Eye on Politics: Casino gambling and sports betting in Texas, State of the Union reaction
NORTH TEXAS (CBSDFW.COM) - Could casino gambling and sports betting be legalized in Texas? Plus, members of Congress from North Texas sound off on President Joe Biden's State of the Union Address. CBS 11 political reporter covers these stories and more in this week's episode of Eye on Politics (original air date: Feb. 9).
Every week, CBS 11 political reporter Jack Fink breaks down some of the biggest political stories grabbing headlines in North Texas and beyond. Watch the latest episode of Eye on Politics in the video player above and stream new episodes live every Thursday and Friday at 7 p.m. on CBS News DFW.
State of the Union
President Joe Biden delivered his State of the Union address this week. He emphasized the economy and the speech turned tense and contentious at times when the president discussed the national debt.
The president spoke about job growth and the 3.4 percent unemployment rate last month, a 50-year low.
"We're better positioned than any country on earth right now," President Biden said. "Inflation is coming down. Here at home, gas prices are down $1.50 from their peak. Food inflation is coming down, not fast enough, but coming down. Inflation has fallen every month for the last six months while take-home pay has gone up."
The U.S. House chamber erupted when the president accused some Republican lawmakers of wanting to make cuts to Social Security and Medicare as a way to reduce the national debt. The national debt currently stands at $31.5 trillion.
President Biden's address comes as he faces a divided Congress for the first time during his presidency, and weeks before he's expected to announce he's running for a second term.
After the speech, Democrats in Congress from North Texas gave the President a thumbs up.
U.S. Rep. Colin Allred, D-TX 32nd District said, "I think we heard an optimistic President talking about some of the historic accomplishments he made in the past two years, many of them bipartisan coming out of the Covid pandemic, getting the country back to work."
But Republicans say Americans are still feeling the effects of record high levels of both during the past year.
U.S. Rep. Keith Self, R-TX 3rd District said, "The American people are hurting at the kitchen table. They know better than to believe what President Biden said tonight because they're feeling the pain of this. He can say things are well, but the American people know they're not well."
A CBS News poll continues to show Americans remain most concerned about gas prices and inflation. The poll shows a majority of Americans believe Biden's policies have made gas prices and inflation worse.
Southwest Airlines executive on the hot seat
A Southwest Airlines executive was grilled by lawmakers on the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee about the airline's operational meltdown before Christmas. Thousands of flights were canceled and tens of thousands of travelers were left stranded and couldn't spend the holiday with their families.
During a hearing before the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation committee, the Dallas-based carrier's Chief Operating Officer, Andrew Watterson, heard an earful from U.S. Senators.
U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Illinois said, "What happened over Christmas was appalling."
U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas described it as "an epic screw up."
Captain Casey Murray, Southwest Airlines Pilots Association President, criticized the airline too. "It was a failure epically, from top to bottom."
At the hearing, Watterson apologized twice. "Let me be clear, we messed up."
Pilots and flight attendants have said the airline's crew scheduling software became overwhelmed by all the flight cancellations, meaning they couldn't match crews to their planes.
Murray said, "The pilots have been sounding the alarm bells for over a decade. We've been whistle-blowing on this. We've seen these meltdowns occur with more frequency and more severity."
Watterson told Senators Southwest is spending $1.3 billion, about 25% more than in 2019, to upgrade its technology, including its crew scheduling software. "Tomorrow, the fix will go in and will be live in our production system."
To learn more about the hearing, watch the video in the player below.
Casino gambling and sports betting in Texas?
Could Texas legalize casino gambling and sports betting? Legislation has now been filed that would change the Texas Constitution if approved by most lawmakers and then voters.
Republican State Rep. Charlie Geren of Fort Worth filed HJR 97.
Geren said, "I think it's something we need. We're losing billions of dollars to Oklahoma, Louisiana, New Mexico, and Nevada."
His joint resolution would also allow for two casino resorts in the Houston area and one such resort in San Antonio, Corpus Christi, and McAllen.
Geren said, "Not just casinos, but fabulous hotels, restaurants, showrooms, and retail. All of that creates jobs but it generates a lot of money for the state."
Opponents include Republican State Rep. Matt Shaheen of Plano:
"If you look at other states that have legalized or expanded gambling, they were promised all these wonderful things about additional revenues and additional economic impact. But nobody talks about the increased homelessness, domestic abuse, those types of issues that come with legalized gambling and those are the concerns I have."
Hear from both Geren and Shaheen in the video players below.
Looking ahead
Gov. Greg Abbott has scheduled the State of the State address for the evening of Thursday, Feb. 16.
This is the speech many state lawmakers are waiting for to see what the governor considers top priorities or emergency items. Lawmakers can debate and pass bills designated emergencies as soon as possible. Other legislation filed can't be approved until 60 days after the Legislative Session begins.