Hope is not a strategy

We are proactively moving out on a real three-point political plan ...”

Benjamin Franklin is credited with saying that “by failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.” With 5,000 pages of regulation promulgated by federal banking regulators in 2023 alone, our industry cannot sit idly by if we expect community banks and the broader industry to succeed. Something has to change, and we must prepare to make a difference. 

These efforts cannot wait until the fall. The actions we take this summer are pivotal to creating the change we must see. What we do NOW, as a united industry, will help us to elect pro-business candidates who understand the importance of the banking industry to our Texas economy, small businesses, jobs and families. 

TBA believes that hope is not a strategy. We are proactively moving out on a real three-point political plan to raise unprecedented funds, to partner with allied pro-business groups and to help turn out 238,000 Texas bank employees in the fall elections. This includes the Texas Thrives project initiated by TBA that now includes the Texas Business Roundtable and a dozen Texas trade associations. Each group will work to turn out their members at the polls to elect candidates that believe in limited government, free markets, less regulation and smart infrastructure investments. Visit www.txthrives.org to learn more. 

But you are the most important part of our plan’s success. Here are two steps you can take to make a difference:

Run a BankPac campaign at your bank. TBA makes it easy. Simply designate a point of contact for your bank and contact [email protected]. We’ll work with your bank POC to schedule a brief, but important call with your employees to explain why and how their participation in the BankPac campaign can make a big difference for your bank, their livelihoods and the communities you serve. This is not a “high-dollar” campaign. If each bank employee gives just $5, $10 or $25, imagine what 238,000 Texas bankers can do together! 

Use TBA’s Get-Out-The Vote Tools. TBA is distributing easy-to-share messages that you as a bank leader can send to your employees encouraging them to register to vote, to learn where they can vote and to make a plan to vote — whether through early voting or turning out on Election Day. With 238,000 bankers mobilized, we will be a major voting block and voice for our industry and communities.

Inaction will enable anti-bank politicians and ideological regulators to succeed. NOW IS THE TIME to prepare. Are you hoping things will turn out? Or will you help today?