Libertarian think tank rates Texas dead last for personal freedoms

Texas' Republican leadership frequently paints itself as a champion of a hands-off leadership approach that prizes personal freedoms and a libertarian mindset. However, a report published last week by the Washington, D.C.-based Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank co-founded by billionaire businessman and conservative political donor Charles Koch, ranks Texas at the bottom of U.S. states when it comes to upholding personal freedoms. Cato's annual analysis ranks states using metrics in two categories: economic freedom and personal freedom.