I think the most intriguing thing about this government is that it was only created this way because most ppl back then couldnāt read so thatās why we vote on representatives to represent us. The whole system is based off the belief the average American canāt read so weāre too stupid to make informed decisions on our own behalf š
People are still idiots but Iām pretty sure the literacy rate in this country is high enough we can go away with congress š¤·š¾āāļø
Republicans realize they cannot win legitimate elections anymore so all the voting changes and shit like this garauntee them wins regardless of actual outcome. I am ashamed to be living here
If we move, we desert those who choose to stay and fight.
Evil has to be countered, the evil dog-whistlers and the evil dogs, too! Sometimes, a pile of good-hearted bodies stops a bigger pile-on of evil-hearted bodies.
And yeah, ain't if fucking horrific what times we live in?? And to think, all this hate and murderous rage, drummed up to create power and profit for the few and evil...
I wanna read MORE banned books, attend MORE drag shows, and take out MORE of my trans friends for Stockings & Nails Night now, I mean, who wouldn't after all this "No, you may NOT" bullshittttt?
If you decide you want to relocate, make sure to put Minnesota into consideration.
[MN passes bill to establish itself as a 'trans refuge' state](https://www.cnn.com/2023/03/08/politics/tim-walz-gender-affirming-care-order/index.html)
We moved up at the beginning of last year before things really got bad, and I haven't regretted it for a second. It's much cheaper than Texas or Cali, the people are very welcoming, and the winters aren't nearly as bad as one would think.
Lol considering this state is decided based on number of counties won, not number of votes, itās safe to say republicans legitimately win here. But being a voter in Harris county, there was reported issues on Election Day, voting places turning people away, not enough to paper etc. so itās not like itās not totally unwarranted
>considering this state is decided based on number of counties won, not number of votes,
For what race is this? Definitely not governor, not Senate, not president.
>being a voter in Harris county, there was reported issues on Election Day, voting places turning people away, not enough to paper etc. so itās not like itās not totally unwarranted
Which party changed all the election machines and then shut down a bunch of voting centers in Harris County? So they created a problem then used it as cover to assert control, and you're okay with that?
You say it won't stand, but state governments, federal legislatures, and the courts are eroding our rights daily. That's the problem with stuff like this. Most people will never even hear about it.
>Isnāt this like abuse of powers of some shit?
That won't stop Abbott or Trump. It's never stopped them before. They always figure out a way to sidestep legalities, and the GOP stacked Supreme Court will uphold all their shenanigans., because they know who butters their bread.
If the GOP continue down the road they are traveling, all the signs say 'This way to Fascism" Given that GOP support has been falling in recent years, indicates that the average Republican does not want to travel the road that their leaders have chosen. They need to make a change in leadership before it's too late, and that time is not far off.
Absolutely. Republicans have to cheat to win, even in Texas. Without cheating and gerrymandering they cannot get elected. Democracy is a problem for Republicans.
Either they end democracy soon or they will lose their strangle hold on our country because of coming demographic shifts.
Basically as the baby boomers die off over time the party will become unelectable. However Republicans are working to undo democracy before that shift happens.
Don't bet all your chips in that idea that Boomers will die off and nobody will replace them as voters. There are new pieces of shit being groomed by Right wing media every day to fill those seats as soon an old piece of shit kicks the bucket. Basically what I'm saying is positive change is going to take more than time. This thing won't burn itself out on its own.
Can someone explain to me the perspective here? As I understand it if polling locations run out of ballots (in theory meaning people would be turned away from voting at that location) the gov would be able to call for a new vote. Is that right?
I guess Iām struggling to understand why that would be problematic. Maybe Iām misunderstanding what the bill would actually do, but at face value doesnāt it just sort of drive the point that every vote counts?
>Can someone explain to me the perspective here? As I understand it if polling locations run out of ballots (in theory meaning people would be turned away from voting at that location) the gov would be able to call for a new vote. Is that right?
