Some thoughts re Gavin Newsom’s talk about redistricting to match Texas’s sudden mid-decade redistricting to kowtow to 47’s demands. The first screaming and dishonest flier has already come to the mailbox.

We voted in a nonpartisan commission to set our boundaries. I wish we had ranked-choice, too.

But here’s the thing: in Texas, the Republicans have complete control and are ramming it through and they certainly aren’t asking the voters about it.

In California, Newsom asked the legislature to put the question on a ballot, not to rescind that commission but whether we the people want to, for a maximum of three redistrictings, change our boundaries ourselves as a statewide choice, to add five majority-Democrat seats to the House of Representatives–to ONLY take effect if Texas takes away five majority-Democrat seats there as they’ve loudly said they will.

Newsom could have redrawn ours to be eight. He didn’t. It’s not a competition nor punishment, it’s a statement and a remedy to a wrong. You break it, then on behalf of the entire country since we’re the ones who can do something about it, we balance it out. Representation continues exactly as it was, overall.

He is using democracy in an effort to save democracy and he will abide by the will of the people on the issue. Yay or nay, speak up, vote, choose to be heard! Treasure the fact that you have a choice and a voice so that you still will!

This is how you serve the people.

At the same time, given how red Texas is, the very fact that they’re playing stretchy Silly Putty with those lines gives away how afraid they are that they would otherwise surely lose.

Because after all, you just can’t vote for people who would ask the taxpayers to fund one single storm monitor to be awake during a massive flood where kids are camping, right?