In the July 5 episode, newly elected Republican Party of Texas chair D’rinda Randall tells us why the GOP is holding a midterm convention in Dallas and why they think it’s important. Meantime, newly re-elected Texas Democratic Party chair Kendall Scudder explains why he thinks the midterm convention is a sign the GOP fears the midterms. And State Board of Education member Tiffany Clark says now that the Bible will be required reading in public schools, the government is taking control of classrooms.
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A mid-term convention is coming to Dallas. Why President Trump chose Texas to energize voters. The state Republican Party elects a new chair. Dorinda Randall takes questions on that midterm convention and her party stance on IVF.
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Fresh off his own convention, the chair of the Texas Democratic Party is here to the campaign. He wants James Talarico to run.
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Plus, a member of the state Board of Education tells us why she thinks mandating Bible stories in public schools is wrong. And does the governor want Texas to be the epicenter of AI development? Or is he trying to ban data centers?
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Inside Texas Politics with Jason Whitely starts now.
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Hello everybody. I'm Teresa Woodard in for Jason Whitely this week. Even though it is a holiday weekend, we have a lot of political headlines for you. Let's start down in Austin. The Republican nominee for Texas comptroller is the new interim Comptroller. Governor Abbott appointed Don Hofheinz to the statewide office after Kelly Hancock announced he's leaving at the end of the month.
In a statement, Huff said he's committed to running government Leon and protecting every tax dollar he finds opponent on the November ballot. Democratic State Senator Sarah Eckhardt called the appointment an abuse of power, and she said Abbott is concerned he finds cannot win on his own to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Now they ended their term with some very big decisions justices handing President Trump a couple of losses by upholding birthright citizenship and protecting mail in ballots. But he got some wins, too. His administration can lift temporary protections for Haitian and Syrian immigrants. The court also expanded presidential power to fire people, and it struck down limits on coordinated campaign spending, and a state representative is officially resigning to take on a new role inside the governor's office.
Nate Schatz, line from Fort Worth, will be a senior adviser to Governor Abbott with a focus on election integrity. Schatz line had previously announced he was not running for reelection and instead taking on a role with the National Faith Advisory Board. First up, our conversations with those leaders of the Republican and Democratic parties in Texas.
Both took our questions on their party platforms. And that big midterm Republican convention coming to Texas. You will hear from Democrat Kendall Scudder right after Dorinda Randall, the new chair of the Republican Party of Texas. Welcome to the program. Congratulations on your victory as party chair.
Thank you so much. We are glad you're with us. And we will talk about the Republican Party of Texas here in just a second. But I do want to start with this news that's just come out. President Trump announcing that the National Party is bringing a mid-term convention to Dallas in the coming months. Does that indicate at all that the president thinks he needs to spend time in Texas in order to secure Republican victories here?
No, not at all. I mean, I think what I love about President Trump is he can motivate everybody. Get us all ready to get to the polls. So, yeah, it is, um, something to get us energized and ready. And, uh, you know, Democrats don't have that on their side. We have that on our side. And it's also because our policies are what's best for every Texan, not just Republicans, but all Texans, something that's never been done before.
It's historical. And again, he's having it in his favorite place in the world, which is Texas. So we're ready. Tell me what the state party might have to do with that convention. What will it look like? Well, we're in the preliminary stages right now, so we're finding out more and more every day. We had a call yesterday and I'm going to have some more with the RNC.
So I am just waiting for orders and I, I have trusty Texans that are ready to help me get this pulled off for all Texans, but it is going to be delegates that we have there and each state is going to have their delegate number. It's a lot like the RNC convention that happened in 2024. It's going to be just a small one, but it's still going to be a huge in magnitude for us.
So we're excited. Let's talk about something that is in your party platform. I want some clarity on this. What is your party's stance on in-vitro fertilization? IVF, because the platform you just approved opposes it. But your party's nominee for Senate, Ken Paxton, says he supports it and will protect it.
So would you like to see IVF banned in Texas? I would not. I know a lot of extremely wonderful people that are here because of IVF. We are a family of of families. We have. We're a party of family and we fight for families and we fight for babies. And we want that to be an opportunity for anybody that wants to take advantage of it now.
