The Texas Supreme Court rejected Gov. Greg Abbott’s efforts to remove Houston Rep. Gene Wu from office Friday, saying that the Legislature was able to secure House Democrats’ attendance and restore a quorum last summer without involvement from the court.

Writing for the majority, Chief Justice Jimmy Blacklock — a Republican and former Abbott aide — cited legal precedent in which the courts “have uniformly recognized that it is not their role to resolve disputes between the other two branches that those branches can resolve for themselves.”

“The courts’ institutional ‘reluctance … to involve themselves in contests of factional political power,’ a reluctance we reiterate and reinforce today, is a check on the judicial power ‘of ancient standing,’ not an optional preference we are at liberty to discard,” Blacklock wrote.

Friday’s ruling from the all-Republican Supreme Court is a setback for Abbott, who vowed to expel any members who refused to return to Texas to pass the GOP’s new congressional map. The unusual mid-decade redistricting arose under pressure from President Donald Trump, who sought to shore up the GOP’s narrow majority in the U.S. House by having Texas lawmakers draw new districts designed to give Republicans five additional seats in Texas.

More than 50 Democrats, including Wu — the House Democratic leader — left the state in August to shut down the Legislature and stall passage of the GOP’s map.

Democrats condemned the unusual mid-decade redraw as a partisan power grab that will reduce the power of Black and Hispanic voters. The Legislature adopted the map shortly after Democrats returned, and the U.S. Supreme Court approved its usage for the midterm elections, overruling a lower court’s finding that the map was racially gerrymandered.

The Texas Supreme Court on Friday left open the possibility of getting involved in any future quorum breaks, or when lawmakers purposely deny the Legislature the headcount needed to take up business.

“Whatever wrong may have been committed by the absent House members, the Texas Constitution’s internal political remedies, none of which involve the judicial branch, were sufficient to the task of restoring the House’s ability to do business,” Blacklock wrote. “Should those remedies unexpectedly prove inadequate in a future case, we might have occasion to consider whether any judicial remedy could ever be available in circumstances such as these.”

In a concurring opinion, Justice James Sullivan indicated a greater appetite for addressing future quorum breaks and potentially finding that lawmakers had vacated their offices.

“Were it to happen yet again, I believe the next set of quorumbreakers had better be ready to pay us a visit,” he wrote. “Our original jurisdiction to issue writs of quo warranto will empower us to inquire whether they’ve abandoned their legislative offices and, if we so find, to throw them out.”

Quorum breaking has a long history in Texas politics. The state’s founding fathers intentionally set the bar for quorum high, requiring two-thirds of both chambers to show up, compared to a simple majority in most states. Most recently, Democrats fled in 2003 and 2021 to delay redistricting and voting restrictions, respectively.

No Texas lawmaker has ever been removed from office solely for breaking quorum. Never in U.S. history has a governor gotten the courts to remove a member of a legislature for breaking quorum.

Wu on Friday declared victory after challenging Abbott to “come and take it” in August.

“Today, the Republican-controlled Supreme Court said: No. The Constitution does not let a governor erase voters’ choices when their choices are inconvenient to him,” Wu said in a statement. “Abbott was wrong, weak and after all his bluster he couldn’t come and take a damn thing.”

In the emergency petition he filed with the state Supreme Court in August, Abbott argued that Wu had abandoned his office by decamping to Illinois and declaring “this corrupt special session is over” — a signal that Wu and the absentee Democrats planned to stay on the lam long enough to run out the last two weeks of the overtime session, Abbott said.

“What is at stake here? Nothing less than the future of Texas,” Abbott wrote. “If a small fraction of recalcitrant lawmakers choose to run out the clock today, they can do so for any, and every, Regular or Special Session, potentially bankrupting the State in an attempt to get their way.”

In his response, Wu said he had not abandoned his office, and in fact was representing his constituents more fully by refusing to allow the House to pass legislation they opposed.

Wu “has not died and has not been expelled from the House by the constitutionally prescribed means: a 2/3 vote of the House,” his lawyers said in a response. “His presence in another state is not a voluntary resignation — as his opposition to this petition makes evident. Respondent is entitled to serve through the entire term to which he was elected.”

This article first appeared on The Texas Tribune.

James Talarico, the Austin state lawmaker and Democratic U.S. Senate nominee, is running on a premise that the true conflict in politics is not left versus right, but a “top versus bottom” struggle between the ultrawealthy and everyday Texans.

At the heart of this message is Talarico’s avowed support for curbing the political influence of billionaire donors. He has sworn off corporate PAC donations, proposed measures to crack down on “billionaire tax loopholes” to ensure they “pay their fair share,” and advocated for outlawing super PACs.

But the cast of contributors bankrolling Lone Star Rising PAC, a super PAC in his corner, features several billionaires, many of whom are prolific Democratic donors, and dark money nonprofit groups that do not have to disclose their funders.

