Amid Monday afternoon coverage swooning over cowardly Texas Democrats fleeing the state in order to block Republican-backed voting reform legislation, MSNBC hailed the craven political stunt as a “national symbol for the fight for voting rights.” The segment then devolved into a partisan strategy session in which federally-elected Democrats were told there was “a lot” they “can learn” from the state’s left-wing lawmakers abandoning their responsibilities.
“And as we come on the air, there is major breaking news from the state of Texas....Democrats in the Texas legislature are planning to leave the state in a last-ditch effort to stop Republicans there from passing new voting restrictions,” fill-in anchor Geoff Bennett breathlessly announced at the top of the 2:00 p.m. ET hour. He eagerly touted the exodus of political hacks: “At least 58 statehouse Democrats are involved in the plan to fly here to Washington and paralyze the chamber in Texas.”
Bennett was particularly excited by the incendiary rhetoric being spewed by Biden administration spokesperson Jen Psaki in support of the outlandish effort: “The White House Press Secretary, just a short time ago teeing up the speech by calling the Republican push for voting restrictions across the country, quote, ‘The worst challenge to democracy since the Civil War.’”
Of course no fact check was offered of that ridiculous claim.
Instead, Bennett brought on a panel of fellow liberal reporters to cheer on the Texas Democrats in their attempt subvert democracy in the state. NBC News senior digital reporter Jane Timm gushed over them conspiring with (and being funded by) left-wing activists: “Democrats in the past have worked with advocates in Washington to sort of being messengers of this voting rights battle that many advocates are funding with quite a lot of money.”
She gleefully predicted what they would do once they arrive at the nation’s capital: “I think you’re going to see them really try and push and they think that they can be a national symbol for the fight for voting rights, because Texas, of course, is one of 22 different states that has advance restrictions like these, it’s just they’re ones who are making the headlines and they’re going to take advantage of it.”
The Democrats in the media are certainly happy to help.
Moments later, Politico White House reporter Eugene Daniels echoed the same glowing sentiment: “...they also know they want to be a symbol, they want to bring to the forefront, because it’s basically all they can do, right, is to continue to push, continue to be very public, and get a lot of attention.”
Bennett chimed in and lectured Washington Democrats, channeling leftist complaints that they did not fight hard enough against Republicans: “...you do have Democrats at the national level, and I mean Democratic voters, who look at the Texas Democrats and say, not for nothing, those folks know how to fight and there’s a lot that elected Democrats on the national level can learn from that.”
Daniels promptly agreed:
No, absolutely. Any time that you talk to advocates and activists, especially on the left, what they continue to tell you is that Democrats in Congress, they don’t do enough, that they don’t fight enough for anybody, and that is something that they – we always ask them, like, what’s next? How do you counterbalance and counteract these things that are happening especially when Dem – it’s interesting because Democrats own D.C., right? They have the chambers of government, they have the keys to government, and they’ve still not been able to, as advocates put it, really put their pedal to the metal.
So Democrats run away from the jobs they were elected to do, disregard the will of Texas voters who placed Republicans in control of the state legislature, and MSNBC not only celebrates the move but holds it up as an example for Democrats around the country to follow.
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Here is a full transcript of the July 12 segment:
2:00 PM ET
GEOFF BENNETT: It’s good to be with you, I’m Geoff Bennett. And as we come on the air, there is major breaking news from the state of Texas. My colleague Jane Timm the first to report that just moments ago Democrats in the Texas legislature are planning to leave the state in a last-ditch effort to stop Republicans there from passing new voting restrictions. At least 58 statehouse Democrats are involved in the plan to fly here to Washington and paralyze the chamber in Texas. Stopping business until the lawmakers return to town or the special session ends. It’s similar to a tactic that Texas Democrats used to block a redistricting proposal back in 2003.
But this latest move is not without risk. As Jane reports, the lawmakers could be arrested. She writes this: “Under the Texas Constitution, the legislature requires a quorum of two-thirds of lawmakers be present to conduct state business in either chamber. Absent lawmakers can be legally compelled to return to Capitol, and the source said Democrats expect state Republicans to ask the Department of Public Safety to track them down.”
Now this news comes a day before President Biden plans a major address on voting rights. The White House Press Secretary, just a short time ago teeing up the speech by calling the Republican push for voting restrictions across the country, quote, “The worst challenge to democracy since the Civil War.” And with that, let’s bring in our guests, NBC’s Priscilla Thompson, who’s in Austin, Texas, NBC News senior digital reporter, the aforementioned Jane Timm, and Politico White House reporter, Playbook co-author, and NBC News political contributor Eugene Daniels.
So Priscilla, you’re there on the ground, what are you hearing? Because as I understand it, you have those lawmakers at the airport in Austin, ready to board planes to head here to Washington.
PRISCILLA THOMPSON: Yeah, that’s exactly right. We began hearing some murmurings about this picking up yesterday, into today, and I actually was just in the car with a lawmaker who was headed to the airport to board her flight to Washington, D.C. And what she told me is that after seeing what happened at those public hearings over the weekend when hundreds of people showed up to voice their concerns about these voting bills and Republicans passed those bills out of committee on a party-line vote with no amendments, she felt it was very clear to her that they were not concerned with working with Democrats to reach some sort of common ground here. And Democrats felt like they had no other choice but to move forward with this option.
