GOP's Rep. Lawler on Texas redistricting: 'I think it's wrong'

Rep. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.) said what Texas Republicans are doing is "wrong" after they forwarded a gerrymandered congressional map, which would result in five new GOP seats in the House ahead of next year’s midterm elections, as he seeks reelection in his New York swing district.

"I think it's wrong, what Texas is doing," he said of Texas Republicans' release of the new map during a Tuesday evening appearance on CNN. "I don't support it. I think it is wrong."

Lawler compared the situation to the situations in Illinois and New Jersey, which have also been criticized for doing the same, in some cases even seeing their maps struck down because of it.

"We have to actually have neutral districts across this country," he said. "It would serve the country better."

Lawler mentioned that he plans to introduce legislation to "outright ban gerrymandering," a term coined more than 200 years ago in the U.S. that's used to describe political manipulation in legislative mapmaking, according to The Associated Press.

"This is fundamentally why Congress is broken," he continued. "You do not have competitive districts, and so most members are focused on primaries and not actually engaging in a general election."

Lawler's comments come as he seeks reelection in his battleground House district in New York, where Democrats will seek to oust him as part of the party’s efforts to win back control of the lower chamber. Democrats fell short in the district by more than 6 points in November.

Meanwhile, Texas Democrats on Sunday traveled for various strategic trips to Illinois, New York and Massachusetts to deny Republicans a quorum, or the minimum number of lawmakers needed present to conduct legislative business, as the GOP tries to pass the new congressional lines. 

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) threatened to remove the Democrats as they go into day three of their trips, which is in response to the Texas GOP, at the behest of President Trump, redrawing the state’s congressional maps. While redistricting was not initially on the agenda for the special session called by Gov. Greg Abbott (R), it was added later. Typically, lines aren't redrawn until after a census — making the move a clear power play.