AWOL Democrats, GOP Take Battles to Court

Texas Republican leaders asked the state Supreme Court to order 11 Democratic senators back from New Mexico, where they fled last month to stop a GOP redistricting plan.

The Democrats, in turn, filed a lawsuit to prohibit the Republicans from having them arrested if they return to Texas, as an 11-day-old political stalemate turned into a legal battle.

At issue is a Republican plan to redraw congressional districts that could increase the narrow Republican majority in the U.S. House by up to seven seats. It is being pushed by House Majority Leader Tom DeLay of Texas and the White House.