When I heard Texas Democrats were playing hooky from their special legislative session,

as a way to protest a Republican bill limiting who can vote, and how, I had one thought.

Again?

This move is getting familiar.

Jessica Huseman is the editorial director at Vote Beat.

She covers Texas election law and lawmakers.

She says, if you are also getting a sense of deja vu, she doesn't blame you.

Texas Democrats did walk out of another legislative session over the same bill just a couple of months

back, but this time she says the stakes are higher.

The first time they did this back in May.

Democrats walked out, but they walked out a couple of hours before the regular session

was supposed to end anyway.

On that day, Dave Felen, who is the speaker of the House in Texas, had met with their

Democratic caucus and he said to them, listen, I know you're all thinking about walking

out and if you do, we won't stop you.

Dave Felen, who is a Republican, by the way, he could have sent state troopers after these

legislators.

I mean, instead of fleeing the state, they were like going for ice cream with their kids,

right?

The stakes, that's literally true.

But the stakes much lower than they are right now because Dave Felen has taken a very

different tone.

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