Texas Illegal Immigration Laws

Illegal immigration has been an issue in the state of Texas and the other states that share a border with Mexico. Texas shares 1,969 miles of border with Mexico with 23 legal points of entry into our state, both privately and publicly owned. In 2011 the Texas legislature passed over 85 bills dealing with the issue of illegal immigration. Compare that with the handful of bills passed this year as of May. What happened to the Texas legislature in the past two years that made a significant impact on the issue of illegal immigration?

It appears that after the 2012 election the GOP received a wake-up call nationwide that they failed to attract the Hispanic vote (Romney received 27 percent of the Hispanic vote nationally). In addition to the nationwide attention, many Texas Legislative members who regularly filed controversial immigration bills did not return to the House or Senate. With the growing Hispanic population in Texas alone the Republicans have toned down the anti-illegal immigration reform in order to remain incumbents and maintain popularity with their constituents.

Illegal immigration bills need to continue to flow through the legislature for a number of reasons. The first I will address has to do with overall public safety. Our borders need a generous upgrade in order to keep the citizens that inhabit those areas safe. With increasing gang violence that is spilling over from Mexico onto our side of the border it is no longer safe to be within 50-100 miles from the border. I understand that a good number of people that illegally migrate into our country are looking for work and a better place to live, but there are also citizens from other countries that are in similar if not worse conditions that become American citizens the legal route. As of 6 days ago, the unemployment rate in Texas sits at 6.5% and 7.6% nationwide. Jobs that could be available to hard working American citizens are being taken by people that are in our country illegally.

There are plenty of issues in our state (and country) that our government needs to focus their attention on, illegal immigration laws need to be at the top of that list. 

Bipartisan Redistricting Deals Takes a Blow in Texas Senate

In 2011 the Texas Legislature drew congressional district maps that were considered to favor the Republican Party and also discriminate against minority groups, by federal courts. Although the new maps were drawn up because of a large influx of the minority populations they failed to allocate proper districts that had a majority of the new immigrant population of Texas. The author of this article reported that a special Senate committee on redistricting voted to approve the maps of congressional and legislative districts that were drawn up by Rick Perry and Greg Abbott. Minority groups threatened to sue if the Legislature adopts these recently Senate-approved maps, but there is still a vote left in the House. There have been speculations that the House might have to make a political deal to resolve the dispute over the redistricting issue that has waged on since 2011.

When the maps were drawn up in 2011 there were obvious signs of gerrymandering that took place in order to spread out the minority votes into multiple districts. With the hard pressing minority groups taking political action against the wrongful redistricting appropriations, there could be a major change in the upcoming elections. The author appears to be indifferent about the topic issue, but rather gives factual evidence that describes the current situation in the Texas Legislature. The information provided is relevant, and will affect all citizens of Texas with potentially drastic changes in the next few years. In my personal opinion this decision could potentially turn Texas into a battle ground swing state in the next decade of politics.

Why I'm Glad Texas Gov. Rick Perry isn't Seeking Another Term...

The editorial article that I decided to evaluate discusses the most recent decisions by Rick Perry to not run in the gubernatorial race in the 2014 election. Also stated in the article is the indecision about a presidential campaign, although it appears that in the not so distant future we will be hearing about his final decision. The author states “He has been governor since George W. Bush decided to run for the White House. That’s a long time — too long a time in fact.” This statement clearly voices his current opinions on the current governor of Texas, and by other media sources I deem to hold true for a large portion of his constituents. He then critiques Perry’s pressing efforts to pass restrictive abortion laws as a form of personal convictions, and the national spotlight that is being placed on the ongoing debate in the Texas ledge. 

In the concluding portion of the article the author gives plausible reasoning to Perry’s decision to not run for governor in his pursuit of the White House. I do agree with the author that if Perry does decide to run, he needs to focus all of his efforts on the campaign without the demanding governor position “weighing him down”. While most people count Perry out of the upcoming presidential election, both the author and I agree that he has learned from his past mistakes and should not be taken lightly because he will be a solid contender for the GOP. This article was taken from Dallas News with the intention to seek out an audience of both democrats and republicans due to the upcoming political changes that will affect every citizen in our state, and potentially the nation. The author, Jim Mitchell, is a columnist for Dallas News in the opinion section with many editorials focusing on political action in Texas and the nation.  

Attorney General Abbott Kicks Off Gubernatorial Run

Attorney General Greg Abbott launched his gubernatorial campaign on this past Sunday in downtown San Antonio. He is currently in the race for the governor of Texas along with Republican Tom Pauken, with speculations that Democrat Sen. Wendy Davis might join the race as well. Wendy Davis received nation-wide popularity among the democratic community after her 12-plus-hour filibuster in the Texas Legislature’s first special session over the controversial abortion restrictions. This next gubernatorial election could potentially be a turning point on the political stage if there is an increase in the booming Hispanic population that register and show up to the voting booths to show democratic support. This topic will be in the headlines as the race progresses, especially if new contenders decide to run. The future political state of Texas will definitely be affected by the decision which could produce major changes in legislation.

Here is the link to the article: http://www.statesman.com/ap/ap/texas/ag-abbott-set-to-formally-begin-gubernatorial-run/nYqFJ/