How an 'unabashed display of Christian nationalism' tried to sway Texas speaker battle

16 January

In the Lone Star State, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick expressed his disappointment when State Rep. Dustin Burrows defeated State Rep. David Cook in a contentious battle for speaker of the Texas House of Representatives. Republicans have majorities in both branches of the Texas Legislature, but Burrows received enough Democratic votes to defeat Cook (who was supported by far-right Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton).

Although Burrows is a conservative Republican, he isn't as far to the right as Cook. MSNBC's Ja'han Jones describes Burrows as the "less Trumpy" of the two.

In his January 16 column, Jones details the efforts of Christian nationalists to sway the speaker vote — which he describes as a troubling demonstration of their quest to control government.

Jones notes that before the speaker vote was held, Christian nationalists gathered outside for a prayer meeting. And one of them called for evangelical fundamentalists to "take charge and authority" over the Texas Legislature and exercise "jurisdiction over the affairs of men."

Separately, Christian nationalists, the Texas Tribune's Robert Downen reported, entered the Capitol Building and called for protection from the "Jezebel" spirit. One of them, Landon Schott of the Mercy Culture Church, declared, "Pray for the fear of the Lord to come into this place."

"Jezebel," Jones observes, "has been deployed by Christian nationalists as a racist and sexist slur against powerful women, such as Vice President Kamala Harris."

"This unabashed display of Christian nationalism is a warning about the theological rule that far-right Republicans are looking to install in Texas, and potentially elsewhere," Jones warns. "In a ReidOut Blog post shortly after Election Day, I wrote about how Christian extremists are champing at the bit over the power they expect they'll be given by the incoming Trump Administration. And as they seek to impose their will, there’s little reason to believe they’ll stop at the Lone Star State."

Ja'han Jones' full MSNBC column is available at this link.

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