Washington, D.C. and Wall Street are hyperventilating. While we believe in independence from political considerations, it's also dangerous that a bunch of lawyers and ivory-tower PhD economists can control the money supply and raise taxes (inflation IS a tax) without ANY accountability – least of all the voters. The 300 PhD economists sitting in the temple of the Federal Reserve Bank have a less-than-stellar track record.  To borrow the left's favorite phrase: that's a "danger to democracy."

Texans can shorten wait times at the centers if they apply to FEMA online, by phone or using the FEMA App before visiting a center. Best times to call are early morning or early evening. Homeowners and renters in Brazoria, Chambers, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Jasper, Jackson, Jefferson, Liberty, Orange, Matagorda, Montgomery, Nacogdoches, Polk, San Jacinto, Walker and Wharton counties can apply for FEMA assistance for uninsured losses caused by Hurricane Beryl.

"This will support research not only at Baylor University, but will also provide for engagement with the local educational research and industrial partnerships,” said Cong. Pete Sessions, announcing that the Materials Equipment Infrastructure Expansion for Baylor University's Materials Science & Engineering Program received federal funding under the Commerce, Justice, Science & Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2024. Congressman Sessions was the Congressional sponsor of the project.

Texas’ sales tax holiday has not lost any of its luster. This weekend's Sales Tax-Exempt Holiday for back-to-school Apparel & Supplies has saved Texans millions annually on clothing, footwear and numerous other school supplies. From its inception in 1999, Texas’ oldest sales tax holiday has saved shoppers an estimated $1.8 billion on qualified items priced below $100. Here's a list of items that qualify and can be purchased "tax free" during this weekend.

At Governor Abbott's direction, the Texas State Emergency Operations Center will begin statewide wildfire coordination calls tomorrow to provide local and state partners with situational awareness and ensure coordination between responders. Additionally, based on current conditions and the fire weather forecast, Governor Abbott has directed the Texas A&M Forest Service to open the Abilene Air Tanker Base at Abilene Regional Airport to assist state and local responders in wildfire suppression efforts across Texas.

Because of modern drilling technologies – including horizontal drilling and fracking – Natural Gas is now cheaper than bottled water, which now sells for $2.69. One of my constant themes is that the so-called “green-energy transition” is a figment of the left’s oversized imagination. Despite hundreds of billions of taxpayer dollars being thrown at wind and solar power by Biden, Kamala and the Democrats, we still get less than 10% of our energy from "green" sources. The needle hasn’t moved.

"Today’s passage of the 'Improving Access to Our Courts Act' will help expand courthouse access for West Texas citizens by allowing federal proceedings to take place in Alpine – and in the coming days, this bill will be signed into law. I'm proud to help deliver this win for the Big Bend area, and will keep fighting to ensure our district has the resources it needs,” said Congressman Tony Gonzales’ of his effort to allow federal court proceedings to be conducted in West Texas' Brewster County.

The fight lasted only 46 seconds. An Algerian boxer with male chromosomes won a fight in the 66-kilogram women’s division at the Paris Olympics last Thursday. Imane Khelif defeated Italy’s Angela Carini – after Carini abandoned her match. It's outrageous and disgusting that this is allowed to happen. Democrats support this insanity, and we cannot let such gross injustice pass quietly. The reason we have "Women's Sports," is to... have women separated from men.

“TXOGA Safety Talks is a benefit for our members and Safety Group participants to help them adhere to high standards for workplace safety within the industry,” said Texas Oil & Gas Association President Todd Staples, announcing the launch of the Workers’ Compensation Safety Group initiative. TXOGA Safety Group participants recently received $3,846,290 in dividends, and $27,362,579 in Texas Mutual individual policyholder dividends.

The Justice for Jocelyn Act would crack down on ATD by requiring every ICE detention bed to be filled, and, if filled, would require the Secretary of DHS to exhaust all reasonable efforts to keep an alien in custody. Should the Secretary nevertheless release an alien pursuant to ATD, the alien would be subject to continuous GPS monitoring until either their removal from the country or the completion of all immigration proceedings. Finally, Justice for Jocelyn would empower immigration officials to immediately deport illegal aliens who violate the terms of their release.

