(C) Texas Tribune This story was originally published by Texas Tribune and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . The Blast: #MeToo spotlight is back on the Senate [1] [] Date: 2024-07 Jul 12, 2024 | View in browser By Renzo Downey and The Texas Tribune Politics Team 3 days until the Republican National Convention 38 days until the Democratic National Convention 60 days until the second presidential debate TEXAS MONTHLY STORY SPURS NEW SEXUAL HARASSMENT TALK Many are hoping for a change in the workplace culture of the Texas Senate after a story today resurfaced complaints about sexual harassment within the Capitol, suggesting changes in Senate policy have done little to address misconduct. The story, written by the reporter who kicked off the Capitol #MeToo movement in 2017, Olivia Messer, mostly outlined allegations that had been reported previously. However, the story focused on the lack of documentation that prevents senators from self-policing their offices and Senate Secretary Patsy Spaw’s role in enforcing the policy, including how it played out in the case of Thomas Larralde, who was fired as the chief of staff of state Sen. José Menéndez, D-San Antonio, in 2021. Messer also published the perspective of an anonymous former Senate staffer, who in 2018 complained that state Rep. Charles Schwertner, R-Georgetown, sent her inappropriate texts, including a photo he called “more proof of life.” New reporting there is that Schwertner grabbed her butt inappropriately. The story notes that Schwertner was not retained as chair of the Senate Health and Human Services Committee in 2019 but in 2021 was appointed chair of the Administration Committee, the committee with oversight over sexual harassment policy. Additionally, last year, he chaired the powerful Business and Commerce Committee and was tasked with negotiating grid policy, even after being arrested — but not prosecuted — on suspicion of driving while intoxicated. Schwertner and his office did not return The Blast’s request for comment. New in the story is an allegation made by Tayhlor Coleman against state Sen. Borris Miles, D-Houston, that he touched her inappropriately when they greeted each other at a party in 2016. Miles and his office did not return The Blast’s request for comment. In response to the story, state Rep. Ana-Maria Ramos, D-Richardson, posted the sign-up form to a self-defense class. For his part, House Speaker Dade Phelan sent a letter to House members and staff advising them of the efforts the House has taken in recent years to combat sexual misconduct within the building. “The persistence of sexual harassment in the Texas Capitol has been an enduring stain, perpetuated by a culture of silence and complicity,” Phelan wrote. He also noted that he recently directed the House Business Office to hire a designated HR specialist before the 89th Legislature to provide support to offices and employees. “While no solution is perfect, the House’s proactive measures continue to transform our workplace into a safer and more respectful environment that allows us to all better serve Texans,” Phelan wrote. The Texas Monthly story noted that the House put its General Investigating Committee to the test last year for its first time since its inception following the #MeToo movement. The committee investigated former state Rep. Bryan Slaton, R-Royse City, for accusations that he got a staffer who was under 21 drunk and slept with her. The committee’s findings led the House to vote to expel Slaton, and the body received high praise for its handling of the matter. The House General Investigating Committee has a hearing scheduled for Wednesday morning. More on that below. In addition to the outstanding requests to Schwertner and Miles, The Blast has asked the offices of Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and state Sen. Lois Kolkhorst, the Brenham Republican who oversaw changes to the Senate’s sexual harassment policy following the 2017 round of stories, for their perspectives. Neither have returned The Blast’s request for comment. The Texas Tribune thanks its sponsors. Become one. HIDDEN AD MURR SPEAKS: NO IT’S NOT PAXTON Right as The Blast was preparing to publish on Wednesday, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton released a statement saying that the House General Investigating Committee was preparing a second impeachment against him. Yesterday, Chair Andrew Murr gave The Blast a statement denying that the investigation involves Paxton. As a matter of practice, the committee doesn’t reveal what it is investigating until those investigations are complete. “It’s not Murr’s style,” one state representative told The Blast. But with all the speculation