I missed the Bible verse where God granted us all the right to carry an AR-15. But, God did give us all brains and I’m pretty sure He wants us to use them to solve problems and save lives. Throwing up our hands and saying all we can do is pray is not an option.
#txlege
I am NOT going to use the evil acts of a handful of people to diminish the God-given rights of my fellow Texans. Period. None of these so-called gun-control solutions will work to stop a person with evil intent. 2/6
You dropped off families with children (fleeing communism in many cases) on a busy city street.
You didn’t notify DHS they were coming but managed to get word to Fox News.
That’s not leadership—it’s just an expensive, callous stunt.
#txlege
Texas dropped off two buses of migrants outside VP Kamala Harris' residence in Washington, D.C. today.
We will continue sending migrants to sanctuary cities like D.C. until Pres. Biden & Border Czar Harris step up & do their jobs to secure the border.
I voted to impeach Ken Paxton in May because the House General Investigating committee proved what many already knew — Paxton is corrupt and has abused his power.
The House mangers proved this again throughout the Senate trial.
Paxton should have been convicted today.
#txlege
Sorry, Governor.
No matter how hard you try to distract, deflect and invent fake crises, no one in Texas is going to forget that millions lost power and water for days. People died and our state is out billions.
No one is going to forget. Not now, and not in 2022.
#txlege
Today Texas launched Operation Lone Star to respond to the border crisis.
It deploys Nat'l Guard + DPS Officers + air, ground, marine, & tactical border security assets to deny Mexican Cartels & smugglers the ability to move drugs & people into Texas.
Beto did a GREAT job in
#TXGovDebate
.
He had Abbott on defense the entire debate.
He deflected and turned Abbott’s predictable attacks back on him.
He was authentic and earnest, speaking to the real concerns of Texas voters.
Really, really well done,
@BetoORourke
!
#txlege
Had a visit from my grandson Riley this afternoon! We reviewed the congressional redistricting plan together and he is appalled at the level of gerrymandering!
#txlege
This is deplorable and inexcusable language.
It’s racially inflammatory and dishonors the Texas DPS and National Guard members who wouldn’t ever consider doing such a thing.
Apologize and retract this,
@GregAbbott_TX
.
#txlege
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) tells Dana Loesch the "only thing we're not doing is shooting people" crossing the border because "the Biden Administration would charge us with murder."
You misspelled "Thank you, Mr. President for granting my request and opening 6 new FEMA testing sites in Texas.
"As Governor, I strongly urge all Texans to get vaccinated and boosted. Vaccines are free, safe and effective at preventing serious illness and death."
#txlege
As commander-in-chief of Texas' militia, I will not tolerate Biden's efforts to compel Guardsmen to receive a COVID-19 vaccine.
That is why I am suing the Biden Admin. over its latest unconstitutional vaccine mandate.
Read my full letter:
Wow!
@utarlington
showed up HUGE for
@BetoORourke
tonight!
Thank you, Beto, for coming to UTA and District 101.
Thank you, Mavs, for turning out tonight — and in November to 🗳
Young Texans hold the power to create the change we need in Texas — let’s get it done!
#txlege
I just sent this letter to
@KenPaxtonTX
@TXAG
. The public and
#txlege
needs answers on how much time and money has been wasted on his absurd effort to overturn the election.
I also want to know who in Trump White House and campaign they are working with.
I won’t say I’m shocked, because what we’re seeing in Allen today has become all too routine.
I won’t say to pray, because many others already have that covered.
I will say, again, state and federal lawmakers have got to stand up to the NRA and do something.
Re-upping this:
Could not agree more with the
@dallasnews
editorial board:
"The Second Amendment is not a death pact. We cannot accept that the founders intended to craft a law that sows constant fear of violent death throughout American society."
#txlege
North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un just stated that the “Nuclear Button is on his desk at all times.” Will someone from his depleted and food starved regime please inform him that I too have a Nuclear Button, but it is a much bigger & more powerful one than his, and my Button works!
