News on Texas redistricting

This is mainly of interest to those of us down here in Texas, but this crooked redistricting plan forced five new Republican congressmen on the rest of the nation. Down here, we're waiting to see what happens when it gets to the Supreme Court.

Justice Department lawyers concluded that the landmark Texas congressional redistricting plan spearheaded by Rep. Tom DeLay (R) violated the Voting Rights Act, according to a previously undisclosed memo obtained by The Washington Post. But senior officials overruled them and approved the plan.

The memo, unanimously endorsed by six lawyers and two analysts in the department's voting section, said the redistricting plan illegally diluted black and Hispanic voting power in two congressional districts. ....

Such recommendation memos, while not binding, historically carry great weight within the Justice Department. (BUT IT WAS OVERRULED BY SUPERIORS THEN KEPT SECRET.)