I’ve not been covering every twist and turn of the Texas House Speaker’s race because it’s obvious there’s a lot of Liar’s Poker going on. The current state of play is the Rep. David Cook is the Republican choice to be speaker of a majority Republican House, while Rep. Dustin Burrows is the latest head of the Joe Straus/Dennis Bonnen/Dade Phelan RINO hydra to keep Democrats in power-sharing in the House, along with at least one or more actual Democrats (I think Rep. John Bryant and Rep. Ana-Maria Ramos also declared they’re running) also supposedly running. After Cook secured the GOP caucus nomination, Burrows said he had a list of enough Democrats and Republicans backing him to become speaker, even though multiple reps on his list said they hadn’t agreed to back him at all.
It’s quite confusing.
Now we have more information on just who is backing Burrows, and it turns out to be Chinese gambling Interests.
For the past two legislative sessions, a Chinese casino operator, Sands, has been trying to expand gambling in Texas.
Sands, which established itself in Las Vegas, divested entirely from the U.S. market in 2022. That was the same year they went all-in on China, where the company operates a casino complex. Sands signed a 10-year concessions agreement with the Chinese government to continue its gambling operations.
The operation is in Macao, a special administrative region China took over in 1999. Sands, according to Yahoo Finance, derives a substantial portion of its revenues from China.
This is problematic. No business in China is allowed to operate without CCP approval. Doing business in China requires companies to operate at the whims of a political machine singularly focused on power expansion. This is an environment where American businesses are made to bend the knee to set up shop.
An example of this is the formerly family-friendly Disney Corporation. In the 1990s, then-CEO Michael Eisner and his lieutenant Bob Iger both went on an apology tour in China after releasing a film that upset Beijing.
Eisner promised the company would not take action that “insults our friends.” In 2010, it was widely reported that current-CEO Iger met with the CCP’s head of propaganda. He gave his word that the Mouse House would use its platform to “introduce more about China to the world.”
China is constantly working to maintain its public image abroad, and cultural institutes are a big part of its efforts in the U.S. Last week, Sands reportedly donated $15M to the University of Las Vegas to establish a Chinese Culture Institute.
Like Disney’s promise to introduce more about China, Sands’ China Institute will promote appreciation and understanding of the Chinese language, traditions, and history to UNLV students.
It will also facilitate student and faculty exchanges, not unlike former vice-presidential candidate Tim Walz’ trips.
Why would Sands busy itself spreading CCP propaganda? Simple: it’s incentivized to do so. According to a release announcing UNLV’s new institute, Sands “has been a steady supporter of fostering Chinese culture since it opened Sands Macao in 2004.”
Last week, in a bid to secure the Texas House speakership surreptitiously, State Rep. Dustin Burrows broke caucus rules and went to the House Democrat caucus and its leader, Gene Wu, to gather enough votes.
A Houston-based state representative, Wu is an outspoken and abrasive member best known for publicly hoping that then-President Trump would die from COVID-19. Wu has a liberal voting record and has also faced scrutiny for his alleged ties to the CCP.
His ascent to lead Democrats in the Texas House was a shock to Capitol observers after the 2024 election. Burrows’ uniting with Wu is noteworthy, especially given the latter’s links to the CCP and the gambling interests trying to invade Texas.
One of Gene Wu’s largest political donors during the 2024 election cycle was Sands.
The casino’s political action committee donated $4,000 to Wu. Although that’s not a large contribution compared to the PAC’s global giving in Texas, it was enough to be one of Wu’s largest donations of the cycle.
Wu has attended events hosted by Chinese consulates and opposed the 2020 federal closure of the Houston Chinese Consulate, which was shut down due to espionage concerns. He has also been a vocal opponent of legislation aimed at banning hostile foreign entities, including China, from purchasing land in Texas.
In 2023, when the Texas House was entertaining a measure to establish casinos in the state, Wu voted to gut an amendment that would have forbidden gambling companies with links to China from operating in Texas.
The 2023 bid to link Texas to China via gambling ultimately failed, but the Texas Lottery, through acts of commission and omission, has managed to pull it off.
Jackpot.com is a platform that has been selling lottery tickets online in Texas since 2023. The company also operates an exclusive lottery in China called Lotto China, which has raised eyebrows given China’s strict control over gambling operations within its borders. Additionally, the country has been known to export gambling to neighboring countries as a tool for conducting surveillance.
Call be old fashioned, but I don’t think Texas Republicans should be beholden to Chinese communist gambling interests…
Tags: Ana-Maria Ramos, China, David Cook, Democrats, Dustin Burrows, gambling, Gene Wu, John Bryant, Republicans, Texas, Texas Speaker's Race
*China is constantly working to maintain its public image abroad, and cultural institutes are a big part of its efforts in the U.S.*
So how many foreign countries allow American cultural institutes? Used to be Hollywood and Disney did the heavy lifting on exporting American culture, but they’ve turned coat. Is *anyone* promoting America, American culture, and American ideals abroad?
Any GOP House member who supports Burrows MUST be made an example of, a-la the primary purge that cleared out the vast majority of the GOP votes against School Choice.
The old Strauss/Bonnen/Phelan machine is down — we need to make sure it stays that way.
I hope there is an ambitious MAGA type in Burrows’ district who can start a primary campaign against him immediately, that starts by megaphoning every single instance this session where Burrows sells out the GOP. I daresay Elon Musk would probably help start it.
“The old Strauss/Bonnen/Phelan machine is down — we need to make sure it stays that way.”
Kick them while they’re down; it’s the only way to make sure they don’t get back up.
This year, I watched Ohio elect Republicans to every statewide office. When I was a boy, the state was solid Democrat. It takes patience and persistence to prevail, so fight the good fight.
The Progs are reeling from their recent defeat. Demoralized and directionless, they will make for easy prey.
I detest the Strauss/Phelan/Burrows gang as much as anyone but it should probably be noted that Sands is owned by Sheldon Adelson’s widow. The Adelsons have been huge supporters of President Trump and conservatives.