Great to meet with
@Samsung
President & CEO Kye Hyun Kyung yesterday in Austin.
Samsung’s investment of over $40 BILLION will expand cutting-edge facilities in Central Texas & create thousands of jobs.
Texas is the
#1
state for semiconductors.
More:
Congressman Scalise— I’d invite you to visit the Texas southern border. I’m sure my
#txlege
colleagues who represent the border region would be happy to host you and, while doing so, disabuse you of the notion their districts are “in crisis.” Spoiler: we don’t need a wall.
Our southern border is in crisis, and our brave border patrol agents are being attacked. We need to give them the tools to stay safe while keeping us safe. We need to build the wall.
Does anyone else find it concerning that a guy who has been a Texas statewide elected official for three decades is unaware that El Paso is, in fact, literally on the border?
#txlege
"Harris didn’t even go to the actual border. She visited a Border Patrol station about nine miles from the Rio Grande, talked to some immigration activists and legal service providers, posed for press photos back at the airport, and departed for Los Angeles before 1 p.m."
@nypost
Every Republican officeholder should be called on to condemn these comments.
You either support the President or you support the Constitution you took an oath to defend.
#txlege
Asked if he'd "commit to making sure that there is a peaceful transferral of power after the election," win or lose, Pres. Trump replies, "Well, we're going to have to see what happens."
🧵 Good morning from the
@WhiteHouse
! I’m honored to be here today as
@POTUS
signs the
#CHIPSAct
— a huge achievement for our country that will be of tremendous benefit to Texas. 1/7
#txlege
Could not agree more with the
@dallasnews
editorial board:
"The Second Amendment is not a death pact. We cannot accept that the founders intended to craft a law that sows constant fear of violent death throughout American society."
#txlege
Thank you, Kroger, Costco and others. It is good to see business stepping up and showing the leadership that
@GregAbbott_TX
is unable to muster.
#txlege
Kroger, Costco and other big and small retailers stick with required masks
Tonight, the Texas House is debating SB 7, a measure attacking voting rights. Here's my floor speech in opposition to this effort.
#txlege
#protectyourvote
#goodtrouble
NEW:
@TXAG
Paxton landed in Austin this afternoon after a trip to Utah last week. It’s the first time we have seen the attorney general in-person since the energy crisis across the state last week. I tried asking some questions, he didn't answer any.
#txlege
@KXAN_News
Amazing turnout of Texans tonight at
@poweredxpeople
#ForThePeople
rally. I honored the work of all 67
@TexasHDC
members who worked hard to defeat
#SB7
. Thanks to all came who came out - your commitment to defend our democracy is Inspiring!
#txlege
Amazing. I’m not sure anyone could have mismanaged this disaster worse than Abbott did if they tried.
#txlege
Ex-ERCOT chief says he was following Abbott's direction when they ran up billions in bills during freeze
I thought we were waiting to see if the first round of re-opening caused COVID-19 spikes before making decisions on additional openings? It's been four days.
#txlege
First time I’m able to rejoin this website in 24 hours due to power outages and zero cell service.
I’ll echo what many others have said: the widespread power outages in Texas represent a catastrophic failure of leadership.
1/
#txlege
Have to admit, there is some real variety in this proclamation:
Some of these items violate the Texas Constitution, while others violate the U.S. Constitution.
Bottom line for me: no voucher scams. Not now, not ever.
#txlege
Special Session
#3
of the Texas Legislature will begin Monday, October 9th at 1:00 PM.
Now is the time for Texas to deliver school choice for every family, protect Texans and Americans against Biden’s border crisis, and ban all COVID vaccine mandates.
Let's get to work.
Thanks,
@JoyAnnReid
for having me as your first in-studio guest in a long time to discuss the fight to protect the voting rights for all Americans + Congress passing the
#Juneteenth
Holiday, thanks to the leadership of Texas’
@JacksonLeeTX18
!
