I just saw on Rachael Maddow on MSNBC that Texas State Representative Nicole Collier is being held as a political prisoner in the Texas State House, because she won’t sign a GOP “consent decree” to have Texas law enforcement “accompany” her 24 hours a day, subject to arrest at any time. The Texas GOP has done this to all other Texas House Democrats as well.
Here’s the straight dope from the Texas Tribune (Non-profit media. A reliable source for Texas news):
A Texas House Democrat was confined in the Capitol overnight after she refused a police escort that Republican leaders imposed on lawmakers who participated in a two-week walkout over a GOP mid-decade redistricting plan.
Rep. Nicole Collier, D-Fort Worth, declined on Monday afternoon to sign a slip giving her permission from Speaker Dustin Burrows, R-Lubbock, to leave the House floor with a state law enforcement officer shadowing her.
…
After the lawmakers returned to the Texas House, [Speaker] Burrows announced they would each be subject to an around-the-clock police escort to ensure their attendance when the chamber reconvenes on Wednesday morning to vote out the map. He added that Democratic lawmakers would be responsible for any state costs incurred in ensuring their attendance.
Most Democrats signed the permission slip required to leave the Capitol with a police officer in tow, even while objecting to the mandatory surveillance and emphasizing that they would not have returned to Austin on Monday if they planned to skip the vote on Wednesday.
…
A bit of political theater IMHO but in a good cause, i.e., bringing public attention to the Republican bullies in the Texas House.
Don’t know what would have happened if she had walked out with no “permission slip” and police on her tail. We’re in Texas, so maybe the cops would have felt justified in shooting her. <shrug>
Today from a bathroom, Collier called into a conference call with Gavin Newsom, Cory Booker, and the head of the DNC, and was forced to disconnect when someone told her she was committing a felony.