Texas Politics
 

Originally posted by Evenodds 05-12-2003 at 04:24 PM on main thread.
_______________________________________________

Angry Democrats boycott Texas House

AUSTIN, Texas, May 12 (UPI) -- Fifty-two angry Democrats refused to show up Monday in the Texas House, stalling action on a congressional redistricting bill backed by House Majority Leader Tom Delay, R-Texas.

Texas House Speaker Tom Craddick, R-Midland, immediately ordered the sergeant of arms to have them arrested and returned to the House but there were reports they had left the state, putting them out of the jurisdiction of state troopers. Craddick lacked a quorum to conduct business with the Democrats absent.

Republicans control the Legislature for the first time since Reconstruction but they need two-thirds of the 150 members present to conduct business. Ten other Democrats did not take part in the protest.

Letters from the 52 Democrats were presented to Craddick minutes before the session was to begin, informing him they would not be present. They asked that their voting machines be locked until they return to the House floor and request that their machines be unlocked.

In a statement, the boycotting Democrats laid the blame squarely DeLay.

Full text: http://www.upi.com/view.cfm?StoryID...12-042506-7960r

__________________
“My enemies curse my name but rave about my ass.”

Texas Politics
 

Rebel Democrats want redistricting dropped
From the UPI National Desk
Published 5/13/2003 4:47 PM

ARDMORE, Okla., May 13 (UPI) -- Rebel Democrats refused Tuesday to return to the Texas House unless Republican leaders drop a congressional redistricting bill backed by U.S. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay.

About 51 Democratic state representatives are holed up at a Holiday Inn in Ardmore, Okla., just across the state line, where they are safe from state troopers dispatched by Texas House Speaker Tom Craddick, a Republican. Their absences are preventing the quorum GOP leaders need to conduct business in the 150-member House.

The Democrats reported their absence to Craddick early Monday, the day the congressional redistricting bill was to come up for debate. At least two-thirds of the members are necessary to conduct business under the House rules. The state troopers dispatched by Craddick have no jurisdiction in Oklahoma.

The Democrats say DeLay is behind the recent move to push a new redistricting plan through the Republican-controlled Legislature to increase the number of GOP members in the Texas delegation. There are currently 17 Democrats and 15 Republicans. The GOP could pick up at least four more seats.

DeLay has said the current Texas redistricting plan doesn't represent the political sentiment of Texas, which last year elected the first Republican Legislature since Reconstruction. All the major statewide offices in Austin are now held by Republicans.

At a news conference Tuesday, Democrats said the walkout was the only option they had left to stop the redistricting bill. They pointed out that only two states, the other one being Colorado, have been asked to address redistricting this year.

"We have a message for Tom DeLay, 'Don't mess with Texas,'" said state Rep. Jim Dunnam, of Waco. "We did not choose the path that led us to Ardmore, Okla. Tom DeLay chose that path."

Full text: http://www.upi.com/view.cfm?StoryID=...3-041556-4127r

Texas Tort Reform
 

Senators forge ahead on lawsuit reform bill
By David Pasztor
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Tuesday, May 13, 2003

Lawsuit reform, one of the most contentious and far-reaching endeavors during this year's legislative session, is finally headed to the state Senate floor.

After more than a month of public hearings and technical fiddling, the Senate State Affairs Committee on Tuesday unanimously approved its version of House Bill 4, a massive bill that rewrites portions of the state's civil justice laws in an effort to cut down on nuisance lawsuits and runaway jury verdicts.

The committee also unanimously approved a proposed constitutional amendment that supporters say is crucial to the portion of the bill aimed at lowering medical malpractice insurance premiums.

"I feel like I just gave birth to an elephant," joked committee Chairman Bill Ratliff, R-Mount Pleasant, who presided over laborious revisions to the hastily passed House version of the bill.

As modified by Ratliff and the committee, one of the bill's major components — caps on damage awards for such things as pain and suffering in malpractice lawsuits — has been revised.

Reform advocates, medical groups and doctors have consistently called for a $250,000 cap on noneconomic damage awards in all malpractice cases, a provision contained in the House version.

