View Content - Meltwater

Sam Rogers joined the United States Marine Corps fresh out of a rural East Texas high school in 1995. But the native Texan said he had to move to Louisiana to legally access the dosage he needed just to feel normal, "whatever that is. "He sees a therapist at the Veterans Administration hospital near his home and occasionally picks up a self-help book, but what really...

Sam Rogers joined the United States Marine Corps fresh out of a rural East Texas high school in 1995. He got to travel the world, but his combat experiences came with a cost. "I have a titanium reconstructed back. I have IBS. I have PTSD. I have ADHD." He developed a dependence on alcohol and had compulsive thoughts of suicide.

Rogers (not his real name) went to treatment and has been sober from alcohol since October 2020. He manages his PTSD, chronic pain and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder with THC edibles and a medical marijuana prescription.

But the native Texan said he had to move to Louisiana to legally access the dosage he needed just to feel normal, "whatever that is." He sees a therapist at the Veterans Administration hospital near his home and occasionally picks up a self-help book, but what really quiets the demons is a hit of THC, he says.

Speaking to a reporter by phone from his backyard pond in Lake Charles, Rogers acknowledges that it's 2026. Cars drive themselves, robots deliver groceries and 3D printers construct homes that once took months to build.

And yet, in his beloved Lone Star State, where residents claim everything is bigger and better, THC is the latest in a series of things some lawmakers want to regulate or outright ban.

In the past year, the Texas Legislature passed and enforced laws telling people that Muslims aren't welcome, abortion healthcare won't be provided, and they can't express an opinion on "controversial topics" like the death of political activist Charlie Kirk in public school classrooms or on personal social media pages — unless that opinion aligns with that of the Republican leadership.

Put that in a pipe and smoke it. Or if Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has his way, Texans won't be able to do that either.

Religion and Politics

Patrick, Attorney General Ken Paxton and Gov. Greg Abbott — all Republicans — have filed lawsuits, pushed conservative Christian ideology and exerted what some say is oppressive control for years but appear to be bolstered recently by President Donald Trump's administration, which critics say also uses bully tactics and thinks it knows what's best for everyone.

University of Houston political science professor Brandon Rottinghaus said conversations among Texas government watchdogs are increasingly turning to how Texas is becoming a "nanny state." It's a derogatory term meant to imply an overprotective and overly controlling government, one that regulates personal behavior rather than public safety.

"There's this old joke that the first thing the Legislature does when it meets is increase fees and fines and make more things illegal," Rottinghaus said. "That's kind of what's going on. You're seeing more restrictions on what people can do. People have less freedom to make decisions in Texas than they do in a place like Alabama."

Critics say it's one thing to tell people they have to wear a helmet while riding a motorcycle or that they can't smoke cigarettes in a restaurant, but it becomes overreach when the government tries to limit what previously were considered personal choices.

Where is the line drawn? It would be nice, said four-term state representative and Democratic lieutenant governor hopeful Vikkki Goodwin, if matters like school vouchers, marijuana deregulation and gambling were put before voters, but Texas state law prohibits public-driven statewide initiatives. And that's not likely to change under the current, Republican-majority state leadership, she said.

"Trump has been unlike any other president," Goodwin said. "He tells Abbott and Patrick what to do, and all the Republicans in the House and the Senate do what they're asked. We don't have them thinking independently."

What do Patrick, Paxton and Abbott have to gain from pushing an agenda that some consider harmful to Texans?

Almost every pundit, lawyer, lobbyist and Texan, particularly those who don't agree with said agenda, answers that question with some variation of, "Follow the money."

The money largely leads to Tim Dunn, a Texas oil billionaire and GOP megadonor, who has given millions to the campaigns of Abbott, Paxton and Patrick to shape conservative politics.

Dunn, an ardent Christian nationalist, has said he believes the U.S. was founded as a Christian nation and that only Christians should hold leadership positions. He's a highly influential figure in conservative politics who has funded conservative super PACs at both the state and national levels to promote far-right candidates and policies.

