The Texan Podcast - Daily Rundown - August 8, 2025

Starting point is 00:00:00 Howdy folks, today is Friday, August 8th, and you're listening to The Texans Daily Rundown. I'm the Texans assistant editor Rob Laus, and here is the rundown of today's news in Texas politics. First up, the Texas House lacked a quorum for the fifth day in a row, following most of the Democratic caucus leaving the state or hiding out within it, to kill a mid-decade congressional redistricting map. There was one fewer member in the chamber on Friday than on Tuesday, with the official roll call showing 95 members present. State Representative Mary Gonzalez returned to the chamber on Friday, while state representatives Terry Canales and Eddie Morales were absent despite being present on Tuesday. In reference to the lawsuit filed on Thursday in an Illinois court asking the state to assist Texas with returning quorum-breaking Democrats, Speaker Dustin Burroughs said from the dice, Quote,

Starting point is 00:00:59 Yesterday, Attorney General Ken Paxton and I took action to domesticate the civil arrest warrants in the state of Illinois, seeking to make them enforceable beyond Texas state lines. I expect suits in other states will be forthcoming. He continued, quote, I have been in constant communication with the Department of Public Safety, which has been working to track down absent members in an effort to return them to our chamber.

Starting point is 00:01:23 These efforts will continue through the weekend. Burroughs then informed the body to be on call to return to the House over the weekend if DPS corralled absent Democrats within the state, saying they must be able to arrive within six hours of notice. Next, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, in coordination with House Speaker Dustin Burroughs, is seeking to involve Illinois law enforcement in enforcing the civil arrest warrants issued in order to bring the quorum breaking Democrats back to Austin. The civil petition was filed in an Adams County, Illinois circuit court seeking to recognize and enforce the civil warrants that were issued by the Texas House. More than 30 Texas Democrats are named in the suit. Other quorum-busting members have sought refuge in New York and Massachusetts. The filing states, quote, Texas requests and is entitled to the assistance of its sister state, the state of Illinois, to enforce the quorum order and quorum warrant as to each of the Texas House members. breaking quorum and evading civil arrest in Illinois. Paxton stated in a press release, quote, we are pursuing every legal remedy at our disposal to hold these rogue legislators accountable. In other news, the Texas House again failed to meet a quorum on Friday afternoon, and now

Starting point is 00:02:40 Attorney General Ken Paxton is taking additional legal action against 13 Democratic members that fled to other states. Paxton has targeted representatives Ron Reynolds, Vicky Goodwin, Gina Hinojosa, James Talarico, Gene Wu, Lulu Flores, Mihaila Plesa, Suleiman Lalani, Chris Turner, Anna Maria Rodriguez Ramos, Jessica Gonzalez, John Busey, and Christina Morales. The petition was filed with the Supreme Court of Texas with the intention to have their seats declared vacant. The petition goes on to state that because the Democratic members named in the suit, quote, have announced that they refused to perform the duties of their offices, they have abandoned them, and this court should declare their offices vacant, end quote. Also, after authoring the Department of

Starting point is 00:03:28 Justice letter that ramped up the national pressure surrounding Texas's active partisan war over redistricting, Assistant U.S. Attorney General Harmeet Dillon says there is, quote, a lot at stake, end quote, for voter rights within this Lone Star State dogfight. Assistant U.S. Attorney General Harmeet Dillon says there is a lot at stake for voter rights within this Lone Star State dogfight. As Texas House Democrats broke quorum for the third day to avoid a vote on the proposed redistricting map in Texas, Dylan stated in an interview on Real America's voice on Wednesday, quote, this is an existential threat to the seats that have been gerrymandered for minority congressional candidates who get in there and keep them for years. Dylan kicked up the already brewing redistricting

Starting point is 00:04:15 storm within Texas when she penned a letter to Governor Greg Abbott and Attorney General Ken Paxton on July 7th, raising constitutional concerns with at least four of Texas's congressional districts. This followed President Donald Trump expressing his desire to obtain five more Republican seats from Texas. Last but not least, while Harris County Judge Lena Hidalgo is holding her cards close as to whether she will seek a third term, candidates from both sides of the political aisle are jumping into the 2026 election for the chance to lead the state's largest county. Visit the texan. News for reporter Holly Hanson's breakdown of the 26 Harris County Judges Race as it stands now. Thanks for listening. To support the Texan, please be sure to visit

Starting point is 00:05:00 the texan. News and subscribe to get full access to all of our articles, newsletters, and podcasts. Thank you.

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The Texan Podcast - Daily Rundown - August 8, 2025

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