Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner has directed his administration to look for ways to cancel the Texas Republican Party’s scheduled in-person convention.
The Texas Tribune reported:
Turner said during a virtual City Council meeting that he has asked the city’s legal department to work with the Houston First Corporation, which operates the convention center to review the contract with the state party.
“Where there are provisions that would allow us to cancel this convention — we will exercise those provisions,” Turner said. “And the plan is to exercise those provisions to cancel this agreement, this contract, today — to not go forward with this convention.”
The Texas Republican Party knows that an in-person convention is dangerous, which is why top elected officials will be appearing by video.
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Any convention is a bad idea right now, but the Republican strategy is to pretend like the virus has gone away, or that it will not impact them. The Mayor should do everything in his power to not allow superspreader events in the city. The reason why the pandemic will continue to rage out of control is that Republicans have turned public health into a partisan issue.
There is no legitimate reason to hold an in-person convention, but until Trump is voted out of office, the pandemic will not have the federal response that the nation desperately needs.
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Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
