Is Texas less ‘livable’ and suddenly primed to turn blue? Don’t believe the hype

Texans have long known that our state is the center of the universe.

But most of us never expected California’s governor and New York’s mayor to acknowledge it.

Gov. Gavin Newsom recently made Texas the second target in his blatant attempt to woo Democratic primary voters by criticizing red states. In newspaper ads, he blasted Texas’ abortion laws and highlighted his efforts to restrict gun ownership, a double-dip of mockery in just a handful of words.

In New York, Mayor Eric Adams accused Texas and Arizona of busing people who entered the country illegally to his city, where they are filling shelters and straining resources. His facts were wrong — Texas has sent immigrants to Washington, not New York. But it’s clear which state is under his skin.

It’s all part of the growing divergence between red and blue states. They’ve been competing for a while on economics, but more hot-button issues are at the forefront now. Florida has taken hits, too, particularly because Gov. Ron DeSantis has proved so effective at irritating liberals and is increasingly seen as a Republican presidential front-runner.

But the shifted attention to Texas has more to it. We’re at the forefront of the national debates on guns and abortion, due to aggressive legislating last year. Democrats also think they see a way to capture their white whale, turning Texas blue, based on social-issue backlash, the shock and horror at the failures in the Uvalde school shooting and unrelenting questions about the power grid..

Gov. Greg Abbott still isn’t likely to lose to Beto O’Rourke, but it’ll be much tighter than the governor’s smashing victories in 2014 and 2018. Democrats are cautiously hopeful about down-ballot races, too. Even Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick is paying more attention to his opponent, Mike Collier, in their rematch of a closer-than-expected race four years ago.

Texas is also part of an ongoing national political realignment — in particular the potential shift of Hispanic voters to Republicans. The Rio Grande Valley hasn’t seen this much campaign attention in years.

It’s all another chapter in the never-ending quest to define Texas’ identity, political or otherwise.

A new poll, first flagged by the Houston Chronicle’s Chris Tomlinson, finds the Lone Star brand as robust as ever — 45% of those surveyed nationwide have a positive view of the state, against 31% with a negative take (the rest were neutral or undecided). The state gets high marks as a place to start a business or raise a family.

But in an annual ranking by CNBC, Texas slipped to the fifth-best state for business, chiefly because of alleged lifestyle deficiencies in areas such as in child care, healthcare and inclusivity. The business-news outlet went so far as to call Texas the second-worst state to live in — preposterous, unless Mississippi and New Jersey left the union and we missed it.

Adams, however, should be commended, despite his error. He demonstrated the pain that unchecked immigration can inflict on communities. If the nation’s largest city is struggling, imagine what Laredo, a border town that’s 3% of New York’s size, is dealing with.

Texas’ conservative ways no doubt scare away some. Our rapid growth is causing strains on housing, healthcare and schools. As the states diverge on issues such as abortion, some — particularly young women — will factor that into their considerations. And when voters tell pollsters they think Texas is on the wrong track, they might be thinking of problems such as inflation, which they’re much more likely to punish national politicians for.

Texas still draws strength from its innovation, job creation and perhaps its most underappreciated trait — adaptability. No newspaper ad or website ranking can refute the fact that people are flocking here. Whatever its faults, Texas is clearly doing something right.