It seems like half of the articles I write, I write about the pathetic excuse of a man that is Texas governor Greg Abbott. What can I say, I have a lot of opinions about him! He is a spineless toad who passes legislation that feeds the political machine, and keeps his office despite his unfavorable reputation to a vast proportion of the state’s population.
A few months ago, it was the abortion ban. Before that, restrictive voting laws. This slimy mouthpiece has built a legacy on passing new laws to allow for the oppression of various minority groups. The most recent incident was a letter Abbott wrote to the state’s Department of Family and Protective Services in which he declares that guardians allowing their trans children to seek gender-affirming treatment constitutes child abuse.
Greg Abbott thinks it should be legal to call child protective services on guardians who love and support their trans kids, following a legal opinion issued by Attorney General Ken Paxton. Abbott is flirting with the idea of mandating that any licensed professional who works with children in any capacity should be obligated to report trans kids to the authorities in order to “protect” them from their “abusive” guardians. Doctors, nurses, teachers and anyone else who sees kids on a regular basis might have to report trans youths’ guardians or face criminal penalties.
While anti-transgender laws have existed/attempted to be passed in Texas before – for example, the bill regarding trans athletes, the bathroom bill, religious exemptions for commercial discrimination and bans on gender-affirming treatments for youths – this is a new level of horrible. It has already been difficult to exist as a queer person in some parts of Texas, but now Abbott has given his minions impetus to actively go out of their way to seek out trans youth and punish their guardians for being accepting.
In the midst of reeling over that whole issue, it was also revealed by the ex-ERCOT chief that Abbott ordered power prices to stay at a maximum price cap during the disastrous winter storm last February, in which many people were without heat, running water, electricity and food for days while Texas froze over.
I was attending classes from home during the time and, while the worst my family had to deal with was no hot water, I had friends and neighbors who went without electricity for days due to the rolling blackouts. I knew people who had to barricade themselves in and take every measure to ensure that the cold couldn’t seep any further into their homes. 246 people died and more were brought to unimaginable lows, like multiple counties having to boil their water before drinking, while Abbott pocketed a few extra pennies.
It’s easy to write off an entire population and generalize the conditions of people with whom you haven’t shared experiences. It’s easy to say, “this is why I hate the South” or “makes sense, because Texas hates minorities.” In the wake of many states in America passing conservative legislation, this is the rhetoric that is being spread online by people who don’t live in these areas. It seems it’s easier for people who live in blue states to label everyone who lives in red states the same as their government. No amount of “just leave” or “vote them out” is going to work against an institution that has been built on stacks of money so high that hope for a better future seems fantastical.
Greg Abbott is seeking reelection in November with the endorsement of former president Donald Trump. On the Democratic ballot is Beto O’Rourke, who is most remembered for his presidential candidacy in the 2020 general election. In 2018, he ran against incumbent Senator Ted Cruz and was defeated only by a marginal three percent. While a loss is still a loss, it still spoke of the trend that Texas voters are looking for change.
Greg Abbott is a scourge to democracy. For the sake of all the marginalized communities in Texas, I hope that ousting him as governor this November is only the beginning of the end of his pathetic career.
