Thank you for featuring VoteRiders' work on understanding the reality of unnecessary voter ID laws which are a subterfuge for vote suppression.
www.voteriders.org VoteRiders needs funding to expand its outreach to help individuals get their necessary IDs in new states attacking voting rights such as Idaho which last month passed a law disallowing student photo ID from accredited schools but allowing NRA cards to be used as voter ID at the ballot box.
Idaho's current senators are Republicans Mike Crapo and Jim Risch. They voted against the Freedom to Vote: John R Lewis Voting Rights Act in 2022 by supporting the unconstitutional filibuster thus not allowing the bill to get to the floor of the Senate. They need naming and shaming for attacking our fundamental right to vote by not passing federal legislation so that our zipcodes won't determine whether we can vote.
We need Senators and Congressional Representatives who work on behalf of WE the PEOPLE!
Lawrence O'Donnell gave an excellent analysis of Dominion/Fox settlement that convinced me the settlement was the best outcome for this case. If Dominion won the jury trial they still wouldn't get any apology from FOX since in this kind of civil suit money is the only thing awarded. And, unlike the settlement FOX could appeal for years making it difficult for Dominion to ever see the money that the settlement now binds FOX to pay. https://www.msnbc.com/the-last-word/watch/lawrence-rupert-murdoch-s-stupidity-gave-dominion-a-huge-win-170739781892
Voter ID - Voter ID is not only against the poor, young, elderly and minority,
it is particularly discriminatory against WOMEN.
Women are more likely to change their name - BOTH from marriage AND divorce.
These ID laws "often" throw out ballots that do not precisely match the name at initial registration.
There are also "significant" COSTS to obtaining an ID.
Getting a copy of a birth certificate - cha-ching!
Certified copy - more cha-ching!
Getting a driver's license - notoriously long waits, taking time away from work.
DMV offices limited in number and location - access and transportation limitations.
NOTE: If a REAL LIVE PERSON wants to vote, there should be a path for allowing them to exercise their right to decide who will represent them.
Democratic elections in other countries have other examples of establishing the integrity of the voting process.
For example, in some countries a person dips their finger in ink to prevent voting more than once.
In MANY countries, illiteracy is a major problem.
Candidates on the ballot may be represented by an icon in addition to and/or instead of a printed name.
In the 1960s, the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party (a multiracial coalition) challenged the Democratic Party to be recognized and seated at the National Democratic Convention.
In Alabama, new voters were registered and urged to vote for the (Black) Panther on the ballot, the Lowndes County Freedom Organization.
Apr 20, 2023·edited Apr 20, 2023Liked by Robert B. Hubbell
Another law nerd point: weren't a fairly large part of the damages awarded against Alex Jones based not on defamation but on the tort of outrage? As I recall, in at least some of the suits where Jones was defaulted for discovery and court order violations plaintiffs withdrew their defamation claims. I have neither recollection nor energy to go through the various suits and tot up which ones were an award for defamation. So aren't the "judgement" comparisons kind of apples and oranges? If we are talking just judgements for whatever causes of action, are the Alex Jones judgments still the largest or just the largest for defamation? It is a nitpicking question, sorry.
But I agree that the Dominion suit was a huge win for the country. Their discovery efforts showed without doubt the hypocrisy of Fox we had all suspected. Should we expect a private litigant to take to all the risks and expense of providing for our relish in watching Fox Folks squirm on the stand? It is OF COURSE about money--that's what Dominion was suing for. They are not the ACLU, the DOJ, or a caped crusader.
I’m wondering what you all think of the Senator Feinstein situation.
I have the utmost respect for her accomplishments, and I surely don’t believe kicking someone when they’re down. But her oath to the Constitution should be the priority over how she hoped her retirement would play out. Also, I have never worked for an institution where critical work just halted for months during an employee’s absence. If that’s what the Senate rules dictate, then shame on the Senate for permitting that to be the case.
April 19th is Patriots Day in Massachusetts with the commemoration and reenactment of the first battle of the American Revolution at the Old North Bridge in Concord, Massachusetts. I lived for many years in Sudbury, MA, next to Concord and enjoyed being awakened by the Sudbury Minutemen shooting off their muskets at 6 a.m. starting their march from the center of Sudbury to Minuteman Park in Concord for the reenactment. We would quickly dress and walk to the corner just in time to see the fife and drums and the Sudbury Minuteman march by. Just down Pantry Rd a bit, a British citizen who lived there would always fly his Union Jack. My fondest patriotic feelings were of hearing the Concord Band play the Star Spangled Banner on their July Fourth Concert at Minuteman Park as an airliner left a jet trail in the clear skies above overlooking the Old North Bridge where the first shot heard round the world was fired. Happy Patriots Day!
