Texas Redistricting Battle Ends.. GOP to gain 6-7 Seats

T_J and bigtexxx believe it is fair since it dilutes Democratic voting areas into Republican areas to make sure Republicans get voted in!

and they claim they care about Texans...what a joke, they care about one thing only, political power and silencing voices of anyone who might disagree with them.

 

How does the San Antonio metro area have 2/3 the population of the Dallas Metro or Houston metro?

SA - 1.6 million
D/FW - 5.2 million
Houston - 4.7 million

Not that I disagree with your point about Austin representation. I'm just disagreeing with your statement of SA's size.

EDIT: I guess I'm too slow for these types of discussions.

 

Just to give you a point of reference, in the 2000 presidential election, 59% of Texas voted for the republican candidate, and 39% voted for the democratic candidate. There's something wrong when your congressional representation is only 47% republican and 53% democrat when nearly 60% of your votes are voting republican in the election. The Senate race was 65% republican, 32% democrat.

The redistricting was FAIR for Texans.

 

The thing is, though, is that we could've made the same complaints ten years ago about the Democrats when they made a map that was considered by many to be the most partisan power grab in the history of the state's redistricting battles.

I can agree with the complaint that this redistricting battle happening during 2003 makes it particularly ugly. But I can't agree with this apparent argument that implies that only Republicans are guilty of gerrymandering district lines to get the most of their candidates elected. That is not the domain of any one political party.

 

it is not fair to cut democratic areas in half and lump them into far away Republican areas just to get rid of Democratic represenitives that were rightly elected by that area.

Election results, especially local elections have much more to do with the individual people running than it does about parties.

To claim that Texans are 65% Republicans because a Senate race resulted in that split is faulty logic.

I agree with earlier posters that some sort of computer generated map is preferable than to one drawn up by humans with agendas...

Draw the map where people in simular economic/social classes are represeted by someone in their area!

Gee I thought that was what democracy was all about

have you forgotten that bigtexxx?

 

Totally agreed. This is the reason that we need to take redistricting power OUT of the politician's hands. Politicians will use that power for their own partisan political ends, not to represent the people of Texas.

Districts should be roughly square, with the possible exception of court mandated minority districts (which could also be mostly square). This way, we wouldn't have Austin voters being represented in districts that stretch to the US-Mexico border.

 

The Democrats were rightly elected in flawed districts, Maynard. Texas is a Republican majority state, Maynard. Does it alarm you that most of the house reps are Democrat? Texas needs to be FAIRLY represented, and this new plan does so, Maynard. *Kudos* to the brave Republicans in the Texas Congress for taking care of the majority of Texans.

 

The liberals just can't handle the reality that is Texas' voting base. They don't like the outcome of a fair and just policy decision made by the lawmakers in Austin. Therefore they cry and whine about how it's not 'fair' -- despite bigtexxx's numbers that prove it to be fair. They try to demagogue the issue by saying that minorities are screwed. Yawn. What else is new. How about the majority's voice being heard? That is what has happened here, and it is to the benefit of the majority of Texan voters. Do not be confused by the numerous complaints on this board. Public opinion was in favor of the redistricting -- just look at the voting history. Only the most bitterly opposed whiners will cry and moan about this outcome. You don't see a lot of Republican representation on this board, because they are content. The Republicans are sitting back and enjoying *another* victory in a string of victories. They, like me, are savoring every morsel of this

DELICIOUS VICTORY

 

i just dont agree that the Republicans should be touted as heros or as being brave when you look at the tatics they used to steal votes

this is a sad day for democracy

republican wackos are acutally celebrating and cheering that people will be left without a true voice

very sad indeed

how you can think making the seats 67% Republican when you already admited that

"nearly 60%" of Texans voted Republican is fair I will never know

 

You are either smoking something strong or have put your head so far in the sand that you are butting your head on the crust (I personally think it is the latter). Every single poll done in the past 6 months showed that Texans did not want this redistricting to happen.

This was done for Tom DeLay, not Texas.

Besides, the voting history also says that Democrats were elected to 5 seats that voted Republican for state representatives, US Senator, and President. If the Republicans had put up decent candidates, they would have won. I guess a decent Republican candidate is hard to find these days, though.

 

Here are quotes from several editorials that is interesting reading:


Redistricting Wrongs


Star-Telegram

"Troublemakers." That's what House Speaker Tom Craddick's press secretary called Texas House Democrats on Sunday.

Not "loyal opposition." Not "honorable but misguided colleagues from the other side of the aisle."

The word choice isn't accidental, nor is it likely that it was just Bob Richter's opinion. Official spokesmen rarely use words that haven't first been uttered by their bosses.

"Troublemakers" was just the latest verbal example of the deterioration in relations taking place in the Legislature over the issue of midcycle congressional redistricting. The decay infecting the state's political bodies, however, is not restricted to the R's and D's in the House.

Republican Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst took a shot last week at the House GOP leaders, likening them to "Iranian cabdrivers" in their efforts to reach a compromise map with the Senate. Dewhurst said that House leaders exhibited "a style of negotiating in which they wait to the last minute and then try to pile on additional requests."

The obligatory apology was quick in coming from Dewhurst spokesman Dave Beckwith. Iranian-Americans didn't deserve the comparison.

Is it any wonder that voters have become cynical about politicians and their promises?

Texans are arguably observing the greatest leadership vacuum in nearly 158 years of statehood. Signs pointing to that as a truism abound:

• Spurred by U.S. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay and Gov. Rick Perry, the Republicans initiated the divisive debate on midcycle redistricting during the regular session, when many other pressing issues faced the state.

