Empower Texans, Tea Party Loses in GOP Races
During the debate over the bathroom bill last year, social conservative Republicans taunted the business conservative Republicans with the phrase: “Dollars over daughters.” But in the Republican primaries and runoffs this spring, the business conservatives trounced the tea party crowd and the leadership of Empower Texans, one of the stalwart groups heading the social conservatives. On Tuesday, every Republican state House runoff candidate with an Empower Texans endorsement lost. In the primary, Empower endorsed candidates challenging sixteen business-oriented state House incumbents and only saw the defeat of two—both of whom had suffered self-inflicted wounds.
As a reminder, the bathroom bill was intended to limit access to gender-specific public bathrooms in schools and government buildings to the birth gender of an individual. Allegedly, the legislation was intended to protect women and girls from sexual predators, but it was widely perceived as legislation to discriminate against transgender people with a broad insult to the entire gay rights community. Businesses across Texas came out against the bill because it would make it difficult to lure companies to move to the state, would impede employee recruitment of younger workers, and could threaten the state’s ability to host conventions and sporting events.
The legislation was defeated in the House in a special legislative session called by Governor Greg Abbott. The governor has been criticized for not calling a special session to tap the state’s financial reserves—commonly known as the rainy day fund—to help local governments finance Hurricane Harvey recovery. Retiring state Representative Byron Cook, R-Corsicana, has asked Abbott to call a special session in August to address school safety in the wake of the shooting at Santa Fe High School that left ten dead.
Retiring House Speaker Joe Straus worked to counter Empower Texans and tea party Republicans by raising money for the Associated Republicans of Texas, a business-oriented political committee that was formed in the 1970s with the intent of turning the Legislature Republican. Straus warmly greeted the runoff victories of the candidates he supported.
Read more: https://www.texasmonthly.com/politics/empower-texans-tea-party-loses-gop-races/
