Former first lady Michelle Obama might not approve, but a Democratic state assemblyman in California says the time to “go high” when the other side “goes low” is over.
State Assemblymember Isaac Bryan appeared on MSNBC Thursday, Aug. 21, to discuss Gov. Gavin Newsom’s (D-California) push to redraw U.S. congressional maps and eliminate five Republican House seats, countering a Texas redistricting plan encouraged by President Trump.
Lawmakers in the California Assembly and state Senate approved the redistricting plan on Thursday afternoon, and Newsom quickly signed it at a televised news conference. The measure now goes before voters in November.
Related: Newsom Hits Fox News With $787M Defamation Lawsuit Over Network’s ‘Lies’
Assemblymember Bryan spoke with MSNBC after the news conference and applauded fellow Democrats for stepping up to combat Trump’s actions
“When the president of the United States reaches down into Texas and takes five seats that belong to the people and transfers that power to himself, we’ve got to move with the same intensity,” Bryan told MSNBC host Chris Hayes (at the 3:21 mark).
Bryan, who is also vice chair of the California Legislative Black Caucus, then used the slang term “squabble up,” made popular by rapper Kendrick Lamar, meaning “get ready to fight.”
“Where I come from — in L.A. representing Crenshaw and Slauson — when they go low, we squabble up,” he said. “They’ve changed the rules of the game, and we’ve got to meet them where they are. And that’s what we did today.”
The Los Angeles politician did a little word play on a phrase made popular by Michelle Obama, who in 2016 said about Trump at the Democratic National Convention: “When someone is cruel or acts like a bully, you don’t stoop to their level. No, our motto is: ‘When they go low, we go high.’”
As he signed the legislation on Thursday, Newsom also called out Trump.
“He’s trying to rig the election. He’s trying to set up the conditions where he can claim that the elections were not won fair and square,” the governor said. “We’re responding to what occurred in Texas, we’re neutralizing what occurred and we’re giving the American people a fair chance.”
Unlike in Texas, voters must sign off on plans to redraw Congressional maps.
But California’s Republican leadership has been highly critical of Newsom’s actions.
“You move forward fighting fire with fire, what happens? You burn it all down,” said James Gallagher, Republican leader in the Assembly, according to NBC News.
Gallagher insisted redistricting will hurt voters.
“The people’s right to representation is exactly what will be sacrificed when we continue down this road when, after you do it, Missouri does it or Indiana does it. Colorado is talking about doing it. At the end of that, the parties will determine who represents, and the people will be powerless to elect their own representatives,” Gallagher continued.
Trump said Thursday Missouri is eyeing a plan to redraw its congressional maps, which would benefit Republicans.
“The Great State of Missouri is now IN. I’m not surprised… We’re going to win the Midterms in Missouri again, bigger and better than ever before!” he wrote on Truth social.
CBS News reports Missouri has eight House seats, and two of them are held by Democrats. Efforts to pick up a new Republican seat would likely focus on Kansas City.
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