The Texan Podcast - Daily Rundown - March 3, 2025

Starting point is 00:00:00 Howdy folks, today is Monday March 3rd and you're listening to the Texans Daily Rundown. I'm the Texans Assistant Editor Rob Lauschis and here is the rundown of today's news in Texas politics. First up, the Texas A&M Board of Regents passed a resolution last week that would cancel any upcoming drag show events across the University System's 11 campuses. The resolution states, quote, the board finds that drag show events are likely to create or contribute to a hostile environment for women contrary to system anti-discrimination

Starting point is 00:00:38 policy and Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, as these events often involve unwelcome and objectively offensive conduct based on sex for many members of the respective communities of the universities, particularly when they involve the mockery or objectification of women. The text mentions how drag shows are, quote, inconsistent with the system's mission and core values, end quote. The Texas A&M Board also acknowledges a recent President Donald Trump executive order that aims to establish a binary definition of sex, male and female, based on biological characteristics determined at conception.

Starting point is 00:01:17 Furthermore, Governor Greg Abbott's recent executive order that directed state agencies to recognize only the male and female genders was mentioned in the resolution, that, quote, the use of facilities at the universities for drag show events may be considered promotion of gender ideology in violation of the executive order and the governor's directive. The resolution comes as the Texas A&M Queer Empowerment Council's Draggyland event was scheduled to take place on March 27th. The group has since said that it is exploring alternative options to reschedule the event due to the resolution passing and that a Day of Drag protest

Starting point is 00:01:55 has been scheduled for Thursday, March 6th. Stay tuned for more news updates after this short message. Data centers fuel 364,000 Texas jobs, generate $3.5 billion in state and local taxes, and power essential services like banking, healthcare, and video calls. With 21 connected devices per household and soaring data demands,

Starting point is 00:02:17 these hubs drive Texas' booming economy, shape its technological future, and keep your data here in the U.S. To learn more, visit centerofyourdigitalworld.org. Now returning to your daily Texas news. Next, on Monday morning, the Texas Senate State Affairs Committee took up Senate Bill 3, which would ban THC products from being sold in Texas. The senators also took up SB 1505,

Starting point is 00:02:44 which would modernize the Texas Compassionate Use Program that allows some qualified individuals to be prescribed low THC cannabis by qualified physicians. The committee heard hours of public testimony from families, medical professionals, THC businesses, and military veterans speaking for and against the bill. In other news, the City of Fort Worth has weighed in to Keller Independent School District's consideration of a proposed detachment plan, submitting a letter to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton urging that citizens ought to be allowed to vote on whether the plan should move forward. Fort Worth City Attorney Leanne Guzman

Starting point is 00:03:23 argued that the Texas Education Code sections pertaining to separating a portion of the school district to create a new one requires an election to be held. Last month, Tarrant County District Attorney Phil Sorrels sent a letter on behalf of the County Commissioner seeking Paxton's opinion for quote clarification on the procedural requirements for a school district engaging in the detachment process. Sorrells pointed out that there has been some disagreement among the public and elected officials about whether a resolution passed by the Keller ISD Board of Trustees is sufficient

Starting point is 00:03:56 for the detachment or whether an election is required. Also, Fort Worth will be electing a new city council that will lead the city for the next two years on May 3rd, 2025. 27 candidates will vie for 10 seats on the council. There are at least two seats that will be filled with new candidates, as District 5 incumbent and longest-serving council member Gina Bivens announced during the 2023 city council election race that this would be her last term in office. And District 6 incumbent Jared Williams announced in late January that he would not seek re-election to further pursue Christian ministry. Fort Worth City Council members serve two-year terms, which are not staggered between seats.

Starting point is 00:04:37 City elections take place during odd years. Last but not least, on the latest episode of our Send Me Some Stuff podcast, Cameron Abrams and I explore the most recent email from Elon Musk that shook the federal government, what has been referred to as MAGA 2.0, President Donald Trump's favorite and least favorite forms of political architecture, and more. Visit thetexan.news or wherever you get podcasts to listen now. Thanks for listening. To support The Texan, please be sure to visit thetexan.news and subscribe to get full access to all of our articles,

Starting point is 00:05:11 newsletters, and podcasts.

The Texan Podcast - Daily Rundown - March 3, 2025

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