That Nazi comment is a cheap shot, hoss. That is the way our government works. The majority in the legislature gets to push through its agenda, because.....ding-ding-ding.....a MAJORITY of voters put them there apparently to advance their agenda. What about the majority of Texas voters, who are now leaning Republican? I guess they are just SOL because the Democrats can hold the business of govt. hostage. Just because you don't like the results doesn't mean you can change the rules of the game midflow. I still say the Democrats are a bunch of whining sissies who will be held to account for their childish stunt. Theirs is not a legitimate move at all. I guess it must be nice to not have to show up to do your job to advance your agenda. And Andy....last time I checked, the liberal left in this country is seriously on the wane. There is no way in hell that the Democrats can take back the presidency with that pack of clown candidates even with the help of a friendly media spewing forth their message sans scrutiny or even have a prayer of taking back the U.S. Congress. If that isn't waning power, I don't know what is.
what about those districts that voted for Perry, Dewhurst, Abbott, etc but then voted for a democratic rep or state senator? they are being punished for not voting a straight GOP ticket.
I don't see anyway around it this is just dumb. Its gonna start a whole wave of walking out anytime you don't get your way... who cares what ten year traditions are being broke that got broke last time, they should stay and fight bills and if they lose well then they lose.
And the guys who wrote the Texas constitution put in a little thing called a quorum so that ...ding-ding-ding... a majority could not push their agenda on the minority unless the majority controls at least 2/3 of the house or senate. And you would not have drawn the Nazi comment if you had not advocated leading the Dems to the capitol to vote under threat of death. The Dems have not held the "business of government" hostage. They passed a budget along with numerous other bills during the regular session and even cleared up some more business during the first special session. The Texas voters have 5 Republican districts that have elected Democrats because the Reps can't seem to find anyone to unseat them. This redistricting is a naked power ploy by DeLay that DESERVES to go down in flames, much as the GOP will in the next election cycle. I'm not talking about the Presidency necessarily, although even that is in danger for the GOP, much as his father was doomed as a result of a crappy economy and a war too far in the past to be remembered by voters. The biggest swing this next cycle will be in the statehouses and in Congress.
There is only the danger of a walkout if the majority tries to do something that is so egregious that the minority feels there is no other option. If this was something that was actually important to Texans other than Tom DeLay, the Dems would not be leaving. This is a partisan move to set aside century old traditions in order to gerrymander outside of normal gerrymandering season. WAIT UNTIL 2011. That is when redistricting is supposed to happen. This is an extremely expensive waste of legislators time and my money.
Well, if you had tried to attack my arguments rather than just calling me a stoner, you might have gotten a more polite response. It is obvious that you missed the hundred times that I have stated that drugs are bad for you, they will limit your opportunities, and they could take your life. Prohibition is still not the best way to deal with it. But that is another thread, one in which you were absent. Guess you didn't have any intelligent responses to that one, either.
First of all, I am not a Democrat, I am an independant. As an independant, I see this as a way for the GOP to waste 3.4 million dollars of taxpayer money so that they can point fingers during the next elections. We shouldn't be redistricting because we did it in 2001, and it does not make any difference that the court did it. Redistricting has been done for the 2000 census and the next redistricting should be in 2011. You should wait because that is the tradition and the reason we have tradition is so that we do not have to specify every nitpicky detail in the law. It does seem sad that we are probably going to have to specify this whole process in the law so that nobody can try this kind of crap again, no matter the party they are from.
LOL, I don't give a rat's ass if you are polite or not. I like my original message to you currently in question. I thought it was funny.
They stayed put and did the will of the people. Every poll I've seen has shown that the will of the people is to end this nonsense. They don't want a 2nd special session. When the Senate wandered around Texas getting feedback, it came in 9-1 against redistricting. The only people trying to follow "the will of the people" are the Democrats here (in their own strange way). The Republicans are only doing the will of Tom Delay.
It never ceases to amaze me how uninformed some people are about this issue. Back when redistricting should have been done after the 2000 census... there was a Republican Governor, a Republican Senate, a Republican Lt. Governor (who's a Republican state senator against this redistricting effort, btw) and a Democratic House. They couldn't come to an agreement on redistricting... so what did Perry do? Did he call special sessions until redistricting was done in a manner satisfactory to Republicans and was something Democrats could live with? (you know, compromise) No, Perry asked the courts to draw the maps. Perry didn't call a special session. Not one, much less 2 or 3 or however many he decides to call this summer... against the wishes of many members in the Legislature of his own party. Perry didn't attempt to work on the issue until a satisfactory result palatable to both sides could be reached. Now he suddenly makes this a huge issue. Why? Because Tom DeLay wants him to. Why he is allowing himself to become a tool of DeLay's ambitions is anyone's guess. Perhaps he sees a payoff of some kind that will further his own personal ambition down the road, I don't know. But he is angering many Republican legislators in the process. What the Democrats are doing is a legitimate tactic that has been forced upon them. This is a crisis of Perry's own making. And the juvenile name calling directed at the Senators taking this stand, that is risking their own future, and at some members of this board doesn't reflect well on those doing it. Saying, "I'm tired of these Democrats saying that their own political future is above the wishes of the people who elected them." is ludicrous. It is not their districts on the line. What is on the line is their political future... at risk because of the potential backlash they may face with extreme rhetoric like some I've read here, splashed across the air-waves by the millions of dollars the Republican far-right has at their disposal. The same millions that have enabled them to capture the leadership of the Republican Party... a leadership with an agenda not shared by a majority of Republicans, imo. Certainly not by a majority of Independents. This is a crisis fueled by the ambitions and agendas of a handful of the Republican Leadership, here in Texas and in Washington. Nothing more and nothing less. I'm sure some of you will disagree... but at least get informed about what's going on. This isn't a game being played in a schoolyard. This is a serious distraction during a period of great crisis for the State of Texas.
