Senators go national in Texas remap fight

Fort Worth (Texas) Star-Telegram ^ | Sep. 05, 2003 | By MARIA RECIO and JOHN MORITZ

[jwalburg]

WASHINGTON - Three of the 10 holdout Democratic senators left their New Mexico refuge for the nation's capital to launch a $1 million national tour to draw attention to their standoff with the GOP over congressional redistricting.

State Sens. Leticia Van de Putte of San Antonio, Rodney Ellis of Houston and Eliot Shapleigh of El Paso announced at the National Press Club on Thursday that they would be part of a concentrated media campaign funded by MoveOn.org. The group, formed in the late 1990s to fight the impeachment of President Clinton, has taken up the cause of the Texas Senate Democrats and is placing print and television ads accusing President Bush and the GOP of disenfranchising minority voters.

"The Republican redistricting plan would silence the voices of 1.4 million Hispanic and African-American Texans," said Van de Putte, who is chairwoman of the Senate Democratic Caucus. "They would either be moved into districts so heavily Republican that their votes won't matter, or would be packed into districts that guarantee them permanent political minority status."

The senators were committed to their position despite the apparent defection of one of the 11 Senate holdouts, state Sen. John Whitmire of Houston, who left Albuquerque, N.M., this week. "We're not conceding defeat," Ellis said. He suggested that Whitmire's decision may not be absolute and that there were other possible scenarios, including the Texas House's defeating a new congressional map.

Back in Texas, Whitmire told the Houston Chronicle that he would continue the fight against redistricting from the Senate floor if a third special legislative session is called by Republican Gov. Rick Perry. When he left Albuquerque on Tuesday, Whitmire said that although his constituents oppose redistricting, they expect him to be in the Senate whenever lawmakers are in session.

Not so, said one Houston activist who met with the senator on Wednesday.

"We told him he needed to go back to Albuquerque and be part of the team again, but he said that wouldn't do any good," said Sylvia Gonzalez, who heads the Houston-area chapter of the League of United Latin American Citizens. "We are very disappointed in him. If he says he came back because that's what his constituents wanted, he wasn't talking about us."

Whitmire scheduled a news conference for today in a meeting room outside the Senate chamber in Austin. But Senate officials said he would not be allowed to use the room, because fines totaling $57,000 that were levied by Senate Republicans against each of the absent Democrats have not been paid.

The penalty for failure to pay is forfeiture of Senate privileges, including loss of Capitol grounds parking and the right to use Senate meeting rooms.

Meanwhile, the panel of three federal judges assigned to hear the Democrats' lawsuit challenging the legality of the redistricting effort set a hearing date for this Thursday.

The Democrats are holding out hope that the lawsuit will at least delay the redistricting effort and allow them to return to Texas without fear that they will be compelled to return to Austin.

The Democrats who went to Washington were surprised to see a familiar face from Austin at the National Press Club event.

Dave Beckwith, a spokesman for Republican Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst who lives in the Washington area but commutes to Austin for long stays, said he saw Van de Putte on C-SPAN talking about the news conference and decided to show up to give reporters the GOP view.

Asked about the timing of a third special session, Beckwith said: "We don't want to tell them our tactics. We've kept them off guard."

Asked whether Whitmire's defection handed them a victory, Beckwith said: "You don't win until the game's over. We're at the end of the third quarter."

As for Democratic charges, Beckwith said, "We will not dilute minority representation."

He said the Senate Democrats were desperate for media coverage because "the press had disappeared from Albuquerque."

On Thursday, the seven remaining Democrats in Albuquerque attended the debate among their party's nine presidential candidates.

The MoveOn.org ads, which appeared first in The New York Times, feature a picture of Bush with the warning, "Don't Mess with Texas." It describes the move to realign congressional districts to ensure the election of five or more Republicans as "the worst setback for minority voting rights in four decades."

The ads will run in several states, including Texas. The Texas senators plan to travel to Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and Philadelphia on Sept. 8. The senators said they will visit cities including Chicago, New York, Phoenix, San Francisco and Los Angeles in coming weeks.

The state lawmakers were joined at the Washington news conference by Democratic U.S. Reps. Martin Frost of Arlington, Lloyd Doggett of Austin and Charlie Gonzalez of San Antonio.

"This is a national issue," said Frost, who saluted the Texas senators for their stand. "The Republicans are trying to overturn the results of the elections two years ago. This cannot be permitted to happen."

[jwalburg]

The Dems who have been overly aggressive in gerrymandering across the nation in the past, now try to paint redistricting by the GOP as a crime against minorities and worthy of national remedies. Like kids who try to change the rules when they find themselves losing. (A day old, but I didn't see it posted.)