Re the abortion pill ruing. Here’s a thought: We shop for a sympathetic district judge who is covered by a sympathetic Circuit Court. We bring suit on behalf of a group of children who are traumatized by gun violence and afraid to go to school and ER docs who are traumatized by having to treat assault weapon wounds. We ask for a country wide ban on the sale of assault weapons. Then it goes to the Supreme Court. Sigh…. Well, we can dream…
Is it possible to sue about the voter ID laws? For example, there is a cost to a drivers’ license. So now red states who insist on using this as an ID to vote are basically establishing a poll tax to keep the poor out of the polls. They know very well who has various forms of ID and who doesn’t, and they continue to gerrymander as they wish. That is very racial, by the way. Could that sort of case be brought before a court that doesn’t have a Trump judge???? Why doesn’t the government start taking photo ID’s for benefits cards, and such? Perhaps we should just vote for a national ID card that is issued at birth or prior to voting age? Perhaps the Dems could require that voters must show that they do not own a gun in order to vote……..nothing but the abuse of power ever gets the attention of this disgraceful Party.
With the extension of the “stay” regarding the abortion drug by Justice Alito, you can be sure that in his good hands (cough) he will wait to late Friday to support the original judges order. Logic, reason and adherence to the law does not count anymore. The Supreme Court has become the MAGA of Institutions. So no one be surprised that the Court will double down.
I certainly hope this two day extension by Justice Alito is good news and someone on the Court is knocking some sense and real jurisprudence into the ruling. My biggest hope is that they are realizing the chaos their "we're washing our hands of responsibility for women's rights" Dobbs decision and announcing revisiting Dobbs to reestablish freedom for women in the United States. After all, the 14th amendment says no forced labor!
Sorry to hear about the passing of Lee Fadem, who I knew only through your newsletter. He was what the loudmouth “super-patriots” could never be: the real thing.
To switch topics, I’m going to leave my refrain that a default would be unconstitutional, to suggest that the answer to Kevin McCarthy and his gang should be simple and unyielding: We do not negotiate with terrorists.
MAGA knows that voter suppression works. They support democracy but only if white Christian nationalists win. Hitler would have been proud of Trumpsky and MAGA. When Trumpsky says "America First," remember, "America First" was/is the motto of the KKK and the American Nazi sympathizers in 1935-1945.
Thank you for featuring VoteRiders' work on understanding the reality of unnecessary voter ID laws which are a subterfuge for vote suppression.
www.voteriders.org VoteRiders needs funding to expand its outreach to help individuals get their necessary IDs in new states attacking voting rights such as Idaho which last month passed a law disallowing student photo ID from accredited schools but allowing NRA cards to be used as voter ID at the ballot box.
Idaho's current senators are Republicans Mike Crapo and Jim Risch. They voted against the Freedom to Vote: John R Lewis Voting Rights Act in 2022 by supporting the unconstitutional filibuster thus not allowing the bill to get to the floor of the Senate. They need naming and shaming for attacking our fundamental right to vote by not passing federal legislation so that our zipcodes won't determine whether we can vote.
We need Senators and Congressional Representatives who work on behalf of WE the PEOPLE!
Lawrence O'Donnell gave an excellent analysis of Dominion/Fox settlement that convinced me the settlement was the best outcome for this case. If Dominion won the jury trial they still wouldn't get any apology from FOX since in this kind of civil suit money is the only thing awarded. And, unlike the settlement FOX could appeal for years making it difficult for Dominion to ever see the money that the settlement now binds FOX to pay. https://www.msnbc.com/the-last-word/watch/lawrence-rupert-murdoch-s-stupidity-gave-dominion-a-huge-win-170739781892
Voter ID - Voter ID is not only against the poor, young, elderly and minority,
it is particularly discriminatory against WOMEN.
Women are more likely to change their name - BOTH from marriage AND divorce.
These ID laws "often" throw out ballots that do not precisely match the name at initial registration.
There are also "significant" COSTS to obtaining an ID.
Getting a copy of a birth certificate - cha-ching!
Certified copy - more cha-ching!
Getting a driver's license - notoriously long waits, taking time away from work.
DMV offices limited in number and location - access and transportation limitations.
NOTE: If a REAL LIVE PERSON wants to vote, there should be a path for allowing them to exercise their right to decide who will represent them.
Democratic elections in other countries have other examples of establishing the integrity of the voting process.
For example, in some countries a person dips their finger in ink to prevent voting more than once.
In MANY countries, illiteracy is a major problem.
Candidates on the ballot may be represented by an icon in addition to and/or instead of a printed name.
In the 1960s, the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party (a multiracial coalition) challenged the Democratic Party to be recognized and seated at the National Democratic Convention.
In Alabama, new voters were registered and urged to vote for the (Black) Panther on the ballot, the Lowndes County Freedom Organization.
My condolences to the family of Lee. We will proceed with fighting for democracy in his memory, right?
