UPDATE: You Representatives in this new Tea Party Caucus: as Patrick says:
“This is a grassroots-up, not a Legislature-down caucus,”
Try to do that listening, because you are hearing a nearly unanimous voice of opposition to Straus.
The Independent Conservative Republican website lists the following statement:
We are proud Republicans who support our party. But our first allegiance is to the people, the conservative majority of our party who elected us to office.
Based on that we have a major question for you: what is that conservative majority telling you to do in Speaker’s race? (Hint: we find it unlikely that it’s to vote for Straus.)
Is your nonbinding word to a single politician- who himself violated a Pledge letter to originally win the Speakership- more important than your word to the conservative majority?
We Tea Party people demand an answer to that from the following people: (click the name for the contact information of seated Representatives) (TPC – Tea Party Caucus)
| Straus Pledge? |
Straus Pledge? |
||||
| Doc Anderson | Y | John Otto | Y | ||
| Jimmie Don Aycock | Y | Tan Parker | Paxton! | ||
| Dwayne Bohac | Y (but TPC) | Diane Patrick | Y | ||
| Fred Brown | Y | Larry Phillips | Y (but TPC) | ||
| Angie Chen Button | Y (but TPC) | Debbie Riddle | Caucus Call | ||
| Bill Callegari | Y | Ralph Sheffield | Y | ||
| Warren Chisum | Running! | Mark Shelton | Y | ||
| Wayne Christian | Paxton! | Todd Smith | Y | ||
| Byron Cook | Y (but TPC) | Wayne Smith | Y | ||
| Tom Craddick | (TPC) | John Smithee | Y | ||
| Brandon Creighton | Y (but TPC) | Burt Solomons | Y | ||
| Myra Crownover | Y | Larry Taylor | Y (but TPC) | ||
| Drew Darby | Y | Van Taylor | Paxton! | ||
| John Davis | Y | Vicki Truitt | Y | ||
| Rob Eissler | Y | Randy Weber | Pulled pledge | ||
| Gary Elkins | Y | Beverly Woolley | Y (TPC) | ||
| Allen Fletcher | Caucus Call | John Zerwas | Y (TPC) | ||
| Dan Flynn | Paxton! | ||||
| Mike Hamilton | Y (but TPC) | Freshman Members | |||
| Kelly Hancock | Caucus Call | Jose Aliseda | Y (but TPC) | ||
| Rick Hardcastle | Caucus Call | Rodney Anderson | |||
| Patricia Harless | Y (but TPC) | Marva Beck | Y | ||
| Linda Harper-Brown | Y | Cindy Burkett | Paxton! | ||
| Will Hartnett | Y | Erwin Cain | Paxton! | ||
| Harvey Hilderbran | Y (but TPC) | Stefani Carter | Y | ||
| Chuck Hopson | Y | John Frullo | |||
| Charlie Howard | Caucus Call | Larry Gonzales | Y | ||
| Bryan Hughes | Paxton! | Dan Huberty | Y (but TPC) | ||
| Todd Hunter | Y (but TPC) | Jason Isaac | (TPC) | ||
| Jim Jackson | Y | George Lavender | Y (but TPC) | ||
| Phil King | Caucus Call | Lanham Lyne | Y | ||
| Susan King | Y | Jim Murphy | Y (but TPC) | ||
| Tim Kleinschmidt | Y (but TPC) | Barbara Nash | Y | ||
| Lois Kolkhorst | Y (but TPC) | Charles Perry | Paxton! | ||
| Ken Legler | (TPC) | Four Price | Y (but TPC) | ||
| Tryon Lewis | Y (but TPC) | Connie Scott | Y (but TPC) | ||
| Jerry Madden | Y (but TPC) | Raul Torres | Y (but TPC) | ||
| Doug Miller | Y | James White | Paxton! | ||
| Sid Miller | Y (but TPC) | Paul Workman | Y | ||
| Geanie Morrison | Caucus Call | Bill Zedler | Paxton! | ||
| Rob Orr | Y | ||||
You mistakenly list Patrick McGuinness who challenged Strama, but came up short.
He was the ONLY candidate who signed on that failed to get through. I’ll correct the list. Thank you Cathie
James White, the newly elected rep from district 12 has thrown his support behind Ken Paxton!
TJ: great News. Do you have a link about the announcement?
