New York Democratic Governor Kathy Hochul is on a tear in support of fellow Democrats in Texas, blaming Texas Republicans for creating division in a column published Tuesday in the Houston Chronicle.

Hochul claimed the GOP's Texas congressional redistricting move is "an aggressive power grab designed to flip as many as five current Democratic seats." She wrote, "They've carved up diverse communities in Houston, Dallas and along the border to silence the voters who live there."

The New York governor proclaimed, "What Texas is doing isn't a clever strategy, it's political arson — torching our democracy to cling to power." She said this is the moment for Democrats to dig in. "The only viable recourse is to fight fire with fire."

With backing from President Donald Trump, Texas state lawmakers have embarked on a plan to draw up new boundaries for the state's congressional districts. The initial map could end up with as many as five more congressional seats in the state, flipping from Democrats to Republicans. That could soften what is now a razor-thin majority held by House Republicans in Washington.

Many Democratic state lawmakers from Texas have fled to other states, including New York and Illinois, in an attempt to block related voting. The Texas Tribune reported that GOP state lawmakers approved arrest warrants against legislators who fled the state. Governor Greg Abbott threatened to have them removed from office.

Hochul said fellow Texas Democrats are the ones following the law. "These public servants left the state to follow a legitimate and legal tactic to deny Republicans a quorum and stop this scheme in its tracks," she wrote.

She even invoked a civil rights activist to describe the events. "As John Lewis said, sometimes you have to get into good trouble. That's what they're doing — and they're not alone," she explained.

Hochul added, "What Texas Republicans are doing under Trump's direction is nothing short of a legal insurrection on our Capitol. But using a legal system doesn't make it legitimate. It's a hijacking of democracy. And it must be stopped."

Governor Hochul said she would be leading a redistricting effort in New York to try to counter the GOP effort in Texas. "All's fair in love and war," she said. "Bring it on."

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