Episode #54
Surveillance, Loyalty and Failures
Public records, party loyalty and road safety may sound like separate debates. In this week’s Politics with the Big Dogs , Current Revolt publisher Tony Ortiz joins Anthony to talk about the same issue running through all three: Texans cannot hold power accountable if they cannot see how it is being used. The conversation begins with Flock license plate readers and a public-records campaign that spread across Texas. It moves into Republican leaders breaking with their own party’s nominees before the Nov. 3 election. It ends with federal action against 110 commercial driver’s license training providers and hard questions about what Texas regulators missed. What the Flock records showed Current Revolt gave readers a template containing nine public records questions and encouraged them to send it to their cities. The responses revealed both the reach of the system and how difficult public scrutiny can become. Carrollton provided records showing 605 organizations on its Flock sharing list, according to Current Revolt’s review. Police in 21 other states shared cameras with Carrollton, while 485 Texas agencies received access to the city’s data feed. Colleyville sought $11,826 before processing one request. Forney later quoted $33,453 for the same nine questions. Those figures do not mean that 485 agencies were actively following one person. They do show how quickly a local camera network can become a much larger information-sharing system. Police departments point to stolen-vehicle recoveries, missing-person cases and violent-crime investigations as legitimate uses for automatic license plate readers. Anthony and Tony acknowledge those benefits. Their concern is what happens after the image is captured: Who may search it? How long is it stored? Which agencies may receive it? Is a warrant required? Flock says its license plate readers capture vehicle information and do not use facial recognition. That distinction matters. So does the larger constitutional question surrounding access, retention, audits and sharing. When accountability collides with party loyalty The episode then turns to Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller, Republican nominee Nate Sheets and Democratic nominee Clayton Tucker. Current Revolt reported that the Miller and Tucker campaigns published similar AI-generated Labor Day graphics. A screenshot from Tucker’s campaign also showed a browser tab for the same Bible verse Miller shared that day. Ortiz asked both campaigns whether they were sharing staff members, vendors or volunteers. Neither responded. That is not proof of a shared operation. It is a fair question made more significant by Miller’s refusal to endorse Sheets after losing the Republican primary and his appearances with Tucker. The party-loyalty debate is not limited to that race. Republican strategist Karl Rove said he would support Democrat Jon Rosenthal over Republican Bo French for the Texas Railroad Commission. The episode examines whether rejecting a nominee protects a party’s principles or helps its political opponents acquire power. Anthony and Tony also assess the U.S. Senate contest between Republican Ken Paxton and Democrat James Talarico, the lingering role of outgoing Sen. John Cornyn and the risk facing Republican candidates farther down the ballot. The Texas House math If Republicans lose several state House seats in November, the effects will extend beyond individual districts. A smaller majority would alter the vote count for legislation, constitutional amendments, committee decisions and the 2027 speaker election. Anthony and Tony discuss Speaker Dustin Burrows, who entered office with Democratic support but presided over a session that won praise from some of his former conservative critics. Both believe Burrows is better positioned to retain the speakership than his early opposition might suggest. The unanswered question is how many seats Republicans will hold when the next House convenes. What federal CDL enforcement found The final segment returns to an issue with immediate public-safety consequences. Federal officials removed 110 CDL training providers from the national registry. The providers were associated with more than 5,000 drivers who failed to demonstrate English proficiency, according to reporting cited by Current Revolt. Current Revolt found that 14 Texas truck-driving companies operating 18 training yards were part of the action, tying Texas with Pennsylvania for the most affected companies. Three additional Texas locations were removed two weeks later. Anthony completed commercial driver training himself. He explains why reading road signs, understanding warnings and communicating with police officers and inspectors are not abstract requirements when a driver is controlling a vehicle that may weigh 80,000 pounds. Training rules matter. So do the consequences for schools, companies and regulators that fail to enforce them. Read the reporting behind the conversation Current Revolt has built its audience by reporting on Texas political stories before they reach the broader news cycle. Paid subscriptions are a major source of support for that work. Visit: https://www.currentrevolt.com/ Texas voter registration deadline: Oct. 5 Texas voters will decide the statewide and legislative races discussed in this episode on Tuesday, Nov. 3. The official deadline to register is Monday, Oct. 5 . Early voting runs Oct. 19-30. Check your registration even if you have voted before, especially if you recently moved or changed your name. First-time applicants may begin the application online, but generally must print, sign and return it to their county voter registrar. The Texas Secretary of State recommends acting early because postal-processing changes can affect postmarks. https://www.votetexas.gov/register-to-vote/
