Too clever by half
This is been a bad afternoon for the Democrats, all self-inflicted. Their game plan of asking pointless questions about local bills makes them look silly. (Randy Weber, of all people, spiked their strategy a few moments ago by saying that he had forgotten his bill book, so he couldn’t answer any of Chris Turner’s questions.) It’s a case study of a party that can’t decide what it wants to be when it grows up. The Democrats want it both ways: They want the privileges of being on the inside and the freedom to be on the outside. Politics doesn’t work that way.
The Democrats’ problem in Texas is that although the favorable/unfavorable view of the Republican party has declined from 62/26 in 2000 to 45/42 in 2008 (Texas numbers), the Democrats can’t close the deal with these disaffected voters. Their party’s favorable/unfavorable numbers have hardly changed over the last eight years. This juvenile display is not going to help.
I have heard some criticism of Sid Miller for raising a point of order that would kill the local calendar. I think he was within his rights to do so. This is not a reprise of Arlene Wohlgemuth’s Memorial Day Massacre. For one thing, Miller temporarily withdrew his point of order. He was saying, in effect, “Two can play this game. I may be able to get a ruling that the point of order is valid, and if I do, then the whole calendar falls. But if the Democrats will stop the chubbing and let the House pass the local calendar, I’ll withdraw the point of order.”
As everyone knows, the Democrats’ stalling tactics are an attempt to derail the Voter I.D. bill. It won’t work. This is Friday. They have to chub until Tuesday midnight. Not a chance.
And even if the Democrats were to succeed in chubbing Voter I.D. to death and other bills the D’s don’t like (TDI Sunset, Top 10 Percent), it wouldn’t matter. Perry will call a special session to pass the voter ID bill. Why are they fighting battles that they can’t win–and, worse, will hand Perry a victory?
anonymouse1 says:
Paul, or others,
Where are the moderate / rural / conservative area Ds on this tactic? You know (well, you may not, but the polls clearly show) that those districts overwhelmingly favor voter ID. Have the Leader Ds perhaps not polled their own members accurately?
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Tellnitlikeitis Reply:
May 22nd, 2009 at 5:42 pm
Well, you could also poll Texans: Do you favor a voting system that requires voters to show identification while also making it easier for Texans to excercise their right to vote?
And who could be against that?
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Wise in West Texas Reply:
May 22nd, 2009 at 10:38 pm
Chubbing? Watching paint dry? Too clever by half? Self inflicted injury? A case study of a party that can’t decide what it wants to be when it grows up?
No sir.
This is an enhanced legislative technique – it’s called “burka boreding!”
It’s guaranteed to irritate – indeed torture – even the most hardened rightleaning political observer, and to elicit such puerile written responses that the same can’t later be considered as valid political commentary.
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Tellnitlikeitis says:
Senate Republicans made their statement in January when they changed the rules and made voter ID the most important bill in the session.
A response from House Democrats was preordained.
Silly actions in January are going to provoke a silly reaction in May.
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Hoohah! says:
Maybe, Paul, it’s because as the opposition party, they are bound, determined, and obligated to take actions that no matter how long the shot, will suppress bad legislation that will suppress their vote during elections.
You use the tools you have to what you can.
And if Perry thinks a special session is a good idea…go for it.
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paulburka Reply:
May 23rd, 2009 at 7:50 am
I made this point in a separate post.
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anonymouse1 says:
I trust the methodology used by the best little poll in Texas, run by the UT Politics Project. I’m sure the folks who run that poll will take your suggestion into consideration.
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Glenn Smith says:
Paul, you are criticizing Democrats (as your Republican soul asks you to do) for standing up for principles. In this case there are two: the first, and most important, involves a twisted GOP effort to use the law to disenfranchise hundreds of thousands of voters. Even you hate the bill. Efforts to defeat it deserve your praise. Second, using the parliamentary procedures available to defend one’s principles is a well-accepted democratic means of winning.
You claim it’s a futile battle. Just give up, you tell us. Right. We will, when hell freezes over.