“As members of the Independent Conservative Republicans of Texas, we pledge to defend the values and principles on which our nation was founded. We are proud Republicans who support our party. But our first allegiance is to the people, the conservative majority of our party who elected us to office.
We pledge not to divide, but to unite Conservatives everywhere. We pledge to make America and Texas stronger by defending individual liberty, freedom, and the free market ideals that made our country the envy of the world.”
I humbly ask that you prove that you honestly meant it, when you signed this pledge and mission statement… by withdrawing your pledge from Straus (just as he did from Craddick) and instead vote for the man that the conservative majority wants for speaker, Ken Paxton!
Above is what I sent to all the Straus pledges
All Republican Representatives who vote for Straus for Speaker have betrayed their constituents in favor of liberal establishment politics as usual for kickbacks. Straus is a liberal RINO and the RINOs in the House are doing as expected. But those who claim tobe conservative and vote for Straus are a total joke. They’re hypocrites, and the new Rep.-Elects who vote for Straus betrayed their word to the voters before even being sworn in. Typical politicians. Say whatever it takes to get elected, then do the opposite after being sworn in. If people keeled over dead after taking the oath if they’re going back on what they promised in the election, the chamber floors would be littered with bodies of lying politicians who break their word to their constituents soon as they are sworn in. So pathetic.
Rep. Harless spoke on behalf of Strauss at the Texas Federation Republican Women’s Board Mtg this past Nov. She’s listed as a TPC but don’t think there’s hope of swaying her.
Leslie; many of those members of the Tea Party Caucus only joined it for political cover. It won’t help them, if they do things like vote for Straus. Angie Chen Button is a member, but is deliberately avoiding meeting the Tea Parties in her district.
I have read that some House members are backing Straus because he gave them campaign money. One woman House Member said she received $200,000 from Straus. Where’s the money coming from?
If Straus is handing out pig payoffs to people to insure his reign as Speaker, where’s the money coming from. George Soros? And why is Straus fighting for the Speakership with such vigor? Does he have a secret agenda that may turn our Conservative movement on it’s head?
Not George Soros; from the Austin PAC machine (including trial lawyers). We have heard assurances from specific people that this is NOT an excuse; conservative forces would very quickly make up any amount of money that Representatives felt need to be given back, if necessary. BOTH sides have sufficient money in this regard.
More interesting than the $200K was the $42K Straus gave to the head of the Ethics committee to help switch him from the Democratic party. Then the recipient refused to recuse himself from the hearing on whether Straus’s minions were threatening people on redistricting. No conflict there! (yeah, right!)
Please check your list with this one–all of these people refused to pledge to Strauss in the first place, or have depledged–I know those you missed will appreciate your showing their non-support of Straus.
Rep. Wayne Christian co-chair — refused to support Straus as Speaker
Rep. Dan Flynn — refused to support Straus as Speaker
Rep. Phil King – refused to support Straus as Speaker
Rep. Jodie Laubenberg — refused to support Straus as Speaker
Rep. Ken Paxton — refused to support Straus as Speaker
Rep. Leo Berman — refused to support Straus as Speaker
Rep. Elect Erwin Cain — refused to support Straus as Speaker
Rep. Warren Chisum — refused to support Straus as Speaker
Rep. Charlie Howard — refused to support Straus as Speaker
Rep. Elect Dan Huberty — not sure
Rep. Bryan Hughes – refused to support Straus as Speaker
Rep. Ken Legler — refused to support Straus as Speaker
Rep. Tan Parker — refused to support Straus as Speaker
Rep. Debbie Riddle — depledged the first day Strauss announced his list.
Rep. Randy Weber — refused to support Straus as Speaker
Fernando Herrerra did not win his election, unfortunately.
Norma: Many thanks! I will correct the list and apologies to any Reps improperly listed. Many of these (not all) have come out for Ken Paxton since.
[...] a single voice, asking to honor her commitment to them- via her own words and her signing on as an Independent Conservative Republican. They asked her to listen to that conservative majority and to support a conservative alternative [...]
Where is Joe Driver? I don’t see his name on the list and have not heard where he stands.
Citizen; Joe Driver did NOT sign on as an Independent Conservative Republican, nor as part of the Tea Party Caucus. As far as we’ve been able to tell, he fully plans to honor his Pledge card to Straus- unless his constituents can change his mind.
[...] If you can’t come down, call or email Representatives like Stefani Carter, Jerry Madden and others found here and let them know that the Conservative Majority to which they are pledged are NOT for [...]