Thursday, October 6: Independent State Legislatures
Much like black holes: What are they and why are they dangerous?
One of the major cases being heard by the supremes this term is Moore v. Harper: wherein the bathrobed-justices will decide whether the North Carolina supreme court has the power to strike down an illegally gerrymandered congressional map for violating the state’s Constitution. In short, state legislators are arguing that they should have absolute power in determining how federal elections are run without court interference. Their argument hinges on an interpretation of the US constitution known as the “independent legislature theory”, which would make the state courts and constitution powerless in matters relating to federal elections.
You might be thinking, “why is this so important?” and if so I commend your ability to ignore headline news for the past 19 months. Donald and his loyal band of Trumpies have been hell-bent on “fixing” elections for years, the most egregious being last year’s presidential election of course. The independent legislature theory would allow the very state courts that Trump directly interfered with to falsely verify results and determine elections. This would be devastating to the “Your vote counts” crowd, who would finally have to contend with the fact that no vote matters in a corrupt system.
But if you really sit and think about it, hasn’t our system always been corrupt? Not only from a historical perspective (duh), but even in living memory. All of you readers were alive when Citizens United became law, allowing corporations and other outside groups to spend unlimited money on elections. We’ve all sat up on election night, watching television screens turn states on a map either red or blue, trusting the authenticity of results being reported. But if Moore v. Harper goes the wrong way, those exciting and stressful nights may be a thing of the past.
Moral of the story: Get rid of the fossil that is the electoral college, overturn the Citizens United decision, promote ranked-choice voting, and let people decide if this country should sink or swim. Realistically, none of these things will happen, but pessimistically, the opposite of these things will happen.
Side Items
Alabama’s prison worker’s strike continues into its eighth day as those incarcerated protest horrible conditions. “This is a humanitarian crisis,” said one Alabama inmate under condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation. “They’re not providing us with any adequate medical treatment [or] mental health treatment. We’re not getting proper diets, we’re not getting any kind of rehabilitation in these places.” The focus in this country is clearly on punishment, not any sort of rehabilitation
American exports in Thailand: Thirty-four people were killed, including 22 children, in a mass shooting at a preschool in a north-eastern province of Thailand. The attacker was a former policeman who killed his wife and child before shooting himself dead. We all know that in America, this tragedy is just another Wednesday, something to be mourned for a few days and forgotten immediately afterward. Now lets see how a reasonable country responds to mass shootings
Reminder: “All serial killer stories are stories about shatteringly incompetent police departments”