While donors are capped at giving $3,500 per election to individual candidates, no such contribution limits exist for super PACs, which can spend unlimited funds supporting or opposing candidates, including through advertising, voter mobilization efforts and polling, as long as they don’t coordinate with a candidate’s campaign.

Lone Star Rising raised just under $9 million from its inception in September through the end of March, and spent almost all of it on ads supporting Talarico and attacking U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett, his primary foe. The group’s treasurer is Alexander Clark, who overlapped with Talarico when both taught in public schools in San Antonio through Teach for America.

Super PACs like Lone Star Rising have been key players in Texas’ Senate race — U.S. Sen. John Cornyn and his Republican primary runoff opponent, Attorney General Ken Paxton, both have such groups supporting them, as did Crockett. At the same time, dark money has surged in federal races, with Cornyn in particular benefiting from tens of millions in ad spending from a constellation of super PACs and nonprofit groups.

Both issues are thornier for Democrats, some of whom, like Talarico, have made getting big money out of politics central to their platforms. Ahead of the March primary, Crockett called him “a man that seemingly doesn’t practice what he preaches,” saying he had “welcomed and embraced these billionaires and their dark money support.”

Talarico’s campaign argues that 97% of contributions to his campaign account — which has raised over $40 million since he launched his campaign last fall — have come from small-dollar donors.

“The only way to stop super PACs like these is to vote out politicians like John Cornyn and Ken Paxton who want corporations and billionaires to decide our elections, not Texans,” Talarico spokesperson JT Ennis said in a statement.

When previously asked about the support he receives from billionaire donors and super PACs, Talarico has said he will not “unilaterally disarm while Republicans play by their own rules,” and that he welcomes billionaire supporters who believe they should be taxed more and see their political influence limited.

Garry Jones, the director of Lone Star Rising PAC, said the group was “explicit” to donors that it supports much the same goals.

“Unfortunately we live in a political system in which, if you don’t use all the rules to your advantage, you’re left behind, and by being left behind, your ideas and principles and policy goals are left behind,” Jones, a longtime Democratic operative, said. “You can’t approach the current political climate with your hands tied behind your back.”

Here’s a look at the donors backing the pro-Talarico Lone Star Rising PAC.

Reid Hoffman

Amount donated to LSR: $1.5 million

Hoffman is the cofounder of LinkedIn and a billionaire venture capitalist, AI investor and Democratic megadonor. Since 2016, Hoffman has given roughly $77 million to numerous Democratic groups and campaigns in contributions reported to the FEC, including $10.3 million to former Vice President Kamala Harris’ main super PAC, Future Forward PAC.

This cycle, Hoffman’s largest collective contribution so far has gone to Lone Star Rising PAC. He has also donated to other Democratic U.S. Senate candidates, including former Gov. Roy Cooper in North Carolina, former Sen. Sherrod Brown in Ohio and Sen. Jon Ossoff in Georgia.

Hoffman recently drew scrutiny for his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein — the sex abuser and financier who died in jail in 2019 — upon the Justice Department’s release of the Epstein files. The documents show Hoffman was communicating and meeting with Epstein well after Epstein pleaded guilty in 2008 for soliciting a minor for prostitution and was registered as a sex offender. Hoffman visited Epstein’s private Caribbean island in 2014, gifted him a statue and offered to help with publicity after Epstein was accused of sex trafficking in 2014.

Crockett nodded at the connection in the leadup to the March election, saying, “If one of the individuals who donated publicly is someone in the Epstein files, imagine who else has given anonymously” — a reference to Lone Star Rising’s dark money support.

Talarico has advocated for the full release of the Epstein files and justice for the victims of Epstein’s circle. Most Republicans in Congress, including Cornyn, opposed releasing the files last fall before reversing and approving their disclosure.

Hoffman said on social media that he went to Epstein’s island to help fundraise for the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He said the FBI under the Trump administration found no indication of wrongdoing, adding, “I regret ever interacting with Epstein.”

The Bench

Amount donated to LSR: $500,000

The Bench is an organization that launched in January to develop the “next generation of Democratic leaders” — specifically, up and coming candidates with unusual political profiles that, in the eyes of the group’s leaders, reflect the states and districts they aim to represent. Lis Smith, a Democratic strategist who worked on Pete Buttigieg’s 2020 presidential campaign, serves as a senior adviser to The Bench. Andrew Mamo, a consultant for Talarico’s campaign, is a spokesperson for the group.

“Our candidates are community-rooted, values-driven, and ready to connect with voters across party lines,” the group’s website states.

This cycle, The Bench has also endorsed Tejano music star Bobby Pulido in Texas’ 15th Congressional District and sheriff’s deputy Johnny Garcia in the 35th Congressional District. Its roster of Senate candidates also includes former U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola in Alaska and state Sen. Mallory McMorrow in Michigan.

