#TXLEGE/#SD30 Special: Fallon's Tantrum Against Luther

"Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves."
Matthew 7:15

We're not sure when this happened, but at some point in the past few days Pat Fallon got up in Shelley Luther's grill:

Thoughts:

• Clearly, Fallon's rattled.

• Fallon's body language, and constant interruptions, is never a good look for a man when talking with a woman.
• It's called browbeating.
• Even if that wasn't Fallon's intent, that's sure as heck what it looks like.

• That being said, the degree to which Luther maintains her poise is impressive.

• Fallon: "So you need to go to jail to be elected, that's your standard."
• No, Pat, that's not what she said.

• Fallon: "I'm 5% in on your race, do you want me to go all in?!?"
• OK, jock boy.
• If Fallon is acting like this much a buffoon at 5%, we'd love to see 100% buffonery.

• Fallon: "Do you understand what sarcasm is?!?"
• Translation: My attempt at gaslighting failed, so now I'm going to retreat by claiming I was never serious to begin with.
• Dear Dudes: We don't know who needs to hear this (besides Pat Fallon), but mansplaining your alleged use of "sarcasm" to a woman is bad.

• Fallon might want to reread this interview with Coach Holtz.

Bottom Line: Sometimes reactions tell you more than the initial action.

#TXLEGE, #SD30 Special: Fallon's slight of hand

"Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?”
Genesis 3:1

Pat Fallon speaking on behalf of Drew Springer:

First things first...wow Pat seems agitated.   Springer's polling must suuuuck.   Just a suspicion.

That being said, Fallon makes several claims about Springer's record that are worth addressing:

• "Voted against the budget"/"Defeated Wendy Davis to pass a pro-life bill" - Fallon's not wrong.  But both of these things happened in 2013.  It's telling that Drew Springer's biggest accomplishments as a legislator are nearly a decade old.
  
  Speaking of budgets, it's certainly the case that Drew Springer voted against the budget in 2013.  But the budget in 2019 was every bit as bad as the budget in 2013.  And both Drew Springer AND Pat Fallon voted for the budget in 2019.
  
  
• Sanctuary Cities - Springer voted for the bill.  But that bill didn't really do much.  It's also worth pointing out that, practically speaking, Austin gutted what little that bill actually did through clever lawyering.

• Property Taxes - Springer voted for the bill in 2019, but he was one of the primary villains killing it behind the scenes two years earlier.

Fallon also takes a dig at Shelley Luther for having not voted in primaries.   What a dumb, irrelevant, argument to make.  The whole reason why Shelley Luther became a thing in the first place didn't emerge until five months ago.

More of the same.

Bottom Line: Fallon wasn't necessarily 'lying,' but he was absolutely framing half-truths in the most self-serving way possible.

#TXLEGE: Fallon's Departure Virtually GUARANTEES Texas Senate Moves (significantly) Left

"A prudent man foresees evil and hides himself;
The simple pass on and are punished."
Proverbs 27:12

Meh:

SULPHUR SPRINGS — State Sen. Pat Fallon, R-Prosper, has won the Republican nomination to replace former U.S. Rep. John Ratcliffe, R-Heath, on the November ballot — and will likely succeed him.

Fallon prevailed Saturday on the first ballot held by county and precinct chairs who had been tasked with replacing Ratcliffe on the November ballot. Fallon won a clear majority of the group, getting 82 votes. The runner-up was former Ratcliffe staffer Jason Ross, who received 34 votes.

The district is solidly red, so Fallon is expected to win in November even though a Democrat, Russell Foster, is also on the ballot.

Congratulations to Pat Fallon. We guess. Although we must confess we find the decision to voluntarily spend time in Washington D.C. to be strange.

But here's where things get really depressing: There is no obvious **good** person lined up to succeed Pat Fallon in the Texas Senate.

Consider the state reps whose districts overlap SD-30:

• Drew Springer -- Gross.  Unfortunately, virtually guarantee that he's running.  Even worse, he's probably the favorite.  Would be Kel Seliger 2.0 with twenty years to get worse.
  

•  James Frank -- Meh.
  

•  Reggie Smith -- Who?!?
  

•  Shelby Slawson (pending) -- Too green.
  

