DeLay's Conviction Doesn't Erase His Victory
Tom DeLay broke the law in order to grab power. That’s unusual — most politicians steal money.
The former U.S. House majority leader and two others were accused of illegally laundering corporate donations to his Texans for a Republican Majority PAC through the Republican National Committee, which in turn sent a like amount of noncorporate cash to seven Texas candidates chosen by the PAC. Republicans went on to win a majority in the Texas House in those 2002 elections, and the criminal investigations of how they did it began a few months later.
DeLay’s trial started eight years ...
Comments (14)
Carolyn Moon via Texas Tribune on Facebook
We'll all pay for his crimes for a long time.
Evelyn White via Texas Tribune on Facebook
No, jail time may not undo that. But, an informed, educated electorate...... might.
Texas Tribune via Texas Tribune on Facebook
John: You better believe we'll be covering redistricting.
Shirley Blackstock Megason via Texas Tribune on Facebook
Check out the party affiliation of the DA & the judge. Were they truly a jury of his peers? Took Ronnie Earl forever to finally get it to trial. Earl has been obsessed with it the whole time he's been in office. Hopefully DeLay will be vindicated with the appeal. Or Rick Perry needs to just pardon him!!! Don't drink the kool-aid & don't believe everything Earl is saying, ppl!
jaime
Mr. Ramsey fails to include one important aspect of this story. The congressional map Mr. DeLay and his cohort helped draw was much more equitable than the Democrat gerrymandered map in force at the time.
The map that survived the legislattive redistricting board and the courts in 2003 more honestly reflected the state's political preferences. You do note that the Democrats held a 17 to 15 majority in congressional seats prior to that redistricting. But you left out the fact that Republicans had been receiving convincing majorities of the conbined congressional vote in the state over the last few elections. Given that fact, the lines the Democrats drew in 2001 were indefensible.
GOP victories in statewide races between 1980 and 2000 also showed the party's growing appeal. Republicans occupied the governor's chair for twelve of those twenty years. And it's significant as well that a Republican has been elected governor with convincing margins in the last four contests, beginning with G. W. Bush's reelection in 1998. To be deemed fair, any redistricting map must deal honestly with those demographics.
What's been called Tom DeLay's map was fair to the voters of Texas.
Sharon Cooper Morgan via Texas Tribune on Facebook
One doesn't need to drink kool-aid (the Republican drink of choice) to know that DeLay is a crook.
Claudia Corum via Texas Tribune on Facebook
I don't believe Rick Perry has the power to pardon. He can stay and execution.......
Sharon Cooper Morgan via Texas Tribune on Facebook
Execute! ;)
A Lerma Stickelbault via Texas Tribune on Facebook
I hope that will be part of what the judge takes into consideration when sentencing this scumbag.
DeLay really has too much pesticides in his brain...toxicity level is lethal.
Mac Mcclure via Texas Tribune on Facebook
Too bad he is a Republican. If he was a Democrat they would be writing articles of what a good politician he is because he put the party first and made the hard choices. To TT if your are going to be following redistricting I hope you realize the Republicans won the last election in Texas and the majority of districts will be Republican. It ain't going to be a 50- 50 deal with the Democrats no matter how much you squeal.
A Lerma Stickelbault via Texas Tribune on Facebook
republicans take great pride in being "conservative." Question is how far back do they want to take us back.
Diane Owens via Texas Tribune on Facebook
Any discussion of re-districting reform needs to examine why we let legislators choose the voters they want to represent. With computer models voting patterns can be determined down to the household level. Our current system rewards gerrymandering for partisan gain so why not do it 3 or 4 times every decade if one party thinks it has an opportunity to create more safe districts for its members? The only losers are the voters who find we have fewer and fewer choices at election time.
Carolyn Moon via Texas Tribune on Facebook
Don't worry Mac. when the Dems take over next time, we can re-redistrict. tom says it's okay
Bill Eubank via Texas Tribune on Facebook
It'll be a cold Hell when the socialists, I mean the dems, are back in control!!