TCR has just finished a comprehensive review of the reasons behind our colossal increase in crime in Harris County (Houston), Texas.
Incredibly, after the first month of 2022, we are the murder capital of the USA.
It has been said, people are policy and those who hold higher offices in Harris County have significant control over the direction of our criminal justice system.
An objective review lays our runaway crime rates on Lina Hidalgo, Rodney Ellis and Adrian Garcia, who on 3-2 votes on Commissioners Court have instituted policies that have aided and abetted our rising crime rate.
Here are the decisions they have either implemented or blocked:
The Runaway Crime Enablers
Lina Hidalgo, Adrian Garcia and Rodney Ellis.
Look at their record since 2019:
- Wrong on not providing the county jail resources it needs to protect guards and inmates.
- Wrong to have sought cutbacks on Constable neighborhood patrols.
- Wrong on failing to properly fund the DA's office - in fact, the money instead was given to the Public Defender's Office that originally had not asked for it.
- Wrong to do a sweetheart deal with the bail bond suit that was probably illegal and has raised the crime rate.
- Wrong to never factor in public safety.
- Hidalgo was wrong when she said in 2019 - no new jail cells on her watch - she was wrong when she wanted the jail emptied so there would not be massive Covid deaths.
- Finally this week in an interview on Channel 2 - Hidalgo said - it was the first she heard about jail expansion. This proves she is the problem and not part of any solution.
Fortunately, Hidalgo and Garcia are on the ballot in March - hopefully they lose their primaries or get beat in November.
Dan Crenshaw, American Hero, Good Congressman And TCR Supports Him
A lot of misinformation has been spread about Congressman Dan Crenshaw in recent weeks. Some claims are missing key context. Some claims are conspiratorial. And some claims are down-right shameful. But we'll go through and debunk them all.
First and foremost, the question of whether Congressman Crenshaw is a real conservative and Trump ally. During Congressman Crenshaw's first term in office, he earned an A-rating from the conservative Heritage Foundation, the National Rifle Association, and the National Right to Life Committee.
Crenshaw supported ninety percent of President Trump's agenda during his first two years in office. And his support of President Trump extended well beyond legislation. Crenshaw defended President Trump's border policies on The View. Crenshaw defended President Trump against the sham-impeachment claims on liberal MSNBC. And he defended President Trump's response to COVID-19 on HBO with Bill Maher. These were liberal hosts on liberal networks hellbent on maligning President Trump and his policies, and Crenshaw was the only conservative willing to go on these networks to defend him. In fact, when President Trump was being attacked relentlessly for his COVID response and most Republican lawmakers remained silent, Crenshaw put together a five-minute video vigorously defending President Trump and debunking the left's lies. The video was viewed by 7 million people, President Trump pinned the video to the top of his Twitter page, and President Trump shared the video with every Republican lawmaker as an example of how to defend him. Because of that video, Crenshaw was invited to Camp David by President Trump and the Trump White House leaned on Crenshaw to be a key messaging ally during big policy fights.
How about the widespread claim that Crenshaw supports federal red flag laws? It's important to remember that after the shooting in El Paso and the high school shooting in Florida, President Trump himself was advocating for *federal* red flag laws. Crenshaw spoke out, saying that any conversation of these laws should happen at the state level first and must be considered with caution. Since then, Congressman Crenshaw is the only Republican in Washington who has introduced legislation - the Preventing Unjust Red Flag Laws Act (HR 5417) - that would prohibit any federal funding of federal or state red flag laws. Again, Congressman Crenshaw has an A-rating from the National Rifle Association.
Let's get into the allegations that Congressman Crenshaw somehow engaged in insider stock trading. First, it's important to remember that Crenshaw's investment in the stock market amounted to around $20,000, so to act like he is trading on the same level of magnitude as Nancy Pelosi - whose husband invests millions in the market - is a gross misrepresentation. This is not "insider trading" by any definition and Crenshaw supports a ban on Members of Congress trading in individual stocks.
Now, into the conspiratorial, that Crenshaw is somehow a member of the World Economic Forum. Crenshaw's interaction with the World Economic Forum was limited to them telling Dan they were going to add him to their list of "Young Leaders" in 2019, which Dan asked to be removed from in 2020. It appears to be like a "Forbes 30 under 30" type list and there's zero collaboration that Dan has been a part of between anyone on that list. This conspiracy has been floating around the internet for a while now. Moreover, Crenshaw has been fighting against virtually every policy that is advocated for in the Great Reset, which is a series of ultra-liberal policy initiatives that Crenshaw fights back against every day.