But under the Senate version, injured patients would be able to receive up to $750,000 in noneconomic damages if there are multiple defendants in a case, such as numerous doctors, nurses or hospitals.

The bill still caps the liability of any individual doctor or nurse at $250,000 and caps the liability of a single institution such as a hospital or nursing home at $500,000.

Full text: http://www.statesman.com/legislature.../0514tort.html

What a bunch of sore losers.

Does anyone have a link to the current map (that was apparently court-imposed in 2001) and the redistricting plan? One article I read said that a single street in Austin was divided between three (four?) districts.

I'd like to see it too. My understanding is that the map was drawn to ensure that there would be only one Democrat representative in the House.

This is a couple hours old - sorry about the delay.

DeLay backs federal aid to track down walkouts

Furtive plan was 'only alternative'

House to stay shut, absentees vow

A bunch of related articles.


And here's all the bills that mention "redistricting" I don't have time to go through and figure out what's what right now. Here's the link if you want to do your own search or look at the text of a bill: http://www.capitol.state.tx.us/tlo/l...ill_status.htm


HB 2394 Goodman/et al.
IN HCMTE: Redistricting SCMTE:
INT 03/18/03 H Referred to Redistricting
Relating to the composition of certain districts of the Texas House of Representatives.


HB 2871 Alonzo
IN HCMTE: Elections SCMTE:
INT 04/23/03 H Left pending in committee
Relating to the protection of the rights of Texas voters without regard to race, color, or ethnicity.


HB 3398 Crabb/et al.
OUT HCMTE: Redistricting SCMTE:
HC 05/12/03 H Placed on Major State Calendar
Relating to the composition of the districts for the election of members of the United States House of Representatives from the State of Texas.


SB 9 Harris
SCMTE: HCMTE:
INT 05/13/03 S Received by the Secretary of the Senate
Relating to the composition of the districts for the election of members of the United States House of Representatives from the State of Texas.


SB 90 Wentworth
IN SCMTE: Jurisprudence HCMTE:
INT 01/27/03 S Referred to Jurisprudence
Relating to the reapportionment of state legislative, congressional, and judicial districts and the creation, function, and duties of the Texas Redistricting Commission.


SB 1531 Brimer
IN SCMTE: Jurisprudence HCMTE:
INT 03/20/03 S Referred to Jurisprudence
Relating to the composition of certain districts of the Texas Senate.


SJR 6 Wentworth
IN SCMTE: Jurisprudence HCMTE:
INT 02/06/03 S Referred to Jurisprudence
Proposing a constitutional amendment establishing the Texas Redistricting Commission to establish legislative and congressional districts and revising constitutional redistricting procedures.

Boycott Over
 

Redistricting is off the agenda, so the Dems are coming home.

I saw this in the Chronicle, while I was looking for news:

Feds helped search plane for Texas lawmakers
Associated Press

AUSTIN - An agency within the federal Homeland Security Department said today it helped search for a plane believed to be carrying Texas lawmakers because a state law officer made it seem as though the plane had run into trouble and might have crashed.

The plane had carried state Rep. Pete Laney, who flew to Ardmore, Okla., as part of a group of Democrats who left the state to help block a legislative quorum and halt debate on a congressional redistricting plan in the Texas House.

A Texas Department of Public Safety officer called the federal Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Air and Marine Interdiction Coordination Center on Monday and requested assistance in finding a missing aircraft, the federal agency had said.

Today the Department of Homeland Security issued another statement saying that the center received an urgent phone call from a Texas DPS officer asking for help in finding a plane that was missing and had state representatives on board.

"From all indications, this request from the Texas DPS was an urgent plea for assistance from a law enforcement agency trying to locate a missing, lost, or possibly crashed aircraft," the statement said.

http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory...olitan/1911853

Oops - wrong place.

DPS Deleted Documents About Search for Democrats
 

This story continues to amuse me . . .

