Now that you know how taxpayers fared in the 88th legislative session on transportation/toll issues, see how your state lawmakers voted specifically by viewing our Report Card from the 88th regular session. Time to fire some state lawmakers!

 There were 27 bills used to determine the grades of the 88th Legislature. Not all legislators voted on all 27 bills. Some were strictly committee votes, others were a vote by the full House or full Senate, but might not have made it to a floor vote in the opposite chamber.

Every lawmaker was notified prior to each vote of TURF’s opposition and/or support of these bills and why.

THE BREAKDOWN:

70% of legislature earned an F

16% earned an A or B

HOUSE –

35% of House Republicans earned an F

78% of House Republicans got a D or F

13% of House Republicans earned an A or B

Top scoring House Republicans were: Briscoe Cain, Terri Leo-Wilson, Matt Schaefer, Shelby Slawson, & Valoree Swanson. 

All but ONE Democrat earned an F (Rep. Christian Manuel of HD-22 was the lone D) 

SENATE –

85% of Senate Republicans earned an A or B

Top Republican Senators were: Paul Bettencourt, Bob Hall, Bryan Hughes, Lois Kolkhorst, Mayes Middleton, Charles Schwertner, & Kevin Sparks

Three Republican Senators earned C’s

Lowest scoring Republican Senators were: Donna Campbell, Tan Parker, & Robert Nichols

100% of Senate Democrats earned an F

Time to hold our elected officials ACCOUNTABLE!

Be anxious for nothing; in all things by prayer & supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. Phil. 4:6

I dare not ignore this teachable moment for my Christian brothers and sisters, my fellow patriots. My prayer is that it helps you prepare for very tough sledding ahead.  You must be able to keep your wits about you!

Predictable as the sun coming up tomorrow, a fair amount of hysteria has been driven into my inbox and phone the last few days by Rep. Matt Schaefer’s announcement that he will not seek re-election to the Texas House.

Yes, I was aware of Matt’s decision. 

No, I was not blind-sided.  Matt told me his news some time ago in confidence, which dictated that I WAIT until he was ready to make his announcement.

Ya’ll should know by now that I do not tell everything that I know as soon as I know it. That is called discretion. 

Matt knows what he is doing, and he is as concerned about this district and Texas as he has ever been. 

Seeking God’s will to set priorities

For those of you unaware, Matt’s father has been very ill for a long time. His precious wife has also had significant health challenges.  They have two precious young children.

Matt was able to keep his wits about him during the 88^th session, carrying a tremendous burden that would have broken men and women of a weaker faith. Matt KNOWS Jesus and his heart follows hard after his Lord.

I am confident that Matt sought God’s will about his future, came to a peaceful conclusion, and has acted on that direction and awaits further directions. 

Matt Schaefer was disappointed in many things this session, but his spirit was not crushed.  He’s a man who strives to stay tuned into what the Lord is saying to him.  Schaefer knows that it is foolish to esteem his own plans and ways above those of God.

We should all come to grips with that. Instead of rushing to the phone and social media, go to the King’s Throne.  Spend some time there.  It will refresh your troubled soul.

Finding the Next HD 6 Representative

Since Texas House District 6 is my HOME district, I do not take the quest to find Rep. Schaefer’s successor lightly, but neither am I wringing my hands and staying awake at night.

This seat has been held by conservatives since 1998 when Sharon Emmert and I ran the late, great patriot Leo Berman’s uphill race to successfully defeat a 12-year incumbent with a better than 80% name ID. 

We defeated big money, and we defeated sitting Texas Gov. George W. Bush who came to Tyler to campaign for the incumbent.  We did that with God’s help and a lot of hard work.  It was a David and Goliath race if there ever was one! Representative Berman was succeeded by Matt Schaefer in 2013.

The sky has NOT fallen.

As we have done for 15 years, Grassroots America and I will exert due diligence in our candidate vetting process for Rep. Matt Schaefer’s House replacement. As we go about our due diligence, we will pray for God’s direction.  We want to know God’s will above all else. 

