The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“TEXAS REDISTRICTING” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Justice was published in the House of Representatives section on pages H4177-H4178 on May 15, 2003.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
TEXAS REDISTRICTING
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Lampson) is recognized for 5 minutes.
Mr. LAMPSON. Mr. Speaker, I am proud to follow my colleagues from the Texas congressional delegation who have just previously spoken and also prouder to stand up here and be able to speak in behalf of some of my colleagues who are serving in the Texas House of Representatives, my constituents in the Ninth Congressional District of Texas, people like Joe Deshotel, who is a former vice president of Lamar University in Beaumont; Allan Ritter, who owns a successful lumber company in Nederland, Texas; and Craig Eiland, who is a successful attorney on Galveston Island, all honorable members of the Texas legislature, which is a citizen legislature, not a full-time legislature like our Congress is. I am so proud of them.
As we heard my colleagues say in the last few minutes, these ladies and gentlemen have stood up for principle, and it is magnificent to see their unity and their willingness to put their political lives on the line. They put Texans before their own personal political ambitions, and I am proud of them for doing the right thing. The real victims of this redistricting plan that is before Texas is not the members who hold those seats right now but it is the communities, certainly not the Members of Congress who may be here. The fight is not about Nick Lampson. It is not about the Democrats or the Republicans. It is about the people of Texas who deserve to be represented fairly and fully in Washington, D.C.
Jefferson County, Chambers County, Galveston County, the areas that I represent along the upper Texas gulf coast, have been in the same congressional district for over 3 decades. They have in common the size of their communities, the large petrochemical industry, and interests which run throughout that area, coastal and water transportation industries and a whole lot more beyond that. Splitting these counties apart and even further splitting Jefferson County and my hometown of Beaumont itself dilutes the strength of the interests and the ability of the people who live there to be represented as those citizens want to be represented. Splitting these communities is in a sense a disenfranchisement of the people within those communities.
This fight, however, is about more than redistricting. It is about the infusion of partisanship that exists in Washington, D.C., into the Texas legislature. I am absolutely astounded to learn of some of the things that I have heard in the last several days following the action of those brave Texas legislators who chose to go across the Texas border into Oklahoma. I am astounded at the fact that my friend Craig Eiland, that State representative that I just mentioned, his wife, Melissa, who has recently had twin babies who were born prematurely and are in the hospital in Galveston, knowing that State law enforcement officials were directed by the Governor of our State and by the Speaker of our House to go and question the nurses in that hospital, wanting to know the whereabouts of State Representative Craig Eiland. And even after it was published in the newspaper that our legislators were in Ardmore, Oklahoma, they went to Craig's wife's home where Craig was not there and harassed her about his whereabouts, when their babies are in the hospital being treated.
We are seeing an abuse of power. We are seeing an abuse of Federal resources even. The fact that Federal resources, according to the newspapers in Texas, the homeland security agency had an airplane that was tracked. The airplane belonged to a cotton farmer/State legislator, citizen legislator, Pete Laney. It was through the information that our United States Federal homeland security agency gave to the State of Texas that led to the whereabouts of our legislators who were trying to send a message to the Speaker of the House and to the Governor of Texas. We used the wrong kind of resources because interestingly enough about 2 miles from here down the road stands a hotel called the Watergate, a place of historical significance and a symbol of the use of Federal law enforcement resources for private political gain. I am not sure where Tom DeLay stays when he is in Austin, but maybe someday that hotel will carry the same significance as Watergate. It might remind us all of the outrageous diversion of Federal law enforcement authorities to pursue Democratic legislators.
I am proud of these folks who stood up in Texas. When we shut out the interests of the people because of partisan politics, it is the people who are the ultimate losers. The people of Texas are not losers.
It might remind us all of the outrageous diversion of federal law enforcement authorities to pursue Democratic legislators who fled to Oklahoma
In this current time when we face the threat of terrorism, asking the Department of Justice, Homeland Security and the FBI to participate in personal politics is despicable
When we shut out the interests of the people because of partisan politics, the people are the ultimate losers
This is the people of Texas versus one man
Lest someone think that all is well in the U.S. House of Representatives, please consider that the level of frustration has hit a new low. Long-serving members tell us story after story of their being shut out of the legislative process which in turn causes the loss of voices of millions of American citizens. We need real leadership here. People who will reach out and heal the divisiveness, people who are willing to change the direction that our legislative bodies are going.
I repeat: When we shut out the interests of the people because of partisan politics, the people are ultimate losers.
This is the people of Texas versus one man. Tom Delay's interests cannot and will not be allowed to win out over the interests of the good people of the great State of Texas.
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