For the past 32 years, whenever the Springfield Republican Party meets in its spooky castle outside town, present for gatherings is The Rich Texan. A gun-toting, cowboy hat-wearing, fiscal conservative, Richard “Rich” Texan was introduced as The Simpsons’ caricature of his namesake state in 1993. Around the time Rich Texan was introduced, Texas was having a moment in conservative politics.
Bush—a former Texas congressman—had just exited the White House, and two years later, his son, George W. Bush, was elected to serve as Texas Governor, a role he held for six years before being elected president. Synonymous with oil and free market capitalism, as George W.
Bush saw his profile rise, so too did Rich Texans’. Texas Monthly published a profile of how the character became a source of satire, becoming part of America’s characterization of both the state and American conservatism. However, the political potency of the conservative rich Texan may be in jeopardy.
Polls show Democratic State Representative James Talarico leading Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton by an average of one and a half points, per RealClear Polling. In the governor’s race, the polling average gives three-term Republican Governor Greg Abbott a two-point lead over Democratic State Representative Gina Hinojosa. It’s true midterm election years are usually bad for the party in power, and it’s also true that the Texas Democratic Party has rebuilt itself from virtually nothing.
However, there’s more to the Texas polling than simply those two factors. Under MAGA and Donald Trump, the Republican Party has distanced itself from the Bush family and, by virtue, Texas. Today, instead of Dallas or Houston serving as the epicenter of the GOP, the power lies in Trump’s Palm Beach, Florida compound, Mar-a-Lago.
That shift may cost Texas Republicans this November. I believe in the culture of life, in strong family, in anti-authoritarianism. I don't believe in embracing the authoritarians of the world.
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