Ordinarily, it would be preferable for the Legislature to perform its duty of drawing congressional districts rather than leave the task to a federal court.

Ordinarily, it would be preferable to insist that Gov. Rick Perry call lawmakers into a special session to repair the damage they did in 2003 redistricting legislation, even though he'd prefer not to face the political heat as election season approaches with three viable challengers champing for his job.

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Ordinarily, it would be in the public interest for voters have input, through their elected representatives, into making the changes necessary to bring all the state's congressional districts into compliance with the law.

The exceptionally partisan redistricting map at issue is no ordinary plan; it never has been.

Although it was an extraordinary power play engineered through an uncommonly nasty process, the Supreme Court on June 28 ruled against most of the challenges raised under the Constitution and Voting Rights Act.

The court did say, however, that District 23 of the Texas map illegally dilutes Latino voting power by splitting 94 percent Latino Webb County, which encompasses Laredo. That requires the redrawing of that district and probably several adjoining ones.

Time constraints under which the revisions must be made to meet a Sept. 6 deadline for certifying the November ballot would seem to work against the ordinary arguments for a legislative solution.

But that doesn't diminish the Legislature's responsibility for correcting its own errors.

The state's leadership should not be able to take the easy way out by deferring to a three-judge panel.

Republican lawmakers argued that they had to -- and had the right to -- draw new congressional voting districts in 2003 because the existing map had been adopted by a federal court in 2001 after legislative deadlock failed to produce a plan as required after the decennial census. They were so adamant that the Legislature should impose its will that they dragged the state through three tumultuous special sessions, at a cost of several million dollars.

They approved a plan blatantly driven by the goal of electing more Republicans and pushing Democrats out of Congress. During the drafting process, red flags were raised that dividing Webb County could be a legal problem, but those were tossed aside in the interest of, Republicans lawmakers argued, reflecting the voters' preferences.

Now that the Supreme Court has sent District 23 back to the drawing board, those same state leaders want to let the judges -- those unelected, unaccountable federal judges -- do it?

Yes, it would be monumentally more difficult to call state lawmakers together, get them to develop workable revisions quickly, obtain the required Justice Department preclearance and navigate legal challenges in time for November voting.

But why should the governor and legislators who brought us here be let off the hook? Because it wouldn't play well to keep the redistricting bitterness before the voters as summer gives way to fall? Because the logistics of democracy are too time-consuming, expensive and inconvenient when the political benefits aren't so clear?

Reality is that Perry, who could call a special session, will instead leave the dirty work to the court, which has set an Aug. 3 hearing on the redistricting plan.

But even if the revisions ultimately are court-directed, the redistricting debacle and the ugliness it wrought shouldn't be buried, not if Texans want to avoid endless reiteration.

True to their party's mascot, Texas Republicans never forgot earlier Democrats' gerrymandering excesses and exacted ruthless revenge.

What voters gained was more districts that protect incumbents and entrench party power, albeit GOP.

But the public interest would be better served if lawmakers from both parties devise a way to reduce the redistricting excesses that basically leave voters as an afterthought.

The Texas Senate actually took a step in that direction last session.

In May 2005, senators voted 19-8 (10 Republicans and nine Democrats made up the majority) to approve a bill that would set up a nine-member Congressional Redistricting Commission. The commission would consist of eight members appointed equally by Republicans and Democrats in the House and Senate, plus a non-voting presiding officer. Current elected officials, recent officer-holders, party operatives and lobbyists would be ineligible to serve.

The commission would be charged by law, not just aspiration, with redistricting once a decade and formulating districts of nearly equal population that are contiguous, compact, convenient and separated by natural or existing political boundaries. And a redistricting plan could not be drawn "purposely to favor or discriminate against a political party or any other group," stated the bill, which was sponsored by Sen. Jeff Wentworth, R-San Antonio.

A core of senators has demonstrated that the prospect of removing the rawest political maneuvering from Texas' congressional redistricting needn't be wishful thinking.

Leaders of vision and political courage would see the wisdom of making it a reality.