People who do not live in this district are perfectly welcome to do whatever they think they must to pre-judge and dissect any and all candidates in this race. Go right on ahead.

As for Grassroots America, we will make every effort to gather all of the FACTS. Wisdom dictates that we follow the warning in Proverbs 18:13, “He who answers before he hears [the facts], it is folly and shame to him.”

A calm spirit relies on God – not the whims, schemes and divinations of man.

Having a personal code of always going the extra mile – and then some – produces temperance, focus, self-control, diligence, and the mental strength to overcome the predictable plagues and tyrannies of:

• discord profiteers
• unbridled hysteria
• randomness
• rumormongers, and
• impulsive decision-making.

Submission to these forms of distraction does not ensure wise decision-making.

Seeking Godly wisdom is acting wisely!

Diligence is a determined combination of hard work, patience, and perseverance.

Wisdom – not hysteria – blesses diligence.

I pray you think about this in the context of all candidates for every office and mind how you go,

The following project is the initiative of Mark Montgomery and the Bulverde Spring Branch Conservative Republican PAC. We also thank SREC SD 25 Chris Byrd for his assistance.

Grassroots America is happy to assist them in getting this project out across Texas because we appreciate their initiative and agree with their reasoning.
 
In fact, we agree so much that our Board of Directors unanimously cast a vote of “No Confidence” in Texas House Speaker Dade Phelan.
 
Welcome to Preserving & Advancing Patriot Conservatism!

A majority of the Orange County Republican Executive Committee voted 14-6 to censure Dade Phelan on July 13. Orange County is the largest county in Phelan’s district.

Are you tired of Dade blatantly disregarding the platform of the Republican Party of Texas, ignoring most conservative legislative priorities, and the will of the voters? Tired of him allowing the Democrats to run the Texas House? Tired of him killing good bills with Dem committee chairs and Dem points of order? Do you approve of his “under the influence” performance from the Speaker dais or his approved banana republic-style process for impeachment of Paxton?

If you are “fed up,” make your voice heard by joining this letter campaign “Resign Dade Phelan!” Thousands of grassroots conservatives – Republican Primary voters – should tell him they are fed up with his embarrassing performance and roadblocking of conservative bills.

The letters will be hand delivered to Dade Phelan. Copies of the Phelan letter will be provided to Lt. Governor Dan Patrick’s office and to each State Representative to inform them of our grievances and our actions. 

Join this statewide letter campaign
AND the Republican Party of Texas
in condemning the actions of Speaker Phelan!

 
Texas deserves better than Dade Phelan.

ACTION:

1.  Click the link below to print the letter that will be hand delivered to Phelan.
 
2.  Fill in ALL blanks at the bottom. Incomplete letters will not be used.
 
3.  Sign only in BLUE ink. Signatures in other colors disqualify the letter. 
 
4.  Make this a project! Print letters and collect signatures in blue ink!
 
5.  Mail your completed letters to the address below by Friday, August 11!
 

This is a call-to-action regarding the Texas Senate Jury trial of Ken Paxton, impeached by the Texas House on May 27, 2023.
 
Background
The Texas Senate will hold the impeachment trial against Attorney General Ken Paxton no later than Aug. 28 and will require a two-thirds majority vote for conviction in order to remove Paxton from office.
 
