Texas school districts have endured rapid population growth and deep budget cuts; they are not adequately funded. Imagine that.
(Reuters) - Texas’ school finance system violates the state constitution, a state district judge ruled on Monday… [T]he state has not adequately funded public education or resolved inequities among districts.
Now if only something could be done about separating church from state.
Now Kopplin, a history major who is taking a full course load this semester, is preparing to fight state Sen. Dan Patrick’s effort to allow school vouchers in Texas. Patrick, R-Houston, is a strong supporter of school vouchers, which would allow tax money to flow to private and religious schools.
Well now some of that confusion will hopefully be eliminated in time for the election, and voters will know in plenty of time that they can vote early, as has been the case for years.
Remember, Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted once said this:
“The later you make a decision, the more likely it is to cause a problem … Time is of the essence and confusion is dangerous.”
You’d think election officials would be in favor of more Americans voting, not reducing the numbers. But if you’re a Republican, specifically Husted, you know early voting affects Democratic voters favorably; in their minds, democracy is trumped by politics and winning at all costs, so the fewer early voters, the better.
(Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday denied Ohio’s request to curtail early voting in the state leading up to the November 6 presidential election.
Ohio, critical to the election hopes of Democratic President Barack Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney, began early in-person voting earlier this month but planned to cut it off on November 2, the Friday before the election, except for members of the military.
Note to other states restricting voters’ rights (to quote Ann Romney): “Stop it!”
Rachel Maddow provides the back story in the above video. The other shoe is dropping, as expected, and the Ohio (Republican) secretary of state Jon Husted has now said he will appeal a ruling by a federal court that overturned previous restrictions on early voting.
And he took his sweet time, which of course makes it much more difficult and confusing to Ohio voters.
Per the ruling, Ohioans are able cast ballots in the three days before election day, but Husted kept everyone waiting and wondering whether or not he would appeal that decision. He was in no rush.
Husted once said this:
“The later you make a decision, the more likely it is to cause a problem … Time is of the essence and confusion is dangerous.”
The pressure is now on, and Husted knows it. He’s making sure any final decisions will come in as late in the game as possible, causing further chaos resulting in fewer Democratic-leaning (black) Ohio residents having access to early voting.
After all, longer lines that deter people who are unable to spend endless hours waiting to vote benefit him and his GOP buddies.
(CNN) – Jon Husted said he will ask the U.S. Supreme Court to consider the case. On Friday, a federal appeals court sided with the Obama campaign in its protest against a ban on voting in the final weekend–Saturday, Sunday, and Monday–before Election Day.
In a statement Tuesday, Husted called Friday’s ruling an “unprecedented intrusion by the federal courts into how states run elections.”
“Because of its impact on all 50 states as to who and how elections will be run in America we are asking the Supreme Court to step in and allow Ohioans to run Ohio elections,” the statement read. [...]
The circuit court said the injunction does not, however, require local election offices to be open for early voting during the weekend before the election, but said the injunction “return[s] discretion to local boards of elections to allow all Ohio voters to vote” that Saturday, Sunday, and Monday.
Of course, that decision still leaves it up to boards that could very well decide against early voting. And now our lovely SCOTUS is being asked to make a final decision.
No rush, of course. Take your time.
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It is projected that more than 12 million Latinos could go out and vote in this year’s election. That would be an increase of 25% from 2008! What’s even more important is that Latino voters could decide key swing states like Colorado, Nevada and Florida.
Unfortunately 23 states across the country have either passed or introduced legislation that would make voting more difficult not just for Latinos, but other minority groups, as well as young voters and seniors. That is why empowering the Latino community to vote is imperative this election. Now we need YOUR help to do more and mobilize record numbers of Latino voters!
In 2011, Florida made some important changes to its voting laws. Every Floridian needs to understand these changes particularly African Americans, Latinos, young voters, and women. These changes address how civic groups register people to vote, who is eligible to vote and when people can vote.
Share this video to ensure your community knows how to register to vote and knows what to bring to the voting booth!
You can read a good recap of the voter suppression problem here. Remember: Voter fraud is rarer than getting struck by lightning. And there’s nothing wrong with having a picture I.D…. as long as anyone can get one at no cost, as long as they are easily accessible, and as long as there is no hardship physically or financially, whatsoever, involved in acquiring one, including having to produce documents that may not have ever been available to many citizens.
Opponents are expected to file an appeal within a day or two to the state Supreme Court as the Nov. 6 election looms. [...]
Simpson, a Republican, didn’t rule on the full merits of the case, only whether to grant a preliminary injunction stopping it from taking effect. [...]
At the state Supreme Court, votes by four justices would be needed to overturn Simpson’s ruling. The high court is currently split between three Republicans and three Democrats following the recent suspension of Justice Joan Orie Melvin, a Republican who is fighting criminal corruption charges.
The original Republican rationale for the law — to prevent election fraud — played little role in the court case. Government lawyers acknowledged that they are “not aware of any incidents of in person voter fraud.” Instead, they insisted that lawmakers properly exercised their latitude to make election-related laws. [...]
[S]ome voters won’t know about the law until they get to the polls, and long waits will result while untrained election workers struggle to carry out a complicated and unnecessary law… Obama’s Department of Justice is looking at whether the new law complies with federal laws and has asked the state’s top election official and a chief supporter of the law for a long list of information about it.
Remember this segment from the Rachel Maddow Show? Mississippi is trying to be the first state to completely ban abortion. That is their aim and they said it right out loud. Watch:
It’s Monday, and this weekend there was a reprieve from one of those damned activist librul judges! L.A. Times:
JACKSON, Miss. — A federal judge Sunday temporarily blocked enforcement of a Mississippi law that could shut down the only abortion clinic in the state.
U.S. District Judge Daniel P. Jordan in Jackson issued a temporary restraining order the day the new law took effect and set a July 11 hearing to determine whether to block it for a longer time.
“Though the debate over abortion continues, there exists legal precedent the court must follow,” Jordan wrote. [...] “Plaintiffs have offered evidence — including quotes from significant legislative and executive officers — that the act’s purpose is to eliminate abortions in Mississippi. They likewise submitted evidence that no safety or health concerns motivated its passage. This evidence has not yet been rebutted.“
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — A judge on Wednesday rejected a request by federal authorities to block Florida’s contentious move to remove potentially ineligible voters from its rolls. [...]
U.S. District Judge Robert Hinkle ruled there was nothing in federal voting laws that prevent the state from identifying ineligible voters even if it is close to the upcoming Aug. 14 election. [...]
“People need to know we are running an honest election,” said Hinkle, who was appointed by former President Bill Clinton.
A U.S. Department of Justice official said that the department would review the written decision when it was issued and declined to say whether federal authorities planned to appeal the ruling.
Lt. Col Barry Wingard is the lawyer for Gitmo detainee Fayiz Al-Kandari. For their ongoing story + related topics, please click on the link below: Kuwaiti Citizen Detained at Guantanamo since 2002
You can read the complete story here or on Wikipedia.
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