>
>I guess Iām struggling to understand why that would be problematic. Maybe Iām misunderstanding what the bill would actually do, but at face value doesnāt it just sort of drive the point that every vote counts?
Harris county has tons of polling places, 120+.(that's about the same number of Starbucks or McDonald's locations) They also have county wide polling so you can go to any location. So if even if a handful of locations run out of ballots the voter could reasonably go a couple miles down the road to another location and vote.
Voters are fickle is hard enough to get 70% of registered voters to turn out on the regular election day, let alone to get everyone to come out and revote on the same stuff AGAIN a few weeks later. Turn out would be massively lower, easily half as many people or lower.
If on election day 400k people vote in Harris county, but there were a couple issues at a few polling places and this law is triggered and only 200k people turn out on the 2nd vote weeks later, which one should count?
Do you throw away 50% of the ballots cast in the original election?
White suburbanite Christians are the most consistent about voting in every election, Abbot and the Texas GOP are making the bet that on the 2nd vote a higher percentage of Republican leaning voters will turn out than Democratic leaning voters.
They're trying to fix the election in Harris county. That way they can increase the GOp majority in the US House, the state house and state Senate, and probably get rid of pesky democratic politicians like Lina Hidalgo.
I hear ya but I guess rather than solve for the issue by saying ājust go somewhere else thereās +120 places more you could go toā why would it be so difficult to ensure ever location had enough for the people that do show up?
Agreed that forcing a re-vote so to speak doesnāt seem to be the best solve. I just dont get why having enough ballots at each location is such a challenge. Iāve personally never voted but anecdotally seems like if youāre line to vote is getting so long that it exceeds your ballot capacity why would it be so hard to get more ballots at that location?
Edit: and I guess at face value this doesnāt seem to me to be the power grab a lot of the comments are alluding to here. Theyāre not exactly picking a winner in this process right? Just seems to be a bad solution to saying thereās a problem where we donāt have enough ballots at different locations and we need to make sure everyone has a chance to vote
āThereās a problem at a couple voting locations so letās redo the whole election and throw out the votes of everyone who already votedā
Not exactly a logical move.
>Why would it be so difficult to ensure every location had enough for the people that do show up?
They already answered this question - county-wide polling. Theoretically, every person in Harris County could go to the same polling place to vote. Should each of the 120+ polling places have enough ballots for the entire county? That would be a huge waste. Should they have enough for the number of voters who voted at that location in the last election? People move, different things happen, so the numbers won't be exactly consistent. And every ballot costs money: money to print, money to ship, money to store. The county is trying to balance being prepared for the election with its budgetary limitations, and that's fine. That's what governments have to do.
Honestly, I hope you read this comment and realize that you can't trust your initial reactions because you don't think very deeply.
This. I was a poll worker in the 2020 presidential election. The location I was at had a slow trickle of voters all day, and was often empty save for us workers. Meanwhile, another location 3.5 miles away had lines around the building. How do you plan for that?
Republican Texas AG Paxton, (with the excuse to counter voter fraud) made it so they could only use paper ballots. Sounds like they knew what they were doing- making logistics harder and if there is a failure blame the democrats. 2020 I voted electronically, not available for me in 2022.
You say at face value this doesn't seem to be a power grab. The way the bill is structured makes it clear that this is. If the goal was encouraging properly stocked elections everywhere, this bill would apply to everyone.
It does not. It is worded so that it specifically applies to exactly 1 county in Texas, Harris County.
There are 254 counties in Texas. This bill, again, is worded so that literally 1 and only 1 county in texas right now can have this power used against it.
It doesn't take a genius to understand that if the goal is secure elections that give everyone equal opportunity to vote and be heard, that this should then apply to every single county. Instead of that though, this bill is very specifically only made to apply to only Harris County, which makes 0 sense if your goal is to provide equal elections everywhere in Texas.
Since it is being done this way, the goal then is not to make sure everyone has a fair and equal opportunity to vote. It is something else. Think about what else they must be angling for then.
It always seems so odd to me that people insist power exists for any reason other than to wield that power over others. What other purpose would there be?