The Texas House approved the following 12 House Reps. who will serve as prosecutors during the trial:
 
Rep. Andrew Murr, R-Junction, chair
Rep. Ann Johnson, D-Houston, vice chair
Rep. Charlie Geren, R-Fort Worth
Rep. Joe Moody, D-El Paso
Rep. Terry Canales, D-Edinburg
Rep. Jeff Leach, R-Allen
Rep. Oscar Longoria, D-Mission
Rep. Morgan Meyer, R-Dallas
Rep. Briscoe Cain, R-Houston
Rep. Cody Vasut, R-Angleton
Rep. David Spiller, R-Jacksboro
Rep. Erin Elizabeth Gámez, D-Brownsville
 
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick named seven senators to serve on a special rules committee for the Senate’s impeachment trial. The chair will be Sen. Brian Birdwell, R-Granbury and Sen. “Chuy” Hinojosa, D-McAllen, will serve as vice chair. Other members are Sens. Brandon Creighton, R-Conroe, Pete Flores, R-Pleasanton, Joan Huffman, R-Houston, Phil King, R-Weatherford, and Royce West, D-Dallas. The Senate will consider impeachment rules on June 20. The trial must start by August 28.

The Texas Constitution allows for impeachment but what do subsequent statutes and court rulings indicate?

First, Texas statute addresses acts committed before the most recent election. Texas Government Code 665.081 has been referred to as the “forgiveness doctrine” since it defines respect for the electoral decisions of voters: 
 
“Sec. 665.081.  NO REMOVAL FOR ACTS COMMITTED BEFORE ELECTION TO OFFICE.  (a)  An officer in this state may not be removed from office for an act the officer may have committed before the officer’s election to office.”
 
In 1924, the Texas Supreme Court made this point in Reeves v. State of Texas Ex Rel. Mason, 267 S.W. 666 (Tex. 1924).  Click here to read, paying particular attention to the 3^rd and 4^th paragraphs from the end of the document.
 
Texas House impeachment process deeply flawed

Texas House impeachment procedures were inadequate and rushed, with witnesses testifying without being put under oath and no cross-examination of witnesses.  We learned this during questioning of State Rep. Andy Murr (R–Kerrville), Chair of the House General Investigating Committee, by State Rep. Matt Schaefer (R–Tyler). Oddly, key people cited by the investigation were never even called as witnesses. Click here to read the exchange between Schaefer and Murr recorded in the House Journal starting on page 5635. If you continue to read, you will see further questioning of the process by Reps. Tinderholt and Schatzline.

Take Action – Contact Republican Senators
Urge Republican Senators to focus on the law and to contrast that with the rushed “backroom” House process as the Senate conducts their own due diligence.

Urge them to avoid any appearance of merely providing cover for their Republican House colleagues who refused to proceed with transparency, due process, and time for Representatives to study the matter before voting.  

Texans should be able to trust the actions of Republicans to comply with the law as they embark on such a sobering and serious matter as removing a statewide official from office. Republican Senators must not yield to media, lobbyists, or Uni-party operatives to carry out this serious judicial procedure. 

Action 1: Write an encouraging and respectful personal “snail mail” letter to Republican Senators expressing your concerns. Why? Your personal “snail mail” letters in hand-addressed envelopes get attention because they are so rare!  Time to message them the old-fashioned way! Click here to find their addresses.

Action 2: Email the Republican Senators. Why? Don’t put all your eggs in the postal delivery basket! Make sure these Republican Senators receive your encouragement!  Click here to email all Republican Senators.

Be sure to remember that Texas State Senators cannot reply back to you or comment on the case.  (See the inserted graphic of their May 27 statement above.)

Thank you so much for taking action when you are tired of Austin and tired of political noise in general!

Praying for Truth and Righteousness to prevail in all things,

Below JoAnn’s statement and Rep. Schaefer’s statement is a CALL to ACTION.  JoAnn asks that you take the time to contact the Republican State Representatives and Republican Senators.  Let them know Texans deserve the facts and the truth – not a bogus impeachment hearing where witnesses and evidence are hidden from our Representatives. We’ve made the process easy, and it will only take minutes to help stop utter treachery.

JoAnn’s statement:
“I remain out of state with family responsibilities and cannot instantly answer hundreds of emails, texts and calls.  
 
“There’s also this principle called “due diligence” and it is my responsibility to make sure Grassroots
America has made every attempt to conduct due diligence before we release statements. If due diligence is out of our reach because the information is protected, then I look to TRUSTED sources – not hotheads or those who are professional discord profiteers.
 
