Texas Republican Rep. Highlights Lack of Penalties for Absent Democrats

By Nicole Weatherholtz | Tuesday, August 5, 2025, 7:42 PM EDT On Tuesday, Texas State Republican Representative Brian Harrison remarked to Newsmax that the state House has experienced its second day without a quorum, and notably, there have been no repercussions for the Democratic lawmakers who left the state to disrupt legislative proceedings. Recently, Texas Republicans introduced a new congressional map aimed at reducing five Democratic-held districts by establishing five districts favoring the GOP. Governor Greg Abbott convened a special session to ratify this map. However, on Sunday, Texas Democrats fled to states like Illinois, New York, and Massachusetts—areas controlled by Democrats—to prevent the legislative vote. Harrison explained on 'The Chris Salcedo Show' that the Texas House Speaker, Dustin Burrows, and the leadership allowed these absentee Democrats to depart the state. He claimed they were released to coordinate and plan their departure strategy alongside U.S. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries from New York. According to Harrison, a lesser-known aspect of Texas politics is the subtle influence of Democratic lawmakers over the state's legislative process. "This ...