Trump ally Ken Paxton escalates Texas redistricting fight with call for
Beto O'Rourke to be jailed
[August 13, 2025]
By BILL BARROW and NADIA LATHAN
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton ratcheted up
President Donald Trump's congressional redistricting fight by calling
Tuesday for progressive activist Beto O'Rourke to be put “behind bars”
for helping Democrats who have managed to block the GOP's gerrymandering
efforts with an extended walkout.
Hours earlier, Texas Republican leaders said they were prepared to end
their stalemated special session that includes the proposed new maps and
immediately begin another standoff with Democratic legislators. Dozens
of Democrats have left the state to prevent their GOP colleagues from
voting on the changes and meeting Trump's demands ahead of the 2026
midterm elections.
The developments are the latest escalations in a battle that began in
Austin and now reaches into multiple courtrooms and statehouses
controlled by both major parties.
Paxton, a Trump acolyte who is running for the U.S. Senate, asked a
Texas judge on Tuesday to hold O'Rourke in contempt of court, arguing
that the former congressman and onetime presidential candidate has
continued to fundraise for absent Democrats despite an order last week
that Paxton said should have stopped some of his activities.
“It’s time to lock him up,” Paxton said of O'Rourke in a fiery written
statement.
O'Rourke denied any wrongdoing and called the attorney general a
“corrupt, lying thug.”
At the Texas Capitol, House Speaker Dustin Burrows was more muted as he
confirmed Republicans' next moves after dozens of Democrats again did
not show up, preventing the necessary quorum for business to be
conducted. Burrows said from the House floor that lawmakers will not
attempt to reconvene again until Friday. If Democrats are still absent —
and they have given no indication that they plan to return — the speaker
and Gov. Greg Abbott said Republicans will end the current session, with
the governor immediately calling another.
Texas flood response is caught up in the redistricting fight
Abbott called Democrats “derelict” and said in statement that he will
“continue to call special session after special session until we get
this Texas first agenda passed.”
Democrats responded by declaring victory — even if temporarily.
“We said we would defeat Abbott’s first corrupt special session, and
that’s exactly what we’re doing,” Texas House Democratic Caucus Chair
Rep. Gene Wu said in a statement.
Abbott called the current session with an extensive agenda that included
disaster relief for floods that killed more than 130 people. Democrats
balked when Abbott added redistricting to the agenda, urging the
governor not to tie the aid to an intensely partisan fight over control
of Congress.
Burrows on Tuesday did not mention redistricting but chided Democrats
for not showing up to debate the flood response package. Wu put the onus
back on Abbott and his party.
“He can stop blocking flood relief immediately. Stop playing political
games,” the Democratic leader wrote.
The partisan battle has spread
Redistricting is usually done just once per decade, not long after the
decennial federal census conducted under the Constitution.
The last census was in 2020. The mid-decade scheme is part of Trump's
push to shore up Republicans' narrow House majority and avoid a repeat
of his first presidency, when the 2018 midterms restored Democrats to a
House majority that blocked his agenda and twice impeached him.
Nationally, current maps put Democrats within three seats of retaking
the House — with only several dozen competitive districts across 435
total seats.
The Texas redistricting legislation would reshape the state’s
congressional districts in a design aimed at sending five more
Republicans to Washington.
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Senate Republicans react as some Senate Democrats walk off the
Senate floor as the redistricting bill is brought up at the Texas
Capitol in Austin, Tuesday, Aug. 12, 2025. (Mikala Compton/Austin
American-Statesman via AP)
In California, Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom, a potential 2028
presidential candidate, has pledged to redraw his state's U.S. House
districts to counter any Republican gains in Texas. That would
require convincing voters in the Democratic-run state to bypass an
independent redistricting commission, making California Democrats'
path potentially more complicated than those where legislatures
determine the boundaries.
Democratic Govs. JB Pritzker of Illinois and Kathy Hochul of New
York, where some Texas Democrats are temporarily staying, also have
vowed to respond with redistricting attempts.
Paxton's move on O'Rourke is part of a GOP pressure campaign
In Austin, Republicans are intensifying their pressure on absent
Democrats, which already included issuing civil warrants for their
arrest under legislative rules. Because they are out of state, those
lawmakers are beyond the reach of Texas authorities.
O'Rourke has been raising money to support the Texas House
Democratic Caucus, and Paxton has gone to court to try to stop him.
At issue are Texas laws and regulations that govern whether and how
political donations may be used to support lawmakers who are
deliberately breaking a legislative quorum.
Paxton accused O’Rourke of thinking he is “above the law” as he
filed his motion Tuesday arguing that O'Rourke is defying a court
order.
In a post on X, O’Rourke said Paxton’s latest filing misrepresents
facts.
“We alerted the Court that the AG’s office blatantly lied in its
filing. We’re seeking maximum sanctions in response to his abuse of
office,” the post said. “Taking the fight directly to this corrupt,
lying thug.”
Abbott also has put pressure on Democrats, tasking state police with
attempting to corral absent representatives and asking the courts to
vacate some of their offices. He has argued in court filings that
the absent lawmakers have abandoned their posts. The Texas Supreme
Court in one case has set a schedule for written argument that
extends beyond the current session.
Under Texas legislative rules, Democratic lawmakers face $500 daily
fines for each legislative day they miss in a deliberate move to
prevent a quorum. Further, Burrows said Tuesday that he will stick
Democrats with the bill for law enforcement efforts to bring them
back to Austin. He said the tab for overtime alone already exceeds
six figures.
Newsom is needling Trump
Newsom, for his part, says he will not pursue new district lines in
California if Texas and other GOP states stand down. But he remains
at the forefront of national Democrats' response.
Minutes before the Texas House attempted to convene Tuesday,
Newsom’s press office social media account posted an all-caps
message mimicking the president’s social media style.
“DONALD TRUMP, THE LOWEST POLLING PRESIDENT IN RECENT HISTORY, THIS
IS YOUR SECOND-TO-LAST WARNING!!! (THE NEXT ONE IS THE LAST ONE!).
STAND DOWN NOW OR CALIFORNIA WILL COUNTER-STRIKE (LEGALLY!) TO
DESTROY YOUR ILLEGAL CROOKED MAPS IN RED STATES,” the message read.
The post concluded the same way that Trump ends policy
pronouncements unveiled on his Truth Social platform: “THANK YOU FOR
YOUR ATTENTION TO THIS MATTER.”
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Barrow reported from Atlanta.
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