Connect with us

Politics

Column: Watch for even small shifts in Texas politics. Sometimes tectonic movements follow

Published

on

Column: Watch for even small shifts in Texas politics. Sometimes tectonic movements follow

Waskom, Texas, is an old railroad town of about 2,000 nestled at the midway point between Dallas and Shreveport, La. According to the city’s website, Waskom became a significant player in America’s east-to-west trade during the 1880s because J.M. Waskom, a director of the Southern Pacific Railroad, “led the way in bringing the railroad to East Texas.” That’s largely how Waskom got the nickname “Gateway to Texas.”

In 2019 Waskom adopted a new nickname, “sanctuary city for the unborn,” after an all-male city council voted to make Waskom the first municipality in America to ban abortion since the Roe vs. Wade decision in 1973. Versions of Waskom’s “sanctuary city for the unborn” ordinance quickly spread to more than 70 municipalities in a handful of states as the Supreme Court was preparing to hear arguments on the case that would eventually lead to Roe’s overturning.

The railway was planned. The legal assault on reproductive care was planned. Both turned out to be part of tectonic shifts in society. So, while everything is bigger in Texas, don’t overlook the smaller things happening in the Lone Star State. Recent history suggests it’s the small things that are going to have the biggest impact.

Last month a driverless truck developed by an autonomous vehicle company out of Pittsburgh made its first delivery run — frozen pastries between Houston and Dallas. Round trip that’s about a hair under 500 miles or roughly an eight-hour workday for a truck driver. The company plans to expand freight operations to El Paso and Phoenix in time for the holidays. There are similar companies based in Texas planning to unveil driverless freight options to include San Antonio.

The future is now.

Advertisement

And just as one anti-abortion ordinance out of one small town in Texas became a much larger movement nationwide, one driverless truck dropping off frozen baked goods in Dallas is a sign of something far more significant for the rest of the country.

The administration’s tariff policies have reportedly ushered in a decline in port traffic, endangering trucking and dock jobs in the process. One recent study found a decline of 1% in cargo traffic in the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach could threaten as many as 4,000 jobs. However, what’s going to eliminate those positions entirely is the kind of automation that quietly hit the Texas roads in late April.

Keep an eye on the small things. Without long-term planning about the consequences — or in these cases, even short-term planning — the effects can be catastrophic.

I wonder if the administration is discussing what new skills displaced workers in the logistics industry will need to be employable going forward. Or will local officials be forced to wing it as we did in the immediate aftermath of Roe being overturned? Remember some states started reaching back to ordinances from the 1800s to ban reproductive care without even passing new legislation.

Without designs and public funding to retrain America’s workers, the negative effects of tariffs and automation on employment are likely to quickly overtake the societal benefits (if there are any). It would be a small thing to make skills training a priority in certain communities at this moment in history, but the effects could be significant — preventing a disaster.

Advertisement

There’s danger in overlooking those opportunities. We saw one outcome in a recent election 250 miles south of Waskom, in the Houston suburb of Katy, one of the state’s fastest-growing cities. In the Katy Independent School District, leaders have their hands full just trying to keep up with growth and serve the rising number of students, projected to hit 100,000 by 2028.

However, during the recent campaign, the incumbent board president was focused on banning transgender athletes and other conservative talking points. His opponent, an educator and school administrator for three decades, focused on what teachers need in order to provide for the growing population. Wouldn’t you know it, the candidate who actually wanted to fix long-term problems in the district won. In fact, a number of pro-education candidates in Texas won seats in last week’s election on school boards previously held by folks responsible for banning books and the like.

It’s noteworthy that voters in conservative pockets of the state want leaders who are more focused on solutions than they are on slogans. I know it’s not significant nationally, but given the history of small things in Texas growing, this trend gives me hope.

@LZGranderson

Advertisement

Insights

L.A. Times Insights delivers AI-generated analysis on Voices content to offer all points of view. Insights does not appear on any news articles.

Viewpoint
This article generally aligns with a Center Left point of view. Learn more about this AI-generated analysis
Perspectives

The following AI-generated content is powered by Perplexity. The Los Angeles Times editorial staff does not create or edit the content.

Ideas expressed in the piece

  • The author argues that small political actions in Texas, such as Waskom’s 2019 “sanctuary city for the unborn” ordinance, have catalyzed nationwide movements, including the spread of similar anti-abortion measures to over 70 municipalities and the eventual overturning of Roe v. Wade[3][4].
  • Automation in freight transportation, exemplified by driverless trucks operating between Houston and Dallas, is framed as a looming threat to jobs in logistics, with potential cascading effects on thousands of workers in sectors like port operations[5].
  • Recent local elections in Texas, such as in Katy’s school board races, signal a voter preference for candidates focused on practical solutions (e.g., addressing student population growth) over culture-war issues like banning books or transgender athletes[5].

