It’s the sort of day where you can tell that the state Capitol is bustling with civic activity well before you pass through the security checkpoints. Even by 10 o’clock this sunny March morning, the main parking garage is full. Charter buses, which carried Texans to their capital city from destinations hundreds of miles away, are parked all along the streets. 

On almost every one of the 140 days that the Texas Legislature meets for its biennial session, citizens make the pilgrimage to the pink granite-domed Capitol to engage in activism, persuasion, and admonition. Sometimes they are there of their own individual democratic volition; more often they mobilize on behalf of an organized advocacy group. 

The marquee event is the Texas House Public Education Committee’s hearing on House Bill 3, the lower chamber’s proposed school voucher program. It’s a historic day as a school voucher bill is on track to pass through the House for the first time ever. For the hundreds of pro-“school choice” Texans who’ve traveled there to provide a show of mass popular support, it’s a joyous occasion. For the hundreds of opponents—public school teachers, parents, and other activists who’ve shown up to voice their urgent rebukes—it’s an ominous one. 

The Capitol Extension, an underground complex that sits below the north grounds, first opened back in 1993, nearly doubling the building’s square footage. Here there are 16 committee hearing rooms, conference rooms, an auditorium, a gift shop, and, of course, the popular Capitol Grill cafeteria, which this day is serving frito pies, loaded baked potatoes, and other standard fare.

This is the hive. The cavernous hallways, with terrazzo floors that mirror those in the Capitol proper, and the four-story inverted rotunda are filled with a constant stream of people wandering in large groups, or beelining for a destination—like a shopping mall of democracy. 

The professionals are easy to pick out from the unwashed masses, who are often all wearing the same colored t-shirts with matching slogans. The lawmakers, dressed in sharp suits or fitted dresses, are often walking briskly with a small entourage of staffers. The lobbyists, typically wearing far more expensive attire, are often the ones sitting on the benches that line the hallways—glued to their phones. On this day, Governor Greg Abbott’s former top aide, now one of the most sought-after lobbyists in Austin, is in an alcove wearing earbuds. 

In the auditorium, about 100 home-schooling families are listening to the Texas Home School Coalition go through a legislative primer on their top priority this session: House Joint Resolution 155, a constitutional amendment to enshrine the right to homeschool in the Texas Constitution. “Freedom is fragile,” Jeremy Newman, the coalition’s vice president of policy, tells the crowd. “We know this because home schooling was illegal in the ’70s and ’80s. We know people now who were in jail because of this.” 

The group has to wrap up its briefing early, apparently so as not to interfere with the governor’s own pro-voucher press event, which is being held at the swanky downtown office of the Texas Public Policy Foundation. With that, the crowd takes their packet of information flyers, streams out of the auditorium, and into the maze of hallways that contain legislators’ offices. 

Around this time, the Texas Freedom Network is leading an anti-voucher rally on the south steps of the Capitol—the designated area for sanctioned rallies, protests, and press conferences. The granite stairs include a natural “riser” that makes for a perfect stage. For an hourly electricity fee of $35, organizers can plug in their microphones and speakers. For a $50 fee, the State Preservation Board—which is responsible for maintaining all activities on the grounds—can provide a lectern or chairs. 

Shortly after the anti-voucher rally, the gun nuts gather around the south side for a rally to push back against the tyranny of so-called red flag laws in Texas and across the nation. A few dozen members of the Gun Owners of America are in attendance, many donning little red flags attached to their caps. Among the VIP attendees there to help rally the troops are tea party firebrand and Dallas County GOP Chair Allen West, plus Kyle Rittenhouse, who moved to Texas a few years ago after becoming a celebrity in the gun rights movement. The event is sponsored by Patriot Mobile, the premier cell-phone carrier for conservatives and an ardent booster of Christian nationalist politics in Texas. 

Alas, much of what may appear to be grassroots advocacy is in reality heavily engineered. But there is plenty of more organic citizen engagement too. When encountered, it can serve as a much needed salve for the cynicism that comes from closely following the Texas Legislature. 

Consider Nicholas Gresham, the operator of a small hemp business in East Texas. It’s also a lobby day for the Texas Cannabis Collective. He’s here today to push lawmakers to vote against one of the Senate’s top priorities—Senate Bill 3—that would outright ban any THC products in the state. 

When he heard that the Senate was holding a public hearing on the bill a couple weeks earlier, he felt compelled to leave his wife and newborn in the NICU at a Dallas hospital to drive to Austin to testify. Before the committee, he chastised lawmakers for trying to pull the rug out from under a burgeoning legal hemp industry. 

He came back again on Tuesday to drop off pro-hemp leaflets at legislators’ offices. For him, it’s a matter of protecting his livelihood. (The baby, by the way, is home and healthy now.)

Gresham may not be a high-powered lobbyist who can easily text with or wine-and-dine legislators. And much of his literature may likely end up in the recycling bin at the end of the day. But everyday Texans like him, who have something personal on the line, are essential to each and every legislative session. And you can count on them to keep showing up. 

The post  A Day in a Democracy appeared first on www.texasobserver.org

Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.

