Category: County Chair

    Issue #2 of the Legislative Review: Doug Kelsay and Curtis Courtney

    Issue #2 of the Legislative Review: Doug Kelsay and Curtis Courtney

    February 13, 2025 by Stephanie Phelps in / /

    THE CLOCK'S A TICKIN!

    By Doug Kelsay, - Precinct Chair for Precinct 2014 & Curtis Courtney - BCRP Chairman

    In our last article we described, how on Saturday, December 7, 2025 Representative David Cook was selected as the Republican Caucus nominee and that the Caucus rules state that all Republicans should support the caucus nominee.

    As the Texas House opened for business on Tuesday, January 14, 2025, selecting the Speaker was the first (and only) work to be addressed.

    David Cook received 55 votes (Rep 52, Dem 3) and Dustin Burrows received 85 votes (49 Dem and 36 Rep) to win the Speaker of the House race. It was clear that not all of the 88 Republican representatives were following the Caucus agreement. It is also evident that almost all of the Democrat representatives favored Dustin Burrow. District 17 House Representative Stan Gerdes voted for Dustin Burrows for Speaker.

    No other business was conducted the rest of that day as well as for the rest of the week.

    Without previously having addressed any legislative priorities, the house convened on Thursday, January 23, 2025 to review house rules. HR4 (House Rules) was delivered at 4am to the representative’s offices which contained 213 pages.

    Some of the key changes included in the Rules package were:

    • vice chairmanship of all committee to Democrats;
    • the (Republican) chairman must ensure that Democrat vice chairman can promptly schedule any matter he or she pleases;
    • the (Republican) chairman must ensure designated witnesses, selected by the Democrat vice chair, are invited to testify at hearings;
    • provide a budget for those vice-chairmen of some $4000 per month;
    • create 12 new Permanent Standing Subcommittees;
    • allow those Permanent Standing Subcommittees to be chaired by Democrats;
    • allows the Speaker to refer bills to those Permanent Standing Subcommittees;
    • allows bills to be killed by those Permanent Standing Subcommittees.

    It is easy to see how these Rules would empower Democrats to thwart the Republican agenda.

    When the house convened, that day, 21 amendments were offered but Representative Jared Patterson (R-106) “called the question” a procedural maneuver that means there would be no debate nor amendments considered and the original proposal would go straight to a vote. A motion to call the question must have 25 seconds. Representative Stan Gerdes was one of the 25 who voted to second the motion.

    Tom Glass commented in a recent newsletter that “Because such a motion denies voices speaking for the voters and because it negates the very essence of representative democracy, it is called the “nuclear option”. One indicator of this as a raw power move was that 47 Republicans and 42 Democrats were given enough advance notice of the motion to be able to sign on to the motion which requires a minimum of 25 to be introduced. Yet the 34 Republican grassroots members who voted against the suppression were blindsided by the move. They had spent their morning scrambling to craft amendments to the package. I saw the grassroots members hustling to confer with each other that morning, but there was strangely very little visible action by the group made up of republicans and democrats”.

    Texas Scorecard reported that the new rules maintain and expand “a power-sharing arrangement between Republicans and Democrats, granting Democrat vice-chairs significant authority and introducing pathways for Democrat control of new standing subcommittees. While Republicans would only be eligible to serve as chairs, all vice-chairs would be required to be Democrats.”

    On Monday, January 27, 2025, Speaker Burrows announced that they would not vote Housekeeping Resolution (HR3-36 pages) that details the speaker’s responsibilities, powers of the House Administrative committee, employment policies, accounting, caucuses and work place conduct. Instead, Speaker Burrows said they would change the office budgets without a vote.

    On Tuesday, January 28, 2025, Speaker Burrows blocked discussion on several pre-filed amendments. Among the amendments prevented from reaching the floor were proposals to:

    • Require that all House employees be US citizens,
    • Restrict restroom access in the House chamber based on biological sex,
    • Prohibit staff from enforcing the use of “preferred pronouns,”
    • Reduce office budgets if the House does not deliver at least $12 billion in property tax relief this session,
    • Ban alcohol in any House offices, including the Speaker’s office,
    • Mandate the display of the Ten Commandments in the House Chamber.

