All posts by Tabatha Abu El-Haj

“2021 CPA-Zicklin Index Finds Companies Tightening Oversight of Political Spending”

November 29, 2021, 2:14 pmUncategorizedCampaign finance, corporate political spending, disclosureTabatha Abu El-Haj

Center for Political Accountability and the Zicklin Center for Business Ethics Research, The Wharton School. The report finds that U.S. companies are adapting to hyper-polarization and the threats to democracy by expanding board oversight of potentially controversial political spending. The… Continue reading

“The attacks on the 2024 election are already underway”

November 29, 2021, 10:12 amelection subversion riskTabatha Abu El-Haj

Joshua A. Douglas CNN Opinion New opinion piece by Professor Douglas lays out the various fronts in the war on American democracy and concludes: “This attack on American democracy is multifaceted and the various strands reinforce each other. It’s a… Continue reading

As Federal Options Close, Remember States

November 29, 2021, 7:17 amvoting, Voting Rights ActTabatha Abu El-Haj

With a Supreme Court that is borderline hostile to voting rights and Congress in perpetual gridlock, it is no wonder voters and their advocates are despairing. Still, fade out the polarization noise, and the fact of the matter is that … Continue reading

Book Review: “Betrayal: The Final Act of the Trump Show”

November 29, 2021, 4:54 amchicanery, Election Meltdown, election subversion riskTabatha Abu El-Haj

The Washington Post reviews ABC newsman, Jonathan Karl’s Betrayal: The Final Act of the Trump Show. “Karl’s sobering, solid, account of Trump’s last year in office sheds new light on how the man who lost the presidency nearly succeeded in… Continue reading

“How the Liberal First Amendment Under-Protects Democracy”

November 21, 2021, 6:46 amUncategorizedTabatha Abu El-Haj

Signing off now as I am off to catch a plane to Chicago to discuss my new article, How the Liberal First Amendment Under-Protects Democracy with the faculty at Northwestern’s Pritzker School of Law. Thank you Rick for giving me… Continue reading

“G.O.P. Donors Back Manchin and Sinema as They Reshape Biden’s Agenda”

November 21, 2021, 6:27 amUncategorizedTabatha Abu El-Haj

Kenneth P. Vogel and Kate Kelly, N.Y. Times Business and conservative big donors turn their attention to the two Democratic Senators that hold the key to stopping a transformative version of Biden’s agenda. “Even as Ms. Sinema and Mr. Manchin,… Continue reading

The Consequences of Disinformation–An International Perspective

November 20, 2021, 12:06 pm19th Amendment, cheap speechTabatha Abu El-Haj

A new article by Karen Hao in the Technology Review explores “how Facebook and Google fund global misinformation.” It argues that “the tech giants are paying millions of dollars to the operators of clickbait pages,” thereby “bankrolling the deterioration of… Continue reading

“Kansas Voter Suppression Law Blocked by Court”

November 20, 2021, 4:49 amcourt decisions, votingTabatha Abu El-Haj

Democracy Alerts Federal court grants preliminary injunction in case challenging Kansas’s new voter suppression law. “The lawsuit, filed on behalf of VoteAmerica and Voter Participation Center in June, is challenging House Bill 2332, which restricts nonpartisan out-of-state organizations from providing… Continue reading

“Effort to breach Ohio county’s voting system draws FBI and state scrutiny”

November 20, 2021, 4:36 amchicanery, election administration, election subversion risk, fraudulent fraud squadTabatha Abu El-Haj

Washington Post Exclusive by Amy Gardner, Emma Brown, and Devlin Barrett Investigators are examining possible connections between an attempted breach of Ohio county’s election network and “an incident in Colorado earlier this year, when government officials helped an outsider gain… Continue reading

“Former Kentucky Secretary of State Faces Ethics Charges”

November 20, 2021, 4:19 amelection administrationTabatha Abu El-Haj

Carson Kessler, ProPublica Former Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes, a Democrat, has been accused “of misusing her office for personal and political purposes” in an order filed by the state’s Executive Branch Ethics Commission. “The news comes nearly… Continue reading

Breaking–Eleventh Circuit Denies Libertarian Party Free Access to Voter Lists

November 19, 2021, 2:11 pmballot access, third partiesTabatha Abu El-Haj

Richard Winger, at Ballot Access News has a full summary and critique of the decision. The case involved a challenge to Alabama’s decision to give a free list of registered voters to qualified parties, state legislators, and a variety… Continue reading

“RNC chair contradicts Trump: ‘Biden won the election'”

November 19, 2021, 2:00 pmchicanery, political polarizationTabatha Abu El-Haj

The Hill Imagine that this counts as news. Still, Trump’s lie continues to fuel illegal and misguided efforts to find (or fabricate) fraud. Incisive critique of polarization discourse by Jennifer Rubin at the Washington Post today.

Breaking–Sean Trende and Bernard Grofman to draw Virginia Maps

November 19, 2021, 10:56 amredistrictingTabatha Abu El-Haj

Dave Wasserman on Twitter reports that the Virginia Supreme Court has unanimously appointed Sean Trende and Bernard Groffman as special masters for the court-supervised redistricting process.

A Good Day for Democracy

November 19, 2021, 7:13 amUncategorizedTabatha Abu El-Haj

The House passed the Build Back Better bill moments ago, attempting to make good on the promises that Democrats made to the electorate last November. To be sure, there may be consequences for the party next fall. If the electorate… Continue reading