On Friday afternoon, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a lawsuit that asks the Texas Supreme Court to remove 13 House Democrats from office.
AUSTIN, Texas — Texas Republicans continue to ratchet up the rhetoric as they find new ways to punish the Democrats for not showing up at the Texas Capitol.
Once again, there was no quorum as the Texas House of Representatives gaveled in on Friday afternoon. Dozens of Democrats are still absent and out of state, having fled Texas to try to block the legislature from passing new GOP-friendly maps that could net the party as many as five seats in the U.S. House of Representatives.
A total of 55 Democrats are absent and scattered throughout parts of the U.S. The House gaveled in and out quickly on Friday afternoon. With the Democrats still not present, things in the lower chamber are still at a standstill.
House Speaker Dustin Burrows (R-Lubbock) said state troopers will spend the weekend trying to bring the absent Democrats back to Texas. Now, some of those Democratic state lawmakers are facing new threats to throw them out of office for not showing up to vote.
On Friday afternoon, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a lawsuit, asking the Texas Supreme Court to declare the seats of 13 House Democrats vacant and remove them from office. It names State Reps. James Talarico, Gina Hinojosa, Lulu Flores, Vicky Goodwin and John Bucy from the Austin area.
In the filing, the AG’s office says “their willful refusal to perform their duties” demonstrates “an intent to abandon and relinquish their offices.”
“The rogue Democrat legislators who fled the state have abandoned their duties, leaving their seats vacant,” Paxton said in a statement. “These cowards deliberately sabotaged the constitutional process and violated the oath they swore to uphold. Their out-of-state rebellion cannot go unchecked, and the business of Texas must go on.”
Paxton’s office says they picked these 13 to start because they have been the most vocal about the quorum break and their desire not to return to the Capitol.
The lawsuit also names State Reps. Ron Reynolds, Mihaela Plesa, Suleman Lalani, Chris Turner, Ana-Maria Ramos, Jessica Gonzalez, Gene Wu and Christina Morales.
In the lawsuit, the AG said the House Democrats are engaging in politically motivated grandstanding from out of state, which the AG’s office called “a flagrant abandonment of office and a betrayal of the voters who entrusted them with the duty to represent Texans in the legislative chamber.”
To remove a lawmaker from office, the AG’s office brings a quo warranto action. It is a unique legal mechanism that Republican leaders are using to try and oust the House Democrats from office for abandonment.
“The Texas Constitution, statutes, and rules provide a broad range of tools for members of a legislative minority to be heard. But those tools do not include concerted effort by members of the minority to disrupt the functioning of the Legislature by abdicating their duties, including spurning the constitutional authority of the remaining members to compel their attendance,” the petition says. “When members of the Legislature disregard arrest warrants, refuse to perform their duties, and announce that they intend to prevent the Legislature from exercising its constitutional responsibilities, they have, through words and conduct, demonstrated an intent to relinquish and abandon their offices.”
Earlier this week, Gov. Abbott asked the Texas Supreme Court to remove State Rep. Gene Wu, Chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, from office.
Democrats contend that Texas republicans are weaponizing the legal system against their political opponents and say they do not have the legal authority to do that.
State Rep. Chris Turner (D-Grand Prairie), one of the 13 House Democrats named in the lawsuit, said that by breaking quorum, he is exercising his legislative rights under the Texas Constitution.
“I am doing the very job that the people of House District 101 elected me to do — to fight for them and the voting rights of all Texans,” Turner said. “I am doing everything that I can to protect Texans from this illegal and racially discriminatory power grab orchestrated by Donald Trump and Greg Abbott. I am not afraid of threats from wanna-be dictators like Trump, Abbott, and certainly not Paxton.”
Austin State Rep. John Bucy called the move a desperate one by Texas Republicans, and said he will not back down.
“This is what it looks like when a President, a Governor, and an entire political party work together to cheat in an attempt to steal an election. They are doing everything they possibly can to cling to power and subvert the will of millions of Americans,” Bucy said. “I remain steadfast in my resolve to protect our democracy, our constitution, and our country. This seat belongs to the people of Texas House District 136 — not Ken Paxton. I am not afraid. I am not backing down.”
The Democrats’ absence has been met with escalating threats from Gov. Greg Abbott, Attorney General Ken Paxton, U.S. Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) and Texas House Speaker Dustin Burrows (R-Lubbock) – from ordering Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) troopers to conduct civil arrests if the Democrats return to Texas, to reportedly getting the FBI involved in Illinois, where many of the Democrats went when they left.
Gov. Abbott says he will continue to call special session after special session in order to get the congressional redistricting bill passed.
In an interview with a conservative podcast called “Ruthless” on Friday, the governor said if the democrats don’t return to the Capitol, he will consider making the proposed new congressional map even more favorable to republicans.
“The Democrats always come back. It could be tomorrow, it could be next week, it could be next month. They’re going to come back, or we’ll be able to track them down. One way or the other, they’re coming back. It’s going to end with these maps being passed,” Abbott said. “What I’m thinking now is, if they don’t start showing up, I may start expanding. We may make it six or seven or eight new seats. We’re going to be adding on the Republican side.”
State Rep. Richard Peña Raymond (D-Laredo), one of the handful of Democrats who didn’t flee the state, said he stands with his Democratic colleagues who did break quorum in opposing the mid-decade redistricting.
“We’re all united against it, whether they’re standing in the Capitol as I am now, or whether they’re standing in Illinois or anywhere else in the state or in the world, if they’re from Texas or they’re from America,” Raymond said. “We are united in saying we should not be redistricting every two years.”
Democrats fled the state in an attempt to halt redistricting efforts. State Rep. Cody Vasut, chair of the House Redistricting Committee, said the quorum break won’t stop the legislature from passing a new congressional map.
Vasut said quorum breaks can only go on so long, so it is just a question of when.
“Regardless of whether you’re going to win or lose a particular vote. And as a conservative, I lose my fair share of votes on the floor of the House every single day. The people of Texas expect you to show up and do your job,” Vasut said. “I would just encourage all of them to come back, do their job, and let their voice be heard on the floor of the House. That’s what you were elected to do.”
Attorney General Ken Paxton also announced Friday afternoon that he is suing former Congressman Beto O’Rourke and his political action committee, “Powered by People,” for allegedly bankrolling the Democrats’ trip out of state.
In that lawsuit, he accuses the organization of raising political funds to cover the personal expenses of House Democrats who broke quorum and claims that lawmakers were bribed to violate their duties.
When KVUE asked “Powered by People” about the allegation, they sent us a statement from O’Rourke.
“The guy impeached for bribery is going after the folks trying to stop the theft of five Congressional seats,” O’Rourke said. “Let’s stop these thugs before they steal our country.”
On Friday afternoon, O’Rourke’s group filed a retaliatory lawsuit against Paxton in state court, claiming the attorney general is using “the power of the State of Texas to try and intimidate Mr. O’Rourke from challenging Defendant in a free and fair election.”
House Democrats who fled the state are showing no signs of returning. House Democrats tell KVUE that they have no intention of returning before the current special session ends, which is scheduled to conclude in 11 days.
The House will attempt to reach a quorum next Monday, but Speaker Burrows has instructed members to be prepared to drop everything and return to Austin sooner if they can find enough members to establish a quorum.