[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 122 (Tuesday, July 13, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Page S4841]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                           Texas Legislature

  Mr. CORNYN. Well, just when you think you have seen it all, Mr. 
President, something new happens here in Washington, DC. All eyes are 
now on DC's newest asylum seekers, the members of the Texas House of 
Representatives, the Democratic Representatives.
  But the only oppressive force that these men and women are facing is 
the expectation that they would actually do their jobs in the Texas 
Legislature, the job they campaigned for and were elected to do.
  Following unsuccessful attempts to pass an election integrity bill 
during the regular legislative session earlier this year, Governor 
Abbott has now called a special session for the Texas Legislature to 
consider that and other matters. That special session kicked off last 
Thursday, but the chamber is already being held hostage by a minority 
of house members who are unwilling to do their job. The Democrats 
raised concerns about the current draft of the bill. Make no mistake. 
That is why the legislative process actually exists. That is why it is 
important that they be there and debate the issues and actually vote on 
the bill. The purpose, of course, is for all sides to be able to 
debate, potentially amend, and vote on legislation.

  Yet, rather than do their jobs in Texas, yesterday, house Democrats 
abandoned both our State and the millions of Texans whom they represent 
and decamped to Washington, DC, when they were faced with the prospect 
of defeat. For better or for worse, the legislative process is all 
about arithmetic. You are not always going to win every debate you are 
involved in. That doesn't mean you leave the State and refuse to do 
your job, but that is exactly what they did. They got on two chartered 
jets--maskless and with at least one case of light beer--to come to 
Washington, DC.
  The problem--and, really, what is so sad--is I don't think these 
legislators realize the irony of the situation. They are using their 
collective power as the minority party to stop a bill they oppose from 
becoming law. While doing so, they have come to Washington to try to 
convince the President and Senate Democrats to nuke the very Senate 
rule that protects the rights of the minority--in other words, you 
might say, a filibuster for me but not for thee. As a reminder, this is 
the second time they have denied the legislature a quorum this year.
  I think it is pretty obvious that this was nothing more than a 
political stunt when these lawmakers skipped town with no plan as to 
when they would return to their jobs in Texas. Frankly, the Governor, 
under the Texas Constitution, can continue to call as many special 
sessions as he wishes and without limitation. So we all know how this 
will end. They will eventually go home. After the cameras leave and 
after the press loses interest in this political stunt, they will go 
home, and they will participate in the process.
  It is telling that these Democrats in this house of representatives 
chose to race toward TV cameras in Washington rather than present their 
arguments in the legislature, and it is not without some risk to them. 
I am advised that they were on Federal property and referred to a 
website, which was actually a fundraising site, for their efforts. We 
all know there are limits--in fact, strict limits--on any fundraising 
on Federal property. So they may have crossed a line, unwittingly or 
not.
  This is simply an embarrassing dereliction of their duty and a 
shameful political stunt, as I said. They can't win. So they are doing 
the equivalent of ``I will take my ball and go home'' or, in this case, 
``I am simply running away.'' Texans standing up to a fight is part of 
who we are, even if you know, in the end, you may not prevail. Instead, 
they turned their backs, hopped on a private jet, and ran from this 
fight.
  Like our Democratic colleagues in Congress, Texas State lawmakers 
have tried to create a false choice between voter access and election 
security. I think it boils down to this: We should be making it easier 
to vote and tougher to cheat, plain and simple. It is disingenuous and 
downright false to claim any effort to prevent fraud is a veiled 
attempt at voter suppression. We know that minority voters, voters of 
color, voted at unprecedented levels in the 2020 election.
  In my State, we had 66 percent of registered voters vote and the 
highest levels in history of African-American and Hispanic voters--so 
much for this idea that, somehow, the people who want to be able to 
vote can't vote even though we ordinarily have 2 weeks of early voting 
before the general election. We have mail-in ballots for people who are 
disabled, who are over 65, or who cannot--or otherwise will not--be in 
town on election day. Of course, we have election day voting as well. 
In 2020, we had 11.3 million Texans who cast their ballots--as I said, 
66 percent of registered voters. The last time I was on the ballot, in 
2014, we had 4.8 million voters--4.8 to 11.3 in 6 years alone. So 
believe me--there is robust voter participation, and nothing the Texas 
Legislature is considering will deny people their legitimate right to 
vote and ability to cast their votes, and that is appropriate that they 
should do so.
  There are other additional items in the Governor's call for this 
special session, including things like bail reform and family violence 
prevention. Of course, by fleeing town and coming to Washington in this 
political stunt, the Democratic house members are abdicating their 
responsibility to deal with these other issues as well. It is not just 
about election law reform; it is about these other issues like bail 
reform and family violence prevention.
  I believe firmly and am confident I am in the majority of my 
constituents, of my 29 million constituents, that they actually expect 
us, when we run for office and when we get elected, to show up for our 
jobs and not take part in a highly orchestrated and ethically dubious 
act of political theater.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. GRAHAM. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.