Dunn donated $1 million to Abbott and $1 million to Paxton in 2022 either directly or through his Defend Texas Liberty PAC, which reported contributing about $3 million to Patrick in 2023, according to Texas Ethics Commission filings.

Due to Dunn's affiliation with the "big three," it made sense to those who closely watch Texas politics when Abbott and Paxton vociferously opposed plans for a Muslim compound in Plano.

Abbott tried to thwart construction of the planned 400-acre development — which would include housing, a school and a mosque — by signing a bill into law in September prohibiting "residential property developments like [East Plano Islamic Center] from creating Sharia compounds and defrauding and discriminating against Texans."

No evidence was ever produced that EPIC organizers intended to operate under Sharia law, the Islamic religious code. The project has been on hold for months because of legal challenges and state investigations.

Then Abbott issued a proclamation in November naming the Muslim Brotherhood and the Council on American-Islamic Relations as terrorist and transnational criminal organizations. CAIR, a prominent civil rights group, promptly responded with a federal lawsuit against Abbott and Paxton.

Under the Immigration and Nationality Act, only the U.S. Secretary of State can officially designate foreign terrorist organizations following consultation with the Attorney General and the Treasury Secretary. At the time of his proclamation, Abbott said the organizations "support terrorism across the globe and subvert laws through violence."

"These radical extremists are not welcome in our state," Abbott said in a press release.

The governor's action authorized heightened enforcement against both groups and their affiliates and prohibits them from purchasing or acquiring land in Texas.

Paxton sued the EPIC developers in December, alleging that the group was violating Texas securities law in a "radical plot to destroy hundreds of acres of beautiful Texas land and line their own pockets."

Critics say the action reeks of Republican leaders misunderstanding religions unlike their own and wanting to control how and where people worship.

During a special Senate session in August, Patrick called out people in the gallery who refused to stand during a prayer and threatened to have them removed if they didn't do so in the future.

Goodwin recalled a time in 2019 when former House Speaker Dennis Bonnen allowed each representative to invite a clergy member of their choice to give the invocation on a rotating schedule. When Dr. Rihabi Mohamed, imam of the Islamic Society of Greater Houston, was invited by a state representative, "Republicans actually left the floor," Goodwin said.

"It was so incredibly rude," she said. "After that, the speaker was Dade Phelan and it became his Catholic priest who was giving the invocation every single day. There was no more rotation."

The state government has also been challenged legally on its mandate to place posters of the Ten Commandments in all public school classrooms, as long as the items are donated and taxpayer money isn't spent on them.

A coalition of parents and multifaith religious leaders sued more than a dozen school districts, including Clear Creek, Deer Park, Katy, Magnolia, Pearland, Conroe, Cypress-Fairbanks, Fort Bend and Houston, asking a judge to block the required religious text display.

The New York-based Center for Inquiry filed an amicus brief presenting additional legal arguments to the Texas lawsuit Nathan v. Alamo Heights ISD in late December, alleging that the Ten Commandments law not only infringes on religious freedom, it also takes away parental rights.

"CFI recognizes that legislators in states with highly religious constituents may gain political advantage by supporting government endorsements of religion," the organization's general counsel Richard Conn said. "But even if they genuinely believe that all children should be exposed to religion for their own good, that is for each parent, not legislators, to decide."

The Houston Press reached out to the communications offices for Abbott, Patrick and Paxton for comment on this story. None responded.

Freedom of Speech

The debate over religious freedom was woven into a discussion about freedom of speech when many people lost their jobs after making comments on their personal social media pages about the September murder of conservative Christian activist and Trump ally Charlie Kirk.

Abbott called for the expulsion of a Texas State University freshman who mimicked Kirk's death, and the student was forced to withdraw from classes. Public school educators were fired for making comments on personal social media pages, prompting a lawsuit from the Texas American Federation of Teachers.

Many university professors said in a December public hearing that they don't want to work in Texas anymore because of the pressure to avoid certain controversial topics in their classrooms.

Abbott, Patrick and Paxton doubled down by pledging to initiate chapters of Turning Point USA — Kirk's conservative campus movement — on every college and high school campus in Texas. Patrick said he would donate $1 million from his campaign funds to start up the groups.

