Democratic Leader: Speaker Led Mapping Discrimination
Top staffers in the House Speakers' office led the discriminatory conduct that got the Texas redistricting maps thrown out in court, a top Democratic leader said in a letter sent Wednesday to House Speaker Joe Straus and copied to the rest of the House members.
In his letter, Rep. Trey Martinez Fischer, D-San Antonio, referenced the recent federal court opinion denying precleance of the political maps drawn by the Legislature. In that opinion, the judges said they had found evidence of intentional discrimination against minority voters in some of the maps.
"I am attaching, for your review, excerpts of the ...
Comments (5)
Rudy Gonzales
There will be a significant difference to choose from this November on the national level. When this emerging Socio-Politio-Economic power get informed of the Texas Legislature's actions over the past years, there could be significant changes in Texas politics.
San Antonio mayor Julian Castro gave a stirring address at the DNC and stirred up the base in Texas. The mayors' comment to start a business is appropriate in that business owners can expense and deduct costs the average person cannot and have some utility of assets. Mitt Romney truly does not know how good he had it growing up when he said to borrow the money to start the business.
The obstacles in the Castro brothers path upward in politics is well known in the red state of Texas. It's even more troubling when TEA party types in Texas make it their expressed actions to use foreign sounding sir-names in derogatory manners much like they used president Obama's full name: Barack Hussein Obama. The clear inference is foreign names are not white names or people.
The bottom line is demographics are a changing, and the past actions of the TEA-Libertarian-Republican-GOP-Evangelical fringe controlled Texas Legislature to scuttle voter choices is out. A panel of federal judges unanimously struck down a voter-ID law passed by the legislature in March 2011, arguing that it would disproportionately harm African-American and Latino voters. Both decisions hinged on Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act, which requires certain states with a history of racial discrimination in voting — including Texas — to prove that any changes in their voting laws or procedures do not hamper the voting rights of minorities.
Texas lawmakers drew some districts that looked like Latino majority districts on paper — but removed Latinos who voted regularly and replaced them with Latinos who were unlikely to vote.
Texas lawmakers widened the gap between the proportion of the population that is Latino and African Americans and the proportion of districts that are minority-controlled.
The Texas Legislature removed economic centers and district offices from African-American and Latino districts, while giving white Republicans perks.
The Texas Legislature passed a voter-ID law with requirements that would make it disproportionately difficult for African Americans and Latinos to vote.
The Texas Legislature acted to divide and conquer: Texas "cracked" minority voters out of one district into three to offset and counter the minority vote from being proportional to the Texas population.
Tom Sweazea via Texas Tribune on Facebook
It's how convicted felon Tom DeLay was allowed to steal Texas !!
Adele Roberson via Texas Tribune on Facebook
Did you know that convicted felon Tom Delay is advising True the Vote on how to steal another election. In the Houston Chronicle - talk about this organization being in Houston and visiting for hours with convicted felon Tom Delay.And, I have a question I hope you can answer. Why is this crook not in the Penitentiary??
gypsy314 ne
Well folks I told you so Joe Straus is a democrat not a Republican what the hell else do you need I asking our republican leaders fix your screw up. Call everyone in and vote Joe Straus the hell out of the house speaker ship. If we do not clean house the democrats will take power and screw Texas good.
gypsy314 ne
If Perry does not do something About Joe then we all know were he stands too.