Medical achievements have been better when it comes to IVF, but I have a lot of wonderful friends that have been able to take advantage of IVF. It's a gift that God gave us to, to be able to bring families together and to make families. So we are a pro-family,
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you know, party. And so therefore that is something that I would love to see that we continue and that we get behind. Now, the delegates that voted against it, I do as a party chair have to back our delegates. But at the same time, 85% of Republicans do want IVF to be open to families, to be able to take advantage of that.
So it is going to come out in the legislature. We'll see how it goes. But I, I am not personally somebody that is for that. I think everybody would agree that your party has successfully moved Texas to the right over the course of the last 30 years, so I'm curious about what the next frontier is. What's the next goal ahead?
If you did look ahead at the legislative session to come, just where do you want to go from here?
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Well, I want to see what the delegates did talk about too, is they talked about eliminating property taxes. They talked about banning Sharia law because it is an oppressive system and government system to it. To anyone that is, um, you know, female. And, um, the other thing that I'd love to see us do is make sure that we protect life, that we protect our borders.
And so we want to continue to be the beacon of what it's possible when it comes to republicanism and conservatism in your state. All right. Dorinda Randall, the new chairman of the Republican Party of Texas. Thank you so much for your time. It's really great to see you. Thank you. Well good morning. Welcome back.
Thanks for being here. Thanks so much for having me. Congratulations on the reelection. I appreciate it. The Republican Party says they're bringing a national convention, a mid-term convention to Dallas in September. Um, does this signify that Texas is in play? Well, I'm not too worried about a circus coming to town because I'm not afraid of clowns.
But I will say they could have picked anywhere in the country to have their their mid-term convention. There's lots of places that are in play this year Georgia, Maine, Iowa, Michigan. But they chose Texas. And I think that that should send a message of what their internal polling is telling them. Do you see a world where the Democrats do any counterprogramming during that convention?
I imagine you'll see a couple of fun surprises along the way. Any hints to give us yet? You know, I think anyone who's followed me over the last year as the. As the chairman knows that I don't really take fads lying down. So, you know, this sounds like a really fun experience. And Democrats are going to be able to rise to the occasion.
Let's talk a little bit about the party platform coming out of the convention. I know that it didn't go as far as some wanted it to go when it comes to Israel. I know that the state party and the National Party, some are accusing it of anti-Semitism. How do you respond to that? Well, we should be on the front lines against hate in all of its forms anti-Semitism, Islamophobia.
I mean, look, the Republican convention, they literally credentialed people for being Muslim. Okay. So I don't think that comparing the Democratic and the Republican parties, there is a very fair, fair comparison. What I will say is, I think we have a lot of different people with a lot of different backgrounds and a lot of different perspectives.
I think there's a big stream of progressive populism surging through the country right now, wanting to make sure that our tax dollars are going towards helping Americans and helping our communities. That's what I think you saw in some of those initiatives that came through. Were you disappointed that Congresswoman Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett didn't take part?
I adore Congresswoman Crockett. She has been a good friend of mine for a long time. We're from the same county, Bowie County, out in East Texas. I also did College Dems with James Talarico back in the day. So they're both dear friends of mine. Felons get hurt after primaries. I understand that, and frankly, it's not her responsibility.
Okay. It's James Talarico responsibility to earn the votes of every person in this state. Nobody owes us anything. And I think that James is up to that task. We have plenty of time between now and November, and I know he's working hard to get that accomplished, so she is welcome into the fray anytime. I would love to see my old friend Jasmine Crockett.
What would you advise Representative Talarico to do moving forward? To try to earn the vote and unify the party? I think it's really important for him to build a culturally competent campaign that actively reaches out in black communities not in superficial ways, but in ways that listens and understands, not speaking at them.
I think what you heard and our hearing is folks saying that they want to see something different from the party and from our nominee than what he's offering. That's what they're saying in those circles. And so he needs to have the responsibility of listening. I think he's working towards doing that. It's a big state.
It's a lot of ground to cover. And I know he's up for that challenge, but that's what I would like to see a culturally competent campaign that understands that we have more black voters in this state than any other state in the country. Uh, and so that that is a core part of our constituency and our base, and there is no path to win without them.
All right. Kendall Scudder, chair of the Texas Democratic Party. Thank you so much. Thanks so much for having me. I appreciate it.
