x
Breaking News
More () »

Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick removes Sen. Seliger from chair after lewd comment about staffer

Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick removed Sen. Kel Seliger as Chair of the Senate Agriculture Committee. Patrick said he made the decision after Seliger refused to apologize for a "lewd" comment about a female staffer.

AUSTIN, Texas — An apparent feud between Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick and State Senator Kel Seliger (R-Amarillo) reached a new level Tuesday when Patrick announced he was removing Seliger as Chair of the Senate Agriculture Committee.

Last Friday, Patrick released committee assignments and Seliger, who has served as Chair of the Higher Education Committee, was taken off the committee entirely. 

Instead, Patrick appointed him chair of a new committee, the Senate Agriculture Committee. 

When asked about the decision to remove Seliger from the Higher Education Committee Tuesday, Patrick told reporters, "Every session, every lieutenant governor has made his committee assignments based off a number of factors, and I made those decisions based on a number of factors."

About three-and-a-half hours later, Patrick's office released a statement that he was removing Seliger from the Agriculture Committee. 

The statement reads: 

Senator Seliger has been removed as Chair of the Senate Agriculture Committee and will not be serving on that Committee. I met with Sen. Seliger earlier today and gave him an opportunity to apologize for a lewd comment he made on radio about a female staffer that has shocked everyone. He had 48 hours to apologize, but failed to do so. He has refused to take responsibility and, outrageously, blamed the staffer and said she should be fired. To not be willing to apologize and suggest, somehow, that she had it coming is unimaginable.

I will appoint a new Agriculture Committee chairman shortly.

So what exactly did Seliger say?

In an interview with The Other Side, a rural Texas radio show, Seliger said he thought being removed as Chair of the Higher Education Committee was a slight from Patrick because he didn't vote for two of his priorities last session, specifically public school vouchers and revenue caps for local taxing entities.

Click here to read a full transcript of Sen. Seliger's interview with The Other Side. 

And in reference to one of Patrick's staffers who said he could be reassigned if he didn't like the committee, Seliger said, "I have a recommendation for Miss Sylvester and her lips and my back end."

Senator Seliger wasn't available for an interview after news that he was demoted broke, but he did release the following statement: 

Today, I was disappointed to learn that I am no longer the Chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee.

When, in her comment to the press, Sherry Sylvester threatened to remove me as Chairman of the Agriculture Committee, she was acting as a spokesperson for the Lt. Governor. In hindsight, I should have directed my response to the Lt. Governor and not to his messenger. And for that I apologize.

But let’s be clear. The conflict between the Lt. Governor and me has nothing to do with recent statements I made on a radio talk show. It has to do with the fact that I have consistently stood up for rural Texas, local control, and public education rather than trumpeting the Lt. Governor’s pet projects of bathroom regulation and private school vouchers.

I look forward to spending the rest of this session doing what I have always done — representing the people of West Texas and the Panhandle.

The feud between Patrick and Seliger could get interesting if partisan politics comes into play. To bring an item to the floor for a vote, Patrick needs 19 Senators to be on board and after the November election, there are only 19 Republican Senators.

RELATED: 

State representative files legislation to eliminate STAAR Test

With Texas legislative session in full swing, dockless scooters banned from Capitol grounds

State representative brings 6-month-old daughter to work at the Capitol

Before You Leave, Check This Out