Texas House Speaker Dade Phelan (R-Beaumont) is facing a growing revolt within his own party, with two more county GOP organizations voting to censure him in recent days. The Harris County Republican Party and the Dallas County Republican Party both voted to support a resolution passed by the Orange County GOP in July to censure Phelan, citing his many failures and “abuse of power.”
The censures come just days after Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton was acquitted of the House’s impeachment charges. Paxton has been a vocal critic of Phelan, and some observers believe that the censures are a sign of a growing divide within the Texas Republican Party.
Phelan has been accused of a variety of offenses by his critics, including:
- Appointing nine Democrats to committee chair positions, in violation of the Republican Party of Texas platform.
- Allowing House Bill 20, a crucial border security measure, to die in the House.
- Refusing to comment in support of Republican Party Legislative Priority 8—Parental Rights and Educational Freedom.
- Promoting advocacy organizations that oppose traditional marriage and advocate against banning gender mutilation of children.
- Colluding with House Democrats to rush an impeachment of Attorney General Paxton without legal evidence.
The Harris County GOP resolution directed its attention at Phelan’s appointment of nine Democrats to committee chair positions. They claim that his ‘conscious decision’ to appoint multiple Democrat chairs places Phelan in violation of the first, second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, eighth, and ninth core principles of the RPT 2022 platform.
Moreover, Phelan appointed pro-abortion Democrat State Rep. Joe Moody of El Paso, who chaired the House Criminal Jurisprudence Committee. The committee was assigned House Bill 2709, which would have abolished abortion in Texas. The resolution claims that because Phelan appointed a Democrat to head that committee, he ensured that legislation would never receive a hearing and die in committee.
Dallas County’s resolution took aim at multiple instances where Phelan violated RPT’s legislative priorities, including allowing House Bill 20, a crucial border security measure, to die in the House and refusing to comment in support of RPT Legislative Priority 8—Parental Rights and Educational Freedom. They also focused on Phelan’s promotion of advocacy organizations that oppose traditional marriage and advocate against banning gender mutilation of children—priority 3.
Additionally, they directed attention to the ‘sham impeachment of AG Paxton,’ claiming Phelan colluded with House Democrats to rush an impeachment without legal evidence.
“With many county Censures of Speaker Phelan, conservative, grassroots Republican voters who typically ‘don’t pay attention’ will see that Speaker Phelan consistently colludes with Democrats to defy our Republican Party legislative priorities and party values,” read Dallas County GOP’s resolution.
Harris County GOP Chairman Cindy Siegel said she fully supports the decision to censure Phelan.
“The growing number of county parties across Texas voicing their displeasure with Speaker Phelan should not be taken with a grain of salt. The voting members of these parties, like our own, are the Grassroots—They’re the backbone and the beating heart of the Republican party,” said Siegel.
They also requested the State Republican Executive Committee concur with the Orange County Republican Party resolution and impose upon Phelan all of the consequences of censure. The SREC is slated to meet this weekend.
The censures are a major blow to Phelan, who is up for re-election in 2024. Several Republicans have already announced their intention to challenge him, including former Orange County Republican Chairman David Covey.
The censures are also a sign of the growing divide within the Texas Republican Party. Phelan is seen by some as a moderate, while some conservatives are calling him a RINO (Republican in Name Only). The censures are a sign that the more conservative elements of the party are gaining ground.
It is unclear what the long-term implications of the censures will be for Phelan. However, they are a clear sign that he is facing a serious challenge to his leadership of the Texas House of Representatives.
In addition to the censures from the Harris County and Dallas County GOP organizations, Phelan has also been censured by Travis County Republican Party, the Republican Party of Orange County, the Ellis County GOP, and a number of other conservative groups, including the Texas Right to Life and the Texas Home School Coalition. These groups have accused Phelan of not being supportive enough of their priorities.
The censures and the criticism from conservative groups are most assuridily a sign that Phelan may face a primary challenge in 2024.
#Update: This post has been updated to include links to other GOP organizations that have voted for censure of Dade Phelan.