Texas redistricting: Congressional map clears Texas Senate committee

AUSTIN, Texas – The proposed new congressional district map for Texas has passed through a special Texas Senate committee.

The map, displayed Thursday in a Capitol Extension committee room, is filed as Senate Bill 4, and is identical to the map filed as House Bill 4.

The map passed on a vote of 6-1, with state Sen. Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa (D-McAllen) as the lone no vote.

Senate Bill 4

What they’re saying:

It’s no coincidence that the lines have a familiar look.

“So, the House Bill (HB 4) and the Senate Bill are identical at this stage,” said state Sen. Phil King (R-Weatherford), who filed SB4.

King told the committee his “one map” strategy is intended to beat an August 19th deadline, when time runs out on the Special Session.

 “And so, I thought if we went ahead and move this bill forward, the House already has a bill on the floor. It’s already through Calendars for HB 4. And if they come back that they could expedite, and we have sent this bill to them that the House could then simply in the last days of the special session pick up SB 4 and substitute it for HB 4 and pass it out,” said King.

Republican leaders admit the goal of the Texas rewrite is for political gain on Capitol Hill. King argued the mid-decade rewrite is not only legal but justified.

“My objective was when I look at the policies and the harm done to the nation through those policies in the four previous years, everything from a $30 trillion-plus deficit to what we saw at the border to the Venezuelan gangs to the fentanyl crisis, problems with Russia and China on and on and on that it compels me to try to help make sure that we have a Republican Congress going forward,” said King.

The other side:

This political end run did not please state Sen. Borris Miles (D-Houston).

“If there was going to be a fight, I wanted to be in the room,” Miles said.

Miles was back in Austin after taking part in the political walkout. He was in Massachusetts on Wednesday with several of the quorum-breaking Texas Democrats.

“This is disrespectful, very much disingenuous, and point blank, low down. Think that minority communities can take, If you think that minority communities must take what we can get is discriminatory. You do not have to call someone a racist slur to be a racist, Mr. Chairman, and members. Sitting back, participating in an August process, in an inherently discriminatory process, disenfranchising black and brown people is racist in all parts,” said Miles.

That accusation of racism was countered by another accusation. State Sen. Bryan Hughes (R-Mineola) noted Republicans in other states were recently cut out of their districts.

“If national voices, if leaders in other states, whose voices are dutifully magnified by many in the national media, if they’re going to criticize Texas and hypocritically, in the height of hypocrisy, criticize us for what we’re doing, a little context is warranted,” said Mineola.

The current administration, according to Miles, is to blame for the current map fight. Miles argued that Texas Republicans were only doing the bidding of President Trump, whom he also called racist.

“No matter what is done today or tomorrow regarding this map, this is all just political theater at its finest,” said Miles.

Miles refused to cast a vote on the map.

What’s next:

A SB 4 debate on the Senate floor may not happen until next week due to the Friday deadline for Democrats to return.