“Worried about the decline in democracy? Worry about the politicians, not the voters.”
Erik Jones and Matthias Matthijs for The Monkey Cage.
Monthly Archives: April 2017
Breaking: Federal Court in Texas Rules Texas Passed Its Voter ID Law with a Racially Discriminatory Intent
A federal district court has held on remand from the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit sitting en banc that Texas enacted its controversial voter identification law with a racially discriminatory intent.
If (and it is a… Continue reading
After Being “Rescheduled” Twice, NC Voting Case Now Back on for April 13 SCOTUS Conference, w Justice Gorusch
Docket.
The first question is whether the state gets to withdraw the cert. petition, as the gov. and AG want and the Legislature does not.
“In the future, John Roberts could be the Supreme Court’s swing vote”
I have written this oped for the LA Times. It begins:
Even before the Senate confirmed Neil Gorsuch as a justice of the Supreme Court, and before it “nuked” the filibuster for nominees, the Trump administration and conservatives were already … Continue reading
“Iowa Secretary Of State’s Office Released Statistics That Its Own Staff Objected To”
HuffPo:
In an effort to highlight voter irregularities and push for stricter voting laws, Iowa’s top election official pushed statistics on alleged voter fraud that even a member of his own staff privately suggested were misleading, emails obtained by the… Continue reading
“Neil Gorsuch’s confirmation shattered political conventions. Here is why.”
Important Rick Pildes at WaPo’s The Monkey Cage:
The Supreme Court confirmation wars will become less heated only if the stakes in individual appointments diminish. One way to bring that about would be a constitutional amendment limiting Supreme Court terms… Continue reading
“GOP is trying to shape elections by reshaping North Carolina’s election boards”
News Observer editorial:
A three-judge panel issued a clear ruling last month that Republican shenanigans trying to change the makeup of local elections boards and the structure of the state Board of Elections and the state ethics board were illegal… Continue reading
“A Polarized Supreme Court, Growing More So”
Adam Liptak in the NYT:
In losing the 2016 presidential election, Democrats may have given up the chance to change the balance of power on the Supreme Court for a generation. Judge Gorsuch is 49. If he serves as long… Continue reading
“Republican Governors Keep Vetoing Legislation That Would Make Voting Easier”
Paul Blumental for HuffPo:
On March 21, Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval (R) vetoed legislation that would have automatically registered eligible voters when they sought services from the Department of Motor Vehicles. The veto made Sandoval the third Republican governor to… Continue reading
“A voting law meant to increase minority representation has generated many more lawsuits than seats for people of color”
Important LA Times piece on the effect of the CA Voting Rights Act.
AL: “Rebekah Mason suggested closure of DMV offices in majority black counties, report shows”
Wow:
Governor Robert Bentley’s former top advisor and secret paramour Rebekah Mason led a politically-motivated effort in 2015 to close 31 driver’s license offices in mostly black counties, a move that embarrassed the state and was later reversed.
The decision… Continue reading
“Why you should stop blaming gerrymandering so much. Really.”
Aaron Blake:
But gerrymandering is also blamed too much for too many things — especially for our political polarization and for Republicans’ strong advantage in the House. Just last week, an op-ed in The Washington Post blamed gerrymandering for breeding … Continue reading
“Troubled Mayoral Race in St. Louis Shows Need for Ranked Choice Voting”
Steven Hill for In These Times. More here.
NM: “Governor vetoes campaign finance reform”
New Mexico in Depth:
Gov. Susana Martinez, who has touted herself as a champion of transparency, on Friday vetoed a piece of legislation that would have required greater public disclosure by those who spend big money in New Mexico political… Continue reading