And finally, the shameful, anti-Christian attack on Congressman Crenshaw's faith. Recently, a viral video showed an 18-year-old volunteer of Crenshaw's primary opponent accusing Dan of not believing in Jesus Christ. This attack refers to a comment Crenshaw made where he referred to Jesus as an "archetype," which simply means "a very typical example." For Christians, Christ *is* an example of how we should live and act and treat one another. In no way does it indicate that Crenshaw doesn't believe Christ is real. That's absurd. And all you have to do to understand how Crenshaw views Christ is read his words. Here's how Dan describes Christ in his book: "For Christians, our faith was founded on the ultimate act of suffering, the example set by Jesus of Nazareth during his passion and crucifixion. His sacrifice - the sacrifice of the Son of God - was so profound, so extraordinary that it made all other sacrifices seem trite and meaningless in comparison. It was a sacrifice, rooted in suffering, done on behalf of the sins of man, to take them upon Himself and offer redemption to all mankind. This was as St. John Paul II had it, the ultimate act of love and mercy."
Congressman Crenshaw has been a thoughtful, effective representative for our community's interests in Congress. Crenshaw has fought for and secured key funding to complete flood mitigation projects in our community. He passed more bills through the House of Representatives during his first term than any freshman in the Republican party, and passed two bills into law under President Trump to boost American energy innovation and protect Texas oil and gas. Crenshaw has been the strongest, most vocal critic of Joe Biden's disastrous policies, especially his attacks on Texas energy and the crisis he created at our southern border.
Dan Crenshaw is a good representative with a strong conservative record who has served our country honorably in uniform and continues that service today in Congress. The attacks against him from fellow Republicans are misguided and misinformed.
Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo Causes A Scene At Slain Corporal's Funeral
Lina Hidalgo showed up for the funeral of Corporal Charles Galloway on Tuesday, February 1. Lina and other dignitaries arrived at the private funeral to show their respect for the Corporal and his family. But Lina was not satisfied with just showing up, she wanted to be photographed and filmed at the head of the ceremonial vanguard, at the gravesite. Lina was asked, by Precinct 5 Sgt. Roy Guinn, to be seated at her place which was directly behind Corporal Galloway's family. Sgt Guinn stated that she refused to do so and she asked him, if he knew who she was. He responded to her that he did, and politely asked her again to be seated behind the family. Lina refused and would not move.
Last year Lina Hidalgo tried to defund the Precinct and get rid of their ability to protect the county's citizens. Now she uses the death of one of those heroes, as an opportunity to show that she cares. Beyond this being an embarrassing moment for Harris County, it shows the danger of electing an inexperienced person to the County's highest position. During COVID, Lina wanted to release all the prisoners in the county jail and then she tried to remove the county's ability to patrol and protect neighborhoods. Why is Lina Hidalgo on a mission to ravage the County with crime? Why did Adrian Garcia and Rodney Ellis miss the funeral? Will these individuals be re-elected to finish their destruction of the County?
TCR on the Air
Gary Polland is now a regular on "What's Your Point?" hosted by Greg Groogan on Fox 26 Houston, appearing every other week. Tune in or set your recorder for 7:00 am Sundays.
Red, White, and Blue featuring TCR Editor Gary Polland on Fridays at 7:30 pm on Houston Public Media TV 8, replaying Saturday at 6:30 p.m. on Channel 8, Monday at 11:30 pm on Channel 8.2 and on the web at www.houstonpublicmedia.org.
Red, White & Blue returns in who knows?
About Your Editor
Gary Polland is a long-time conservative and Republican spokesman, fund-raiser, and leader who completed three terms as the Harris County Republican Chairman. During his three terms, Gary was described as the most successful county Chairman in America by Human Events - The National Conservative Weekly. He is in his twenty-sixth year of editing a newsletter dealing with key conservative and Republican issues. The last twenty-one years he has edited Texas Conservative Review. As a public service for the last 18 years, Gary has published election guides for the GOP primary, general elections and city elections, all with the purpose of assisting conservative candidates. Gary is also in his 21st year of co-hosting Red, White and Blue on Houston Public Media TV 8 PBS Houston, longest running political talk show in Texas history. Gary serves on the Board of Directors of American Values, a national pro-family, pro-faith, conservative organization supporting the unity of the American people around the vision of our founding fathers and dedicated to reminding the public of the conservative principles fundamental to the survival of our nation. Gary is a practicing attorney and strategic consultant. He can be reached at (713) 621-6335.
|