Texas Rangers to Investigate Bribery Allegations Against House Speaker, GOP Caucus Chair

The Texas House General Investigating Committee voted to request an investigation into allegations made against the Speaker of the House and the Republican Caucus Chairman. The accusations stem from a June 12 meeting in the Capitol where the House Speaker and Republican Caucus chairman allegedly made a quid pro quo offer to an activist in exchange for political action against fellow House members.

During a rare meeting of the House General Investigating Committee, Chairman Morgan Meyer, (R-Dallas) announced the committee voted to ask the Texas Rangers’ Public Integrity Unit to “conduct an investigation into the facts and circumstances surrounding” allegations made against House Speaker Dennis Bonnen (R-Angleton) and Republican Caucus Chairman Dustin Burrows (R-Lubbock), the Texas Tribune’s Cassandra Pollock reported on Monday afternoon.

The allegations stem from a June 12 meeting in the Texas Capitol where Bonnen and Burrows allegedly offered to “ensure Texas Scorecard reporters received House floor access in 2021 if we would lay off our criticism of the legislative session, not spend money from our affiliated PACs against certain Republicans, and—most shockingly—go after a list of other Republicans in the 2020 primary elections,” Empower Texans’ Michael Quinn Sullivan wrote. “Spending political money was the issue, Bonnen said. “Not just refraining from spending it against his pals. He wanted us to spend it against Republicans he saw as not being helpful.”

The House General Investigating Committee met on Monday morning to consider what many have called bribery allegations made by Sullivan against Bonnen and Burrows. The committee held a moment of silence for the El Paso shooting victims and then moved immediately into executive session. One hour later, the committee returned and announced a unanimous vote calling for the investigation into the matter by the Texas Rangers Public Integrity Unit, the Texas Tribune reported.

Chairman Meyer requested the Texas Rangers to return with a copy of its final investigation. The Texas Rangers have jurisdiction in the matter following a change in state law in 2015.

“Any investigation should follow the facts and the evidence without regard to political consideration,” the chairman concluded as he closed the meeting.