In the first three months of this year, The Bench received major donations including $2 million from billionaire hedge fund manager and Democratic donor Stephen Mandel; $500,000 from Better World Civic Trust; $395,000 from billionaire Netflix cofounder Reed Hastings; and $250,000 from billionaire crypto CEO and investor Michael Novogratz.

Adam Pritzker

Amount donated to LSR: $180,000

Adam Pritzker is a scion of the billionaire family that derives much of its wealth from the Hyatt hotel empire. He is a cousin of Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and a prolific Democratic donor, giving $926,000 to Kamala Harris’ campaign in 2024.

Pritzker is a major supporter of state level Democrats around the country, contributing to state Democratic parties and cofounding and serving as president of PAC for America’s Future, formerly known as Future Now Fund. The group’s purpose, according to IRS filings, is to “elect the next generation of American leaders with a focus on state legislatures.” PAC for America’s Future helps fund the States Project, a group Pritzker cofounded that focuses on winning and defending blue majorities in state legislatures.

PAC for America’s Future also maintains a Texas committee, which in 2024 received $2 million from investor Jonathan Soros, the son of billionaire financier and Democratic megadonor George Soros.

Texas Justice Fund

Amount donated to LSR: $100,000

Texas Justice Fund is a group affiliated with the Lone Star Project, a Democratic political research and communications firm founded in 2005 by strategist Matt Angle. Texas Justice Fund donated $500,000 to the Texas House Democratic Caucus last year around the Texas House Democrats’ walkout over Republicans’ mid-decade redistricting effort. A group called Texas Justice Fund is also registered as a 501(c)(4) with the IRS, listing Angle as its president and Lisa Turner — a Democratic strategist and wife of state Rep. Chris Turner — as its director.

Dark money groups

Government That Works PAC

Amount donated to LSR: $3.75 million

Government That Works PAC is by far the biggest donor to Lone Star Rising PAC, but that money largely came from undisclosed sources. The group, according to its donation page, was “established to defeat ineffective and extreme incumbent candidates.”

The group received $4 million from Sixteen Thirty Fund in January, around the time it gave $3.75 million to the pro-Talarico super PAC. Sixteen Thirty Fund is a top Democratic dark money hub that does not have to report its donors. It has previously been associated with Swiss billionaire Hansjörg Wyss and Democratic megadonor George Soros.

Government That Works PAC previously received $2.9 million from Contours Inc., which was recognized by the IRS as a 501(c)(4) nonprofit in October 2025, meaning it does not have to disclose its donors. Contours Inc., according to its website, “educates voters and advocates for changes that give greater voice and choice to voters from coast to coast.”

Government That Works PAC also received $300,000 from America Votes and $250,000 from Global Impact Social Welfare Fund — both of which are also dark money groups.

Lone Star Forward Fund Inc.

Amount donated to LSR: $250,000

Lone Star Forward Fund Inc., according to its website, is a 501(c)(4) nonprofit. The group calls itself a “Texas policy advocacy organization dedicated to educating, engaging and mobilizing communities in support of progressive policies.”

Sufam Advisors Corp

Amount donated to LSR: $100,000

Sufam Advisors Corp is a corporation first registered in Florida in 1992 by Neil Subin, an investment manager at MILFAM, a firm managing the assets of the descendents of industrialist Lloyd I. Miller Jr.

Finance

Stephen Mandel

Amount donated to LSR: $500,000

Mandel is a Connecticut billionaire hedge fund manager and major Democratic donor. He sits on the board of directors for Teach for America — through which Talarico taught middle school in San Antonio for two years — and is a supporter of charter schools. Mandel previously sat on the board of trustees of the Environmental Defense Fund. He established the Zoom Foundation in 2001, a nonprofit that funds environmental, education and democracy-based causes.

Mark Jacobsen

Amount donated to LSR: $100,000

Jacobsen is the Maryland-based cofounder and CEO of the financial services firm IntraFi. He previously served as the chief of staff at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and at the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. He has contributed to a number of Democrats running for Congress.

Mark Heising

Amount donated to LSR: $100,000

Heising is the founder of Medley Partners, a San Francisco-based private investment firm. A major Democratic donor, Heising holds six U.S. patents in cryptography, compression and data communications.

Heising serves as chair of the Environmental Defense Fund and as a board member of the Heising-Simons Foundation, which works to “advance sustainable solutions in climate and clean energy, enable groundbreaking research in science, enhance the education of our youngest learners, and support human rights for all people,” according to its website.

Heising and his wife, Liz Simons, pledged to commit most of their wealth to philanthropy in 2016. According to their pledge letter, Heising worked as a chip designer before entering finance.

