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Thanks so much, Ben. And second, the guy who actually was the most powerful person in the Capitol, then-Lt. Gov. Emily McCullar is a senior editor covering pop culture, news, and Texas history. He continued to renew the disaster declaration for nearly four years. In both cases, lawmakers were powerless to override any of them. The emergence of this question came as a complete surprise to the politicians, lobbyists, bureaucrats, staffers, and reporters who ply their various trades at the Capitol, because all of us thought we knew the answer: Texas has a constitutionally weak governor and vests the power to create and oversee public policy in the Legislature through its ability to write laws and appropriate funds. Whatever our problems are in Texasand we have plentythey cant be blamed on our oft-amended constitution or on the governors lack of power. He is leading Democrat Beto ORourke in polls ahead of the Nov. 8 election and is mentioned as a potential 2024 GOP presidential contender. Dan Patrick and others have called on him to add energy-related issues to the list. Ironically, the governors office agrees with him. When Texas lawmakers return for a regular legislative session in January, two big things will be different: The governor will have a stronger hand in state law and policy than ever before,. It can investigate whether he should have acted sooner in the scandal concerning sexual abuse of offenders in Texas Youth Commission facilities. Abbott successfully weathered a legislative challenge to some of his budget vetoes in 2015, winning with the support of one of the legislative leaders whose pocket he was picking a battle his predecessors had regularly lost. Doug Ducey, also Republicans, followed Abbotts lead with their own initiatives. In 2018, his office directed agencies to first run them past the governor. Abbott has consolidated power like none before him, at. Why should the Texas governor have more power? - eNotes.com Only a former legislator, budget writer, executive agency head and lieutenant governor had the right tool set for this. For instance, state agencies must typically seek public comment before publishing final regulations in areas such as the environment and education. Then he barred anyone else from ordering mask mandates. The agency can consider or disregard an executive order, Newby acknowledged. Rhodes pointed to an order forbidding employers from imposing vaccine mandates on employees. Daniel Vaughn is the countrys first barbecue editor, and he has eaten more barbecue than you have.