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paulburka Reply:
May 23rd, 2009 at 8:19 am
Glenn –
Principles, schminciples. This is about public opinion. The Democrats are on the wrong side of public opinion and they’re behaving like children. That is not a good combination.
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FrankS Reply:
May 23rd, 2009 at 11:38 am
Have the past 6 years been lost on everyone? Walking out, killing “innocent” legislation, and generally obstructing the will of the MAJORITY has become their standard practice. It’s a sad observation on what was once a proud party.
Why are we still surprised every time they act like this? I would argue it’s because the majority of people still respect the process. Today’s Democrats value the product to the extent that they are willing to sacrifice the process to achieve their desired results.
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Nopers says:
It is “silly” actions like this, since 2003, that now have the count to 76-74.
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Glenn Smith Reply:
May 22nd, 2009 at 5:56 pm
Damn good point, nopers.
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Yellow Armadillo says:
I agree with Paul on this one. This has been an embarrassing day for the Democratic leadership, who are having as successful of a session on policy matters as they have had since the Laney days. This is not 2003, when Republicans had a 26 seat majority and Democrats could fairly argue that they were cut out of the process. This is a 76-74 House. With Straus likely voting present, and Kuempel absent, it’s a dead tie 74-74. Why don’t the Democrats focus their efforts on defeating the Voter ID bill instead of killing dozens of other bills by chubbing? If the bill were to be voted down, there’s no way Perry would call a special session. If they defeat it by stalling or breaking quorum, he’d have all the political justification in the world to do so. There’s no question it would score him more political points to call a special than it would for it to be defeated on a vote during the regular session.
Paul – I had Dunnam as a virtual lock for the Ten Best list a week ago. Now, after two and a half days of stall tactics, I’d have to vote him Ten Worst. If Arlene’s decision to kill one calendar in order to prove a political point earned her a spot on the Ten Worst list, wouldn’t Dunnam’s actions warrant the same? Arlene’s point of order killed 52 bills. On a normal day, the House can consider 25 – 30 bills. How many bills will die because of this strategy?
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Texas Democrat says:
The biggest problems for the Texas Democrats are several factors:
1. They have NO money, no fundraising mettle or backbone to stand up to the GOP machine in Texas.
2. Recruiting poor candidates for the State Senate and State House.
3. The 2003 Congressional Redistricting mess was a disaster for the Dems,who didn’t have any guts to stay in Austin and fight DeLay’s power-grab all the way.
4. Perry would be very happy watching the Dems embarrass themselves over the Voter ID, which is more LIKELY to pass and the governor is expected to sign it into law, which will boost his die-hard supporters, the right-wing Evangelical Christians who control 99 percent of the Texas Republican Party.
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Glenn Smith says:
It’s up to the GOP to decide whether bills die. The Democratic delegation is prepared to vote to bring up bills immediately, out of the regular calendar order. So, 26 members of the majority party have it in their power to bring up TDI sunset, etc. etc. Just 26 members of the MAJORITY party.
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Anonymous says:
Paul, I disagree with your “just fold ‘em” strategy on both Voter ID and UI.
Since when is it best to let bad legislation go through (or die, in the case of UI) just because the majority party has the ability to do what it wants in the end. The Rs need to understand that choosing partisanship has consequences. Why should Ds play by different rules when the Rs chose the game?
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Glenn Smith says:
I hope it’s kosher to quote the reporting of Ross Ramsey at Texas Weekly. It is extremely relevant to our discussion. Here’s what Ross reported:
Rep. Jim Dunnam (D-Waco) told members of the press this afternoon that Democrats are more then willing to consent to suspending rules to take up items on the House calendar, in effect turning the Voter ID bill into the House equivalent of the Senate blocker bill.
Creating a de facto two-thirds’ rule in the House for the weekend would allow the members to address legislation such as the TDI Sunset bill instead of the Voter ID bill, Dunnam said.”
This is followed by a quote from Sid Miller:
“Rep. Sid Miller (R-Stephenville) said that he wouldn’t mind suspending the rules either, but only to move Voter ID up on the calendar.”
It’s the GOP holding TDI sunset etc. hostage to their own partisan return to segregation and voter disenfranchisement. Let me repeat: 26 votes from the majority party can bring priority issues to the front of the calendar.