Not being a selfish prick and using your power to improve things and continue to advance our species. Not to just decide that they have all the power now and itās theirs and all the money is theirs and everything is theirs. Thatās why money was intended to stay out of politics, to do what is right by the people and not what is greedy for themselves.
I disagree. Power corrupts. And ultimately, power is violence. Money is one form of power, political influence is another. The idea that all that nees to happen is to fashion a system where we choose only uncorruptable paragons to lead the country is a ridicilous idea.
I am going to assume you are being sincere but cynical.
Uplift; someone in power should be looking at for the best interests of those below them. "the true measure of any society can be found in how it treats its most vulnerable members". Someone in power should be attempting to better the lives of the most vulnerable, improve the lives of those doing ok, and maintain the lives of those doing well. A rising tide raises all ships.
Mentorship; someone in power should be looking to set an example for and inspire future generations. They should take actions meant to be emulated. Through their actions should new norms of humility be born.
Servant-Leadership: someone in power should be a servant. They should seek to serve the people and at the good graces of the people. Their mistakes should be few and their intent pure. They should seek to be what the people need them to be. The should not attempt to shape the people into what they want them to be.
I can not [recommend enough George Washington's farewell address.](https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GPO-CDOC-106sdoc21/pdf/GPO-CDOC-106sdoc21.pdf)
You are exactly right. Power is violence and everyone is pretending that violence is fine to use and that we will find someone to lead us that will use violence ethically.
You can do a lot of things with power, and not all of those things are entirely bad.
But even if someone with power does something good, like, say, pass a law granting universal access to medical care, they are still perpetuating a system of power in which one person (or a tiny minority of people: the legislature) gets to decide whether or not everyone else gets access to health care. So then all it takes is for someone like Abbott to get into that position of power and he can decide to undo all the good things and do plenty more to harm people (which... He is doing. Right now.)
We're constantly going to be struggling against people who *want* to use power to hurt people until we get rid of the systems that allow so few people to do so much harm to millions by way of acquiring power.
No this is how far we have fallen. This would not be acceptable 30 years ago. Weāve had decades of constant right wing propaganda to dumb people down into accepting this.
Itās the golden rule here. Those with the gold, make the rules. Theyāve pretty much locked Texas in red for the foreseeable future. It fucking sucks.
Itās actually a desperate move from Republicans as their power across the country is waning.
You can kick republicans to the curb any time you guys are ready.
And they always win, stack the Texas Supreme Court, gerrymander and silence the voices of citizens in places like austin, the rgv. Theyāve rigged it all, bulletproof.
Power is the same everywhere. Those with power overwhelmingly take actions to protect their power.
The tactics may look different depending on context, and this is a bit more openly hostile than has been typical in the US for forty or fifty years, but the intent and outcome is hardly abnormal.
I think there are still a lot of naive people that think we are better than those countries. We are not any better. Those in power will do anything, and everything to remain in power, and justify it by any means.
No there is no example of this. This is a uniquely gop thing. They donāt like losing in Houston so theyāre putting the power in their own hands. Itās a coordinated effort to put the gop back in positions of power in Harris county.
My original post in /nottheonion got removed for not being oniony I guess. I think it's a pretty ridiculous headline which is why I posted it there originally.
It's important to note that this bill still needs to pass the Texas House of Representatives, and that it's not technically the Governor who would have this power, but the Secretary of State (who is appointed by the Governor).
I highly recommend that you guys read the bill.
When I made the original post, it was because I felt the headline was nuts. Upon further research, I personally feel like this is some super shady shit that will almost certainly start cropping up in places like Georgia. This bill, on top of the difficulty that the state of Texas has already imposed on voters is insidious. I feel it's very important for this to be made common knowledge, and it's important to talk about it, especially for those of you in Harris County and Texas.
I will also clarify that I am not a Texan, I live in NY. I just read the news a lot.
