Special Texas Independence Day Edition!

“I love Texas because Texas is future-oriented, because Texans think anything is possible. Texans think big.” — former Sen. Phil Gramm

What to know: The Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) movement has taken a big hit, with Vanguard agreeing to settle a lawsuit led by the State of Texas that alleged it colluded with fellow investment giants BlackRock and State Street to discriminate against energy producers.
The TPPF take: Life:Powered was the first organization to call on state Attorneys General to hold the climate cartel accountable.
“TPPF first outlined the legal risks posed by ESG activism in 2020 and called on state AGs to hold the climate cartel accountable,” says TPPF’s Dr. Brent Bennett. “Credit to AG Paxton, his team, and collaborators for doggedly pursuing this much needed reform. The settlement is not only an acknowledgment that the ESG movement is harming American companies, it is a template for breaking the climate cartel.”
For more on ESG, click here.

“Texas has yet to learn submission to any oppression, come from what source it may.” — Sam Houston

What to know: A Texas judge has refused to block a pipeline based on claims it could harm an endangered bird species.

The TPPF take: The species in question, the golden-cheeked warbler, is not endangered.

“According to a 2015 study of the species by the Texas A&M Natural Resources Institute, the warbler is 19 times greater in population and has 5 times as much habitat as when first listed,” says TPPF’s Robert Henneke. “Yet, it has remained under perpetual regulation by the federal government. The courts are holding the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service accountable to following the law and providing hope that this regulatory burden of the warbler listing will soon be lifted from the backs of property owners across Texas.”

For more on the case, click here.

“Texas is like a beckoning star to American settlers.” — Stephen F. Austin

What to know: One real estate company is helping discouraged Californians move to Texas and other red states.

The TPPF take: Low taxes and more opportunity drive population shifts—and prosperity.

“People move to Texas because they’re attracted to the Lone Star State’s jobs and opportunity,” says TPPF’s Chuck DeVore, who came to Texas after serving in the California Assembly. “States that drive them away—with high taxes and ridiculous regulatory burdens—would do better to imitate what works: liberty.”

For more on migration to Texas, click here.