Tin Foil Hat Alert: Is something brewing in the Texas Legislature?

[Walt Starr]

OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR
Rick Perry


Statement of Gov. Rick Perry on Supreme Court Decision

AUSTIN – Gov. Rick Perry today released the following statement on a decision by the Texas Supreme Court to deny the state’s mandamus action compelling 11 Democrat senators to return to work.


“I am very disappointed that the Supreme Court did not resolve this pending constitutional crisis. The gravity of the situation is obvious. I believe a court resolution of this issue is critical to the future of our democratic process. Without a legal resolution, this constitutional abuse will be used in the future to again bring our government to a halt.


“The bottom line issue remains the same: These 11 Democrats continue to abdicate their responsibilities. They need to return to Texas and get back to work on important issues facing Texas. I remain committed to addressing redistricting and firmly believe that the vast majority of Texans expected their elected officials to draw congressional district lines, rather than leaving the work to federal judges. Other important work affecting education, health care and transportation also must be addressed.”

Now, let me get this thing firmly in place before I continue...

:tinfoilhat:

Okay, could Perry declare these Democrats as having abandoned their positions and begin special elections for replacements?

[ewagner]

1. Possible

That would be the reason for the strange wording.

Better start doing a statute search on "Vacancies in Office"

[Walt Starr]

5. I'm worried that may be plan 'B' should the courts fail them

This could get serious.

[kainah]

2. These guys "could" do absolutely anything

I really mean that. There is one thing that I learned about this new era we're in many months ago: whenever you think they can't do anything worse, they find something worse to do. It's the only continuing truth under this administration.

[donco6]

3. It's been done before.

Here in Colorado - can't remember exactly when, but I remember the story of how the new "representatives" tried to take their seats and the old reps lock the doors and barricaded themselves inside with rifles.

So, it wouldn't surprise me at all.

[liberalhistorian]

4. Repukes complaining about

"constitutional abuse" and danger to democracy give new meaning to the word "chutzpah."

[trogdor]

6. Dude, you don't need to be a tinfoil hatter to be concerned.

There is a civil war brewing in the USA. I can identify two fronts already - California and Texas. Maybe it's a cold civil war, but war nonetheless. We need to treat is as such.

[LifeDuringWartime]

7. eek

:tinfoilhat:

red terror alert, anybody?

[LEFTofLEFT]

8. Civil War - Cold Civil WAR

This is true.

We must fight like the future is at stake.

IT IS!

[DavidNY]

9. My impression is that the constituents of the missing senators...

by and large support their quorum-breaking. (One of the reasons the Republicans have such a solid state Senate majority in the first place, I believe, is gerrymandering that left Democrats "packed" into fewer districts-- there's some process in Texas for a board, made up in large part of the holders of statewide offices occupied by Republicans in 2000, to redistrict the state legislature when the two houses can't agree on a plan, as they couldn't in 2000 back when the Texas House had a Democratic majority). So if this is what Perry has in mind, the threat of special elections shouldn't be too much of a problem, unless Perry is planning to somehow bar the absent Senators from running for reelection (on grounds of nonresidence in the state or something-- though unless Texas has an unusual system I don't think that's up to him, and by the usual definitions of legal residence it would be laughable). The only remaining worrisome possibility is that perhaps while the special elections were proceeding, the vacancies would cause a quorum to be defined as 2/3 of the remaining Senators-- I don't know whether the Texas Constitution's language would allow this, but it seems plausible.

I think Perry's language probably wasn't this significant, though; if he were trying to set something up, I would have expected him to use the word "abandoned" instead of "abdicated their responsibilities", and the whole idea seems like it might be too crazy even for him (though how low he's willing to sink is hard to gauge at this point).

[whathappened]

10. what the hell

jr. know's how to disapeer into the nite , if he can go on vacation every five minutes , why not everybody take the clue and do the same , i think we need a national strike and shut down everything that moves and breaths and show them who are the bosses of our great nation , just like the texas dems , they are showing some spine , and we should all go awol on our jobs and bring all these rich shits down a couple of knoches