Just found out today on MSNBC that the Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick of Texas is not just...

[brush]

the vice governor like the Lt. Governor is in most states, which is why Patrick, along with Gov. Abbott, is getting sharp criticism too for Uvalde and the lax gun laws there.

In Texas he controls the work of the Texas Senate and controls the budgeting process as a leader of the Legislative Budget Board.

Under the provisions of the Texas Constitution, the lieutenant governor is president of the Texas Senate. Unlike with most other states' senates and the U.S. Senate, the lieutenant governor regularly exercises this function rather than delegating it to the president pro tempore or a majority leader. By the rules of the Senate, the lieutenant governor establishes all special and standing committees, appoints all chairpersons and members, and assigns all Senate legislation to the committee of his choice. The lieutenant governor decides all questions of parliamentary procedure in the Senate. The lieutenant governor also has broad discretion in following Senate procedural rules.

The lieutenant governor is an ex officio member of several statutory bodies. These include the Legislative Budget Board, the Legislative Council, the Legislative Audit Committee, the Legislative Board and Legislative Council, which have considerable sway over state programs, the budget and policy. The lieutenant governor is also a member of the Legislative Redistricting Board (together with the speaker of the House, attorney general, comptroller, and land commissioner), which is charged with adopting a redistricting plan for the Texas House of Representatives, Texas Senate, or U.S. House of Representatives after the decennial census if the Legislature fails to do so.

Dang! Nice work if you can get it, Patrick. Seems more powerful than the governor.

[CurtEastPoint]

1. too much power in one asshole

[brush]

3. Yeah, more powerful than Abbott, who just signs bills and bloviates on podiums.

[northoftheborder]

2. Wayyyy too much power for an awful unqualified egotistical #**###*****

[Walleye]

4. I remember when Ann Richards was talking about W.She said the governor didn't really have the power

[inthewind21]

5. It's common

Knowledge that it's not the governor in Texas that has all the power. It's the LT Governor. Always has been.

[brush]

8. It's news to me, and probably many who aren't Texans.

It's quite different in other states where the governor wields the most power.

[Lithos]

21. Well, not technically *always*

Just since reconstruction

[jmowreader]

6. Uhh...you just found that out?

Texas uses a weak-governor system. We used to talk shit about George W. Bush doing nothing but signing bills and playing video games while he was governor down there. The thing is, the governor's office in Texas has very limited statutory authority and most of the work it does is performed by the staff...leaving "signing or vetoing bills passed by the Legislature" and the occasional pardoning or commutation as the only jobs the governor has. Hence the video games.

By comparison the lieutenant governor has a lot of power.

[brush]

10. News to me. In most states it's the reverse.

[jmowreader]

19. They say Texas is like a whole 'nother country

This is one of the biggest reasons why.

[Pyryck]

7. I think of him in different terms...

"Preacher Dan" - he should be in a pulpit somewhere ... away from Austin.

Apologies if I offended any religious folks reading this as I believe he has the right to preach anywhere...other than the office of Lt Gov.

[Paladin]

9. Dan Patrick is as evil as he is stupid.

All those years of whoring around on AM Hate Radio really turned Patrick into a sub-human. We need to keep our eyes on him, every single minute.

[OBrien]

11. Exactly. I wish more people new this

and would promote and donate to Mike Collier, the Dem running for Lt Gov. Beto won’t be able to do shite if the Republicans still control the legislature.

[Javaman]

12. I live in Austin and the LT G has always been know as the power seat..

the governor is really nothing more than a glorified ribbon cutter. that's why the repukes have put in one moron after another for gov. while the real power is LTG.

I've forgotten most of my Texas History, but if I remember correctly, it was set up this way so there couldn't be one all powerful leader of the state. a hold over from when Mexico held it and ruled with dictatorial powers.

that didn't work out so well, did it.

[brush]

15. My guess is that most non-Texans don't know this as it's just the opposite...

in most other states.

[dalton99a]

13. Yep, Dannie Scott Goeb of Baltimore is the real king of Texas

[ananda]

14. Yes, the Lt. Governor has much more power than the governor here

...

[Hekate]

16. Molly Ivins clued us in to that in her columns and books. The "Lite Guv" has a ton of power.

[Xoan]

17. He also leaves ...

slime trails wherever he wanders.

[Skittles]

18. Patrick is a huge piece of shit too

but with more power

[LeftInTX]

20. Also the Texas lege is in session Jan 12 - May 31 in odd years

Anything else is special session

Also legislators don't earn a living wage. They crowd fund

Base pay is $7200 year.