Good morning!

WHO does Chip Roy want to defund? Yes.

Learn more about that – and find responses to yesterday's One Click Survey – in the Texas Minute for Wednesday, January 18, 2023.

– Michael Quinn Sullivan 

Abbott Inaugural Address Prioritizes Future of Texas Children 

• In their third inaugural addresses as governor and lieutenant governor, Greg Abbott and Dan Patrick outlined their legislative agendas. As Sydnie Henry reports, both men put a heavy emphasis on parental rights and school choice.
         
• “Our schools are for education, not indoctrination,” said Abbott. “Schools should not push social agendas.”
     
• The governor reiterated his support for school choice, where state education funding follows the student. “Parents deserve the freedom to choose the education that’s best for their child.”
      

• Abbott also promised to use the $28 billion budget surplus to pass the “largest property tax cut in Texas history.”
     

• Patrick echoed Abbott's call for further property tax relief, strengthening the electric grid, providing school choice, and increasing border security. He has also signaled support for banning critical race theory in higher education and raising teacher salaries.

Texas Republican Wants To Defund WHO

• U.S. Rep. Chip Roy (R-Kerrville) has introduced legislation that would defund the World Health Organization due to its close ties with the Chinese Communist Party, reports Emily Wilkerson.
     
• “Funneling millions of taxpayer dollars to the corrupt World Health Organization that serves the Chinese Communist Party is a slap in the face to hardworking American families struggling under record high inflation, and to all those whose lives and livelihoods were ruined and destroyed by the COVID pandemic,” said Roy.
     
• Funding of WHO was halted under former President Donald Trump, due to the organization’s mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Biden administration reinstated that funding in 2021. 

Lawmakers Splurge on Themselves

• As one of their first actions in the new legislative session, the Texas House and Senate both approved resolutions that substantially increased each member’s office budget. Darrell Frost reports the House voted for a 29 percent increase, while the Senate approved a 46 percent increase.
      
• This does not affect legislators' salaries, which are set by the state constitution. They are able to increase staff salaries, the expenses for which members are reimbursed, and the contributions into their legislative pension funds... Yes, the part-time members of the Texas Legislature get a very lucrative pension based on the full-time salary of a state district judge.
      
• House members' monthly office budget rose from $15,250 to $19,250 for months the Legislature is in session, and from $13,500 to $17,500 for months it is not in session. The only House members to object were Bryan Slaton (R–Greenville), Tony Tinderholt (R–Arlington), and Mark Dorazio (R–Leon Springs).
     

• Each senators' monthly office budget increased from $41,000 to $60,000, whether or not the Legislature is in session. Senators unanimously approved the increase.
      

• "In a year where Texans find themselves increasingly burdened by inflation, high energy prices, and out-of-control property taxes (due to failed attempts at reform from past sessions), it is in poor form to vote in favor of raises for bureaucrats. After all, Texans across the state cannot also vote themselves raises." – Texans for Fiscal Responsibility
     

• House members last increased their office budgets in 2019. Senators, meanwhile, reduced their office spending in 2021 from $43,000 to $41,000 per month.

Patriot Mobile Responds to Rejection of Gift

• Bowing to social media attacks from a “woke mob,” the Grapevine Police Department rejected a donation from Patriot Mobile, a cellular company known for supporting conservative and Christian causes. As Erin Anderson explains, this has residents confused by the message police are sending to the community.

      
• It began last Thursday, when Patriot Mobile donated a $1,500 pizza party gift certificate to the Grapevine Police Department as thanks for their service to the local community.
     
• The Grapevine PD initially posted their thanks to a social media page, noting the agency was “blessed to have [Patriot Mobile's] support and encouragement.”
     
• Hundreds of people, many from outside Grapevine, then posted comments criticizing the department for accepting and acknowledging a gift from a conservative organization. The GPD bowed to pressure, apologized for their initial acceptance of the gift, and vowed to “do better moving forward” and “reevaluate” how they receive donations.
      
• “The response from the far left is not surprising to us, nor is it anything new,” said Patriot Mobile CEO Glenn Story. “Our mission is to defend our God-given Constitutional rights.”

Democrats Praise Drag Show Targeting Kids

• A Texas lawmaker and two Dallas city council members were among those in attendance at a recent “all-ages” drag show at BuzzBrews Bar in Dallas. All three are Democrats, reports Soli Rice.
     
