'They Are More Afraid Of A Tweet Of One Man Than The Wrath Of Their Voters': Julie Johnson Rips GOP

Forbes Breaking News

During a press conference on Wednesday, Rep. Julie Johnson (D-TX) spoke about a proposal to redistrict Texas's congressional maps.

Transcript

00:00My friend and colleague from Dallas, Congresswoman Julie Johnson.

00:06Thank you, Congresswoman Fletcher, for the introduction. I want to thank you for all being

00:11here today. Let's be clear about what's happening here. What Republicans are doing in Texas and

00:16other states is a five-alarm fire for our democracy, for our constituents, and for our

00:21country. This redistricting scheme is about Republicans clinging to power by cheating

00:27voters out of fair representation. Republicans just passed a bill that kicks millions of

00:32people off their health care, off of Medicaid, and to fund tax cuts for billionaires. They

00:37passed a bill that takes food away from hungry kids and families and from our veterans and

00:43from our seniors. If you ask anyone, this bill is so unpopular. The American people hate it.

00:50They don't want it. And in a representative democracy, that should matter to the Republicans

00:55that are in power. But they don't care. And it's important that we ask ourselves why.

01:01Why don't they care that the American people hate their bill, hate their policies, and hate

01:07their initiatives? And that's because even though it's so unpopular, even though they know it will

01:13cost them seats in the next election, they have a plan to rig the system to make sure that their

01:18Republicans don't have to face the wrath of their voters at the ballot box. They're more afraid of a

01:25tweet of one man than the wrath of their voters at the ballot box. And that is, so what they're

01:30going to do? They're going to crack up, split up, and break apart fair congressional districts.

01:35It's one of the most shameful abuses of power we've seen in Texas in a generation. And make

01:40no mistake, this is a racial gerrymander, plain and simple. To squeeze out five more Republican

01:46congressional seats, Republicans are leading the way in weakening the voices of Black, Latino,

01:51and Asian Texans. Minority communities which are already targeted and disenfranchised

01:57by one of the most racially gerrymandered congressional maps in the country.

02:01There is a direct assault on the voting power of millions of Texans whose voices matter every bit

02:07as much as anyone else who serves in this chamber. Our voters, Democrat, Republican, and Independent

02:13alike deserve real representation. They deserve to choose their leaders, not us choosing our voters.

02:20They deserve congressional lines that lift up communities, not carve them apart block by

02:24block to keep one party in power forever. Redistricting happens every 10 years. You

02:30count the people, you draw the lines. That's it. But this scheme throws that bedrock principle

02:36out of the window just to protect Republicans at the cost of breaking our democracy.

02:41You know, I served three terms in the Texas state legislature, including when we redistricted

02:45the state based on the last census data just a few years ago. I know that Republicans of the state

02:50legislature swore oath under affidavits in depositions and courtroom proceedings during litigation that

02:56the drawing of the maps that they produced were race neutral. They were fair and they were in the best

03:02interest of the state. And now they're saying they need to be racially redrawn. So my question is,

03:08are they lying then or are they lying now? Which is it? Texans have a right to know. So here we are

03:14today to say that we are going to fight this with everything we have. We're going to fight this through

03:19the courts. We're going to fight this in the state legislature. And yes, if Texans go through with this

03:24power grab, then every other state with Democratic trifecta should do the same.

03:29If this is how Republicans are going to pay ball, then Democrats will be right there. And I promise you this,

03:35no matter what the maps look like, we will not back down. We will not be silenced. And we will not

03:40stop fighting for a Texas where every single person, no matter their race or their background,

03:45has their vote counted and their voice heard. And now I'd like to introduce from South Texas,

03:50my friend, Representative Vincenzo.

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