Texas Democratic lawmaker Jarvis D. Johnson on Sunday discussed the recent actions of more than 50 state Democrats, who fled their state to Washington D.C. in order to avoid voting on an election reform bill.
Johnson appeared on MSCNBC’s “The Sunday Show with Jonathan Capehart” where the latter asked him to discuss a warning he gave his own son not to drive in Texas for fear of “retaliation.”
“And one of the things you told me is that you have told your son to not drive in Texas, because of your concern about retaliation on the part of Governor Abbott against you. Can you just talk a little bit about that?” Capehart asked Johnson.
The Democrat replied that he feared Texas Governor Greg Abbott would “round us up” and “corral us up” based on the latter’s announcement that the representatives could be arrested upon their return to the state.
The arrest, however, can only be made within the state.
“The governor put out the call and he said that he was going to round us up and corral us up and bring us back. And we’ve watched all across this country when there’s a leader that does something like this, that there are people in their party that will take this and run with it,” Johnson said.
Talking about the warning he gave to his son about some “rural cop” retaliation, Johnson said: “And so, my son drives my car, which has state plates. And I just don’t want some rural cop, or some fanatic of the Republican Party that listens to Governor Abbott, as they say they need to bring us back because we’re fugitives.”
Johnson also said that his fears regarding his son were based on race. “Because we do understand, I understand, what relationships are with police officers and black males, and I do know what’s going on with most of the Republican Party, when they want to take the law into their own hands and act as the hero and say, ‘we rounded one up,’” Johnson said.
The Democratic lawmakers are expected to remain in Washington D.C. until August first week as they wait for the special session called by the governor to end.
