The discussion in the Senate has gotten hot and heavy as the midnight hour approached. I missed the name of the witness, an attorney who had represented Texas Democrats in various redistricting cases. He attacked the Tom DeLay midcensus redistricting in 2003. Wentworth jumped in to point out that the Democrats had gerrymandered the 1971 redistricting to eliminate one of the three Republican congressmen (in a 25-member delegation). Then he defended the 03 redistricting, pointing out that Texas had 29 statewide officeholders, all of them Republicans, and Texas had voted for George W. Bush for president, but that the congressional delegation (drawn by a federal court) was 17 Democrats and 15 Republicans, and the Democrats were fighting Bush, and that was why the 03 redistricting took place. Williams, calm as ever, grilled the lawyer about whether Eddie Bernice Johnson had called him a liar from the witness stand, said he had lied to her, and stabbed her in the back, all to help Martin Frost. “Is she a liar?” Williams asked. “If she said I lied to her, she’s a liar,” the lawyer said. “I have never lied to a client.” Then Williams asked if the lawyer had stolen maps from the redistricting room during the 03 redistricting battle, and couldn’t he be disbarred for that? The lawyer said, “Let me answer the second question first. Yes, I could be disbarred for stealing maps. But I never stole any maps.” Williams said, “I have information that there are tapes of you stealing maps.” 12:14 a.m. Now they are on a 10-minute break while the stenographer who has been here since noon is being replaced.