    On Wednesday, January 29, 2025, the house met and adjourned to February 4, 2025. It should be noted that other than “No Democrat Committee chairs”, no substantive legislative priorities have yet been addressed – a full three weeks into a 140 day session!

    We are very excited to report, however, that the Texas House was able to meet on Tuesday, February 4, 2025 to pass a Resolution congratulating singer ‘Beyonce’ on her Grammy Awards. It’s comforting to know that the important work that the people of Texas demand is being thoroughly addressed. Or maybe not. 

    As of February 4, 2025, there are 119 days left in this session of the Texas Congress.

    The clock’s a tickin’.

    The Legislative Review -ARTICLE 1, by Curtis Courtney and Doug Kelsay

    The Legislative Review -ARTICLE 1, by Curtis Courtney and Doug Kelsay

    February 5, 2025 by Stephanie Phelps in / /

    Since the days of Noah (or at least just after the Civil War), Texas was run by Democrats.  Abraham Lincoln was the first Republican president and thus the states of the south consistently selected Democrat representatives and executive leaders. Texas was part of the “Solid South”, a Democrat stronghold. That changed starting in the early 1990’s and was evident in the mid 1990’s when George Bush was elected Republican Governor. The Texas House and Senate both transitioned to a majority Republican in the 78th Congressional session in 2003. By the early 2010’s Texas was solidly Republican. Many politicians that had long ran as Democrats transitioned to running as Republicans. Some were truly conservative and aligned with Republican values but many simply found it expedient to change color of their coat to maintain power.

    During this transition House Speakers, starting most notably with Speaker Straus, appointed Democrats as chairs of Committees. But as Republicans grew in numbers and power, subsequent speakers did not diminish the number of Democrat chairs. This caused a rift between the Republican voters and their elected legislators.

    Q: What defines a Republican versus a Democrat? A: Their Party Platform and the resulting Legislative Priorities.

    Things came to a head when the speaker of the 88th TX House, Dade Phelan, not only appointed Democrat chairs but actively fought legislative priorities of the Republican Party of Texas (RPT), Governor Abbott and Lt. Gov Patrick. He also led a Democrat inspired “lawfare” campaign against Attorney General Ken Paxton which included sneaky moves in changing the impeachment rules at the start at the 88th Session. The 88th Legislature was called back not once, not twice, but an unprecedented third time to work the key priorities of the Governor. Under Speaker Phelan and his Democrat chairs, they successfully avoided addressing these priorities. As a result, the average Republican voter became livid and outraged because nothing important was getting done.

    This long history lead delegates of the RPT State convention to change RPT rules so they could be used to force the Republican house members to support the Legislative Priorities. The rules were changed to allow censure which is the threat of not allowing a representative to run as a Republican.

    In order for the 89th Legislature to implement the Legislative Priorities, the House Republicans, wishing to exert their majority and the desire to align with the Legislative Priorities, held a caucus on December 7, 2024 to select a speaker who would not appoint Democrat chairs. Of the 88 Republican house members that were there to start the Caucus, 26 elected Republicans, including Stan Gerdes, walked out of that Caucus meeting before it was concluded and a Speaker selected.

    The Bastrop County Republican Party (BCRP) held a meeting on December 21, 2024 to discuss the actions of our Representative, Stan Gerdes, who was one of the 26 elected representatives who walked out on the Republican Caucus. The BCRP examined the options open to them. A committee was directed to articulate our response to his actions. The BCRP reconvened on December 30, 2024 and approved the response which came in the form of a resolution condemning his actions and reminded him of his obligation as a Republican Representative. To read the full resoluiton, click here 

    Our next article will be the results of the first day of the 89th Legislature which occurred on January 14, 2025.

    Written by: Doug Kelsay and Curtis Courtney

    Bastrop County Republican Party Resolution – December 30, 2024

    December 31, 2024 by Stephanie Phelps in

    WHEREAS, the Texas House Republican Caucus met on December 7, 2024, to nominate a candidate for Speaker in compliance with the Platform and House Rules; and

    WHEREAS, in the third vote, 26 Republican Representatives, which included Texas House District 17 Representative Stan Gerdes, walked out of the Texas House Republican Caucus vote in an attempt to deny quorum to the caucus so that a candidate could be elected with Democratic votes; and

    WHEREAS, the Texas House Republican Caucus voted on the third ballot to support Representative David Cook of Tarrant County as their official nominee; and

