The Conaway Chronicle Town Halls, West Texas Legislative Summit, De Leon Peach & Melon Festival's 100th Year

Statement

Thank you for reading The Conaway Chronicle, a review of my activities in Congress and the 11th District.

Town Halls:

I held town halls in Odessa, Eden, and Brownwood this week. The turnout was impressive. We talked mostly about the border crisis and President Obama's abuse of executive power. Last week, I voted for bills that provide Border Patrol agents the immediate tools they need to address the crisis at our border. The bills did this in a fiscally responsible way by making cuts in other areas to pay for this, rather than adding to our national debt. The bills include a provision amending a 2008 law that the Administration has used to slow the process of returning children from Central America who have illegally entered the United States. They also prohibit the Administration from spending money on its Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals policy that is providing an incentive for illegal immigrants. Last week, I also voted to authorize a lawsuit against President Obama for abusing his executive power. Although there were people at the town hall who agreed and disagreed with me, I appreciated that they all treated each other civilly. We cannot solve these problems if we are shouting past each other.
I appreciated the John Ben Shepperd Public Leadership Institute and Presidential Foundation, the owners of Schumann's in Eden, and the Brownwood Chamber of Commerce hosting the town halls.

West Texas Legislative Summit:

I was honored this week to give the closing remarks for the West Texas Legislative Summit. I discussed the Environmental Protection Agency's war against fossil fuels. I warned those in attendance that the EPA is currently targeting coal, but they have fracking in their sights. I also discussed the EPA's proposed rule that provides essentially no limit to their jurisdiction under the Clean Water Act, despite the Supreme Court consistently recognizing that Congress limited the authority of the EPA under the Clean Water Act. We have some challenges with water in West Texas. Those are challenges that need to be addressed by the men and women in West Texas and not EPA bureaucrats in Washington, DC. I have been fighting these anti-energy efforts by the Obama Administration and will continue to do so. Energy production in West Texas is the engine of our economy and strengthens our national security. The men and women who are involved in the energy industry are creating jobs and making America a safer place.

Endangered Species Act Bill:

Late last month I introduced a bill that would require the Fish and Wildlife Service when listing a species as endangered to set hard goals for when the species can be considered "recovered." The Endangered Species Act, which was created in 1973, has been miserably unsuccessful with only 2% of the species being removed from the list. There are many environmental activists who prefer to see species never recovered so that they can continue to limit activities such as energy production and ranching. This is unacceptable. My bill would not only define with numbers when a species is recovered, but also create an expedited process for removing recovered species from the list. An open ended Endangered Species Act represents a threat to the strong West Texas economy and that is why fixing the law is a priority.

Menard's Four Time State Tennis Champions:

On August 6th, I presented Riley Rambo and Taylor Lyckman with copies of the Congressional Record in which I congratulated them for winning the state mixed double championship for four years. They are cousins who were born 11 days apart. They won these championships thanks to hours of practice. They were also blessed to have a great coach in Barry Kniffen, who is in the photographs in the blue shirt. I could not be prouder of Riley and Taylor. It takes a lot of dedication and poise to win one championship. To win four is incredible.

Midland YMCA:

I visited the Midland YMCA on August 5th. They are experiencing a huge growth in demand and are expanding to meet the community's needs. The Midland YMCA has a rich history. It was started in 1953 with 1162 charter members. A temporary board with then Midland businessman George H. W. Bush as chairman was set up to raise money. They have a beautiful facility where they offer everything from after school child care to summer camps to adult sports to senior health and fitness programs. Like all YMCAs they also have a beautiful mission statement: "To put Christian principles into practice through programs that build healthy spirit, mind and body for all." I appreciated the tour of the facilities and enjoyed the conversation about their programs.

100th Year of the De Leon Peach and Melon Festival:

The De Leon Peach & Melon Festival, which runs through the night of Saturday August 9th is marking its 100th year. Congratulations to the many men and women who have kept this festival running for a century. Those are the men and women who make the 11th District great. The Abilene Reporter-News ran this picture of Kelsey Hodges of De Leon competing in the watermelon seed spitting contest in 2011. If she has been practicing during the last three years she might be able to break the world record of 78 fee 6 inches, which Jayson Schayott set in De Leon in 1995. The seed spitting contest and tractor pull are tomorrow. For all of the details about the festival, click here. The photographs ran in the Abilene Reporter-News.

Note: The Conaway Chronicle will not be published on August 15th. The next Conaway Chronicle will be sent out on August 22nd.

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