Lawmaker tied to Bonnen meeting to leave caucus post
State Rep. Dustin Burrows — mired in controversy in recent weeks for attending a meeting at which a GOP activist claims the House speaker offered a favor in exchange for attacking certain political targets — has resigned as chair of the Texas House GOP Caucus.
“Dustin Burrows is my friend and was a strong leader for the caucus,” Speaker Dennis Bonnen said in a statement Friday. “I respect his decision, and I remain committed to strengthening our majority.”
Burrows, R-Lubbock, who has remained silent onthe issue, to the frustration of some fellow Republicans, did not respond to a request for comment Friday.
The Texas Rangers’ Public Integrity Unit is investigating the meeting after a House committee voted Monday to request its help.
The scandal has jolted the Capitol and cast a shadowover the Texas GOP at a time when members, especially Burrows, would typically have been celebrating a legislative session in which they passed long-sought laws to curb the escalation of property taxes and pump billions more state dollars into schools.
Burrows carried the property tax bill, one of Republicans’ top priorities this session, through the Legislature as chair of the powerfulWays and Means Committee, a position Bonnen previously held.
Caucus Vice Chair Stephanie Klick, R-FortWorth, will take over as chair until the next election of officers prior to the Legislative session that begins in 2021, per the group’s bylaws, according to a letter obtained by the DallasMorning News that was sent to members.
It’s unclear whether Bonnen will emerge unscathed from the incident or if it’ll cost him his leadership post after just one session.
While some House members have called on Bonnen to resign, Gov. Greg Abbott, who has also been keeping mum on the issue, said during a televised town hall Thursday that it’s too soon to say and that the Texas Rangers investigation “is the best thing that could happen.”
“We need to get to the bottomof this and get to the bottom of it quickly,” Abbott said. “If they find out that anything bad happened, action needs to be taken. On the other hand, if after their investigation they say nothing bad or illegal happened, we need to move on.”
Conservative activist Michael Quinn Sullivan of the tea partyaligned andwell-fundedEmpower Texans group has said Bonnen offered his group media credentials and encouraged him to oppose 10 Republicans, most of whom are moderates.
The group, which has givenmillions of dollars in campaign contributions often to launch primary challenges against Republicans, had an antagonistic relationship with majority leadership this session. On socialmedia and in newsletters, it frequently blasted lawmakers for not doing enough to lower taxes and for passingwhat it saw as an outsized budget.
The media credentials the group sought would have allowed staff members of an affiliate to be on the House floor during the legislative session. On the floor, lawmakers are more accessible.
“When someone offers you a bribe, or solicits activity from you in exchange for official government favors—like@ Rep DennisBonn end idw@ Bur rows 4 TX sitting there — you face a real emergency,” Sullivan tweeted Friday. “Your choices: hope not to be victimized to badly, or speak out loudly.”
Bonnen denied offering such a deal but has also apologized to members of the House for “terrible things” he said during the meeting, which Sullivan secretly recorded. Several Republicans have heard the recording and said it generally confirmed Sullivan’s story, but Sullivan has refused to publicly release it.
Texas Republican Party Chair James Dickey said the group appreciated Burrows’ leadership over the session but did not make mention of the scandal that’s surrounded him since.
“Rep. Burrows played a pivotal role in a session that delivered much-needed property tax reductions, school finance reformand 61 other Republican Party Platform Planks,” Dickey said. “We thank him for thatworkwhichwill benefit all Texans.”
Meanwhile, Texas Democratic Party Executive Director Manny Garcia in a statement Friday seemed to welcome the infighting among the majority party. Democrats flipped a dozen House seats and two Senate seats in 2018 and are hoping to pick up where they left off in the upcoming 2020 election.
“Where there is smoke, there is fire. Presumably, Chair Burrows had good reason to resign,” Garcia said. “Texans deserve full transparency. It’s time for the full recording to be released. While the Texas Republican Party is plagued with a deepening scandal, Texas Democrats remained focused on winning back the House.”