Adam Serwer: “The old saying is that the states are the laboratories of democracy. But for the past decade, Texas has been more of a laboratory for autocracy, testing out new forms of right-wing state repression.”“Texas has been an innovator in using voting restrictions and gerrymandering to entrench the power of the governing party. Texas lawmakers have pioneered restrictions on speech by passing book bans, censoring higher education, and demanding the firing of public servants whose views offend their sensibilities (such as the CEO of the Alamo Trust, who was forced out after a social-media post recognizing Indigenous Peoples’ Day).”“The state has pioneered draconian anti-abortion measures—passing its own strict ban with nearly unusable exceptions and a bounty law encouraging Texans to snitch on their neighbors, and also trying to bully other states into enforcing its anti-abortion laws. Texas lawmakers have engaged in the outright persecution of trans people and their families, including triggering investigations by the state’s Child Protective Services into parents if their child was suspected of transitioning.”