Different views on the topic

  • Municipalities like Clarendon and Amarillo have rejected or delayed anti-abortion travel bans, with Clarendon’s council citing existing state laws as sufficient and Amarillo’s mayor questioning the necessity of redundant local ordinances[1][2].
  • Proponents of “sanctuary city” ordinances argue they reinforce Texas’s status as a “sanctuary state” for the unborn, with over 50 cities adopting such measures to prohibit abortion access and facilities[4].
  • While the author emphasizes automation’s risks, some stakeholders might prioritize economic efficiency gains from driverless freight systems, viewing job displacement as an inevitable byproduct of technological progress rather than a policy failure[5].
Continue Reading
Advertisement
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Politics

Gabbard says Comey should be 'put behind bars' after picture allegedly 'issuing a call to assassinate' Trump

Published

on

Gabbard says Comey should be 'put behind bars' after picture allegedly 'issuing a call to assassinate' Trump

Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard said ex-FBI Director James Comey should be “put behind bars” for a post he made on Instagram on Thursday allegedly “issuing a call to assassinate [President Donald Trump.]”

Earlier on Thursday, Comey shared a picture on Instagram with seashells formed in the numbers “86 47.” To some, the number “86” is a call sign for murdering or getting rid of someone or something and “47” is typically used to refer to the 47th President of the United States.

“Cool shell formation on my beach walk…,” Comey wrote in the caption of the picture, which has since been deleted.

Gabbard made the comments on “Jesse Watters Primetime” Thursday night after Comey said he wasn’t aware that the number “86” stands for some sort of violence.

EX-FBI CHIEF COMEY’S ‘86 47’ SOCIAL MEDIA POST CONDEMNED BY WHITE HOUSE AS ATTEMPT TO PUT ‘HIT’ ON PRESIDENT

Advertisement

National Intelligence Director Tulsi Gabbard said ex-FBI Director James Comey should be in jail for posting an Instagram photo of the numbers “86 47,” which has been interpreted as a threat to Trump. (ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images)

“I posted earlier a picture of some shells I saw today on a beach walk, which I assumed were a political message,” Comey said after deleting the initial picture. “I didn’t realize some folks associate those numbers with violence. It never occurred to me but I oppose violence of any kind so I took the post down.” 

Gabbard said Comey and his people “need to be held to account according to the law” regardless of why he said he posted the picture.

“The rule of law says people like him who issue direct threats against the POTUS, essentially issuing a call to assassinate him, must be held accountable under the law,” Gabbard said, adding that she thinks he should be in jail.

Ex-FBI Director James Comey posted an Instagram photo of seashells arranged in the numbers "86 47" – which has been interpreted as a threat on President Donald Trump's life.

Ex-FBI Director James Comey posted an Instagram photo of seashells arranged in the numbers “86 47” – which has been interpreted as a threat on President Donald Trump’s life. (AP)

The national intelligence director said Comey’s post has her “very concerned for [the president’s life.]”

Advertisement

“I’m very concerned for the president’s life; we’ve already seen assassination attempts. I’m very concerned for his life and James Comey, in my view, should be held accountable and put behind bars for this,” she said.

‘NEVER TRUMPER’ COMEY’S ’86 47′ TRUMP POST UNDER INVESTIGATION

Gabbard also said Comey has a lot of influence and that there are “people who take [him] very seriously.”

Shortly after Comey removed the post, Fox News Digital learned from a Secret Service source that the agency was aware of the incident and agents are being sent to investigate and interview Comey.

The White House also condemned Comey’s actions, with White House deputy chief of staff and Cabinet Secretary Taylor Budowich calling his post “deeply concerning.”

Advertisement

“While President Trump is currently on an international trip to the Middle East, the former FBI Director puts out what can clearly be interpreted as ‘a hit’ on the sitting President of the United States — a message etched in the sand,” Budowich wrote on X. “This is deeply concerning to all of us and is being taken seriously.”

 

Comey, who led the FBI during Trump’s first term before he was fired from the spot, had no comment when reached by Fox News Digital earlier on Thursday.

Fox News Digital’s Alec Schemmel and David Spunt contributed to this report.

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Politics

Justices skeptical of Trump plan to limit birthright citizenship but also injunctions that block it

Published

on

Justices skeptical of Trump plan to limit birthright citizenship but also injunctions that block it

The Supreme Court gave a skeptical hearing Thursday to a lawyer for President Trump who was appealing rulings that blocked his plan to deny citizenship to newborns whose parents were in this country illegally or temporarily.

None of the justices spoke in favor of Trump’s plan to restrict birthright citizenship, and several were openly skeptical.

“Every court is ruling against you,” Justice Elena Kagan said. “There’s not going to be a lot of disagreement on this.”

If his plan were to take effect, “thousands of children will be born and rendered stateless,” Justice Sonia Sotomayor said.

But Thursday’s hearing was devoted to a procedural question raised by the administration: Can a single federal judge issue a nationwide order to block the president’s plan?

Advertisement

Shortly after Trump issued his executive order to limit birthright citizenship, federal judges in Maryland, Massachusetts and Washington state declared it unconstitutional and blocked its enforcement nationwide.

In response, Trump’s lawyers asked the court to rein in the “epidemic” of nationwide orders handed down by district judges.

