Hidalgo, Harris County Democrats react after 'Uplift Harris' aid program stalled by Texas AG
Harris County leaders on Uplift Harris lawsuit
Harris County judge Lina Hidalgo and other Democratic elected leaders "firing" back after the county's Uplift Harris program was temporarily blocked by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. FOX 26 Political Reporter Greg Groogan has more on what the leaders had to say and what comes next.
HARRIS COUNTY, Texas - Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo blasting legal intervention from the Attorney General of Texas which threatens to de-rail the guaranteed income program known as "Uplift Harris" before a single dollar is distributed.
"This is not just cruel, it's not just laughable, two pages double-spaced, it's dangerous to Democracy," said Hidalgo.
SUGGESTED: Uplift Harris: Texas AG Ken Paxton sues Harris County over guaranteed income program
Harris County Precinct 1 Commissioner Rodney Ellis accused AG Ken Paxton of transforming into political pawns, 1918 low income families selected by lottery, to receive $500 "no-strings-attached" monthly cash stipends.
"What they care about is a system that favors billionaires and starving working families...it reads more like a MAGA manifesto than a legal document," said Ellis of the lawsuit.
Simply not so, says Republican State Senator Paul Bettencourt, who contends the proposed program to randomly distribute surplus, one-time, federal pandemic aid dollars violates Texas law and amounts to an act of political patronage, with no checks and balances on how the taxpayer funds are spent.
"It's preposterous. You can't do this with the public's money. You can't have a lottery, give away by zip code of a benefit that has no governmental benefit, with no strings attached, and you are violating the Texas gift clause by doing it," said Bettencourt who initiated the complaint with Paxton's office.
Christian Menefee, who is the County Attorney for Harris County, vowed to vigorously fight the lawsuit while predicting the issue would be decided, ultimately, by a conservative Texas Supreme Court.
"Let's just say I am less than confident that the county is going to get a fair shake in the Texas Supreme Court," said Menefee.
More than 82,000 families applied for the assistance and the 1,918 selected at random were expecting their first installment of the financial aid later this month.