‘Hard Talk’ Ahead About Uvald, Speaker Dade Phelan Challenges GOP at Texas Legislature Opening

Austin, Texas. The ceremony often dominates the opening day of the state legislature, but some official business is usually decided in the early hours.

In the Texas House of Representatives on Tuesday, MPs overwhelmingly re-elected Dade Phelan as speaker.

The Beaumont Republican then announced a number of legislative priorities in his three-page opening statement. Among them was how lawmakers should respond to the killing of 19 students and two teachers at Robb Primary School in Uvalda last May.

“In memory of these children and teachers, we have a responsibility to make smart and meaningful changes,” Phelan said. “This is going to be a particularly difficult conversation, but this body has proven its ability to make tough conversations in the past. I’m sure we’ll do it again.”

With this, Phelan challenged other Republicans.

Following the 2018 Santa Fe school shooting, state legislators voted to further strengthen the school campus. It is unclear what legislation the Conservatives would support now after Uvalde.

Texas Democrats want to raise the legal age for buying firearms from 18 to 21. The Uvalde school shooter just turned 18 and legally purchased a firearm.

“I think we need to really evaluate who should have guns in our state of Texas. And I am not advocating that we take weapons from people, so if you hear only part of my statement, this is not my statement. My message is that gun control must be handled responsibly,” said Rep. Yvonne Davis, Duncanville.

But Texas conservatives have also said they want to prosecute doctors who change sex in people under 18, rein in district attorneys who don’t prosecute violent criminals, and Phelan said he also wants to protect minors from social media apps.

But what might that legislation look like? Will legislators ban children from using social media apps, as suggested by WFAA State Representative Jared Patterson in July.

State Rep. Craig Goldman, Fort Worth Republican, and the new chairman of the Texas Republican House of Representatives said they supported the idea on the surface.

“Let’s see what it says. We’re at the start of the session and there are so many bills already filed and people are like, “Oh my gosh, look at that bill.” [or] “I can’t believe it” or “go, go, go” while you don’t know if it will even be considered,” Goldman explained.

But lawmakers will also debate how to spend the $32 billion surplus.

Republicans want to use much of it to cut the state’s ever-increasing property taxes.

Rep. Trey Martinez Fischer, a San Antonio Democrat and the new chairman of the Texas House of Representatives Democratic Caucus, said he would like to share the excess cash and let Texans decide whether to spend it on property taxes or something else.

“We have one thing to do in this building in accordance with the constitution. It is to accept the budget. There will be extra money in this budget, so we have the added bonus of actually doing something to help people. When we’re done with this, if the Republicans want to start a culture war and we want to play politics with a dog whistle, let’s close the door and go all night if we have to. If necessary, we will go for the whole weekend, but let’s take care of people’s business first,” Martinez Fischer explained.

It takes a few weeks for the legislature to take action.

On Tuesday morning at 10:00 am, members of the House will engage in a lively debate about the rules that the House will use for the next five months.

Committee leaders will be named in a couple of weeks, after which work will begin on drafting new Texas laws.