WEBVTT - Rep. James Talarico Talks Texas Redistricting Efforts

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<v Speaker 1>Bloomberg Audio Studios, podcasts, radio news Now.

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<v Speaker 2>Just moments ago, President Trump commented on the ongoing situation

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<v Speaker 2>in Texas regarding the Democrats who fled the state to

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<v Speaker 2>avert redistricting efforts. Take a listen.

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<v Speaker 3>Well, I think they've abandoned the state. Nobody's seen anything

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<v Speaker 3>like it, even though they've done it twice before, and

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<v Speaker 3>in a certain way, it almost looks like they've abandoned

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<v Speaker 3>the state. It looks very bad.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, go ahead, please get involved. Should the FBI get involved, well,

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<v Speaker 2>they may have to. They may have to. Joining us

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<v Speaker 2>now for more here on Balance of Power on Bloomberg

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<v Speaker 2>TV and Radio is Democratic Texas State Representative James Tallerico.

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<v Speaker 2>Welcome back to Balance of Power. Representative. It's good to

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<v Speaker 2>have you. The other thing we heard from the President

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<v Speaker 2>is that Democrats did this redistricting first. That was his

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<v Speaker 2>response when questioned about what's happening in Texas. Given the

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<v Speaker 2>rhetoric we are hearing from other blue state governors, be

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<v Speaker 2>it Kathy Hochel or Gavin Newsom, does the President have

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<v Speaker 2>a point or Democrats kind of counteract your argument that

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<v Speaker 2>what Texas is doing is wrong.

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<v Speaker 1>No, not at all. Typically state legislatures, whether they're in

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<v Speaker 1>blue states or red states, they adjust district boundaries at

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<v Speaker 1>the beginning of the decade, and yes, they jerrymanders. Sometimes

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<v Speaker 1>Democrats do it, sometimes Republicans do it. It is wrong

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<v Speaker 1>in either instance because politicians shouldn't be picking their voters.

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<v Speaker 1>Voters should be picking their politicians. But what's happening here

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<v Speaker 1>is a whole nother level. The President of the United States,

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<v Speaker 1>the most powerful man in the country, requested that Texas

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<v Speaker 1>Republicans find him five more congressional seats, and so now

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<v Speaker 1>they are redrawing the maps they just drew in twenty

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<v Speaker 1>twenty one to rig the next election for him, to

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<v Speaker 1>insulate him from public accountability. And that's a fundamental disruption

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<v Speaker 1>to the democratic process. If the president wanted to campaign

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<v Speaker 1>on his policies and try to win base on the

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<v Speaker 1>maps that we all set in twenty twenty one, that

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<v Speaker 1>would be fine. That's how this process is supposed to work.

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<v Speaker 1>But that's not what's happening. The President is trying to

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<v Speaker 1>execute a power grab in the state of Texas, and

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<v Speaker 1>we will not let him cheat in order to hold

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<v Speaker 1>onto power.

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<v Speaker 3>Reptel Rico, it's good to have you back. On Bloomberg.

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<v Speaker 3>We spoke with your colleague and the Senate yesterday, Chris Turner.

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<v Speaker 3>I'm sorry State Rep. Chris Turner, another Democrat who has

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<v Speaker 3>fled I believe to the same city that you did.

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<v Speaker 3>To try to make a point here, but we also

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<v Speaker 3>kind of acknowledge the fact that this really will not

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<v Speaker 3>change the outcome of this effort because the governor can

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<v Speaker 3>continue to set special sessions, and mister Turner learned that

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<v Speaker 3>just a few years ago in the last attempt at redistricting.

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<v Speaker 3>I think it was five weeks before everybody came back

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<v Speaker 3>and this took place at last. What is the real

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<v Speaker 3>purpose of you leaving Texas? Is it to publicize what's happening,

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<v Speaker 3>Is it to raise money around it? Or both?

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<v Speaker 1>Well, I actually want to push back on the idea

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<v Speaker 1>that our twenty twenty one quorum break was a failure.

