Travis Crum at Take Care:

In a surprise decision, the three-judge district court overseeing the Texas redistricting litigation unanimously held that the State of Texas should not be “bailed-in” under Section 3(c) of the Voting Rights Act for its unconstitutional conduct during the 2011 redistricting cycle. The district court’s refusal to impose preclearance means that the 2020 redistricting cycle will be the first time since the early 1970s that Texas will be free to draw statewide redistricting plans without federal supervision. Given Texas’s recent and pervasive history of racial discrimination in voting, that is a very worrisome development. The district court’s decision is thus a huge loss for minority voters and is particularly shocking given that Texas is a poster child for bail-in.

Read the whole thing.