ERIC DEGGANS, HOST:
Ahead of President-elect Donald Trump's next administration, we wanted to spend some time talking about Texas. It's the biggest Republican-led state in the country, and the conservative majority in the state legislature just got bigger. Texas leaders have made their priorities known, both in working with the incoming Trump administration and in next year's legislative session. Blaise Gainey is here to talk us through it. Blaise is the state Capitol reporter for the Texas Newsroom and joins us from Austin. Good morning, Blaise.
BLAISE GAINEY, BYLINE: Good morning. Thanks for having me.
DEGGANS: Let's start with the big one, border and immigration. One of Trump's campaign promises is to deport millions of undocumented immigrants. Texas is a border state. They clearly have to play a part in that. How do they plan to do it?
GAINEY: Well, they already have a program going called Operation Lone Star. They've spent $11 billion on that program. It was created in March of 2021 by Governor Greg Abbott to respond to the rise in illegal immigration because he said President Biden's administration wasn't doing enough. He's bussed tens of thousands of migrants to blue states, deployed miles of razor wire along the border and extended a floating buoy barrier in the Rio Grande. And Abbott was recently on Fox News. Here's what he had to say on immigration.
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GREG ABBOTT: We just want to make sure that the Trump administration understands, we are here to help, whether it be to deny illegal entry, whether it be to arrest those who are here illegally, whether it be to assist in the deportation process.
GAINEY: So if Trump increases border patrols, then that could free up Texas from having to invest so much of its own resources.
DEGGANS: OK, well, it sounds like they're eager to pitch in.
GAINEY: Exactly. Another way we might see that play out, though, is the state's General Land Office offered the incoming Trump administration more than 1,400 acres of south Texas border land to, quote, "construct deportation facilities." But there's already been a lot of pushback on mass deportation not only from immigrant advocates, but business leaders, as well. They say it could be dangerous for the economy and workforce.
DEGGANS: Well, another big issue - vouchers that give parents taxpayer money to pay for private schools. Now, last month, voters in Kentucky, Colorado, and Nebraska rejected ballot questions on this issue, but Texas leaders say it's a top priority for this legislative session. Tell us more.
GAINEY: Vouchers have been a big ticket item in several states. There's already 16 states with a program so far. Texas is not one of them. The governor has been trying to pass a bill since 2023 with no luck. He even called three special sessions for it, but it never got passed. But this election cycle, he was successful in getting several of the rural Republicans that voted against it out of office. We'll have to wait and see, but at the time, it does look like he has the votes.
DEGGANS: What else are you hearing might be a priority?
GAINEY: So making a return from 2017's session is the bathroom bill. It'd restrict the use of public restrooms and locker rooms to be used only by a person whose sex on their birth certificate matches what's on the sign. And this would only apply to government-owned buildings. And another bill that's been filed focuses on stopping people from getting medications associated with abortions. The goal is to prevent people from ordering these pills online.
DEGGANS: Texas lawmakers don't go into session for another month, but they've already filed a lot of bills. Why are they doing this?
GAINEY: I mean, they filed nearly 2,000 bills so far, but it should be noted that not a lot of bills actually pass. Last session, 8,000 bills were filed, and less than 1,300 of those were passed and signed by the governor. So the lawmakers can brag about introducing legislation or this or that. But those bills probably don't stand a chance. And you know, the earlier the bills get filed, the more time you have to bring all sides to the table to discuss any issues the bill might have, and then you can get amendments tacked on to fix them.
DEGGANS: Blaise Gainey is the state Capitol reporter for the Texas Newsroom. Blaise, thank you so much for joining us.
GAINEY: Thank you. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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