America is back at the brink—Congress has borrowed as much as it can legally, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says if it doesn’t raise the debt ceiling, the U.S. will be forced into default. But the truth is that the full faith and credit of the U.S. is at stake because of excessive spending in...
You can see a long way from Border Patrol Hill. A clear day and good pair of binoculars get you visibility for twenty, thirty, sometimes forty miles into Mexico. It’s view broken only by the rolling terrain on both sides of the Amistad reservoir. This used to be a barren and canyon-strewn section of the...
It’s no secret that the budget reconciliation package is loaded with pork-barrel spending and sweeping policy changes that are inappropriate for budget legislation. Many of these provisions include incredibly expensive and harmful anti-energy policies that will cripple our economy, increase our dependence on foreign oil, and increase the cost of living, especially for the poorest Americans. Here...
“That government is best which governs least.” If we as conservatives believe this, then we should all be watching closely what happens in the Woodlands, a vibrant, growing township near Houston, Texas. With a population of more than 100,000 now, the Woodlands began as a master-planned community envisioned by Texas magnate George P. Mitchell. Much...
At least in baseball, you’re out after the third strike. Baseball is merciful. The Texas Legislature, not so much. At least the fourth legislative session—the third special—gives lawmakers a chance to appropriate money sent to the state by Congress through the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) of 2021. The Legislature has kept spending...
In the face of a historic border crisis due to the intentional reduction of federal immigration law enforcement, legislation has finally been passed in Texas to help fill the gap and better secure America’s southern border. Gov. Greg Abbott was expected to sign the bill on Friday, Sept. 17—as the crisis at the border intensifies,...
Public school superintendents are some of the highest paid government employees in Texas, oftentimes raking in several times what other top officials earn, like the governor. Their enormous pay is outsized when compared to national standards too. From the University of Texas at Arlington: “In the United States, the average annual salary of a school...
A shocking number of Texas public school districts are in open violation of the governor’s executive order prohibiting mask and vaccine mandates. According to the Texas Attorney General’s office, 109 school districts are either out of compliance, in active litigation, or have just had a lawsuit filed against them for violating the governor’s EO which...
In 1999, concerned about the looming rise of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and noting a deficit of books on the topic, I used my skills as an Army intelligence officer to research the order of battle of a conflict between the PRC and Taiwan, then war-gamed the fight. Needing an expert in Chinese...
Economic freedom hit a record high in 2019—but then came 2020. That’s when government shutdowns limited economic freedom, with devasting impacts to people’s lives and livelihoods. According to the 2021 Economic Freedom of the World Report, which measures economic freedom according to a number of economic variables, the global average for economic freedom hit a...
Austin ISD, the largest government-run school district in Central Texas, has just proposed a big tax increase despite shrinking enrollment and overstuffed coffers brimming with federal aid. The move, which comes at a time when area food banks are “still seeing high demand,” has left many Austinites understandably frustrated. On Monday, the Austin American-Statesman reported...
Last month, off-duty New Orleans Detective Everett Briscoe and his friend. Dyrin “DJ” Riculfy, were shot and killed during an aggravated robbery in Houston. The tragedy surrounding their slayings was only aggravated by the news that their suspected killers had been walking free on a combined six felony bonds, including cash-free bonds, a $40,000 bond for...