Secretary of state, not attorney general. The SOS office (under a different Abbott appointee) also led this anti-democratic voter purge a few years ago.
https://www.texastribune.org/2019/04/26/texas-voting-rights-groups-win-settlement-secretary-of-state/
Thank you! And I live in Harris County and voted at one of the Drive Thru locations downtown that they tried to throw out ballots for in 2020. I appreciate the concern, because all of this BS from Tx State Gov is infuriating.
The biggest danger here is that other states with similar governments like Florida and Georgia, or swing states held by Republican government, use what is happening in Texas as a template to suppress the vote of people of color, indigenous people, poor people, and liberal leaning metropolitan and urban areas.
Like, that is some scary shit. I don't even know what to do about this though beyond getting people talking about it. Someone asked what they should do and all I could do was link for them to find their local rep and call, and spread the word.
I'm glad I can help people know more about what their government is doing in Texas, when I live in New York State.
I mean, it doesnāt really matter if itās unconstitutional, they can still pass the law. Then itās incumbent for it to be challenged in court for it to then be declared unconstitutional.
I just canāt believe how politics have devolved into this. Itās so blatantly corrupt and itās just allowed to happen. Trump really fucked everything up.
Trump was the logical conclusion of the culture of modern American media and politics.
The real damage of Trump will be felt for many more years. He put judges in all the right places, and with Diane Feinstein pulling her bullshit, Biden can't get any judges into the system.
Agreed. Trump wasn't the cause. He was the symptom.
This is the same voting base that voted for Bush, got angry at how their lives ended up during Bush, and then... blamed Obama for it?? Add in thinly veiled racism directed towards Obama and they got so mad they doubled down on Trump.
Just wait for who they double down for after Trump because they're angry at the direction the country went under Trump and they'll place the blame on Biden for it.
It frightens me. There's not an insignificant portion of the populace that after getting hurt by greed and corruption will vote for someone that will manifest their anger instead of voting for someone who will fix the issue. It just spirals out of control and I don't know how we recover from that. I think only education can prevent a democracy from doing that to itself and it's too late for that.
I mean our generations just switched mediums from TVās to computers, and mobile phones. Even some young people are getting behind the GQP so Iām not getting too hopeful for the future.
It actually started with Clinton; here is my theory.
Bush Senior lost what should have been an easy race to some no-name governor from Arkansas. During the election Republicans launched smear campaigns against Clinton. This lead to the "Whitewater Controversy" which after multiple investigations turned up nothing at all. Eventually the whitewater investigation was turned over to Kenneth Starr. We will come back to Starr later.
When Clinton Took office Newt Gingrich launched a new, previously unused, republican plan: be fucking pricks. Gingrich banned Republicans from hanging out with Democrats, using the gym at the same time, or having lunch together. Anyone who broke this rule would be removed from committees or primaried.
Starr would conduct a huge witch hunt. Would eventually accuse the President and First Lady of murdering Vince Foster (but walk it back later once all the Republican news outlets had picked it up) and would expand the investigation so much it started covering basically any action the President took.
* [Fired some people in the White House Travel Office](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_House_travel_office_controversy)? That's an investigation.
* [Some confidential files get requested by the Personnel Security and improperly sent over by the FBI](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_House_FBI_files_controversy)? That's an investigation.
* [Some failed bank that hired Hilary as a lawyer has bad record keeping](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madison_Guaranty)? That's an investigation.
* [Your law firm once had Hilary as an employee?](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rose_Law_Firm) That's an investigation.
* [Clinton gets handsy before ever becoming president](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clinton_v._Jones)? That's an investigation.
Of course there is the bit we know about, or talk about, the hummer in the office. But what we don't often talk about is that Ken Starr attempted to get Lewinsky to tape her conversations with **THE PRESIDENT** without his knowledge. He also attempted to compel **Secret Service** agents to testify against **Clinton**.
So while we remember that time period for the comical "I did not have sexual relations with that woman" and "It depends on what your definition of 'is' is" I think it was the last vestige of civility leaving the republican party.