•  Tan Parker -- LOL.
  

•  Phil King -- Meh.

Of those turds, James Frank probably has the most polish.  King and Parker **MIGHT** cross a minimum threshold of acceptability.  But everyone on that list is significantly to the left of Pat Fallon.

Of course, the possiblity exists that someone from completely outside politics might enter the race. We hope that heppens. Because, as you can see, the pickings among current legislators is pretty slim.

Bottom Line: Whatever ultimately happens to Pat Fallon in D.C., you've just injected massive uncertainty into a Texas Senate that had previously been in relatively solid hands.

#TXLEGE, #TXSEN: Fallon BETTER Have Gotten Something

"The end of a thing is better than its beginning;
The patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit."
Ecclesiastes 7:8

Wimp:

State Sen. Pat Fallon, R-Prosper, has decided against a primary challenge to U.S. Sen. John Cornyn.

Fallon revealed the decision Thursday, about a month after he announced at a North Texas Tea Party meeting that he was exploring a run.

"Susan and I wanted to share that I will NOT be a candidate for US Senate in 2020," Fallon said in a statement to friends first shared with The Texas Tribune. "This was a difficult decision as I was personally looking forward to reaching ... thousands of fellow Texans and visiting with them, asking them what their thoughts, concerns and ideas are for our state and our country."

Fallon cited concerns about being away from his family — he has two young sons — as well as the $6 million price tag that he estimated would be the "bare minimum to be competitive for the GOP nomination."

This shouldn't surprise anyone.  Historically, Fallon has talked a bigger game than he's delivered.  There's a reason why we greeted Fallon's original announcement with the word "if."

Several sources have suggested that Fallon was "horse trading."  He made a political threat to get something in return.  It's a plausible hypothesis.

We certainly hope that's the case, because the alternative is too depressing.

Would it surprise anyone if Fallon was just...talking sh...running his mouth?!?  Politicians tend to be cowards.  Furthermore, unlike the "horse trading" hypothesis, the "talking out of his rear end" hypothesis is consistent with the level of political savvy Texas legislators usually demonstrate.

Bottom Line:  Keep an eye on Fallon's committee assignments and which low number bills he carries next session.  Hopefully, this gambit will produce something good.  At this point, however, color us skeptical.

If Fallon's Serious

"He who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much; and he who is unjust in what is least is unjust also in much."
Luke 16:10

Interesting:

Today, State Senator Pat Fallon (R-Prosper) said he would explore challenging incumbent Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) in the Republican primary for U.S. Senate.

Fallon said he would launch an exploratory committee, and told The Texan, “I want to have an open and honest conversation with GOP primary voters to see if there is a groundswell of support for a primary challenge for U.S. Senate.”

A former Frisco City Council member, Fallon was elected to the Texas State House in 2012. He served there until 2017 when he announced he would challenge incumbent Sen. Craig Estes (R-Wichita Falls) in the Republican primary.

This is mostly good.

Obviously, John Cornyn's a terrible U.S. Senator.  Equally obvious, despite being terrible, John Cornyn's never received a credible primary challenge.  So, good on Pat Fallon for positioning himself to run a credible campaign.

Two cheers.

Still.

While Fallon has been historically one of the more conservative members of the legislature, with the exception of his vote for Scott Turner in 2015, he's tended to talk a bigger game than he's delivered.

It's unclear if, as a U.S. Senator, Fallon merely intends to vote more conservatively than Cornyn, or whether he's going to push the envelope.

HOWEVER....

Pat Fallon is a sitting member of the Texas Senate.  It just so happens to be the case that the current presiding officer of that chamber has recently taken up the cause of gun control.  We desperately need a sitting TEXAS senator to lead that fight against the Lt. Governor.

If Fallon were to be that Texas Senator, the case for his own promotion to the U.S. Senate would grow infinitely stronger.

Furthermore, it just so happens to be the case that the Lt. Governor in question is supporting Cornyn.

So Pat Fallon has nothing to lose.

Bottom Line: Words on the campaign trail are cheap, but Pat Fallon's current position will offer plenty of opportunity to demonstrate action in the coming months.

