Some Democrats want to use gerrymandering. That’s a bad idea | Carlo Invernizzi-Accetti

When a house is on fire, more fire won't help

When Texas Republicans unveiled yet another contorted congressional map last week - one that would all but erase Austin's Latino-led seat and increase the Republican party's federal House tally by up to five seats in total - the outcry from Democrats was immediate and justified. But beyond the Democratic state legislators' brave effort to stymie the proposal by boycotting the vote, a different refrain has also been heard by leading Democrats in other states: if they do it, why can't we?

Governor Gavin Newsom of California has vowed to fight fire with fire", advancing a proposal that would redraw California's own congressional map to offset Republican gains in Texas. New York's Kathy Hochul has also embraced the prospect of aggressive gerrymandering in Democratic-controlled states, sidestepping the independent commissions that Democrats themselves had once championed and successfully implemented in both California and New York.