surrounding the hearing, and with Paxton’s claim, Murr made the rare decision to open his mustachioed mouth in response to the attorney general. “There is absolutely no truth to Mr. Paxton’s farfetched fantasy that the House General Investigating Committee is meeting to talk about him,” Murr said in a statement to The Blast. “Our committee’s agenda was never related to the Attorney General; the House General Investigating Committee will be convening on a completely unrelated matter.” What this means is that the House GI meeting that’s scheduled for Wednesday is on a different topic, if you believe Murr. Paxton’s folks don’t seem to believe Murr. The committee could be investigating a purported toxic work environment in the office of state Rep. Jolanda Jones, D-Houston. However, that sounds unlikely given that that complaint was filed before the complaint against state Rep. Bryan Slaton and has gone unanswered for over a year. The committee could be investigating one of the matters from the Texas Monthly story, but that also seems unlikely because the committee primarily investigates wrongdoing within the House or state agencies. A complaint could cross over if a state representative is somehow involved. The Texas Capitol rumor mill has floated other names — regarding sexual misconduct or other matters — but none are particularly credible. We’ll likely just have to wait till Murr shows his hand next week or in any subsequent meetings. BIDEN IN AUSTIN, BUT NOT HOUSTON President Joe Biden has no plans to travel to storm-battered Houston during his upcoming trip to Texas. During a media gaggle aboard Air Force One, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the president has not added a Houston stop to his trip, which will bring him to Austin and the LBJ Presidential Library on Monday for a speech on the 60th anniversary of the signing of the Civil Rights Act. Nearly 1 million businesses and households across the state still lack power as of this afternoon after Hurricane Beryl roared through the state. Manyl of those outages will continue into next week. “There’s a lot going on on the ground. We try to not take away from the assistance that’s needed on the ground and from, obviously, all of the help that the people of Houston need,” Jean-Pierre said, referring to the logistical interruptions that come with a presidential visit. She did not dismiss the possibility that Biden would visit the storm-struck part of the state on a later date. On Wednesday, Biden accused Gov. Greg Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick of being slow to submit a request for a disaster declaration, which Biden issued that day. Patrick is serving as acting governor while Abbott is in East Asia on a trade mission. Abbott returns tomorrow. Patrick denies that he acted slowly. Texas didn’t need the help Biden had stationed to go because the state was well-stocked and resourced ahead of time, he said. “We didn’t need any of his generators,” Patrick said during a news conference yesterday. “We filled every request we have.” Additionally, Patrick accused Biden of botching and tweaking the disaster declaration so that it doesn’t benefit every county the state wanted. He said Biden was playing politics with FEMA. Nim Kidd, chief of the Texas Division of Emergency Management, also fought back against Biden’s characterization. “It embarrasses me and saddens me to the point that this president has weaponized the federal government to enrage our citizens, here, to think that I am not doing my job and that our governor is not doing his job, and that’s a lie,” Kidd said, adding that there is no way the recovery process could move any faster. As for Patrick’s scrutiny of CenterPoint, the lieutenant governor said the state would investigate the power provider for the outages plaguing Houston and East Texas. This morning, he took to social media to pose 10 questions for CenterPoint customers: Is this a new and different CenterPoint than in the past? Did they cut corners before the storm? Are they cutting corners now? Were they prepared for the storm hitting Houston? Did they take the storm seriously? What is their mission statement? Are they too focused on their other businesses? Do they need more full-time staff? Will their response to the next storm be better? Most importantly, are Houston and surrounding areas still IMPORTANT to CenterPoint? Are their customers their number one priority in their mission statement and future planning? The Texas Tribune thanks its sponsors. Become one. HIDDEN AD STAY IN TEXAS The Texas Democratic Party called on Gov. Greg Abbott, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and Sen. Ted Cruz to stay in Texas instead of attending