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The Blast: Abbott breaks silence on speaker’s race [1]
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Date: 2024-12
Gov. Greg Abbott is publicly nudging Texas House Republicans to support Rep. David Cook in the speaker’s race, crossing yet another line that, even two years ago, seemed impossible.
Taking to social media this afternoon, the governor urged members to elect a speaker chosen by a majority of Republicans. The Texas House Republican Caucus bylaws he pointed to suggest that members should back Cook over Rep. Dustin Burrows.
“Let me be clear: I worked this entire year to elect conservative candidates who will pass conservative laws, including school choice,” Abbott posted. “To achieve that goal we need a Texas House Speaker chosen by a majority of Republicans in accordance with the Republican Caucus Rules.”
The effects were immediate. After days of silence, the chief of staff to Rep. Charles Cunningham finally answered the Tribune’s questions about Cunningham’s choice for speaker a little more than 30 minutes after Abbott posted his statement. The representative from Humble is the first member who appeared at Burrows’ Saturday afternoon presser to publicly revoke his support.
With Cunningham and Rep. Sam Harless off Team Burrows, along with Rep.-elects Don McLaughlin and Paul Dyson and Democratic Rep. Josey Garcia, Burrows’ public support is now down to 71 members, down from the 76 he claimed on Saturday.
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick declared that the governor has spoken.
“I join Governor Abbott in affirming that a majority of Republican House members must choose the Speaker,” Patrick posted. Any Republican Speaker candidate who attempts a coup d’état to steal the speaker’s gavel with a majority of Democrats and only a handful of Republicans will never be accepted by Republican voters.”
One common reaction to Abbott’s announcement was “wow.” “Tectonic,” posted Cook consultant Elliott Griffin.
Until the last 12 months, Abbott has largely let the Legislature sort out its own matters internally. That doesn’t mean that he doesn’t have opinions, particularly on policy, but he rarely threw his weight around to bend the Legislature to his will. Of course, that changed with his involvement in the 2024 primaries, the work from “this entire year” that Abbott was referring to in his statement.
But Abbott’s “let me be clear” proclamation also adds on to his statement from yesterday, when the governor was dragged into the speaker’s race after a PAC sent voters a text saying that Abbott “turned to” Burrows to pass conservative measures. The text came with a graphic showing the two together.
“To be clear, that text with my picture was issued without my authorization or even knowing about it,” Abbott posted yesterday. “My focus is singular: work with both House and Senate leaders to pass the conservative agenda that I campaigned on & that voters expect.”
Mitch Carney, a political operative and the son of top Abbott consultant Dave Carney, appointed the treasurer of the PAC, according to The Texans’ Brad Johnson.
It’s an interesting web of alliances. And Abbott’s statement didn’t explicitly endorse Cook, leaving a few to question whether there is any wiggle room in his endorsement. Although he mentioned the caucus bylaws — which put forward Saturday’s vote and called on all caucus members to support the winner — the main thrust of Abbott’s directive was for the next speaker to be elected by a majority of Republican members.
The bylaws don’t address it, but, in theory the caucus could meet again to endorse a new speaker candidate, like if Cook were to drop out of the race. Such a move would be unlikely, but in a world where Cook can’t find a route to 76 votes, finding a third candidate — a consensus candidate — could be one way to diffuse the current situation.
Again, it’s unlikely. But it’s a point worth gaming out.
Another thing to consider: Would Abbott have weighed in on the race if Dade Phelan had chosen to stick it out? Abbott’s allies at Club for Growth did target Phelan during his primary runoff, after all.
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