Federal Judge Blocks Texas’ Enforcement of the First Amendment

That’s how I read it anyway.

Federal Judge Blocks Texas Social Media Censorship Law, Abbott’s Office Slams Move As ‘Hostile’ To America’s Free Speech Foundation | The Daily Wire

On Wednesday, a federal judge granted a preliminary injunction against a Texas social media “censorship” law which would prevent Big Tech giants like Twitter and Facebook from blocking content or banning users based on political viewpoints.

In September, Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed HB20 into law. “There is a dangerous movement by some social media companies to silence conservative ideas and values,” said Abbott at the time. “This is wrong and we will not allow it in Texas.”

Judge Robert Pitman for the Western District of Texas granted the preliminary injunction and said that Big Tech companies have a First Amendment right to moderate content on their platforms.

No, that’s not how the First Amendment works. You have it completely backwards. I have a First Amendment right to have my voice heard.

Actually, this is an interesting case. I hope it makes its way to SCOTUS. As far as I know, the Court has  not weighed in on freedom of speech and Social Media. I’d love to hear what they have to say.

Third Time...err...Lucky?

Beto O’Rourke Launches Bid For Texas Governor | The Daily Wire

Dems keep trying to turn Texas blue, but it seems more red right now than it has been in a while. And Abbott is loved. This seems like a waste. Still, they have to run somebody, I guess. At least they won’t have to spend a lot on getting his name and face known to the public.

Former Democratic presidential candidate and U.S. Senate candidate Beto O’Rourke officially launched a run for Texas governor on Monday, announcing that he intends to “serve ALL of the people of Texas.”

“I am running for governor to serve ALL of the people of Texas,” he said in his announcement, according to The Hill. “I believe that the only way we are going to achieve great things for this state is by looking out for each other and moving forward together.”

O’Rourke will likely be running against incumbent Republican Governor Greg Abbott. He said that he wanted to combat the “fringe policies and incompetence that we see in Texas today.”

Hard to see many people other than diehard Democrats seeing “incompetence” in the Abbott administration. Texas is doing better than just about any other state.

At First I Thought This Was the Babylon Bee

But no, it’s real.

Texas constructs border wall with shipping containers | One America News Network (oann.com)

In an interview on Thursday, Texas Rep. Troy Nehls (R) praised the undertaking, saying that Gov. Greg Abbott (R-Texas) has found a resourceful way to curb the approaching caravan. He said they’re strategically placing the containers to channel migrants into areas where more police and Border Patrol agents are available.

“It’s a tool that the governor is using to try to help slow down, curb this invasion, this invasion that we’re seeing at our southern border,” said Nehls.

There is a total of 1,250 miles of border in Texas. Nehls said it’s a lot of area to cover, but Texas is doing the federal government’s job for them because they refuse to do it on their own.

I applaud Governor Greg Abbott (R-TX) for doing this. I hope other states follow suit.

I’m of Two Minds on This

Governor Calls for Removal of ‘Pornographic Images’ From Texas Schools (dailysignal.com)

I believe we should be careful of what kinds of things we expose our children to and at what age.

However, book banning is a very slippery slope. Almost frictionless. And what you describe as “pornographic images”, maybe I describe as the artwork of Ruben.

Once again, I think I have to err on the side of freedom of expression and of speech.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said “pornographic images and substance” don’t belong in schools, according to a Monday letter he wrote to the Texas Association of School Boards.

Abbott warned about a growing number of parents who are increasingly alarmed by the books and other “extremely inappropriate” content found in the public school education system, but did not give any specific example in the letter addressed to Dan Troxell, executive director of the Texas Association of School Boards.

Yeah. I have a problem with this without specific examples. The recent case of having children write a sex scene is over the top, clearly. But where’s the line? This is tricky, and without absolutely clear guidelines, I don’t think I agree with Abbott on this one.

The Subheading Is Perfect: Real Women Appreciate This

Governor Abbott Signs Bill Banning Trans Girls From Female Sports (lifezette.com)

Texas Governor Abbott signed a bill into law on Monday banning transgender girls from competing in female sports at public schools. Several other states across the country have already signed similar laws. The law is set to go into effect on January 18, 2022.

Those who support the bill say that the purpose is to create fairness in school sports due to the inherent physical advantage that transgender women have when playing on female teams. Equal rights advocates say it is discrimination and hate-driven claiming that transgender women have no advantage despite the fact they were born as a male.

Allowing biological males to compete in female sports will destroy female sports. I understand the desires of transgenders to compete, and I admit that I don’t know how to help them. I do know that letting them compete against girls & women is the wrong answer. It will set women’s athletics back 50 years.

This Is Perfectly Constitutional

In fact, the Constitution makes it pretty clear that border control belongs to the states.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott makes good on border security threat, authorizes state National Guard to make arrests of illegal aliens in historic first (newstarget.com)

Earlier this fall, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, frustrated and angry at the Biden regime’s purposeful inaction on securing the border, stepped up and issued a threat: He will use his authority and empower his own personnel to start arresting illegal aliens in the absence of federal enforcement.

“By virtue of the power and authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the State of Texas, I hereby order that the Texas National Guard assist DPS in enforcing Texas law by arresting lawbreakers at the border,” Abbott’s letter to  Texas Adjutant General Major Gen. Tracy Norris said in July, when he first issued the order.

