The Texas redistricting fight has spread into a national political war.

That's where we're starting the seven from the Washington Post.

I'm Hannah Jewell.

It's Wednesday, August 6th.

Let's get you caught up with today's seven stories.

Republicans in the Texas legislature are still trying to redraw their state's congressional map. It's an attempt to carve out safe seats that could help their

party maintain its control of the U.S. House of Representatives. The midterm elections are next year.

President Donald Trump yesterday told CNBC's squawk box

that Republicans were entitled to these seats.

And we have an opportunity in Texas to pick up five seats.

We have a really good governor, and we have good people in Texas.

And I won Texas.

I got the highest vote in the history of

Texas, as you probably know, and we are entitled to five more seats. To block the attempted

redistricting, Texas Democrats left the state. Many of them are in Chicago, trying to run out the

clock on a special legislative session, which is set to end later this

month. They have accused Republicans of racially motivated gerrymandering, and now Democratic

leaders across the country are getting involved. In California and New York, they're pushing to

redraw their own state's maps. They're threatening to add more

blue seats if Texas Republicans carve out more red ones. Ken Martin is the chair of the Democratic

National Committee. At a news conference yesterday in Chicago, he pushed back on the president's

claims about what Republicans are entitled to.

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