In a shocking turn of events, the Biden-Harris White House has done the unthinkable: they’ve agreed to a plea deal with Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the mastermind behind the September 11th attacks. The Defense Department announced Wednesday that plea agreements had been reached, allowing these men to avoid the death penalty. This marks a dramatic development in the decades-long cases for the prisoners at the U.S. military detention facility in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton secured a major victory stopping the Biden White House’s attempt to unlawfully redirect statutorily obligated funding away from border wall construction – a direct violation of Federal Law. After losing the case in Federal Court, the Biden Administration declined to appeal, thereby forfeiting any further claims. The Biden Administration was directed by the court to continue Border Wall Construction using the funding appropriated by Congress for that purpose.

U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has introduced the Guarding and Administering Trespass Enforcement, Controlling Restricted Areas, and Stopping High-Risk Encroachment Recidivism and Sabotage (GATE CRASHERS) Act. Sen. Cruz’s bill would strengthen criminal penalties for trespassing on Department of Defense (DOD) installations.

President Biden has announced, and is pushing, a radical proposal to overhaul the Supreme Court of the United States. His plan includes amending the Constitution to constrain the Court. ​​​​​​​Our Founding Fathers understood the critical importance of an independent Court – as do I and most other Americans. House Republicans and I will not allow the Biden White House and radical Democrats to do so. This is just another example of the Biden-Harris administration trying to rig the game when they don’t feel like they are winning. 

Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar said today that State Sales Tax Revenues totaled $3.99 billion in July, 0.1% more than in July 2023. The majority of July sales tax revenue is based on sales made in June and remitted to the agency in July. Total sales tax revenue for the three months ending in July 2024 was up 1.7% compared with the same period a year ago. Sales tax is the largest source of state funding for the State Budget.

Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick sent a letter to the Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUC) urging them to claw back $800 million of ratepayer money from CenterPoint Energy in Houston. Upon sending the letter, Lt. Gov. Patrick stated: “As promised, here is the letter I sent to the PUC urging them to claw back $800 million of ratepayer money from CenterPoint. I remain committed to fighting on behalf ratepayers to ensure they do not pay for CenterPoint’s mismanagement.

While Democrats and their media allies may have been singing Kamala Harris’s praises in public the past two weeks, don’t be fooled. A new report is already revealing how Harris’s Democrat Party allies are singing an altogether different, much less optimistic tune in private. In private, Democrats are admitting how anxious they are about Harris's ability to connect with White Middle-Class Working Voters in Pennsylvania, Michigan & Wisconsin. “It’s not as if... ‘Oh, we have the best candidate in the world [in reserve].’”

“Kamala Harris is in much better shape than Joe Biden, but she has one big problem – the Electoral College,” wrote nationally recognized Political Statistician Nate Silver – a self-proclaimed liberal in his Tuesday, July 30th Election Forecast. “The candidate who I honest-to-God think has a better chance (Trump,) isn’t the candidate I’d rather have win (Biden),” Silver said, as his latest forecast shows Democrats’ gambit of switching out candidates is still on track to go down in flames.

“In December of last year we discovered that more than 1-in-every-5 voters admitted to voting fraudulently during the 2020 Election – and in April of this year we found that 28% of 'Likely Voters' admitted they would cheat in the upcoming 2024 Election if given the opportunity,” said Donald Kendal, director of the Socialism Research Center at The Heartland Institute. “The tools for election fraud are everywhere – that’s why people are rightly worried that millions of illegal ballots might be cast this November."

Director Kimberly Cheatle admitted that her agency failed to protect him. She must be held accountable. As the chairman emeritus and a current senior member of the House Homeland Security Committee, I will be working with my colleagues to conduct oversight of these failures by visiting the site of the rally and questioning key Biden Administration officials. The American people deserve answers – and I’m committed to getting them.