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AUSTIN, Texas – Just after the Texas House of Representatives, well below the quorum needed to pass a law, resigned for the next day after meeting for less than an hour, Michael Black, the Sergeant-at-Arms of the House, left his office just outside the second floor bedroom to embark on an extraordinary mission.
Suddenly charged with a crucial mission in the bitter showdown of the Republican-led Texas legislature, Mr. Black was given the task of handing out 52 civilian arrest warrants to coerce the Democrats’ presence. absent who locked the chamber during the last hours of the legislature. session in May. Their objective was to deprive the Chamber of the quorum and thus block the adoption of a restrictive electoral measure.
Such was life at the towering red granite Capitol Building on Wednesday after the House vote on Tuesday night to allow state law enforcement officials to round up and potentially arrest missing Democrats. The 80-12 vote authorized the House Sergeant-at-Arms to compel the presence of missing members “under arrest warrant, if necessary”.
Eleven Democrats returned to the chamber on Tuesday and united to voice dissenting voices in favor of their absent colleagues. They were joined by a Republican, Lyle Larson of San Antonio, who sometimes opposes his party leadership. But the participation did not reach a quorum. Thus, clutching a black filing cabinet in his hands and accompanied by two others from his office, the enforcer of the laws embarked on his journey on Wednesday.
He took the elevator first to the fourth floor. The first stop was the office of Representative Hubert Vo, a Democrat from Houston. After knocking but receiving no response, he then knelt down to slide the warrant under the door. It was the same story in the office next door of Rep. Yvonne Davis, a Democrat from Dallas.
A floor below, the door was open to the office of Representative Senfronia Thompson, a member of the House for nearly half a century. But the Houston rep wasn’t there, and a senior executive said she didn’t know where she was.
Mr. Black left the warrant for help and continued his walk floor by floor through the Capitol. “As long as it takes,” he said when asked about a schedule for issuing the warrants.
The involvement of the Sergeant-at-Arms is the latest turning point in a steadily escalating confrontation between, on the one hand, Governor Greg Abbott and the 83 Republicans who control the House and, on the other, most of the 67 House Democrats, who forced the governor to call not one, but two special sessions by refusing to show up to produce the quorum needed to do business.
After Tuesday’s vote, Texas House chairman Dade Phelan signed the 52 civilian arrest warrants to initiate the roundup. In addition to Mr. Black and his team, members of the Texas Department of Public Safety could also be dispatched statewide to visit the homes and businesses of absent members and accompany them back to Austin.
After staying in Washington, DC, for the first 30-day session, many Democrats are said to be back in Texas, but they seemed ready to continue their resistance against the ballot bill and other conservative measures the governor has brought forward. included in both sessions.
“Every day that the House cannot move forward on these voters’ bills and other measures is a good day,” said Chris Turner, the Democratic leader, who received his mandate by email. He described the special session as a “30-day campaign advertisement” for Mr Abbott’s re-election campaign, adding: “At the moment, we are not interested in participating.”
Representative Celia Israel, an Austin real estate agent elected to the House in 2014, returned to the capital from Washington on Monday evening, aware that she could be considered a fugitive in the eyes of Republicans.
“Today was garbage day,” she said. “I took out the trash, I looked both sides of the street. The coast was clear.
When asked if she was planning on returning to the bedroom, she responded with a ‘Hell no’ and said, ‘I didn’t sacrifice my things, my family time and some crispy tacos just to go downstairs for. walk on the floor of the house and help them flatter 5% of the electorate.
Ms Israel called the order to issue arrest warrants a “new low” and said she “would not answer the door” if a soldier came to her home.
“They can’t come into my home,” she said. She also noted that she had two “guard dogs” – a terrier and a golden retriever – who “would let me know when someone was in the front yard.” She added: “This is a civil matter. I did not commit any crime.
The Texas House decision to bring lawmakers together came hours after the all-Republican Texas Supreme Court, acting on a motion by Mr. Abbott and Mr. Phelan, overturned an earlier ruling in the case.
The ruling, rendered by a judge in Travis County District Court, where Austin is located, determined that the two officials, both Republicans, did not have the power to order the arrest of their elected colleagues.
The impasse could have effects that go beyond the current disputes.
Brandon Rottinghaus, a political scientist at the University of Houston, said the “biggest impact” of the widening confrontation could be “an irrevocable split” in the bipartisan working relationship that Texas lawmakers have often bragged about.
“The Texas legislature runs on connections – it runs on goodwill – and without that goodwill the machine goes off very quickly,” he said. “By putting that spirit of courtesy at risk, it reshapes the Texas legislature in a way that makes it harder to get things done. “
A lot of Republicans say the same thing.
“What is happening is shameful and embarrassing for Texas,” said Rep. Phil King, a Republican from Weatherford in north Texas. “They have to get back to work.
Mr Turner, the Democratic leader, said Democrats “take this day to day” and meet each morning in Zoom meetings to discuss strategy.
“At some point in the future, of course, we’ll come back,” he said. “But I don’t know it will be anytime soon.”
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