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<v Speaker 1>It wasn't. And I also want to clarify that it

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<v Speaker 1>wasn't over redistricting. It was over a voter suppression bill

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<v Speaker 1>that would have made it harder to vote in the

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<v Speaker 1>state of Texas. Texas is one of the hardest places

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<v Speaker 1>to vote in the entire country, and so we broke

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<v Speaker 1>quorum and we drew national attention, a national spotlight on

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<v Speaker 1>that voter suppression effort, and that spotlight convinced Texas Republicans

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<v Speaker 1>to take the worst parts out of that bill. A

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<v Speaker 1>ban on souls to the polls, which is Sunday morning voting,

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<v Speaker 1>which African American churches traditionally use to get their congregants

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<v Speaker 1>out to vote. Also a provision that would have allowed

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<v Speaker 1>Republican politicians to overturn election results they didn't like. And

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<v Speaker 1>both of those parts were taken out because of our

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<v Speaker 1>quorum break. So it is a tool in the toolbox

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<v Speaker 1>of the minority for when the majority oversteps their constitutional duties.

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<v Speaker 1>And so I'm hoping that this quorum break can do

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<v Speaker 1>the same thing by shining a national and now international

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<v Speaker 1>spotlight on this power grab in Texas. We're hoping our

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<v Speaker 1>Republican colleagues will walk back from the brink. I hope

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<v Speaker 1>we can play by the same rules that we set

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<v Speaker 1>in twenty twenty one and not cheat in the middle

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<v Speaker 1>of the game. I mean by mid decade redistricting, they

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<v Speaker 1>are essentially like the team coming out of halftime during

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<v Speaker 1>a football game that's ahead and they say they want

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<v Speaker 1>to change the rules for the second half so they

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<v Speaker 1>can win the game. That's cheating, plain and simple. If

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<v Speaker 1>they're going to cheat, we're not going to play.

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<v Speaker 2>Representative. We just heard from President Trump in response to

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<v Speaker 2>the call from Republican Senator John cornyin of Texas to

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<v Speaker 2>potentially get the FBI involved in the cases of lawmakers

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<v Speaker 2>like yourself, who will flood the state of Texas to

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<v Speaker 2>execute this quorum break. What is your reaction to that, sir.

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<v Speaker 2>What happens if the FBI gets involved.

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<v Speaker 1>Well, it's completely consistent with this rigged map. They are

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<v Speaker 1>trying to rob Texans, Democrats, independents, and Republicans from their

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<v Speaker 1>god given right to pick the representatives of their choice.

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<v Speaker 1>And now Donald Trump and Greg Abbott and Ken Paxson

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<v Speaker 1>are talking about removing or arresting public officials, the people's representatives,

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<v Speaker 1>from their offices. And so this is a page out

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<v Speaker 1>of the authoritarian playbook that we've seen in other countries.

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<v Speaker 1>And it should be alarming to all of us, not

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<v Speaker 1>just Democrats, but Republicans and independence too, not just elected

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<v Speaker 1>officials but journalists too. This is a five alarm fire

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<v Speaker 1>in a democratic system, and we all need to act

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<v Speaker 1>with the urgency that this moment demands.

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<v Speaker 3>Do you expect that someone will serve a warrant on

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<v Speaker 3>behalf of the governor or the FBI try to extradite

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<v Speaker 3>you representative. What scenarios have you mapped out based on

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<v Speaker 3>what you've.

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<v Speaker 1>Heard so far. Well, I think I can speak for

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<v Speaker 1>myself and my colleagues when I say that we're not

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<v Speaker 1>very worried about the consequences we may face, whether they

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<v Speaker 1>are arrest or financial fines, or even removal from office,

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<v Speaker 1>because we have right on our side. We are part

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<v Speaker 1>of a long American tradition of looking bullies in the eye,

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<v Speaker 1>of speaking truth to power, of civil disobedience, of good trouble.

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<v Speaker 1>That is how this democracy was forged, and we are

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<v Speaker 1>participating in that tradition, and we're proud to do it.

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<v Speaker 1>When Donald Trump asked Georgia Republicans to find him eleven

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<v Speaker 1>thousand votes after he lost the twenty twenty election, those

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<v Speaker 1>Republicans said, no, sir. But when Donald Trump asked Texas

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<v Speaker 1>Republicans to find him five more seats in Congress in

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<v Speaker 1>the middle of the decade, they said, how about Thursday?

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<v Speaker 1>And so that's why my Democratic colleagues and I had

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<v Speaker 1>to take a stand again, not just for our party,

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<v Speaker 1>but for all Americans.

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<v Speaker 3>Democratic Texas State Rep. James tall Rico, we thank you

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<v Speaker 3>for returning and joining our conversation here on Bloomberg