Dan Patrick snubbed Fort Worth Democratic Sen. Taylor Rehmet in committee assignments.
Newly elected state Sen. Taylor Rehmet said “petty, partisan politics” were in play in Patrick’s refusal to name him to any Senate committees.State Sen.-elect Taylor Rehmet, D-Fort Worth, speaks Jan. 31, 2026, in Fort Worth after winning a special election for the Texas Senate.
He flipped a reliably Republican district that President Donald Trump won by 17 points in 2024.accused Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick of “petty, partisan politics” Monday after the newly elected senator was left off a list of influential appointments. Patrick gave Rehmet zero committee assignments Monday. The snub means roughly a million people living in northern Tarrant County will have no voice in the Senate as interim committees begin ramping up work ahead of next year’s legislative session. Hours after Patrick’s committee appointments were made public, Rehmet responded that the lieutenant governor “has chosen to silence our district even further by refusing to assign me to any committee.” “This decision reflects the kind of petty, partisan politics that too often stands in the way of delivering results for working families,” Rehmet said on social media.That flip might only be temporary. Rehmet is serving out the unexpired term of acting Comptroller Kelly Hancock, a North Richland Hills Republican who resigned from his Senate seat after he was appointed to the comptroller’s office. The term ends Jan. 12.Rehmet will need to win again in November to ever take a meaningful vote in the Senate, barring a long-shot special session. Patrick has assumed that will never happen and predicted that Republican candidate Leigh Wambsganss will win a rematch against Rehmet, a union leader and machinist at Lockheed Martin. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick stands at the dais as he speaks to the Senate in the Senate Chamber during the second day of the 89th regular session at the Texas State Capitol in Austin on Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2025.on talk radio, adding that Democrats would use an upset in a low turnout election as proof that Texas is turning purple, urging Republicans to vote in the special election. Patrick later called the result a “Despite the snub, Rehmet said he was “fully committed” and “energized” to work for his constituents. “My office has already begun research and policy development on all committee topics, and although we are being denied a formal seat at the table, I will continue working every day to ensure Texas works the way it should for working families,” Rehmet said.Between sessions, Senate committees hold hearings and research issues and policies that could become major legislative agenda items during the regular session. In the Senate, Patrick holds strong sway over committees. He chooses every member and leader of each committee, doling out chairmanships to Republicans he trusts while often relegating Democrats to smaller assignments. In Monday’s announcement, Patrick created three new committees that will examine religious liberty, veterans affairs and border security. Republicans will lead all 20 committees and hold strong majorities in each body, allowing the GOP to dictate which proposed bills will reach the Senate floor. Patrick also provides legislative assignments to each committee ahead of the session. In late January, he called for the committees to investigate Shariah in Texas, research “America and Texas first” curriculum for public schools and begin crafting his property tax cut proposal.Philip Jankowski has covered government, politics and criminal justice in Texas for 17 years. He previously worked for the Austin American-Statesman, the Killeen Daily Herald and the Taylor Press. Philip is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin.
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