Tag: scott walker
Michigan GOP Files Lawsuit To Protect Gerrymandered Districts

Michigan GOP Files Lawsuit To Protect Gerrymandered Districts

The Michigan GOP is making a final attempt to stop the state from implementing an independent redistricting commission that voters overwhelmingly approved in the 2018 election.

This time around, the state’s Republican party is suing to stop the commission. The effort joins a previous lawsuit filed last month by Fair Lines America Foundation, which is affiliated with former Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker. Both groups are working feverishly to ensure that the Michigan GOP retains its hold on power no matter what.

In 2018, 61 percent of Michigan voters said yes to a ballot initiative that addressed the fact the state is one of the most gerrymandered in the country. Previously, Michigan’s state legislature drew districts, which meant that the GOP could keep its illegitimate majority by continuing to draw legislative districts that guaranteed it would win.

Voters approved a measure that created an independent commission comprised of four Republicans, four Democrats, and five independent people. It also barred, for a period of years, people who had been partisan political candidates, lobbyists, and officers of political parties.

To anyone but the GOP, this looks like a sound solution: It takes redistricting away from a partisan body and gives it to a well-formed commission designed to ensure all voices are heard.

However, the Michigan GOP sees this as a violation of their First Amendment rights — specifically, their freedom to associate with who they choose. Their federal complaint says that since political parties can’t pick their own representatives to serve on the panel, it’s a constitutional violation.

Cox gave the Detroit News a rather incoherent explanation for why the GOP opposes a fair and non-partisan redistricting commission. “This also gives the Democrat leadership the ability to knock off our people … that are allegedly Republicans that we haven’t even selected. So it becomes very problematic that we don’t get to have a role in choosing who’s involved”

What Cox seems to be referring to is the procedure by people are chosen to serve on the commission. Anyone who fits the criteria can apply, and they note their political party when they do. Then, there’s a random selection of 60 Republicans, 60 Democrats, and 80 non-affiliated applicants, and Democratic and Republican leaders in both legislative chambers can strike up to five applicants each, for a total of 20. From what’s left, the Michigan secretary of state randomly draws names to get the four Republicans, four Democrats, and five non-affiliated people.

The GOP is mad because applicants can say they’re a member of one of the political parties without having the party verify that. So, they allege, Democrats will designate themselves as Republicans when applying to be on the commission so they can alter the composition of the commission. This ignores that these hypothetical disguised Democrats would have to first make it into the random pool of 60 Republicans chosen from any number of Michigan residents who apply, and that’s a near-impossible task.

Democrats swept every statewide race in Michigan in 2018. The GOP knows the only way they can win in the future is to gerrymander districts so that their minority of votes results in a majority of seats. No wonder they’re so scared.

Published with permission of The American Independent.

This Week In Crazy: Ross Douthat’s WASP Sting, Scott Walker’s Whining, And More

This Week In Crazy: Ross Douthat’s WASP Sting, Scott Walker’s Whining, And More

Janitors conjuring the powers of God, the end of democracy as we know it, and Trump lovers make love in the name of hate. No, this isn’t a night on the town with the Proud Boys. It’s This Week in Crazy!

5. Ross Douthat

The New York Times is usually President Trump’s favorite brand of toilet paper, but he may want to actually read Ross Douthat’s column before he wipes. The columnist claims that White Anglo Saxon Protestant (WASP) leaders are more successful than their “more meritocratic, diverse and secular successors.” Oh yeah, Douthat DID that.

Douthat’s buzzing about WASPs was inspired by the passing of the Episcopalian Caucasian superman, George H.W. Bush. Tripping down the memory lane of white privilege, Douthat credited WASPs for the success of blacks and Jews. He even went so far as to suggest that both Barack Obama and Mitt Romney “imitated WASP habits.” Ouch. 

4. Christy Edwards Lawton

Even haters need love. That’s what entrepreneur Christy Edwards Lawton thought when she saw a woman alone in a New York bar. A confused Lawton described that woman as “stunning,” and wondered, why are men respecting such a beautiful woman?

To see why no one was drooling over this beauty, Lawton asked, discovering to her delight that the woman is a Trump supporter. Apparently, that’s a turn-off to hipsters and men parading around the city’s Meat Packing District in glitter.

This experience got Christy Edwards Lawton thinking about the evening when Sarah Sanders was refused service in a Virginia restaurant.  

