TX Atty Gen Greg Abbott filing to OVERTURN Judge's Ruling re: DELAY!!!

[pbartch]

July 19, 2006, 2:09PM
Texas AG to weigh in on DeLay ruling


By R.G. RATCLIFFE
Copyright 2006 Houston Chronicle

AUSTIN — Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott plans to ask the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals to overturn a federal judge's ruling that Republicans cannot replace former U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay on the ballot, a Democratic lawyer involved in the case said today.

Democratic Party General Counsel Chad Dunn said Abbott's solicitor general, Ted Cruz, told him he will file an amicus brief on Friday defending the state election law that Republicans want to use to replace DeLay.

Abbott spokeswoman Angela Hale confirmed that Cruz will file a friend-of-the-court brief on Friday, but she declined to describe what it will say.

"I'm not going to comment on what we're going to file until we file it," Hale said.

Republicans want to remove DeLay, who resigned last month, from the ballot and replace him with a new candidate. Democrats want to block any action by the Republicans, claiming they are trying to manipulate a state election law that is supposed to keep political parties from switching candidates after they receive a primary nomination.

U.S. District Judge Sam Sparks earlier this month ruled that state Republican Chair Tina Benkiser could not rule DeLay ineligible under state law because he had moved his official residence to Virginia. Sparks said DeLay's eligibility is set by the U.S. Constitution and can only be determined by whether he is an inhabitant of Texas on election day.

Dunn said Cruz told him he will file a brief that outlines a schedule for when a replacement candidate for DeLay must be picked and also will argue that the state law for determining how a candidate may be replaced on the ballot is constitutional.

"It looks like they are going to 'me-too' Tom DeLay's position," Dunn said.

Dunn said the Texas Democratic Party in its lawsuit against Benkiser has never claimed the state election law is unconstitutional, just that she wants to apply it in an unconstitutional manner.

"It's going to be interesting if the attorney general files a brief with the 5th Circuit saying, 'We encourage candidates to manipulate the election law,'" Dunn said.

State election law allows a political party to replace a candidate if the candidate dies, becomes medically incapacitated or becomes ineligible for office.

Benkiser declared DeLay ineligible after he registered to pay Virginia income taxes and changed his voter registration and driver's license to that state. But DeLay continues to maintain a home in Sugar Land.

Sparks said the question of residency and eligibility for a federal candidate rests solely with the U.S. Constitution. Sparks said a party probably could legally replace a state legislative candidate who became ineligible by moving out of their district.

Dunn said Texas Secretary of State Roger Williams filed a brief with Sparks' court outlining the time line for when the Republican Party could replace DeLay. Dunn said Williams took no position on how Sparks should rule.

Republicans in Harris, Fort Bend, Brazoria and Galveston counties had started the process of picking a new congressional candidate for DeLay's seat, but halted when Sparks issued his ruling.




http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/4057962.html

[aquart]

1. Sounds like the Texas Dems are ready for it.

and willing to fight.

[Ian David]

2. If the court rules in favor of DeLay, then Bush and Cheney have to resign

This is the rule they used to get around the Constitutional requirement that The President and Tbe Vice President aren't allowed to come from the same state.