Conservative policies and ideas discussed at 17th annual West Texas Legislative Summit – Standard-Times

SAN ANGELO One after one, Republican legislators, industry leaders,and other elected and appointed officialsexpressed their opinions on policy matters affecting the Lone Star State duringthe17th annual West Texas Legislative Summit.

The summit is hosted by the San Angelo Chamber of Commerce, along with honorary co-hosts Congressman August Pfluger, Texas Senator Charles Perryand Texas Representative Drew Darby.

A full day of topic-driven panel discussions took place for roughly eight hours Wednesday, Aug. 4, 2021, at Angelo State Universitys Houston Harte University Center.

About 400 people were in attendance to listen as several Republican leaders spokeabout policy and politics from West Texas to Washington D.C.

This year's focus was titled "Beyond COVID-19" with panel topics that touched on education, infrastructure, agriculture, energy andtransportation, as well as borders and ports.

The summit featured a who's who in Texas politics with speakers that included former United States Navy Seal and current U.S. Congressman Dan Crenshaw, a member of the Energy & Commerce Committee; Congressman Kevin Brady, the top Republican on the House Ways and Means Committee; Commissioner Mike Morath with the Texas Education Agency; Commissioner Emily Lindley with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality;John Osborne, Chairman of the Ports-to-Plains Alliance;and Commissioner Christi Craddick, Chairman of the Railroad Commission of Texas.

Moderators throughout the day asked a barrage of questions to speakers on how COVID-19 had impacted life in Texas.

Congressman Chip Roy, a member of the Judiciary and Veterans Affairs Committee, opined how the coronavirus may have negatively affected children during a panel titled "Reimagining Education By Reshaping for the Future."

"We did a disservice to our children across this nation, running in fear and cowering in the cornerand masking them up," Roy said. "We're going to be watching what happens from a mental health perspective for years to come, and I think we ought to keep that perspective as people call for more shutdowns."

In the same panel, TEA Commissioner Mike Morath said there was "an unprecedented infusion of federal resources into public education" as the virus raged across the country.

Morath said it led to school districts across Texas spending large sums of money to find ways ofeducating children during the pandemic.

"We spent a billion dollars in the past15 months ensuring every kid in Texas had a laptop, iPador Chromebook," Morath said.

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Additional investments Morath cited that Texas school districts made included support for better internet access, rapid COVID tests, and new ventilation systems.

Like Roy, Morath said the response to the pandemic could have long-lasting effects onTexas children.

"We saw the largest academic decline in terms of student outcomes," Morath said. "Depending on how you look at it, it wiped out somewhere between 10 and 25 years worth of academic gains in the state of Texas."

Morath said Texas school districts would likely experiment with longer school years and specialized tutoring programs to accelerate learning and bring those gains back.

Throughout the day, many Republican and Conservative-leaning panelists lambasted Democrats andthe Biden Administration, as well as left-wing policies like the Green New Deal and critical race theory both of which have become political lightning rods.

"I'm going to be 'politically incorrect' for a moment," said Congressman Randy Weber, a member of the House Committee on Science, Space and Technology, during a panel on energy management. "No CRT," and paused a moment for the applause to die down.

"Let's teach our kids that America is worth fighting for. It is the greatest country in the world for a reason," Weber said.

In May, Weber co-sponsored a bill (H.R.3046) that was introduced to prohibit federal funds from providing training and education based on critical race theory at United States military academies.

In the same energy panel, Congressman Dan Crenshaw criticized alternative energy sources, stating that Democrat plans to invest in wind and solar energy were too unrealistic at the present time.

Both he and fellow panelist Congressman Kevin Bradyadvocated for Texas petroleum, stating that solutions to climate change would likely come from the oil and gas industries.

Keynote speaker Congressman August Pfluger took several direct shots at the Biden Administration during a lunchtime address, saying the President "didn't understand rural America," nor appreciate what rural America had to offer.

"The Biden Administration not appreciating rural America is personally offensive to me," Pfluger said.

Pfluger championed conservative ideas being expressed by other panelists. During his closing remarks at the end of the summit, Pfluger stated it would be Texas thatwould "lead the country out of the mess" left by the Biden Administration.

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John Tufts covers enterprise and investigative topics in West Texas. Send him a news tip atJTufts@Gannett.com.

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Conservative policies and ideas discussed at 17th annual West Texas Legislative Summit - Standard-Times