“My favored standard on all things is Proverbs 18:13: “He that answers a matter before he hears it, it is folly and shame unto him.”  That means before I start declaring guilt or innocence, I want to see the facts.  We try extremely hard not to make decisions based solely on emotion or on who we like or don’t like. Facts matter. Truth matters. Process matters. If a process is so flawed that it will NOT yield evidence upon which one can accurately discern the facts in order to get to the Truth, then the process is too flawed to trust.  
 
“State Representative Matt Schaefer conducted and provided the due diligence for which we were looking.  His statement is below.  I recommend that you read it, re-read it, and learn from it.  This is a WISE way of approaching such a grave matter as removing someone from office – whether you personally support that person or not. 
 
“Due process, transparency, and access to witnesses and evidence should be the standard in the Texas House but there is now abundant evidence the standards are much too low there.”  JoAnn Fleming, Executive Director

May 26, 2023

Rep. Matt Schaefer’s statement on the impeachment proceedings against Attorney General Ken Paxton:

“I have grave concerns with the process that has been used in the impeachment investigation of Attorney General Ken Paxton.

Under the direction of Speaker Phelan, the House Committee on General Investigating has conducted its business for many weeks outside the knowledge of rank and file members of the Texas House. To my knowledge not a single member of the Texas House has interviewed, or directed questions to a single witness, and that includes members of the General Investigating Committee. All interviews were conducted by hired staff.

Nor have any transcripts of interviews with witnesses conducted by committee staff been provided to the members of the full House. Nor have members been provided with substantiating documents.

To be clear, the full Texas House has not heard any testimony from witnesses, nor have we been provided transcripts of such testimony.

As I write this, I cannot determine whether those witnesses were under oath when they were interviewed by staff. I asked two members of the committee and they did not know the answer. Furthermore, it is the stated intent of Speaker Phelan and Chairman Murr that no direct evidence will be provided to the full House when the articles of impeachment are called up for consideration.

Texas Government Code Sec. 665.005 states that the full house may compel testimony. The only transcript that has been provided to the full House was the transcript of staff members of the General Investigating Committee presenting an account of their findings to the committee on May 24th, 2023. After speaking to the parliamentarian of the House, reading the transcript, and asking questions to some members of the General Investigating Committee, I believe this process is being rushed. I do not believe that members of the House have a good understanding of the adequacy, legality, or fairness of the impeachment process.  We are being asked to vote on impeachment tomorrow, Saturday, May 27th while in the midst of considering the House budget, and many other legislative items of great importance.

I am deeply disturbed by the way this is being handled. Political considerations seem to be involved.

The weight of the decision we face as members of the Texas House of Representatives is enormous. The practical consequence of impeaching the Attorney General is to overturn an election decided by the voters of Texas. Many (but not all) of the allegations in the impeachment resolution were known to some extent by the voting public at the time of the election.

I publicly opposed Ken Paxton’s re-election in the Republican primary, and I called out his very serious moral and legal failings. But if it is right to impeach Ken Paxton, it is being done in the wrong way. Barring a drastic change in the nature of the House proceedings on impeachment, I will be voting no.

I will vote no because I do not have confidence in the procedure. This impeachment procedure may be a significant departure from the due process considerations afforded during similar proceedings in Texas history. I cannot vote to impeach when the members of the full House have had no direct access to witnesses or supporting documents, and have had no time to properly prepare and understand the matters in question.

The simple truth is that the evidentiary basis to impeach Attorney General Paxton has not been properly established.

Process matters.”

Matt Schaefer
State Representative, District Six

Click for Downloadable/Printable PDF of Rep. Schaefer’s Statement

Contact every Republican State Representative and State Senator by Email and follow up with a call to their office telling them that Process Matters and the Texas Legislature shouldn’t operate like the Banana Republic that DC has become.