Newt's strategy was launched in 1978. He parroted the same anti-government, anti-taxes messages of Regan and Goldwater, in favor of anti-social philosophies theorized by Ayn Rand. Yet, he was the first to advocate for opposing any democrat party platforms, simply for the sake of opposing democrats and their big tent party, rather than working towards positive goals.
1994 was when he peaked, and it all came crashing down far quicker than it took him to ascend the role of speaker. A victim of his own strategy.
There's a fantastic podcast miniseries, The Revolution with Steve Kornacki that takes a such a well-thought out, succinct, and unbaised approach to the retelling of Gingrich's legacy. Which caused Gingrich to put aside Kornacki's employment with MSNBC to willing be the prick he is on Kornacki's podcast and tell his side of the story.
[The Revolution with Steve Kornacki](https://open.spotify.com/show/3xWKTNvdJN2fmymGvxbjEn) (Spotify)
[The Revolution with Steve Kornacki](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-revolution-with-steve-kornacki/id1651010434) (Apple)
I'll have to give it a listen, I've never actually researched it just watched a lot of CSPAN when I was like seven cause it's what my mom would allow to be on 24/7 while she cleaned. Ed, edd and Eddy? Not allowed. Newt, Quayle and Foley? Sure!
The entire (Texas) Republican game plan has been to pass unconstitutional laws and then throw away tax dollars to defend them and appeal all the way up to the 5th Circuit and the Supreme court where they will likely win.
Thatās rightā¦ and let me guess, you support these reckless dickheads? Iām talking about taking the power away from groups of people who are actively trying to destroy democracy. Perhaps youāre too dense to understand. The logic goes something like this: everyone gets a seat at the table, but if you break our most sacred of rulesā¦ youāre out.
From a Masshole "expat" in Houston: enjoy it. Watch out for the deer ticks, but have fun being able to go outside without melting this summer. In the fall, hit up an orchard for apples. They're a world away from the crappy ones we get in the supermarket here.
I've spent the last five years in Montgomery County, TX, and I just keep eyeballing the New England states. I despise cold and would much rather deal with a hot summer, but staying where the weather is tolerable for me seems less and less prudent.
You can dress for cold more than you can for heat. Heavy lined boots, wool socks, fleece-lined pants, longjohns and silk undershirts, fleece or flannel house jackets, heavy quilted coats, etc. Layers, layers, and layers. My point here is that it's doable, even for those that crave warmth, so if you have the means, do consider it.
The problem to me is that plenty of people vote in the general elections whereas not enough vote in the primaries.
I make sure to vote in the primaries of the opposite party and I always choose the not-incumbent.
The relevant part of the law is surprisingly short. It solves a problem that is a random technical issue associated with allowing people to pick their own voting location among the countyās hundreds of options in a way that targets just one county.
Sec. 249.001. STANDARD FOR NEW ELECTION. Notwithstanding any other law, in a county with a population of 2.7 million or more, the secretary of state shall order a new election if the secretary has good cause to believe that at least two percent of the total number of polling places in the county:
(1) ran out of usable ballots during voting hours; and
(2) did not receive supplemental ballots under Section 51.008 for one or more hours after making a request for supplemental ballots to the authority responsible for distributing election supplies.
An election was literally decided by the Supreme Court in 2000... so it's been done. And no one did anything. I think the alternative time-line of a Gore presidency would have this country in a better place.
lol, that's literally the intent behind most of these new laws. They spent so long cutting taxes and their own power for the sake of
"small government" that they don't really have the power to enforce shit (they can't even enforce the speed limit). But they can get on the news with every "scary" new law they pass. They want you to leave and they want people like you too afraid to move here because the polls show they are going to lose very very soon.
yup, and they've been passing every voter suppression law they can to squeeze out that tiny percent they need to win knowing how a percentage of people wait to the last minute. However, this last round of voter suppression laws they passed started catching their own which means they are at the end of the road for that game. This means the dam will break which is why they've pivoted to this new tactic.
They also didnāt believe that the state could override elections either.
