From Hispanic Ohio:  “Advocates for LULAC that included former Congressman Ciro D. Rodriguez, National LULAC Counsel Luis Roberto Vera, Jr., Maverick County Judge David Saucedo and John Tanner, former Department of Justice Voting Rights Section Chief, and LULAC attorney and expert George Korbell, presented LULAC’s objections to the Texas redistricting maps to the voting rights litigators from the Voting Rights Section of the Civil Rights Division of the Justice Department. Pursuant to Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act, 42 U.S.C. §1973c, LULAC argued that the DOJ should object to Texas request for preclearance of the state’s redistricting plans. LULAC met with the voting rights litigators to convince them that under Section 5 there is “retrogression” under the new plan, which means that this plan puts Latinos in the worst position for voting.”

A curious paragraph from the same story, given this is not an entirely accurate statement:

“In 2004 LULAC filed a suit against the State of Texas for the exact same issues that are present in this case; and LULAC successfully argued that case to the Supreme Court in LULAC v. Perry.”

More here.

“More than a dozen lawsuits were filed. Several have been consolidated into the case in San Antonio. At the same time, the state of Texas requested that a Washington, D.C. federal court assess whether the new maps are in compliance with the Voting Rights Act. Traditionally, state officials have gone directly to the U.S. Justice Department to get federal clearance.

Judges in the two main federal cases are expected to rule later this year but legal wrangling could stretch into 2013 if either case is appealed to the Supreme Court.District Judge Orlando Garcia confirmed this week that the San Antonio trial will begin Tuesday and conclude by Sept. 16.

The congressional and state Senate plans are drawing the most attention with North Texas districts playing a prominent role in the legal back and forth.

Regarding the Senate map, much of the debate is focused on District 10, represented by Davis. Critics allege that Democratic-leaning minority communities were moved out of the district and into ones where their votes will be drowned out to ensure a Republican can defeat Davis next year.

Last month, Davis and Veasey received permission to intervene in the federal pre-clearance review of the state Senate plans in Washington, D.C.

“They basically have a seat at the table,” Davis spokesman Anthony Spangler said. “They can call witnesses. They can file motions.”

Davis sat on a conference call with Department of Justice officials about redistricting this week, Spangler said. She had planned to fly to Washington, D.C. for an in-person meeting but her flight was canceled due to Hurricane Irene, he said.”

 The Times News:  On Feb. 22, 637 letters were mailed to registered voters statewide to inquire about their U.S. citizenship status. Follow-up letters were sent on April 6 to those voters who did not respond to the first mailing.

Those voters identified as non-citizens were notified of their registration removal and a voter registration form was attached to their notice so that they may re-register if they become a U.S. citizen at a later time. The notice also made it clear that it was illegal for non-citizens to register to vote.

 Washington Examiner.

St. Louis American.

I will be appearing on Fox Business Network today in the 1 p.m. hour to discuss the lawyers being hired in the Civil Rights Division as part of the Every Single One series at Pajamas Media. 

More here.

This Wall Street Journal editoral covers some of the same territory of the Every Single One series at Pajamas Media. 

I’ll be on with Martha Zoeller across Georgia this morning in the 9am hour to talk about DOJ attorney hiring and the Every Single One series in Pajamas Media.

The website Your Black World unlocks the answers to who is really behind voter registration problems at ACORN.  It isn’t the canvassers who gathered hundreds (or thousands) of phony registrations.  It wasn’t the managers that set up a bounty system.  Instead it was Andrew Breitbart, head of the Bigs.  Your Black World concludes:

“Andrew Breitbart, had a corps of followers that intentionally bombarded ACORN with fraudulent (‘Mickey Mouse’) voter registrations in order to discredit them, then used “debit card” donations to make it appear that ACORN was involved in taking donations that could not be traced, and then to top that off, also filmed so-called insider “prostitution and pimp” rings (using paid street props) just to give an already-hated by the “poor people shouldn’t have the right to vote” advocates.”

This must be Your Black World’s version of the Trilateral Commission and the Bilderbergers.  Of course wild conspiracy theories abound on the far fringes of the racially driven fringe, so this is nothing new.