Texas Democrat: Trump ‘demanding’ allies ‘rig’ midterms for him
Rep. Greg Casar (D-Texas) said during a recent interview that President Trump is “demanding” allies to “rig” the 2026 midterms for him and argued that by redrawing the Congressional district in Austin, lawmakers are violating the Voting Rights Act.
“This is a five-alarm fire for our democracy. Donald Trump is the most corrupt president in American history, and he has no plan for winning the upcoming midterm elections,” Casar, the chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, said Monday night on CNN. “So, he essentially is demanding that his cronies rig those elections for him in this corrupt scheme.”
“That‘s why I‘m so proud of the Texas Democrats who are showing the entire nation what it looks like to fight by going out across the country. We need everyone viewing at home, across America to say, even if we may have our differences on some issues,” the lawmaker told “The Source” host Kaitlan Collins. “At the end of the day, we should have the voters pick their politicians, not have politicians pick their voters.”
He added, “Donald Trump should not get to pick who your member of Congress is.”
The redistricting tussle intensified on Monday as Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) ordered the Democrats who fled the Lone Star State to be arrested. Over 50 state-level Democrats have left Texas, breaking quorum and hoping to wait out until the special legislative session ends. The move is a bid to stall the Republicans’ effort to pass a mid-decade redistricting plan.
Trump has blessed the effort, saying he would like the GOP to gain five seats in Texas in the 2026 midterms.
Democrats who have left the state have fired back at Abbott for arrest threats and the redistricting efforts, while Democratic Party governors have warned they could retaliate similarly in their states.
“If Republicans are willing to rewrite these rules to give themselves an advantage, then they’re leaving us no choice; we must do the same,” New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) said on Monday.
Casar, who represents Texas’s 35th congressional district — which encompasses parts of East Austin — said the push to draw the lines of his district is a violation of the Voting Rights Act
“It disenfranchises the Latino voters that have a protected district here in Central Texas, and if Donald Trump is allowed to shred the Voting Rights Act here in Austin,” Casar said. “He wants to spread that across America, just like you mentioned Kaitlan in Missouri or in Louisiana, or who knows where else.”