Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon told Newsmax that the effort to draw new congressional district boundaries in Texas could help compensate for the left's creation of special districts to support Democrat candidates.
Dhillon told "The Chris Salcedo Show" on Monday that the move by Texas Republicans to set new boundaries for several districts originated with a letter from her office. She explained that the Civil Rights office of the Department of Justice noted that a federal court ruled some of the so-called "minority districts" in Texas could be challenged.
"And so we sent a letter to Texas noting that their lines appear to be out of compliance in at least these four districts," she said. "And when you have four districts that are wrong and you add that to their own analysis and public admissions about inaccurate undercounting of Texas in the census that was concluded a couple of years ago, you have a recipe where it seems appropriate for Texas to call for that redistricting."
Texas Republican lawmakers moved forward with a plan to set new boundaries for five districts. But Democrat lawmakers fled the state to prevent a quorum necessary to conduct voting to advance the plan. The Democrats have been threatened with removal from office, stiff fines, and even had direct deposit of paychecks cut off. But they're continuing their boycott of a special legislative session.
Dhillon said this is just the opening act in a much bigger action developing to challenge the use of race and ethnicity to set up voting districts for congressional representatives. She noted Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas has already indicated a potential change.
"Justice Thomas has very eloquently written that there is an irreconcilable tension between the Voting Rights Act, gerrymandering, race-based gerrymandering, and equal protection under the law that the Constitution demands under the 13th Amendment."
Dhillon predicts that it is possible that the Supreme Court, with a conservative majority, may be ready to overhaul how congressional districts are established. "It would be great for America if people had to compete for everybody's vote, not just assume that they have safe seats. We might have a much more robust system that's more responsive to the people."
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Jim Mishler ✉
Jim Mishler, a seasoned reporter, anchor and news director, has decades of experience covering crime, politics and environmental issues.