    WHEREAS, Bastrop County Republican Party Executive Committee and voters from across the county are disappointed with Texas House District 17 Representative Stan Gerdes for not following the Rules of the Texas House Republican Caucus; and

    WHEREAS, the Bastrop County Republican Party Executive Committee condemns any effort by Representative Stan Gerdes to ally with Democrats to elect a Speaker who was not supported by the majority vote of the Texas House Republican Caucus; and

    WHEREAS, after extensive meetings with Representative Dustin Burrows, the Texas House Democratic Caucus, led by radical Houston Representative Gene Wu, has “released” its members to vote for a Republican Speaker Candidate other than Representative David Cook in an effort to stop Republican agenda items such as school choice, ending taxpayer funded lobbying, and ending the practice of appointing Democratic chairs; now

    THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Bastrop County Republican Party Executive Committee calls on Representative Stan Gerdes to publicly commit to supporting the Texas House Republican Caucus nominee in accordance with the Caucus vote and with the Republican Party of Texas Platform; and

    THEREFORE, BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that for the House Speaker vote scheduled for January 14, 2025, the Bastrop County Republican Party provides notice to State Representative Stan Gerdes, that a vote against the Texas House Republican Caucus nominee, Representative David Cook, in the floor vote for House Speaker shall constitute a censurable act, given he pledged to comply with all the Legislative Priorities including  “No Democrat Chairs”.  A vote against the Texas House Republican Caucus nominee shall be considered a censurable act.

    THEREFORE, BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that for the House Speaker vote scheduled for January 14, 2025, the Bastrop County Republican Party provides notice to State Representative Stan Gerdes to not interfere with rules or use subversive tactics such as denying a quorum or participate in absenteeism that causes a quorum to come into question.  Actions that deny quorum for the House Speaker vote, shall be considered a censurable act;

    THEREFORE, BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that for the House Speaker vote scheduled for January 14, 2025, the Bastrop County Republican Party provides notice to State Representative Stan Gerdes, that a vote for a House Speaker secret floor ballot vote, will be interpreted as an attempt to hide a vote with Democrats who want Democrat Chairs, and as such, be considered equivalent to a vote for a Speaker supported by Democrats, and shall be considered a censurable act. 

    THEREFORE, BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, in the unforeseen event the Texas House Republican Caucus nominee, Representative David Cook, withdraws his candidacy for House Speaker, a vote by Representative Stan Gerdes during the House Speaker floor vote for any other candidate who has not pledged publicly, prior to the floor vote, to comply with the Legislative Priorities of “No Democrat Chairs” shall constitute a censurable act.

    THEN THEREFORE, BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, during the full 2025 session, a vote against or in hindrance thereof of the current Republican Party of Texas “Legislative Priorities” or the current Republican Party of Texas “Principles” in the Republican Party of Texas Platform shall constitute a censurable act and shall be considered in the censure process according to RPT Rule 44.

    The Meaning of Christmas, by Pastor John Eason, Jr.

    December 22, 2024 by Stephanie Phelps in

    It goes without saying, even though I am saying it, most know the celebration of Christmas is far more than packaged gifts, cool cards, yard displays, and Santa and the gang. It is even more than angels, shepherds in the field, and wise men traveling from afar. I, for one, like Christmas’s cultural and religious traditions, such as lighted trees, Christmas movies, caroling, and candlelight services. Count me in on just about everything. But, deep down, I know that Christmas is about Life, Ultimate Life becoming flesh. Theologically spoken of as the Incarnation, Christ the Eternal Word becoming flesh. Emanuel – God with us.  

    With the birth of Christ, a historical shift took place, from God among us to God within us. Mary, mother of Christ, was the first to experience the great mystery of “Christ in you.” Mary was first to know the indwelling Christ. Christ dwells in the world through the hearts of people. Because Mary was the first she became an archetype for the rest of us. In other words, she is the model, the template, and the pattern that would reveal this same great truth leading to the same great experience: “Christ in you.” Christ was formed first within Mary’s womb and is now formed within our hearts. Christ in the heart is not any less than Christ in the womb.

