Good morning,

As it turns out, readers aren’t impressed with subsidizing unreliable energy sources… or any other businesses, for that matter. You’ll find those details below.

Here is the Texas Minute for Wednesday, July 13, 2022.

– Michael Quinn Sullivan 

Voters Want Border Crisis Declared An Invasion

• A statewide poll released yesterday by the Defend Texas Liberty PAC finds 85 percent of Republican voters support Gov. Greg Abbott declaring the crisis on the southern border an invasion. Get the details from Juliana Berg.

A Year Later, No Consequences For Quorum-Busting Democrats

• It’s been one year since Texas House Democrats infamously boarded a private jet with a case of beer and left for Washington, D.C., breaking quorum and bringing the Legislature to a halt in order to freeze progress on election integrity legislation in the Texas House. Brandon Waltens reports that despite the outrage expressed by Republican lawmakers at the time, there were ultimately no consequences imposed on them by House Speaker Dade Phelan or the rest of House leadership.
        

• During the 37 days they were gone, Gov. Greg Abbott claimed the fleeing Democrats would be arrested and forced to return. That did not happen. In fact, one Democrat lawmaker even returned to Austin for a few days before heading back to D.C.

      
• When a quorum was finally reached 37 days later, the House never voted on or considered any punishments for those who left.

Taxpayers Harmed By ‘Renewable’ Lobbying

• So-called “renewable” energy companies have used lobbyists to advance their interests in Austin for years, spending millions in an effort to gain billions in subsidies.  Juliana Berg explains how the financial burden of subsidizing unreliable green energy rests squarely on the citizens who later suffer when the power goes out.        
     
• According to a 2021 analysis from Transparency USA, companies whose primary source of income is renewable energy (including solar, wind, and nuclear) have spent up to $71.7 million in Texas lobbying efforts since 2015. The total amount of money spent by lobbyists likely climbs even higher if companies with a strong interest in green energy—like Shell and AT&T—are included. 
     
• Research by the Texas Public Policy Foundation found that Texans are charged an average of $1.5 billion a year for state subsidies in renewable energy.
      
• “People are always surprised to find out that the real money in politics is in lobbying. Lobbying money always dwarfs all donations from individuals and PACs combined,” said Tracy Marshall, the executive director of Transparency USA.

Parents Drive Out Liberal Superintendent

• Another Texas school superintendent has stepped down amid criticism from parents concerned about liberal indoctrination in their children’s classrooms. Erin Anderson reports on the success of concerned parents in Clear Creek Independent School District.
       
• Conservative parents in the Houston-area district had complained that Superintendent Eric Williams, who started in early 2021, was subjecting their students to liberal ideologies he brought from his former job as superintendent of public schools in Loudoun County, Virginia. The affluent Washington, D.C., suburb was ground zero for what’s become a powerful parent movement across the country.
           
• Parents in Clear Creek ISD began calling for Williams’ resignation in December, criticizing the district’s use of a “social emotional learning” program called “CharacterStrong” as a vehicle for promoting values based on CRT and other liberal ideologies.

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Y’All Answered

Yesterday we asked if Texas should stop subsidizing unreliable power sources, like wind and solar generation. By a 95.51 percent to 4.49 percent margin, readers answered “yes” to end the subsidies.

Here’s a sample of replies from the inbox:

• “I would also like to stop paying for everybody else’s Tesla, Prius, etc. The tax code is simply weaponized ‘Social Engineering.’ I’m not a very good socialist. Get rid of ALL social engineering.” – Doug Kelsay
      
• “Not only should we stop subsidizing wind and solar, but we should require large monetary deposits to clean up the renewable devices that quit working.” – Tobie Hall
       
• “The only reason that ERCOT is asking Texans to conserve energy is because of all the money wasted on renewables.” – David Peters
      
• “The more we rely on wind and solar, the higher I have to set my thermostat in the summer.” – Barbara Campbell
     
• “There is nothing renewable about an energy that uses massive amounts of petroleum-based products (i.e., fiberglass, metal, oil lubricants, cadmium, arsenic, etc.) to generate with.  Everything about them has a lifespan and must be disposed of in a landfill somewhere.” – James Sterling
      
• “Wind and solar are pipe dreams.  They are expensive long-term polluters. 

  Let them compete in the free market and succeed or fail on their own merit.  Nuclear is the cleanest and safest and most renewable.” – Wendell Pool
     

• “In a free-market economic system, which we should all desire, government should not be subsidizing ANY private sector company or entity...and certainly not 'green' (it's actually not) energy.” – Robert Lee
     

• “We need an ‘all of the above’ energy policy. But the government should not favor one form of energy above others. Just keep the lights on at the lowest cost we can.” – Jerry Harben
      

• “Why should taxpayers’ dollars be used to prop up unreliable, inefficient, ‘renewable’ energy sources?” – Randy Miller
      

• “The ONLY reason solar and wind are cost effective is because our tax dollars subsidize it.” – Bob Davis
      

• “We need reliable energy sources - not intermittent and unreliable sources.” – Rinda Jordan
     

• “When the government subsidizes these energy sources, the taxpayer/energy user is paying for them out of two pockets!” – Arthur Potter
     

• “Subsidies are nothing more than political payoffs at taxpayer expense. “ – Alan Smith
     

• “The answer is to get government out of the energy business.” – Roger Taylor
     

• “People need to be made aware of the true cost of solar and wind power. So many believe it is free power; the truth is they can never really pay for themselves.” – Kenny Powell
      

• “A windmill costs more to make and will never pay for itself. Solar panels contain highly toxic chemicals, that when spilled, can seep into ground water and are in danger with every hurricane. Nuclear is clean and easily produced; let's focus on harnessing it safely. We need to focus on producing the fuels we know to work, and work well. We may get to renewable some day, but not any day soon.” – Barbara Bussey
     

• “Texas taxpayers shouldn't subsidize any company. The company either makes it on its own merits or fails.” – Eric Knutson
     

• “The push for ‘green energy’ is nothing more than crony capitalism.  When wind and solar-generated energy is as cheap and effective as fossil fuel energy, I'll change my mind.” – Terry Fokas
      

• “There is either one heck of a lot of virtue signaling going on in Austin, or someone in the ‘loop’ is making a lot of money.  Think about it:  Wind-generated electricity simply runs counter to the needs of the grid. It generates too much power when it is not needed, and to0 little power when it is needed.  The storage capacity for the excess power to even this flow simply does not exist yet.” – Ray Mathis
     

• “It is a travesty to prop up so-called green energy, when it cannot support itself. There is no constitutional authority to transfer public funds to private business.” – Annie Provence

Your Federal & State Lawmakers

The districts displayed here should reflect those recently redrawn by the Legislature. Though the new lines do not take representational effect until 2023, they will appear on the 2022 ballot. Please note that your incumbent legislator and/or district numbers may have changed.