has the details.
      
• Southwest Airlines claimed initially the cancelations were due to weather and air traffic control issues, but the Federal Aviation Administration and industry observers dismissed that excuse. Most notably, despite the claims of weather delays and FAA staffing issues, no other airline had as many cancellations or delays this weekend.
     
• Southwest Airline pilots have filed a lawsuit against the airline’s mandate.

A Conversation With Allen West

• “We’re not a constitutional monarchy. We don’t live by edicts and orders. Unfortunately, the governor opened up Pandora’s box last year,” said Allen West in a conversation with Brandon Waltens. This week Texas Scorecard is releasing uncut, unedited one-on-one interviews with the Republican gubernatorial candidates. 
      
• Following a career in the Army, West served in Congress from Florida and then moved to Texas for work. He was elected as the chairman of the Republican Party of Texas in 2020, and resigned this summer to challenge Gov. Abbott for the GOP nomination in 2022.
   
• “I don’t care how much money you’ve got in your war chest. It’s about whether or not you’re going to stand up and fight.” – Allen West
     
• The series continues tomorrow with media personality Chad Prather, followed Thursday by a conversation with former state senator Don Huffines. Incumbent Greg Abbott did not respond to the invitation to participate.
      
• As an aside… Why is Gov. Abbott ignoring interview requests from both Tucker Carlson and Brandon Waltens? Does his campaign not think he can handle interviews with hard questions?

A Week Left…

• With just seven days remaining, none of the items on Gov. Greg Abbott’s 30-day special session agenda have made it through the entirety of the legislative process. Jeramy Kitchen reports many in the Capitol are speculating what, if anything, will actually get done… and if yet another special session will be on the horizon.
     

• The Texas Senate has passed seven of the eight agenda items from its chamber. By comparison, the House has passed none. So far, the Senate has convened nine times for about 13 hours. The House has convened seven times for about four hours total.

Sabotaging Women’s Sports?

• The latest attempt to safeguard women’s sports in Texas could be facing more turbulence in the Capitol. Jacob Asmussen reports Republicans are poised to let a Democrat “study” nullify real legislative action.
      
• School-aged girls across the country face the threat of losing sports scholarships and opportunities to boys posing as girls. The National Collegiate Athletic Association, which governs college athletics, allows biological men to intrude on women’s sports. Legislation pending in the Texas Legislature would require K-12 programs be limited to the biological sex; lawmakers are excluding college-age women from protection.
        
• While the Texas Senate has repeatedly passed legislation taking on the issue, the House has been the blocking point. With seven days remaining in the third special session, Democrat Joe Moody of El Paso has proposed switching the prohibition into a “study” on the issue. During a recent committee hearing on the issue, Chairman Trent Ashby (R-Lufkin) said he expects Republicans supporting the overall measure to “work diligently” with Moody on a study plan.
     
• Lawmakers often use “studies” as an excuse to not pass meaningful legislation and kick an issue down the road, while telling voters they did “something” on the issue.

Citizen Pressure More Important Than State Bans

• In an important new commentary, education policy expert Carole Hornsby Haynes explains the “bans” on critical race theory “are being ignored” and – in the case of the law passed by the Texas Legislature earlier this year – “have no enforcement mechanism.”
   
• “The real power for winning this war lies with the grassroots forming local groups to hold school boards and schools accountable.” – Carole Hornsby Haynes​

ONE CLICK SURVEY

For the moment, let us set aside questions of government mandates and esoteric debates about employment policy in the free market. Do you personally believe employers should require their employees participate in one of the “COVID vaccination” regimens in order to keep their job?

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