#txlege
...pushing an agenda is different. So, question for
@TxDPS
: you’ll be getting this more formally in a letter from me, but what is the criteria by which you approve the conduct of political activity on your premises? And don’t say voter reg, because it’s much more than that.
Trying to imagine a
@GregAbbott_TX
strategy meeting.
Health advisors: “If we don’t get serious about vaccines and slowing spread right now, more Texans will die.”
Campaign advisors: “Do any of that and you could lose.”
Abbott: “Well, that was an easy decision. Next?”
#txlege
Thank you, Vice President Harris.
Texas Republicans are unrelenting in their efforts to suppress the vote.
But, Texas Democrats are unrelenting in our fight to defend democracy.
We need Congress to pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Act and HR 1.
#txlege
@TexasHDC
Today, Texas legislators advanced a bill attacking the right to vote. It’s yet another assault on our democracy. Congress needs to pass the For the People Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act.
We need to make it easier for eligible voters to vote. Not harder.
According to
@DanPatrick
, things we should blame for school shootings:
❌video games
❌movies
❌TV shows
❌Facebook
❌Twitter
❌Doors
❌abortion
❌unarmed teachers
Lt. Gov. thoroughly embarrassed our state on national TV this morning.
#TXLege
It’s not too late to do the right thing, Governor.
Withdraw your petition at the Supreme Court.
Then rescind your executive order that ties the hands of local leaders.
Allow them to protect people. To protect kids.
Fight the virus, not our hospitals and schools.
#txlege
BREAKING: The Texas Supreme Court imposes a temporary halt to lower court decisions that overruled the State ban on mask mandates.
The ban doesn't prohibit using masks. Anyone who wants to wear a mask can do so, including in schools.
Truth.
My staff and I are working from early morning until late at night helping constituents with problems — electric, gas, water, food, unemployment, you name it. Most
#txlege
members are. A U.S. Senator has a staff 20X the size of ours...he could be doing so much right now.
Republicans, at 11th hour: “we really don’t support Trump, we just kept our opposition a secret the last four years.”
Voters aren’t stupid.
#txlege
#TXSen
#vote
Cornyn says he broke with Trump on deficit, border wall, but kept opposition private
And there are plenty of us who will not stand by and let partisan ideologues destroy academic freedom in Texas higher education—let alone at our flagship university.
#HookEm
#txlege
I will not stand by and let looney Marxist UT professors poison the minds of young students with Critical Race Theory. We banned it in publicly funded K-12 and we will ban it in publicly funded higher ed. That’s why we created the Liberty Institute at UT.
Let me be the first to congratulate the disgraced former president, Donald Trump, on his apparently becoming the new governor of Texas.
Pitiful yet predictable that
@GregAbbott_TX
has capitulated to Trump yet again.
#txlege
NEW: After former President Trump called for an audit of Texas election results, despite winning the state by around 600k votes, the SOS says they will audit Harris, Dallas, Tarrant and Collin counties
SOS says it's the 2 largest R and D counties, though, Biden won TarCo
(
@wfaa
)
Proud of my desk mate,
@GeneforTexas
, who just passed HCR 66, condemning racism against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. We’ve seen far too many acts of hate and violence against the AAPI community.
#txlege
First of several***
#txlege
Received calls today complaining of Republican operatives staked outside
@TxDPS
Driver License offices — Hurst and Fort Worth — talking to citizens about abortion and trying to register voters. So, I went to see for myself.
Great news. Texas is one of the 11 states. Thank you,
@POTUS
, for expanding the federal role in the vaccination effort. It’s desperately needed.
#txlege
FEMA is deploying or supporting vaccination sites in at least 11 states after President Biden ordered the government to get on a war footing in his mission to vaccinate 300M Americans by summer's end.
This shameful pardon marks a new low for Abbott, which is really saying something.
“Abbott’s demand for a review of Perry’s case followed pressure from former Fox News star Tucker Carlson…”
Truly pathetic.
#txlege
Governor,
We need you to focus on the job in front of you.
7,000 new
#COVID19
cases in Texas - today.