[fhayek]

The Republicans are trying to overturn the results of the elections

Isn't this one just about worn out by now?

[jwalburg]

Hey, it works!

[freeangel]

Who is paying for this tour of the chicken littles?

[jwalburg]

MoveOn.org, I guess. Probably with funds supposedly for the Clinton presidential library.

[Rome2000]

The Texas senators plan to travel to Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.,

Not sure what the point of coming here is, unless they want to go to South Beach and take in the sights.

Their visit will get nothing more than bewildered stares from the morons they do manage to get to meet with them, and minimal press coverage.

[winker]

I would like to see a WRIT Of MANDAMUS enacted and force them to defy a legal Court directive!

[CyberAnt]

A national tour ..?? Who's paying for this little "tour". If it's the TEXAS taxpayers, I'd say the taxpayers need to make their displeasure known to the dems.

I doubt it's the DNC - they don't have the money for such foolishness!

[jackbill]

MoveOn.org, I guess. Probably with funds supposedly for the Clinton presidential library.

It would be interesting to see where MoveOn gets their money. They are the primary impetus behind the Dean candidacy, among other things.

[The UnVeiled Lady]

a concentrated media campaign funded by MoveOn.org. The group, formed in the late 1990s to fight the impeachment of President Clinton, has taken up the cause of the Texas Senate Democrats

MoveOn.org the action wing of the communist party. (www.cpusa.org) Since MoveOn.org has paid $25,000 for their stay in NM, 20 bus loads of people to attend the rally they put on in Austin for the Texas runaways and $1 million for this tour, all the anti-war rallies around the world and AlGore speech lately, my guess is the communist party should be sucking wind about now.

[Recovering_Democrat]

cowards.

[freekitty]

Don't people in government work anymore? And isn't moveon.org a communist organization whose agenda is to bring free America down?

[LookingUp]

First... Democrats want everending power no matter who the people vote for.. they believe it is their right and don't care about the law or the constitution ... They will do anything to keep power..
Second... The democrat leaders no longer represent the people... They only represent themselves ... no person who will not toe the line and obey the leaders need apply for gov't jobs... They do NOT represent the people anymore...
I wonder how long it will take the average dem out there to catch on...

[AUH2OY2K]

"The Republican redistricting plan would silence the voices of 1.4 million Hispanic and African-American Texans," said Van de Putte, who is chairwoman of the Senate Democratic Caucus.

I see, only Democrats can represent the African-Americans. Like they did in the Civil War, in the formation of the KKK, the busing riots, implementing the Jim Crow Laws, poll taxes etc. With friends like the Democrats, why would blacks need the GOP?

[MeekOneGOP]

The MoveOn.org ads, which appeared first in The New York Times, feature a picture of Bush with the warning, "Don't Mess with Texas." It describes the move to realign congressional districts to ensure the election of five or more Republicans as "the worst setback for minority voting rights in four decades."

The ads will run in several states, including Texas. The Texas senators plan to travel to Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and Philadelphia on Sept. 8. The senators said they will visit cities including Chicago, New York, Phoenix, San Francisco and Los Angeles in coming weeks.

Here is a mini-version of the ad in the NY Slimes:

MoveOn.org website

Communist Party USA Website

The MoveOn.org website link is on the very TOP LEFT on the Communist
Party USA Website (DARK blue). Apparently MoveOn.org is an activist FRONT
for the CPUSA ...

Here is a list of recent articles on Redistricting:

FR Search: Keyword "Redistricting"

08-26-2003
MoveOn.org Aiding Fugitive Texas Democrats (Update!)

08-25-2003
Costs for Democrat exiles may hit $400,000 -
MoveOn.org, DNC, Texas 'RAT Party raise funds for them

08-21-2003
MoveOn.Org Supporting the Texas Chicken D's -
Letter from Senator Rodney Ellis

[jwalburg]

Thanks for all those links!

[MeekOneGOP]

You bet ! :O)

[jmstein7]

That raises the interesting question of domicile. I'm not familiar with the Texas law (statutory or common law) regarding domicile.

I would assume that, to be a Texas State Senator, one must be a Texas domicilliary. Depending on the Texas law, if there must be "an intent to remain indefinitely" or a "specific intent to return", then it is possible that the AWOL Senators are no longer Texas domicilliaries, in whic case they would lose their seats.

If that is the case, then the governor could appoint Senators to fill the vacacies until the next election.

Hmmmmm...

[jmstein7]

See this thread:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/977257/posts

[jmstein7]

And this thread:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/977311/posts