STATEMENT: Abbott Threatens Public Safety in Houston

Austin, TX — Last night, after Governor Greg Abbott threatened to strip $110 million in public safety funding, Mayor Whitmire called an emergency Houston City Council meeting to vote to reverse course on the city’s ICE policy.

In response, Gina Hinojosa released the following statement:

“Governor Abbott’s threat to decimate Houston’s public safety funding is shameful. Holding local leaders hostage with the threat of harming their own constituents is not leadership, it’s political theater that makes Government more broken, and Texans are tired of it.

“Houston passed this policy 12-5 with legal sign-off, and Abbott threatened to defund their police and fire departments and demanded $110 million back in 30 days. This is the Abbott playbook. From withholding school funding to pass his voucher scam to threatening the takeover of cities, when Greg Abbott doesn’t get his way, he makes Texans pay for it. That’s not governance, that’s a shakedown. Texans deserve a governor who works for them, not one who weaponizes state power to punish anyone who won’t fall in line.”

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