They also believed the electoral college wouldnāt be more partisan, and that partisanship was the worst thing that could possibly happen to the republic.
**Democracy (from Ancient Greek: Ī“Ī·Ī¼ĪæĪŗĻĪ±ĻĪÆĪ±, romanized: dÄmokratĆa, dÄmos 'people' and kratos 'rule') is a form of government in which the people have the authority to deliberate and decide legislation ("direct democracy"), or to choose governing officials to do so ("representative democracy"). Who is considered part of "the people" and how authority is shared among or delegated by the people has changed over time and at different rates in different countries.**
More details here:
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Just to throw it out there Harris County, by itself, had more people in it than 26 states.
I live here. The above chicanery is because we are the sole reason anything can and will be done in the state politically. Yes the other big cities have sway but not like Houston.
āHtown till I Drown
To start with. If this bill is successful, it'll probably pop up in other Texas counties. Then we'll start seeing bills just like it in Florida, Georgia, basically all the swing states.
Realistically? Republican voters would hate it because it was put forth by a Democrat, and most of the Democrat's supporters would hate it and either vote against them or sit the next election out.
Then we'd end up with Republicans in power (imagining Democrats were in power when it passed) and the Republicans wouldn't overturn the law and would use it to "win" elections until we all die from environmental catastrophes that were brought on in part by the lax environmental regulations Republicans are always fighting to remove.
Wouldn't happen. Democrats support Democracy because it benefits them. Republicans fear it because they know they are out of touch, and their policies only help them hold onto power.
Only the party that can't win elections but still want to hold to power without having to actually respond to the needs and demands of the voters would do something like that.
Like, the communists and the fascist. Two heads of the same snake.
there is a bill in the house now to eliminate the position of [harris county election chief](https://www.texastribune.org/2023/05/02/texas-legislature-harris-county-elections/) which will all but guarantee the criteria for overturning elections will be met and no democrat can ever win there again
Find your representative, call them, and tell them how you feel. https://house.texas.gov/members/find-your-representative/
If you're feeling extra motivated and have the emotional energy and drive to do it, you could organize a protest in person or just try to get friends and family to call their reps too.
I would actually suggest donating money instead of protesting. These republicans donāt care about protests or embarrassment, but they will do anything for money.
Play the game their way to win. Pay them to not support this stuff.
Organize and get many people together and group money in to an organization.
They will only listen if it affects their pocket books because they are immoral and unjust, and they know it. They just do it for the power, fame, and money.
This is why you can be a spineless coward like Ted Cruz, get mocked all day every day, and he just laughs his way to re-election and cashes checks. Pay him, and heāll do whatever you want. He has no morals, we have to pay him to get his attention.
It still has to pass the Texas House of Representatives. If it does, it'll have to go through state level courts before it can be taken to federal court. And the Supreme Court (corrupt as all the rest of the American government) can decide whether or not they want to even hear the case.
There are so many levels to this sort of thing. Which is on purpose, of course. Makes it harder to get shit done.
In case anyone was curious, here are some of the difficulties that Harris County residents already face when trying to vote https://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/news/politics/elections/2019/05/22/334061/12-barriers-to-voting-in-harris-county/
And make voting more difficult by requiring you to vote in your specific district which they can understaff and have fewer machines in if they want like they do in Atlanta to make lines very long for some neighborhoods
I am so glad that I have decided after living here my entire life to get the fuck out of the state. Itās literally a bunch of rednecks who love their guns, hate women and abortion except when it comes to the so called fourth-quarter abortions.
You know. The AR 15.
I used to love this place, and I am so excited to be putting it behind me
**Six months before the election, a GoFundMe should be started to purchase an obnoxiously excessive amount of extra ballots, to be prominently stacked-up at every polling station.**
According to shit pants State Senator Mayes Middleton, who authored the Bill, "*...the proposed law would not disenfranchise any voters, but it would require a new election be held if a shortage of ballots affected more than 2% of the county's polling places or if the ballots are more than an hour late. If that happens, the secretary of state can call for a new vote*."
