Paul Clement

Why South Carolina's Voter ID Suit Could Be Bound For The Supreme Court

Ryan J. Reilly | February 8, 2012, 6:05AM

Paul Clement is the former Solicitor General of the United States and the guy conservatives go to when there's a Supreme Court case on the line.

So it's not surprising that it was Clement's signature that ended up on the complaint filed on behalf of the state of South Carolina this week, in a suit against Attorney General Eric Holder over DOJ's decision to block the state's voter ID law because of the disparate impact the state's numbers show it will have on minority voters.

It's a suit that supporters hope will not only enshrine South Carolina's voter ID requirement as the unquestioned law of the state, but that will also do away with federal restrictions placed on states like South Carolina because of their clear history of racial discrimination.

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MOVE Act

Obama DOJ Protects Military Voters From Texas Republicans

Ryan J. Reilly | January 27, 2012, 6:27PM

The Justice Department said in a filing on Friday that the primary schedule proposed by the Texas Republican Party wouldn't give enough time for military and overseas voters to participate in the election process in violation of the Military and Overseas Voter Empowerment (MOVE) Act.

Here's the kicker: conservatives -- led by Texas Republican Sen. John Cornyn -- have long been on a crusade against the Justice Department for what they said was a failure to protect military voters under the MOVE Act.

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Texas

Texas Sues Feds Over Voter ID; Says 'Colorblind' Policy Bans Racial Breakdown Of Voter Data

Ryan J. Reilly | January 23, 2012, 3:30PM

The state of Texas said Monday that it can't provide voter data allowing the federal government to evaluate whether its voter ID law is discriminatory because they don't track racial and ethnic data in order to "facilitate a colorblind electoral process."

Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott announced on Monday Texas was suing U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder in an effort to "fast-track" its authority to enforce a voter ID law the state claims would "help deter and detect election fraud."

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Texas

Supreme Court Tosses Out Court Drawn Texas Redistricting Maps

Ryan J. Reilly | January 20, 2012, 11:32AM

The Supreme Court in Washington, DC

The Supreme Court on Friday tossed out an interim Texas redistricting map drawn by a federal court, handing a partial victory to Republicans in Texas. The decision on whether the maps are discriminatory or if they should be precleared under Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act is still up to a separate panel of judges in federal court in D.C.

"Speaking non-technically, the Supreme Court held that the three-judge court erred in starting its redistricting plan from scratch," law professor Rick Hasen explained. "It should have started with the state's plan, and then adjusted to the extent the plan violated the Voting Rights Act or the Constitution."

The District Court, according to the Supreme Court decision, "also appears to have unnecessarily ignored the State's plans in drawing certain individual districts." Oral arguments for the case were heard earlier this month.

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Rick Perry

Sheriff Joe Arpaio's Help Comes With Baggage, But Rick Perry Doesn't Mind

Nick R. Martin | December 27, 2011, 5:25PM

As the final days of campaigning wind down in Iowa, Rick Perry is betting that an Arizona politician who's currently the target of civil and criminal investigations will be one of his last hopes to win over caucus goers.

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World Net Daily

Birthers Fly Aerial 'Where's The Real Birth Certificate?' Ad Over NFL Game

Jillian Rayfield | December 12, 2011, 6:19PM

Apparently there's a lot of potential overlap between football fans and birthers, because the birther-tastic site WorldNetDaily took out an aerial ad asking "Where's the real birth certificate?" at a Cowboys-Giants game on Sunday.

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Rick Perry

Election Lawyer: Supreme Court Hearing Texas Redistricting Case Shows Their Partisanship

Ryan J. Reilly | December 12, 2011, 1:20PM

Texas Governor and Presidential Candidate Rick Perry (R)

The nine (or is it eight?) members of the Supreme Court are set to decide whether redistricting maps drawn by a federal court (after separate maps signed by Texas Gov. Rick Perry were found to be discriminatory) can go into effect.