And so now, many of those folks, some of them are already on their way to Washington, D.C., others will be heading there in just a little while, but we know that the plan is to speak with lawmakers about federal voting rights legislation. The lawmakers that I was just in the car with, the state representative, mentioned that she especially wants to have those conversations with Senator Manchin and also Sinema. They did not have an opportunity to speak with her last time they were in Washington, D.C. and it is more important than ever that they have those conversations. I’m told there are no plans, at the moment, to speak with the President, but representatives from Texas will be watching his address tomorrow very closely to hear what exactly he has to say about this issue.
BENNETT: Yeah, and we’re going to talk a bit more about that. So, Jane, help us to fill in the gaps here. These folks get to Washington, and then what? And I understand they’re taking two private charters. Do we know who’s funding those private flights?
JANE TIMM: No, we’re – it’s not exactly clear who has, but we do know that Democrats in the past have worked with advocates in Washington to sort of being messengers of this voting rights battle that many advocates are funding with quite a lot of money. And one thing that’s important is we know that they’re doing this today, in part, because the House is adjourned. So the reason that they can actually get arrested, for the legendary Texas Rangers or other law enforcement to go after these lawmakers, the House actually needs to convene and vote, based on my read of the state constitution, and compel those lawmakers back. Which is why I think we see them going today, while the legislature is adjourned.
When they get there, I think you’re going to see them really try and push and they think that they can be a national symbol for the fight for voting rights, because Texas, of course, is one of 22 different states that has advance restrictions like these, it’s just they’re ones who are making the headlines and they’re going to take advantage of it.
BENNETT: And they have to go back home at some point. And when they do get back home, then what happens? Governor Abbott calls another special session, and then they leave again? I mean, is this the – is this the strategy moving forward?
TIMM: You know, that’s what happened the last time. So back in 2003, and incidentally, the bills were both called House Bill Three, in 2003 as well as on of the voting bills right now. But the last time it happened, they called another special session and the Democrats fled again, and then they called another special session, and the redistricting thing that they were fighting against back in 2003, when they last did this walk-out, it eventually passed. The governor can just keep calling special sessions as many times as he wants and he has already promised to call one about redistricting again later this year. So this is a temporary solution. It’s why the focus is so deeply on voting rights, as Priscilla said – voting rights legislation, sorry.
BENNETT: Yeah, yeah. So, Eugene, the White House press briefing just wrapped up last hour, what was the word from the White House on this? And I’ll tell you what, this is quite a backdrop, one that I don’t think even President Biden expected for his speech tomorrow, which we’ll be at, we’ll be there in Philly as he gives that speech on voting rights.
EUGENE DANIELS: No, absolutely, it’s probably not as dramatic as they thought it was going to be, the White House, they tend to like to make these things a little quieter. You know, President Biden, when he met with civil rights leaders, him and the Vice President last week, they talked about voting rights, they talked about what they would do. He’s doing this speech, but we all know that federal legislation is not going to happen unless there is some kind of filibuster reform, so that’s what the questions from the White House – the questions to the White House have been about. Are they looking at carve-outs, are they looking at ways to possibly do voting rights through reconciliation? Which is something that civil rights leaders brought to the White House last week when they were there.
And when the Texas Democrats came and met with the Vice President a few weeks ago, I was there talking to them, and the thing they told us is they were going to continue to do whatever they can. They’ve done – you know, as Jane said, in 2003, they’ve done this before, and so they have this kind of repertoire of things that they know they can do, things that work, but they also know they want to be a symbol, they want to bring to the forefront, because it’s basically all they can do, right, is to continue to push, continue to be very public, and get a lot of attention.
And when you talk to voting rights advocates, folks in the White House, and even some of these local and state legislatures, what they tell you is that what they can do is build a groundswell of support for more voting rights and then try to pressure Congress to do something. So that’s where they’re at, and that’s where, you know, the drama around the President’s speeches is something I think the White House is going to have to contend with that they didn’t think they were going to have to contend with.
BENNETT: Yeah, because Eugene, it’s interesting, because we should say, you know, the legislative system in Texas is vastly different than the legislative system here in D.C., but you do have Democrats at the national level, and I mean Democratic voters, who look at the Texas Democrats and say, not for nothing, those folks know how to fight and there’s a lot that elected Democrats on the national level can learn from that.
DANIELS: No, absolutely. Any time that you talk to advocates and activists, especially on the left, what they continue to tell you is that Democrats in Congress, they don’t do enough, that they don’t fight enough for anybody, and that is something that they – we always ask them, like, what’s next? How do you counterbalance and counteract these things that are happening especially when Dem – it’s interesting because Democrats own D.C., right? They have the chambers of government, they have the keys to government, and they’ve still not been able to, as advocates put it, really put their pedal to the metal.
And that’s because you have people like Joe Manchin, you have people like Sinema, and also others who aren’t as public, as their – you know as those two are when it comes to these things. So there’s a cadre of moderate Democrats who aren’t willing to go as far as some of these left-leaning Democrats are, but that’s exactly what the groundswell of support might be fighting against, this pushing them to do more and be a little bit more aggressive.
BENNETT: Eugene Daniels, thanks to you, as always friend, and Jane Timm and Priscilla Thompson, really owning this voting rights beat for us here at NBC, my thanks to you.
