Texas Republicans consider options for election bill after state Democrats leak

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After House Democrats left the state on Monday to try to block passage of a GOP election bill in the special legislative session, attention turned to Republicans and what they can do to get priority legislation passed.

House Speaker Dade Phelan R-Beaumont said in a statement this afternoon that the chamber “will use all available resources under the Texas Constitution and unanimously passed House rules to ensure a quorum “in order to adopt items on the agenda for the special session, which was set by Governor Greg Abbott. And a number of House Republicans have indicated they will support what is known as a House appeal, a procedural step that would allow law enforcement to track down lawmakers who have already fled the chamber.

It’s unclear what impact such an order might have, however, given that Democrats have visited Washington, DC, where Texas law enforcement has no jurisdiction. Republicans are also keeping their cards close to the waistcoat as to whether there are other tactics they plan to employ to force members of the state’s minority party to return to Austin before the special session ends in 26 days.

Abbott, who also tasked the Legislature with working on a host of other Conservative priorities such as funding border security and abortion legislation, said later Monday he could and would convene as many of special sessions as needed “until they do their job.”

“They will be parked and locked in the Capitol,” he told KVUE.

Current electoral legislation, House Bill 3 and Senate Bill 1, would make a number of changes, such as banning drive-thru and 24-hour voting options and further restricting voting options. state postal voting rules. House and Senate committees pushed the legislation forward over the weekend after marathon hearings.

Two-thirds of the 150 members of the House must be present for the chamber to conduct its business. And under House Rules, which were passed unanimously by MPs at the start of the regular legislative session in January, any MP can ask the House to “ensure and maintain a quorum” for legislation. This motion must be seconded by 15 members, one of whom may be the speaker, and ordered by a majority of votes. The movement also allows the speaker to lock the chamber doors to prevent members from leaving the chamber.

“Until a quorum is reached, if the call does not show a person present, no business will be dealt with except to compel absent members or to adjourn,” the House rules state.

At least two Republican House Speakers – Briscoe Cain of Deer Park and Jeff Leach of Plano – to have mentionned they will support such a motion when the lower house gives its hammer on Tuesday morning. And others, including State Representative Dustin Burrows, a Republican from Lubbock who chairs the powerful House Calendars Committee, have indicated their support for the procedural decision.

“It’s a sad comment that maybe we should use a rule of procedure to try to force most Democrats to run for the job they were elected to do,” Burrows said in a statement to the Texas Tribune. , adding that “unfortunately the siren call of social media fame and fundraising” had drawn Democrats to DC

The last time Democrats broke the quorum and fled the state in 2003, Republicans in Texas asked the attorneys general of Oklahoma and New Mexico if Texas soldiers could arrest warrantless state lawmakers. and bring them back to Texas. Both states said no.

Republican leaders at the time also questioned whether federal authorities could bring Democrats back, but the FBI and the Justice Department said at the time that they had no justification for intervening.

As news of the Democrats’ dramatic departure spread throughout Texas on Monday, a number of Republican officials and lawmakers statewide called their colleagues attention seekers who neglected their legislative duties and abandoned voters who elected them to work on the issues facing the state.

In a statement, Abbott said the Democrats’ decision to “relinquish the Texas State Capitol hurts the Texans who elected them to serve” and said they had left important issues such as relief on the table. property tax and funding for the state foster care system to “fly over the country in cozy private planes.”

Republicans also have another pressure point: Funding for the legislature, including legislative staff, will run out on August 31 after Abbott vetoed its funding following the failure of two of his plans for the government. priority law during the Democratic walkout during the ordinary session.

Democrats have challenged Abbott’s decision in court, which puts the livelihoods of around 2,100 legislative staff at risk. But if they don’t return to Austin to restore funding during the special session, Republicans could blame them for not paying those staff members.

“[The Democrats are] get out as soon as they have a chance to charge their staff when they have complained, ”said Corbin Casteel, a GOP strategist. “It’s a double-edged sword. They may be able to delay the voter integrity bill, but they are also screwing up their own staff. “

Other House Republicans responded on Monday by tabling legislation that would penalize lawmakers in the future for trying to break the quorum.

State Representative Mayes Middleton, R-Wallisville, who chairs the die-hard Conservative House Freedom Caucus, said he had tabled a proposed constitutional amendment that would remove salary protections from a lawmaker if this legislator had an unjustified absence in the absence of a quorum. He also introduced legislation that would prevent lawmakers from campaigning in a special session.

Middleton’s decision came on the heels of State Representative Tony Tinderholt, another member of the Arlington Freedom Caucus, table a resolution of the House this would allow the chamber to strip lawmakers who are stepping down from their presidency and committee duties, as well as opening the door to the removal of “perks such as large offices and coveted parking spaces” that are typically distributed in depending on the seniority of the members.

State Representative Andrew Murr, a Republican from Junction who heads the House Elections Bill, said in a statement to the Tribune that “it would be extremely disheartening” to see Democrats “making an effort to avoid the debate on this subject ”. He also said he had “been as transparent as possible” to help “create the smartest and most effective policies”.

“I know that I and other representatives would be happy to continue the debate and work together to pass a strong electoral integrity bill,” Murr said.

Casteel said the state’s minority party could trade a short-term gain for a long-term loss with its latest walkout.

“It’s one of those types of deals where you watch the battle against war,” he said. “They won the first battle in the [session], they are trying the same thing here, but eventually their time is going to run out and they are going to have to come and vote.

In 2003, House Democrats left the state in the regular session to prevent a plan to redistribute Republicans who had just taken both houses of the Legislature. Senate Democrats blocked two special legislative sessions, until the redesigned maps were finally passed in the third special session called by the government of the day. Rick Perry.

Jon Taylor, a political scientist at the University of Texas at San Antonio, said Abbott could do the same if Democrats don’t return before the special session is over.

“It’s the old adage that elections have consequences,” Taylor said. “When you’re not in the majority, they still can’t stop this stuff. “

But Taylor said that while Democrats can’t stop the election bill, they can still draw attention to their cause.

“The point is to get it across to the voters, to Congress, to the nation because it’s not just something happening in Texas, it’s happening in other Red States,” he said. . “We’ve seen it in Georgia, Florida, we’ve seen it in Oklahoma, and we’ll probably see it in other states.”

Yet the maneuver is a calculated risk.

“You see it already,” Taylor said. “[Democrats are] seen as heroes on the Democratic side and the center of all evil on the Republican side. “

Disclosure: The University of Texas at San Antonio has financially supported The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, non-partisan news organization funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial support plays no role in the journalism of the Tribune. Find a full list of them here.