• The event highlighted crossdressing men clad in lingerie with faux breasts hanging out of their low-rise tops. Among those attending the event inside the restaurant was a mother with her two children.
    
• During the event, the three politicians – State Rep. Venton Jones (D–Dallas) and Dallas City Councilmembers Jesse Moreno (District 2) and Paul Ridley (District 14) – all proclaimed their support of drag shows.

Psst... Know Anyone?

• Applications are now being accepted for our Summer and Fall 2023 paid Texas Scorecard Fellowships designed for 18- to 25-year-olds with an interest in public policy, political accountability, and Texas history.
     
• The program offers three tracks: writing, research, and administration. Learn more on our website.

Y'All Answered

Last week saw Tarrant County revoke its "emergency" declarations regarding COVID-19. Almost immediately, State Rep. Brian Harrison (R-Waxahachie) called on Gov. Greg Abbott to end the statewide declaration of a COVID emergency. Yesterday, we asked if readers agree with Rep. Harrison and want Gov. Abbott to end Texas' COVID emergency declaration.

While 98.2 percent of readers want the emergency declaration ended, 6.8 percent want the governor to keep it in place. 

Here's a sampling of responses I received in my inbox...

• “An emergency isn’t an emergency if it lasts for 1000 days. It is a way of life!” – Ken Marx
      

• “I believe Covid hurt a lot of people, but the response to Covid hurt people too. Any 'emergency' related to the Chinese attack is long gone. Everything related to it should be long gone as well—except for a full investigation of the fraud involved.” – Karen Breazeale
     

• “Hawaii, Maryland, New York, Massachusetts, and Vermont are among the bluest of blue states… and they are no longer under a COVID emergency.  What does that say about Texas?” – Erich Wolz
     

• "Health decisions are individuals' responsibilities.  The governor should never have declared the emergency in the first place." – Carolyn Brent 
     

• “As we know, now none of the ‘emergency’ processes had any real impact on the China Flu. Ending the extensions would be giving up power. Big government, left or right, will not voluntarily surrender the power over the people.” – Steve Crevier
     

• “There wasn’t an emergency when he first signed it. When more people realize Abbott is actually a Democrat running as a Republican to get elected, we might have a shot of getting him replaced.” – Heather Gill
     

• “The scamdemic known as COVID19 is over. It never needed to be an emergency in Texas or America.” – Cathy Blake 
     

• “I'm going to put this as simply as I know how. When do they start working for WE THE PEOPLE, instead of themselves and the lobbyists?” – Rich Goncher
     

• “Of course, it should have ended months ago. What is maddening is that Abbott has failed to even try to convince Texans as to the reason(s) why he refuses to cancel it.” – William Wallace
     

• “It seems to be a recurring theme that it is obvious what Abbott SHOULD do, but he does the opposite! COVID-19 was NEVER an emergency and was nothing more than a government power grab. As the facts continue to emerge, we should be outraged that elected officials and government bureaucrats seized so much unconstitutional power and demanded measures be put in place that provide severe consequences for those that abuse the force of government in such a way.” – Roger Taylor
     

• “Abbott doesn't revoke the COVID-19 emergency because he is no different than any other governor pushing the Democrat agenda beholden to Big Pharma and/or China.” – Debbie Wolgemuth
     

• “There are no signs that we are still in an emergency because of covid. I might consider maintaining the emergency if it facilitates closing the border to illegal crossings, but that hasn't happened so far.” – Rick Mayforth
     

• “Abbott should end the Covid emergency today!  We retired here to escape the corrupt politics and cronyism in New Jersey only to learn the best thing about Abbott is that he is not Beto O'Rourke.” – Mika Ryan
     

• “It was and continues to be nothing more than a power grab.” – Steve Sullivan
     

• “Hell, no, we do NOT need to extend the Covid restrictions! They were never needed in the first place!!! It was strictly about control and so many STUPID sheeple went along with the BS for no reason! ‘Follow the science’ only meant listen to some bureaucratic doctor who was fear-mongering!” – Priscilla Love
     

• “The emergency was a sham in order to take away citizen liberties through the illegal action of an Executive Order. If people would study their government, EO's ONLY apply to the executive branch, not the entire general public. For the public to comply, it must be through the Legislature, who abdicated.” – Greg Reinhart
     

• “The ONLY COVID EMERGENCY is the government-induced HEALTH ISSUES now being revealed.” – Jerry Bledsoe

Your U.S. & Texas Lawmakers

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