Censure is a badge of honor for Gonzales
Now that the Texas Republican Party has censured him, U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales finds himself in good company.
He joins former House Speaker Joe Straus, also from San Antonio, as the only other Republican to be censured by the state party. And while the “former” part of that sentence might be disconcerting to Gonzales, a second-term lawmaker with no shortage of aspiration, the connection to Straus should be reassuring. He was an excellent, inclusive speaker.
Gonzales, who represents the sprawling Congressional District 23, was censured Saturday for failing the GOP purity test. The 57-5 vote is a monument to groupthink. Gonzales responded with rightful disdain — “Puro pedo,” he tweeted.
His greatest sins were voting in support of protecting samesex marriage and responding to the mass shooting in Uvalde, which he represents, by supporting incredibly modest gun safety legislation. He has sparred with U.S. Rep. Chip Roy, who also represents part of San Antonio, over an anti-asylum bill.
As our Editorial Board wrote prior to the censure, Gonzales isn’t the problem here. The problem is a fringe base that espouses and expects a monolithic and extreme view and commands outsize influence over state politics. Some might say Gonzales is being punished for insufficient conservatism (which is not reflected in his voting record), but, really, the censure is for sufficient independence.
Or as the Texas GOP said, “lack of fidelity to Republican principles and priorities.”
But fidelity to a political party shouldn’t come before fidelity to national and district interests or personal conscience.
Gonzales won his primary in 2022 with 78 percent of the vote, and he then cruised to reelection in November with 56 percent of the vote. That race included a far-right independent challenger, who garnered 4.7 percent of the vote.
A censure is supposed to be a punishment, but, in this case, it’s a badge of honor and an opportunity.
Should Gonzales win again, the extremists will have disenfranchised themselves and Gonzales will be free from their pressure. May Gonzales never again feel the need to share a town hall with U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-GA. It was a blatant play to the MAGA masses that was beneath him.
And let’s not even get into the scenario in which the far right successfully challenges Gonzales and then gifts the general election to a Democrat.
Gonzales’ voting record and stances reflect a conservative lawmaker who represents a red-to-purple district and, for better or for worse, is working within the political confines of the day. He backed modest gun safety legislation, but he opposed an assault weapons ban. He has opposed Roy’s antiasylum bill, but he supports Title 42, the public health code used to deny asylum claims.
Democrats and Republicans might find these votes and stances disappointing and frustrating, albeit for different reasons, but they are hardly worth censuring.
What’s interesting here is at a moment when the U.s.-mexico border region is shifting purple, the GOP could be championing Gonzales as a rising star with growing influence. He sits on the powerful House appropriations committee. As a Latino lawmaker, he has clear appeal to Latino voters. As a former Navy cryptologist, he is an obvious leader on defense and veterans issues. And as his sparring with Roy shows, he is a natural voice for bipartisan comprehensive immigration reform.
Perhaps that’s why he was censured.