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The COVID “emergency” has now lasted 1,000 days in the Lone Star State… Here is the Texas Minute for Thursday, Dec. 8, 2022.

– Michael Quinn Sullivan

Abbott Bans Chinese-owned TikTok From State-issued Devices

With growing concerns over the threat of the Chinese Communist Party gaining access to critical information, Gov. Greg Abbott ordered all Texas state agencies to ban the use of the Chinese social media app TikTok on government-issued devices. Brandon Waltens has the details [[link removed]].

TikTok is owned by the Chinese company ByteDance, employs Chinese Communist Party members, and has a subsidiary partially owned by the Chinese Communist Party. The app currently has more than 85 million users in the United States. Recent revelations about data harvesting from the app, however, have put it in the crosshairs of those concerned about China’s growing influence.

“TikTok harvests vast amounts of data from its users’ devices—including when, where, and how they conduct Internet activity—and offers this trove of potentially sensitive information to the Chinese government,” wrote Abbott in a letter [[link removed]] to all state agency heads on Wednesday.

Each agency has until February 15, 2023, to develop a policy regarding the use of TikTok on employees’ personal devices.

The use of TikTok is currently banned by the U.S. Department of State, the Department of Defense, and the Department of Homeland Security. With Gov. Abbott’s action, Texas joins North Dakota, Maryland, and South Dakota in prohibiting the use of TikTok on government-issued devices.

Texas Marks 1,000 Days of COVID Emergency With No End in Sight

On March 13, 2020, in a crowded press room in the Capitol, Gov. Greg Abbott announced he would be declaring a state of emergency over COVID after 39 cases were reported in the state of Texas. Now, 1,000 days later, Texas is one of just 11 states nationwide that remain in a state of COVID emergency.

Brandon Waltens explains [[link removed]] that emergency declaration has been the basis of every COVID-related executive order issued since—first lockdowns and mask mandates, followed by orders to prohibit local entities from implementing more stringent requirements—all without input from the state Legislature.

His office did not respond [[link removed]] to an inquiry from Texas Scorecard as to why the declaration was still necessary and what criteria he would use to determine whether it could be ended.

State Rep. Brian Harrison (R–Waxahachie), however, says the time for COVID emergency orders is over, and that he will be filing legislation to put an end to perpetual extensions without input from the Legislature.

“It’s well past time for all COVID emergency orders to end, and I will be filing legislation soon to prevent emergency powers to continue unless the legislature votes to extend them.” – Rep. Brian Harrison [[link removed]]

Pedophiles And Groomers Fail In Cyber Attack Over the past week, Defend Our Kids Texas, an initiative of Texas Family Project, has suffered a series of cyber attacks against their website after working to expose drag shows targeting children. Soli Rice reports [[link removed]] TFP has been successful in fending off the attacks, which the organization describes as a coordinated effort by “the woke mob organizing on social media.”

In October, Defend Our Kids Texas was founded to serve as “boots on the ground in the fight against the anti-family crusade.” The organization encourages citizens to report upcoming drag shows for children through a form on their website [[link removed]].

It is that website that has become the target of detractors, who have attempted to disable the site over the past week.

“It’s business as usual here while we watch the blaze atop the collective head of our enemies,” said TFP President Chris Hopper [[link removed]]. “No amount of pressure or harassment will stop the Texas Family Project from pursuing our mission to safeguard the innocence of Texas children.”

Meanwhile, the entity is “collecting relevant identifying information for criminal and potential civil complaints” against those responsible for the attacks. Pre-processing Illegal Aliens On a recent trip to the Texas-Mexico border, border security expert Victor Avila discovered non-governmental organizations are pre-processing would-be illegal aliens in Mexico before sending them to U.S. ports of entry. Sydnie Henry has the story [[link removed]].

These pre-processed aliens are not considered illegal—and are not counted as such—because they are entering the country with Humanitarian Parole paperwork.

According to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, this paperwork [[link removed]] “allows an individual, who may be inadmissible or otherwise ineligible for admission into the United States, to be paroled into the United States for a temporary period.”

Avila explains [[link removed]] the “parole” paperwork is supposed to be used only in very specific circumstances, generally for confidential informants or in a matter of life and death. Instead, organizations in Mexico are being allowed to use the process broadly – getting large numbers of people into the country who should not be allowed in.

“The only two people that can stop this are Biden and Abbott,” says Avila [[link removed]]. “Abbott has the power and the authority under the U.S. Constitution to repel these people from coming in. Someone has to stand up and be courageous enough to do it.” Shake-ups Leave Texas Schools Searching for Superintendents In the past year, dozens of Texas school superintendents have stepped down, and more may soon be following them. As Erin Anderson reports [[link removed]], the pipeline for new superintendents for the existing public education model is limited.

In 2021-22 (the most recent school year for which the Texas Education Agency reports data), four Texas superintendents took home base salaries above $400,000; another 55 were paid at least $300,000 a year.

The lucrative salaries enjoyed by superintendents are supplemented by benefits like insurance; pension contributions; and allowances for cars, phones, housing, and continuing education. Superintendents’ contracts often include hefty bonuses as well—all provided at taxpayers’ expense. Support Texas Scorecard?

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“‘Emergencies’ have always been the pretext on which the safeguards of individual liberty have been eroded.”

– F.A. Hayek​

Number of the Day

$109,787

The “Average Central Administrative Salary” for Texas public schools, not including charter schools. (Charter schools’ average is $94,129.) By comparison, the average teacher – public and charter – is $57,091.

[Source: Most recent Snapshot [[link removed]], TEA]

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Produced by Michael Quinn Sullivan and Brandon Waltens, the Texas Minute is a quick look at the news and info of the day we find interesting, and hope you do as well. It is delivered weekday mornings (though we'll take the occasional break for holidays and whatnot).

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