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Anonymous Reply:
May 22nd, 2009 at 7:01 pm
I see the partisan Democrat spin machine is out in full force. By claiming R’s want to “return to segregation” Mr. Smith has demonstrated precisely how he ran a $75 million campaign for billionaire Tony Sanchez and managed to get less than 40 percent. Race-baiting…whether overt in this case, or in more positive, cynical appeals like the “Dream Team” shows exactly who is divisive.
If Republicans will just take the hostage-takers ransom, everything will be fine is the logic of Mr. Smith and his comrades.
Democrats engage in a charade. Democrats get called on the charade. Democrats scream it is R’s fault because this would all end if they capitulate. Nice try. Maybe they could create a movie and call it “Mr Smith goes to Austin: a partisan tale of twisted logic.”
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Tellnitlikeitis Reply:
May 22nd, 2009 at 9:20 pm
This is really uninformed logic.
Look, Senate GOPers changed the rules on the opening day by making Voter ID the priority bill and exempting it from a Senate tradition requiring legislation to have a 2/3rds majority before floor debate.
Guess what happens in the out years when Dems control the Senate? Any bill that GOPers find totally objectionable will get steamrolled over them because Dems will exempt it from the 2/3rds rule.
Senate GOPers set a terrible, terrible precedent in January.
Re-redistricting also will come back to bite them in the a$$ some day.
Democrats might not like the results of the 2022 elections. Guess what? They will simply redraw the lines in 2023 to get more favorable results.
And, guess what?
They now have a U.S. Supreme Court ruling saying you can re-draw lines in the middle of a decade.
And they have a court ruling saying it’s OK to gerrymander for partisan purposes.
Guess what?
Democrats will be able to pack GOPers into some far-flung district that puts Midland, parts of Dallas and parts of Houston in the same congressional district.
Screw communities of interest.
It will be bad for democracy just like what Texas GOPers did in 2003.
Actions always, always trigger escalating reactions.
But we have a bunch of idiots in the Capitol who simply don’t understand it…..and their kids and grandkids will pay the price.
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Anonymous says:
I say chub to your heart’s content. The last thing Texas needs is more legislation coming from an R Senate, an R House (even if just by 1), and an R Guv.
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Nopers says:
Glenn makes an excellent point. What the Rs could have, in effect, is a two-thirds rule for the House in the waning days of the session. The same rule the Senate Rs had to suspend in order to get Dewhurst’s Voter ID bill out of the Senate.
The two-thirds rule in the Senate works for a reason; it promotes compromise and stifles the “silly” parliamentary maneuvering when one side has to make a stand and fight the good fight. There are enough votes to suspend the regular order of business in the House for TDI sunset, the clean air bill, UI, and Eminent Domain. The “people’s” business can easily proceed, and the Constitutional checks and balances that allow for majority rule but protection of minority rights would work in splendid fashion.
But, it appears the Rs are choosing to fall on their sword of Voter ID. God help them, because I do not think the Legislative Redistricting Board can.
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Brown Bess says:
Why is it OK for the Senate Republicans to say to Hell with the rules in January, but not OK when Dems say to Hell with the rules in May – over the same contentious, no-good-reason issue?
Everyone saw this coming for weeks. The Republicans aren’t even united on this thing – I don’t think Todd Smith wanted it to leave his committee.
There is a sensible option: drop “Voter Suppression, er, ID” and get back to business.
And if anyone thinks this will cost Dems votes in a November 2010 election, I have a Governor’s Mansion I’d like to sell them.
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The Gunner says:
“This is been a bad afternoon for the Democrats, all self-inflicted. Their game plan of asking pointless questions about local bills makes them look silly.”
To whom? The few people who are really now or will soon be offended about this aren’t gonna support the Ds (or their tactics) anyway. The press can’t make ‘em look bad, and probably wouldn’t even if they could. The lobby will still keep giving them money. Where do the Ds start losing ground? I’ll start believing they’re wounding themselves when I actually see them wounded.
