Texas: Enron

Texas has some of the best mouth watering barbeque in the country. We have some of the best college football and education and our high school football program is second to none. But we have something that all of America can learn from: bad legislation. Congress is currently debating health care reform and could learn from the mistakes of the Texas Legislature over the last few years including insurance reform, tort reform, and deregulation.

Tort Reform.
In 2003 the Republican controlled Texas house ushered in sweeping tort reform, limiting medical malpractice suits to $250,000. These limits were supported by the insurance industry, some of the medical community, and their front groups calling themselves “Texans” and “Citizens” against lawsuit abuse.

Republican Legislators finally get it. Electricity deregulation, ushered in by Ken Lay and Enron, has failed. So the Senate in a 31-0 vote sent SB547 by Senator Eltife, which will stop deregulation in east Texas, to the Governor's desk for a signature. Now will Perry admit that electricity deregulation has failed and sign the bill or will he side with his buddies in East Texas and veto it on behalf of the free market?

Tough choice for the Governor. Perry is the champion of less oversight, less government intervention, and the open free market that will drive down rates for everything from electricity, insurance, college education, and new home construction.