The other day I joined Cheryl Casone on "Mornings with Maria" to discuss how "Bidenomics" is destroying the American economy, the SBA’s attempt to cover up a massive amount of fraud in their COVID Loan Programs, and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen's visit to China. Joe Biden’s continuous burdensome regulations have cost Americans an average of $10,000 per household.

"Joe Biden's reckless open border policies led to the release of a TERRORIST on the watch list. Biden is putting U.S. National Security at risk," said Gov. Greg Abbott, as Operation Lone Star continued to fill the dangerous gaps to secure the border. Every individual apprehended or arrested, and every ounce of drugs seized would have otherwise made their way into communities across Texas due to President Biden.

"The current Harris County appointed Elections Administrator has yet to provide a deposition in the November 2022 Elections so the public can finally know what actually happened. The fact that the first Harris County appointed Elections Administrator had to resign seems to escape the County Attorney and Commissioners Court in this lawsuit," said State Sen. Paul Bettencourt following today’s news conference.​​​

Employers are facing extraordinary challenges filling jobs. Statistics show there are approximately 6 million unemployed Americans, yet there are almost 10 million job openings in the United States. If every unemployed American filled an open spot, there still wouldn’t be enough workers to end the “Help Wanted” phenomenon that is limiting the U.S. economy.

"We're proud to bring the 2023 Governor's Small Business Summit to Arlington next week as we continue to build an even brighter future for Texas," said Gov. Greg Abbott earlier today, announcing the Thursday, July 13th summit. The Governor’s Summits help small businesses and aspiring entrepreneurs reach new heights by connecting them with resources & information to start, strengthen and grow a business.

“Our nation’s state maritime academies play an unseen and often underappreciated role in protecting our country’s national security and economic interests," said Sen. Cruz, noting that the bill extends financial assistance to older cadets who attend the Texas A&M Maritime Academy, or one of the other five state maritime academies, and who commit to a post-graduation service obligation.

Joe Biden wants to tout his economic successes and is even using the slogan "Bidenomics" – which to most will be a term of derision, pain and failure. He keeps saying that unemployment is low and millions of jobs have been created over the past two years. But Reality Check: these jobs are simply the recovery of jobs that already existed but were lost during the COVID lockdowns.

 Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar today said state sales tax revenue totaled $3.92 billion in June 2023, which is 6.8% more than in June 2022. Total sales tax revenue for the three months ending in June 2023 was up 5.9% compared with the same period a year ago. Sales tax is the largest source of state funding for the Texas State Budget, accounting for 56% of all tax collections.

The state governments of Arkansas, Indiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Nebraska, North Dakota & West Virginia have all cut state income tax rates. Even Connecticut – whose Democrat Gov. Ned Lamont had to deal with a Democrat legislature – succeeded with Republican support in cutting all income tax rates except for the top rate paid by the highest-income people. All of this matters for three reasons.

Plans were approved, funding was secured from the legislature, and then-Lt. Gov. Bob Bullock was the guest of honor at the groundbreaking of the Bullock Texas State History Museum shortly before his death in 1999. Opened in 2001, this weekend's Bullock Museum Birthday Bash will take place at the museum on Sunday, July 9th, activities are available from 10 am to 2 pm, and admission is free from 10 am to 5 pm.

President Biden's Secretary of State Anthony Blinken stated last week that the "United States does not support Taiwan independence." I recently traveled to Taiwan with a Select Delegation of Congress to demonstrate my support for the Taiwanese people. In doing so, I was sanctioned by the Chinese Communist Party – which I see as a badge of honor. Mr. Biden should exhibit the same stance.

"Triple-digit heat in the region – and all across our state – continues to increase fire-prone conditions," said Gov. Greg Abbott. "The Wildland Fire Preparedness Level remains at Preparedness Level 2 due to fuel and weather conditions, current and expected wildfire activity, regional preparedness levels, and fire-suppression resource availability in the state," Abbott said.

President Biden and his radical administration are working around the clock to destroy American-made reliable energy sources. My "Real Emergencies Act" will prevent the White House from distracting our country from real emergencies – like skyrocketing inflation & record-high energy costs – by declaring climate change a national emergency. It ensures he doesn't abuse his office to pursue an anti-American agenda.

Texas Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham, M.D. announced that the General Land Office's (GLO) Adopt-A-Beach (AAB) program limited-edition, graphic T-shirts are now on sale. Proceeds will help AAB purchase supplies for cleanup site volunteers and create educational outreach materials to teach the public about the harmful effects of marine debris to both people and sea life. 

This 2023, Happy 4th of July from All of us at Texas Insider.

"This is a great day for all Americans. The Supreme Court has ended our country’s long & failed experiment with racial quotas and government-sanctioned racial discrimination – and ruled that Harvard and the University of North Carolina’s explicit & egregious policies of racially discriminating against Asian-Americans and other students are unconstitutional,” said Sen. Ted Cruz.

We have no time to waste.  The Fentanyl Crisis is costing American lives and ruining families throughout Texas and our great country. In fact, two pounds has the potential to kill 500,000 people. The tragic reality of the Biden White House's chaotic border management is the increasing number of Americans dying from the deadly drug.  

"The key here is that SJR 1 must now pass the Texas House by early August in time to get the Constitutional Propositions on to ballot this November. Without that, none of the benefits of an increased Homestead Exemption nor the Supplemental Teacher Pay will reach any of these nearly 6 million Texans in 2023," said Sen. Paul Bettencourt, the primary author of the record $18 billion dollar Senate Property Tax Relief Plan, SB 1.

This historic investment, announced recently by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), will finance critical infrastructure projects across the state to increase access to reliable, high-speed internet and help close the availability gap in Texas. Texas’ share was the largest of any state.

$150 million in the Unified Transportation Program is to support construction of the International Bridge Trade Corridor (IBTC) project in the Rio Grande Valley. The IBTC is a proposed non-tolled, four-lane divided roadway that would provide direct interstate access for several international ports of entry and expedite the movement of goods and freight through the border region.