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The Blast - April 9, 2025 [1]
['The Texas Tribune']
Date: 2025-04
37 days for the House to pass legislation that originated in the House 54 days until sine die
BRIAN HARRISON LAUGHED DOWN ON MOTION TO REMOVE BURROWS
State Rep. Brian Harrison’s attempt to oust Speaker Dustin Burrows died in the House today, as did any semblance of Harrison’s influence over the House’s right-most flank.
House Administration Committee Chair Charlie Geren, R-Fort Worth, presided from the dais as the House considered House Resolution 823, which would remove Burrows as speaker. Burrows listened on from Geren’s desk along the North railing, near the front of the room, while the House debated.
Harrison, a Republican from Midlothian and House leadership’s loudest critic, accused Burrows of unconstitutionally dismissing the House for more than three days, falsely declaring a quorum and handing control of the House to Democrats. The speaker has silenced conservatives, he continued.
“I’m not here to fight for Brian Harrison’s interest,” Harrison said before the chamber erupted into laughter.
Geren gaveled the hecklers down and urged decorum.
“Let them laugh. Let them scoff. Let them hiss,” Harrison charged through, raising his voice. “Let the voters of Texas hear the vulgarity and the lack of professionalism being demonstrated on the floor right now.”
In the end, only freshman Rep. David Lowe, R-North Richland Hills, joined Harrison in trying to oust Burrows on the 141-2 vote. Rep. Mike Schofield, R-Katy, voted present, as did four of the House’s most progressive Democrats.
It was a resounding defeat for Harrison and the anti-Burrows members who were forced to make a show of hands. Usual Harrison allies like Rep. Tony Tinderholt, R-Arlington, split with him on the vote.
“Today’s effort was not about reforming the Texas House. There was no path to improving our chamber today,” Tinderholt said in a statement, a reference to the majority of votes needed to remove the speaker. “Representative Harrison stood for himself.”
Others in the Harrison-Tinderholt “reformers” caucus told The Blast that Harrison had no game plan. The caucus didn’t have a candidate to run even if they did succeed. One described the effort as “lunacy” and a waste of time.
Not only was the motion a fool’s errand, procedurally, but it has now made it harder to remove Burrows should members want to try again at a later date. This is pretty dense, so bear with me.
Under the House rules, once a motion to remove the speaker fails, it takes a “motion to reconsider” to reverse the decision. However, because the House “tabled” the motion, the House would have to “suspend” the rules to try again. That means it now takes two-thirds of members present to remove Burrows — 100 members in a packed House.
“He really shot us in the foot today,” one anti-Burrows member said.
The vote also shows the upper bounds of which members are ready to work with the House they’ve got in order to get things done.
“With that distraction behind us, the rest of the House continues with the real work of governing, just as we have all session,” Burrows said in a statement to The Blast.
Today marked the first time nine of the reformers had broken with the “reform” position: Tinderholt and Reps. Briscoe Cain of Deer Park, Andy Hopper of Decatur, Helen Kerwin of Glen Rose, Shelley Luther of Tom Bean, Brent Money of Greenville, Mike Olcott of Fort Worth, Nate Schatzline of Fort Worth and Wes Virdell of Brady.
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