Gov. Abbott files suit to remove Democrat Caucus Chair from office over quorum break

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AUSTIN - Gov. Greg Abbott has filed a lawsuit to remove Rep. Gene Wu (D-Houston), the Texas Democrat Caucus Chair, from office.

Abbott filed his petition to the state's highest court on Tuesday.

Abbott requests Wu's removal

What we know:

Abbott filed an emergency petition to the Supreme Court of Texas for Wu's removal, citing his Sunday promise to attempt to do so for Democrats who left the state to prevent redistricting efforts.

Abbott said Sunday that if the Democrat lawmakers were not back in office by the time the House reconvened Monday at 3 p.m., efforts to remove them would begin. Wu's removal is the first official attempt to be made.

The lawsuit claims that Wu's actions as the state House's party leader, along with other Democrats who broke quorum, are an abandonment of their office. According to the governor, this justifies their permanent removal from their positions.

Abbott also mentioned the Democrats' alleged acceptance of money from constituents and donors to skip the vote, saying accepting bribery for abandonment of office is grounds for vacating their seats.

What they're saying:

"I made clear in a formal statement on Sunday, August 3, that if the Texas House Democrats were not in attendance when the House reconvened at 3:00 PM on Monday, August 4, then action would be taken to seek their removal," said Abbott in his Wednesday statement. "They have not returned and have not met the quorum requirements. Representative Wu and the other Texas House Democrats have shown a willful refusal to return, and their absence for an indefinite period of time deprives the House of the quorum needed to meet and conduct business on behalf of Texans. Texas House Democrats abandoned their duty to Texans, and there must be consequences."

Wu responds to Abbott's filing

The other side:

Wu later released a statement responding to Abbott, which reads in full below:

"This office does not belong to Greg Abbott, and it does not belong to me. It belongs to the people of House District 137, who elected me. I took an oath to the constitution, not a politician’s agenda, and I will not be the one to break that oath.

"Let me be unequivocal about my actions and my duty. When a governor conspires with a disgraced president to ram through a racist gerrymandered map, my constitutional duty is to not be a willing participant. When that governor holds disaster relief for 137 dead Texans and their families hostage, my moral duty is to sound the alarm — by any means necessary.

"Denying the governor a quorum was not an abandonment of my office; it was a fulfillment of my oath. Unable to defend his corrupt agenda on its merits, Greg Abbott now desperately seeks to silence my dissent by removing a duly-elected official from office.

"History will judge this moment. It will show a Governor who used the law as a weapon to silence his people, and it will show those of us who stood for a higher principle.

"To Governor Abbott: You have failed the people of Texas, and you are using the courts to punish those who refused to fail with you. My purpose has been clear from the start: to serve my constituents and fight for what's right, no matter the cost. You will find that my commitment to the people of Texas is unbreakable."

What we don't know:

The Supreme Court of Texas has not released a response to the filing.

Wu has not responded publicly to Abbott's statement at the time of publishing.

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During a press conference after their meeting, the lawmakers stood by their decision to break quorum, and said they do not fear threats being made to arrest them.

Threats to arrest Texas Democrats

The backstory:

Texas Republican leaders have threatened to have the quorum breakers arrested, even requesting aid from agencies outside the state in the effort.

Abbott ordered the Texas Department of Public Safety to begin the effort starting Monday, saying the Democrats were "holding hostage critical legislation."

U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, seeing the difficulty in Texas DPS carrying out arrests outside the state, called on the FBI Tuesday to assist in the effort with a letter to Director Kash Patel. Cornyn expressed concern that the lawmakers had committed crimes in their "rush to avoid their constitutional responsibilities," saying they need to be fully investigated.

House Speaker Dustin Burrows urged the "no shows" to return and said he would sign arrest warrants for those who do not. According to the Texas Tribune, these warrants would be largely symbolic as they would only apply within state lines.

Texas redistricting effort

Dig deeper:

The newly proposed map increases the number of congressional districts that would have voted for Trump by at least 10 percentage points by five.

Republicans currently control 25 of the state's 38 Congressional districts.

The new map makes some big changes in North Texas. It moves Democrat Rep. Marc Veasey’s district from Tarrant to Dallas County, Democrat Rep. Julie Johnson’s district moves from Dallas and Collin County to more conservative sections of East Texas, and Democrat Rep. Jasmine Crockett’s Dallas seat becomes one of just two majority Black districts in the entire state.

The Democrats claim the redrawn maps will violate the federal Voting Rights Act, but that may be difficult for them to prove.

In Central Texas, Democrats Greg Casar and Lloyd Doggett would find their districts vastly different from the current map.

The district currently held by Casar would no longer include Travis County, while the district held by Doggett would no longer include a portion of Williamson County.

In Houston, the new map reshapes four currently Democrat-held districts. The biggest change to the districts would be in the seat currently held by Rep. Al Green. The new map would shift the district from covering southern Harris County and instead move it to the eastern part of the county.