Texas House Speaker Tries to Keep Word 'Racism' Out of Debate on Controversial Election Bill
The Texas House of Representatives continued debate Thursday on a controversial election bill after a weekslong stalemate driven by Democrats' refusal to show up at the state Capitol in Austin.
More than 50 Democratic lawmakers fled to Washington, D.C., last month to stop the proceedings on Senate Bill 1—legislation they say will suppress voting and discriminate against minorities.
As the session kicked off Thursday, House Speaker Dade Phelan urged members to remain "civil."
"Members, this is a reminder to everyone to be civil and respectful of our colleagues as we debate S.B. 1. The chair would appreciate members not using the word 'racism' this afternoon," Phelan said.
His remarks were swiftly met with backlash from state Democrats.
"Wow. The Speaker just asked us to not use the word 'racism' during debate today. SB 1 will harm the freedom to vote for all Texans, but it will disproportionately impact people of color. That's racist, no matter how you dress it up. Period," state Representative Erin Zwiener, who represents the 45th district, wrote on Twitter.
Zwiener added in a follow-up post, "Coddling R legislators who are uncomfortable about how this bill hurts people of color is not our job."
Julián Castro, former mayor of San Antonio, responded: "Republican Texas House Speaker @DadePhelan thinks it's uncivil to talk about racism. What's uncivil is pretending it doesn't exist."
During the debate, state representatives Rafael Anchía and Gina Hinojosa discussed instances where the federal courts found past Texas laws intentionally discriminated against people of color.
"Intentional discrimination against people of a certain race. Is that racism?" Hinojosa asked, prompting audible responses from the members gathered.
Speaker Phelan interjected after the exchange, saying: "We can talk about racial impacts of this legislation without accusing members of this body of being racist."
The Republican-authored election bill would ban drive-thru and overnight voting options, add restrictions to mail voting, add criminal penalties for voting law violations and enhance access for partisan poll watchers.
Republicans have argued that the bill is necessary to safeguard elections and prevent fraud, and refutes claims that the bill will suppress minority voters.
Democratic members of the state Legislature broke quorum to prevent a vote on the legislation, staying in Washington for weeks in protest. At one point, Phelan signed 52 arrest warrants for absent Democrats to be forced back. Enough Democrats have returned to establish a quorum and continue with the August special session.
Newsweek reached out to Phelan's office for comment but didn't receive a response before publication.
