Want to know how a 20-something op-ed writer ends up on Fox News and in your local paper? Garrett sits down with Sam Raus, the David Boaz Resident Writing Fellow at Young Voices, to break down exactly how young center-right writers turn one op-ed into TV hits, radio spots, and a media career — plus a wild pitch to let Gen Z opt out of Social Security entirely.
Then Garrett runs down the week in Texas politics: the razor-close Paxton-Talarico Senate race, big Hill Country flood relief for Corpus Christi's water crisis, a court loss (and a Discord win) for Ken Paxton's AG office, and another data center fight brewing in East Texas.
Topics discussed:
- What Young Voices is and how the fellowship/contributor pipeline works
- How to pitch op-eds differently in red states vs. blue states
- Sam's viral pitch: let Gen Z opt out of Social Security
- Intergenerational "economic injustice" — boomers vs. Gen Z/millennials on taxes and benefits
- Preview of 2027 Texas legislative fights: data centers, kratom/marijuana regulation, property taxes
- How to apply to Young Voices (joinyv.org)
- Paxton vs. Talarico Senate race: ad spending, polling, and turnout strategy
- The Sherman "Red River Roll Call" GOP rally and statewide turnout push
- Hill Country floodwaters easing Corpus Christi's water crisis
- A Texas appeals court ruling against Paxton's office in an abortion-clinic case
- Paxton's win forcing Discord to add child-safety protections for Texas users
- A rejected East Texas data center project and the corporate welfare debate
Guest: Sam Raus, David Boaz Resident Writing Fellow, Young Voices (Twitter/X: @samraus1). Young Voices: joinyv.org, @JoinYoungVoices.
Chapters:
0:00 Welcome & episode preview
0:34 Meet Sam Raus, Young Voices
2:52 Center-right media's big tent
6:02 Pitching red states vs. blue states
8:42 Let Gen Z opt out of Social Security
16:07 2027 legislative preview: data centers, THC, taxes
23:56 How to join Young Voices
27:18 Paxton vs. Talarico: money & polls
35:42 Flood update: Corpus Christi's water win
37:25 Paxton's court loss on abortion clinic case
40:28 Discord forced into child-safety fix
Sources:
- Texas Tribune — By Alejandra Martinez — July 27, 2026, 10:49 a.m. Central — Floods delay Corpus Christi's water emergency until 2028 — https://www.texastribune.org/2026/07/27/corpus-christi-water-texas-floodwater-emergency/
- KLIF 570 — July 21, 2026 — Fort Worth: Paxton Surrounded By Law Enforcement, Blasts Talarico Over Defund Police Ties — https://www.klif.com/2026/07/21/fort-worth-paxton-surrounded-by-law-enforcement-blasts-talarico-over-defund-police-ties/
- Houston Public Media — July 23, 2026 — Appeals court overturns order closing Houston-area midwife clinics accused of illegal abortions — https://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/court/2026/07/23/557809/texas-midwife-ken-paxton-appeals-court-ruling/
- Office of the Texas Attorney General — July 24, 2026 — Attorney General Ken Paxton Secures Historic Legal Victory Forcing Discord to Protect Texas Children — https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/news/releases/attorney-general-ken-paxton-secures-historic-legal-victory-forcing-discord-protect-texas-children
- Texas Tribune — June 30, 2026 — Abbott calls for ban on data center development in rural Texas — https://www.texastribune.org/2026/06/30/texas-abbott-data-center-development-ban-rural-communities/
- KTEN — Texas politicians meet one-on-one with Grayson County taxpayers for Republican rally — https://www.kten.com/news/kten_news/texas-politicians-meet-one-on-one-with-grayson-county-taxpayers-for-republican-rally/article_a83a0e8f-5ed5-480a-acb9-2a4dfbbcfce7.html
- ProPublica (co-published with The Texas Tribune) — July 7, 2026 — Ken Paxton's Voter Registration May Violate Texas Election Law — https://www.propublica.org/article/ken-paxton-voter-registration-election-law
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