Their game plan from here is two-fold: 1) Suspend a bunch of rules (which were fought for and well-earned 16 years ago by some of these same people to avoid the kind of crap they’re pulling) and play savior (after several days of playing spoiler) or 2) they’ll blow up the House, go to special session, and blame every last minute of it on Rick Perry. They’ll make HIM the face of the unnecessary session, and the media–print, video, and internet–will play right along.
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The Gunner says:
Very interesting for Glenn Smith to hold the sword of Damacles over the head of the Legislature and declare that the sword is in the hand of the Republicans. Height of arrogance, anybody?
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JUICE says:
A lot of good Democratic bills are dying, and this effort to defeat Voter ID appears doomed. Perry wins any way this plays out.
He can call a special on voter ID and pass it. He can call a special on Windstorm or TDI Sunset or something else big that dies and use it as cover to add voter ID to the call and pass it. He can do nothing and campaign against Democratic obstructionists who don’t want to protect the sanctity of the ballot box. And in the meantime, Democrats’ bills die in droves.
I think I would cut a deal that the senate version of voter ID is what passes, approve it 140-0, and go home and talk about ensuring honest elections. Better and more informed inside baseball players than me are pulling the levers though, so perhaps there is still a better outcome possible here, but I don’t see it . . .
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anonymouse1 says:
>> Brown Bess says:
Why is it OK for the Senate Republicans to say to Hell with the rules in January, but not OK when Dems say to Hell with the rules in May – over the same contentious, no-good-reason issue?
Because that was in January and this is May.
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Hoohah! Reply:
May 22nd, 2009 at 11:04 pm
And those were Republicans messing with the rules earlier, but now they’re Democrats.
Oh. OK.
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B/CS Observer says:
How can you be upset at what is happening in the Lege when your party’s president justifies policy decisions by simply saying “We Won”?
Anyways, outside the echo chamber of Democratic politics that is Travis County, a no vote on voter ID will be very harmful to WD-40’s like Hopson and Homer. Those guys don’t win by real big margins, and they can’t afford to vote against their districts on the issue.
This, just like the flight to Ardmore, will only hurt Democrats statewide. Intransigence plays well in Travis County, and in safe Democratic Legislative seats, but not well anywhere else.
The average citizen can spot a sore loser when they see it.
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Tellnitlikeitis Reply:
May 22nd, 2009 at 9:25 pm
Gosh…more uninformed comment.
House GOPers had 88 seats when Democrats fled to Oklahoma.
Now, House GOPers have 76 seats.
The average citizen has spoken.
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theshadow says:
The 81st Legislature… bringing the magic of stalling in Ardmore to a whole new generation.
Watch for the media to report that the session hit the skids totally because of Republicans daring to exercise their majority by placing the Voter ID bill on the calendar.
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Brown Bess says:
Yep, the Dems have just fallen apart since Ardmore…
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Harry Doghiney (D-TX) says:
Voter ID is a Republican fraud and the House Dems are entirely justified in using every possible tactic to kill it.
If it slips through this time, we’ll repeal it next time.
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John Johnson says:
Sometimes incumbent reps, who feel they are entrenched and have a lock on their jobs, do really goofy things …they lose sight of why their constituents elected them … to protect their best interests. Paul mentions Sid Miller.
A few days ago, Mr. Miller, to “get even” with Rep. Solomons for being a bully, derailed HB3245 on a point of order. He got his point across OK, but screwed up a bill that needed to be considered that would have put just a bit of regulation back into electricity deregulation, and would have benefited the folks who elected him.
This, obviously, was never considered by Rep. Miier … or maybe the lobbyists got hold of him. Who knows? The bottomline is he screwed up.
Since most of his constituents will never know this, I pointed it out to the Stephenville Empire Tribune. Who knows if it will make it to print or if anyone in his district will even ask him about it.
Is there not some way to get a point across without shortchanging the voters back home?
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Anon says:
Not Dunnam’s finest day.
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B/CS Observer says:
John, that bill wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows like Solomons said. You will end up paying for electricity, whether in rates from private providers or taxes to subsidise “cheap” electricity.