    Let me point out a few characteristics of Mary that will help us have this same great experience that Mary had, the indwelling Christ. First, Mary was a person of faith. Luke said, “She believed the word spoken to her by the angel.” Mary’s faith must have been great to believe the impossible miracle of becoming pregnant by the Holy Spirit. Second, Mary had a submissive heart. She responded to the angel’s word with, “Do it unto me according to your word.” Mary was willing to submit to the will and purposes of God even though it would come with a great cost. And third, Mary’s humility. Mary referred to herself as the Lord’s maidservant and later would thank God for regarding her lowly state. Mary’s womb was truly the most compatible place for Jesus to be nurtured and brought forth. Jesus would later personify those same traits that His mother had. We must obtain these same characteristics if Christ is to be formed within us. We must first believe and accept the divine purposes and surrender our lives to them in humility. 

    Let Christ richly dwell within your heart this Christmas.
    God Bless,
    John

    Federalist Paper #10: Are Factions A Grave Concern?

    December 15, 2024 by Stephanie Phelps in

    Factions have always been a concern in any form of government but especially in a republican form of government because we take our freedoms so seriously and do not want to be controlled by one interest group. Thankfully, the Constitution sets up a system of government which limits the power of factions. Factions in our country are further limited due to competing geographical interest within a faction. Ironically, James Madison’s initial concern with factions is extremely interesting because he would later use them extensively in his political career. His concerns are valid enough though, that they have stood the test of time and are legitimate concerns for constituents in the 21st century.

    The first concern: the peoples’ will would be thrown aside to accommodate the agenda of the faction. Although this fear results from historical accounts, it is more an outgrowth of the British occupancy of the colonies through the years. The British would disregard the colonists’ interests and govern according to their interest to further the British Empire. This leads into Madison’s second concern: the public good is disregarded in the conflict of rival parties. A prime example of this would be the government shutdown in 1995-1996. The two parties were looking out for their own interest that they felt were important to their constituents but in the process caused huge problems with running the government. Thirdly a “superior force of an interested and overbearing majority decides measures.” [i]Some liberals would suggest that the 1994 Republican takeover of Congress would fall into this category. Their view is that the new leaders pushed legislation through that furthered their own interest and began initiating severe cuts in social programs. The Democrats, although the minority, used this to their advantage to show that Republicans only care about one group the wealthy. Obamacare would be a more current example where conservatives and really every day Americans believed the Democrat party was overreaching in their legislative powers. This leads into Madison’s fourth concern of the rich versus the poor and how they naturally form factions, which are good for the government, because the conflicting principles form modern legislation.

    Although Madison presents valid arguments against factions, he realized that they are inevitable and cannot be eliminated. That to eliminate factions would trample on people’s liberty and “Liberty is to Faction, what air is to fire, an ailment without which it instantly expires.” [ii]Without liberty, the people would never be heard, and the Revolution would have been pointless; they were living in such a situation under the British and did not want to repeat the mistakes of that era. Without liberty, everyone would be required to have the same opinions, passions, and interests and this is not possible. It is not possible because men are fallible and have the right to express this fallibility to allow different opinions to emerge.

    Madison’s solutions for controlling the factions are simple and straightforward. First, the country needs to be a republic and not a pure democracy. Consequently, representatives need to be elected that represent a proportion of the population neither too large nor too small. This enables a blending of views to form a national consensus. By bringing together a limited number of people representing a vast area, interest specific factions are severely limited within the legislative process because of their competing geographical interest. This type of large republic with small representation creates a happy medium where all interest is heard yet representatives do not get attached to their constituents thereby reducing factions that would trample on people’s liberties.

    Secondly, the House of Representatives limits the use of factions because of the creation of single member districts (smds), the way district lines are drawn using a census, and limiting the number of representatives to 435. In the winner takes all situation of smds, there is no incentive for more than two parties. However, the drawbacks would be the formation of special interest groups that cover interests disregarded by the mainstream parties thus factions are formed to a degree, but their effects are limited because they are not legislating due to a lack of voter participation due to their party identification. Single Member District also helps to ensure that there are deviations from party line voting because the congressional member has to appeal to their district in order to be re-elected.