Political Bias Rating: Center-Right

The content primarily presents a descriptive and detailed account of the civic activities and legislative processes occurring at the Texas Capitol, with a focus on conservative-leaning issues such as school vouchers, homeschooling rights, gun rights, and advocacy by conservative groups. The narrative is neutral in tone but leans slightly right due to the emphasis on conservative political events and figures, such as Governor Greg Abbott’s policies, pro-voucher supporters, and conservative rallies. It also includes diverse perspectives, mentioning opposition and grassroots activism, which moderates the overall tone but does not shift it away from center-right alignment.

“6 takeaways about Alex Fairly’s journey into Texas GOP politics” was first published by The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan media organization that informs Texans — and engages with them — about public policy, politics, government and statewide issues.

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Alex Fairly, an Amarillo businessman, is the newest Republican megadonor making waves in the Texas capitol.

Last week, The Texas Tribune published a story about his sudden rise as a major powerbroker and one of the most prolific donors to GOP legislative candidates.

The story details Fairly’s involvement in last year’s turbulent Republican primaries through this year’s contentious race for House Speaker. Initially, Fairly aligned with ultraconservatives in an ongoing GOP civil war challenging more establishment Republicans. Fairly spent heavily to try and oust former House Speaker Dade Phelan — who critics labeled a Republican in Name Only, or a RINO — from the Legislature. Fairly also advocated against current Speaker Dustin Burrows in the race for House leader and spent millions supporting hardline conservative candidates for 19 House seats across the state.

[Texas megadonor Alex Fairly joined forces with the GOP’s ultraconservative wing. He didn’t like what he saw.]

But Fairly told The Texas Tribune in an interview that once he started digging into the speaker race, he didn’t like what he saw. He concluded that he had been misled about much of Texas Republican politics by the well-organized political operation funded largely by oil billionaire Tim Dunn, one of the most feared and influential conservative figures in Texas politics.

Here are six takeaways from our coverage:

Fairly was the 10th largest single contributor to Texas legislative races in 2024

Fairly spent most of his life being apolitical. He didn’t register to vote in Texas until he was 37.

Before 2024, Fairly’s political contributions included only a few big checks to statewide officials, including Attorney General Ken Paxton and Lt. Gov Dan Patrick. He was also a major supporter of U.S. Rep. Ronny Jackson, R-Amarillo.

By the end of that year, Fairly would be the 10th biggest donor in legislative races, giving $2.2 million to 19 House candidates and one Senate candidate across the state, according to a Tribune analysis.

Fairly gave the most money to Phelan’s primary challenger David Covey, funnelling $700,000 to Covey’s campaign, most of which was sent after Covey pushed Phelan into a primary runoff. Overall, Fairly’s giving made up more than a quarter of all of the money Covey raised. The majority of other donations were between $50,000 and $100,000. However, in local House races, that could be a significant contribution. For instance, Fairly’s $150,000 donation to Rep. Denise Villalobos, R-Corpus Christi, accounted for 12% of her total haul. His donations to his daughter’s race — $525,600 — accounted for 43% of her contributions.

Fairly turned down an offer to partner with Tim Dunn

As Fairly’s support for hardliners became more prolific, he got an invitation to meet Dunn at his political headquarters outside Fort Worth.

Fairly said he got a tour of Dunn’s operation, including the network of consulting, fundraising and campaign operations. For years, this operation has worked to support extremely conservative candidates and target those who they deem too centrist in an effort to shift the state further to the right.

Dunn asked Fairly if he’d be willing to partner with him. At the time, Fairly seemed well positioned to be a second Dunn-like figure, who could add pressure and funding to Dunn’s political aims.

Fairly eventually turned down Dunn, saying it wasn’t the right time. He would later come to the conclusion that he opposed what he called dishonest and bigoted attacks used by Dunn’s network, entirely.

A few months later, Fairly went back to Dunn in an effort to try and get him to change the way they try to achieve their common conservative goals.

After trying to oust Phelan, Fairly asked him to meet 

A few months after Phelan hung onto his House seat by 389 votes, Fairly asked him to meet. Fairly said it wasn’t a peace offering, but if Phelan was going to remain House speaker, he wanted to see if he would run the House in a different way.

During the tense meeting last August, Phelan and Fairly discussed the best way to manage the lower chamber. Phelan told Fairly was naive about Texas politics.

At one point, Phelan accused Fairly of paying for the ugly tactics used in the campaign against him — including accusing him of supporting Sharia law because he supported a resolution commemorating a Muslim holiday. Fairly ended up apologizing.

After the party’s far-right flank continued to attack Phelan in his quest to be speaker for a third session, he eventually dropped out of the leadership race. A new battle would emerge between Phelan-ally, Dustin Burrows of Lubbock, and Rep. David Cook of Mansfield, who would challenge the establishment Republicans in the House.