Bess, the D’s have made headway on the issues, like on tuition dereg, and opposing vouchers. Not on stupid stuff like fleeing to Ardmore or trying to take down Craddick.
It amazes me how many D’s think their partisan antics have resulted in electoral success for their party. The D’s have picked up seats by running better candidates and working the issues.
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Mike M says:
>>Brown Bess ask: Why is it OK for the Senate Republicans to say to Hell with the rules in January, but not OK when Dems say to Hell with the rules in May – over the same contentious, no-good-reason issue?
Because the right wing corporate media is calling balls and strikes.
And anybody who thinks anyone is watching this on Memorial Day weekend other than political junkies is a nut. Nobody is looking good or bad.
And if anyone looks bad it’s the Speaker who promised to end partisan bickering and has presided over one of the most partisan session in history. (And who screwed the people who put him in the Speakers’ chair.) If more Democrats are elected in 2010, he’s going to be a one term
Speaker. If more Republicans are elected in 2010, he’s a one term Speaker.
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Anonymous says:
just asking a question, how do the direct mail consultants spin that moderate Democrats fought for people to vote without ID when the polls say 70-80% support the issue?
why did Joe Heflin vote for it?
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Anonymous says:
A statewide survey of 800 adults conducted between February 24-March 6, 2009 asked “Do you agree or disagree with the idea that registered voters should be required to present a government-issued photo id at the polls before they can be allowed to vote?”
and found
69% of those surveyed agreed with the statement, with only 18% disagreeing and 13% saying they didn’t know. [1] As the graphic linked to the feature box on the right suggests, the measure found majority support among whites, African Americans, and Latinos. These results closely tracked with a differently worded but broadly similar question on voter ID in our July survey, which also found strong support for requiring a voter to present a photo ID.
http://texaspolitics.laits.utexas.edu/11_1_1.html
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Benevolus says:
Uh, you need a photo ID to…
-fly
-drive
-enter a school during the school day
-cash a check
-go to the doctor
-get insurance
-get a job
-be admitted to a hospital
and on and on and on. Why not to vote? This is not mid-decade redistricting. Public opinion is HEAVILY on the side of requiring a photo ID to vote. It’s hard to fathom why the Dems would hand the Rs a golden gift like they are with this silly obstructionism to an inevitable, popular, and sensible idea of requiring a photo ID to vote.
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Anonymous Reply:
May 22nd, 2009 at 10:46 pm
Why weren’t these bills scheduled for floor debate earlier ? Who’s driving this train?
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Tellnitlikeitis Reply:
May 22nd, 2009 at 11:24 pm
There’s nothing wrong with voter ID – if you make voting easier. Voter ID and making voting harder will cause a fight.
If voting ID is the answer to all this voter fraud, then allow same-day voter registration. The voting ID system will work with same day registration … if it works at all.
If you don’t want to make voting easier, then the sole goal of voter ID is to suppresss turnout.
And that is nothing but un-democratic.
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Ted Melina Raab says:
Sid Miller “withdrew” his point of order because it would not have been sustained. He maintained that the meeting during which today’s L&C calendar was set was not open to the public. However, the meeting was open to and attended by members of the public.
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poindexter says:
Wait, everyone keeps comparing the House D’s to the Senate R’s. But there’s a big difference between throwing out the 2/3s rule to your advantage and using the rules as the House D’s have to your advantage. The House D’s aren’t breaking rules or throwing them out, they are using the rules to stall legislation taht wouldn’t be on the House floor if the Senate R’s hadn’t tossed thier rules in January.
Also the House D’s don’t have too actually kill the Voter I.D. bill in the House to stop it, just slow it down enough for a filibuster to kill it by Friday the 29th at Midnight.
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Anonymous says:
A pox on both their houses. The R’s shouldn’t have broken the tradition of the 2/3rds rule that has protected them when they were in the minority and the D’s shouldn’t be stooping to stall tactics that could jeopardize much needed legislation like TDI sunset, Windstorm Insurance, Tax Abatements for Veterans, etc..
This is why the voting public hates politics. Stop treating this like it’s a game and get to work.
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