The Purple Principle

The Purple Principle kicks off its extended Season Three series on state level polarization with a mini-series on the great state of Texas. And who better to discuss Texas politics than the co-hosts of the artfully named podcast, Y’all-itics: Jason Wheeler (Senior News Reporter) and Jason Whitely (News Anchor) of the ABC Dallas affiliate, WFAA.

Both Jasons concur that polarization has been eating away at that powerful Texas identity in recent times. “People do like to maintain that they have that independent streak,” says Wheeler, pointing to both Texas Republicans and Democrats. “And I think that one of the things you have in common is that you like to think that you're perhaps more of an independent thinker than you are.”

What factors are contributing to erosion of that common Texas identity? One party rule, without real need for bipartisanship, certainly plays a role. And gerrymandering has helped maintain Republican domination of Texas politics over the past two decades. Therefore, Republican office holders often look over their right shoulders at primary battles rather than ahead to general elections and swing voters.

The most recent Texas legislative session put forth a number of bills catering to that small subset of Republican primary loyalists, including restricted abortion and voting access, yet unrestricted open carry of firearms. Will this “red meat” legislation invoke electoral backlash?

That’s a point of discussion in this episode, along with last year’s major power failure and the continuing movement of California companies and workers into Texas. Tune in for a “Y’all-itical Science” mini-course with the equally articulate, almost equally named hosts of Y’all-itics, Jason Wheeler and Jason Whitely, as The Purple Principle kicks off our extended state polarization series in the vast, varied, and vocal Lone Star State.

Original Texas–themed music this episode by Ryan Adair Rooney.

SHOW NOTES

Our Guests

Jason Whitely: co-host of the podcast Y’all-itics, Senior News Reporter at WFAA in Dallas, Texas. Host of WFAA’s Inside Texas Politics. Jason Whitely’s Twitter

Jason Wheeler: co-host of the podcast Y’all-itics, News Anchor at WFAA, and Editor of WFAA’s Right on the Money. Jason Wheeler’s Twitter

Find the Y’all-itics podcast on WFAA.com, Apple Podcasts

Additional Resources

• Why “heartbeat bill” is a misleading name for Texas’ near-total abortion ban (Texas Tribune)
• Gov. Greg Abbott signs Texas voting bill into law, overcoming Democratic quorum breaks (Texas Tribune)
• Permitless Carry Becomes Legal In Texas Next Week. Here’s What You Need To Know (Houston Public Media)
• Texas Partisan Index: Rating New Senate Seats From Most Republican to Most Democratic (The Texan)
• Ken Paxton - About the Attorney General
• Texas attorney general refuses to hand over Jan. 6 records (AP)
• With primaries under way in Texas, Ken Paxton’s bid for a 3rd term is marked by legal troubles (Houston Public Media)
• Why Texas Democrats lost the 2020 voter turnout battle, even among Latinos (NBC News)
• Texas President Results, 2020 (CNN)
• Triumph The Insult Comic Dog Meets Beto And Cruz
• Pandemic politics fuel long-shot Republican challenges to Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (NBC News)
• Governor Abbott Issues Executive Order Prohibiting Government Entities From Mandating Masks
• Surreal photos and videos capture dangers of severe winter storm across the South (Today.com)
• Colin Allred - U.S. House of Representatives
• Van Taylor - U.S. House of Representatives

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