#TXLEGE: School District Electioneering Ban Still Moving

"Dishonest scales are an abomination to the Lord,
But a just weight is His delight."
Proverbs 11:1

We were looking for something else in today's posting for the house elections committee, when we noticed the following bill was up:

SB 1569        Fallon                  
Relating to the use of public money and resources by employees of an independent school district to distribute a communication that advocates for or opposes a political measure, candidate, or party; creating a criminal offense.

This bill is in direct response to the shenanigans the educrats pulled during the last election cycle.

It's very welcome.

As a principle, it's (kinda) similar to taxpayer funded lobbying.  At their core, both taxpayer funded lobbying and electioneering by school districts involve taxing all citizens to subsidize one set of political views.  It's compelled speech.

Public subsidies for certain forms of political speech are one of the bigger problems this state faces.  Moving forward, one conclusion we've reached from this session is that they need to be address more systemically.  We fully intended to include school district electioneering in that discussion.  But, if the legislature wants to knock out that one form of subsidy right now, so much the better.

Bottom Line: To be honest, we thought this bill had died weeks ago.  We never thought they'd find the votes to get it out of the Senate.  But, if they could votes in that chamber, maybe they can find them in the house....

#TXLEGE: The Three Most Important Senate Primaries

"So teach us to number our days,
That we may gain a heart of wisdom."
Psalm 90:12

[Note: Sure as heck ain't this one.]

[Note II: Ask us about Seliger's race once we get into the runoff.]

The following three races will determine the course of the Texas Senate next session.

Conservative Incumbent being challenged by RINO:

SD 2: Bob Hall vs. Cindy Burkett

In 2014, Bob Hall knocked off a liberal Republican incumbent on a shoestring budget.  The past two sessions, Bob Hall has kept his word and supported of all aspects of the conservative agenda.  Property tax reform?!? Check.  Border issues?!?  Check.  Pro-Life?!?  Check.  Higher ed. tuition freeze?!?  Check.  The various pro-property rights issues discussed during the 85th special session?!?  Check.  We could go on.

Bob Hall has also shown tremendous leadership raising the profile of electric grid security.  He hosted a major conference on the topic in 2016, and tried to get it added to the 2017 special session agenda.  It's also worth pointing out that, if any Senator is going to be carrying a BITCOIN bill in 2019, it'll probably be Bob Hall.

There's a reason why every major conservative group in Texas has endorsed Bob Hall.

Cindy Burkett, by contrast, is a liberal spendaholic who supports throwing more money into the socialized education status quo.  She went along with house leadership killing property tax reform last session.  Burkett's endorsement list is a fine collection of crony capitalists, fake 'pro-life' organizations, and public sector unions.

Speaking of pro-life, one note: Because Cindy Burkett is in no way, shape, or form a fiscal conservative, she's greatly exaggerating her pro-life record.  While it's true that Burkett has carried some pro-life bills, those bills were toothless as Burkett originally filed them.  Those bills only became meaningful once Burkett was outmanuvered in parliamentary procedure.

OK Incumbent being challenged by Liberal:

SD 17: Joan Huffman vs. Kristin Tassin

Yeah, yeah, yeah, we get it: Joan Huffman isn't perfect.  Her record, especially on the second amendment, leaves something to be desired.  But this race is still a no-brainer.

Kristin Tassin, Huffman's opponent, is a cog in the machine of the socialized education industrial complex.  As such, Tassin supports six figure salaries for government bureaucrats all in the name of "helping the children" [Note: We have a really fun piece of oppo waiting to drop on this one].  But don't dare call her an educrat.

Huffman, meanwhile, has put together a respectable record.  She certainly isn't perfect, but she's mostly conservative on most things most of the time.  As chair of the Senate State Affairs committee, she's also played a key role in advancing any number of conservative priorities.

And yes, Kristin Tassin, you are an educrat who supports six figure salaries for government bureaucrats in the name of "helping the children."

RINO incumbent being challenged by Conservative:

SD 30: Craig Estes vs. Pat Fallon

Often referred to as "Boss Hogg" in the district (behind his back, of course), we often thought of Craig Estes as the Jobba the Hut of the Texas Senate.  Long before the current wave of reports about chronic sexual abuse in the Texas Legislature, Craig Estes was the subject of press reports on this topic.  Estes has also been documented "living large" off of campaign contributions [Note: Isn't it amazing how frequently acts of financial corruption and acts of sexual c orruption are committed by the same people].