The Supreme Court's one paragraph order on Friday placed a stay on the implementation of the maps, tossing Texas's congressional and state legislature elections into chaos. Political observers and participants in the case are still trying to figure out exactly what it means for the election timeline. A hearing is set for Jan. 9.

Gerry Hebert, an election lawyer in D.C. who is working for intervenors in the redistricting case, told TPM that the Supreme Court's decision shows that they're "just another governmental institution in Washington that's highly partisan."

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Eric Holder

Court Orders Trial Over Texas Redistricting Plan Signed By Rick Perry

Ryan J. Reilly | November 8, 2011, 1:15PM

Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R)

A panel of judges in Washington, D.C. has ordered that there should be a trial on the Texas redistricting maps signed by Gov. Rick Perry, denying the state's request to approve the maps DOJ argues limit the power of Hispanic voters.

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Texas

Texas GOPer Apologizes For Saying 'Don't Try to Jew Them Down'

Jillian Rayfield | November 4, 2011, 10:52AM

State Rep. Larry Taylor (R-TX)

Republican State Rep. Larry Taylor of Texas has apologized for saying "don't try to Jew them down" in a hearing about insurance claims after Hurricane Ike.

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Voting Rights Act

The E-Mails The Feds Say Show Texas Lawmakers Trying To Limit Voting Power Of Hispanics

Ryan J. Reilly | October 28, 2011, 12:00PM

The feds say there's "ample circumstantial evidence" that the redistricting maps signed by Texas Gov. Rick Perry had the effect and intent of limiting the voting power of Hispanic voters. But what's the evidence exactly? Let's take a look.

The most telling evidence Justice Department lawyers cite in terms of the state redistricting maps is a comment from state Rep. Beverly Woolley, who led the redistricting process in Harris County (an effort which excluded any minority members of the Harris County delegation). "[Y]ou all are protected by the Voting Rights Act and we are not," Woolley told a number of minority representatives. "We don't want to lose these people due to population growth in the county, or we won't have any districts left."

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Rick Perry

Feds: Rick Perry-Signed Texas Redistricting Plan Reduces Voting Power Of 479,704 Hispanics

Ryan J. Reilly | October 26, 2011, 6:00AM

Texas Governor and Presidential Candidate Rick Perry (R)

There is "ample circumstantial evidence" that the congressional and state representative redistricting maps signed by Texas Gov. Rick Perry had not only the effect but the intent of limiting the voting power of Hispanic voters, Justice Department lawyers said in a court filing late Tuesday.

DOJ is seeking to block the maps, filing to deny Texas' request for summary judgement in a case involving allegations that state officials tried to limit the voter power of Hispanic voters in violation of Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act.

Federal lawyers contended in the newest filing that there is "ample circumstantial evidence of a discriminatory purpose with regard to both the State House and Congressional plans" and that in the new maps nearly half a million fewer Hispanics would live in districts where they would have the ability to elect a candidate of their choosing.

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Rick Perry

Judges Say Texas Can't Move Forward With Redistricting Plans The Feds Say Are Discriminatory

Ryan J. Reilly | September 30, 2011, 2:30PM

Gov. Rick Perry (R-TX) holds a copy of his book

A panel of three federal judges ordered Texas not to move forward with redistricting plans for both congressional and state legislative seats until they are approved in court.

Justice Department lawyers have declared in court that they believe the congressional and statehouse redistricting plans signed into law by Gov. Rick Perry have been adopted at least in part for the purpose of "diminishing the ability of citizens of the United States, on account of race, color, or membership in a language minority group, to elect their preferred candidates."

They've argued that regardless of intent, the plans would have the effect of diminishing the ability of Hispanic voters to pick their preferred candidates.

A panel of three federal judges in San Antonio ruled that Texas should wait until the courts rule on the legality of the maps. In San Antonio, the panel of judges has heard testimony about the maps but hasn't ruled on their legality, while the D.C. panel -- charged with deciding whether to preclear the maps -- won't hold hearings for a month, according to the Texas Tribune. The court in San Antonio is handling a separate suit filed by opponents of the plan, while court in D.C. is handling the suit involving the Justice Department.

