“House of Bad Cards” Highlights Texas Legislator Performance

Bell County’s Shine, Buckley Place Prominently

Many Texas residents felt they were dealt a bad hand with our most recent legislative sessions and in highlighting the votes and actions of Republican lawmakers, the “House of Bad Cards” provides taxpayers with an amusing, but targeted look at their elected representatives’ performance.

In its mission to “Deck the Halls of Austin with Truth,” Grassroots America We the People introduces its card deck as follows:

Do you think we need more - or less - government?

Here's the truth: whenever the government grows and spends more money, you will be taxed to pay for it. You are the only source of revenue for the government. You pay for it all.

Every bill or action listed on this website grew government or spent your money.

What you will find here are some of the votes or actions our Republican State Representatives in the Texas legislature did on your behalf. They did it without asking you. So, did they represent you when they chose to grow the government or spend your money?

To make it a bit more entertaining, we placed these Republicans into a deck of cards with four suits: Donkeys, Betrayers, Spenders, and Elitists. Take a look. Find your Representative. Browse through the bills. See how we chose who made it into the deck and where we placed them.

All of this data comes with receipts: we point to the official source for the Texas Legislature itself. We give you the links for the irrefutable facts. The only question is whether these votes and actions represented what you would have wanted your representative to do.

At Grassroots America We the People, we focus on facts. We believe that you have the right to see the facts. Transparency, which leads to accountability, is our best weapon against tyranny.

We built a website called Grassroots Priorities that shows you very comprehensively what happened during regular session in 2023. Having all of that information allowed us to build this website.

So, if you're tired of big government, then take a look.

Bell County’s two House members, Rep. Hugh Shine (R-HD 55) and Rep. Brad Buckley (R-HD 54), both earned cards.

Shine was designated as the Jack of Spenders while Buckley earned the Eight of Betrayers.

The link to each card lists votes or other legislative actions that prompted these designations and it provides the supporting Texas legislative documentation. The methodology for the card assignments is also detailed.

Using data from the another GAWTP website, Grassroots Priorities, Shine and Buckley’s records were previously reported on in Might Bell County House Reps’ Purple Votes Help Turn Texas Blue?

While the “House of Bad Cards” takes a humorous approach to its legislative rankings, the serious nature of the findings should cause concern for many unsuspecting voters. Do the votes and other legislative actions of your representatives truly reflect your values and positions?

If your representative is a pro-government/special interest “bad card,” maybe it’s time for a serious deck reshuffling. The March 5 primary is rapidly approaching.

Lou Ann Anderson is a writer, former radio producer and current podcaster at Political Pursuits.  Her tenure as Watchdog Wire–Texas editor involved covering state news and coordinating the site’s citizen journalist network. As a past Policy Analyst with Americans for Prosperity–Texas, Lou Ann wrote and spoke on a variety of issues including the growing issue of probate abuse in which wills, trusts, guardianships and powers of attorney are used to loot assets from intended heirs or beneficiaries.  She holds a degree from the University of North Texas in Denton.