Good morning –
Winston Churchill once said, “Never give in, never give in, never; never; never; never.†Easy to say, but what about when you’re really, really discouraged by feckless politicians?
Here is today's Texas Minute. – Michael Quinn Sullivan
In a hearing before the Senate’s Judiciary Committee earlier this week, U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz pressed for congressional term limits – three terms (6 years) for House members and two terms (12 years) for senators. TownHall.com has the details.
In the Republican primary challenge to Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, then-Sen. Dan Patrick said, “The only thing you need to know about the lieutenant governor’s current budget is that every Democrat praised and voted for it.†Voters agreed and ousted Dewhurst. Fast forward to the results of the 2019 legislative session, where 12 percent growth in the state budget – which Lt. Gov. Patrick is praising – received the vote of every Democrat. Cary Cheshire writes conservatives still agree with the standard Dan Patrick set five years ago.
How did your state representative’s Fiscal Responsibility Index rating mesh up with the rest of the House? Find out below...
Two Democrat judges in Republican Williamson County wanted to fly the LGBT gay-pride flag with the U.S. and Texas flags on county property. But, as Jacob Asmussen reports, the county commissioners unanimously rejected the proposal this week, saying only the U.S. and Texas flags can fly on their public buildings.
Despite the decision, one of the judges – Stacy Hackenberg – told an Austin television station she plans to do what she wants with the LGBT flag in her courtroom.
Friday Reflection
Recently, my teenage son – Flash – asked me to participate in a 5K race with him. I used to run for miles and miles and sprint 5Ks. Today, I aggressively jog.
I know what he was really saying: “Dad, will you drive me to the race so I can speed past you, and then be eating doughnuts in the truck when you finally finish?†So, of course, I agreed.
A quarter of the way through, my knee was bugging me. Then the other. Gotta keep going. There was a lovely spot where it would have been nice to sit and rest, perhaps read for a bit. Can’t stop. There were all these people pushing through. One fellow had mentioned before the race it was his first time doing a 5K. A nearby lady’s t-shirt proclaimed she was a cancer survivor. How could I stop?
Discouragement, like cancer, spreads; it’s malignancy infecting everything it touches. I couldn’t contribute to that, could I?
I was reminded of the words of Paul in Hebrews 12, “And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us...â€
The most important word there isn’t run – it’s perseverance.
We are called to persevere, to keep going. Perseverance isn’t an issue in good times; it’s about when times are tough.
That’s even more true in the fight for liberty in 2019 than in my recent 5K. It’s easy to be discouraged by the faithless and feckless politicians for whom we have spent time, energy, money, and sweat. It’s natural to be pained by their willingness to so easily surrender the values and principles we hold dear.
It’s ok to slow down, to change up the pace, to even walk a few steps. But it’s not OK to give up. It’s not acceptable to stop. We must persevere. We must keep going, keep pursuing, never stopping. Not now, not ever.
The fate of the Republic rests on the perseverance of patriots. As Patrick Henry once proclaimed, “The battle, sir, is not to the strong alone; it is to the vigilant, the active, the brave.†This American experiment in self-governance will end when the people give up; that is when liberty will die.
A 5K ends after, well, five kilometers. The course of self-governance is never complete. To secure liberty and its blessings we must keep running, keep fighting, keep persevering.
Today in History
On June 21, 1779, Spain declared war on Great Britain and came to the aid of the American Revolution. At the time Texas was a possession of Spain, so supplies supporting the cause of the American colonies routed through Texas into the southern colonies.
Fiscal Index Averages ...
Texas House: 44%
House GOP: 60%
House Democrats: 24%
All Committee Chairs: 42%
GOP Chairs: 51
Democrat Chairs: 25%
Texas Senate: 59%
Senate GOP: 72%
Senate Democrats: 38%
All Committee Chairs: 68%
GOP Chairs: 74%
Democrat Chairs: 39%