Texas Deleted Documents About Search for Democrats
By KATE ZERNIKE

HOUSTON, May 21 — The fight over the flight of Democratic legislators intensified yesterday as the Texas Department of Public Safety admitted it had destroyed documents that were collected last week as state troopers searched for the missing lawmakers.
What started out as a local partisan dispute about redistricting escalated into accusations of a cover-up and abuse of federal power.

Indeed, federal authorities are investigating how the Department of Homeland Security became involved in the search for the lawmakers.

Today's uproar began after The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported that a commander at the Department of Public Safety issued an e-mail notice instructing that all "notes, correspondence, photos, etc." concerning the search "be destroyed immediately."

Full text: http://www.nytimes.com/2003/05/22/na...22TEXA.html?th

WD-40 Objects to Texas Democrats' Moniker

"The makers of the lubricant WD-40 are objecting to some Texas lawmakers calling themselves "the WD-40s" - a name they say describes them because they're white Democrats over 40........"



Political winds blow yard signs: Houstonian says civic group, deed rules harm free speech

Michael Skadden says he shouldn't have to remove his Bill White sign while others supporting George Bush remain up. Skadden and his wife received a notice from the Precinct 287 Civic Association telling them to remove the White sign from their house in the Post Oak Manor subdivision.


Jury at impasse in Angel Doe deliberations

Jurors who said Thursday they were deadlocked on the fate of the accused killer of a 6-year-old girl, known only as Angel Doe for months, were told by the judge to continue deliberating today.

Van lawsuit filed quickly amid tort reform war

FRANKLIN -- A fatal Houston traffic accident involving a Central Texas high school van has spawned a lawsuit against Ford, the maker of Hankook tires and an auto dealership.

The lawsuit was filed in a Robertson County state district court Thursday, less than three weeks after the May 9 accident that killed a Hearne High School senior and injured 10 others.

The suit alleges defects in the design and manufacture of both the van and its tires, plaintiffs' attorney Robert Waltman of College Station told Bryan-College Station television station KBTX.

Attorneys hurried with the lawsuit because of tort-reform legislation pending in the Texas Legislature, Waltman said...........

FYI
 

Harris County Commissioners just appointed a non-lawyer to fill Judge Fury's spot in Precinct 5, Pos. 1 (One of the busiest JPs in the state - lovely) due to Fury's resignation on the 13th of May. Should be in the paper later this week if you are interested.

-TL

Rush to beat lawsuit caps all for naught

Lawyers worked frantically last week to file medical malpractice lawsuits before the Legislature capped damages, swamping district clerks throughout the state with filings.

It all turned out to be for nothing.

Fear of a $250,000 cap sent lawyers into a frenzy of work to meet an initial Friday deadline, with large law firms sending in lawsuits by the boxfull..............

______________________________
Does "boxfull" have two Ls or one?
-TL

From the Dallas Business Journal:

New tort reform law already creating a rush to file lawsuits
It may also be creating a more adaptable approach to litigation -- and more work for Metroplex lawyers.

By William Hoffman

GREATER METROPLEX -- Last month, attorney Brad Parker investigated the medical malpractice case of a retirement-age woman who died after an alleged overdose of Demerol.

Because she'd been on disability, there was no loss of earning capacity and thus limited opportunity to claim economic damages. Parker declined the case.

Had he been handed the same case after the Texas Legislature passed and Gov. Rick Perry signed the state's new tort reform law June 11, Parker said he wouldn't even have investigated.

"Given the new reform, I don't think I could even justify taking the cases I have taken," said Parker, a Bedford-based solo practitioner who started reducing his medical malpractice caseload several years ago.

Now he's getting out for good. "The most recent round of (tort) reform just sealed that in my mind," he said.

Tort reform advocates are hailing the passage of HB 4, the most sweeping civil justice changes in Texas since 1995. "We have balanced the scales of justice in Texas so that they no longer tilt toward either the defendant or the plaintiff," said Ken Hoagland, a spokesman for Texans for Lawsuit Reform in Houston.

Frederick E. "Shad" Rowe, general partner for Dallas-based investment firm Greenbrier Partners Ltd., said, "I'm not a lawyer, but to lawyers this is a big deal what happened."

