The Texas Legislature, dominated by Republicans, recently redrew congressional district boundaries to disadvantage Democrats in the next election. This political maneuver, called gerrymandering, is as old as the Republic.
For example, Al Green, a Democratic congressman and a perpetual burr under the Republican saddle, represents Texas Congressional District 9, a historically safe district for Democrats. No doubt, Green felt confident enough about his congressional seat to disrupt President Trump's address to Congress last spring. His Democratic constituents undoubtedly loved his buffoonish behavior. That's our boy!
Then things changed. The Texas legislature drastically altered District 9 to encompass voting precincts that are reliably Republican. The district's stalwart Democratic neighborhoods were shoved into District 18, and Green's congressional sinecure was wiped out. He will lose if he runs for reelection next year in District 9.
Indeed, unless the Republicans' gerrymandering maneuver is overturned by the courts, Texas will probably send five additional Republicans to Congress after the next federal election. No wonder that Democratic Texas legislators fled the state in August to stall a vote on the Republicans' redistricting scheme.
Of course, the Democrats didn't take the Republicans' gerrymandering scheme lying down. California Governor Gavin Newsom, self-appointed leader of the increasingly deranged Democratic Party, signed gerrymandering legislation countermanding the Texas action by gerrymandering the Golden State's congressional districts to favor the Democrats.
Now, gerrymandering battles between Republicans and Democrats have broken out in other states. It seems likely that all this political turmoil will have to be sorted out by the U.S. Supreme Court.
No one can predict the outcome of the gerrymandering war. Nevertheless, Americans are waking up to the fact that congressional districts have been gerrymandered nationwide and that most of it has benefited Democrats.
New England's six states have no Republican-held congressional seats, even though the region has many Republican voters. Illinois is the poster child for corrupt Democratic gerrymandering. No wonder that 33 conservatively leaning counties want to join with Indiana to escape the state's oppressively corrupt, Democrat-dominated political system.
All this sturm and drang over congressional redistricting highlights the fact that numerous congressional representatives are lunatics who behave childishly and irresponsibly because they are in safe districts where their constituents prefer to be entertained rather than governed.
Congressman Al Green's fans need not mourn the loss of their wingnut representative. Although he is being pushed out of District 9, he will probably run again in District 18, where many of his supporters were placed due to redistricting. If Green runs in District 18 in 2026, I predict he will win.
Gerrymandering for me but not for thee.