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Let's bring in the roundtable to talk about this. We've got Bud Kennedy from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Natalie Hadad, political reporter at WFAA in Dallas, and Ashley Goudeau, the political director at Kvue in Austin. Thanks all of you for being here. But I want to start with you. This GOP midterm convention, does that signify trouble for Republicans?
Well, what it signifies is that Texas is a great place to raise money. They have an event here. They withdraw money from Texas like it's the the biggest ATM you can imagine. It's pretty much Trump's home. Home court. He's the home team here. He feels like he's right at home. And let's not forget who controls American Airlines Center.
The Adelson family has given Trump just the family alone $250 million. I bet they make the Republicans feel welcome. Yeah that's a really good point. Natalie your thoughts? You know, I don't think the convention itself proves that Republicans think that they are in trouble. I think Texas is still a comfortably red state.
But what I do think it signifies, because midterm conventions are a bit unusual is that they now find themselves in a position where they need to compete a bit more than they are used to spend more money than they are used to. Because, as I'm sure we'll talk about later. Polls are showing some pretty tight numbers.
Yeah. So let's actually talk about that poll right now. It's a new one from the New York Times in Siena. It shows Talarico and Paxton tied at 47%. Actually, it's the best result for Democrats in Texas. Nearly a decade of this polling. So is that why we're going to see this midterm convention?
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Are we really relying on a poll of 650 people? I don't think that's why. You know, I'm going to just be honest. It's a very small poll. It's good numbers, good for Talarico, but it's a very small poll. I think Republicans don't want history to repeat itself. They don't want to lose in the midterm, which is what typically happens.
The party in power in the white House loses control of Congress in the midterm. And they don't want that to happen. And so if they can come to Texas, rally the troops and raise the money, they're going to do it. Absolutely. All right. great points, Ashley. Natalie. But y'all stick around. There's more to come.
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A member of the state Board of Education says adding Bible readings to public school curriculum will land Texas in court, and the state searches for a solution on data centers. But has the governor made his position clear? That's ahead on inside Texas politics.
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The state Board of Education is mandating Bible stories in Texas public schools starting in 2030. Republicans say this will help kids understand the founding of our nation, but Democrats say it elevates the Christian faith. Doctor Tiffany Clark is a member of the state board. She is a Democrat from DeSoto.
Supporters of this new curriculum say that America was founded on Judeo-Christian values. So they believe that kids should learn this. Why are they wrong? Yeah. Thank you, Teresa, for having me today. I think one of the things that never crossed my mind is to see government literally taking control of our classrooms.
Never in a million years would I imagine that state board is writing Bible infused curriculum. And I think it speaks to where we are right now in the state of Texas. We're ranked 44th in education. We're at the bottom. And this is under Governor Abbott's Tulip. So for us to have this curriculum mandated, I don't foresee it helping our students, any lack of diversity that our students need to excel.
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Some experts in national curriculum have said they believe Texas is the first state to mandate this. Others have made it optional. Would you have been okay with an optional reading list that included Bible passages? I think optional would have been my preferred choice if I had to make a choice, because it allows for our teachers to still have autonomy and meet the needs of our scholars.
Here in Texas, we serve 5.5 million students. There is no way we should be focused on one specific religion, one mandated Christian belief when we have students of different faiths. You've spent a lot of time in classrooms. Teacher, counselor. What do you envision this looking like for a teacher in a classroom right now?
Honestly, I can't say that I do envision it. I feel like when we start mandating this, we're going to lose the ability to work, work in our craft, work in our profession as teachers, to be able to switch up lessons when they may or may not work. Is a teacher at this point in Texas afraid of saying or doing the wrong thing?
Absolutely. Um, teachers are super afraid right now. Um, simply because there is this to dashboard where teachers are under so much scrutiny right now, especially on social media. If a teacher posts anything right now, they're probably being screenshotted and sent to the commissioner's office to be investigated now.
We're already in a deficit for teachers. This book list won't roll out to 2030, but you already hear teachers trying to find an exit strategy right now. The Ten Commandments issue has ended up in the courts. Will this end up in court as well? Absolutely, without a doubt. And I say that simply because we have neglected so many religions.
Um, by mandating this coursework, even some of your stories honestly lack diversity. And I know that's a buzzword where we can't even use diversity in essence, but there are no female authors on this list. There are no black authors. There are no Hispanic authors. As a Democrat on this board. How do you keep the energy level up?