See, Virginia is for lovers so it all clicked for Lawton. The would-be matchmaker for decided to start a Tinder for Trump supporters. That’s right, now it’s easier for Trump lovers to come together and spread their…anger.

The name of her project, expected to launch next month, is “Righter.”  With a name like that, it couldn’t go wronger.

3. Scott Walker

In typical GOP fashion, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker is handling his midterm election defeat by Tony Evers like a true crybaby. With two months left in office, Walker rushed the appointment of 82 members to civil service jobs. The departing governor supported his decision by stating: “Members of the Legislature were elected not on a term that ended on Election Day —they were elected in a term that ends in January, just like my term ends in January.”

Of course, Walker derided exactly this logic when he defeated Jim Doyle in 2010. In fact, his press release about the subject still lives on his official website. By pushing his agenda through, new laws will limit in-person early-voting to two weeks. Also, Wisconsin Senate members can now find their own lawyers to pursue the state’s withdrawal from Obamacare. That means incoming Attorney General Josh Kaul, a Democrat, will have a hard time keeping Wisconsin in the health care program — depriving hundreds of thousands of families of coverage.

2. Dana Perino

Here’s a novel defense for the president: “It’s not obstruction of justice if we do it right in front of your eyes.” That’s the position now advocated by Dana Perino of Fox News, responding to those who consider the President’s tweet lauding Roger Stone as an obstruction of justice. After all, the “most powerful man in the world” is commenting about a federal investigation on a public forum.

“I mean can you actually obstruct justice if you’re not doing it in secret?” asked Perino innocently.

 

1. Georgian Banov

Now it’s time to call in the police van. President Trump asked “Prophet” Georgian Banov to bless each door in the White House. Like a great servant (of God that it is), religious musician and “healer” Banov worked hard, anointing every opening for over 11 hours.

Originally, Trump reached out to Washington prophet Bill Johnson and asked him, “Hey, you got some of that oil stuff?” That didn’t work out.) But Banov showed up, dressed as a janitor so he wouldn’t distract White House staffers. Evidently the presence of a strange man dressed in janitor clothes throwing oil at doorways left them unfazed.

9 Lies From Day 3 Of The Republican National Convention

9 Lies From Day 3 Of The Republican National Convention

Day 3 of the Republican National Convention was filled with cowboy hats, Donald Trump’s kids, and… lies. Here are just nine of many lies voiced by speakers at the RNC on Wednesday:

 

1.ThatHillary Clinton said, “What difference does it make?” in response to the deaths of four Americans in Benghazi

“It was Hillary Clinton who left Americans in harm’s way in Benghazi and after four Americans fell said, ‘What difference at this point does it make?,’”  – Indiana Gov. and vice presidential candidate Mike Pence.

“Theirs is the party that thinks ISIS is a ‘JV team,’ that responds to the death of Americans at Benghazi by asking, ‘What difference does it make?,'” -Sen. Ted Cruz.

First of all, although Clinton has previously taken responsibility for security failings in Benghazi, the report from the House Benghazi committee could not and did not blame Clinton directly for the attacks, no matter how hard that GOP effort tried.

But the explicit lie is about the specific Clinton quote. During an exchange with Rep. Ron Johnson in a 2013 hearing on Benghazi, when asked about the motive for the attack, Clinton replied, “With all due respect, the fact is we had four dead Americans. Was it because of a protest or was it because of guys out for a walk one night who decided that they’d they go kill some Americans? What difference at this point does it make? It is our job to figure out what happened and do everything we can to prevent it from ever happening again, senator.”

 

2. That Donald Trump always pays his bills

“He always pays his bills promptly,” said casino owner and Trump’s friend, Phill Ruffin. “You won’t hear that. Promptly, no discounts.”

That’s not what one USA Today investigation found — which is probably why Ruffin brought up the topic. What it did find is at least 60 lawsuits from plaintiffs alleging that Trump did not pay them for their services. Waiters, tradesmen, lawyers, and dozens more across the nation have sought out legal action against Trump on this basis.

Additionally, hundreds of liens have been filed by Trump contractors and employees in the last 30 years, ranging from a $75,000 claim by a New York air conditioning and heating company to a $1 million claim from a New York City real estate banking firm.

