Day: February 7, 2024

Barred From Re-Election

We have states attempting to bar Trump from the November ballot and then there is the state of Oregon….in an attempt to bar dissenters from re-election….

The Oregon Supreme Court said Thursday that 10 Republican state senators who staged a record-long walkout last year to stall bills on abortion, transgender health care, and gun rights cannot run for reelection. The decision upholds the secretary of state’s decision to disqualify the senators from the ballot under a voter-approved measure aimed at stopping such boycotts. Measure 113, passed by voters in 2022, amended the state constitution to bar lawmakers from reelection if they have more than 10 unexcused absences, the AP reports.

Last year’s boycott lasted six weeks—the longest in state history—and paralyzed the legislative session, stalling hundreds of bills. Five of the 10 GOP senators who racked up more than 10 absences sued over the secretary of state’s decision. “We obviously disagree with the Supreme Court’s ruling,” said one of them, Senate Minority Leader Tim Knopp. “But more importantly, we are deeply disturbed by the chilling impact this decision will have to crush dissent.” Democratic Senate President Rob Wagner welcomed the decision. “Today’s ruling by the Oregon Supreme Court means that legislators and the public now know how Measure 113 will be applied, and that is good for our state,” he said in a statement.

Political advocacy groups that backed Measure 113 had similar reactions, per the AP. “Walkouts allow a relatively small number of lawmakers to nullify the will of the majority, and that is to the detriment of our democracy,” said Alejandro Queral of the Oregon Center for Public Policy. All parties in the suit had sought clarity on when the ineligibility takes effect before the March filing deadline for candidates who want to run in this year’s election. Oregon voters approved the measure by a wide margin following Republican walkouts in the legislature in 2019, 2020 and 2021.

While I enjoy any time a GOPer gets in hot water I just do not see this as an answer…..but if the people decided then I guess we must go along with their decision, after all it is their state and their elections.

Any thoughts?

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergpo scribo”

Just How F**ked Up Can It Get?

The American system of early voting, the primaries and/or caucuses, is a tangled mess of stupidity….and Nevada has become the dumbest system of them all.

The state will have a GOP primary and a caucus….that’s right both….

The next round of voting in the 2024 primaries takes place in Nevada this week. But it’s a strange stew of primaries and caucuses, even if the big-picture outcome is not in doubt:

  • Meaningless primary: The state is holding a GOP primary Tuesday, but it will not count for the nomination in terms of delegates, reports the AP. Nikki Haley is running, but Donald Trump is not on the ballot.
  • Meaningful caucus: The state also is holding Republican caucuses on Thursday, and those will count. Trump is the only major candidate participating, and he is therefore expected to receive all 26 of the state’s GOP delegates.
  • The loophole at play: If the above two things sound confusing, the Washington Post explains: A new state law requires a primary when more than one candidate is running, but there’s a loophole: “There has to be a primary, but the law doesn’t say how the party allocates their delegates,” UNLV professor Rebeca Gill tells the Post. The state GOP, under heavy lobbying by the Trump campaign, exploited the loophole to stage the caucuses as well. And yes, many voters are bewildered, as NPR reports.
  • Democrats: The state also has a Democratic primary on Tuesday, and President Biden is expected to win easily. Marianne Williamson is on the ballot, but Rep. Dean Phillips of Minnesota is not.
  • Trump’s strategy: He is trying to accrue the necessary 1,215 delegates to clinch the nomination as early as possible, and he is on track to do so in March by the AP’s math.

This whole stupidity of who votes first and who uses primaries or caucus is a total waste of time.

Here’s a brilliant idea…..get rid of all this trash and have a national primary day when everyone votes for their candidate and the winners become the nominees.

It is really that simple.

The force stopping such a move is monetary….with this system there would be no need for months upon months of trashing ads and the media would make no money so as usual corporate will win that battle.

Voting process should be simple and readily available….but that does not play well in some political circles.

I will be watching this clusterf*ck closely.

And now the results of the Nevada primary…..

The “none of these candidates” option has won in Nevada’s symbolic Republican presidential primary contest, an embarrassing result for Nikki Haley, who was the only major candidate on the ballot, the AP reports. The former UN ambassador opted to compete in the state-run primary election Tuesday instead of the party’s presidential caucuses, the only contest in the state that awards delegates toward the nomination. Former President Donald Trump is the only major candidate competing in the caucuses on Thursday and will likely sweep the state’s Republican delegates as a result. Utilizing a quirk of Nevada election law, more voters on Tuesday marked their primary ballots for “none of these candidates” than cast their votes for Haley.

There is a good possibility the Haley is not as popular as the media would have us believe…..plus I think she has shot her wad and will soon be only a vague memory.

Just a thought.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”