Long-simmering tensions within the Texas Republican Party are coming to the fore amid a fierce race for the state House speaker's seat.
The battle highlights longstanding friction between what was once the party's bedrock in Texas and the rising far-right faction that now controls much of the state's government.
State Rep. Dustin Burrows, a prominent ally of outgoing House Speaker Dade Phelan (R), and state Rep. David Cook, who was chosen last month to run for state Republican Party chair, have warned that the Legislature risks further division. They are fighting over the accompanying conflicts. We come together to confront some of Texas' most serious issues.
The stalemate between Mr. Burrows and Mr. Cook is already having a negative impact on the entire Republican caucus. On Tuesday, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) turned up the heat, warning that Republican incumbents who struck “a deal with Democrats to block a Republican majority-elected speaker” will face major challenges. did.
If Mr. Cook wins, it will be the first time in more than a decade that a right-wing Texas Republican candidate has claimed the House speakership, but it would mark the first time in more than a decade that an internal party battle has been brewing slowly behind the scenes. It is a political earthquake that overturns the process.
Brandon Rottinghaus, a political science professor at the University of Houston, told The Hill that the current conflict is “the culmination of dozens of battles and significant ideological tensions over the past 20 years. This is the final battle.” Ta.
The stakes are high for both sides, giving rise to strange alliances. Burroughs, a conservative Republican who helped write legislation that would sharply limit cities' powers, is coordinating Democrats with an uprising against the far-right wing that currently controls the state Republican Party, something that could happen if he loses. It risks political suicide.
On the other side, David Cook, a Dallas-Fort Worth-area Republican backed by the far right wing of his party, voted in favor of raising taxes and banning the city's fracking as mayor of Mansfield before being re-elected to Congress. Even though he had invested. As a grassroots right-wing advocate.
Cook won party nomination vote Supporters of Burroughs in the Texas Republican Party, in part due to the departure of Burroughs' supporters, have launched a frontal attack on lawmakers who support Burroughs, accusing Burroughs and leading major He has threatened to challenge and ultimately expel him from the state party.
That's a tough pill to swallow for many Republicans, many of whom are upset to see Gov. Greg Abbott (R) defeat longtime allies who disagree with him on school vouchers. . Abbott is also suggested He supported Cook, arguing that “we need a Speaker of the Texas House chosen by a majority of Republicans in accordance with the rules of the Republican caucus.''
And by not only openly removing Democrats from leadership, but also trying to prevent their bills from passing at all, the Cookites have effectively formed a rival coalition of mainstream Republicans and Democrats. -This awkward coalition is giving him enough votes to win, Burroughs said.
He warns that no matter who wins, infighting could taint the chamber that now requires confronting Texas' biggest crises, such as looming water and power shortages, resulting in nothing being done. There are some people. grid.
Houston Area State Representative Gary Gates warned by letter Last week, Cook told rank-and-file supporters that the candidate's path to victory was “very narrow.” He also warned that tensions could create a “toxic atmosphere” ahead of the next parliament. In a letter back, Mr Cook accused the party of “fomenting division and uncertainty in order to create necessity”. [a new] candidate. “
Burroughs supporters claim they have are receiving threatening text messages from abraham george Newly Elected Firebrand Chairman Texas Republican Party. After Burrows' supporters left, the party organization voted unanimously for Cook, according to text exchanges obtained by KETK.
“My hope is that the Republican Party will unite in accordance with the caucus ordinances and the Republican platform,” George said in a letter to East Texas Republican Cody Harris. Taken together, the documents threaten members like Harris that they will be barred from the Republican primary if they vote against Cook or use secret ballots in the speaker's race.
George urged Harris to call about her vote “before the Texas Republican Party sends direct mail to your district,” which Harris called an obvious threat to stir up opposition among voters. I received it.
Harris responded by accusing George of being more interested in purging the party than fighting the Democratic Party as a whole. “There was a Democratic challenger in the fall. Will we hear from you now?” he texted back. “I will continue to do what I believe is right.”
“Good to know,” George wrote back. “See you on the other side :)”
George is leaving next week He and Paxton crisscrossed the state trying to undermine Republican incumbents who had not yet endorsed their candidate for speaker.
The move by Mr. Paxton (who this year supported challengers and poured money into campaigns to oust several senators who voted in favor of impeachment), as Mr. Rottinghaus put it, is a move by Mr. This is exacerbating the high-pressure environment in Texas politics where everyone is looking over their shoulder.
Gates, the Houston area representative, told The Hill that this reliance on bad blood and “terrorist threats” is a major liability for the Cookites' ability to win or govern once they win. Ta.
Gates said many Cook supporters he has spoken to are “just concerned about his primary opponent and young people and are right there with him.” And if you build a coalition through fear and intimidation, that's not a very strong coalition. ”
The party's main problem comes down to mathematics. When the Texas House votes on a new leader, the winning House candidate will need 76 of the chamber's 150 votes to win. mid january. republican party hold 88 seats It's in the lower room.
Mr. Cook listed 56 public supporters so far. burrows 76 names released But last month, the Texas Tribune reported that at least three people said they should not have been on that list. But Gates said Cook's support may not be as strong as it seems, that Cook won't reach age 76 without Democrats, and that Democrats don't trust him. As they become more aware, lawmakers warned they may start to leave.
“Mr. Cook doesn't have the votes to become chairman without a Republican, and Mr. Burrows doesn't have the votes to become chairman without a Democrat,” Rottinghaus said. We must fight until the very moment.”
Another option that Gaetz and other lawmakers are seeking is for another candidate to come forward who is acceptable to the state Republican Party and free from the resentment currently swirling around Cook, but other experts say They say that possibility becomes less likely as the vote approaches.
Perhaps the biggest question, strategists say, is what Democrats will do and what kind of deal Burroughs will broker with them to try to boost his approval ratings.
“What's really important about it, more than anything else, is what he has to give them to get it.” [the] How many votes did you get? ” said Travis County Republican Party Chairman Matt Makowiak, an Austin-based Republican strategist.
Matt Angle, founder and director of the Lone Star Project, a Democratic PAC, said Republicans' next move could help define the state House of Representatives as “a force independent of the lieutenant governor and governor.” said.
Democrats are already considering what that price should be. Former Democratic Caucus Chairman Trey Martinez Fischer said in a letter this week that Republicans remain united in leaving the party as potentially the largest voting bloc in the House, and that unless there are significant concessions, either candidate He also urged people not to support it.
The party “has an unprecedented opportunity to change the fate of millions of Texans,” he wrote. Those of us who are not committed will decide who leads the Texas House of Representatives. ”
Cook on Friday responded with an appeal He argued that the “traditional scenario” in which a majority of Democrats work with a minority of Republicans to secure the speaker's seat was a villain for both parties, as Democrats had previously rejected him.
A fight among Lone Star State lawmakers is also drawing national attention. Donald Trump Jr. intervened last month to support Cook, “terminating the so-called agreement with liberal Democrats that the Republican Party would elect a speaker rather than uniting behind a Republican candidate.” he vehemently criticized.
This comes against the backdrop of the US House of Representatives election, in which Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana), backed by President Trump, is struggling to maintain the top position with a slim Republican majority. He secured his seat by a one-vote margin.
Both battles illustrate the continued friction among Republicans across the country, even as the party celebrates a night of election victory.
No matter who wins, Makowiak said the losing party in the leadership race will go into the next 140 days of Congress with “a lot of anger and a lot of frustration.”
“The hope is that after the Speaker’s vote, everyone will be on the same page and that we will start moving in the same direction, passing our legislative priorities and doing the big things that we know we need to do.” It has been.”
