When Ina Minjarez was elected in 2015 to finish the remaining term of Senator Menendez, she only got one month in the legislative session to learn. The next year, after winning again, she was named Rookie of the Year by Texas Monthly. She has passed a lot of important legislation regarding bullying, foster care, and is a huge asset to San Antonio. Also, she loves Real Housewives and Chinese food.

Transcript:

[music]

Justin Hill: Hello in Bienvenidos, San Antonio. Welcome to the Alamo Hour, discussing the people, places, and passion that make our city. My name is Justin Hill, a local attorney, a proud San Antonian, and keeper of chickens and bees. On the Alamo Hour, you'll get to hear from the people that make San Antonio great and unique and the best-kept secret in Texas. We're glad that you're here.

All right, welcome to episode 22 of the Alamo Hour. Today's guest is representative Ina Minjarez. Representative Minjarez represents District 124 which is West along 90, up from 90, 1604 area. She was elected to a, partially, over term really in 2015, joined the legislature with only a month or so left, went back to her next full session, and was named rookie of the year by Texas Monthly. Even though I accidentally called her freshman of the year, it's been a huge accomplishment. You've been given some incredible appointments, I guess, you call them recess appointments as well regarding the judiciary. First, thank you for being here.

Ina Minjarez: Thanks for having me. I'm excited to be on. I'm going to remember this as lucky 22. [chuckles]

Justin: There you go. Repeating numbers are supposed to be a lucky thing. I didn't know this.

Ina: It's a good number.

Justin: I do a top 10 with everybody. I just want to get some color, some background information. When and why did you end up in San Antonio?

Ina: Law school, St. Mary's University School of Law and I wanted to practice in Texas. Texas has one of the hardest bar exams and I just wanted to take it one time and be done with it. [chuckles]

Justin: That's a good plan. Born and raised in El Paso?

Ina: Born and raised in El Paso.

Justin: College, El Paso?

Ina: Excuse me?

Justin: College wa in El Paso or undergrad at St. Mary's?

Ina: No, college was at Notre Dame South Bend in Indiana.

Justin: Okay. South Bend is not that nice of a city.

Ina: When I was there it was just a different type of place to be. I tell people when I got to Notre Dame I didn't even really understand where it was located. I had no idea. I was just going to Notre Dame. I remember getting on the plane and looking down and seeing [chuckles] a lot of farm country, I'm thinking, "What the heck did I just get myself into?" We were pretty insulated. We really didn't go out into the city. They had the students really on campus. It's [crosstalk]

Justin: We talked off air a little bit of Poncho Nevárez. You went to law school together. Poncho and I worked a case and we ended up in South Bend a lot and the campus is beautiful but the surrounding town is not what you expect, which, for me, was the same as when I went to Yale for some depositions, beautiful campus, not a really nice town so I was surprised about it.

Ina: No, it's not. It's been a while since I've been back. It was interesting to see Mayor Pete Buttigieg. He was the mayor. I'm curious. I would love to go back to see what he did with South Bend since I [crosstalk]

Justin: Yes, I would too. You have dogs. What kind of dogs and what are their names?

Ina: Those are my life. I've got three. My golden retriever, I named her Fino after my favorite wine. [chuckles] I got Pepe who's a GSP, and then I got Lily who is my rescue. She's a mix of Schnauzer and I think she's part coyote.

[laughter]

Justin: Growing up we had a cat we were sure it was part bobcat so I get it.

Ina: [laughs]

Justin: Favorite hidden gems in San Antonio. The last guest was King Anchovy and he was certain there could not be anything he didn't know about. I brought up somebody's favorite Filipino restaurant so we've had some good additions. Any favorite hidden gems, things that you think even as locals don't know about?

Ina: My favorite restaurant in the world Sichuan House by Ingram Park Mall. That is a gem in itself, my favorite place to eat.

Justin: I haven't seen their books but I'm partly sure that my house is partly responsible for them surviving COVID by the way. They delivered up to 20 miles and I was just right in the delivery zone.

Ina: [unintelligible 00:04:14] I just ordered from them on Friday. Christina was the owner. She's incredible. It's just a great restaurant. They take care of their workers and employees.

Justin: What's your favorite dish there?

Ina: The dry pot and the green beans.

Justin: The cold noodles were shocking to me. I've never had cold noodles. They were fantastic. Our delivery guy we can only call him by his name spicy noodle. We weren't allowed to use his real name because who knows what was going on with unemployment at the time. Which show best depicts politics as you have learned them to be? My guest, I would think, Veep has to be it but that's only a dream.

Ina: Veep. You know what? It's so funny. I'm trying to think of--

Believe it or not, I don't watch political shows. I am so wrapped up in Yellowstone and because it has its own politics of being ranchers and owning this incredible land in Montana so, yes, I guess you could say there's politics involved in that. You got the good guys, you got the bad guys, you got the ones that are about greed, you got the ones that want to do the right thing, and it's a family-owned ranch. That's what I'm all in queue right now is Yellowstone.

