Senate Democrats Are Not Off The Hook

If the House can risk everything, so can you.

I’m frustrated. The Texas House is still moving forward with redistricting, even after everything. And the burden? The pressure? The calls for sacrifice? It’s falling squarely on House Democrats. Young members with families. Lawmakers who’d face $500-a-day fines for doing the right thing. Some are preparing to make that sacrifice anyway. And for some, it would come at a real personal cost.

Meanwhile, Senate Democrats, who could break quorum without any penalty, aren’t even part of the conversation. They’re sitting comfortably while organizers launched a pressure campaign against Colin Allred for not showing up last week, even though he’s not even in office right now. (Apparently, he’ll be there Friday.)

I mean, what are we doing?

Are we serious about stopping Trump’s authoritarian takeover of Texas, or are we just going through the motions while the Senate hides in plain sight?

After I published my article earlier today, I got a wave of messages, some from staffers, some from folks deep enough in the weeds to know exactly which boots are stomping on democracy. They all said the same thing.

The reason Senate Democrats aren’t planning to break quorum isn’t logistics. It’s not miscommunication. It’s not legal confusion. It’s because a few of them simply don’t want to. Yeah. Let that sink in. The Senate, which doesn’t face the $500-a-day fine, could break quorum without penalty, but they won’t, because a handful of holdouts are dragging their feet while the rest of the state burns.

And yes, I was given names.

So I said, “Okay. Bet.” I picked up the phone and started calling. I rang the offices of every single Senator whose name I’d been given. And I didn’t beat around the bush either.

I said, “It’s being discussed that the Senate Democrats aren’t planning to break quorum because of a few internal holdouts, including Senator [NAME]. Can you confirm or deny this? I’ve got a 9 pm publishing deadline if y’all would like to make a statement.” (I know I didn’t make 9.)

The names don’t matter. Most of them got the message. Some called me back directly. Some sent messages through organizers. One even looped in a mutual connection to let me know loud and clear. They’re not on board with Trump’s fascist project. They’re not the problem. They stand in solidarity with House Democrats.

But then there was Senator Judith Zaffirini’s office. And they sent back this little gem:

“We do not discuss in public what we discuss in caucus.”

Oh, okay. Cute.

Take that however you want. But other Senators had no problem repeating the same thing nearly every single House Democrat has been saying for the last two weeks, “We’re prepared to do whatever it takes.” Dozens of House members have not directly stated their willingness to break the quorum, but have otherwise indicated they will fight against these maps.

Everyone knows the House and Senate Democrats in Texas don’t communicate.

That’s not news. What is news is that when someone finally asked me today, “But why?” I didn’t have a good answer. And maybe that’s the real scandal.

So why is the Senate dragging its feet? Why won’t they even talk about breaking quorum?

Is it because the Senate is full of corporate-backed, donor-coddling establishment Democrats who’ve been playing footsie with Dan Patrick’s fascist agenda since the Trump era began? Because they’re scared of what their oil exec friends might say at the country club? Because half their families are neck-deep in Republican PACs and Abbott-aligned superdonors, writing checks big enough to buy silence? Of course, those are just questions.

Some of these folks show up to Democratic events, take pictures with unions and activists, then go back to Austin and quietly vote for privatization and fossil fuel carve-outs in silence. Their votes tell the truth even when their press releases lie. And while I’ve made promises before about putting these individuals on blast, this isn’t about retribution. And now is not the time.

This is about survival.

This is the moment to prove whether or not you’re actually a Democrat or if the label was just a marketing strategy to win in a blue district.

This is the moment for every Senator who ran blue in a blue district to act like it. To stand with their House colleagues. To stand with the people. To stand against authoritarianism and say, “Not on our watch.”

Because if you’re not willing to do that, then what the hell are you even doing in office?

Because you know what? It’s bullshit that we’re putting all the pressure on House Democrats right now.

Sixty-two of them. Some of them are young. Some have kids at home. All of them face a $500-a-day penalty for doing the right thing, while the Senate Democrats? Crickets. No fines. No consequences. Nothing is stopping them but their own cowardice. And most of them are practically fossils anyway, retired, wealthy, insulated, and decades past worrying about diapers or student loans. So why aren’t they the ones being asked to take the damn hit?

To my readers. I’m sorry I didn’t catch this sooner. I wish I had. I honestly thought the Senate needed 3/5 present for quorum. My mistake.

But you know what’s worse?

No one was talking about it. Not because it didn’t matter, but because it was quietly understood that the Senate Dems wouldn’t cooperate, or they shut down the conversation before it could even start. THAT is what enrages me.

If you’re a Texas Democrat, then your job right now is to make damn sure your State Senator knows that they are not off the hook. If the House breaks quorum, we expect the Senate to do the same. No hiding. No stalling. No procedural excuses. Texas Democrats are watching, and we’re done pretending the Senate doesn’t matter. If you’re in the office right now and you’re not prepared to do what it takes to save America, then what the hell are you doing there?

And obviously, we have some great Democrats in the Texas Senate, but now is the time for us to prove it. Now is the time to show that you’re on the same team as the House. The same team as the organizers, the voters, the people fighting like hell to save democracy. If you’re wearing the jersey, it’s time to show up on the field.

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