The Texan Podcast - Daily Rundown - May 22, 2024

Starting point is 00:00:00 Howdy folks, today is Wednesday, May 22nd, and you're listening to the Texans Daily Rundown, coming at you from our booth at the Republican Party of Texas Convention in San Antonio. I'm the Texans Assistant Editor Rob Lausches, and here is the rundown of today's news in Texas politics. Republicans across Texas are descending upon San Antonio this weekend as the largest political gathering in the world convenes for the Texas GOP's biennial 2024 convention. Thousands of activists and hundreds of elected officials will all be in one place, a set of circumstances sure to drag all the quirky, knock-down, drag-out ideological brawling for which Texas politics has become known. Be sure to follow the Texan as we cover the chair race,

Starting point is 00:00:51 statewide official headliners, the rules fight, and the party priorities. In an explosive letter sent to Round Rock Independent School District Superintendent Hafez Assize last month, former RRISD Police Chief Dennis Weiner alleged that a five-year-old student was sexually assaulted on a school bus last month, but that the incident was not reported to police for several days. A failure, he warned, was part of a systemic problem that included district administrators who insisted on having oversight of crime reporting. According to Weiner's letter dated April 30th, the alleged assault took place on Friday, April 2nd, but his department was not notified until the following

Starting point is 00:01:30 Monday afternoon at 4 p.m. Weiner wrote, the principal, area superintendent, senior chief of schools, general counsel, title nine investigator, and you, the superintendent of the district, became aware of the criminal activity on Monday, but none of you reported it to the police. The chief also noted that policies negotiated with Assize, senior chief of schools Natalie Nichols, and other administrators gave campus administrators, quote, discretion over crime reporting. On May 15th, the district placed Weiner on administrative leave until the expiration of his contract. On the following day, he sent a copy of his letter to all members of the RRISD

Starting point is 00:02:12 board. Trustees Mary Bone and Danielle Weston posted the full letter, which does not identify the student or the campus on social media. One of the most interesting races this cycle will involve an internet celebrity versus a tenured congressman in the Republican primary runoff for Texas Congressional District 23. Brendan Herrera, a YouTuber known as The AK Guy, pushed incumbent congressman Tony Gonzalez to a runoff in March. Gonzalez captured 46% of the vote to Herrera's 23%. Since that time, both candidates have taken the opportunity to levy a tax at one another. Herrera's history of pushing the boundaries of politically correct humor online has become a reliable target for Gonzalez. One ad from Gonzalez showed various clips of Herrera's jokes and comments before a mother says straight to the camera, quote,

Starting point is 00:03:03 Brandon Herrera is downright vulgar and offensive. Would you want your kids looking up to this guy? Herrera has hit back on some of Gonzalez's votes in Congress, saying, quote, Tony Gonzalez is lighting our nation's constitution on fire. Make sure it's Tony Gonzalez who goes down in flames. The embattled U.S. Representative Henry Cuellar must wait to know who he will face in the general election for Texas Congressional District 28, as his Republican opponent will be decided in a May 28 primary runoff between Jay Furman and Lazaro Garza Jr. Furman received 44.8% in the March GOP primary and will face Garza, who received 27.1%. While Furman and Garza battle in the Republican

Starting point is 00:03:47 runoff, the incumbent has become embroiled in controversy. Cuellar and his wife have been charged by the U.S. Department of Justice with bribery, unlawful foreign influence, and money laundering. Two of Cuellar's political consultants have pleaded guilty to conspiring with the congressman. The runoff rematch between incumbent Representative Lynn Stuckey and challenger Andy Hopper to represent the residents of Texas House District 64 is growing contentious as it nears a close. According to the official results of the March 5th primary from the Texas Secretary of State, Hopper received 46.7 percent, 851 more votes than Lynn Stuckey, who took 43.3 percent. A third candidate, Elaine Hayes, received 2,528 votes, or 10.04 percent. Stuckey and Hopper were

Starting point is 00:04:38 in a primary runoff two years ago that Stuckey won by less than 100 votes. The two candidates have gathered endorsements from big names in Texas Republican politics. Stuckey won by less than 100 votes. The two candidates have gathered endorsements from big names in Texas Republican politics. Stuckey has been endorsed by Governor Greg Abbott, who joined the representative for a Get Out the Vote event in Denton on Monday, May 20, and former Governor Rick Perry. Hopper won endorsements from Senator Ted Cruz and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. Thanks for listening. To support The Texan, please be sure to visit thetexan.news and subscribe to get full access

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The Texan Podcast - Daily Rundown - May 22, 2024

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