This is by far one of the scariest Statements in this Thread It is VERY Saddam Hussien-like Rocket River
Saddam-Hussein like? No. He didn't say he wanted to put them in a wood-chipper. Ignorant as hell? Definitely. Another fine example of the mouth outrunning the ass.
(1) That is an absolutely false statement. The quarum rule is there to keep a majority from holding business without giving a minority the chance to be present and voice their opinion. They didn't concieve that a minority group would purposely abandon the state on purpose, to intentionally paralize the legislature. (2) In fact, they felt so strongly that the minority should attend that they gave the speaker of the house / lt. governor the ability to lock the chamber doors, and order the seargant at arms of the chamber, and his appointed officers, to arrest and bring represenatives to the chamber by force. (Once would assume that these officers of the law would carry weapons, although their use wouldn't be necessary). The Democratic groups leaving the state, in fact, know this, and are taking advantage of the fact that there is no extradition agreements in place for this type of event. (3) The Dems are holding the business of the state hostage. This should have been complete during the regular session. Redistricting aside, they passed a half-way mess of a budget that could only pass by the Governor vetoing bills. The 2nd session was necessary to finish the business of the regular session, and fix that were spoiled by the walkout during the regular session.
Sort of like the rules/laws against illegally downloading music/movies? In other words, if you don't like the laws against downloading music/music, that is too bad, but those are the rules/laws?
BINGO! "Well, we got outmaneuvered because of this piddly little procedural tradition...I know, let's get rid of it & call 'em back until we get what Tom, uh, we want!" What part of the democratic process does this cover? I day-dream about the day when Texas has good leadership.
It doesn't matter what side of the fence you're on...call this what it is. Cheap and dirty politics. Seriously...fleeing the state to avoid enforcement of a quorum. How goofy is that? Neither side is beyond reproach...Republicans pull dirty political games all the time. But have enough objectivity to see how wuss this is. What a mockery of democracy. What an utter joke.
The quorum (notice the correct spelling) rule is in place so that the majority cannot run roughshod over the minority. It gives the minority a voice as long as they control at least a third of the house or senate. They are using the only move the Republicans have left them with. I'm sorry you don't like it, but that is the rule. If the Reps would have just followed tradition, then the Dems wouldn't have had to use this rule. If anything is being held hostage, it is the demands of a power hungry congressman named Tom DeLay who has no business pushing this partisan waste of money on Texas. The first walkout affected legislation very little. The major legislation had already made it to the floor (including the budget among other things) and the Killer Ds just made sure redistricting wouldn't make the floor during the regular session. The first special session was used to conclude some business, yes, but it was not business that was pushed back by the Killer Ds, it was simply additional legislation. This special session has been called ONLY for redistricting, and the Lt. Governor has again broken tradition by not allowing a blocker bill to be put into place to assure that the minority has a voice in the process. This is the only way that Democrats voices will be heard and I (even though I am not Democrat) applaud them. Perry needs to stop wasting my money on this crap.
There is nothing in the history of this state (or country) to suggest that fleeing your constitutional duty as a representative of your constiutuents and failing to adhere to the rules and responsibilities of that job is correct or proper. Please do not attempt to link a filibuster to what these selfish losers are doing. Funny, by the way, that the previous post calls out the Republicans for not following "tradition." That is certainly a pillar of the current Democratic platform, as evidenced by this brilliant "legitimate" legislative procedure. A quorum's purpose, no matter the spelling you choose, is not to encourage the absence of disagreeing members. It is to make sure that a small majority of legislators cannot make rules in a restaurant while on lunch break. This is a disgusting, reprehensible and selfish display by a bunch of sore losers who are once again misleading the uninformed, uneducated people who don't know any better than to believe them. I don't care how many special sessions are being called by the Republican governor. He is not violating any laws. The fleeing Democrats are the ones who are embarrassing themselves and attempting to demonize Perry/Delay to gain heroic status while simultaneously looting the taxpayers' pockets. As a relatively new Texan, I have been overwhelmed by the sense of personal accountability and pride that the majority of Texans seem to have. Unfortunately, these selfish cowards are slowly deteriorating our state's great reputation as a place where justice rules.