Rowe said he expects the new law's legal process shortcuts, limits on class action lawsuits and encouragement for tort claimants to settle early will "make business life a little more sanguine, maybe."

Whatever impact Texas' latest round of tort reforms have on huge damage awards, protracted litigation processes and frivolous lawsuits, another question is emerging: What will the new law's effect be on Dallas-Fort Worth tort lawyers and law firms?

Initial impressions

The new law's first effect is already being felt.

Attorneys are rushing to file suit before a July 1 deadline caps noneconomic damage awards, says Earl Martin, associate dean for academic affairs and professor of law at Texas Wesleyan University School of Law in Fort Worth.

The $250,000-per-defendant limit on so-called "pain and suffering" awards "can't help but have a dampening effect on those who are considering pursuing that type of practice, and on the willingness of lawyers to take those cases to begin with," Martin added.

However, Martin said he'd be surprised to see law-school enrollments decline in response to the new law.

Maxine Harrington, a 20-year veteran defense attorney joining Wesleyan as an associate professor of law this fall, added, "I still think there will be a lot of lawsuits filed, and I don't think the number will fall off that substantially."

Indeed, area attorneys surveyed at random predicted little effect on the size or composition of the local legal industry as a result of the new law.

"It's like any market," said Mike Tankersley, partner in charge of corporate practice in North Texas for Bracewell & Patterson L.L.P. in Dallas. "There are guys in the mainstream that will always be busy, and there are marginal players. And the marginal players are the ones that will tend to get pushed out."

Full text: http://www.bizjournals.com/industrie...2.html?f=et153
(free registration required for web access)

Craddick used campaign funds to pay daughter
 

Redistricting
 

An editorial about Texas Politics from today's NY Times:

Tom DeLay's Down-Home Muscle

We're happy to note that Tom DeLay's lunge for more political power is running into trouble in his home state of Texas. The special session of the State Legislature, which he prompted in order to redraw the political map to favor more Congressional Republicans, is foundering. A lone G.O.P. state senator is holding out against the House majority leader's plan to redistrict Democratic incumbents out of their seats, thwarting Mr. DeLay's hubristic plotting.

Mr. DeLay, who has a 10-gallon thirst for power, thinks he deserves six more Republican House members from Texas than the voters chose to send last election. He insists that Congressional maps deserve an unusual redrawing outside the normal census season, and he is moving heaven and earth to have his way. In fact, the Federal Aviation Administration just had to tighten its rules to prevent a repetition of last May's debacle, when a dozen agents were put on search alert in airport towers at Mr. DeLay's behest, tracking Democratic lawmakers who fled Austin for Oklahoma to deny a statehouse quorum on the remapping plan. In the service of Mr. DeLay's political ambitions, carloads of Texas narcotics officers were dispatched to find the lawmakers, as if they were potheads. The majority leader, ever the federalist, even had the new Department of Homeland Security keeping its eyes peeled.

Full text: http://www.nytimes.com/2003/07/17/op...17THU3.html?th

What to do with a Harvard Law degree
 

http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory...olitan/2000143

(Morales pleads guilty, gets 4 years in pokey)

Remapping the remapped maps
 

Lawmakers back at work on congressional maps
The new map keeps Webb County in one district, but divides Hidalgo County into three districts, a move some South Texas lawmakers have adamantly opposed. A district that runs along northern Travis County now extends northwest to Lampasas County and northeast to Robertson County, but does not stretch into Harris County as it previously had. Staples' first map split Webb County into two districts and Hidalgo County was divided into two districts.

Democrats may be free to flee: State senators constitutionally protected from arrest, says lawyer


......Criminal defense attorney Keith Hampton also told the Senate Democratic Caucus that an arrest by a Senate sergeant at arms or a private security agency to force senators to the Senate floor for a vote might be prosecutable as kidnapping under state law.

"And it gets worse than that. If someone in the Legislature directed them to do that, there is the crime of conspiracy to commit aggravated kidnapping," punishable by up to life in prison, Hampton told the Houston Chronicle Thursday......

