Three democratic state MPs who Texas ran away to block an attempt To resume the state’s Congress map in favor of Republican, CBS News said on Monday that they are ready to stay out of the state for at least the next two weeks – as GOP leaders Threat results,
Dozens of Texas House Democrats turned to Illinois and other blue states over the weekends, depriving the chamber’s GOP leaders on Monday. The move gave at least temporarily aims a special legislative session. Greg Abbott called the state’s American house district maps to reopen-President Trump publicly encouraged Texas Republican to create five and GOP-shock house seats before the 2026 midnight.
One of the Democrats leaving Texas for Illinois, State Rape John Bookie III told CBS News that we are all committed to staying out of the state by the end of the legislative session. Special sessions can last up to 30 days, and in the current session just left for more than two weeks.
But if the clock exits without a vote on the new house maps, Abbott has the power to call another legislative session immediately, the state representative N Johnson accepted.
If this happens, Democrats “will assess our options,” state rape. James Talarico said.
Map floated by Texas Republican last week If approved, inclination More than 30 of the 38 American house districts of the state towards Republican, which are currently 25 districts. The map redefines two Democratic seats in the Rio Grande Valley, connecting two seats in the Austin region and rearranging districts in Houston and Dallas regions.
Texas Democrats says they “knew that the consequences would be”
The GOP-discretion state house on Monday voted for forcing the Democrats absent to issue a civil arrest warrant to return to Texas. Meanwhile, Abbott Ordered Texas Department of Public Safety Democratic members and “Arrest and return” and Check them For “bribe” because he accepted donations to help other states pay for his time. Abbott has also suggested that there is a legal way for R.Follow any absent democrats from the office,
It is not clear whether the efforts to arrest MPs are applied outside Texas.
“If you choose to continue this road, you should know that the results will be,” Texas House speaker Dustin Baroz, a Republican, said during a brief speech on Monday afternoon, was unable to install a quorum after the house.
Abbott said in a statement earlier, “The members of the absconding Democrat House were selected to meet and vote on the law – not to stop the votes that cannot go on their way.”
Telico told CBS News that the house was the Democrat “Knowing that the results would be.”
“We are fighting for representative democracy, and whether it will continue or not, and so we are ready to face whatever results can come in our way,” he said.
In addition to redistribution, Abbott last month asked a special session to handle other high-profile legislative priorities, such as approval of disaster relief for the deadly Texas floods. Texas Republican and Democrats are both Accused each other To hold disaster relief hostage.
“Greg Abbott is giving priority to Donald Trump with this special session,” Bussi told CBS News. “Instead of taking action to help the flood victims of Central Texas, he is trying to steal five Congress seats from the people of Texas.”
Johnson dismissed the allegations by Republican that the Democratic MPs had abandoned their work, stating that he was “a fundamental protection by our founding father in the Constitution of Texas, who says that the minority party has an opportunity to break the quorum when you know the majority has actually gone away from the rail.”
What do Texas Democrats want?
This is not the first time Democrats have escaped from Texas, who have fled to deprive Republican two-thirds of quorum in the State House or Senate. In 2021, House Democrats left the state to block one vote on a restrictive polling law, but walkout came to an end After just one month, and a version of the bill Ended,
Asked how the walkout of this week would be different, Talariko argued that 2021 efforts were successful as some most controversial provisions of the polling law – such as Sunday’s voting limit – were eventually taken out of the law.
“It is an effective tool for our components fighting for our components and making harmful laws less dangerous. We hope here what will happen here,” he said.
Some Democrats from Texas want blue states to be re -prepared and threatened to take vengeance by re -prepared their Congress map to connect more democratic districts. Governors from California and New York have entertained the idea of removing more blue seats, but they tricks Can be legally difficultSince California has put an independent commission in charge of redistribution and New York has banned political Germandering.
All three Texas House Democrats who spoke with CBS News – Talarico, Busi and Johnson – told CBS News that they normally support the geramandering. But Talariko said that “If one side is going to cheat, all the bets are closed, and perhaps such pressure will convince our Republican colleagues and the President to follow the verge.”
“Both the Democrats and the Republican politicians are wrong in both the Gerimander and the examples,” said Talarako, but “this is especially egoistic.”
Johnson said, “It is like a kind of bullying that takes your lunch money every day. At some point, you stood up, otherwise you just broke and hungry,” Johnson said. “We have told Republican,” Is enough – you have gone far away. “
