The Texan Podcast - Daily Rundown - September 6, 2024

Episode Date: September 6, 2024

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Howdy folks, today is Friday, September 6, and you're listening to the Texans Daily Rundown. I'm the Texans Assistant Editor Rob Lausches, and here is the rundown of today's news in Texas politics. First up, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has sued members of the Travis County Commissioner's Court as well as the County Tax Assessor Collector and Voter Registrar, asking the court to, quote, prevent them from giving a partisan organization thousands of taxpayer dollars to identify the names and addresses of potentially unregistered voters without statutory authority. In the suit, Paxton alleges that Civic Government Solutions, or CGS, a voter outreach company, was hired to conduct services for the county that the county is unauthorized to perform. Paxton's lawsuit explains that CGS CEO Jeremy Smith has made public comments about, quote,

getting people to vote for progressive candidates. Smith is also listed as CEO of Civitech, a company that Axios describes as a progressive data startup. Paxton said in a press release, quote, Travis County has blatantly violated Texas law by paying partisan actors to conduct unlawful identification efforts to track down people who are not registered to vote. Next, with only months left in office as Harris County's top law enforcement officer, Democratic District Attorney Kim Ogg stepped across the political aisle to address a local conservative group on bail reform, crime, and the prosecution of public corruption, but also dispelled rumors that she is planning to run for another office or switch parties. Aug resoundingly lost

her quest for a third term to primary challenger Sean Teer earlier this year. Houston-area Democrats sought to punish her over indictments of Harris County Judge Lena Hidalgo's staff and her vocal opposition to bail policies that allow repeat offenders to remain out of jail while awaiting trial. In her comments to the Kingwood Area Tea Party on Thursday, however, Aug vowed to continue playing a role in the local criminal justice system. She quipped, quote, A friend of the mayor's called me the other day and said the mayor just wanted to compliment you and said you're finishing strong. Tell him I said I'm not finished. Aug voiced support for some reforms while denouncing the practice of releasing violent

suspects on low bond or personal recognizance bonds that require no payment. In other news, this morning at 9.30 a.m., the Texans' Brad Johnson moderated a panel titled If We Were in Charge at the Texas Tribune Festival with State Representative Brian Harrison and likely incoming members She Shelley Luther and Mitch Little. He also spoke with Texas Comptroller Glenn Hagar at 12.30 p.m. about the past, present, and future of the state economy. Also at another TribFest panel, State Representative Tom Oliverson, who is running to replace House Speaker Dade Phelan, suggested that if reform prevails, the legislature should consider reforms to the impeachment process to require a more deliberative structure in the

House. State Representative Shelby Slauson, another speaker candidate, echoed Oliverson's calls for reforms and said that the House needs to get to work faster in the early stages of the legislative session. The two candidates said that there is little to no daylight between their positions and declined to discuss what sets them apart as better candidates, opting to save those conversations for House colleagues. Both Phelan and Representative David Cook, who also announced his candidacy for Speaker this week, declined invitations from the Texas Tribune to participate at the event. Last but not least, the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, or FIRE, has released

its latest free speech rankings, revealing that one Texas university has ranked in the bottom 10 in the country for campus free speech and expression. Of the 251 universities ranked, the University of Texas at Austin ranked 244 and was given a poor campus speech climate. The survey, done in conjunction with College Pulse, includes an analysis of over 58,000 student responses from 257 colleges and universities. The survey was fielded from January 25th through June 17th, 2024. UT El Paso ranked 47th, Texas Tech University is 68th, Texas State University is 76th, UT San Antonio is 88th, Texas A&M is 130th, UT Arlington is 143rd, UT Dallas is 166th, and the University of North Texas is 205th. The survey added that UT Austin has received FIRE's Lifetime Censorship Award. Thanks for listening.

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