Supreme Court Weighs Texas Political Map

WASHINGTON - Texas Republicans were guilty of a naked political power grab when they re-drew congressional boundaries, the Supreme Court was told Wednesday in a case that could have a major impact on elections.

Justices are considering whether the Republican-friendly map promoted by former Majority Leader Tom DeLay is unconstitutional.

The 2003 boundaries approved by the GOP-controlled state Legislature helped the Republican Party pick up six seats in Congress, but it also led to serious woes for DeLay. He was charged in state court with money laundering in connection with fundraising for legislative candidates. He gave up his leadership post and is fighting the charges.

"The only reason it was considered, let alone passed, was to help one political party get more seats than another," justices were told by Paul M. Smith, a Washington lawyer who represents the League of United Latin American Citizens, one of the groups challenging the plan.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060301/ap_on_go_su_co/scotus_texas_redistricting

Legislatures re-draw the map all the time for political reasons." Not in the middle of the decade you corrupt fuck. I hate that guy so much......

minority voters. When they first decided to hear this case, I did some research. Seems there have been several cases similar to this heard by the SCOTUS. The ONLY time they ever found it to be illegal was when it was proven to have disenfranchised minority voters.

I don't know if that happened in TX or not, or if it did, can it be proven?

It disenfranchises both Latinos and Blacks in that it packs them into a few districts (where possible) and where it isn't possible to do that, it cracks them up into districts with majority White voters. The DoJ reviewed it and the lifer bureaucrats recommended the DoJ NOT approve it, but the political hacks appointed by W_rong didn't file that opposition and instead filed that they had no issue with it.

As to this being the only way, consider that TX redistricted just 2 years before in the legally approved manner that existed up until then, but since that didn't get the Bugman what he wanted, he bribed & coerced a bunch of 'pukes to get them to (possibly illegally) reopen the issue with a bogus claim that since the TX Legislature hadn't done it (it was done by a board appointed by them), that the Legislature had failed in their responsibility and it still needed to be done properly. If this is let stand, then basically we can expect redistricting whenever they feel like it (that is, however often is needed to keep them in power).

A court drew the lines when the Legislature failed to come up with its own plan

the Legislative Redistricting Board...


For those who haven't seen the map it's available at http://www.tlc.state.tx.us/redist/doc/00-03redistnews.htm

The 2000 redistrict was done by the Court because the TX House was D and TX Senate was R and they couldn't agree on a map. I am not sure what Board you mean.

some districts were off by as many as 50,000 people. Which violates the Voting Rights act, and the premise of 'one man, one vote'.

there is no reason whatsoever that the court will rule against the GOP. We are in a new America. Its been new for 6 years now.

These people stole an election for president of the United States and in effect, overthrew the United States government. By definition, they are capable of literally anything. We are not really in America any longer.

And I hope that beautiful old bridge I bought last night in New York works out as promised. There are so many people coming in from Brooklyn every day, I should make a fortune.

motorcycle!!!!!!!!! you can have colthes or boots but my motercycle, not

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/politics/3693831.html

March 1, 2006, 3:36PM
Justices hear Texas redistricting arguments

By PATTY REINERT
Copyright 2006 Houston Chronicle Washington Bureau

WASHINGTON — Texas' 2003 redistricting, orchestrated by former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, was an egregious partisan power grab that violated the Constitution and federal law, challengers to the new map told the U.S. Supreme Court this afternoon in a case that could help determine control of Congress in November.

But Texas Solicitor General Ted Cruz, aided by a lawyer with the Bush administration, told the justices that the state's election map was properly redrawn. The fact that Texas sent six more Republicans to Washington in the last election simply shows that the new map more accurately reflects the current voting choices of Republican-leaning Texans.

n an unusual two-hour afternoon session, the justices peppered each side with questions. But as the arguments dragged on, a few on the bench and many in the audience struggled to remain alert.

The public section of courtroom was filled, with the front rows dominated by members of the Texas congressional delegation.

At issue in the four cases argued today are several questions:

* Should the Texas Legislature have been allowed to redistrict in 2003, instead of immediately following a census, solely to benefit the Republican Party? If so, should lawmakers have used updated census information?

* Does the new map amount to excessive political gerrymandering in violation of the U.S. Constitution?

* Does the map violate the federal Voting Rights Act or the U.S. Constitution by diluting minority voting rights?

more...

"In particular, he (Kennedy) said several times, removing 100,000 Latino voters from the 23rd District in South Texas and then making sure the district remained 50.9 percent Latino was "an affront and an insult."

But Chief Justice John Roberts asked what percentage of minority voters would be sufficient to deem the district majority minority."

Roberts is an asshat.

With Scalia, Thomas, Roberts, and Kennedy there is no way this will be decided in our favor.

it's still important to fight it out. If redistricting out of normal timelines based on whatever politically expedient justification is allowed to stand, we're in deep crapola. Also, it isn't justr about a single Latino district. They actively did packing/cracking to dilute the minority vote as much as possible and to try and ensure that the 'pukes OWN the state for then next generation.

The whole concept of redistricting has been perverted beyond anything our founding fathers could have dreemed up, and the pols have been using redistricting to assure ascendancy instead of doing the will of the people. The original intent of a district was to group people with a similar set of needs & interests based on theirresidence.

If you look at the districts in Texas, you'll not see anything even approaching that is many of the currently drawn districts (including one that bears a stricking resemblance to a spaghetti noodle, streching from Austin/San Antonio to Brownsville, nearly 300 miles away, and another that has people in a suburb of Houston in the same district as people just outside Austin).

slipperry corrupt slime!!!

It was clearly illegal, as was Bush v Gore. Hey asshats, notice how your lawyer-hatin' Chimp was the Plaintiff in that case? Ya fucking morons!

http://www.tlc.state.tx.us/redist/pdf/h1369/map.pdf

Dem majorities were chopped up and redistricted into Repuke areas. Can really see it with "pie-slice" urban-suburban districts. (Take a slice of Urban dems and stretch distrct into burbs, far enough to get repuke majority!)

Another glaring hole in the Constitution that the Founders could not foresee.

If they decide for this outrageous redistricting quilt the possibilities, better still the actualities will be that all states can and will do the same depending on the prevailing partisan balance of a state legislature.

Just like the tenuous status of electors supposedly picked by the voters who can be replaced by partisan legislatures before the electoral college picks, because again, the Constitution is seriously wanting in a defined mandate.

The more these serious cancers are exposed in the Constitution the sooner a second constitutional convention can be called and tyrannies like partisan Supreme Courts and despotic Unitary Executives and any other problems in this seriously wanting document can be reconstituted without such damning fatal flaws.

Maybe we should contact this guy.