"According to the Texas Election Code, any changes that must be made in the county election precinct boundaries 'to give effect to a redistricting plan' must be finalized by October 1, 2011," the judges wrote, according to the Texas Tribune. "Because the redistricting plans have not been precleared ... all persons or entities that would otherwise have a duty under Section 42.032 of the Texas Election Code are relieved of those duties until further order of the Court."

DOJ

DOJ Has More Questions On Rick Perry's Voter ID Law

Ryan J. Reilly | September 23, 2011, 5:55PM

Republican presidential candidate Texas Gov. Rick Perry during the Lincoln Day Dinner hosted by the Black Hawk County Republican Party in Waterloo, Iowa on August 14, 2011.

Updated: Sept. 23, 2011, 6:54PM

The Justice Department hasn't yet precleared a voter ID law signed by Republican presidential candidate and Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R). In a Friday letter officials wrote that they need to know more about how the state would alert voters to the changes to the law.

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Death Penalty

Texas Abolishes Last Meal Requests For Death Row Inmates

Jillian Rayfield | September 22, 2011, 6:11PM

The Texas prison system ended the tradition of offering death row inmates a last meal request, apparently in response to white supremacist Lawrence Brewer's particularly elaborate request before he was put to death Wednesday -- a meal that he then declined.

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Rick Perry

What DOJ Tossing Texas' Redistricting Plan Means For Rick Perry

Ryan J. Reilly | September 20, 2011, 6:30AM

As if Rick Perry needed another reason to dislike the federal government.

The Justice Department's decision to oppose the redistricting plan Perry signed as Governor of Texas is raising questions over whether he and state Republicans tried to dilute the voter power of Latinos by gerrymandering them into particular districts.

DOJ's opening serve sets the scene for a major court battle over how the lines will be drawn in the Lone Star state. Federal attorneys are expected to offer more details of their objections in a filing Tuesday and in federal court in D.C. on Wednesday.

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Rick Perry

DOJ: Rick Perry's Texas Congressional Redistricting Map Violates Voting Rights Act

Ryan J. Reilly | September 19, 2011, 2:57PM

Texas Governor and Presidential Candidate Rick Perry (R)

Updated: September 19, 2011, 4:27PM

The Justice Department said Monday that Texas' state House and congressional redistricting plans didn't comply with Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act (VRA), indicating they thought the maps approved by Gov. Rick Perry (R) gave too little voting power to the growing Latino population in the state.

Officials with DOJ's Civil Rights Division said the proposed redistricting plan for the State Board of Education (SBOE) and the state Senate complied with the Voting Rights Act, but indicated they had concerns with the state House plan and the plan for congressional redistricting.

The federal government "[denied] that the proposed Congressional plan, as compared with the benchmark, maintains or increases the ability of minority voters to elect their candidate of choice in each district protected by Section 5," DOJ lawyers write in a filing. "Defendants deny that the proposed Congressional plan complies with Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act."

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Rick Perry

Top Perry Patron Has Ties To DeLay Redistricting Scandal

Susan Crabtree | August 26, 2011, 5:24PM

While the East Coast braces itself for the ravages of Hurricane Irene this weekend, a tempest of another kind will be building in Texas.

Texas Gov. Ricky Perry is attending a Christian "call to action" retreat for top donors at the Texas Hill Country ranch of one of his biggest patrons and political supporters, prominent San Antonio doctor and hospital-bed magnate James Leininger.

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Voting Rights Act

In E-mails, Texas GOPers Worried Feds Would Say Redistricting Map Diluted Hispanic Voting Power

Ryan J. Reilly | August 16, 2011, 11:20AM

Rep. Joe Barton (R-TX) and Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX)

Civil rights groups are worried that Republicans running redistricting in Texas are breaking the federal Voting Rights Act by diluting Hispanic voting strength. So too, apparently, were the Republicans themselves.

