Texas state Rep. John Bucy III says he and his fellow Democrats are ready to fight “fire with fire” after leaving the state to prevent Republicans from advancing a redistricting plan backed by President Donald Trump.
Bucy is one of more than 50 Democratic state representatives who fled Texas in an effort to deny the state House a quorum. Speaking to Scripps News from Chicago, Illinois, he said the group is committed to staying out of state as long as necessary.
“We are going to kill this special session and then that'll be the end of it,” said Bucy, who represents the Austin area. “And the governor has to make a decision on what he wants to do next.”
President Donald Trump has backed the redistricting initiative in Texas. The president is hopeful the plan could deliver Republicans an additional five congressional seats in the midterm elections.
“He knows he can't win the midterm elections,” Bucy said. “That's why they're trying to rig the maps.”
The absent Texas lawmakers could face penalties. Under state law, legislators who skip sessions may be fined up to $500 per day. Gov. Greg Abbott suggested the consequences could be even more severe.
“I believe they have forfeited their seats in the state legislature because they are not doing the job they were elected to do,” Abbott said Monday on Fox News.
Bucy said he’s not worried about Abbott’s threat to remove him from office.
“The people of House District 136 sent me there,” he said. “I have the constitutional right to stand up for them, and I’m serving them right now by being here, fighting for their democracy. They made their voices loud and clear. They have my back.”