Another law nerd point: weren't a fairly large part of the damages awarded against Alex Jones based not on defamation but on the tort of outrage? As I recall, in at least some of the suits where Jones was defaulted for discovery and court order violations plaintiffs withdrew their defamation claims. I have neither recollection nor energy to go through the various suits and tot up which ones were an award for defamation. So aren't the "judgement" comparisons kind of apples and oranges? If we are talking just judgements for whatever causes of action, are the Alex Jones judgments still the largest or just the largest for defamation? It is a nitpicking question, sorry.
But I agree that the Dominion suit was a huge win for the country. Their discovery efforts showed without doubt the hypocrisy of Fox we had all suspected. Should we expect a private litigant to take to all the risks and expense of providing for our relish in watching Fox Folks squirm on the stand? It is OF COURSE about money--that's what Dominion was suing for. They are not the ACLU, the DOJ, or a caped crusader.
Lee Fadem - true American. Thank you for sharing his spoken life experience with us, Robert.
I’m wondering what you all think of the Senator Feinstein situation.
I have the utmost respect for her accomplishments, and I surely don’t believe kicking someone when they’re down. But her oath to the Constitution should be the priority over how she hoped her retirement would play out. Also, I have never worked for an institution where critical work just halted for months during an employee’s absence. If that’s what the Senate rules dictate, then shame on the Senate for permitting that to be the case.
April 19th is Patriots Day in Massachusetts with the commemoration and reenactment of the first battle of the American Revolution at the Old North Bridge in Concord, Massachusetts. I lived for many years in Sudbury, MA, next to Concord and enjoyed being awakened by the Sudbury Minutemen shooting off their muskets at 6 a.m. starting their march from the center of Sudbury to Minuteman Park in Concord for the reenactment. We would quickly dress and walk to the corner just in time to see the fife and drums and the Sudbury Minuteman march by. Just down Pantry Rd a bit, a British citizen who lived there would always fly his Union Jack. My fondest patriotic feelings were of hearing the Concord Band play the Star Spangled Banner on their July Fourth Concert at Minuteman Park as an airliner left a jet trail in the clear skies above overlooking the Old North Bridge where the first shot heard round the world was fired. Happy Patriots Day!
Lee Fadem, a true American to be admired. Thank you for highlighting his efforts for democracy.
Re the abortion pill ruing. Here’s a thought: We shop for a sympathetic district judge who is covered by a sympathetic Circuit Court. We bring suit on behalf of a group of children who are traumatized by gun violence and afraid to go to school and ER docs who are traumatized by having to treat assault weapon wounds. We ask for a country wide ban on the sale of assault weapons. Then it goes to the Supreme Court. Sigh…. Well, we can dream…
Is it possible to sue about the voter ID laws? For example, there is a cost to a drivers’ license. So now red states who insist on using this as an ID to vote are basically establishing a poll tax to keep the poor out of the polls. They know very well who has various forms of ID and who doesn’t, and they continue to gerrymander as they wish. That is very racial, by the way. Could that sort of case be brought before a court that doesn’t have a Trump judge???? Why doesn’t the government start taking photo ID’s for benefits cards, and such? Perhaps we should just vote for a national ID card that is issued at birth or prior to voting age? Perhaps the Dems could require that voters must show that they do not own a gun in order to vote……..nothing but the abuse of power ever gets the attention of this disgraceful Party.
With the extension of the “stay” regarding the abortion drug by Justice Alito, you can be sure that in his good hands (cough) he will wait to late Friday to support the original judges order. Logic, reason and adherence to the law does not count anymore. The Supreme Court has become the MAGA of Institutions. So no one be surprised that the Court will double down.
Dominion won for the company and lost for the rest of us. Tune in to Fox, same ole Schitt, they just won’t mention Dominion.
I salute the McCurtain Gazette-News. We know it happens, they proved it.
I certainly hope this two day extension by Justice Alito is good news and someone on the Court is knocking some sense and real jurisprudence into the ruling. My biggest hope is that they are realizing the chaos their "we're washing our hands of responsibility for women's rights" Dobbs decision and announcing revisiting Dobbs to reestablish freedom for women in the United States. After all, the 14th amendment says no forced labor!
Sorry to hear about the passing of Lee Fadem, who I knew only through your newsletter. He was what the loudmouth “super-patriots” could never be: the real thing.
To switch topics, I’m going to leave my refrain that a default would be unconstitutional, to suggest that the answer to Kevin McCarthy and his gang should be simple and unyielding: We do not negotiate with terrorists.
MAGA knows that voter suppression works. They support democracy but only if white Christian nationalists win. Hitler would have been proud of Trumpsky and MAGA. When Trumpsky says "America First," remember, "America First" was/is the motto of the KKK and the American Nazi sympathizers in 1935-1945.