The Texan Podcast - Daily Rundown - July 10, 2025

Episode Date: July 10, 2025

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Howdy folks, today is Thursday, July 10th and you are listening to the Texans Daily Rundown. I'm the Texans Assistant Editor Rob Lauschus and here is the rundown of today's news in Texas politics. First up, State Senator Angela Paxton has confirmed reports that she has filed for divorce on quote, biblical grounds from her husband, Attorney General Ken Paxton. Angela Paxton wrote on social media

after reports of the divorce were made public by KUT, quote, I believe marriage is a sacred covenant and I have earnestly pursued reconciliation. But in light of recent discoveries, I do not believe that it honors God or is loving to myself, my children, or Ken to remain in the marriage. Accusations of infidelity against Ken Paxton began swirling during his nationally publicized

impeachment trial in 2023. Visit thetexan.news to read reporter Cameron Abrams' full breakdown of the story. Next, emailed letters began hitting the inboxes of most Texas House Republicans on Wednesday night, providing formal endorsements from President Donald Trump that had been promised during the regular session earlier this year. The letter has a paid-for-by disclaimer from Never Surrender, Inc., the president's leadership pack.

It reads the same for every recipient, save for individualized names. These formal endorsements were promised during a closed-door House GOP caucus meeting ahead of the first floor vote on Governor Greg Abbott's priority education savings account plan. During that meeting, Trump called in via Abbott and pushed the caucus to stay the course and vote for Senate Bill 2, which took the air out of the opposition that felt like it had gained ground, primarily with its attempt to put the item up for a statewide referendum. A couple of weeks later, Abbott delivered the news to the caucus that Trump would indeed

endorse, news that also included an endorsement of Speaker Dustin Burroughs, not just for re-election to the House, but also as Speaker. In other news, the Harris County Commissioner's Court has revised the prioritization of hundreds of projects approved by voters in a 2018 bond referendum, now in jeopardy due to a budget shortfall, and voted to support those that have funding partners for completion. After Harris County Flood Control Executive Director Tina Peterson confirmed that the county faced an estimated shortfall of 1.34 billion dollars at a public meeting last month. Commissioners voted to prioritize projects that ranked in the top quarter according to a controversial prioritization framework that adds focus

to areas with lower average incomes and more racial minorities. Commissioner Tom Ramsey brought the issue back to the court this week, warning that last month's action would jeopardize projects with matching funds from the Federal Housing and Urban Development Community Development Block Grants administered through the Texas General Land Office. Also, an illegal alien from Honduras who smuggled thousands of aliens into the United States was sentenced on July 9th to 10 years in prison in the Western District of Texas.

According to a United States Department of Justice release, Enil Edil Mejia Zuniga, age 34, admitted to smuggling between 2,500 to 3,000 aliens into the United States over the span of two years. His alien smuggling organization charged between $6,500 and $12,000 per alien. After serving his prison sentence, Magia Zuniga will face three years of supervised release and has been ordered to pay a $4,500 fine. Two of his co-defendants are awaiting sentencing. As the person who directed the smuggling operations, the defendant admitted that he profited $30,000 for every 10 illegal aliens who arrived at the Rio Grande River and another $30,000 if they made it to San Antonio. Last but not least,

the city of Waco has agreed to allow a pastor and his parishioners to engage in religious speech during events held in public parks. The issue arose when Pastor Ronnie Holmes of the Church of the Open Door in Waco and some of his church members were seeking to share their faith last October at the Out on the Brazos Festival, hosted by the Waco Pride Network, that, quote, celebrates the greater Waco LGBTQ plus community and its allies." Holmes and his fellow church members sought to hand out small cards and engage in small group conversations

with others about Christianity. After about an hour, members of the Waco Police Department arrived and allegedly moved the group to a restricted speech zone in the park, a 10 by 20 foot zone marked off by cones about 50 yards away from the core event area. Thanks for listening. To support the Texan, please be sure to visit thetexan.news and subscribe to get full access to all

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