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Texas Democrats set to flee state again
Democrats Derail Texas GOP Plan For House Seats
Redistricting Bill Has White House Support, but Not Enough Votes
AUSTIN, July 25 -- A White House-backed power play to grab more Republican congressional seats from Texas has been derailed by Democratic opposition, at least temporarily.
Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst (R) told reporters today that a redistricting plan that is expected to add seven Republican seats in the House did not have the votes to pass in a special session of the Texas Legislature that ends next week.
A similar effort in May led Democratic state legislators to flee to Oklahoma to break a quorum and prevent a vote on it.
Texas has 17 Democrats in Congress and 15 Republicans, but a proposed plan would give the Republicans 22 seats to the Democrats' 10.
House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Tex.), intent on adding to a narrow Republican advantage in the House, is leading the push to change the state's congressional districts. He says the state is dominated by Republicans and therefore should have more Republicans in Congress.
President Bush, a former governor of Texas, has not publicly involved himself in the effort, but White House political director Karl Rove has consulted with Dewhurst about it, a Dewhurst spokesman said.
Gov. Rick Perry (R), at the urging of Republican national leaders, called a special session this month to revive redistricting, but Democrats in the state Senate rallied enough support to scuttle it.
They have 11 seats in the 31-member Senate, but needed only that many votes because of a procedural tradition requiring two-thirds of the body to agree to take up a bill.
The current session will end Tuesday, but Perry has threatened to quickly call another special session. Dewhurst has said he may change procedures so that only a simple majority is needed to approve a vote on a bill.
Democrats are threatening to flee the state again if Republicans do not drop the plan.
Redistricting Bill Has White House Support, but Not Enough Votes
AUSTIN, July 25 -- A White House-backed power play to grab more Republican congressional seats from Texas has been derailed by Democratic opposition, at least temporarily.
Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst (R) told reporters today that a redistricting plan that is expected to add seven Republican seats in the House did not have the votes to pass in a special session of the Texas Legislature that ends next week.
A similar effort in May led Democratic state legislators to flee to Oklahoma to break a quorum and prevent a vote on it.
Texas has 17 Democrats in Congress and 15 Republicans, but a proposed plan would give the Republicans 22 seats to the Democrats' 10.
House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Tex.), intent on adding to a narrow Republican advantage in the House, is leading the push to change the state's congressional districts. He says the state is dominated by Republicans and therefore should have more Republicans in Congress.
President Bush, a former governor of Texas, has not publicly involved himself in the effort, but White House political director Karl Rove has consulted with Dewhurst about it, a Dewhurst spokesman said.
Gov. Rick Perry (R), at the urging of Republican national leaders, called a special session this month to revive redistricting, but Democrats in the state Senate rallied enough support to scuttle it.
They have 11 seats in the 31-member Senate, but needed only that many votes because of a procedural tradition requiring two-thirds of the body to agree to take up a bill.
The current session will end Tuesday, but Perry has threatened to quickly call another special session. Dewhurst has said he may change procedures so that only a simple majority is needed to approve a vote on a bill.
Democrats are threatening to flee the state again if Republicans do not drop the plan.
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