Emails recently released by a federal judge in the course of a lawsuit over the redistricting map drawn by Texas Republicans show those involved in the redistricting process were worried that DOJ or a federal court wouldn't approve their plan. As they worked on the plan in the spring and early summer, at least one GOPer expressed concerns that the feds would say they didn't do enough to strengthen the voting power of Hispanic residents of the state even though the population of Hispanic residents ballooned over 90 percent between the 2000 and 2010 censuses.

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Sovereign Citizens

'Sovereign Citizen' Wounded In Shoot-Out With Police Officer

Jillian Rayfield | July 26, 2011, 1:33PM

A Texas man who considers himself a "true natural living being" and a "sovereign citizen" was shot and wounded by a police officer after a shoot-out last week.

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Mosques

Houston Fire Department Investigating Mosque Arson

Jillian Rayfield | May 16, 2011, 3:27PM

The Houston Fire Department says it is investigating an attempted arson at a mosque over the weekend, after two masked men reportedly poured gasoline on prayer rugs and attempted to set them on fire.

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Abortion

Texas Legislature Passes Bill Mandating Pre-Abortion Sonograms

Jon Terbush | May 6, 2011, 3:47PM

Gov. Rick Perry (R-TX)

The Texas legislature passed a bill on Thursday requiring doctors to conduct a sonogram before performing an abortion, and to describe to the woman seeking an abortion what the sonogram shows before moving ahead with the procedure.

The bill, which passed the Texas House on Thursday by a 94-41 vote, forces doctors to perform a sonogram at least 24 hours before performing an abortion, and to show the resulting images to a woman if she requests to view them. And even if the woman declines to view the sonogram, the bill mandates that she must still listen to the doctor describe the images before going ahead with the abortion.

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Texas

Everything's Bigger In Texas, Including Tax Breaks for Big Yachts!

Ian Power-Luetscher | May 3, 2011, 12:18PM

In the face of a daunting $27 billion dollar budget shortfall, a Texas bill that would give huge tax breaks for large yachts, has been green-lighted by a House committee. The decision comes as the "Lone Star State" faces scores of teacher-layoffs, and deep cuts to education and social services like medicare and medicaid.

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Colby Bohannan

African-American Studies Prof. Rips Student On Whites-Only Scholarships (VIDEO)

David Taintor | March 2, 2011, 4:42PM

An African-American studies professor at Columbia University on Wednesday took to task a Texas student who is organizing scholarship exclusively for white men.

Marc Lamont Hill on MSNBC told Colby Bohannan -- who came up with the scholarship idea -- that "being white is itself a form of scholarship." He said that white Americans have better access to health care, criminal justice and housing, among other things.

"There's no need," he said. In fact, Hill called it a "spectacle that we see every year with Affirmative-Action bake sales, with now whites-only scholarships, which only draw attention to white folk who are becoming increasingly frustrated that the world is becoming a little more fair."

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Former Majority Association for Equality

Texas Student Defends Scholarships For White Men

David Taintor | March 2, 2011, 8:35AM

William Lake

Members of the Texas nonprofit group Former Majority Association for Equality are on a media blitz defending their scholarships exclusively for white males.

William Lake -- the group's treasurer and an MBA candidate at Texas State University in San Marcos -- told MSNBC Tuesday afternoon that white men are "one group that just doesn't have any support."

How does he figure? "We saw opportunities for just about every demographic, as far as paying for college goes, except for this one," Lake told TPM.

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Rick Perry

Is Rick Perry Blocking Journalists From Following Him On Twitter?

Eric Lach | February 28, 2011, 4:48PM

Gov. Rick Perry (R-TX)

A reporter at The Dallas Morning News says he's been blocked from following Texas Gov. Rick Perry's Twitter account -- and he's not the only one.

