‘Now It’s Coming Back to Bite Them’: Democrats See an Opening in G.O.P. Oversight of Texas Grid As the state reels from power outages, Democrats look to turn the tables on the Republicans who dominate state government. In Austin, Texas, people charged their phones and got warm inside vehicles. Credit...Tamir Kalifa for The New York Times Published Feb. 17, 2021Updated Feb. 21, 2021 AUSTIN, Texas — For the Republicans who have run Texas state government for years, trying to undermine the Democrats who lead the state’s largest cities has been a blood sport for years. They have sought to overrule local officials on disputes involving everything from pandemic restrictions and plastic bag bans to protections for immigrants.