What Are Texas Democrats Thinking?! The Political Stories That Still Matter in 2025 (with Kirk Bado)

Texas is right outside my window. I live just a short drive away from the statehouse, and yet, I’m physically closer to it than most of the Texas Democratic Party right now. Because while redistricting votes are going down, they’ve skipped town. Some are in Chicago, some in New York, some who-knows-where. They’re avoiding quorum on a vote that could give Republicans five more congressional seats in the next midterms. That might sound dramatic, but the stakes are that high. This isn’t about making a point. This is about shaping the entire balance of the House. Let’s set aside the tired talking points about whether gerrymandering is good or bad, or whether California and Illinois are just as guilty. I don’t want to have that conversation right now. I want to talk about the Democrats in this state — the ones who keep losing, keep retreating, and somehow keep thinking that symbolic resistance is a strategy. It’s not. It’s performance. And worse, it signals to Texas liberals that their party isn’t willing to stand and fight. Not even in the state they claim to want to flip. Politics Politics Politics is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Texas doesn’t see itself as part of a broader movement. It sees itself as Texas. It doesn’t think of itself like the South, and it sure as hell doesn’t take cues from New York or Illinois. If you want to win here, you have to respect that. You have to show up and deliver for voters — on Texas terms. And skipping town because you’re mad about a vote doesn’t read like courage. It reads like cowardice. It says you don’t believe in the fight enough to have it on home turf. Democrats did the same thing back in 2021 over a voting rights bill. They went to D.C., got tons of national media, and nothing changed. In fact, they lost ground. Their already thin hold in the statehouse got thinner. Republicans strengthened their grip. So this idea that leaving the state is some kind of protest with teeth is pure fantasy. It’s been tried. It failed. And now they’re doing it again — not with new tactics, not with a new message, just the same tired escape hatch. What could they have done instead? I’ve got an idea. Take those same 50 Democrats and spend 72 hours barnstorming the neighborhoods that are about to be gerrymandered out of blue representation. Knock doors. Shake hands. Livestream the whole thing. Go to Frisco, Plano, East Houston, McAllen, Pflugerville, the Fifth Ward, and tell people what’s happening. Tell them they’re losing their voice in the Texas legislature. Register voters on the spot. Raise money. Make noise. Make it impossible to ignore you because you’re in Texas, not because you fled it. You want a viral image? Try getting hauled back to the Capitol in a Texas Ranger squad car. That’s real drama. That’s a story that cuts through. And it puts a spotlight on the very system you're protesting. But instead, we get hotel bar selfies in Albany — and no movement on the map that’s about to tilt the state even further red. The public doesn’t want passive resistance. They want a fight. And Texas voters — especially liberals — want to believe that their side still knows how to throw a punch. It’s not enough to blame the system. You have to build a response that feels real, rooted, and local. Texas is a massive media market. It’s expensive to campaign here. But if you don’t make Republicans spend, if you don’t at least make it look like a fight, they’ll never take you seriously, and they’ll never pay the price. Right now, all the Democrats have shown is that they’re not even willing to lose the right way. Chapters 00:00:00 - Intro 00:02:00 - Texas 00:13:46 - Update 00:14:29 - Treasury Secretary 00:19:36 - Gaza 00:24:36 - Moon-based Nuclear Reactor 00:26:31 - Interview with Kirk Bado 01:23:11 - Wrap-up This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.politicspoliticspolitics.com/subscribe