If Kash is going to kidnapp the democrats so they can be forced to go sit n be counted for the big gerrymander in TX...
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Truancy can be a crime for children. But even this is probably unconstitutional if we thought about it.
Being in the state house isn't a court date. They literally do not need to show up if they don't feel like it. Maybe they are all sick and only Chicago can make them feel well. Tough cookies.
This whole thing has "NO you have to come to my birthday party and your HAVE TO like it!" undercurrents.
Your fellow legislators are so fed up with you that over a third of them don't want to sit down and negotiate. They aren't paper puppets who will help you enact a play where you destroy their already imbalanced districts and harm the people they represent.
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F myrmepropagandist shared this topic
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This whole thing has "NO you have to come to my birthday party and your HAVE TO like it!" undercurrents.
Your fellow legislators are so fed up with you that over a third of them don't want to sit down and negotiate. They aren't paper puppets who will help you enact a play where you destroy their already imbalanced districts and harm the people they represent.
If the Republicans are going to basically scrub away the last remains of their power why on earth should they sit and play along like it is a legitimate or fair thing to do?
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This whole thing has "NO you have to come to my birthday party and your HAVE TO like it!" undercurrents.
Your fellow legislators are so fed up with you that over a third of them don't want to sit down and negotiate. They aren't paper puppets who will help you enact a play where you destroy their already imbalanced districts and harm the people they represent.
@futurebird Would you have a link to a source explaining this buffoonery for us who are outside the US ?
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@futurebird Would you have a link to a source explaining this buffoonery for us who are outside the US ?
To Summarize:
In the US congress is elected by districts that are drawn by the state. It's possible to draw these districts to benefit one party more than another (Gerrymandering) the Texas Republicans plan a WILD gerrymander that will reduce the number of Democrats in congress. To block it the *state* dems have left the state so the state government can't do any business.
TX Republicans want them arrested by the FBI for this.
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To Summarize:
In the US congress is elected by districts that are drawn by the state. It's possible to draw these districts to benefit one party more than another (Gerrymandering) the Texas Republicans plan a WILD gerrymander that will reduce the number of Democrats in congress. To block it the *state* dems have left the state so the state government can't do any business.
TX Republicans want them arrested by the FBI for this.
Does that make sense? Let me know if I should fill in any more of what is going on.
GOP’s FBI talk on Texas sparks firestorm with Democrats
Claims by Texas Republicans that the FBI is getting involved in efforts to track down and possibly detain Democratic state lawmakers who fled Texas to stop a partisan redistricting effort is getting strong pushback from Democrats in Congress. Democratic lawmakers are investigating how involved the FBI is in the Texas redistricting battle, but lawmakers who…
Yahoo News (www.yahoo.com)
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To Summarize:
In the US congress is elected by districts that are drawn by the state. It's possible to draw these districts to benefit one party more than another (Gerrymandering) the Texas Republicans plan a WILD gerrymander that will reduce the number of Democrats in congress. To block it the *state* dems have left the state so the state government can't do any business.
TX Republicans want them arrested by the FBI for this.
I know about gerrymandering (what we don't understand here is why you haven't jailed the people who do it).
It's the "To block it the *state* dems have left the state so the state government can't do any business" part that I don't understand ? -
I know about gerrymandering (what we don't understand here is why you haven't jailed the people who do it).
It's the "To block it the *state* dems have left the state so the state government can't do any business" part that I don't understand ?In order for some congress-like bodies to be vaild they will often have rules that say they must have a "quorum" Normally 2/3s of the members must be present or something similar.
So, if all the Democrats leave they do not have "quorum" and so they can pass no new laws. They cannot pass the new gerrymander. (It's already pretty gerrymandered as it is, this is just taking it to an extreme.)
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In order for some congress-like bodies to be vaild they will often have rules that say they must have a "quorum" Normally 2/3s of the members must be present or something similar.
So, if all the Democrats leave they do not have "quorum" and so they can pass no new laws. They cannot pass the new gerrymander. (It's already pretty gerrymandered as it is, this is just taking it to an extreme.)
OK, I get that, but why don't the democrats just stay at home ?
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OK, I get that, but why don't the democrats just stay at home ?
That's a good question. I think maybe it's something technical in the state constitution? They have done this before. Perhaps there is some difference between being absent, and "out of the state" ?
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That's a good question. I think maybe it's something technical in the state constitution? They have done this before. Perhaps there is some difference between being absent, and "out of the state" ?
@futurebird @lienrag
if they're in a different state, anything the governor tries to do about it will be more difficult, and much more likely to gain nationwide attention. And that's what the cause needs: nationwide attention. Without that, their sacrifice probably ends up being meaningless.(Note: I suspect the pragmatic difficulties will end up being more important than the legal-technical issues.)