David Gochman

Amount donated to LSR: $100,000

Gochman is the president and founder of Inclenberg Investments, a private investment firm focused on real estate with offices in Florida and Texas. Gochman previously led Academy Sports & Outdoors, a sporting goods company his grandfather founded in San Antonio in 1938. Based in Florida, he has contributed to numerous Democratic campaigns, groups and state parties in recent election cycles.

Philanthropists/Democratic donors

Lisa Primus

Amount donated to LSR: $500,000

Primus is a New York physician, philanthropist and active Democratic donor who has given $7.7 million largely to Democratic groups and candidates over the years. She funds the Livelihood Impact Fund, which “invests funding and expertise into data driven early stage organizations that strive to meaningfully and durably improve the lives of the global poor,” and served on the boards of the Center for Voter Information, the League of Conservation Voters and the Pipeline Initiative, which recruits and supports progressive political candidates.

Simone Coxe

Amount donated to LSR: $500,000

Coxe is an Austin philanthropist married to Tench Coxe, a billionaire venture capitalist and longtime board member of Nvidia. Simone Coxe cofounded a public relations firm for the tech industry, and she was the cofounder of CalMatters, a nonprofit news site covering California politics and policy. The couple donated $100 million to the University of Texas at Austin’s academic medical center this year. They are part owners of Austin FC.

Don Henley

Amount donated to LSR: $150,000

Henley is a Grammy award-winning musician and founding member of The Eagles, which was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1998. He is an East Texas native who has supported numerous Democratic groups and candidates this cycle. Henley founded the Walden Woods Project in 1990, which “preserves the land, literature and legacy of Henry David Thoreau to foster an ethic of environmental stewardship and social responsibility,” and the Caddo Lake Institute in East Texas, which focuses on protecting the wetlands area that straddles the Texas-Louisiana border.

Susan Sarofim

Amount donated to LSR: $100,000

Sarofim is a Houston businesswoman, philanthropist and widow of billionaire investment manager Fayez Sarofim. She founded a temp agency in 1989, owns New Orleans Auction Galleries, and cofounded To Educate All Children, a nonprofit that offers class management programming to Houston and Aldine Independent School District educators.

William H. Harris

Amount donated to LSR: $100,000

Harris is an orthopedic surgeon and the founder of Massachusetts General Hospital’s Harris Orthopedic Lab. He is a regular donor to Democratic-aligned groups and candidates.

Disclosure: Environmental Defense Fund and University of Texas at Austin have been financial supporters of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune's journalism. Find a complete list of them here.

U.S. Rep Michael McCaul, R-Austin, the chair of the powerful House Foreign Affairs Committee, was briefly detained at Dulles International Airport outside Washington, D.C. on Nov. 4, in an incident he called “the result of a poor decision” to mix Ambien and alcohol.

McCaul, who was on his way home to Texas, was charged with being drunk in public around 9 p.m. on Nov. 4 and released shortly after, according to the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority.

A nervous flier, McCaul had taken Ambien to help him sleep on his flight, his spokesperson said, confirming a report by Semafor.

Mixing the medication with alcohol made him dazed and disoriented, leading him to miss his flight and lock himself out of his phone, according to his spokesperson. Airport police officers then detained him, assuming he was intoxicated.

He was released shortly after being detained when a family member picked him up.

"Two weekends ago, I made a mistake — one for which I take full responsibility,” McCaul said in a statement. “I missed a flight to Texas and found myself disoriented in the airport. This was the result of a poor decision I made to mix an Ambien — which I took in order to sleep on the upcoming flight — with some alcohol.”

“I have nothing but respect and gratitude for the officers who intercepted me that evening,” he said. “This incident does not reflect who I am and who I strive to be. As a human, I am not perfect. But I am determined to learn from this mistake and, God willing, make myself a better person.”

McCaul is term-limited in his coveted position atop the House Foreign Affairs Committee, for which he regularly travels to meet with world leaders. He has said he will seek special permission from GOP leaders to continue serving as the committee’s top Republican beyond his six-year term limit next year, when the new Congress begins.

As chairman of the committee, McCaul was instrumental in pushing a fresh infusion of aid to Ukraine over the finish line this year, in the face of fierce opposition from the party’s right wing and President-elect Donald Trump. He also has been a vocal China hawk, leading the effort to force the sale of TikTok to an American company.

If allowed to retain his committee gavel, McCaul pledged to continue supporting key US allies around the globe and keeping pressure on adversaries like Russia and China — even as a second Trump administration ushers in a redefined, isolationist view of foreign policy.

He is one of the most seasoned members of the Texas delegation, having also served as the top Republican on the Homeland Security Committee from 2013 to 2019.

This article originally appeared in The Texas Tribune at https://www.texastribune.org/2024/11/13/mccaul-detained-intoxication-washington-airport-texas/.

The Texas Tribune is a member-supported, nonpartisan newsroom informing and engaging Texans on state politics and policy. Learn more at texastribune.org.