At least they have the sense to go somewhere decent this time.

Exile could prove costly

The senators can use their own money or their campaign officeholder accounts to pay for the trip. If they use their campaign accounts, their spending will be a matter of public record, Van de Putte said.

GOP loses bid to get senators to return: Dems file new suit in redistricting feud

AUSTIN -- The Texas Supreme Court on Monday rejected efforts by Gov. Rick Perry and Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst to force 11 boycotting Democratic state senators to return to the Capitol for a special legislative session on congressional redistricting.

Dewhurst expressed disappointment over the order but also said he will ask the Senate majority today to consider "appropriate measures against absent members," such as monetary penalties for each day they are absent.......

NYT on DeLay, search for Democrats
 

http://www.nytimes.com/2003/08/13/politics/13DIST.html
The office of Representative Tom DeLay, the House majority leader, pressed the Justice Department in May to determine whether federal officials could intervene.

MedMal
 

Democrat sneaks back to Houston
 

Democrat sneaks back to Houston,
calls for end of senators' boycott Sen. John Whitmire said today he secretly spent the last five days in Houston, and that it is time for his fellow Democratic senators to end their boycott over congressional redistricting.

"After being in my district for five days, I have concluded my constituents are opposed to redistricting, but they also believe the fight should be on the Senate floor," the Houston legislator said........

Redistricting Redux Redux
 

On Monday, the third special session begins and it looks as if they will have quorum.

http://asia.reuters.com/newsArticle....toryID=3414617

More Fun With Tom DeLay
 

NBC investigated his fundraising telemarketing of an "award."

"AIR FORCE CHAPLAIN James Helton says he was flabbergasted when he first heard the news from his wife. “She told me you’ve been selected for a national award by Congressman DeLay, and they really want you to call the office.”
_ _ _ _Helton wondered why a powerful Republican leader would want to honor a humble Air Force reservist and quickly returned the call. He was so upset by what he heard that he invited NBC News to record the conversation when he called back a second time.
_ _ _ _First there was a recorded message: “This is Congressman Tom DeLay. I’m asking you to serve as an honorary chairman on our business advisory council, and you will be recognized with our national leadership award.”
_ _ _ _Then, a telemarketer came on the line: “You’d be invited to private dinners with congressmen and quarterly strategy sessions in Washington.”
_ _ _ _In the call, Helton was also promised an exclusive black-tie president’s dinner and his name in a newspaper ad."
. . . .

"Past awardees include a convicted sex offender and a maker of drug paraphernalia — both awards were later rescinded. "

http://www.msnbc.com/news/991699.asp

Nader campaign files signatures late, lawsuit pending
Associated Press

AUSTIN -- Ralph Nader's independent campaign for president filed almost 80,000 signatures with the Texas secretary of state's office today, two weeks after the deadline to get on state ballot.

The campaign has filed a federal lawsuit challenging the signature collection requirement as unconstitutional.

"We've had a tremendous group of local Texans work unbelievably hard to make this happen," said campaign spokesman Jason Kafoury.

The campaign was required to collect at least 64,076 signatures by May 10 from registered voters who did not vote in the Democratic or Republican primaries. That equals 1 percent of all votes cast for president in the last election in Texas.

The campaign has challenged the signature requirement and 60-day timetable for collecting them as violating the First and Fourteenth Amendments of the U.S. Constitution.

Kafoury said the lawsuit has been scheduled for a July hearing in federal court in Austin.

The campaign filed the lawsuit May 10 when it could not meet the deadline, Kafoury said.

Texas has one of the earliest deadlines to qualify for the presidential ballot and requires a larger number of signatures to be gathered for independent candidates -- about 20,000 more -- than it requires for third-party contenders.

"This is unfair. This is unconstitutional," he said. "Texas voters deserve to have Ralph's voice out there."

Jennifer Waisath, spokeswoman for the secretary of state's office, said that although the campaign missed the filing deadline, the state will keep the signatures until told otherwise by the courts.

LINK