Friday Roundup
On Wednesday, Mark Robinson (Trump-NC), current Lt. Governor of North Carolina and gubernatorial candidate, was delighted to learn that Phil Berger (R-NC), President of the NC Senate and father of the Chief Justice of the NC Supreme Court – in case you don’t think the fix is in – has endorsed Robinson for Governor. This is a particular accomplishment, in that Berger is an opponent of public voting in general for reasons discussed below.
“This vindicates everything I’ve said,” Robinson exclaimed. “All my attacks on queers and drag queens and trans people and profound belief that men should be in charge of women’s bodies and my flip-flop on the Jews – everything. I can hardly wait to start weeding the immigrants and atheists out of the government.” When asked if he felt that was a responsible approach to representing all the people of the Old North State, he replied “They’ll do what they’re told, if they know what’s good for them.” Robinson, a Rush Limbaugh convert and former furniture builder, eagerly points out that DJT has not yet denied knowing him.
Speaking of whom, Berger has declined to endorse anyone in the Presidential race, on the theory that Trump will win no matter what Berger says, and why waste a perfectly good endorsement when you can hedge your bet? Berger is clearly looking down the road to the time when his constituents are in full scale revolt and he’ll be able to say with a straight face, “Hey, don’t look at me – I didn’t endorse the guy.” This is how you do politics.
In other voting-related news, on Monday the 8th Circuit Court, taking their cue from Supreme Court Justices Gorsuch and Thomas, decided that the Voting Rights Act, which protects the right of individuals to vote, cannot be raised in lawsuits brought by individuals attempting to protect their rights. The Federal Court’s read on the VRA text is that only the Department of Justice is authorized to bring such suits. Apparently it has come to their attention that private organizations such as the NAAPC and ACLU actually succeed, periodically, in enforcing the Act, which is anathema to many right-thinking (or leaning) politicians who believe that voting leads to democracy, contrary to their religious, nationalistic, and financial interests (see above).
This decision, albeit contradicted by a long history of allowing such groups to bring these actions and near-unanimous agreement that the position taken by the 8th Circuit is “stupid” – or, as the lawyers say, “stare decisis”[1] – will almost certainly wind up before the same Supreme Court Justices who have previously telegraphed their bias. This is how you do law.
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, in no particular order: Henry Kissinger died yesterday. We are not saddened by the loss. I’m sure Dick Nixon will greet him in Hell with open arms, and they can both sit around wistfully reminiscing about the time when the Nixon Administration still held title to “Worse Presidency Since Jackson.” George Santos was expelled from Congress this morning, but has landed on his feet as the new host of the Tonight Show. And, finally, we ARE saddened by the loss of Sandra Day O’Conner, first woman appointed to the Supreme Court. You may take heart that a recent successor is very much like her in that they both have three names.
[1] “Stare decisis” is Latin for making legal decisions based on precedent. A majority on the modern Supreme Court considers Latin in all its forms to be a dead language.
Vote for Jeff Jackson for NC Attorney General and for heavens sake, vote BLUE for all the other Democrats on the ballot. Make this current legislature eat their horrible decisions they’ve made on its gerrymandered “behalf”.