When asked what the Republican leaders have to gain from promoting conservative Christianity at what appears to be the expense of diverse religious freedom, Nancy Sims, a political science lecturer at the University of Houston, said much of that is driven by Dunn and his money.

"Dunn's goal is to push more religious principles throughout education systems," she said.

Sims added that regulation and enforcement of "everything" has expanded in recent years.

"It's 30 years of Republican leadership in this state and they have become much more controlling of lifestyle," she said. "Sometimes you wonder if they deal with the big issues. They're more worried about prayer in schools than Medicaid expansion for Texans."

A Texas A&M University professor was fired in September after Republican lawmaker Brian Harrison shared a now-viral and secretly recorded video of a discussion about gender identity in a children's literature class. In the fallout from that incident, two other professors lost their jobs and the university's popular president Mark Welsh III resigned.

A new law that went into effect in September limits or bans classroom instruction on DEI topics and prohibits school-sponsored clubs on those subjects for public K-12 schools and charter schools. Civil rights groups sued and are awaiting a response from a judge.

A plaintiff in the DEI case, Katy ISD student Adrian Moore, said at a December press conference that he's concerned youth who don't feel safe and supported will stop going to school.

"Being able to connect with our peers and teachers is vital to every student's education, and if teachers are forced to disregard our identities and who we are as people, and students are banned from forming clubs and support groups with their peers, that opportunity for connection is damaged."

Bathroom Bill and Abortion

The much-debated "bathroom bill," referred to by some Democrats as "legalized bathroom stalking," passed in late August. It prohibits people whose birth gender is female from using male restrooms, and vice versa, in government buildings.

No one really knows how it will be enforced, but many have questioned whether women with short hair who favor slacks over dresses will have to carry their birth certificates with them when visiting the state Capitol. A $25,000 fine can be assessed against government entities that don't comply; individuals will not be fined.

Attorney and hemp lobbyist Susan Hays said regulating "who can pee where" is extreme.

"If I go into a Capitol bathroom wearing cowboy boots and jeans, am I getting reported?" she said. "Maybe. It's that stupid. If I cut my hair short, maybe that ups my odds. It's just nutty, but that's the direction they're heading. They feed off fear of the unknown, fear of the other. You've got to look like us and act like us or you don't count."

"It's Christofacism," she added. "It's conformity in all measures. Abbott goes whichever way the wind blows. Years ago, I was talking to a Republican consultant and he made a comment to me that politics cannot overcome culture. He's right about that, but what the Republicans are very good at is changing culture or making you think it's changed."

Late last year, obstetrics and gynecology students confirmed they were leaving the state to do their residencies because in Texas, where a near-total abortion ban exists, med students aren't getting trained in how to perform an abortion or, in some cases, how to provide care after a miscarriage.

Paxton has been at the forefront of the fight on abortion, suing a Waller midwife for performing abortions and charging her with crimes for which she could serve 99 years in prison. The woman's attorneys have denied the abortion allegations and maintained she was providing healthcare to low-income women, many of whom don't have health insurance and don't speak English.

A law passed in August allows private citizens to sue anyone who manufactures or provides abortion medication, making it more difficult for Texas women to access an abortion pill.

"This law will kill Texas women, and Republicans know it," House Minority Leader Gene Wu, R-Houston, said at the time the bill was passed. "This extremist legislation puts Texas politicians in charge of women's medicine cabinets while creating a surveillance state where your neighbors can profit from reporting your medical decisions."

The enforcement of criminal abortion laws disproportionately targets and harms communities of color and low-income people across the country, said Lexi White, Washington, D.C.-based abortion justice organization All

"It is a racial and economic justice issue to ensure that people are not dragged into the carceral system for seeking basic healthcare, and it is our collective responsibility to build safer communities, where everyone can access reproductive healthcare with dignity and without fear of punishment or state-sanctioned violence," she said.

