Seeing Red: A Texas Politics Podcast

Texas just had, by one measure, its best legislative session for housing reform in the country, and almost nobody outside the Capitol knows the job that makes bills like that actually work. Legislative lawyer Sam Hooper, aka "the Lege Lawyer," joins Garrett to pull back the curtain on how a policy idea becomes real statute, why Texas's new starter-home and mixed-use laws are already...

Texas just quietly sat on one of the largest rare earth mineral deposits outside of China's control — and the state's Land Commissioner is the one turning it into cash for schools. Dawn Buckingham joins Garrett to explain how the General Land Office manages 13 million acres of Texas land, why that makes Texas the "tip of the spear" on energy, minerals, and border security, and...

Want a job in Republican politics? Dustin Tropp, the headhunter who runs republicanjobs.gop, has placed more than 3,500 people in GOP jobs and says entry-level D.C. staffers are now starting at $70,000 — a number that didn't exist for Garrett's generation. Garrett sits down with Tropp to break down exactly how to get in the door, move up the ladder, and avoid torching your career before...

A pickup truck crashed through State Rep. Charles Cunningham's living room at 4 a.m.—and it's the reason he's now fighting bail reform battles in Austin. Rep. Cunningham (House District 127, Humble) joins Garrett Fulce to break down Texas's $51 billion in property tax relief, why school districts are "underfunded" rather than "unfunded," and how his district...

Ryan Patrick, runs the group that's been the single biggest force behind Texas tort reform for 30 years. And right now, trial lawyer money is quietly flowing into Republican primaries to take him down. Ryan Patrick, CEO of Texans for Lawsuit Reform (TLR), joins Garrett to break down "nuclear verdicts," the medical billing fraud scheme inflating your insurance bill, and the shadowy D...

Garrett spent this week at the Texas Young Republican Federation's 69th Annual Convention in San Marcos, and the mood among the campaign staffers, volunteers, and college Republicans he talked to wasn't confidence. It was worry. Back in Austin, Lt. Governor Dan Patrick wants to fail entire school districts a letter grade over library books (including a Holocaust memoir), Governor Abbott...

State Rep. Jeff Barry (R-Pearland) sits on the two committees at the center of next session's biggest fight: the governor, lieutenant governor, and House Speaker all want agencies to cut spending 3% across the board — and Barry breaks down why you can't cut property taxes without cutting state spending first. As a freshman on Appropriations, he walks through how a budget bill actually be...

Governor Abbott just ordered Texas regulators to freeze new data center hookups to the power grid until they pass an audit, and former Republican Party of Texas chair James Dickey joins Garrett Fulce to explain exactly why, plus what it means for the fight over massive new 765-kilovolt transmission lines cutting across the state. Dickey, who now runs JD Key Consulting and publishes Hyperscale News...

Garrett Fulce sits down with Peyton Hornberger of the Alliance for Secure AI for a genuinely spirited debate on how (or whether) government should regulate artificial intelligence. Garrett and Peyton go back and forth on AI policy, data centers, age verification, and what it means that AI agents from OpenAI, Anthropic, and Meta have all recently "escaped" test environments and hacked int...

Texas just shattered its all-time power demand record during a brutal heat wave — and for the first time in years, ERCOT didn't ask anyone to turn down their AC. Former State Senator Drew Springer joins Garrett to break down exactly why, and what's coming next as data centers and AI reshape the Texas grid. Drew Springer was in the Texas Senate for Winter Storm Uri and helped write the re...

Want to know how a 20-something op-ed writer ends up on Fox News and in your local paper? Garrett sits down with Sam Raus, the David Boaz Resident Writing Fellow at Young Voices, to break down exactly how young center-right writers turn one op-ed into TV hits, radio spots, and a media career — plus a wild pitch to let Gen Z opt out of Social Security entirely. Then Garrett runs down the week in Te...

Houston Chronicle opinion editor Evan Mintz joins Garrett Fulce to break down the fatal ICE shooting rocking Houston — and why the paper's own editorial board said flatly you can't trust the federal government's story. This is a rare inside look at how a major Texas newsroom decides what to publish when a story turns into a national flashpoint. Evan explains why he leads with "...

e built the #1 honey brand in America — then knocked off a three-term, Trump-endorsed incumbent without ever holding office. Nate Sheets, the Republican nominee for Texas Agriculture Commissioner, joins Garrett to break down the fight over data centers eating up rural Texas land, and why Texas farmers are going broke. Garrett and Nate go deep on the data center wars — dueling newspaper op-eds, who...

