Good morning,

The 2026 GOP primary will feature a U.S. Senate race like Texas has not seen in a decade. Today, we ask your thoughts on the matchup.

This is the Texas Minute for Monday, June 9, 2025.

– Michael Quinn Sullivan 

Taxpayer-Funded Lobbying Costs Millions as House Failed to Act

• Despite years of Texas voters calling for an end to the use of taxpayer dollars for lobbying, legislation to ban the practice died in committee this session—leaving Texans footing a multi-million dollar lobbying bill. McKael Kirwin has the story.
     
• This issue has long been a legislative priority for the Republican Party of Texas, including this year. Members of the Texas Senate have repeatedly advanced such prohibitions on the use of tax dollars for lobbying.
     
• Yet, once again, the Texas House took no action. The chairman of the House State Affairs Committee, Ken King (R-Canadian), pointedly refused to even give the issue a hearing.
      
• By the end of this year, taxpayers are set to be billed for up to $94.5 million on lobbyists. Though this marks a slight decrease compared to the $98.6 million spent by local governments in 2023, both figures are markedly higher than the $75 million spent on lobbyists in 2021.

Banking Lobbyists Reportedly Urging Abbott to Veto Transactional Gold

• As Adam Cahn reports, banking lobbyists are reportedly attempting to derail legislation that would allow Texans to use precious metals in day-to-day financial transactions, even after it has cleared both legislative chambers.
     
• House Bill 1056 by State Rep. Mark Dorazio (R–San Antonio) invokes a frequently overlooked provision in the U.S. Constitution, Article 1, Section 10: “No state shall coin money, emit bills of credit, or make anything but gold and silver coin a tender in payment of debts.”
     
• Banking lobbyists first attempted to undermine this measure by attaching an amendment to the House bill that required permission from a federal court before it could take effect. This amendment was subsequently removed in the Senate before final passage.
      
• It is worth noting that Texas' Republican voters overwhelmingly favored a ballot measure in support of the concept during the 2024 primary cycle. According to a legislative alert from economist Kevin Freeman, banking lobbyists are attempting to convince Gov. Greg Abbott to veto this measure.

Lawmakers Address China Threat

• Addie Hovland reports that multiple measures passed by lawmakers during Texas’ 89th Legislative Session seek to combat the threat of the Chinese Communist Party. 
      
• According to a threat assessment conducted by State Armor, a non-profit that helps states combat global security threats, the CCP is developing its military strength to undermine U.S. national security.
     
• Chuck DeVore, chief national initiative officer at Texas Public Policy Foundation, told Texas Scorecard that in this legislative session the Lone Star State has started to seriously respond to the growing geopolitical danger posed by China.
   
• Among the measures that took form were legislation prohibiting agents of foreign hostile powers from purchasing property in Texas, divestment from companies with ties to the CCP, and the creation of a state-level entity focused on combating cyberwarfare. 

Judge Orders Lottery To Protect a Disputed $83.5 Million Jackpot

• A state judge in Travis County has ordered that Texas Lottery commissioners must hold on to an $83.5 million jackpot won by a woman in February that has not yet been paid out. As Luca Cacciatore reports, that win is being investigated because of how the ticket was purchased.
     
• An anonymous woman from Central Texas claims to have purchased a $20 ticket through the ticket reseller service Jackpocket. Resellers, also known as couriers, allow customers to play the lottery online through an intermediary who buys the ticket at a brick-and-mortar store on their behalf. 
     
• The February jackpot is just one of several controversial, high-profile wins connected to ticket resellers that have spawned statewide investigations and legal battles.
      
• District Judge Aurora Martinez Jones ordered that the jackpot not be “diminished, wasted, or paid to another” at least until after a hearing scheduled for June 10 in Austin.

New Police Training Center Will Not Require Taxpayer Funding

• Michael Wilson reports that millions in private donations are expected to cover a new Houston Police Department training center that will offer officers state-of-the-art preparation tools.
   
• The complex will be located near the George Bush Intercontinental Airport. It carries an estimated price tag of $10.5 million and will feature 20 100-yard shooting lanes, advanced safety systems, and immersive training simulations. The center will span approximately 44,000 square feet and is expected to be completed early next year.
     
• Houston billionaire Tillman Fertitta—President Donald Trump’s ambassador to Italy and chair of the board of the Houston Police Foundation—has contributed $2.5 million toward the project. 

High School Coach Arrested for Sex With Student

• A teacher and coach in Winnsboro Independent School District was jailed for having sex with a high school student. Erin Anderson has the details.
       
• Nicholas Tyronne Gabriel, 30, was arrested late last week and charged with the second-degree felony of improper relationship between educator and student. He was a football coach, assistant boys’ basketball coach, and teacher at Winnsboro High School during the 2024-25 school year.
      
• The district released a statement indicating that a “former employee” had been arrested and that the individual had “previously resigned from Winnsboro ISD, prior to these accusations coming to light.”

Today In History

On June 9, 1894, a well contractor seeking a new source of water for Corsicana accidentally discovered an oilfield. The Corsicana oilfield became the first in the state to produce significant quantities of oil and gas, igniting Texas' petroleum industry.

Quote-Unquote

"The greatest asset, even in this country, is not oil and gas. It's integrity. Everyone is searching for it, asking, 'Who can I do business with that I can trust?'"

– George Foreman​

One Click Survey

At the top of the 2026 GOP primary ballot, U.S. Sen. John Cornyn will be challenged for the Republican nomination by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.

If that election were held today, who would you support?

Once you’ve clicked an answer, reply to this email with any thoughts you’d like to share!