From CNN's homepage:
"U.S. Supreme Court to review Republican-friendly Texas congressional map engineered by Rep. Tom DeLay."
Nothing more. In light of recent stories re: the Justice Dept on this... might be HUGE!
We can only hope.
Sorry if this has been posted. I didn't see any other diary.
UPDATE: from http://www.breitbart.com/news/2005/12/12/D8EEP56O1.html
By GINA HOLLAND
Associated Press Writer
Dec 12 10:09 AM US/Eastern
WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court said Monday it would consider the constitutionality of a Texas congressional map engineered by Rep. Tom DeLay that helped Republicans gain seats in Congress. The 2003 boundaries helped Republicans win 21 of the state's 32 seats in Congress in the last election_ up from 15. They were approved amid a nasty battle between Republican leaders and Democrats and minority groups in Texas.
UPDATE II: From CNN:
Justices will consider a constitutional challenge to the boundaries filed by various opponents. The court will hear two hours of arguments, likely in April, in four separate appeals.
The legal battle at the Supreme Court was over the unusual timing of the Texas redistricting, among other things. Under the Constitution, states must adjust their congressional district lines every 10 years to account for population shifts.
But in Texas the boundaries were redrawn twice after the 2000 census, first by a court, then by state lawmakers in a second round promoted by DeLay.
The contentiousness also reached Washington, where the Justice Department approved the plan although staff lawyers concluded that it diluted minority voting rights. Because of historic discrimination against minority voters, Texas is required to get Justice Department approval for any voting changes to ensure they don't undercut minority voting.