Justin: Is Yellowstone a Western feel or is it not.

Ina: I think a little bit. Kevin Costner, he's the main character and you've got that aspect of a family of ranchers, how they got the land, and you're going to figure out, we still don't know, what the secret is in terms of how he got the land. He didn't get it the right way. Then you've got native Americans that are in the show too, and one, in particular, that believes he stole that land from their tribe. I guess it's a modern-day Western feel.

Justin: You're the second person to tell me I have to watch it and I click it on Netflix and it just looks like it's going to be a slow start.

Ina: It's so good though. I think every female character in that show is like a strong woman too and they got a leadership role. [chuckles]

Justin: I'll have to check it out because you're the second person this week that's told me this. Are you a reader, and if so, what are you reading?

Ina: Am I reader? Besides legislation and boring policy papers, I am a reader. There's different things that I read. I read a lot of motivational books. I'm trying to think one in particular. The author escapes my mind and I'm always-- Give me a moment to look up my Twitter because I have them all on my alerts. He's faith-based and he just gives a different perspective on life, but at the same time he's not telling people how to live. He's not judgmental on people because sometimes you think coming from a faith-based perspective that people tend to be judgmental and that you need to live your life according to a certain way. His name is Bob Goff and I'm reading his newest book called Dream Big and it easy to follow.

Justin: I've never heard of him.

Justin: He's wonderful and I follow his books and he's just plain, like I said, faith-based to the point but non-judgmental

Justin: Max Lucado seems to walk that line too in a really special way that so many people don't.

Ina: I agree. I used to go to his church and just loved him. He wasn't judgmental and just would preach on a level that was present day. I appreciated that about Max. I still like to read his stuff. I got a lot of his books here at the house.

Justin: I read that you're really into Bravo.

Ina: I love Bravo.

Justin: One of our previous guests Tim Maloney was one of the producers of Southern Charm New Orleans. Did you know that?

Ina: I knew that and I watched it. I watched some of that. [laughs]

Justin: It's pretty terrible though.

Ina: I will admit. I am not afraid to admit. That's my escape. I watch all of those bad reality shows just to have my escape from real life.

Justin: Which was your favorite?

Ina: I like the Real Housewives franchises. I love Southern Charm but I like the one that [inaudible 00:08:29] other. What is it?

Justin: Charleston.

Ina: Charleston.

Justin: Whitney and Tim did Southern Charm New Orleans together and Whitney comes out of here a lot. I used to love VH1 reality shows, I'll admit it, but I wasn't into any of Tim's stuff. Whitney and I were at Soluna having margaritas and I made fun of him. Nobody watches that show. I can tell you probably 10 different people came up, this was season one of Southern Charm, 10 different people come up and said, "Are you Whitney?"

Ina: If you talk to Whitney, you tell him I think his mom is fabulous, and I think she makes the show.

[laughter]

Justin: Oh, no, people will ask Tim if they can pay him so that their wives can go meet her. I didn't realize she was such a breakout hit.

Ina: His mom, I think she is a diamond and I think she really makes the show. I love her home. I love her style. I love her wit. [laughs]

Justin: What does she call her breakfast? Martini? She's got like a name for-- [laughs]

Ina: She has a name for-- Hey, I respect a woman that has a breakfast Martini.

[chuckles]

Justin: We just found out Fiesta is getting canceled but I've asked everybody what's your favorite Fiesta event.

Ina: The hit Fiesta event. Look I love to eat. I would say going to Oyster Bay, that we go on the off day where it's not like one of the first days that it's on early to avoid a lot of the crowds but I love all of it. I love to eat. I love to drink. It's just a fun time.

Justin: I agree. I'm pretty bummed about it but it'll be back. Any surprising friends at the Capitol for you? I always found the Scalia and RBG friendship to be a strange pairing, as tickling your best friend. Do you have a friendship like that at the Capitol? 

Ina: He's a friend. It's funny you mentioned him. Yes, believe it or not Frick and Frack. What's so funny, and he's probably going to not appreciate me saying this, but I know Jonathan on a private level so different than what he puts out there, the persona he puts out on Twitter. We don't always agree, but believe it or not, we're friends. I could talk to him about a lot of things and vice versa. Underneath it, there is a person there that has feelings. Yes, he's a friend. I think another one that I developed a friendship with former Speaker Craddick. I got to know him because I went on his committee, this session, and really just have so much respect and adore the man. I would bring them bags of Snickers because he loves chocolate [chuckles] and we got to know each other, and another good friend there.

Justin: He's just going to be a fount of knowledge about the Capitol and the legislature and the process and the players.

Ina: He is. He's got a lot of knowledge. His wife is beautiful, Nadine. I got to go to Odessa to go tour some oil wells down there a couple months before the pandemic happened and got to attend an oil and gas state of the state there in Odessa and got to sit with him and his wife. They love where they're from. They're very oil and gas, right? She would tell stories about what it was like to be the speaker's wife at the time at the Capitol and what went on there. They got a lot of stories, but very dear people.

