MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIR:
Republican Lie About Quorum Busting Exposed

For months, Republicans have insisted that when they were in the minority, they never resorted to quorum busting tactics to prevent the Democratic majority from passing a redistricting bill. Now it turns out that claim is a lie.

According to the Associated Press, in 1993, eleven Republican senators ran and hid to prevent a senate vote on a bill supported by the Democrats, redrawing line for judicial districts. They had tried, unsuccessfully, to pull off quorum busting walkouts in 1983 and 1991, but in 1993, they were temporarily successful in keeping the Texas Senate from acting on a bill they opposed by running and hiding, denying a quorum. And of course, the founder of the Republican Party once jumped out of a second story window in the state capitol to bust a quorum and prevent a vote on a bill Democrats were trying to pass. So the claim the Republicans would never do any such thing as engage in quorum busting techniques is just plain false.

Websters New Collegiate Dictionary defines a "demagogue" as one who "makes use of popular prejudices and false claims in order to gain power." Sure sounds like Tom DeLay, Rick Perry, David Dewhurst, and a bunch of other Republicans to me.

Wouldn't it be nice if they would just start telling the truth and stop trying to grab power by annulling the votes, and nullifying the political influence, of millions of Texans?

To read the AP story, click here.

Gerry Birnberg
Chair, Harris County Democratic Party
August 5, 2003

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