Fresh off a packed meeting in College Station, Daniel Miller used this Late Night Coffee Talk to sharpen a single argument. Article 1, Section 2 of the Texas Constitution says all political power is inherent in the people and that the right to alter, reform, or abolish the government is inalienable. So when the Texas Legislature refused to let Texans vote on the TEXIT referendum bill last session, it did not merely duck a tough question. It stripped Texans of a right that cannot be taken, picked the federal side, and told the people they were too incapable to govern themselves. The outrage Texans would feel if officers went door to door confiscating firearms is the same outrage that theft of self-government deserves.
That theft is why the movement is going on offense. Miller laid out two efforts that, in his telling, have never been pulled off before and become even more potent together: an all-volunteer petition campaign to force the independence question onto the ballot, and a coordinated slate of candidates challenging every legislator who refused to back House Bill 1359. He confirmed the organization had just received clearance from its attorneys on the campaign-finance questions that had been holding the candidate program back, which is why recruitment emails started going out. The goal is real, viable candidates who want to win, not placeholders, and the call is for supporters to step up and run.
On the 2022 governor’s race, Miller declined to crown a favorite but explained how he weighs the field. He recounted speaking with Allen West before West announced and a roughly hour-long phone call with Don Huffines, who restated that he would fully support a vote on independence and back the result if Texans voted to leave. Greg Abbott, by contrast, stands between Texas and independence, and Miller made no apology for the hate mail that earned him. The candidate who breaks from the pack, he argued, will be the one who grasps that independence itself, not merely a willingness to hold a vote, is the way Texas fixes its problems.
Questions answered in this episode
- Who is the best pro-TEXIT candidate for governor, and why is Abbott left off that list?
- Where do things stand with recruiting candidates to challenge the legislators who blocked HB 1359?
- What is the worst that Biden’s economic policy could do to Texas if independence does not come first?
- Could an early failed vote on Texas independence cripple the movement?
- As a petition circulator collecting signatures in parking lots, should you submit them all at once or in batches?
- How young can you be to become a certified petition circulator?
- What should Texans make of the new book arguing the Texas Revolution was about slavery?
- How is the possible town hall with the gubernatorial candidates coming along?
- When is the Roku channel launching, and why is it taking time?
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