• Perry has called an unprecedented three special sessions -- and has hinted at a fourth -- on the completely unnecessary issue of redrawing congressional lines.

• Democrats twice fled the state to halt the redistricting debate, stalling or killing votes on other legislation important to Texans.

• The Republicans inexplicably did not reach agreement among themselves on a redrawn map during the weeks they sat around Austin, waiting for the Senate Democrats to return from Albuquerque, N.M.

Ego is the disease of politics, and the leadership of the Texas Legislature is eaten up with it. Some illnesses abate with time and a heavy infusion of antibiotics, but recovery for Texas' political leadership will take nothing less than a miracle.

© 2003 Star Telegram (Fort Worth) and wire service sources. All Rights Reserved.
http://www.dfw.com



Legislature's looniness

Both houses Friday voted to move the March primary from March 2, Super Tuesday, to March 9, meaning Texans won't participate in the possibly decisive multi-state primary as the 78th Legislature voted to do. Instead of Super Tuesday, they should call Texas' new primary Loony Toons Day.

Waco Tribune-Herald editorial



Party vs. people

Claiming to have acted solely in the public interest, Republicans in Austin devised congressional districts that will place almost half of all Texans, against the wishes of most, in a different congressional district. This is not the first time the good of one party's politicians has outweighed the will of the people.

The compromise bill was fashioned in the absence of Gov. Rick Perry, who was in New York promoting Texas business and raising campaign funds. Since his presence had done so little to advance either public or party interest, little was lost through his absence.

Houston Chronicle editorial



From California to Texas?

This carnival of the weird must stop.

It's apparent they don't see themselves as the voters do. (Do they remember the California recall? Maybe Texans will turn out overwhelmingly in the next election to fix their state.)

This legislative session seems to hold nothing but rancor and divisiveness, and the state is weary of both.

El Paso Times editorial



Trampling certain interests

The proposed plan places about 70 percent of the congressional districts in Republican control, though the state as a whole votes just over 55 percent Republican. That's patently unfair and something the Justice Department and the courts should consider. Then there is the almost complete absence of communities of interest -- the golden rule of congressional districts nationwide. There is no common interest in a district that meanders from North Austin to the Rio Grande or one that extends from Fort Worth to Lufkin in deep East Texas or one that stretches from Dalhart in the far corner of the Panhandle to Denton.

Community interest was trampled in [U.S. Rep. Tom] DeLay's rush to gain as many GOP seats as possible. The Justice Department and the courts should recognize the travesty in a map that not only ignores the common interest of citizens but scorns them for partisan advantage.

Austin American-Statesman editorial

 

And it does not concern you that:

1) more votes were cast for the presidential candidate who is not in office

2) there are more voting democrats in the nation than voting republicans yet the congress and presidency don't reflect this

3) the proportion of registered and eligible (but non-voting) adults is even more slanted to the democratic than to the republican party yet #2 hold true.

All I can say is I hope the national republican party is as dorky and overconfident as junior and little Tex. You better take your "small wins" while you can.

 

This great nation employs the electoral college to determine the President. Campaigns are run to maximize electoral vote, not popular vote. President Bush receives more votes. Popular votes are a silly metric to judge by in a presidential election.

The small wins have really been piling up of late. The Presidential election, the smashing success of the Congressional elections in 2002, Arnold in Kalifornia, and now the victory of the people of Texas in this redistricting.

 

Yeah, the number of votes someone gets is really a silly metric.

Following the Republican strategy of "lie over and over again until enough people believe your crap," I see. This redistricting had NOTHING to do with the people of Texas (who, when polled, said they didn't want redistricting to happen), it was all about Tom DeLay and Karl Rove.

 

Cry baby liberals: Desert Scar, Andymoon, Deckard, et al



WAAAAAAAAAA

poor liberals

 

Yep, that's the level of debate I've come to know and love from Trader_Jorge. By the way Jorge, I didn't notice your response to my post about the mayor's race.

 

For the 1000th time, I am not a liberal. You are just so far up the elephant's a$$ that you can't see it.

 

Instead of reporting this post like you would, I'll point you here:

http://bbs.clutchcity.net/php3/showthread.php?s=&threadid=64657

 

Poor Sheep!

 

Back to the issue... again. It may not be over (yet).

Texas Dems File Challenge to Redistricting Map

Tuesday, October 14, 2003

AUSTIN, Texas_—_Democrats filed a motion in federal court seeking to prohibit the state from implementing the new Republican-backed_congressional redistricting map, an attorney said Tuesday.
The motion, filed in federal court in Tyler on Sunday night, alleges that the map is illegal, attorney Gerry Hebert said. The map had received final approval in the Legislature earlier Sunday.
Democratic lawmakers have argued that the map violates the voting rights of minorities.
The motion was filed in Tyler because that court in 2001 drew the congressional redistricting map that is now in effect, Hebert said.
"We think that any proposal to change the court's map ought to be dealt with by that court," said Hebert, who represents Democrats in the_Texas Legislature (search)_and Texas' congressional delegation.
Republican Gov. Rick Perry signed the bill into law Monday.
Under the plan, Republicans could win as many as seven additional seats in the state's congressional delegation, which Democrats now dominate 17-15.
Republicans pushed for new congressional districts this year even though it was a non-census year, saying that lawmakers -- not judges -- should be drawing the boundaries. Democrats wanted to keep the existing districts.