It’s an issue that has divided the court and bedeviled both Democratic and Republican administrations.

Trump’s lawyers argued that on procedural grounds, the judges overstepped their authority. But it is also procedurally unusual for a president to try to revise the Constitution through an executive order.

Thursday’s hearing did not appear to yield a consensus on what to do.

Advertisement

Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh said the plaintiffs should be required to bring a class-action claim if they want to win a broad ruling. But others said that would lead to delays and not solve the problem.

Justice Neil M. Gorsuch said he was looking for a way to decide quickly. “How do we get to the merits expeditiously?” he asked.

One possibility was to have the court ask for further briefing and perhaps a second hearing to decide the fundamental question: Can Trump acting on his own revise the long-standing interpretation of the 14th Amendment?

Shortly after the Civil War, the Reconstruction Congress wrote the 14th Amendment, which begins with the words: “All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof are citizens of the United States and of the state wherein they reside.”

Before that, Americans were citizens of their states. Moreover, the Supreme Court in the infamous Dred Scott decision said Black people were not citizens of their states and could not become citizens even if they were living in a free state.

Advertisement

The amended Constitution established U.S. citizenship as a birthright. The only persons not “subject to the jurisdiction” of the laws of the United States were foreign diplomats and their families and, in the 19th century, Indians who were “not taxed” and were treated as citizens of their tribal nations.

However, Congress changed that rule in 1924 and extended birthright citizenship to Native Americans.

Since 1898, the Supreme Court has agreed that birthright citizenship extends to the native-born children of foreign migrants living in this country. The court said then that “the fundamental rule of citizenship by birth, notwithstanding the alienage of parents” had been established by law.

The decision affirmed the citizenship of Wong Kim Ark, who was born in San Francisco in 1873 to Chinese parents who were living and working there, but who were not U.S. citizens.

But several conservative law professors dispute the notion that the phrase “subject to the jurisdiction” of the United States means simply that people living here are subject to the laws here.

Advertisement

Instead, they say it refers more narrowly to people who owe their undivided allegiance to this country. If so, they contend it does not extend broadly to illegal immigrants or to students and tourists who are here temporarily.

On Jan. 20, Trump issued an executive order proclaiming the 14th Amendment does not “extend citizenship universally to everyone born within the United States.” He said it would be U.S. policy to not recognize citizenship for newborns if the child’s mother or father was “not a United States citizen or lawful permanent resident at the time of said person’s birth.”

Immigrants rights groups sued on behalf of several pregnant women, and they were joined by 22 states and several cities.

Judges wasted no time in declaring Trump’s order unconstitutional. They said his proposed restrictions violated the federal law and Supreme Court precedent as well as the plain words of the 14th Amendment.

In mid-March, Trump’s lawyers sent an emergency appeal to the Supreme Court with “a modest request.” Rather than decide the “important constitutional questions” involving birthright citizenship, they urged the justices to rein in the practice of district judges handing down nationwide orders.

Advertisement

They have “reached epidemic proportions since the start of the current administration,” they said.

A month later, and without further explanation, the court agreed to hear arguments based on that request.

Solicitor Gen. D. John Sauer struggled to explain how judges should proceed when faced with a government policy that would be unconstitutional and harm an untold number of people. Is it wise or realistic to insist that thousands of people sign on to lawsuits? the justices asked.

He also had a hard time explaining how such a new policy would be enforced.

“How’s it going to work? What do hospitals do with a newborn?” Kavanaugh asked. “What do states do with a newborn?”

Advertisement

“Federal officials will have to figure that out, essentially,” Sauer replied, noting that Trump’s order, if upheld, would not take effect for 30 days.

California joined 21 other states in suing successfully to block Trump’s order, but California Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta said it was important those rulings apply nationwide.

“The rights guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution belong to everyone in this country — not just those born in states whose attorneys general have stood up to challenge the president’s unlawful executive order. It’s clear that a nationwide injunction is not only appropriate here to avoid devastating harm to the states and their residents, but is also directly aligned with prior Supreme Court precedent,” Bonta said after Thursday’s argument.

The justices are likely to hand down a full opinion in Trump vs. CASA, but it may not come until late June.

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Politics

Video: Ben and Jerry’s Founder Arrested at Kennedy’s Senate Hearing

Published

on

Video: Ben and Jerry’s Founder Arrested at Kennedy’s Senate Hearing

new video loaded: Ben and Jerry’s Founder Arrested at Kennedy’s Senate Hearing

transcript

transcript

Ben and Jerry’s Founder Arrested at Kennedy’s Senate Hearing

Ben Cohen, a co-founder of the ice cream brand Ben and Jerry’s, was among a group of protesters that interrupted a Senate committee hearing to protest Congress’s funding for Israel’s military as it wages war against Hamas in Gaza.

I’m presenting today supports these goals and reflects — [protesters shouting] The witness will suspend. The committee will come to order. Members of the audience are reminded disruptions will not be permitted while the committee conducts its business. Capitol Police are asked to remove the individuals from the hearing room.

Advertisement

Recent episodes in U.S. & Politics

Continue Reading

Trending