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Texas

Texas Man Admits To Hate Crime In Setting Fire To Playground At Islamic Center

Ryan J. Reilly | February 24, 2011, 8:30AM

A Texas man pleaded guilty to a federal hate crime charge on Wednesday, admitting that he set fire to playground equipment at the Dar El-Eman Islamic Center in Arlington in July 2010.

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Drug Cartels

Texas Lawmen Not Amused By 'Call Of Juarez: The Cartel' Video Game

Eric Lach | February 17, 2011, 8:32AM

Ever fantasize about being in a shoot-out with murderous cartel members in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico? This summer, the video game company Ubisoft is scheduled to release "Call of Juarez: The Cartel," the latest installment in the "Call of Juarez" series. A couple of real life Texas lawmen are already expressing worries about the game.

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Fort Hood

Lieberman Claims White House Won't Say 'Islamic Extremists'

Melissa Jeltsen | February 15, 2011, 1:24PM

Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT)

What message should we take away from the Fort Hood massacre, where 13 people were allegedly murdered by radicalized Muslim army psychiatrist Nadal Hasan? According to Sens. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) and Susan Collins (R-ME), the takeaway is that the U.S. should to stop beating around the bush and call America's enemies what they supposedly are: "Islamic extremists."

Lieberman convened the hearing ostensibly to discuss the recently-released report that criticized the federal government for failing to prevent the massacre by not taking appropriate action to remove Hasan from the military. But it quickly turned into a denunciation of the language the Administration supposedly uses to discuss violent acts.

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Texas

Concealed-Carry License Gets You Fast-Track Access To Texas Capitol

David Taintor | February 15, 2011, 9:21AM

Texas State Capitol

Some frequent visitors to the Texas Capitol in Austin are obtaining concealed handgun licenses in order to gain quicker access through the building's security screening, Reuters reports.

Concealed handgun license holders can enter the Capitol via an expedited "CHL access" line, while "schoolchildren and tourists" have to pass through metal detectors, according to the report.

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Michael Scanlon

Abramoff Whistleblower Wants Stiffer Sentence for Scanlon Than Feds Requested

Susan Crabtree and Ryan J. Reilly | February 9, 2011, 8:00AM

Native American lobbyist Tom Rodgers, the main whistleblower in the Jack Abramoff scandal, isn't satisfied with the government's request for two years in jail for Michael Scanlon.

Scanlon, a central figure in the Abramoff lobbying scandal, faces sentencing Friday, and Rodgers wants the judge to hand down at least the same amount of prison time Abramoff received.

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voter fraud

Republican Majorities Pushing Photo ID Voter Requirements Across Country

Rachel Slajda | January 31, 2011, 1:10PM

A voter shows ID in Atlanta, Ga.

With Election Day three months behind us and new legislators settling in across the country, Republicans in many states are trying to push new laws that would require photo ID at the polls. The laws, they say, would prevent rampant voter fraud.

Seven states already have laws requiring photo ID at the polls. Another 19, including some of the states below, require some form of identification, but it doesn't need to have a photo.

Critics say it such requirements impose undue hardships on those trying to vote, reminiscent of the literacy tests of yore that kept black voters from voting in the South.

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Allen Stanford

Allen Stanford's Lawyers Say Alleged Ponzi Schemer Needs Luxury Rehab

Ryan J. Reilly | January 19, 2011, 1:05PM

Mark Stanford

Lawyers for Allen Stanford say the billionaire allegedly Ponzi schemer is addicted to an anti-anxiety medication and needs to be released from prison and sent to an upscale rehabilitation facility in Houston, Texas.

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Tom DeLay

DeLay: Judge Is 'Dead Wrong,' The Lawyers Said It Was Legal! (VIDEO)

Ryan J. Reilly | January 14, 2011, 12:27PM

Former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-TX) told MSNBC's Lawrence O'Donnell last night that the judge who sentenced him to three years in prison was "dead wrong" and that he has a "great chance" of overturning his November conviction of money laundering.

