Texas Governor Orders Arrest of Democrats Who Left State

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Texas Governor Greg Abbott ordered the arrest of Democratic lawmakers who left the state to block a controversial vote on new congressional maps.  “Texas House Democrats abandoned their duty to Texans,” Abbott said in a statement Monday. “I ordered the Texas Department of Public Safety to locate, arrest, and return to the House chamber any member who has abandoned their duty to Texans.” The governor’s move escalates a standoff with Democrats with two weeks left in the state legislature’s special session, which was also set to address other issues from a cannabis ban to last month’s deadly floods in central Texas. Republican lawmakers proposed a redistricting plan last week that Democrats describe as a gerrymander designed to give more seats in the US Congress to the GOP. The unusually timed revamp of Texas’ congressional districts mushroomed into a national spectacle over the weekend with the Democrats’ departure. President Donald Trump has made the revamp a priority in his goal of bolstering Republican power in the 2026 midterm elections. In response, Democratic governors such as California’s Gavin Newsom and New York’s Kathy Hochul have discussed retaliating with new maps of their own.  “This is not a decision we make lightly, but it is one we make with absolute moral clarity,” Gene Wu, the Democratic leader in the lower house of the Texas legislature, said at a news conference in Illinois after leaving the state. “We’re not walking out on our responsibilities; we’re walking out on a rigged system that refuses to listen to the people we represent.” -------- Watch Bloomberg Radio LIVE on YouTube Weekdays 7am-6pm ET WATCH HERE: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF Follow us on X: https://twitter.com/BloombergRadio Subscribe to our Podcasts: Bloomberg Daybreak: http://bit.ly/3DWYoAN Bloomberg Surveillance: http://bit.ly/3OPtReI Bloomberg Intelligence: http://bit.ly/3YrBfOi Balance of Power: http://bit.ly/3OO8eLC Bloomberg Businessweek: http://bit.ly/3IPl60i Listen on Apple CarPlay and Android Auto with the Bloomberg Business app: Apple CarPlay: https://apple.co/486mghI Android Auto: https://bit.ly/49benZy Visit our YouTube channels: Bloomberg Podcasts: https://www.youtube.com/bloombergpodcasts Bloomberg Television: https://www.youtube.com/@markets Bloomberg Originals: https://www.youtube.com/bloomberg Quicktake: https://www.youtube.com/@BloombergQuicktake