June 2, 2020      10:02 PM

Texas Capitol community comes together to protect the building, care for DPS stationed inside, Chair Geren says

House Administration Chairman Geren says members of the House and Senate, staffers, lobby of all stripes including TLR, TTLA, AT&T and others have asked how they can help

The pictures on social media of Texas Department of Public Safety troopers stationed at the Capitol building have inspired folks from throughout the community to come together and figure out ways to help them keep the building safe during a difficult time, House Administration Chairman Charlie Geren told QR tonight.

There are now 500 officers both standing watch at the building and basically living there at least through the end of the week, Geren said. He didn’t have specific guidance on how long they would be stationed there but he didn’t imagine the deployment lasting beyond next Monday.

The surge of force, of course, came after some vandals last weekend took advantage of the protests of the death of native Houstonian George Floyd.

With the help of members, staffers, and lobbyists representing companies like AT&T and Spectrum and groups like Texans for Lawsuit Reform and the Texas Trial Lawyers Association – how’s that for diverse? – Chair Geren said meals, showers, and more have been provided for the officers. “It’s a total community effort, members and lobby and everybody, taking care of a very precious building,” Geren said.

By Scott Braddock

Copyright June 02, 2020, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved