Houston’s Coming Fiscal Crisis What to know: The city of Houston’s outgoing controller recently revealed that it may soon have to grapple with a “structural budget deficit of up to $300 million,” thanks in large part to poor fiscal management and overspending. The TPPF take: A fiscal crisis looms large over the Bayou City. It has no one...
Parents Love Empowerment What to know: Polls show increasing support for parent empowerment and school choice, as states with existing choice programs see skyrocketing participation. The TPPF take: Empowering parents to make the key decisions on their children’s educations benefits everyone involved. “Once parents are empowered with real choices, schools respond with new programs, improved curriculum, and a renewed...
A Mussolini Model? What to know: A new report from the group Parents Defending Freedom outlines just how insidious the China-operated “Confucius Institutes” in some public schools and college campuses are. The TPPF take: The Confucius Institutes bring the Chinese government into the American academy in powerful ways. “What is the purpose of Confucius Institutes?” asks TPPF’s Tom Lindsay, “Well, to...
A Day at the Beach What to know: Texas officials are slamming the Biden administration’s plans for massive offshore wind farms along the Texas Gulf Coast. The TPPF take: In its haste to build offshore wind farms, the Biden administration has ignored the well-documented disadvantages of big wind turbines off our coasts. “The project’s final environmental impact statement acknowledges...
It Isn’t Easy Being Green What to know: Offshore wind projects around the world are failing now, as the truth about their costs—both to ratepayers and to the oceans—begins to emerge. And this threatens the Biden administration’s green dreams. The TPPF take: TPPF is suing over a planned wind farm in nearby Rhode Island. “The political pressure to...
Hoodwinked What to know: A San Marcos couple is suing the city’s Historic Preservation Commission, after the commission refused them a permit for removing a symbol on their home linked to a former owner, who had ties to the Ku Klux Klan. The TPPF take: Property rights are fundamental. “In Texas, cities are limited in what they can...
First, Do No Harm What to know: A former patient is suing a group of doctors for gender modification surgery they performed on her as a teenager. The patient says she was coerced into transitioning. The TPPF take: This isn’t the first lawsuit over gender modification, and it won’t be the last. “We’re going to have several million children...
In A Barbie World What to know: The “Barbie” movie had a strong opening over the weekend. The TPPF take: Barbie enjoys her high-carbon lifestyle. Shouldn’t you? “I just hope she’s not private jet setting around the world preaching climate action now,” says TPPF’s Jason Isaac. “I mean, that would be hypocritical, right?” For more on carbon and life, click here. Makes...
Woke Math What to know: In California, which has already adopted a woke math curriculum, officials are considering dropping some of the “harder” math requirements, such as algebra. The goal, they say, is to promote equity. The TPPF take: Critical race theory is behind the “equity” movement in education (including math), which discards the equality that Dr. Martin Luther...
Hiring Boom What to know: The Biden administration has engendered a hiring boom—for diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) and environmental, social and governance (ESG) officers. The TPPF take: The DEI and ESG movements are all about power. “ESG investing, which could be a useful tool for individuals to make informed choices about their investments, has instead become a...
That Hurts What to know: Student loan “forgiveness” hurts taxpayers because there’s simply no such thing as a free education. The TPPF take: The best path forward on student loans is to use the tools already available to us, including income-driven repayment. “As a policy matter, student loan forgiveness was terrible,” says TPPF’s Andrew Gillen. “As we’ve noted, the policy...
A Black Day for Investors What to know: Saudi Aramco’s CEO has just joined the board of BlackRock, the global investment manager. The TPPF take: BlackRock is using its leverage to force companies to comply with its radical climate agenda. “Texans will not tolerate woke companies pushing their ideologies on us while using our tax and pension dollars...