Texas Weekly; Congressional Redistricting

i'm keane from the state capitals you're listening to texas weekly this week legislative issues with host dave mcneely of the austin american statesman this program was recorded on thursday may fourteen for broadcast at the sky every ten years the federal government takes a census that new population count prison term used to redraw the boundaries of legislative and congressional districts those numbers are friendly and and that business is going on right now in the texas legislature this will be decided that is paid more attention than any other in the final month the legislative session because the kind of district that a legislator broadly decide whether it survives to come back for another legislative session in two years with us to discuss this grizzly processor for legislators that with this process of calls from the senate side senator pete nelson of metal and the democrat who is in charge of drawing up preliminary plans for new state senate districts and from the house side really kerrey democrat from fort worth hugo rolling a democrat from corpus christi an ad in the

republican contest also there's land commissioner bob armstrong is one of the five members of the retreat is dripping board that will draw up new legislative districts if the legislature failed to do so by the end of the session bob we're still about three desperate process from the way it was well i think the first thing is that maybe the rules are a little more clear than they were then we were fighting a different battle of the most notable i suppose would be a single member districts ten years ago that was permissible for travis county representation to be composed of four people who ran at large in the county executive owens and instead of having a single member district as we have now the courts ultimately goes that we would have single member district and oh so we have different kinds of rules now than we have been and i think they're much more definitive anybody that starts at three district would probably think that this is not a very hard patch figures were panic

without having tried to do it a basically you and certain rules to the sun so many people to a legislative districts and on the compact body certain community of interest to the people in there as far as possible into that sound pretty easy it is easy until you start the first volley have started the perimeter and there you can't go outside the state that you have the population centers within the state and then when she tracked to fit in those districts that are not in the population centers like austin san antonio dallas fort worth it in on the edges of that window just that the necessity for one person one vote and get into the snaky wall strange convoluted this trickster which are usually in these areas that are not in the middle of tangier and on the edges then try and alibis as

buoyant and a funny job it almost a necessity that they look like that before it's over and so i think that it's going to be somewhat easy we say also parenthetically that i have a fervent hope that the legislature doesn't mean the border is not for as weird where is it we have congressional leaders on one side the us use those are supposed to redraw congressional districts but you also have to redraw the legislative districts for for the season which you know you know if you fail or redraw the legislative districts then the rudest thing won't work it can be that little of russell this a show vertical good indian river different world are predicting more teams set by the texas constitution as a way to help problem with the legislature failed to renew itself the congressional district have to be done by the state and there is no federal constitutional

provision for redistricting board it has to be done now the ledge ledge other two other factors we have come into play this time that we didn't have ten years ago or fifteen years ago the other edition as a computer capability plus requirements voting rights act as regards the at that make up the districts we have to do all of the hand and it says a tremendous job now with a computer capability that we have the assistance you can go lions on the map state map and then they can tell you what the makeup of that district is and that's a tremendous help for growth we had to do that and manually it would be almost impossible task but demographic information as a girl is already hugged in the computer so you'll win a new delhi line around the game industry then the computer can tell you what's in that insider the framework what about is that it is thought about voting rights act a law and relive those blacks particularly in route to a large extent all of them are very interested in how this plan the

federal law requires that minority representation at least not be diluted be enhanced if possible was originally watson in the state and the legislature lessons from a sudden oh cause we're very concerned that we maintain the mortals right at me did ellen willis right at i think would be in trouble and you know tex is one of few states that are still risking want to lead federal guidelines for every district and that itself going to be no regulation and then ends by the same token if you know one article says they didn't exist we are very concerned about iran's intention in with i didnt allow specifics than the dallas fort worth metroplex where we feel that we ought to be able to get a lease a congressional district we would have an opportunity to win a state senate as you know in the senate we don't know one black in the state senate senator

and we feel that the only stay there with houston and also at least we ought to be able to because of the process and the press the barnard and has been devoted a perhaps all of the state more specifically in dallas and fort worth because of the congressional redistricting that's why we're concerned that really sell some representation whereby we couldn't get in to the congressional district and the senate toward it was quite a fight your own communities weren't you know go after it mandela's caring for essence where martin frost intended for a fourth congressional district and jim mattox in the fifth congressional district and the blacks and austin essentially split between them and their two democrats elected there another republicans and presumably some of the blacks would like to see all blacks lumped into one of those districts which one would become republicans don't like that which are well

i don't know the fiber and democrats republicans but for us to get the congressional district and a dozen out of which allows who might help presently we as the polls among republicans vote and we also have a democratic proposal of my content ios that a congressional seat we need there you go back historically that dispute with maddox in a false to cure that year in dallas has been built it there's been caught up all three of your bowels and systematically called up and we want something for working conditions court by the same token that it looked like it was all right but when we visit i have a beard so we've we won because of the apparent delusion and so to me and i have been working with the minority coalition battles in london terror county we do have a common images and we have that would want to assess that the lead district well the democrat republic whatever who helps and with that we have a congressional say their jewelry boxes osborne one

