On the opening day of the legislative session, Texas Representatives and Senators raised their right hand and swore an oath. Not only was that oath to the Constitution of the United States, but also to the Constitution of the State of Texas. Embedded in that Texas Constitution, in our Bill of Rights, are the following words.
“All political power is inherent in the people, and all free governments are founded on their authority, and instituted for their benefit. The faith of the people of Texas stands pledged to the preservation of a republican form of government, and, subject to this limitation only, they have at all times the inalienable right to alter, reform or abolish their government in such manner as they may think expedient.” – Texas Constitution, Article 1 Section 2
In the midst of all of the hot button issues in this session, one issue that has seen the largest amount of support from the people of Texas over the last several years has yet to find a champion in the Capitol. That issue is the basic right of the people of Texas to vote on their political destiny.
Through the work of the Texas Nationalist Movement, engaging the ordinary men and women of Texas, polling has shown that Texas independence has consistently been the choice of a majority of Republicans, near or greater than half of independent voters, and at or over one-third of Democrats. You can’t walk into any city or town in Texas and throw a rock without hitting someone who thinks that Texas should reclaim its independence from the unelected bureaucrats in Washington.
And the effect of this support has begun to manifest itself in the political sphere. Nowhere more so than at the Republican State Convention in May. A plank calling for a vote on Texas independence passed a Republican subcommittee with only one dissenting vote. It went on to pass the Temporary Platform Committee with a two-thirds majority. And, after the unprecedented replacement of Platform Committee members, the resolution was defeated in the Permanent Platform Committee by only two votes. The plank was reintroduced on the floor of the convention, debated, and then voted on. And, were it not from a controversial call from Chairman Tom Mechler, it would, at this very moment, be a plank on the Republican platform.
The Texas Nationalist Movement has over 340,062 pledged votes in favor of Texas independence with that number growing daily. As a percentage of registered voters, that makes the TNM the largest political movement in Texas and one of the largest in the entire United States.
What these Texans want is simple and guaranteed in our Bill of Rights. They want their right to publicly debate and vote on Texas membership in the Federal union.
And it’s understandable why they want their voices heard. We live under 180,000 pages of Federal laws administered by 2.5 million unelected bureaucrats. We elect our officials here in Texas, but through decades of unassailable Federal overreach, where our decisions in Texas can be overridden at the stroke of a bureaucrat’s pen, we have a Governor who is not allowed to govern, a Legislature that is not allowed to legislate, and Supreme Court that is anything but supreme.
Texans are embracing their political will and are ready to answer the defining question of our generation – are Texans the best people to govern Texas, or shall we leave it up to others?
All that must be done to begin the debate is the filing of the Texas Independence Referendum Act by representatives with courage in the Texas Legislature.
The Texas Independence Referendum Act establishes the legal framework for a public debate and vote on whether Texas should reassert its status as an independent nation. It would ensure that Texans, for the first time in our history, both voters and elected, will have a serious and thorough examination of our relationship in and with the union.
Supporting or filing this legislation is not an endorsement of Texas independence. Rather, it is an acknowledgement that Texans need, and in massive numbers, want to have a serious discussion on this issue, outside of bumper stickers, t-shirts, and political theater. It is a fulfillment of the oath that our Representatives and Senators took on the opening day of the legislative session and it is an acknowledgment that they take that oath and our rights as Texans seriously.
You can read the full text of the Texas Independence Referendum Act here: http://thetnm.org/referendum
Andrew Piziali is a retired design verification engineer with a passion for Jesus Christ and liberty. He is a former member of the Collin County chapter of the Texas Nationalist Movement, now writing as an expat from Prescott, Arizona.
