Texas Lt. Governor Proposes Renaming "New York Strip" Amid Severe Measles Outbreak

Weeks after a controversial decision by former President Donald Trump to rename the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America, Texas Republican lawmakers are considering additional name changes. Specifically, Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick has suggested changing the name of the popular steak cut, known as the "New York Strip," to the "Texas Strip," supposedly to showcase Texas beef and make a political statement about liberal New York.

Patrick announced this idea on social media platform X, arguing that renaming the steak would better market Texas-grown beef. He emphasized that ranchers in Texas, who produce more beef cattle than any other state in the U.S., should have full recognition for their products rather than attributing it to New York based solely on a historical restaurant reference.

Historically, the common name "New York Strip" originated from Delmonico's, a famed New York City restaurant established in 1827, where the strip steak was popularized. Despite this longstanding history, Patrick insisted that the association with New York is unwarranted and that Texas ranchers deserve the credit. The plan involves the Texas Senate submitting an official resolution encouraging restaurants and grocery stores to use the new name, with hopes it'll gain broader national and global adoption.

a measles outbreak in West Texas, marking the state's worst outbreak in about thirty years. So far, 146 individuals across nine counties have contracted the highly contagious illness, mostly among people who are either unvaccinated or have uncertain vaccination histories. Tragically, this outbreak has caused at least 20 hospitalizations and claimed the life of one child who was unvaccinated.

The resurgence in measles cases, decades after the disease was officially declared eliminated in the U.S. due to the widespread use of safe and effective vaccines, illustrates the serious consequences of declining immunization rates. The severity of the outbreak recently prompted Secretary of Health and Human Services RFK Jr., previously known for skeptical anti-vaccine positions, to reverse his stance by publicly encouraging vaccination in a recent opinion piece.