official loyalists it also the loop but you know with one group it also prevented and dancing in unison well you're braving fencing our words words is it the best american legal defense and education son and a consortium of muslim american groups have complained about what the new plan the congressional plan put forward by the house committee because it's a tip those too much put too many western rather than one district and therefore it does him less control and less possibility for electing mr martin absolutely authentic momma plus modern marvels at all the most american groups and to insult a similar registration intuition really laid have joined forces together in that honestly arkansas our contention is that under the current owner industry allowed to have presently we have more mobile we consider a

minority majority districts for hispanics we are now increasing twenty seven and once again we still does have four and obviously the concern is that the libyan got together and wonder should be in the twenty third district and active for say without any question that if in fact there is not some modifications and that it will be in federal court on a particular issue by virtue of their platoon really absolutely nowhere to the fact that if in fact you look at the fact that you have four out of twenty four inch to maintain for twenty seven with our population our necks as a twenty percent renewable is weekend edition we have a tradition in the third let's just talk for all about the republican and dieudonne terms as the republicans have always complained and texas that while the state had enough people to elect a republican governor nineteen seventy eight for instance and only five of the twenty four cars as an example republican well the voting rights act states

mainly the voting minorities not just ethnic minorities and says something really have talked about over the course the last two years what helps one voting minority will also vote the other voting on rt which in this case actually you know in the legislative redistricting republicans are pretty well taken care of financial forces some herbs for republicans in texas the rural areas are still predominantly democrat in the suburbs it doesn't matter how you cut them out they still get republican district for example john henderson district in west northwest harris county has an offer for a new legislative say tort reform now he's a state rep wright and those three seats will all be republican no matter how you carlotta so on the legislative front i don't think were were that concerned i think we come out natural the congressional districts or another matter because are so large if you run in from rural areas and pick up part of suburbs

and taken back out to rural areas the you dilute that republican voting strength and cyber monday and that's been traditionally the judges to prevent the income this session this redistricting will be different though because if you start by carving an ethnic minority district in the center would see you in the suburbs to themselves to create new districts in those districts will be predominately repo yeah there's a moment in a world and they're carrying with nicholas odonnell at least under the house plan that sense of a senate plan the authorities doing they're counted as light almost to the gulf coast with one congressional district part of western and northern their carriers line almost due west of el paso for another congressional district and then you know one letter right in the middle america would it make more sense to well from

what you're saying you have to wear in the streets and low levels of fish whether there's a different reason for that that that really a partisan question of all cities all over the state saying that they split some cities come in and say we deserve two seats we want those two seats wholly within our city others specifically sample came to those westerns that we have pieces of three we like having three members of congress rather than tip i can never won ten that we were having this problem and in nineteen seventy one a listen there there is generally a community of interest in the center of the city i suggested that perhaps your look at the theory of the law so that you have of center then you have the sort of one call in or summer and that would pick up short group people and you have the outer suburbs and then there were some sensibility that a lesson led mean that you know we would be a shorter work and that's true in my internet outage interview for an answer

but but there is a marriage you were assigned to that kind of approach and the difficulty is though that today at dealing with individuals and in very hard nut say that that is his berliner has made history or that is nelson's did actually redistricting has both to be blunt about it in because of the nature of the game i think one thing to keep in mind we have all these criteria incumbency ethnicity you were a progression communities of interest and they all conflict in kenya as a community you can just look at their scary for example if you do what's right for minorities and expand these minority seats since i only big in population and it's to keep communities of interest for example the small towns of baytown though i or them incumbents go out the window because us those townes earle split right now with the exception of by ten

so which factors nominate and that's the question that nobody can assign as world politics and they are rejecting it imam on the confessional and more than a very satisfied with the house redistricting i have probably three additional new seeds but the state house in the villages and that is because of the growth we've had and also with it with additional growth though in the southern part of the state is well up in southern west part of the state where there's no question it will pick up some additions say at the same time we do yes and history center highly minority here we have an image is such as glassman and the americans just two so far the legislature food for the failure of hispanics being elected and that just isn't the same token we have person one for salinas been elected on an elaborate lego fight cause of intellect about a poor orphan so there's a there's a checks announcing that regard that i think has forced home again and house seats the house of representatives and we expect that at least three new city

there's a desperate for and which really represent the legislature that is currently represented by senator or representative billed happen in the kind of former state senator and was never all that popular in the senate and has resulted in a decade all over the state run almost every county and now one district of their war of armageddon and knows the district at federal prisons margaret heffernan outside but the market is mine kelly and nurses care and there's been a big flap over that the pianist and sat like that was my own this was one of your colleagues in the house of labor was was likened the point that if you can't run the district is instantly drawn you not only have about television and porch pretty much left of that weapon used in a very expensive market they said please please keep a certain event was for some of them absolutely lots of them who they were continuing as adonis in the last thirteen years has county also plays the singer on that this trip along the way from