The Hemp and Control Questions

Abbott and Patrick are seeking re-election this year, and polling shows they're favored in their respective March primaries despite some surveys showing low approval ratings. In the general election in November, it's expected that Abbott will face off with Democrat Gina Hinojosa and Patrick will be up against Goodwin.

Paxton is giving up his seat as attorney general to run against U.S. Sen. John Cornyn and U.S. Rep. Wesley Hunt for Cornyn's Senate seat. Democrats James Talarico and Jasmine Crockett are also in the race.

So could it be more of the same in Texas politics? Sims says it's likely.

"They have complete control and no chance of losing it in most people's perspective," she said. "Governor Abbott is going to sail to re-election. When you're winning with the kind of majorities they've been winning with, you become so absolutely powerful that you can do whatever you want. Is this going to be the year we break the 30-year lock? I don't think so."

Rogers, the Marine who lives in Louisiana, earned a degree in political science from Texas A&M University and works in natural gas. He says he spends about $1,000 a month on marijuana and THC edibles. He'd like to reduce that, and he acknowledges that it's a mind-altering substance that can affect judgment and motor skills, but he says it's better than the alternatives: opiates or death.

"I spend a lot on it, and I take a high dosage, but as my mother used to say, it's cheaper than rehab," he said. "I'm in a lot of pain. I don't know about the science, but THC is the only thing that slows down my mind, relieves the pain and allows me to enjoy life for a change."

Rogers referred to a commonly cited statistic that 22 U.S. veterans commit suicide every day. The Department of Veterans Affairs issued that figure in a 2022 annual report and has since said that the number of daily veteran suicides is 17 or 18.

"I wanted to kill myself, I just didn't know why," Rogers said. "It's like, something is wrong. I tried weed and it helps me."

After serving eight years in Istanbul, Rome and Bosnia, Rogers said he thought he could flip a switch and turn off the trauma.

"There was some weird James Bond shit, there's just no way to describe it," he said. "I came off the [Marine Security Guard] program and I was a full-blown alcoholic. Everything kind of bottomed out."

Rogers acknowledges that he's not the picture of perfect mental health but he believes he'd be in worse shape if he'd stayed in Texas. Many other states don't make it so difficult for veterans to access THC products, he said.

"In California, the weed is cheaper than gasoline," he said.

But the 49-year-old father is also able to make better decisions than he did when he was a teenager and just wanted to get high for fun, he said. Regulations such as an age limit for purchases have merit, he said.

Congress approved changes in November 2025 to the federal definition of hemp, originally established in the 2018 Farm Bill. The new law references all forms of THC rather than just the Delta-9 concentration. A potency cap was imposed on products, including edibles and vapes, requiring no more than 0.4 milligrams of THC per container.

On the evening Rogers spoke to the Press, he'd taken about 100 milligrams, which he conceded is an incredibly high dosage.

The federal hemp law, which becomes effective in November 2026, does not override state drug laws, so the 40 states that offer legal medical marijuana with a doctor's recommendation can continue doing so. Texas has a "compassionate use program," through which registered physicians can prescribe cannabis with limited THC amounts for certain approved conditions like epilepsy, multiple sclerosis and cancer.

Rogers said it's nearly impossible to get on the Texas registry and those who do aren't offered enough to actually treat their conditions.

"You might as well smoke the paper [the prescription is] written on because that's about as high as you're going to get," he said. "The dosages are so low. It's like an act of God to even get a prescription in Texas."

Hays laughed at a question about whether people can just increase their gummy intake to get the desired amount of potency to manage pain or PTSD.

"You'd puke from eating so much gelatin," she said. "Just overall, this issue is such a spectacular example of how poorly things go when legislators write laws about things they don't understand. They do it all the time, but it's a particularly complicated topic and one where the science is very rapidly evolving about what cannabis plants are and can be, and the medicinal effects."

Recreational marijuana is legal in 24 states, meaning adults can possess and use it without a prescription. Some states have opted to "decriminalize" small amounts of marijuana, meaning possession could result in a civil fine, similar to a traffic ticket, but no jail time. That's the case in Louisiana, but not Texas, where possession is still a criminal offense.