But Estes record on the issues isn't much better.  The 17 year incumbent consistently finds himself among the most liberal Republicans in the Texas senate.  Specifically, Estes supports big spending and he's soft on the border.  While Estes did support property tax reform this past session, that's a fairly new development and it's an open question whether a re-elected Estes would continue to do so.

Finally, as it relates to Estes, we have to mention a personal pet peeve: During this past legislative session, Estes took it upon himself to butt into an obscure land dispute in West Austin.  But, to make matters worse, he took the side of the local Austin NIMBY crowd over the side of property rights and the rule of law.  From this author's perspective, the MUNY golf course bill is the #1 reason Craig Estes is a priority.

Pat Fallon, by contrast, is a conservative workhorse.  He doesn't necessarily seek the spotlight, but Pat Fallon shows up when you need him.  As a textbook example: Pat Fallon voted for Scott Turner for speaker in 2015.

Pat Fallon also provided this website with some of the earliest video documentation of left wing protestors admitting they were in the country illegally during the mayhem of last session.

Finally, Pat Fallon played football at Notre Dame; we only bring this up because Texas beat Notre Dame the last time they played.

-------

Bottom Line: Priorities people....

#TXLEGE: Fallon Video confirms Rinaldi's account of #SB4 protesters bragging about illegal status...

"And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."
John 8:32

UPDATE (6/3/2017): See here at the 4:30 mark....


Since yesterday's mayhem, Democrats have attempted to dispute Matt Rinaldi's assertion that the anti-rule of law protesters were openly bragging about their illegal status.  As we mentioned in our post about the incident yesterday, fellow state rep Pat Fallon had uploaded video of the events but there were formatting issues with this website.  We've resolved those and present Fallon's videos (the second one is the worst):

Video #1:



Video #2:



[Note: This is the one where they're openly chanting about being in the country illegally.]

Video #3:



Finally, allow us to add a few personal observations from yesterday.  We didn't take any pictures or video as we observed these events because we didn't think they'd later be in dispute.  But, from memory:

• We were not on the Capitol grounds as most of the craziness occurred; we were at a separate event three blocks away and arrived about 45 minutes later.

• As we were milling through the crowd at their rally (Confession: we wanted to see if there was food), we heard multiple speakers on the South steps of the Capitol bragging about how they were busing in people from "Florida," "New Mexico," and "New York" along with other locations we don't recall.

• Looking North from the back of the Capitol parking garage, we saw buses lined up Trinity st as far as the eye could see.

• It's also worth mentioning that a lot of them were wearing red "Fight for 15" (ie. $15 minimum wage) shirts.

That being said, it's worth pointing out that protests where people openly brag about illegal status happen all the time in Austin.  Here's an example from April 2014; here's an example from November 2016.  We've previously thought about doing the same thing as Rinaldi, but decided against kicking that particular hornet's nest; in the future, now that the nest's been kicked....

Bottom Line: The videos (especially the second) speak for themselves....

#TXLEGE: Democrats threaten Matt Rinaldi's life as regular session gavels out sine die....

"No weapon formed against you shall prosper,
And every tongue which rises against you in judgment
You shall condemn.
This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord,
And their righteousness is from Me,”
Says the Lord.
Isaiah 54:17

Soo...this happened:



Rindaldi explains further:



Pat Fallon adds context:



Note: Fallon also has a Facebook video of the protests that prompted Rinaldi to call ICE as they repeatedly bragged about being in the country illegally.  Unfortunately, due to formatting issues we can't embed that video on this website.  Fallon's original video can be viewed here.

To be fair, Romero disputes Rinaldi's account.  Readers can learn more about Ramon Romero's relationship with the truth here.  Learn more about Poncho Nevarez's relationship with the truth here.

Bottom Line: Good for Rinaldi (and, seriously, follow the link to those Fallon videos)....

