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Posted on 10/11/2003 1:00:44 AM PDT by Diddle E. Squat
AUSTIN -- In a surprise legislative twist Friday, the Texas Senate took the congressional redistricting bill hostage until the House votes on a controversial government reorganization bill.
The House at 9 p.m. lacked a quorum to pass the government reorganization bill. The House put a call on the missing Republican and Democratic members and locked the chamber doors so those who were there could not leave.
About 11 p.m., the House and Senate postponed any further business until Sunday.
Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst said the Senate was afraid the House would not pass the reorganization bill with Senate amendments.
The Senate had approved the reorganization bill earlier in the day, but held up a final vote on redistricting, which includes a new congressional district for House Speaker Tom Craddick's hometown of Midland.
"The best analogy is that in the Texas Senate, we operate on our word. The speaker has given me his word repeatedly that the House is going to pass House Bill 7 (government reorganization)," Dewhurst said. "And as Ronald Reagan used to say, `trust but verify,' " Dewhurst told reporters.
The House had attempted to bring the government reorganization bill up for debate Friday afternoon, but because of a technicality it was not eligible until 8 p.m.
House Democrats refused to waive rules to allow debate because every day of delay further endangers the possibility that the Republican redistricting plan can be used in the 2004 elections.
The big problem facing House passage of the bill Friday night was that many members had left to attend today's Texas-Oklahoma football game. Democrats took advantage of that to leave and break the quorum, knowing it would cause further delays in adoption of the redistricting bill.
If final action on the two pieces of legislation is delayed to another day, it will cost taxpayers $57,000 in daily special session expenses for the House members to have left for the football game.
Dewhurst said the dispute would not endanger final passage of the compromise redistricting plan.
"We didn't say that redistricting depended on House Bill 7, and we didn't say redistricting didn't depend on House Bill 7," Dewhurst told reporters.
"If we come back on Sunday afternoon, we come back Sunday afternoon. If we come back Monday morning, we come back Monday morning."
Dewhurst said he had worked the Senate debate on redistricting so only a final vote is needed. He said there is no way for a Democratic senator to filibuster the bill to death.
Dewhurst said he did not think the delay ultimately would kill either the government reorganization or redistricting bills.
The reorganization bill is controversial because it gives additional powers to Gov. Rick Perry and strips some from Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn. Strayhorn has been critical of Dewhurst and Perry, but the House has opposed penalizing her agency.
As part of the bill, the House passed a resolution that amended the bill with a provision repealing a law requiring school board candidates in districts with 5,000 or more students to file a financial disclosure with the Texas Ethics Commission.
GET IT FINISHED, IDIOTS!
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I have had it with Dewhurst and Perry. These idiots are holding six congressional seats hostage over their vendetta with Strayhorn. I hope she runs against one of them. Both of them need good primary challengers.
I only wish Tom Delay was my congressman. He is fighting 'the good fight'.
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