From KTSM.com:
The El Paso City Council has officially taken a stance to oppose Texas Republican legislators’ proposed redistricting map.
. . .
Republicans’ proposed redistricting map would move parts of El Paso County, including the airport and Fort Bliss [from U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar’s Congressional District] into U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales’ 23rd Congressional District. That district spans from East El Paso to San Antonio to the U.S. Mexico border.
. . .
“That is a really big deal for the City of El Paso. Those are really big assets for our city, and we need to make sure that they are being represented by somebody that lives in El Paso, not somebody that lives 500 miles away in a district that stretches over 500 miles,” said El Paso City Rep. Josh Acevedo, who along with representatives Ivan Nino and Deanna Maldonado-Rocha authored the resolution.
Acevedo and other City Council members said the proposed map could impact El Paso’s economy and representation in Washington D.C.
“I think we don’t have a voice in Washington making sure that they are fighting hard for these two assets in El Paso. It also means that we wouldn’t be getting hundreds of millions of dollars. Congresswoman Escobar has brought in hundreds of millions of dollars for a new VA health care clinic, right. And that’s because she has been so focused on El Paso, because she lives here and she’s from here, and she understands how important that is,” Acevedo said.
First of all, the makeup of the 23rd Congressional District is stupid. San Antonio to east El Paso? There’s a whole lot of nothing there.
And this redistricting move isn’t about getting the Republicans another vote in the U.S. House of Representatives. El Paso isn’t losing its representation. Veronica Escobar will still represent El Paso in Washington.
The reason the Republicans want to grant Tony Gonzalez representation of Fort Bliss and the airport is money.
As the Congressional Representative of Fort Bliss and the El Paso International Airport Rep. Gonzalez will get more money from the Military Industrial Complex’ lobbyists. If the Texas Legislature wanted to flip a seat, they’d carve out more of solidly blue San Antonio.
I reckon Rep. Gonzalez isn’t getting a lot of federal lobbyists’ dollars from the folks who want to transform Pecos, or Monahans.
Government is racket, and we’re the suckers.