Byron Cook's JOKE 'Undocumented Immigrant' Hearing Today

"I know your works, tribulation, and poverty (but you are rich); and I know the blasphemy of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan."
Revelation 2:9

During the Regular Session of the 84th Texas Legisature, HB 4117 by Pat Fallon would have banned Sanctuary Cities.  On March 23rd, Joe Straus referred HB 4117 to Byron Cook's State Affairs Committee.  It died without a hearing.

But now there's an election coming up and Byron Cook has to pretend to care about illegal immigration.

This afternoon, Cook's committee held an interim hearing on the following charge:

Examine state and local laws applicable to undocumented immigrants throughout the State of Texas and analyze the effects of those laws in conjunction with federal immigration laws and the policies and practices followed by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

We caught the second half of the hearing.  Little of substance was accomplished.  The most interesting thing we learned is that the turf wars between local and federal officials we lamented over a year ago continue.   Rural sheriffs pleaded for help while some dude from Houston attempted to give the committee political cover on the issue.  To be honest, we spent more time playing on our cell phone than taking notes.

Speaking of our cell phone, it featured prominently in the most entertaining vignette of the afternoon.  This being Byron Cook's committee, filming and taking pictures by anyone who isn't 'credentialed media' is prohibited.  While that's completely unconstitutional, we weren't in the mood for a discussion over the finer points of the first amendment.  Nonetheless, during a fascinating text message conversation we were having with another member of the Texas House about the open seat on the Texas Railroad commission, the Texas House's Sargent at Arms felt so threatened by the possibility of us using our first amendment right that he scolded us not to take pictures.  That being said, someone really should sue the Texas House on this issue.

Bottom Line: If the Republican 'leadership' of the Texas House of Representatives had any interest in addressing sanctuary cities, they had ample opportunity to do so during the regular session.  They did nothing.  Today's hearing was about posturing for the upcoming election and nothing else.

Thomas McNutt / Byron Cook updates

"A man who has friends must himself be friendly,
But there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother."
Proverbs 18:24

Big news out of Corsicana:

Today I'm proud to announce the endorsement of Cathie Adams, a former chairman of the Republican Party of Texas.

----

"Thomas McNutt is one of the strongest conservative candidates I've met across the entire state. I am so excited about his candidacy and his passion for conservative principles. I am encouraging all of my conservative friends across Texas to support Thomas!" - Cathie Adams

Meanwhile, Empower Texans begins to detail Byron Cook's shenanigans on sanctuary cities:

Last session, State Rep. Pat Fallon (R-Frisco) filed HB 4117, which would have banned cities from adopting laws prohibiting governmental entities under their jurisdiction from cooperating with federal authorities to curb illegal immigration. The bill was read and immediately sent to State Affairs, where Cook let it die without a hearing.

Next, Texas Right to Life:

Byron Cook inexplicably took upon himself the mission of dismantling the Pro-Life agenda of the Texas Legislature – in some cases singlehandedly.

One of the many stains on Cook’s dismal record from the 84th Legislative Session was his sabotage of SB 575. Senate Bill 575 would have prohibited insurance plans from paying for abortions. Cook sabotaged this common-sense measure by purposely stalling the bill for two weeks, and then demanding the bill be weakened beyond recognition prior to allowing passage out of his Committee and onto the House floor. Because of Cook’s decisive anti-Life actions, the deaths of preborn Texans will continue to be footed by insurance premiums paid by Pro-Life Texans who denounce the practice.

Sadly, the preborn are not the only group of vulnerable Texans Cook abandoned during session. Cook also worked against legislation that would protect hospital patients from being killed by their doctors under the legal protection of the Texas Advance Directives Act (TADA). Cook again served as the primary impediment to Pro-Life Priority Bills when he categorically denied even holding a hearing for two patient protection bills (HB 2949 and HB 3414). These widely supported bills had numerous co-authors and the support of many Pro-Life groups, as measures that would have protected vulnerable patients from secret or unwanted Do-Not-Resuscitate Orders and from the removal of Life-sustaining treatment based on anti-Life “quality of life” ethics.

 How many children will die because Byron Cook played politics with pro-life legislation?!?