the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee next week in the wake of Hurricane Beryl. “Our state’s leaders should not be jetting off to applaud Donald Trump while Texans are still suffering,” Texas Democratic Party Chair Gilberto Hinojosa said in a statement today. “The Texas Democratic Party calls upon Greg Abbott, Dan Patrick and Ted Cruz to skip the Republican National Convention, and prioritize mitigating Beryl’s aftermath.” Abbott drew scrutiny from Democrats for traveling to Asia during the hurricane for a previously planned business trip. Patrick assumed duties of the governor in Abbott’s absence. Abbott left the state last Friday and returns tomorrow. Cruz spent most of the last week in the greater Houston area working with hurricane relief efforts. He missed votes in the Senate to stay in the region and hosted a news conference with Patrick and local officials on Wednesday before surveying damage in the area. He and other Houstonians in Congress urged the Biden administration to approve aid for those impacted by the storm. Cruz said that he, Sen. John Cornyn and the entire federal delegation “are supporting the state in having that disaster declaration issued immediately.” Biden approved a federal disaster declaration after Patrick made a formal request. Cruz and several other Houstonians in Congress wrote to thank the president afterward. Democrats have hounded Cruz for taking a family vacation to Cancun in 2021 during a winter storm that left millions without power. Cruz later said the trip was a mistake and cut it short to return to Texas. Spokespeople for Abbott, Patrick and Cruz did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Abbott and Patrick are at-large delegates to the national convention in Milwaukee. — Matthew Choi HIDDEN IMAGE The House State Affairs Committee will meet at the end of the month to make up for the meeting canceled this week amid Hurricane Beryl. The agenda will include the previously planned review of new energy and utilities laws. However, the committee will also assess utility preparedness, response and recovery protocols and review utilities’ recent performance in addressing severe weather events. The House Culture, Recreation and Tourism Committee will meet at 9 a.m. on Tuesday. HB 2719: Texas Historical Commission new site acquisition SB 1648: Centennial Park Conservation Fund creation Evaluate effectiveness of the Texas Farm and Ranch Lands Conservation Program and evaluate risks of foreign ownership of land Study impact of shrimp imports on the Texas shrimping and fishing industry The House General Investigating Committee will enter into executive session at 11 a.m. on Wednesday. The House Select Committee on Securing Texas from Hostile Foreign Organizations will meet at 10 a.m. on July 24. View the list of upcoming meeting notices here and here. HIDDEN IMAGE In case you missed it, the Texas House has updated its government website. Unfortunately, the redesign did not touch the House media player. TLO and the Senate page remain unchanged. Climate activists interrupted a speech by U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz last night. HIDDEN IMAGE BlackRock has hired former George W. Bush staffer Daniel Bethel as their director of government affairs for the southern United States. The Texas Tribune thanks its sponsors. Become one. HIDDEN AD HIDDEN IMAGE State Rep. Briscoe Cain, R-Deer Park, and Bergundi Cain are raising a family that understands who to call for a helping paw: HIDDEN IMAGE HIDDEN IMAGE (July 13) State Rep. Sam Harless, R-Spring SPONSOR MESSAGES The Commit Partnership - Texas can be an inclusive and prosperous state where economic opportunity is shared equitably rather than predicted by race, place and socioeconomic status. Public schools are at the center of our democracy. Raise Your Hand Texas believes through equity and innovation we can create a world-class school system that fuels a brighter future for all Texans. For more than 50 years, Dallas College has been committed to transforming lives and communities across Dallas County and beyond through higher education. Visit DallasCollege.edu for more information. Texas State Technical College has Texas covered. With ten campuses across the state, students can learn the skills necessary to start a great new career. Methodist Healthcare Ministries is committed to health equity—striving to create more fair and just opportunities for all to thrive. Texas Association of Community Colleges - Texas community colleges are the state’s economic engine for recovery. Our colleges provide credentials that meet regional and local workforce demands. Visit tacc.org. 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