How do you maintain optimism? Because it feels like you are fighting against. Um, the ship is sailing and you're fighting against it for sure. I have hope that in November everybody is going to run to the ballot box and get the far extremists out of office, because everyone on both sides right now are fed up with what just happened on Friday at the state Board of Education with these Bible mandates, the social studies curriculum.
So you're seeing people adamantly upset that our public education is falling apart under Greg Abbott. So
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I don't want Greg Abbott to teach me, um, Sunday sermons. And I know my students wouldn't want that either. So the Democrat in me is hopeful. The Democrat in me continues to pray, um, and realize that I still have 1.5 million students in my district alone that I have to show up for and fight for every single day.
Tiffany Clark, a member of the State Board of Education, thank you so much for being here. Thank you. We've got more roundtable when we come back.
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All right. We are back with more roundtable now. We still have Bud, Natalie and Ashley with us this morning. We want to switch gears and talk about something we briefly mentioned at the top of the show, the situation down in Austin with the Comptroller's office. Ashley, we've got Kelly Hancock stepping away.
We've got Governor Abbott appointing Don Hofheinz, who is the Republican nominee to this position. Is this going to potentially backfire for Governor Abbott?
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Well, he certainly doesn't think so, right. I mean, I think that to the governor, it makes sense that you would put the person who you think is going to assume the role, right, you assume is going to win, you're going to give them a head start and a head start at a key point. It's when school is starting August 1st when he takes the the reins and the program is going to be rolling out then.
I do think, though, I talked with State Senator Sarah Eckhardt, the Democrat running in the race, she thinks the governor did her a favor. She's actually thanking him, saying that people are going to see how her friends is going to act and they're going to vote for her. So we'll see who ends up right on that.
Yeah, she is no doubt fired up over this. Natalie, what do you think Senator Eckhart is saying? This is a sign that the governor thinks that her fines cannot win in November. What do you think? Right. I actually completely agree with Ashley's take on this. I think Republicans will argue that the governor was just putting in the person that he believes is going to be the permanent a position for comptroller in this vacancy or in this spot.
Now is giving him the incumbency, if he were to win. And then Democrats will argue that this is giving someone an advantage and it is unfair. I think we're going to see how voters feel ultimately, if this new position, you know, at least in the interim for him is either a reward or if voters will resent the governor for this.
All right. I want to switch gears, but let's take this to you. We talked a little bit about data centers on the show last week, but there is some new news because Governor Abbott is now saying he doesn't want data centers in rural Neighborhoods. It's a new twist because a few months ago, he was just saying that Texas should be the epicenter of AI innovation.
So what is his stance right now? Well, I think he still wants to roll out the red carpet, but the carpet's looking bumpy right now. You know, what we have is is a requests for power that the stress on the power grid from the data centers that are in the works will be five times the amount of power that's ever been used on the hottest day in Texas.
So he wants to make sure that Texas Grid is protected, that Texas water is protected, that he wants to welcome data centers, but stop them from taking advantage of local communities. Yeah, Natalie, we always hear about a welcome mat for business in Texas, but is this sort of hypocritical if we now say, wait a minute, we don't want you anymore?
You know, I think Governor Abbott is trying to navigate something that has become politically difficult, especially in rural areas where, remember, this is where he has all of his support. And we we've seen in reporting from across the state that those who live in rural areas do not want these data centers taking their water, their power, etc. and to Bud's point.
All of the energy from our grid. And so I think he is trying really hard to navigate this. And he's not saying no more. You know, data centers, I think he still wants Texas to lead AI in the nation, but I think he wants to put some tough restrictions on how they operate and where they operate in Texas. Quick final word for you, Ashley.
Your take on data centers in Texas.
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At the end of the day, Republicans need rural Texans. If they don't have rural Texans, they don't win. Rural Texans don't want data centers. So you've got to rein those in, because I promise you, if we have another blackout situation with the energy or if there's not enough water to go around, Republicans are going to fill it on Election Day.
Yeah. All right. We will end it there. Very strong opinions, very strong points from our roundtable this morning. Ashley, Natalie Budd, thank you all so much. And thank you for watching. Hope you have a wonderful rest of your holiday weekend. Take care everybody.