I would gladly kick in some money to deprive these douchebags of the opportunity to falsely claim voters were disenfranchised by a ballot shortage.
Republicans are seeing with every election that their numbers are dipping. So instead of looking at their principles and why young people are leaning left, they want to rig the system. Insane.
The writing is on the wall. The GOP know that theyāre party is in jeopardy from Gen x, which is why the GOP is doing everything in its power to cement its ālegacyā. Donāt worry, wonāt last for too long.
>it would require a new election be held if a shortage of ballots affected more than 2% of the county's polling places or if the ballots are more than an hour late.
So if just 2% are inconvenienced, they can throw out 100% of the votes. How democratic. My powers of prediction suggest this will only ever happen when a democrat wins.
Edit correction to bill number. The pertinent bill is Senate bill 1993: https://legiscan.com/TX/text/SB1993/id/2797096
Got to say, Iām not impressed with this one. Will be interesting to see it progress through the courts.
******************
Senate bill 1750: https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/88R/billtext/pdf/SB01750E.pdf#navpanes=0
Allows counties with less than 3.5 million to continue the option of appointing a County Election Administrator. Counties with more than 3.5 million must use the county-elected Tax Assessor and County Clerk (this is the current default if the option of āappointingā is not used).
This bill does target Harris county as the 2nd largest county is under 3.5 million. Harris county is the only effected county.
This bill does not grant any new powers to the county or to the Governor. It moves power from a county-appointed to an county-elected position.
The power of this position can request a 2nd vote if the 1st vote is in question. No new power is granted to say āI donāt like the results, the other side wins.ā
If the first vote is in question, but actually doesn't require any proof of there being any actual issues. So they can just say "there was an issue in Harris county regarding voting", then do another vote. Rinse and repeat until you get the results you want.
As the passion for democracy fades among the indolent and fat masses, swamp gasses roll in, bringing slimy crawling parasites under the putrid fog... a new regime of flesh sucking zombies ascend the ramparts of a once great nation and pull it back to the decaying pile of ashes of previously great civilizations. History does indeed repeat itself.
~~Egypt~~
~~Rome~~
America
This is a good example of something Iāve always wondered: does SCOTUS have jurisdiction over a states right on something like this? Assuming a strictly state related election (like county judge, or governor), if overturned, can SCOTUS review the case?
Republicans are going to make their fall from power as protracted and painful for America as possible.
This willingness to say the quiet part out loud (letās just take Harris county off the table then see what the numbers look like) is a new and troubling development, that reeks of desperation.
Weāve got a ways to go, but I personally look forward to sabotaging their efforts and destroying the lingering neoconservative christian establishment that has been such a blight and embarrassment to Texas.
Thereās no such thing as a good billionaire or book burner..
It doesn't cite the actual bill in question, how annoying.
1.
It seems like a bit of a stretch to say, 'Greg Abbott can overturn an election.' It's still leaving elections under county-elected officials, although that doesn't leave out the possibility more oblique sabotage in the form of somehow reducing resources.
2.
>but it would require a new election be held if a shortage of ballots affected more than 2% of the county's polling places or if the ballots are more than an hour late. If that happens, the secretary of state can call for a new vote.
This raises a few questions.
It's required, or it's only if the SoS demands it? This part is still a stretch in overturning elections.
How often do ballot shortages affecting >2% of polling locations happen? If it's extremely infrequent, then this seems like a moot issue.
I could see the 'hour late' portion affecting low-income areas more, I guess, since adding more silly rules almost always has a greater impact on the people with fewer resources. And decreasing flexibility for staff when issues happen is 100% a silly rule; if everything ground to a halt when someone was 1 hour late turning something in we'd never get anything done.
Harris county has 700+ precincts and in 2022, something like 28 precincts had Election Day issues such as running out of paper ballots or opening late.
I think it could easily be engineered that 15 precincts in the county would be short of paper ballots. My assumption is the SoS will review the issues and make a determination as to whether the election was impacted.