This is awesome. I am so sick of Republican Politicians who just bend over and take it from the Left. We have some GOP Governors and even Congress folks with some intestinal fortitude and spines. Maybe this bodes well for 2022 and 2024. I refuse to get my hopes up though.

Still, this is good news at least. Maybe the border situation will get a little bit better.

Oh, You Mean That Border Crisis

Abbott Blasts Biden Over Border Crisis: ‘It’s Total Chaos,’ ‘They Need To Up Their Game, Big Time’ | The Daily Wire

“The only thing [the Biden administration has] shown is an incapability of dealing with this crisis, candidly in a way where they pretend it doesn’t even exist,” Abbott said. “And we’re here to tell you, it exists and it’s total chaos and the Biden administration — they need to up their game, big time.”

Abbot hit Biden for abandoning strict border enforcement in favor of more lax policies such as “catch-and-release.”

“When you have an administration that has abandoned any pretense of securing the border and security our sovereignty, you see the onrush,” Abbott said.

This isn’t an accident.

One Down, Forty-Nine to Go

‘Election Integrity Is Now Law In Texas’: Abbott Signs Bill That Triggered Dem Flight To DC | The Daily Wire

The bill takes several measures to ensure integrity in casting ballots, instituting a ban on drive-through and round-the-clock voting, and adding an ID requirement for mail-in and absentee ballots.

“Those who do want to vote-by-mail must now provide their driver’s license number or the last four digits of their Social Security number when they’re applying for a mail-in ballot and when they send it back in,” the Daily Mail explained. The same measure also mandates that polling locations in areas with more than 55,000 residents offer at least 12 hours of early voting.

Personally, I would say that this doesn’t go far enough, but it’s a good start.

In a signing ceremony held Tuesday, Abbott said the bill makes “it easier than ever before for anybody to go cast a ballot. It does also, however, make sure it is harder than ever for people to cheat at the ballot box.”

“Election integrity is now law in Texas,” Abbott said before signing.

Like I said, it’s a start. Clearly better than where we were in 2020. We need many, many more laws like this.

They’re Really Such Classy People

Hollywood Celebrities Scold Greg Abbott After He Tests Positive for COVID-19: 'Eat S**t for Eternity' (breitbart.com)

Stars including Bette Midler, George Takei, Rosanna Arquette, Ethan Embry, and comedian Paula Pell attacked the Texas governor on social media after his office said Tuesday the governor is fully vaccinated against COVID-19, in good health, and currently experiencing no symptoms.

If you’re fully vaccinated, you’re unlikely to contract Covid-19, but if you’re a total asshat of a governor all bets are off.

— George Takei (@GeorgeTakei) August 17, 2021

It makes me feel better about liking William Shatner to know that George Takei can’t stand him. What a total loser.

Another Reason This Is a Crisis

Abbott says there are allegations of children being sexually assaulted at federal migrant facility | Just The News

Sadly, this is not surprising. When you cram this many people into such a small place, and many of them are unaccompanied minors, this is going to happen.

[Governor Greg Abbot (R-TX)] said on Wednesday "the Texas Health and Human Services Commission and the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services separately received tips that allege child abuse and neglect" at the facility located at the Freeman Coliseum. The Lone Star State Republican pinned the blame on President Biden's policies.

Biden needs to fix this. Yesterday.

Abbott is immediately directing authorities in his state to commence an investigation. He said that he is "directing the Texas Department of Public Safety and the Texas Rangers to immediately begin investigating these allegations."

And he should.

Newt Gingrich Gets Suspended From Twitter for Stating the Truth

This is not disinformation of any kind. You can disagree with some of this, but what he said is objectively true. The Biden administration is allowing illegal aliens with the China Virus to enter the company without quarantining them. This is stupid, and is going to turn out poorly.

Now, you may argue that Governor Greg Abbot’s (R-TX) “reforms” will make things worse also. But that would actually be an opinion. It’s a guarantee that letting known China Virus carriers wander around is problematic.

Tech oligarchs are destroying the country's culture of free speech https://t.co/hWLa6jrfuK

— Mollie (@MZHemingway) March 14, 2021

Day by day, our tech overlords become more and more appalling.

So glad I left Twitter.

Coming From Twitter, this is Rich

Twitter Suing Texas AG Over Probe Into Trump Ban, Company Cites ‘First Amendment Rights’ | The Daily Wire

Just read this and try not to laugh (emphasis mine):

Twitter is suing Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Republican, seeking to halt his state’s investigation into the Big Tech company’s move to ban President Donald Trump from its platform.

Paxton launched a probe into Big Tech’s apparently coordinated deplatforming of Trump in January.

Twitter is claiming they were “targeted” by Paxton as a form of retaliation for exercising their “First Amendment rights.”

So, Twitter has First Amendment Rights, but President Donald Trump (R-USA) does not. Thanks for clearing that up.

Last week, Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced that he’s seeking to outlaw viewpoint discrimination on social media.

“I am joining [state Sen. Bryan Hughes] to announce a bill prohibiting social media companies from censoring viewpoints,” the governor said late Thursday night via Twitter. “Too many social media sites silence conservative speech and ideas and trample free speech. It’s un-American, Un-Texan, & soon to be illegal.”

Thank God for Texas.