DeLay argued that he was not guilty of money laundering because he had not received his contributions from "drug money or money from fraud or some" other criminal activity. Instead Delay says he received it legally from American corporations.

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Leo Berman

Birther Texas Rep. Pushes 'Religious Or Cultural Law' (Read: Sharia) Ban

Jillian Rayfield | January 14, 2011, 8:34AM

Rep. Leo Berman (R-TX)

Texas state Rep. Leo Berman (R), last seen getting shellacked by Anderson Cooper over his birther bill, is pushing a state constitutional amendment that would prevent Texas courts from considering "religious or cultural law" when handing down rulings.

Though the amendment doesn't specifically say anything about sharia law -- like a recently-blocked law in Oklahoma does, for example -- Berman said of the resolution: "A lot of federal courts are referring to international courts and laws of other countries. We want to make sure our courts are not doing this, especially in regards to cultural laws. If that includes Sharia law, then so be it."

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Tom DeLay

DeLay Blames Liberal Jury For Conviction (VIDEO)

Rachel Slajda | January 13, 2011, 12:07PM

Former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay and his lawyer, Dick DeGuerin

Former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-TX), who has long argued that his indictment on money laundering charges was politically motivated, said on the "Today Show" this morning that his conviction was political, too.

"I was tried in the most liberal county in the state of Texas and, indeed, in the United States," he said, referring to Travis County, the home of Austin. DeLay and his lawyers had tried to get his trial moved to a different, more conservative county, to no avail.

"The foreman of the jury was a Greenpeace activist," DeLay went on. "So, I'm not criticizing the jury. The point is this is a political campaign."

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Tom DeLay

Tom DeLay Sentenced To Prison

Rachel Slajda | January 10, 2011, 3:22PM

Former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-TX)

Former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-TX) has been sentenced to three years in prison, the AP and the Austin-American Statesman are reporting.

Texas Judge Pat Priest handed down the sentence this afternoon in an Austin courtroom.

DeLay was convicted in November on money laundering and conspiracy charges. His lawyers asked for the minimum sentence, probation. Prosecutors asked for at least 10 years in prison.

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Allen Stanford

Allen Stanford Goes To Rehab As Lawyers Defend 'Musical Attorneys'

Ryan J. Reilly | January 7, 2011, 10:40AM

Allen Stanford

A federal judge has ordered alleged Texas billionaire scammer Allen Stanford to get treatment for an addiction to prescription drugs before he faces trial, the Houston Chronicle reported.

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Allen Stanford

After Complaining Of Delay, Allen Stanford Wants Two Year Hold On Trial

Ryan J. Reilly | January 5, 2011, 12:00PM

Allen Stanford

Allen Stanford, the man accused of stealing $7 billion from investors in a Ponzi scheme, wants a two year delay in his trial. But the Justice Department argued this week that's all his lawyers are trying to do with their request is to get him released from prison in the interim.

The feds said in a court filing that the two year postponement is excessive and that defense lawyers had already filed motions "covering most conceivable legal issues."

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Sandy McGriff

Pastor Accused Of Xmas Eve Robbery: I Was Just Trying To Help! (VIDEO)

Eric Lach | December 29, 2010, 8:57AM

A Dallas pastor accused of stealing more than $10,000 worth of fur coats, designer purses and electronics from a church member's home on Christmas Eve says that she's really innocent.

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Allen Stanford

US Diplomats Avoided Allen Stanford Long Before His Arrest

Ryan J. Reilly | December 21, 2010, 12:01PM

Allen Stanford

Long before the feds got him, corrupt Texas financier Allen Stanford was persona non grata in the circles of U.S. diplomats, according to cables released by WikiLeaks, the Guardian reported.

Diplomats were so concerned about the rumors of "bribery, money-laundering and political manipulation" surrounding Stanford that they avoided contac with him or being photographed with him more than two years before his arrest by the FBI for allegedly bilking investors of $7 billion in a huge Ponzi scheme.

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