DeLay Indicted

The Republican poster-boy for partisan redistricting--Congressional Majority Leader Tom DeLay--stepped down from his leadership post in the House of Representatives today, after he was indicted in his home state of Texas. And it was in Texas last year that DeLay engineering a mid-decade redistricting plan to benefit Republicans. Overall, the GOP gained six seats in the U.S. House from Democrats in the state, building up the Republican majority in Congress. Ironically, many Democrats last year were crying foul as the districts were divied up--saying the process needed to be depoliticized. But this year, with Schwarzenegger pushing Proposition 77, the support for taking the process out of the legislature has come from Republicans (though some in Congress, most notably Rep. John Doolittle, have opposed the plan) With the stepping down of Tom DeLay, Rep. David Drier of California looks to assume the leadership post, which would put two Californians in the Congressional delegation in leadership posts for both parties (with Minority leader Nancy Pelosi, the San Francisco Democrat, being the other). Maybe now California will have more clout to secure federal funds--for increased levee protections, border security, transportation funds and the like.