‘Inside Texas Politics’ approached her after her 15-hour filibuster.
DALLAS – It was a political spectacle in the State Senate: a filibuster all night. It didn’t stop a vote on this Republican bill that would change how and when we vote. But it also illustrated something else: State Sen. Carol Alvarado spoke for 15 hours.
Alvarado is a Democrat representing parts of Houston and Harris Counties, and Inside Texas Politics spoke to her shortly after she stepped off the floor from her late-night filibuster.
She said she realized that the chances that her 15-hour speech would stop the bill passed were slim, but she had still done something different.
“Filibusters can be used – and that was our goal – was to take the breaks and put a very bright spotlight on what’s going on,” Alvarado said. “Right now there is a lot of momentum in fighting and educating people about this law.”
Still no quorum in the second special session of the Texan legislature
The Democrats at Texas House seem determined to stay out as long as necessary to undo the Republican referendum bill. The House of Representatives is short of half a dozen MPs to reach a quorum.
However, Ross Ramsey, co-founder and editor-in-chief of the Texas Tribune, said it was more likely that a quorum would be reached at that session.
“I don’t know when to tip or if there will be tips,” said Ramsey. “I think it will harden the determination of the Democrats here to pursue them with state police and arrest warrants, which are civil arrest warrants more like a subpoena. But I think this will probably be resolved here soon. “
With the COVID resurgence, local leaders resist the governor’s orders
While the state begins another week without a quorum in the house of Texas, COVID has now made its mark as a critical political issue in our state in addition to the vote.
Last week, cities, counties and schools opposed Governor Greg Abbott’s order to ban mask mandates.
Inside Texas Politics asked Fort Worth Republican State MP Craig Goldman if Abbott should change his ordinance to allow school districts to make decisions about how to control the virus, but Goldman dodged the answer, saying he thought it was still there. It is the personal responsibility of each individual to decide whether to put a mask on himself or his children. “
“We are now all trained enough to make decisions that we believe are best for us and our families,” he said.
But Austin canceled several major events this weekend due to the surge in COVID cases. Pride has been postponed and a series of concerts has also postponed its dates. While there, Mayor Steve Adler issued a masking policy for schools and municipal facilities, but said they were confident that some companies in the area would adopt guidelines that would require proof of vaccination before customers could step in.
“I feel like I am here, we are here fighting as hard as we can, not only to keep our community safe but also to keep the economy open, and the governor is not helping us with that. Quite the opposite, ”said Adler. “I think the governor is working against us and I don’t understand.”
Census data published
The numbers have come in from the Census Bureau, and now the redistribution battles begin.
Colored people accounted for 95% of the state’s growth over the past decade, according to the new data. In fact, the population of Hispanic Texans is almost equal to that of white Texans, a little earlier than many expected.
What political implications does this have as lawmakers start redrawing the boundaries for the political districts this fall?
Ramsey of the Tribune said the issue is not how many Hispanic MPs there are, or black or white MPs, but whether the communities of Hispanic voters and white voters and black voters are represented
“When you draw political maps, you have to represent the people, not the legislature,” he said. “That will play a big role, especially in places like Dallas where there is a large urban population and this shift is most pronounced.”
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