West DFW News

As many may know, I serve on the Board of Directors of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), an organization comprised of legislators from all 50 states united in passing policies rooted in federalism and free market principles. Having served as ALEC National President back in 2015, I remained involved in this important group. Last week, we met in Denver for our annual conference, and some of the highlights are shared below.

Moderating a Panel Discussion on Border Security

At the conference, I had the opportunity to moderate a panel discussion with National ALEC Chairman and Kansas Senate President Ty Masterson; Michigan Leader and ALEC Board Member Matt Hall; and Florida Representative and ALEC Board Member Demi Busatta. The theme of this discussion was how every state is impacted by a porous border, even those that are not border adjacent. Crime, human trafficking, and deadly fentanyl all make their way from this region and impact communities across our land. Additionally, the fiscal impact from the strain on education, health care, social services, law enforcement in non-border states is growing. I also pointed out the disturbing increase in the number of military-aged men we are seeing from Russia and China.

A couple of months ago, Texas hosted legislators from across the country who came to see the Biden/Harris border debacle firsthand and learn how Texas is stepping forward with our own border security efforts. During the panel, legislators praised Texas for tackling this problem head-on, in light of the federal government failing to do so. Many of the states represented at ALEC have sent reinforcements from their state National Guard to assist in Texas’ border security efforts.

Sharing Texas’ Strong Pro-Israel Policy with National Legislators

I participated in a panel discussion with Florida Representative Randy Fine; Aryeh Lightstone, Former Senior Advisor to U.S. Ambassador to Israel; and Shabbos Kestenbaum, student at Harvard University.

We discussed how state legislatures can take action to support Israel, which is even more important following the brutally unprovoked Hamas attacks. It was an honor to share with this national audience the many ways Texas has done just that, including fighting the organized campaign known as the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement which seeks to delegitimize and destabilize Israel through economic warfare. In response, Texas passed the nation’s strongest anti-BDS bill which prohibits the State of Texas from doing business with any companies or individual contractors who boycott Israel.

Additionally, I shared that we have passed legislation to root out antisemitic activities on college campuses establish the Texas Holocaust Genocide and Antisemitism Advisory Commission (THGAAC), and passed a unanimous resolution condemning Hamas and supporting Israel’s inherent right to defend itself.

A Personal Note on Our Latest Grandchild

Terry and I are blessed to now have our 18th grandchild. The picture on the left is our son Josh on July 20 2020 just after he had brain surgery for cancer. The picture on the right is Josh on July 18 2024 almost four years to-the-day holding he-and-Sarah’s first child Katelyn Grace. To God be-the-glory-for-the-things-He-has-done!