MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
So Blaise just told us about Texas Democratic state Representative Nicole Collier, who spent two nights in the Texas House chamber after refusing to leave in the custody of law enforcement. On Tuesday, she spoke with our co-host Leila Fadel.
LEILA FADEL, BYLINE: I want to start with that permission slip. The speaker of the House, Dustin Burrows, a Republican, told you and your colleagues you could leave only if you signed this permission slip and walked out with law enforcement following you, escorting you. And you refused. Why did you refuse?
NICOLE COLLIER: Well, I'm not a criminal. I've not done anything wrong. I've exercised my constitutional right to deny a quorum. And what they have asked is for members to agree to be released into the custody of DPS. It's not just an escort. It's in the custody as if we have committed some type of crime to fulfill their political theater. So I'm not going to go along with that. I disagree. I opposed strongly. It just didn't sit well with me, and I'm fed up. I'm refusing to do exactly what they want.
FADEL: You were locked in the chamber when you refused. Were you expecting that?
COLLIER: Oh, I'm still locked in the chamber. I'm not surprised, but I'm disappointed because you don't have to do these things. The quorum has been restored. I came here voluntarily. I have the right to use my voice and my speech of resistance.
FADEL: You've said a few times since this happened and is happening - as you said, you're still in the chamber - that this is authoritarian. Tell me why.
COLLIER: Well, I mean, it just is an example of the lengths that Republicans will go to get what they want. Locking members in the chamber who don't comply, you know, this is not what a free democracy does. You have a right to challenge government, and when you start silencing the voices of those people who disagree, then we are moving further away. And we've got to put a stop to it. We've got to take a stand and protect the freedoms that we have because, you know, before we know it, we won't have any freedoms to defend.
FADEL: You posted a photo of yourself reclined at your desk in a bonnet and an eye mask. How'd you sleep?
COLLIER: I slept. I was able to get some sleep on the floor in my chair. And the lights do not cut off in this building, in this place, so it was very bright. But with all this DPS here, I kind of feel safe.
FADEL: There will be a vote.
COLLIER: Yeah.
FADEL: What happens then?
COLLIER: You know, it's very disappointing that Republicans have showed their hand, and maybe they did it on purpose. They have shown us that they want to do Trump's bidding first. They don't want to put the flood victims and the people first. They want to do what Trump has instructed them to do. So it's very disappointing. We are ready to have a fight on the floor in terms of contesting these maps and exposing the harmful impacts that they will have on communities of color. Once we finish this floor fight, we'll take it to the courts.
FADEL: Now, California Governor Gavin Newsom is pushing for his own partisan redistricting plan, saying if Texas is going to do it, then we're going to have to do it, too. You fled the state to stop this type of redistricting. Does this now start a catastrophic fight between the two parties that could hurt the democratic process?
COLLIER: Listen. You know what? There was a time where you would take the high road, but that high road has crumbled. We're on the dirt road, and we're going to meet them in the dirt. This is - like Governor Newsom said, we're going to fight fire with fire. We've got to be ready to respond accordingly. We'll rebuild that high road, but right now we're in the dirt. And we've got to roll up our sleeves and get dirty.
MARTIN: That was Democratic state Representative Nicole Collier speaking with Leila Fadel yesterday from the Texas House floor.
(SOUNDBITE OF THE BLACK KEYS AND RZA SONG, "THE BADDEST MAN ALIVE") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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