Texas Resident Says Runaway Democrats Are ‘Heroes’
Texas resident Amanda McLaughlin called the Texas Democrats who left the state “heroes” during a state Senate committee hearing on Wednesday.
“When did the legislature become about serving a destructive president, and serving your own needs above those of your constituents?” McLaughlin asked.
“Everyone knows that this is to give the president five more seats. The cost for this is high. This cost is a cold heart, that tries to silence many black and brown people, and anyone who doesn’t agree with the policy of fear, hate, and division,” McLaughlin continued.
The proposed redistricting in Texas, which the hearing was commenting on, was prompted in part by a push from President Donald Trump, who asked Texas Gov. Greg Abott to enact the mid-decade redistricting in order to shore up his party’s legislative advantage.
“There could be some other states we’re going to get another three, or four or five in addition. Texas would be the biggest one. Just a simple redrawing, we pick up five seats” Trump said to the press on July 15.
McLaughlin continued, “you will try to silence us, but you don’t understand the depth of our resolve. I consider the representatives that broke quorum to be heroes, and I support them. They are trying to defend a democracy you are so determined to destroy.”
McLaughlin was referring to the more than 50 Texas House Democrats who broke quorum on August 3 in order to deny the Texas State House its requirements to pass new legislation, such as the new legislative map.
The new map would give Republicans another five safe seats in Congress, bumping their slim national advantage up. However, as McLaughlin alluded to, these new districts have been accused of silencing voters of color.
Rep. Greg Cesar (D-TX) accused Republicans of “trying to dilute the voices of voters of color” on Wednesday, saying the new map splits many non-white communities and lumps them into majority white districts to remove their representation in Congress.
“They’re therefore getting rid of Hispanic opportunity districts in the Houston area. There will be no more Hispanic opportunity districts in all of Dallas, Fort Worth or in the Austin-area, in a state where the biggest racial group are Latinos,” Rep. Cesar said.
One Texas Democrat agrees with the congressman. State Rep. Gina Hinojosa said, “in Austin, for example, we’re seeing the impact firsthand. The maps would eliminate the Latino opportunity district, robbing a diverse, civically engaged city of fair representation at a time when our population has soared.”
McLaughlin also called attention to other groups in Texas she believes to be disadvantaged, primarily transgender people.
“I’m a transgender woman. I’m tired of hearing about my friends moving out of Texas because they are afraid,” McLaughlin said.
Data suggests a growing number of transgender people are fleeing Republican states. According to a 2023 survey from Data For Progress, more than 130,000 transgender people have left Republican states and roughly another million are considering leaving. Texas is one such state, but the exact numbers of transgender Texans who have fled is not currently known.
“How can you justify hurting so many people because they don’t look or think like you? Diversity is beautiful. Please replace the fear and hate with love,” McLaughlin concluded.