Hospitalizations spiking.
We need action. Require masks statewide. Return control to local leaders. Do SOMETHING.
Trying to change the subject won’t cut it.
#txlege
Complete nonsense.
The moms you claim to be so concerned about have coverage today thanks to
@POTUS
. You & Dan Patrick refused to support 12 month coverage.
The reason millions of others still don’t have access to healthcare is because you refused to expand Medicaid.
#txlege
The Biden Admin.'s refusal to approve Texas' post-partum Medicaid extension for mothers is unconscionable.
This move risks robbing mothers of services Texas specifically extended for them post-partum.
Biden must direct his admin. to reverse this or get ready for a fight w/ TX.
R County Judge Whitley: “I’m not hearing anything from the state…It’s all ‘personal responsibility.’ Well, if everything’s a matter of personal responsibility, why have any laws?”
Good question, Judge.
#txlege
The fight for democracy will not be air conditioned.
Come outside and join us at the Texas Capitol in Austin this Sunday at 5:30PM.
We rally for voting rights or we lose them.
RSVP here:
My jaw dropped. How was this not done on Sunday, when it was obvious we had a critical gas shortage?
Also, no mention of accountability for Public Utility Commission, whose leadership he appoints.
PUC oversees ERCOT, which he wrongly called a “private entity.”
#txlege
Texas is at 366 tests per 100k population. Not only does it appear we are dead last, only two other states are under 400 tests per 100k: Georgia & Kansas. This is simply unacceptable and should be unacceptable to all Texans, every member of
#txlege
and to
@GovAbbott
.
This is deeply concerning. And while 13% is a lot, it’s almost certainly not the complete picture, considering Texas still ranks dead last — # 50 — in testing, per capita.
#txlege
Thanks to the continuing failed leadership of
@GovAbbott
, hospital costs for treating unvaccinated COVID patients likely exceeded $280 MILLION in Texas — in June-July alone.
#txlege
To all who are distraught over proud lawbreaker Shelley Luther getting 7 days in jail, I'd like to introduce you to Crystal Mason.
Sentenced to 5 YEARS in prison for erroneously casting a provisional ballot while on probation.
#txlege
The
#txlege
is very busy today trying to solve problems that do not exist.
That's not really different from most days here.
The difference today is that this particular bill is about picking on vulnerable Texas kids. It's shameful.
#SB25
#LetKidsPlay
Based on feedback my colleagues and I are hearing from parents and teachers, THE MOST IMPORTANT THING
@GovAbbott
can say in State of State Address would be that he's directing TEA to:
1. Cancel STAAR test
2. Fully fund schools by continuing "hold harmless" provision.
#txlege
Vouchers are a scam that threaten everything we love about our public schools.
We must all come together—Democrats and Republicans, parents and teachers, rural Texans and urban Texans—to protect our neighborhood schools.
#txlege
In addition to interesting
#txgov
numbers, poll shows:
Texans oppose permitless carry, 58%-26%.
Texans think (59-38) leaders not doing enough to prevent gun violence.
The permitless carry bill passed by the House last week is a slap in the face to a majority of Texans.
#txlege
The more we learn about the
@KenPaxtonTX
#Trump
lawsuit, the worse it looks. If you haven't read today's
@nytimes
front page story, you should. Here's my reaction.
#txlege
This editorial has it exactly right.
@GregAbbott_TX
and his new Secretary of State must halt their latest error-ridden voter purge and figure out why their system is so screwed up.
#txlege
Texas must halt voter roll citizenship review now
First, we’re told the provision to gut Souls to the Polls by delaying Sunday voting to 1 pm was a “typo.”
Now, not a single R can say how the part about overturning elections got in the bill.
It would be laughable if it wasn’t all such a blatant attack on democracy.
#txlege
Top Texas House Republicans say they don’t know how the "overturning elections" section made its way into the state's controversial voting bill
#SB7
, denounce it as "horrendous policy" + say they don't plan to revive it in a special.
