U.S. consumers pay the highest Credit Card Swipe Fees in the industrialized world. And as Americans face rampant inflation and higher costs for everyday goods & services, the last thing consumers need is higher credit card fees. But new legislation that could be voted on by the U.S. Senate this week aims to significantly reduce the skyrocketing fees.

"I spoke with Rep. Tony Gonzales — he confirmed it's a serious issue. They are being overwhelmed by unprecedented numbers — just hit an all-time high and still growing!" wrote Musk on his social media platform X, formerly Twitter. As Customs & Border Protection reported the highest monthly number in history, 304,162, "Am going to visit Eagle Pass (Texas) later this week to see what's going on for myself," said Musk.

"The number of Republican Mayors leading the Nation’s 10 Largest Cities has increased from zero, to one. But it's clear the nation & its cities have reached a time for choosing," said Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson, announcing his decision. "My very good friend, Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson announced he's switching to the Republican Party. He's a good man – Welcome to our party," said Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick.

Any suggestion that the Biden corruption scandal evidence gathered by the U.S. House of Representatives so far doesn't meet the standard for an inquiry into impeachable offenses is nothing more than willful blindness. From dozens of shell companies & accounts transferring millions to Biden family members, to undeniable evidence showing influence-peddling of "the brand," consider just 5 established facts.

"The negative impacts of this rule are tremendous. We will continue to fight for the rights of Texas' Farmers & Ranchers,” said Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller after President Biden's Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) bypassed Standard Public Comment Period protocol to issue a "Final Rule" for implementation of the Waters of the U.S. (WOTUS) Program without citizen input.

Ford President & CEO Jim Farley suggested last week – ahead of the United Auto Workers (UAW) strike – that his company couldn’t pay workers what they wanted because of the company's rapidly growing costs of transitioning to Electric Vehicles. Earlier this summer Ford announced they expect to lose a staggering $4.5 billion on electric vehicles this year, up from the initial $3 billion loss forecast earlier in the year.

The most chilling fact is, this came from the White House Counsel’s Office. ​​​​​​​This is not the Press Office, but a Counsellor to the President calling on the nation's media to “ramp up their scrutiny” and form a unified front against House Republicans impeachment inquiry against President Joe Biden. And, the White House shows no reluctance or concern in making such an open pitch.

With Congress now back in session in Washington, D.C., a recent Texas Legislative Rural Caucus letter to Sen. Ted Cruz highlights the importance of the Emergency Broadband Benefit Program that has transitioned into the Affordable Connectivity Program. It's a program designed to benefit rural communities across Texas, and the families who live there.

A federal judge earlier this month – Obama appointee Judge Robin L. Rosenberg – dismissed a lawsuit brought by a Florida attorney that attempted to disqualify Donald Trump from running for president (under the 14th Amendment) for allegedly fomenting "an insurrection" after the 2020 Election. Mr. Trump, however, has not been charged with "insurrection," nor convicted of any crime.

With Texas voters preparing to vote in November on a proposed Constitutional Amendment to help finance numerous water projects across the state, Comptroller Glenn Hegar today published his agency’s "Texas Water: Present & Future Needs 2023" report, which echoes critical water issues highlighted in the Texas Water Development Board’s latest plan.

“As someone who was raised near the coast and lived in Galveston for over a decade, I'm committed to safeguarding our shoreline and ensuring the stewardship of our coastal lands, habitats, and ecosystems,” said Texas General Land Comm. Dawn Buckingham earlier today, announcing the allocation of $10 million for use to plug orphaned wells in Trinity Bay.

Gov. Greg Abbott, the Texas Dept. of Public Safety (DPS) and the Texas National Guard continue to work together to secure the border, stop the smuggling of drugs, weapons & people into Texas, and prevent and stop trans-national criminal activity. To date the effort has led to over 427,600 illegal immigrant apprehensions, and more than 33,800 criminal arrests.

It will be the first time a sitting U.S. President will not attend any of the observances commemorating the tragedies of 9/11 at the historical sites of New York City, Pennsylvania, or at the Pentagon in Virginia just across the Potomac from Washington, D.C. Mr. Biden will skip the 9/11 Anniversary at those locations, and will instead observe the 22nd Anniversary of the nation's worst terrorist attack while at a military base in Alaska.

Aliases can often be tricky things. For instance, when someone in your family calls you “The Big Guy.” To most Americans, he's simply known as “President Biden.” But let's focus on the search for the true identity of "Robert L. Peters" – which Congressional investigators believe was used by then V.P. Joe Biden in emails that contradict his claims about the family's influence peddling scandal. The Question is, Why?

He left the Texas Association of Realtors at the top of his game. Few had better political skills – or deeper roots in Texas Republican Politics. And despite the passions of modern day politics, Mark Lehman was always a focused advocate and champion for Texas – all while managing 10s of 1,000s of small business owners. It's over-used in this business to say “he was one of a kind,” but in the case of Mark, the man was truly unique.

​​​Polling data shows young people are now increasingly less willing to identify as Democrats than they were four years ago – with a growing share of Gen Z and Millennials identifying as Independents. “In the simplest terms, when the Democrat Party nominee for president garners 60% of the youth vote, they win. Otherwise, it’s ugly for them,” says John Della Volpe, a pollster at Harvard's Institute of Politics – and one of Biden’s 2020 pollsters.

After a career spanning an impressive 25 years with the department, Austin Police Chief Joseph Chacon announced earlier today he is set to retire on August 31st. As he steps down, Chacon's Chief of Staff Robin Henderson has been chosen to serve as Interim Chief until a nationwide search for a replacement is concluded. Chief Chacon's tenure was marked by both challenges and achievements, and Henderson brings a wealth of experience.

Since the mood of the nation's consumers runs on gas prices – when they're high, pocket-book concerns worsen – rising prices at the pump are stoking fears of continued high inflation as well. Earlier this year, after rebuffing President Biden’s calls for increased production, Saudi Arabia starting reducing how much oil it sends into the global economy – but that’s not all. In the past week they've threatened to deepen the reductions further.

From water heaters to pick-up trucks, from gas stoves to light bulbs, there seems to be a strange similarity in how all these “money-saving” changes that leftists and liberal Democrats are forcing on the rest of us always cost more. As the left will tell you, choices are only acceptable when it comes to sexual preferences, abortion, and gender. In everything else, the government knows what’s best for you. It is, after all, a free country.

There's a lot of hysteria over the recent declarations of worldwide, record-breaking heat – which are based on woefully limited climate data. Perspective is badly needed. Cherry-picking data, truncating timelines for temperature trends, citing opinions of “experts” as facts, and relying on anecdotal evidence shouldn't be used to incite dramatic or dubious public reaction. Scientists have a long way to go to before sufficiently comprehending the air surrounding the globe.