red to san antonio to continue for media market and that it also a district it's an online orders come together from what was a fifty four percent majority minority districts now become a seventy three point two percent in the air and i was in london says the whispering racist counting for the sake of critical to discipline in fact we think recalls edition from new i sit down to brownsville and also cuba commit images into one of the new minimum is this about the house which is there's been a tradition of very recent tradition i think hillary's living on assignment in the house or state house representative tradition the recent tradition for herman cain is to be able to grow their own minds of legislators from the irving kerry syndrome i know that word fram one in dallas county fairs as you were gone from fifteen members at large to eighteen in same or rebuild but now this town were going from a teen and summer desperate to sixty four because there's been no that was kenny have not grown as fast as houston and some years in the state

harrisburg on a deal with split among the people and i think it simply comes down to which plant can generate the most important for that ultimately the whole question comes down to which blanket seventy six vote on the house floor so the committee chairman specter have to try and put together a plan that can get that majority support in harris county even though we expand our numbers we ended up not reaching an agreement at all at least in dallas county they came to the eleven to seven vote even the waistband and they're scanning the state's shift to the suburbs so much that we have to and i probably two or three people so we have the same problem where that one point is to be neither label before program and the legislature really operates with a three party system it has for the past decade most republicans conservative democrats and liberal democrats and on the democrat side people tend to

go in and out of those two camps i guess and the redistricting will come down to which camp is each individual legislator and at the time the votes taken and that's going to consider reversing some possible consortiums are the knowledge than the allowable democrats and republicans of them and send them republicans well i think voters are so different republicans generally do not her conservative democrats if you go republican district is going to be an urban area where there are not very many conservative democrats anyway the conservative democrats are in rural areas and they're not affected the republican gains last laugh because saw a complete change in less my view the image in a comedic of a goddess or democrats or republican that was unusual and there was no difference between conservative democrats and when heavy

because at this point the democratic party was reputation and written representations of landless night they've actually talk about that because what happened and i say any given moment and i think it's one of the sins explosion happening in to our county we have a man won a muslim think we had to be somebody had been no because the population as elaine zillion a pairing to two representatives and that's happening i think we can minimize the pairing and you know you close to their console sales and it was that law that would be a new law that our critic bob lichter this house would not predict a citizen was a year ago that though we would welcome them are working with the board to sell it and read it and hope i'm wrong we're not making a pleasant as i thought they were like if there's a recession when he thinks richardson's energy relief to watch the senate will read it could sell them and this would be an oddity of the senate did in the fabric

and then that's when i think of the hammond separate bales read and try and combine them in one legislator darrell you think that the us senate and house again respected for the tradition that the senator distance itself mr giroux well otherwise it guarantees your son at this hour the house order to get the reward center six votes when in fact the house bill clinton for money and so will what about the governor edgar republican governor huntsman for him strangely silent on this whole thing that we think you do both of the congressional redistricting and legislative leaders starting with legislative i don't think the government involved in the legislative redistricting at all he sees that pretty much is the legislative prerogative an end they'd been involved congressional naturally don't get involved because he can veto that of college back in the special session i think what you look at is a statewide plan rather than individual districts don't think he's got particular

people that he wants to stay protected our are given out a congressional say i think overall there with that plan and of course george strait minutes of mission officer and the voting rights act will look at the plan and say if we are complying with a decision based on that we think if he does not like the rattle of this kid that he would hesitate to the cartels first sergeant read it i have not seen the owner hesitate about many things and if they don't like the blanchard alito falls back into the issues what that with regard to the legislative district that he's got to be somewhat and i would think about the shape of those districts however if he vetoes that is my understanding that it will go to the biggest thing work there is not such a day and i'm sure you think about that course prediction war is comprised of five democrats and untrue that would be someone who is not that you know when you get back to achieve if you if you do it right and all in a few years the computer to know what you're doing

and the effect of what you do you're gonna have a fair job and watching on the record the court and so i think one of the things that sometimes is misconstrued wanted to talk about democrats republicans if it is a reasonable job and in the test deals with things like census figures i think that to iran and its open the house and the senate if they did stand up in court so you know there's just not that much room to make slanted one where the investing talk about it has been worth the most remote in this programme were infirm we'd like to thank you jill and then he'd get back in the business of drawing legislative and congressional districts thanks to senator pete nelson of meddling representatives really care for or if you go right of corpus christi element of houston lanka mr bob armstrong and thank you please join us next week oh oh ah you've been listening to texas weekly an unrehearsed question an intersection between

members of the texas press corps and state lawmakers texas weekly is produced by katie of them and they are in tv and is distributed by communication center and ut austin the preceding program does not necessarily reflect the views of the communications center staff or the university of texas at austin this is a long war and radio network a piece