Joe Straus' Mask Finally Falling Away
Texas House Speaker Joe Straus’ staid appearance and even temperament present a stark contrast to the bombastic rhetoric and chest beating of many other Texas Republicans – especially his Senate counterpart Dan Patrick.
The approach has served Straus’ politics well. Right wing, burn the place down advocacy groups like Empower Texans criticize Straus for his quiet approach and, in doing so, inoculate him in the minds of many mainstream Texans. Even some Democrats consider Straus more reasonable than other Republican leaders based on his demeanor and little else. It’s a pretty slick act, and Straus has sold it for nearly eight years.
Recently, though, the Straus mask has started to crack and fall apart to reveal a divisive leader substantively no different than the loud reactionaries like Dan Patrick.
Under Straus’ five legislative sessions as Texas Speaker, the Texas House has adopted some of the most damaging, discriminatory and repressive laws in our nation. Most of it Straus could have stopped but didn’t. And, in retrospect, it is clear the worst attacks on mainstream Texans occurred as much because of Joe Straus as despite him.
Read more: http://lonestarproject.net/joe-straus%E2%80%99-mask-finally-falling-away#ixzz4gZxTq6wF
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