Texas House votes to censor filming legislators

"Deliver my soul, O Lord, from lying lips
And from a deceitful tongue."
Psalm 120:2

One of the most egregious provisions of Byron Cook's re-written "ethics" bill currently being debated on the Texas House floor would open citizen journalists to lawsuits if they film a legislator without the legislator's knowledge.  Representative Matt Schaefer offered an amendment to strip that provision from the bill.  During the debate, Cook and Representative Jessica Farrar whined about how it was just so dadgum mean to do ambush interviews of legislators without knowing who signs their paychecks.

Schaefer, David Simpson, and Jonathan Stickland, meanwhile, explained how filming legislators is a tool for citizen journalists to hold elected officials accountable; Pat Fallon explained that, even if the elected officials don't like it, ambush interviews come with the territory.

The amendment failed 66-74:

RV# 1539 — Unofficial Totals: 66 Yeas, 74 Nays, 3 Present, not voting

Yeas - Anderson, C.; Anderson, R.; Ashby; Bell; Bohac; Bonnen, G.; Burns; Burrows; Canales; Craddick; Crownover; Cyrier; Dale; Davis, S.; Fallon; Fletcher; Flynn; Frank; Goldman; Gonzales; Guillen; Gutierrez; Huberty; Hughes; Keough; King, P.; King, S.; Klick; Koop; Krause; Landgraf; Larson; Laubenberg; Leach; Lozano; Metcalf; Meyer; Miles; Murphy; Murr; Paddie; Parker; Paul; Phelan; Price; Rinaldi; Rodriguez, E.; Sanford; Schaefer; Schofield; Shaheen; Simmons; Simpson; Smithee; Spitzer; Springer; Stickland; Thompson, E.; Tinderholt; Turner, E.S.; VanDeaver; White, J.; White, M.; Wray; Zedler; Zerwas

Nays - Allen; Alonzo; Alvarado; Anchia; Aycock; Bernal; Blanco; Bonnen, D.; Button; Clardy; Coleman; Collier; Cook; Darby; Davis, Y.; Deshotel; Dukes; Dutton; Elkins; Faircloth; Farias; Farrar; Frullo; Galindo; Geren; Giddings; González; Guerra; Harless; Hernandez; Herrero; Howard; Hunter; Isaac; Israel; Johnson; Kacal; King, K.; King, T.; Kuempel; Longoria; Lucio; Márquez; Martinez; Martinez Fischer; McClendon; Miller, D.; Miller, R.; Minjarez; Moody; Muñoz; Naishtat; Nevárez; Oliveira; Otto; Phillips; Pickett; Raney; Raymond; Reynolds; Riddle; Rodriguez, J.; Romero; Rose; Schubert; Sheffield; Smith; Thompson, S.; Turner, C.; Villalba; Vo; Walle; Workman; Wu

Present, not voting - Mr. Speaker; Sheets(C); Turner, S.

Absent - Burkett; Capriglione; Farney; Keffer; Morrison; Peña; Stephenson

The Texas Tax Day Tea Party Rally

"And He said to them, “Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s."
Matthew 22:21

Texas State Capitol -- Today's tea party rally at the Capitol drew a crowd of several hundred; selected videos are posted below.

Rep. Pat Fallon:



Highlights:

• Move election day to tax day.

• Don't believe a word any elected official says.

• "If we don't stay active, we're doomed."

Michael Quinn Sullivan (Empower Texans):

Highlights:

• We have to be engaged or you get the government you ignore.

• We're winning but we haven't won yet.

• No one wanted to show up at our events six years ago.

• Now they're fighting over which taxes to cut.

Brandon Darby (Breitbart Texas):

Highlights:

• Tea Party has succeeded where far left failed.

• Breitbart would be proud.

• Everyday people are the only ones who are going to fix the border.

• A lot of Mexico corruption is also in South Texas.

Lt. Governor Patrick:

Highlights:

• They know we're watching.

• Today, technology allows like minded folks to network.

• We've changed the look of the Republican party.

• Senate has passed 14 priority bills.

• Texas is now the 12th largest economy in the world.

Rep. Jonathan Stickland:

Highlights:

• Texas House has not delivered.

• The process is getting micromanaged.

• The House is moving slower than ever.

• In less than 7 weeks, these idiots go home.

• Pre-K = Cradle to grave daycare.