On Tuesday, Texas Monthly reporter Jonathan Tilove said in a tweet he could confirm two liberal lawmakers had fled the country, along with their partners. State Reps. Jessica González and Julie Johnson — of Dallas and Farmers Branch, respectively — had reportedly jetted to Portugal on vacation.
González and Johnson had been planning the trip for a year-and-a-half, Tilove said, and their tickets were non-refundable.
The timing of González and Johnson's international escapade is significant: It comes as dozens of Democratic state legislators have decamped to Washington, D.C., in an effort to block a Republican-backed elections bill. The Democrats had touted the quorum-break as a last-ditch effort to save democracy from voter suppression.Hi. Covering the TXDEMS in DC for @TexasMonthly. Can confirm @juliejohnsonTX and her wife & @jessicafortexas and her fiancé are in Portugal for a vacation they had been planning, with non-refundable tickets, for a year-and-a-half. Still participating in caucus meetings via ZOOM.
— jonathantilove (@JTiloveTX) August 3, 2021
Republicans, meanwhile, were already upset by Democrats’ trip to Washington. On top of blocking the GOP voting bill, the move has effectively stalled other priority legislation, such as bills on “bail reform” and supplemental pay for retired teachers.
Conservatives have roasted the Democratic lawmakers from the start of the Washington quorum break. Days after arriving in D.C., several representatives tested positive for COVID-19. They also pointed to a case of Miller Lite that was photographed on one of the lawmaker’s busses, according to Insider.
Jason Vaughn, policy director for the Texas Young Republicans, said the Democrats’ Portugal vacation is “the epitome of privilege"; many Americans had to cancel their own European trips amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Vaughn called the narrative that the Portugal trip was more than a year in the making “astonishing.” Even if that were the case, he believes the lawmakers likely could have rescheduled it.
González initially appeared to deny the trip’s existence, telling the San Antonio Express-News that the reports were “rumors” and that no one had shown “proof.” But Vaughn believes the lawmakers would have fared better if they'd just owned up to it.
“The cover-up is always worse than the crime,” he said.
Neither González nor Johnson responded to the Observer’s requests for comment by publication time.
When asked for a response, Texas Democratic Party spokeswoman Angelica Luna Kaufman said reports of the trip shouldn’t diminish the efforts of the delegates in Washington. Texas Democrats have been at the forefront of the broader national movement to safeguard voting rights, she said.
“I understand the optics, but considering all of the great work that’s happened and the stand that they took … it really shouldn’t shadow all of that,” Kaufman said. “We’re hoping that it isn’t going to be the narrative — that it won’t take away from what they’re trying to accomplish — because we really have been able to move the needle.”
After news of the trip broke, Republican state lawmakers took to Twitter to poke fun at the pair. Deer Park state Rep. Briscoe Cain tweeted a doctored photo of González and Johnson in front of a seaside town in Portugal, along with the caption: “Wish you were here.”
The Republican Party of Texas also took a shot at the AWOL representatives.Wish you were here.#txlege pic.twitter.com/PgvmpenX0W
— 𝐁𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐨𝐞 𝐂𝐚𝐢𝐧 (@BriscoeCain) August 3, 2021
“Reports indicate that two Texas Democrats have fled D.C. not for Austin, but for Portugal," the GOP wrote in a tweet. "Wrong direction there Representatives.... #ComeBackToTexas."
The way Vaughn sees it, Texas Democrats shouldn't have left for D.C. in the first place. They had an opportunity to work on legislation that both sides wanted during the special session, he said.Reports indicate that two Texas Democrats have fled D.C. not for Austin, but for Portugal.
— Texas GOP (@TexasGOP) August 4, 2021
Wrong direction there Representatives.... #ComeBackToTexas https://t.co/CTQBsGQxik #txlege
It’s time to get the work done, he added — not go on vacation. In other words, Vaughn said, “Get your asses home.”
