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Home , Dade Phelan, Texas Legislature

March 23, 2021

The Honorable The Honorable Senate Texas House of Representatives 1100 Congress Avenue 1100 Congress Avenue Austin, Texas 78768 Austin, Texas 78768

The Honorable The Honorable Texas House of Representatives 1100 Congress Avenue 1100 Congress Avenue Austin, Texas 78768 Austin, Texas 78768

Dear Lt. Gov. Patrick, Speaker Phelan, Chair Nelson, and Chair Bonnen:

We write to applaud the work Texas is doing to stand up for conservative causes nationwide. Much of this work has been done by , whose office has been a crucial force in protecting the country from government and constitutional overreach. As the state considers its budget, we urge you to adequately fund the critical work of Attorney General Paxton and his team.

Attorney General Paxton’s quick action to sue the Biden administration over their unlawful border policies resulted in a nationwide injunction against a deportation freeze that would endanger the country and undermine federal law.

Much more can be said about the many fights for liberty and justice that Attorney General Paxton is leading. However, we are especially impressed by the role Texas continues to play in the fight against Big Tech. The unprecedented amount of power concentrated in a handful of companies now threatens the flow of information, independent thought, market access, and freedom of speech. Big Tech has weaponized its power to silence entire viewpoints from mainstream avenues of speech and discourse, and to suffocate small businesses over ideological disagreements.

The power of Big Tech is an issue far beyond a dispute about the rights of plaintiffs; rather, by controlling the flow of information, speech, and access to the digital marketplace, these companies have the power to fundamentally alter the nature of our self-government.

Attorney General Paxton has made Texas a leader on these issues. His pioneering work on the antitrust case against Google has demonstrated how Google’s anti-competitive practices are distorting the free market. Indeed, Google has made the market anything but “free.” Likewise, ______The Conservative Action Project (CAP) was founded in 2008 by many conservative leaders with former Attorney General Edwin Meese III serving as the Founding Chairman. CAP is currently chaired by Mr. Alfred S. Regnery and is designed to facilitate conservative leaders working together on behalf of common goals. Participants include the CEOs of over 100 organizations representing all major elements of the conservative movement-economic, social and national security.

conservatives all over the nation are thankful to see his office take a leadership role in asking questions about the collective action taken by Amazon, Apple, and Google to silence Parler, a small business.

Big Tech poses an existential threat to the foundational elements of American society: free speech and thought, the free flow of information, and the free market. Attorney General Paxton and his team have led the nation in creative and relentless approaches to this challenge.

As Texas considers its budget this session, we respectfully ask that Attorney General Paxton’s office—and the vitally important work he and the is doing to stand up for conservatives—be given full resourcing. Any reduction to the Office of the Attorney General’s budget will result in tremendous harm to the state and nation. The cause of liberty and justice cannot afford that.

Sincerely,

The Honorable Edwin Meese III Alfred S. Regnery Attorney General Chairman, Conservative Action Project President Ronald Reagan (1985-1988) President, Republic Book Publishers

Kelly J. Shackelford, Esq. L. Brent Bozell, III Chairman, CNP Action, Inc. Founder and President President and CEO, First Liberty Institute Media Research Center

The Honorable Morton C. Blackwell Wesley Denton President Chief Operating Officer The Leadership Institute Conservative Partnership Institute (CPI)

The Honorable Becky Norton Dunlop The Honorable T. Kenneth Cribb, Jr. White House Advisor Chief Domestic Advisor President Ronald Reagan (1981-1985) President Ronald Reagan (1987-1988)

Cleta Mitchell, Esq. Jenny Beth Martin Chairman Tea Party Patriots Citizen Fund

Penny Y. Nance William L. Walton President & CEO President Concerned Women for America Council for National Policy

Marjorie Dannenfelser The Honorable J. Kenneth Blackwell President Chairman Susan B. Anthony List Constitutional Congress, Inc.

The Honorable Donald Paul Hodel U.S. Secretary of Energy (1982-1985) U.S. Secretary of Interior (1985-1989)