Good evening. What’s this, a Regulated Discourse on a Wednesday? No, you’re not going crazy. Just experimenting with making this a twice per week thing: Wednesday evenings and Sunday mornings. Two shorter blasts instead of one long blast.

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Quotable

Central Themes: Attacking the Speaker from the Right

Someone call Bose because we are having Speaker problems. (Political puns are dad joke nirvana.)

Last night saw the historic removal of (now former) U.S. Speaker Kevin McCarthy. At just eight months on the job, it was the shortest tenure of any U.S. Speaker of the House. Not to mention, it was the first time in history a Motion to Vacate the Speaker was successful.

All Democrats plus just eight Republicans—and Republicans hold the majority in the U.S. House—voted for removal. (Which is interesting, because McCarthy was allegedly guilty of working too closely with Democrats.)

Remember back in January when it took fifteen rounds of voting to elect McCarthy as Speaker? One of the concessions McCarthy made then was to amend the rules so that just one member could put a Motion to Vacate to a vote.

And back then, many Texas Republicans challenged and/or opposed McCarthy’s Speakership. They fought for some of those concessions. But this week, all Texas Republicans present for the vote in the U.S. House voted against removing McCarthy (two were absent).

It’s an interesting stat to note. Not a single Texas Republican in Congress thought the Motion to Vacate was a good idea. Interesting, because it provides a foreshadowing of what could happen in the Texas House on Monday when we expect to see a similar Motion to Vacate aimed at Speaker Dade Phelan and brought from his right.

Those Texas Congressional Republicans represent the same voters as the Texas House Republicans.

On Monday, you can expect the same House Republicans that voted against the Ken Paxton impeachment to bring a Motion to Vacate. Whether it actually gets a vote is questionable.

A single member may bring the motion, but the Speaker can refuse to recognize that member. At that point, the member making the motion would need a simple majority (76) to override the Speaker and allow the motion to receive a vote.

The argument that says McCarthy was worth preserving while Phelan is worth ousting is tenuous at best. Impeachment is the differentiator. But that passed overwhelmingly. Removing Phelan would mean a lot of House members who voted for impeachment back in May would now vote against Phelan.

Not gonna happen.

The Halfway Point

Monday, October 2

• Rep. Nate Schatzline, a Fort Worth Republican, announced his departure from the Texas Freedom Caucus, saying it’s time to push back against “liberal influence in the Texas House.”

• Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo is back at work after an extended leave to treat clinical depression. Her return came just a couple days after a lawsuit was filed seeking to remove her from office.

• The House Board of Managers published a new trove of evidence they claimed was not able to be presented during trial due to time restraints. Included in the initial publication was the unredacted home address of Ken and Angela Paxton.

• Some are suggesting mismanagement at the state’s healthcare agency as 900,000 Texans have lost Medicaid coverage since the end of pandemic-era protections. Sen. Roland Gutierrez, who is running for U.S. Senate, asked Gov. Abbott to include Medicaid in the special session.

Tuesday, October 3

• U.S. Speaker Kevin McCarthy was ousted after just eight months on the job. Texas Congressional Republicans stuck with him. 

• Gov. Abbott hosted the newly elected Governor of the Mexican state Coahuila.

• The Tarrant County Commissioners Court rejected funding to Girls, Inc. of Tarrant County, a school-based programming non-profit for girls aged 5-18 years old. Republican Commissioners pointed to the group’s stances on social issues as the reason for the decision.

Wednesday, October 4

• Remarks circulated from Speaker Dade Phelan’s Monday talk to a Beaumont Republican Women’s group. “I’m here to become Speaker again next session,” he said. 

• Some legislators are seeking records related to Hugh Brady, the House Parliamentarian, a role that gives counsel and guidance on rules and procedure. He’s a lecturer at UT School of Law, a registered lobbyist, and founder of a law firm that has contracted with municipalities.

• Texas Congressional Republicans sent a letter to Gov. Abbott urging review and action related to Colony Ridge.

• Rep. Trey Martinez-Fischer, a San Antonio Democrat and Chair of the House Democratic Caucus, previewed the Democrats’ messaging on school choice. “We already have school choice,” Martinez-Fischer said, referring to magnet schools.

That’s it! Let me know what you think on the twice-per-week format.

And stay safe and enjoy the arrival of fall tonight.