 

3. That our economy is not growing

“Today America is in a terrible world, record-high debt,” claimed Wisconsin Gov. and former presidential candidate, Scott Walker. “Our economy is not growing.”

That’s a claim Republicans love to make, but it isn’t true. According to the Bureau of Economic Analysis, gross domestic product has grown between 1.5 and 2.5 percent every year since 2012. In addition, private sector jobs have grown and the unemployment rate has declined during the Obama administration.

 

4. That President Obama has issued an unparalleled number of executive orders

“We’ve seen relentless mandates from the executive branch. It seems no aspect of our lives is too small for the present administration to supervise, no provision of the Constitution too large for them to ignore,” said Gov. Mike Pence, alluding to the Republican myth that Obama abuses his executive powers.

According to the National Archives Federal Register, Obama has issued 244 executive orders throughout his two terms. The average number of executive bills issued by Presidents G.W. Bush (291), Clinton (364), G.H.W. Bush (166), Reagan (381), Carter (320) and Ford (169), the number is 276. Obama has actually issued fewer executive orders than his predecessors’ average.

 

5. That Trump invested $2 million of his own money to remodel New York City’s Wollman Park skating rink

Eric Trump packed a few lies into his remarks about his father’s refurnishing of the Central park skating rink. The younger Trump said that his father stepped in because he was “disgusted by government incompetence” after the rink’s remodeling “dragged on for over six years and ballooned to over $13 million — $5 million over an already inflated budget.”

While it is true that the government went over budget for the project, according to the New York Times, the city spent $12 million, not “over $13 million.”

The larger lie in Eric Trump’s statement is that his father invested his own money in the project. At first, Trump did offer to foot the bill on the condition that he could operate the rink as well as the adjacent restaurant in order to get his money back. As Bloomberg noted last year, “In the final deal, the city paid for the renovation, and the profits were all donated to charity.”

 

6. That the U.S. funds terrorism by buying foreign oil

Oil and gas magnate and Trump buddy Harold Hamm claimed that “Every time we can’t drill a well in America, terrorism is being funded.”

Not true. Canada is the biggest supplier of oil to the United States — providing 40 percent of American oil imports, according the U.S. Department of Energy. The other main suppliers are Venezuela, Saudi Arabia, Brazil, Ecuador, Iraq, Mexico, Colombia, Kuwait and Chad — none of which are labeled as state sponsors of terrorism by the State Department.

In addition, Canada, Iraq, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia are members of the U.S.-lead counter-ISIS coalition, and Chad is a U.S. ally in fighting Boko Haram.

 

7. That Clinton wants to eliminate fossil fuel development in America, and that Trump would get rid of foreign oil

According to Harold Hamm, “America has two distinct choices. Our nation should embrace energy independence, not eliminate it. Hillary Clinton would eliminate fossil fuel development in America, she would kill jobs, drive up gasoline prices, and increase oil imports from our enemies. President Trump will release America’s pent-up energy potential, get rid of foreign oil, trash punitive regulations, create millions of jobs and develop our most strategic geopolitical weapon: crude oil.”

It’s unlikely that Trump could “get rid of foreign oil,” during his presidency. The Obama administration has overseen an 88 percent increase in oil production — a record — and the U.S. has been the world’s top oil producer since 2014. Still, of the 19.4 million barrels the U.S. consumes per day, almost 10 million barrels are imported.

Moreover, Clinton has never said she would eliminate fossil fuel development in the country. She has proposed a switch of priorities from coal to natural gas, another fossil fuel.

 

8. That Obamacare hurts small businesses by requiring them to provide health insurance

Small business owner Michelle Van Etten gave a passionate speech about how Obamacare is destroying small business, saying that the country needs a president “who will repeal Obamacare and allow small businesses to be able to provide health care for their employees again.”

This implies that Obamacare requires small businesses to provide their employees with health insurance, which isn’t true. In 2009, before Obamacare passed, 57 percent of small businesses offered coverage. By 2015, 54 percent of small businesses provided coverage, according to the 2015 Kaiser/HRET survey of employer-sponsored health benefits. Obamacare’s insurance requirements only apply to businesses with 50 or more full time employees.

 

9. That our military is decaying

“We’ve allowed our military to decay, and we project weakness on the international stage.”- Fl. Gov. Rick Scott.

