"This session, I am counting on Speaker Burrows and will work with him to deliver on his promise to pass important conservative legislation that previously failed to pass the House."
– Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick
Texas Insider Report: AUSTIN, Texas – Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick issued this statement today following the election of Rep. Dustin Burrows, R-Lubbock, as Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives:
“Today, on the second ballot, Republican Dustin Burrows was elected Speaker of the Texas House with a majority of Democrats and a minority of Republican votes. Despite having a clear majority of Republican votes, Rep. David Cook, R-Mansfield, was defeated. Speaker Burrows was handed the speakership by Democrats, as has happened behind closed doors session after session since 2009. This may be the first time in our nation’s history where the minority party openly elected the speaker of a legislative body instead of the majority party.
“One cannot imagine if the Democrats had 88 members of the Texas House that they would allow Republicans to elect the speaker. I am proud of the Republicans who stood together and voted for Rep. Cook, the House Republican Caucus nominee. Republican voters expected the new speaker to be elected by Republicans, not by Democrats.
“The Texas Senate is organized and prepared to conduct business swiftly, and we are ready to move on emergency items as designated by the Governor and then on to the regular order of business.
“Everyone knows that no legislation can make its way to the Governor’s desk without passing both chambers. The following bills are just a small sample of conservative legislation that passed the Senate in recent sessions and died in the House. This session, I am counting on Speaker Burrows and will work with him to deliver on his promise to pass important conservative legislation that previously failed to pass the House.
“One cannot imagine if the Democrats had 88 members of the Texas House that they would allow Republicans to elect the speaker. I am proud of the Republicans who stood together and voted for Rep. Cook, the House Republican Caucus nominee. Republican voters expected the new speaker to be elected by Republicans, not by Democrats.
“The Texas Senate is organized and prepared to conduct business swiftly, and we are ready to move on emergency items as designated by the Governor and then on to the regular order of business.
“Everyone knows that no legislation can make its way to the Governor’s desk without passing both chambers. The following bills are just a small sample of conservative legislation that passed the Senate in recent sessions and died in the House. This session, I am counting on Speaker Burrows and will work with him to deliver on his promise to pass important conservative legislation that previously failed to pass the House.
- School choice, so that every parent has the right to make the best decision for their children’s education
- Ban on taxpayer-funded lobbying, since Texans do not want the local officials they elect to represent them spending their tax dollars on hired gun lobbyists
- Bail reform, to keep dangerous murderers and rapists off our streets
- Multiple election integrity bills, to protect our sacred democracy
- Putting the 10 Commandments back in schools, to enable our students to become better Texans
- Banning Critical Race Theory (CRT) in higher education, so students are taught how to think, not what to think
- Banning ownership of Texas land by foreign adversaries, to keep our state and country safe and secure