Justin: A very tumultuous run as speaker if I recall it, and now, he's got the best place to office in the Capitol, and you rarely hear his name.

Ina: It's funny because I tell people, they're like, "You don't know what he was like when he was speaker." I know what I hear in terms of how he was very heavy-handed but, I guess, I know a different Craddick now. [chuckles]

Justin: Well, good. It's good to be able to look from a fresh perspective, too, not carry resentment or any of that with you.

Ina: Right.

Justin: Okay. What brought you into politics?

Ina: I must have been crazy. At the time that I decided I was going through a midlife crisis. I will mention his name because he's my dear friend, I worked for Javier Espinosa, who was one of your guests.

Justin: That's right.

Ina: I worked for his firm for a little bit. I think I'd already litigated like maybe 15 years and I was feeling just unfulfilled, not in terms of working for him, but I just felt like I wanted to do something different and decided to take some time off. I thought, "Maybe I'll go back to school, get another degree." I just felt like I was having this midlife crisis professionally. At the time, my state rep went on to win a special election. That was a Jose Menendez, who went on to become a Senator and that opened up his seat.

I can't explain it. I'm trying not to sound hokey, but something kept pulling at me, pulling at my heart. I started looking into what the heck a state representative does. Look, I had to go on Google. I remind myself and figure out what exactly do they do. It was all policy-related, creating law, and reading policy. I figured, man, if I've litigated all these years in the courtrooms for businesses, for people, for kids, why can't I do that at the Capitol and actually change things and make a difference. I took a leap of faith and decided to run for the seat and luckily I won.

Justin: Then your 15 years of litigating, what did you do other than work for Javier?

Ina: I was a prosecutor for Baird County. I did, I prosecuted domestic violence cases. Unfortunately, I prosecuted cases where children were victims of sexual assault so that was really tough. I did a lot of felony offenses, drug offenses, murders, and then left to do the defense side. Then while I was in private practice, I started representing kiddos in child protective services and in the system as an ad litem, and then, also, represented parents who were facing termination of their parental rights. Then during that time, that's when I met Javier and then went to go work for him for a little bit doing labor law.

Justin: You've done prosecution, criminal defense, and then plaintiffs civil work as well.

Ina: Exactly.

Justin: When you decided to run for Senator Menendez's seat, were you tied in any of the political groups or are you tied into your neighborhood? What was your sort of grassroots involvement if there was any?

Ina: Really the only political exposure I had was I had also run for a County Court bench, County Court No. 5. I ran twice. At the time, I think the first time I ran was when Tim Johnson was on the seat and I nearly took him out. I lost by seven-tenths of a percent that time and then he retired. [chuckles] I was going to run again for that seat and then it was when Obama was president. It was midterm election time when that red wave came and just knocked out every single Democrat that was running for office or held office.

Justin: Except for David Rodriguez, somehow.

Ina: Right, he survived that. I thought I was done with politics because that was heartbreaking. It looked like it was going to happen and then just not having any control. You were just at the bottom of the ballot and that was the political atmosphere at the time. I knew who, in terms of who were the players with the local democrat electeds but I really decided to walk away from it because it left a bad taste to my mouth.

When I decided to run, I really had not lived in the district very long. I had lived for some time in the Southside, [unintelligible 00:16:34]. That's where I'd lived. I came down and lived here. I was very new, very green. I think what it was, winning this election, was really pounding pavement and knocking on doors. I really think I was running-- In the race was a former city councilwoman, a firefighter who was active in the union, and then, a gentleman who had run as a Republican all his life, but decided to run as a Democrat for the seat. I think it was because I was new and "untainted" that went in my favor. I think people like that about me, that I was very new and did not have a political background.

Justin: Is your district considered far Westside? Is that what you would call it?

Ina: Far Westside Northwest because we're part-- I have SeaWorld and the Food Bank. I've got part of Edgewood, part of Highway 90, a little bit of Port San Antonio, but I come over to Westover Hills, the newer part. We've got a lot of growth at here. I would say Northwest.

Justin: How much of that district is the old Westside neighborhoods? Correct me if I'm wrong, I've got to think there's really a hierarchy over there that if you're running and you haven't checked the boxes as you come up through the system, that there would be some blowback because you're a lot of these older communities in neighborhoods. There's a real political machine hierarchy for people that are going to run for office. Did you run into that out there?

Ina: I didn't run into that. it was unique. Maybe in the Edgewood, part of that Edgewood area, they didn't know me very well, but it was funny because the Edgewood area that has Port San Antonio called Thompson neighborhood, I won that precinct versus most of Venus. I didn't win that precinct. There was a split but I'm telling you when I came in, it was a special election. It just seemed to be a very unique time that I really feel that a lot of the constituents in the district really...