Politics
Party Poopers II
In May I told you how the Republicans were already squabbling over redistricting. Seven months later, it's worse than anyone could have imagined.
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Cornyn's political consultant, Ted Delisi, vehemently denies Wentworth's account of the conversation, calling it a "grossly inappropriate and inaccurate statement. I am very surprised he would stoop that low." He also suggests that Wentworth's criticism of the LRB is grounded in his failure to win legislative approval of his own redistricting plan. "He fumbled it [the redistricting issue] badly," Delisi says. As for the GOP senators' complaints that they did not have the opportunity to comment on the map that was adopted, Delisi says, "Were they called in and invited to hold hands and sing 'Kumbayah'? No, they were not."
Instead, he insists, the lines were drawn to comply with the extensive body of law governing redistricting decisions. Under the Voting Rights Act and case law, the LRB had to ensure that districts didn't dilute the strength of minority voters and were drawn compactly to keep "communities of interest" intact, among other considerations. "The legal requirements are what drove the train," Delisi says.
And yet Nelson's complaints about the apparent influence of the big shots are repeated throughout the state. In West Texas, state senators Teel Bivins, of Amarillo, and Robert Duncan, of Lubbock, held a series of meetings over several months with community leaders from their districts and drafted a plan for their area of the state. Duncan and Bivins testified in favor of their plan before the LRB on July 17 and assumed the issue was settled. Then, "Whack, out of the blue," Duncan says, that plan was tossed out by the LRB in favor of one proposed by Rylander.
The effect of the new plan, which moved six counties from Duncan's district to Bivins', is to shift dominance of the district from Amarillo to Midland, home to many large GOP contributors. Duncan believes the change was engineered by state representative Tom Craddick, of Midland, who hopes to end Laney's five-term run as Speaker and win the office himself. Craddick, Duncan says, "coordinates important fundraising efforts for the party. This is about political influence, those people who finance campaigns."
Rylander says she offered the change to make the district "more balanced." As for Craddick's involvement: "I didn't even talk to him about that district. No deal was struck anywhere by anybody." But on July 18—two days before the LRB proposal was made public—Craddick told a gathering of Young Republicans in Midland that he thought "there was a good shot" the LRB would approve a plan giving more influence to the Permian Basin, by shifting six counties from Duncan's district. He then described the plan that Rylander offered.
Local officials in the affected towns—like Big Springs and Amarillo—unanimously opposed the changes under the LRB plan, Duncan says. "My area of the state was arrogantly ignored, and I'm not going to get over that." He's not alone: Bivins' mother promptly canceled a fundraiser she had promised to host for Cornyn.
In Dallas, Senator Florence Shapiro, of Plano, lost all of Highland Park and University Park—and some big-time GOP donors—from her district after Park Cities officials and longtime Republican contributor and power broker Louis Beecherl lobbied for a district representing primarily those wealthy Dallas enclaves. Beecherl contributed $10,000 each to Cornyn, Rylander, and Dewhurst in June. Though Shapiro says she ultimately was given "a great district," she was "unhappy about the process" since the changes were sprung on her the day of the vote: "The process itself left a lot to be desired. The LRB chose for whatever reason not to listen to the concerns of legislators, who know and understand their districts. We were shut out of the final process completely."
When asked if Beecherl influenced the map, Delisi declined to "speak about conversations that may or may not have happened. A great many people were interested in redistricting. Louis Beecherl is the patron saint of the Republican party, a benefactor of the Republican party. I'll bet he's interested."
If it is any consolation to the Republican senators, the LRB treated Democrats even more shabbily. When Laney arrived for the first meeting, all of the members of the panel had nameplates at their seats—except him. On July 24 Dewhurst offered an amendment never before laid out in public that redrew Laney's district to look like—in the words of one legislative aide—"an upside-down swastika." It was approved by the Cornyn-Rylander-Dewhurst trio, once again over Laney's and Ratliff's objections. And when was this proposal first disseminated to the public? When it was posted on the LRB Web site at six-thirty that evening, a few hours after its adoption.
Delisi predicts the flap will blow over soon. But the healing process may take a little longer. Traditionally, statewide candidates have been able to count on a grassroots network of legislators to promote their campaigns. Just how enthusiastic will the bruised lawmakers be in 2002?
"I don't have the zeal for it," Duncan says. "I think it is going to hurt this election quite a little bit." He is particularly pointed about Dewhurst, who, if he is elected lieutenant governor, will need the consent of the Senate to hold on to the office's traditional powers. When the LRB considered Rylander's proposal to help Midland, Duncan thought he had an agreement with Dewhurst to support leaving Big Spring in Duncan's district. But Dewhurst voted "present" and the attempt failed in a 2-2 deadlock. "If that's the kind of lieutenant governor he's going to be—that he can't make a decision or is so influenced by political concerns—then I have a real problem with that," says Duncan.
When I started to ask Shapiro the same question about her enthusiasm for the GOP ticket, she interrupted me. "I know exactly where you are going," she said. "I can't tell you. I'd like to wait and see. I was very disappointed in the manner in which those three handled themselves."
To Nelson, the family squabble shows that Texas Republicans are stuck in an awkward "adolescent phase." "The party hasn't matured," she says reflectively. "There's a real vacuum, and I think that is how this happened. Unfortunately it was being filled by sources that did not have the party's best interest foremost." Whose interests were foremost? Well, Cornyn, Rylander, and Dewhurst all had ambitions for higher office; since the map was adopted, Cornyn has announced for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Phil Gramm, and Dewhurst is trying to move up to lieutenant governor, succeeding Ratliff. By currying favor with the big shots, they could enhance their own ability to raise money. But a family feud has never been resolved by asking the question, What's in it for me?
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