Patrick and Senate allies ready to promote tea party agenda
AUSTIN A tea party wave that helped sweep Lt. Gov.-elect Dan Patrick and like-minded Republicans into office is expected to breathe new life into conservative measures that Democrats and moderate Republicans have long blocked in the Legislature.
Near the top of the wish list of Patrick and many of the tea party Republicans who won seats in the Senate and House are proposals to grant private school tax credits, abolish in-state tuition for those in the country illegally and allow licensed college students to carry handguns on campus.
Also important to the incoming lawmakers including seven new GOP senators are new restrictions on state spending and tax cuts for homeowners and businesses.
Were likely to see a more partisan Legislature, one that pushes forward to the greatest extent possible with the conservative policy agenda, said Rice University political scientist Mark Jones.
Patrick will assume leadership of a Senate that will have more staunchly conservative members than it now has.
One of those Konni Burton of Colleyville, who will take over Democrat Wendy Davis seat will extend the GOPs advantage in the chamber to 20-11.
That is one less vote than currently required for a bill to be considered on the Senate floor the two-thirds rule that Democrats have used in the past to block legislation they oppose.
But Patrick and several GOP senators want a lower threshold that would bypass the Democrats and allow Republicans to act on whatever measures they choose. A battle over the rule could spark confrontation on the Senates first day in January. In addition, Patrick has vowed to appoint fewer Democrats to chair Senate committees.
Im going to appoint committee chairmanships that will help me get a conservative agenda passed for Texas, Patrick said earlier this year. It could be one, it could be two, it could be none.
Democrats have warned against such partisan moves, which run counter to decades of Senate tradition. But those warnings appear to be falling on deaf ears.
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Patrick and Senate allies ready to promote tea party agenda