The Lone Star State’s Republican governor, Greg Abbott, has tested positive for Covid-19.
He had been vaccinated all right, but he cared not a bit for mask mandates, following the lead of his political hero, Donald Trump, when it comes to masks and vaccinations (https://www.cnn.com/2021/08/17/politics/texas-governor-greg-abbott-covid-19/index.html?utm_term=1629282754872ca572e4d6a2d&utm_source=cnn_Five+Things+for+Wednesday%2C+August+18%2C+2021&utm_medium=email&bt_ee=3Z8kQRqgpWK5wuRQ1KBsyuKSaj7wU3dfFsy2X5ibdx%2B6MrlozMTk8HqjT2KlfPt9&bt_ts=1629282754874).
Texas used to be its own Republic, from 1836 to 1846, and in some ways, seems as though it still thinks of itself that way.
So we consulted with our Chief Texas Correspondent, associate solitary reporter Penny Malinowski, a loyal Democrat and longtime resident of one of the Lone Star State’s 254 counties (each with its own courthouse).
Malinowski was typically concise in her response to us: “SR, Texas is a red state. It’s as simple as that.”