This is one of the most repeated Republican myths. In reality, the U.S. continues to have the most powerful military in the history of humanity. In 2015, we spent close to $600 billion on armed forces, more than the next seven nations who spent the most combined. China’s defense budget, the second largest in the world, is less than one-third of the Pentagon’s.

 

Photo: Former Republican U.S. presidential candidate Senator Ted Cruz gives a thumbs up after speaking during the third night of the Republican National Convention in Cleveland, Ohio, U.S. July 20, 2016.     REUTERS/Aaron P. Bernstein

A Bitter Political Summer In Wisconsin

A Bitter Political Summer In Wisconsin

MADISON, Wisc. — The fields of corn growing across the state looked knee-high by the Fourth of July, as they say here, but politics is parched in the heartland as Wisconsin prepares for another furious showdown in this fall election harvest. Call it a civil war, that’s what it feels like.

I knew this place as a girl. I love Wisconsin, but don’t know it anymore.

The blue-leaning state is already a major battleground in play in 2016, with presumptive presidential nominees Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump vying for very different voter bases. Clinton will court the two cities, Madison and Milwaukee, while Trump may concentrate on the rest of the state, branding and sneering at the city folk as elites and eggheads. He is the champion of making people hate each other, after all. And she is head girl of the elite.

Trump did not do well here in the primary, however, and the chair of the University of Wisconsin political science department, David Canon, expects Clinton to do “marginally better against Trump than the national result.”

South of the state capital, two native sons from the small, depressed town of Janesville, Republican House Speaker Paul Ryan and Democrat Russ Feingold, perfectly illustrate how far apart the two parties are.

Ryan, every inch the company man whose conscience cowers at Trump, can’t keep a neat House of Representatives. He has an unruly bunch of Republicans in the majority, and Democrats are beginning to show spirit, as they did staging a House sit-in on gun violence, which made Ryan fighting mad.

As senator, Feingold was the only one to vote against the Patriot Act. Bully for him. He’s running for the seat he lost in the tea party tempest six years ago.

For many — those who see Wisconsin as an enlightened state that produced Thornton Wilder, the playwright of the classic “Our Town,” dissenters who remember the campus anti-Vietnam War movement started on the shores of Lake Mendota and intellectuals who dwell on tree-shaded streets named after universities — there is a profound gulf with the rest of the largely rural small-town fabric of the state. Green Bay, for example, could not be more different than liberal, urbane Madison and the diverse, sturdy patchwork of Milwaukee.

Wisconsin can never be taken for granted, but current waters seem especially turbulent. In her insightful new book, “The Politics of Resentment,” Katherine J. Cramer, a professor at the University of Wisconsin, interviews working-class people from the rural reaches of Wisconsin. She struck up conversations with some people at gas stations. She explains clearly how forgotten and ignored they generally feel, caught in an economic cauldron with hourly wage work or health care costs that make life harder to get by since the Great Recession hit eight years ago.

The economic downturn that President Obama inherited from the “war president” George W. Bush has left fingerprints on so many houses and families. As Cramer shows, people are still struggling and they resent others with more privilege and access to new rules in an ethereal economy. The Obama “recovery” has Wisconsinites asking, “what recovery?” When Trump speaks of free trade and lost jobs, he strikes a chord.

Like the Mississippi River that runs along its border, Wisconsin captures the cross-currents of the national stage better than anywhere. With hard-charging right-wing Gov. Scott Walker set to speak at the Republican National Convention, the state’s civil war will be on display. Walker is hostile to a pride and joy, the University of Wisconsin, bleeding under budget cuts, and to public employee unions.

The Progressive Party was founded here, about 100 years ago, to stand for fairness and squareness in the Midwestern tradition, especially toward the giant monopolies like Standard Oil. Collective bargaining was practically invented here. Senator John F. Kennedy served on a committee that chose Robert La Follette, a Progressive, as one of the greatest in Senate history.

But never forget that Communist witch-hunter Joseph McCarthy, the senator who first exploited the anti-intellectual, paranoid and nativist steaks in American politics, also started here.

A remnant of the real Civil War hangs around Madison’s heart. It’s a comfort that famed Camp Randall, the UW football stadium, began as a place on the right side of the Civil War. Here Confederate war prisoners learned the Union was not for quitting.

Somehow that makes things better.

Photo: Unions workers (front) and various supporters hold up signs before a U.S. Democratic presidential candidates debate in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States February 11, 2016. REUTERS/Darren Hauck