By: Erick Erickson (Diary)  |  April 5th at 03:35 AM  | 

Late Thursday afternoon, the Republican-controlled Texas House of Representatives took the first step toward capitulation on the Obamacare Medicaid expansion. A few hours later, the amendment directing the Texas state healthcare bureaucracy to start preparing for the expansion was reconsidered and rescinded after a handful of conservatives scrambled to rescue the situation — but the fact that it passed at all is a wake-up call. | Read More »

By: Erick Erickson (Diary)  |  January 8th at 01:23 PM  | 

With the vote for Texas House Speaker soon, it is important to remind Texas State House Republicans that current Speaker Joe Straus is neither their friend nor really one of them. In fact, as we reported back in November, RedState has uncovered never-before-seen, profanity-laden e-mails between senior staff and legislative lieutenants of Texas’ liberal GOP House Speaker Joe Straus demonstrating disrespect for, and even hostility towards, grassroots activists and conservative lawmakers. Here again is that information.

By: Erick Erickson (Diary)  |  November 4th at 03:33 PM  | 

“These e-mails from the redistricting process shed new light on just how dismissive the Straus team was of Republican Party and conservative efforts to draw more fair districts – and should serve as a warning bell to the new House that it is time for Straus to go.” RedState has uncovered never-before-seen, profanity-laden e-mails between senior staff and legislative lieutenants of Texas’ liberal GOP House | Read More »

By: Erick Erickson (Diary)  |  July 18th at 04:30 PM  | 

The most difficult thing to explain to your average Republican voter is how people like David Dewhurst, Charlie Crist and all the establishment, ladder-climbing, butt-kissing, near permanent political staff flacks who grow up to be lobbyists they put around them literally hate you, me, and conservative fighters like Ted Cruz. And newsflash — it’s not just Washington, but in state capitols throughout America, just like | Read More »

By: Neil Stevens (Diary)  |  May 26th at 03:00 AM  | 

This week I already called upon Rick Perry to veto the Texas Amazon Tax, and now I’m left to hope that California Democrats will be less stupid than Joe Straus. Sigh. Meanwhile the posturing around the AT&T/T-Mobile deal continues. We find from a press conference with COMPTEL CEO Jerry James that the Rural Cellular Alliance is joining with radical left, George Soros/OSI-funded group Public Knowledge | Read More »

By: Erick Erickson (Diary)  |  May 12th at 12:08 PM  | 

I told you people Joe Straus was bad news. Under his leadership, the Texas House has decided to impose taxes on internet purchases via H.B. 2403. Conservatives in the State House supported it, arguing that it really didn’t change anything in the law, but internet companies and tax advocates are raising all sorts of red flags that Texans are about to get screwed. The legislation | Read More »

By: Drew Ryun (Diary)  |  January 7th at 10:11 AM  | 

As Erick noted earlier today, my fellow Texans have a clear, distinct choice as to who will be the Speaker of the Texas House coming up this Tuesday, January 11th. Let’s be honest. There is a clear cut difference between Joe Straus and Ken Paxton. For more on that, check this site out. In spite of all the ads he has bought on Drudge, NewsMax | Read More »

By: Erick Erickson (Diary)  |  January 7th at 05:00 AM  | 

People of Texas, I put this post as the first post of the day at RedState and at the top of my Morning Briefing because I cannot emphasize just how important it is. The long term future of conservatism and federalism is in your hands today. You will either hurt us as a nation or help us as a nation. Yes, there is a monumental | Read More »

By: Drew Ryun (Diary)  |  December 16th at 03:53 PM  | 

From the diaries by Erick For those of you watching the race for Speaker of the House in Texas, this week saw some fantastic events where local tea party groups gathered in front of their State Rep’s offices and asked them to vote for Ken Paxton over Joe Straus. I love it. This is what our democratic republic is built on-the freedom of assembly and | Read More »

By: Drew Ryun (Diary)  |  December 1st at 11:58 AM  | 

[from the diaries...an important story that needs our attention...] I have said this a lot over the past few months: the American political landscape is going to change because of the tea party movement. It is organic. It is local. It is new to the process. It is engaged and passionate. Best of all, the movement as a whole chalked up some serious victories in | Read More »

By: Erick Erickson (Diary)  |  November 24th at 05:00 AM  | 

I know some of you are a bit perplexed about why I, a guy in Georgia, keep writing about Joe Straus, a liberal elitist in Texas. It is very simple really. Texas is going to make big gains in the census and pick up some congressional districts. Conservatives across the country must be concerned that the man who will have the heaviest hand in drawing | Read More »

By: Drew Ryun (Diary)  |  November 23rd at 08:35 PM  | 

From the diaries by Erick So, let’s recap the TX House Speaker’s race up to this point. Current Speaker Joe Straus is a man whose leadership team has killed Voter ID, threatened Members with redistricting, pushed the local gas tax, killed almost 10 times as many Republican bills in the House, is a man with a 100% rating from NARAL who also happened to give | Read More »

By: razshafer (Diary)  |  November 23rd at 05:08 PM  | 

From the diaries by Erick What’s more corrupt than the lieutenant of a sitting Speaker of the House making threats against Representatives who refuse to support that speaker? Is it possible for someone to go further up the shameless meter than to draw redistricting maps to cut Representatives out of their districts in order to punish them for standing up to a bad politician? If | Read More »

By: Erick Erickson (Diary)  |  November 23rd at 01:53 PM  | 

Well, now I can share more details. Larry Phillips, Vice Chairman of the House Ethics Committee for the State of Texas is the person identified as having threatened members of the State House. If you recall, Speaker Joe Straus sent out Rep. Phillips to tell Republicans if they did not support Straus they would be drawn out of their House Districts. Straus then said he’d | Read More »

By: Erick Erickson (Diary)  |  November 23rd at 06:00 AM  | 

This is amazing. Joe Straus sent out a loyal lieutenant to tell members of the Texas House of Representatives if they dared vote against him as Speaker he would draw them out of their districts. This is a clear threat and highly unethical. But I’m hearing that Straus did not stop there. I’m hearing that more will be coming out on this and it isn’t | Read More »