Don't Mess with Texas Democrats

[sonias]

Mother Jones Sept/Oct Issue
Don't Mess with Texas Democrats

You could say that Matt Angle has something of a vendetta. He worked for Rep. Martin Frost—once the most powerful Texas Democrat in the US House—for the bulk of his adult life, starting as an intern in 1981 and rising to become the lawmaker's chief of staff. Angle even met his wife, Dolly, while working in Frost's office. Then one day about six years ago, both Angle and his boss found themselves out of work, courtesy of then-House majority leader Tom DeLay. The Texas Republican, known as "The Hammer," had orchestrated a Machiavellian scheme to redraw the state's congressional districts and banish Democrats from power. In 2004, Frost was one of four Texas Dems in the House picked off as a result.

Redistricting typically happens every 10 years, to capture the population changes recorded by the US Census. In most of the country, state lawmakers ultimately decide how congressional district boundaries in their state are drawn. DeLay's plan entailed engineering a Republican takeover of the Texas statehouse by strategically funneling money into key legislative races using his political action committee, Texans for a Republican Majority (TRMPAC). Having won a majority in Austin in 2002, DeLay's allies managed to ram through a redistricting plan in 2003, even though it was a non-Census year, alleging that the plan based on the 2000 Census results had unfairly favored the Democrats.

I love that title! Plus the math nerds link is pretty cool too!

:loveya: Mother Jones!

:kick:

[hobbit709]

1. k&r

[Melissa G]

2. K&R! n/t