Texas schools made international news after the State Board of Education approved a statewide literary works list that includes Bible passages. So what actually happened? This week, Garrett Fulce sits down with Brandon Hall, State Board of Education member for District 11, to talk through the SBOE’s new literary canon, why the Bible made the list, how the fight over Islam showed up in the social s...

This week on Seeing Red, Garrett Fulce talks with Doug Kelly, CEO of the American Edge Project, about what data centers actually are, why they matter in the U.S.-China AI race, what communities get out of them and why the panic over power and water may be aimed at the wrong target. Doug makes the case that data centers are not the villain — they are infrastructure. AI exposed the weakness in Ameri...

Texas Republicans left Houston with a new party chair, new priorities and a familiar challenge: can the party stay united long enough to win in November? In this episode of Seeing Red, Garrett Fulce breaks down the Republican Party of Texas convention before sitting down with former State Senator and The Texan founder Konni Burton. Garrett's Op-ed: https://www.houstonchronicle.com/opinion/out...

Texas Republicans are gathering in Houston for the Republican Party of Texas Convention—and while most coverage focuses on speeches and personalities, the real action happens in the committees. This week, Garrett Fulce sits down with Texas Voice publisher Mark McCaig to break down how the party platform is built, how legislative priorities are selected, why those priorities matter to lawmakers, an...

The 2026 election cycle is already taking shape. In this episode of Seeing Red, Garrett Fulce examines new warnings emerging from Republican strategists about vulnerable legislative districts, turnout challenges, and the impact of the Paxton-Cornyn Senate race on down-ballot Republicans. Later, Mark McCaig joins the show to explain the Republican Party of Texas convention, delegate selection, part...

In this episode of Seeing Red in Texas Politics, Garrett Fulce delves into the recent political dynamics in Texas, exploring the outcomes of the Senate race where Ken Paxton emerged as a notable figure against John Cornyn. Fulce provides a thorough analysis of Paxton's political journey, including the implications of his past controversies and how they might influence his credibility going fo...

Brad Johnson—co-founder and reporter at Texas Bullpen —joins Seeing Red to talk about the real mechanics of Texas politics: how information moves, how power consolidates, and why Twitter matters far more than most people want to admit. Brad walks through the launch of the Texas Bullpen, his path from Ohio to the Texas Capitol, and why he thinks Texas politics is entering a more “traditional” elect...

Garrett Fulce returns to “Seeing Red” after a brief hiatus, discussing local politics with Sara McGee, a Democratic candidate for Texas House District 132. Sara shares her origin story in politics, sparked by a challenging encounter with current representative Mike Schofield, and her advocacy for issues like reproductive rights, public education, and health. The episode explores nuanced views on a...

In this episode of Seeing Red , Garrett Fulce sits down with Aaron Reitz , candidate for Texas Attorney General. Reitz draws on his background as a Marine Corps officer, senior attorney under Ken Paxton, and Trump-era DOJ official to outline why he believes he’s the most qualified contender for Texas’s top legal job. They dig into: His time leading 46 lawsuits against the Biden administration His...

Garrett Fulce talks with Texas Monthly reporter Robert Downen about covering the intersection of faith and politics in Texas. The conversation ranges from Downen’s early work exposing abuse in the Southern Baptist Convention to the current tensions inside the Texas GOP between establishment figures and grassroots activists. They discuss the rise of Christian nationalism, how extremism seeps into p...

In this episode of Seeing Red , Garrett Fulce sits down with Charlie Kolean , Texas State Director for Americans for Citizen Voting , to discuss Proposition 16 , a proposed constitutional amendment that would guarantee only U.S. citizens can vote in all Texas elections. Kolean breaks down how this measure came to be, why it took three legislative sessions to reach the ballot, and what it means for...

Tony Ortiz, the controversial founder of Current Revolt , joins Garrett Fulce to pull back the curtain on how Texas political media really works. From breaking Capitol scandals to exposing paid influencers, Ortiz has built a reputation for publishing stories mainstream outlets won’t touch — and for being unapologetically honest about his biases. In this wide-ranging conversation, Ortiz explains ho...