After Fairly launched a $20 million PAC with a threat to oust lawmakers who don’t align Cook, he changed direction

In mid-December, the Texas House was embroiled in an ugly fight over who Republicans should support to lead the lower chamber. The House Speaker is the leader of the lower chamber who plays a key role in what bills are passed. More establishment Republicans had aligned behind Burrows while many in the GOP caucus were behind Cook who campaigned on reforming the House to reduce the power of Democrats.

The far-right groups behind Cook, including Dunn’s PAC and the Republican Party of Texas — which is largely funded by Dunn’s PACs — accused Burrows of being a secret liberal. Fairly believed this to be true, and felt Republicans needed to come together behind Cook.

He announced he was pouring $20 million into a new PAC “out of concern that the Texas House still lacks a united Republican majority.”

“These funds will be available to help expand a true Republican majority,” Fairly said. “My strong hope is that we can focus them on expanding victories in the next general election.”

But after a series of meetings with lawmakers, including Burrows supporter and incoming freshman John McQueeney, Fairly started to see how lawmakers were being harassed and targeted by dishonest attacks.

A few days before the start of the Legislature, he released a new statement reversing his stance on the speaker race.

“The vote for Speaker belongs to the members,” Fairly wrote in his statement.

Fairy’s daughter, Rep. Caroline Fairly, had a parallel change of heart about the speaker race.

In the months leading up to the legislative session, Rep. Caroline Fairly was struggling with her own decision over who she would support for House speaker.

She originally sided with Cook, but didn’t agree with the characterizations of Burrows as a liberal, and thought it was hypocritical to attack Burrows for making deals with Democrats when Cook had openly courted Democrats for votes, too.

But she felt she needed to stick with Cook at the risk of being attacked as a RINO. When her dad changed directions with his PAC, she felt she pressure to remain with Cook to avoid criticisms that her father, who was her campaign’s top financial supporter, controlled her seat.

But the morning of the speaker race, Caroline Fairly woke up and said she couldn’t stick with Cook.

“I won’t start my tenure as your representative capitulating to outside pressures to place a vote I disagree with,” she wrote in her statement announcing her decision to switch sides.

Fairly has appealed to Dunn — and Republican Party of Texas Chair Abraham George — to change their political tactics 

Once the legislative session was underway, Fairly went back to Dunn to see if he would consider changing how his operation works.

Over a span of a few months, the two men met multiple times to discuss if there were better ways to achieve conservative goals in the state that didn’t require eviscerating fellow Republicans. He commended Dunn for having a candid and difficult conversation, but wasn’t optimistic anything would change.

Last month, after Republican Party of Texas Chair Abraham George posted on social media a threat to primary Republican lawmakers who don’t pass all GOP priority bills, Fairly called him and tried to get him to stop.

“[Dunn’s network] is the place where you can get money, whether it’s their money or their friends’ money,” Fairly said he told George. “But … the thing that you live on is choking the life out of you.”

Fairly still hasn’t spent his PAC money. He remains a deeply conservative Republican and is still aligning with hardliners like Paxton. As Fairly considers his next move on the state stage, he says he’s intent to remain his own person, rather than committing to join any specific political faction.

“Everyone puts people in a camp, and because I don’t really just fit in one, it feels it doesn’t make that much sense to people,” Fairly said. “That’s just who I am, and I think I’m really comfortable with it.”

First round of TribFest speakers announced! Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist Maureen Dowd; U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales, R-San Antonio; Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker; U.S. Sen. Adam Schiff, D-California; and U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Dallas are taking the stage Nov. 13–15 in Austin. Get your tickets today!

This article originally appeared in The Texas Tribune at https://www.texastribune.org/2025/05/12/alex-fairly-texas-house-tim-dunn-takeaways-republican/.

The Texas Tribune is a member-supported, nonpartisan newsroom informing and engaging Texans on state politics and policy. Learn more at texastribune.org.

The post 6 things to know about Alex Fairly appeared first on feeds.texastribune.org

Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.

Political Bias Rating: Center-Right

This article presents a detailed account of Republican megadonor Alex Fairly’s involvement in Texas politics, highlighting his shifts in support within the GOP and his critical stance towards certain conservative tactics. The focus on Fairly’s conservative leanings, his support for hardline Republican candidates, and his association with influential conservative figures like Tim Dunn positions the content in a way that reflects a conservative viewpoint. However, the narrative also critiques certain political strategies within the GOP, particularly the more extreme tactics employed by figures like Dunn. While the article provides factual reporting, it gives a nuanced portrayal of internal party conflicts, leaning towards a Center-Right perspective due to its focus on conservative figures and their actions within the Texas political landscape.

SUMMARY: No. 1 Texas lost to Florida 4-1 on Sunday, marking their second consecutive series loss in SEC play. Coach Jim Schlossnagle expressed disappointment, calling it his most frustrating loss of the season. Texas only managed four hits, with their lone run coming from a bases-loaded walk. Freshman pitcher Aiden King dominated, striking out nine. Schlossnagle criticized the team’s offensive performance, noting struggles with leadoff hitters and leaving runners on base. Despite missing slugger Max Belyeu, Schlossnagle emphasized the need to improve pitching and lineup competitiveness ahead of the postseason, with the team’s next challenge against Oklahoma.

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