Several Texas cities, including Dallas, Austin, and San Marcos, have passed local ordinances to decriminalize low-level marijuana possession. However, Paxton has sued these cities, and recent court rulings have challenged the legality of the local measures, stating they are preempted by state law.

Patrick fought furiously throughout the 2025 legislative session for an outright THC ban, saying that retailers exploited loopholes in the state's hemp law to sell potent, unregulated forms of THC that threaten the safety of Texans, especially children.

Goodwin said many of the decisions made by Republican leaders can be traced to donors who financially support their campaigns or pay them for speaking engagements. Patrick has received sizable campaign donations from beer distributors like Silver Eagle and the Beer Alliance of Texas PAC, which compete with the THC industry, but has maintained his prioritization of the ban was in the name of public safety and limiting youth exposure.

"The Texas Legislature never voted to legalize recreational marijuana or the intoxicating THC products now sold at nearly 9,000 locations across the state," Patrick said in a September statement. "Recreational marijuana is still illegal in Texas. However, because an unscrupulous industry has exploited a loophole in the hemp law, they are now selling highly potent and dangerous THC products to our kids and all Texans alike."

Ultimately, Abbott vetoed Patrick's THC ban after petitions with thousands of signatures were delivered to his office. The governor said at the time that the legislation faced legal challenges and he preferred a regulatory framework rather than an outright ban.

Goodwin lauded "the veterans, the small business owners and the Republicans who said they use cannabis for pain management or sleep aid or anxiety" for influencing the governor's decision to veto Patrick's No. 1 priority.

"The current lieutenant governor is all about his donors and isn't focused on solving the problems that we're currently faced with," she said. "After 30 years of Republican leadership, it's time for a change."

Hays acknowledged the rumor that Patrick stood to benefit financially from a THC ban but said he's also become "religious nutty in his old age." Patrick is 75.

"This moralizing and 'I'm your daddy' is really who he's become," Hays said. "He's usually so astute, politically, and he misjudged on hemp."

Hays said her clients support regulations, including a percentage limit for plant matter and a milligram limit for drinks and edible products.

"Why do we need regulations? Because people are dumbasses," she said. "One thing I've learned is that manufacturers will spray shit on a flower to make it stronger or make people more high. That should be prohibited. If I buy a flower, it should be natural or very clearly labeled for what it is."

Hays said her extensive research points to cannabis helping dozens of conditions. "It gets inside our cells and helps regulate them," she said. "Your body is out of whack and it helps put you back in whack."

The lobbyist added that it's "completely nuts that cannabis is illegal and alcohol is not when you look at the relative harms."

"If you don't want to live in a nanny state and want to have some freedom, they both should be legal, but they should be regulated," she said. "We need to make sure consumers get what the label says they're getting and we need to also educate consumers. Drunk driving went down a lot in this country when we educated people."

This new federal law is expected to disrupt or even decimate the multibillion-dollar hemp industry. Advocates support new legislation to create a regulated market as an alternative to a full prohibition and Congress can still make changes before the November start date.

Rice University political science professor Mark Jones said there's significant confusion about the new federal law and how it will be regulated and enforced.

"I think it's one of those where the hemp lobbyists will be going full force to get it bended, changed, modified or interpreted in a way that is favorable to the industry," he said. "Probably the principal effect that it will have on the hemp and THC industries here in Texas is that it will probably put a hold on long-term investments just because of the uncertainty."

Rogers said he's not concerned about the federal law right now, since nobody really knows how it will shake out. He is concerned, however, about what's happening in Texas.

"It's all about control," he said. "I want to be healthy, mentally and physically. I think we all do.

"As a little boy, I dreamed of having all these adventures and being a superhero or a knight or something,' he said, his voice cracking with emotion. "It came with a cost. That's all I can say."

He doesn't want a free pancake breakfast on November 11. He wants the government to stay out of his business.

"I served my country. I don't need people to thank me for my service. I need them to let me live my life."

The post Is Texas Turning Into a Nanny State? appeared first on Houston Press.