    Thirdly, the Constitution limits factions in several ways. One by implementing a census every ten years to proportion representation among the states. This results in congressional district lines being redrawn and the possibility of new representation in office as well as shifting representatives from one state to another depending on population growth or loss while maintaining that each state must have at least one representative so that its interest can be heard. Another restriction placed on the legislature by the Constitution is the number of years a Senator or Representative can serve at any given time. It was supposed to create a decent amount of turnover so that power did not get concentrated in the hands of a few people. For most of our history this was true, however since the early part of the 20th century, Congress has become more professionalized with a larger workload. Additionally, by making the Vice President the tie breaking vote in the Senate, the national interest may be better served. This is because the vice president like the President is elected by the nation and not a select group of individuals like the Representatives or Senators. Congress put additional limits on factions by limiting the number of representatives to 435 in 1929 when the Permanent Apportionment Act was passed. This creates larger constituencies thereby reducing the effects of special interest members.

    Although Federalist Paper No. 10 failed to eliminate parties, it did help to limit factions by putting forth the idea of Single Member District and pointing out the deficiencies of the factions.

    [i] Federalist Paper No. 10 pg. 43

    [ii] Federalist Papers No. 10 pg. 43

    Great Gift Ideas for that Special Republican!

    November 23, 2024 by Stephanie Phelps in / / / / / /

     Great gift ideas for that special Republican in your life! These items are available for purchase and pickup at our office or purchase online HERE

    Bastrop County Republican Office.

    443 Highway 71 West Bastrop Texas 78602

     To have your purchase shipped, please email us at

    ~ BCRP’s own Tumbler. Perfect for your hot or cold beverages. $20.00 ~

    ~ An AUTOGRAPHED copy of “TARGETED” One Mom’s fight for life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, by Lindsey Graham, The Patriot Barbie. $20.00 ~

    Online Order form HERE

     

     

    A Message from Curtis Courtney, County Chair

    October 20, 2024 by Mark L. Torrey in

    IF YOU DON’T VOTE, WE DON’T WIN!

    This election might come down to 10,000 votes, maybe 1,000 votes, or perhaps even just 1 vote – which could be YOUR vote.

    Turnout will determine the outcome of this election. Bastrop County Republican Party is encouraging EVERYONE who can – GET OUT AND VOTE and VOTE EARLY! Let’s send the message right now that we are TAKING BACK TEXAS and AMERICA!

    Early voting starts TOMORROW (Monday), October 21st, at 8:00 a.m. There will be four (4) locations for early voting and fifteen (15) locations on election day, November 5th.

    When you go vote, be sure to cast your vote down the ballot. Every candidate needs your vote. VOTE. VOTE EARLY. VOTE REPUBLICAN.

    Curtis Courtney, County Chair Bastrop County Republican Party

    BCRP and LPRW have put together a comprehensive GOP VOTER GUIDE. This one-stop guide will help you make an informed vote. The guide is complete with a tear-off “sample ballot” that you can take inside the voter booth.

    For the English version of the 2024 Voter Guide, click HERE. 

    For the Spanish version, click HERE .

    2024 General Election Voter Guide

    October 14, 2024 by Darrell Smith in / / / / / / /

    The Bastrop County Republican Party (BCRP) and Lost Pines Republican Women (LPRW) joined together to generate a 2024 Voter Guide  for early voting and on Election Day November 5th, 2024.  Available in English and Spanish.

     

    Remember cellphones and other digital devices are not permitted inside the polling place, but you can take the red boxed tear off section of candidates on the last page of the Voter Guide as your helpful notes.

    July Informational Meeting followup

    July 26, 2024 by Mark L. Torrey in / / / / / / / /

    One of our best attended Informational Meetings so far, with a full house and some of us standing in the hallway.  Sergeant Miller spoke on the presence, dangers and Bastrop County Sheriff’s Office reduction efforts of the Fentanyl epidemic sweeping our County, State and Nation, and answered several questions at the end.  The biggest take away is being aware of the symptoms:

    • slow, shallow breathing or respiratory distress
    • slurred speech
    • loss of consciousness

    These can quickly become serious health problems, resulting in permanent injury or death. The next biggest is knowing what forms Fentanyl is typically trafficked:

    • pills
    • powder
    • liquid

    Don’t take chances and certainly DO NOT TOUCH anything suspicious, such as small plastic baggies with unknown pills, powder or other substances.  It could contain products that, in the smallest quantities could cause you or others irreparable harm or death. If you see or find anything suspicious, or encounter someone who might need medical assistance Call 911 immediately.   If you have any questions or would like further details, please call Bastrop County Sheriffs Office .

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