My latest:
#txlege
It’s going to take all of us working together to beat Ted Cruz.
@ColinAllredTX
is battle-tested and has the broad coalition of support to win.
I have seen him in action in Tarrant County, and I look forward to working with him to build on the momentum we saw today.
#TXSen
TX legislators had a great day of meetings on Capitol Hill, discussing the importance of protecting voting rights in the face of GOP efforts to undermine democracy. Thanks to
@SpeakerPelosi
and
@chuckschumer
for their time, support and leadership.
#txlege
When I earned this Eagle Scout medal 30 years ago, my family didn’t have to pay for it. Neither did my troop.
That’s because a big supporter of the Boy Scouts paid for every Eagle Scout medal himself.
His name was Ross Perot. 🇺🇸 RIP
#txlege
#RossPerot
.
@GregAbbott_TX
has tweeted a lot of offensive things over the years, particularly about minorities in Texas (see “voter fraud,” “border security” etc.). Given the events of the last three weeks, this one has to be the worst.
#txlege
Google Plyler v. Doe.
5 liberals on the Supreme Court ruled that Texas had to provide and fund public education for illegal immigrants.
The next decade, in Texas v. U. S., Federal courts rejected our lawsuit that the federal government should pay for that education cost.
I thought
@GregAbbott_TX
supported law enforcement?
Impeding Border Patrol operations makes their jobs more dangerous.
It also makes it harder to secure the border, which supposedly is the point of Operation Lone Star.
The brazen hypocrisy is astounding.
#txlege
An overnight filing by DOJ at
#SCOTUS
in the concertina wire case lays out Texas’s rather stunning escalation of its efforts to interfere with federal immigration authorities along the US-Mexico border.
Whatever you think of current policy, this is nuts:
“Among those calling for action are Texas state legislators who fled Austin to temporarily foil a GOP push for elections legislation there and came to Washington to make their case directly to Congress.”
#txlege
@TexasHDC
This damning article shows how unfit
@GregAbbott_TX
is to be governor.
He likes to call himself “commander in chief” of TX military.
Real commanders put their troops first.
To Abbott, they’re just extras for his TV ads. Shameful.
#txlege
Texans want to build schools, not walls. This ludicrous proposal from
@realDonaldTrump
and
@DanPatrick
is inhumane and un-Texan. Our focus this session should be on bringing people together, not finding new ways to sow fear and division.
#txlege
In McAllen, Trump says
@DanPatrick
suggested Trump could give Texas "a relatively small amount of money" and the state will help build the wall.
"You do things very well in Texas," Trump says. "I like that idea, so we'll take a look."
This is the kind of ignorant, irresponsible fear-mongering rhetoric that creates hate & division. Has Sheriff Waybourn learned nothing in the aftermath of El Paso tragedy? No elected official should say things like this, especially in a county as diverse as Tarrant.
#txlege
The free market at work.
Obviously, the ideal city to host the MLB All Star Game is Arlington, home to the brand new Globe Life Field!
If
@GovAbbott
and
#txlege
drop the vote suppression bills now, I bet we’d have a good chance of landing this game.
Please tell me we’re not this desperate for HQ relocations that we would celebrate a bankrupt and corrupt political organization that has been the biggest barrier to common-sense gun safety measures for the past 25 years.
#txlege
NRA may be moving to Texas.
From their letter:
“Texas values the contributions of the NRA, celebrates our law-abiding members, and joins us as a partner in upholding constitutional freedom.”
Welcome to Texas—a state that safeguards the 2nd Amendment
Then, the
#txlege
must pull no punches as it conducts a top to bottom investigation into how this happened.
Every aspect of the public and private sector connected to the electric market in Texas needs to be investigated- we need answers, accountability & corrective action.3/3
“Texas is in crisis again, but we don’t have clear leadership to attack the problem. It’s our governor’s responsibility to lead.”
#txlege
@GregAbbott_TX
Texas hospitals are facing a COVID-19 disaster. Gov. Abbott must act