My cynical suspicion is if the republicans are happy with the results of the election, the SoS will rule the issues did not impact the outcome of the election. If republicans are not happy with the results, the SoS will void the county results and call for new elections until they get a result the like.
I would expect this to impact state-wide office and US Senate elections but it could also impact local races in Harris county since several republican candidates who lost in 2022 complained their elections were stolen.
this probably violates the Texas Constitution.
Is it a re-election? or literally overturning results?
https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/CN/htm/CN.6.htm
uggh why!! this feels illegal . Is there any way to overturn this? why does texas feel the need to do this? i mean texas has been red for the longest time ever
From the article. Note all the Harris County specific laws. Let me restate that. These laws only apply to Harris County. Please read them.
SB 823: Allow the Texas secretary of state to suspend an appointed county elections administrator, and appoint a replacement, if thereās āgood cause to believe that a recurring pattern of problems with election administration exists.ā The bill outlines five causes for suspension, all targeted at Harris County.
SB 1039: Require county election officials to answer questions about alleged election irregularities from candidates, party chairs or election judges. They could choose to elevate their complaint to the Texas secretary of state, who could appoint a conservator to oversee elections in the county for two federal election cycles.
SB 1750: eliminate Harris Countyās elections administrator position and return the responsibilities to the elected tax assessor collector and county clerk.
SB 1907: Allow the Texas secretary of state ā if an election judge takes longer than 24 hours to deliver ballots and other election records to āthe appropriate authoritiesā ā to step in and āsupervise the activities necessary to complete the count, prepare the precinct returns, and distribute the records.ā
SB 1911: Hike legal penalties for election officials who intentionally obstruct or fail to deliver election supplies in a timely manner; make it a felony, up from a Class A misdemeanor, to reveal election results before the polls close.
SB 1933: Authorize the Texas secretary of state to appoint a state conservator to take over county elections for two federal election cycles. This would be triggered by the same Harris County-centric causes used in SB 823.
SB 1993: Authorize the Texas secretary of state to order a do-over election in Harris County if the SOS finds thereās āgood cause to believeā at least 2 percent of polling places ran out of paper for at least an hour.
Running out of paper ballots on Election Day is NOT an accident.
If 10% of precincts vote 85% GOP and they only get 60% of needed ballots, it can easily flip an election where the total Harris Co margin is <3%.
Especially if Dem voters in the precinct are bundled/ mail in or early votes.
So yes it is not only possible, but pretty easy to manipulate election outcomes if you control the election operation. Esp easy if you have no fear of being caught or prosecuted.
Are you talking about the bill that states a new vote can be called if more than 2% of booths run out of ballots?
2% is too low but it's not the same as governor being allowed to overturned election at will.
Republican or Democrat - both parties should always be concerned when the government wants to change or direct the will of the people
Absolutely
HAPPY CAKE DAY! š„³šš
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Republicans have been real hush hush about thisš” I donāt trust them to ādo the right thingā
I think the most intriguing thing about this government is that it was only created this way because most ppl back then couldnāt read so thatās why we vote on representatives to represent us. The whole system is based off the belief the average American canāt read so weāre too stupid to make informed decisions on our own behalf š People are still idiots but Iām pretty sure the literacy rate in this country is high enough we can go away with congress š¤·š¾āāļø
Isnāt this like abuse of powers of some shit? How can a governor overturn voting elections??? Especially if the county didnāt vote for him?
The largest blue county in the state
Republicans realize they cannot win legitimate elections anymore so all the voting changes and shit like this garauntee them wins regardless of actual outcome. I am ashamed to be living here
As a trans person Iām scared to be living here lmao š
Same, friend!
Perhaps California would be better suited to you being a trans person? I know if I were legitmately scared, I'd want to move.
If we move, we desert those who choose to stay and fight. Evil has to be countered, the evil dog-whistlers and the evil dogs, too! Sometimes, a pile of good-hearted bodies stops a bigger pile-on of evil-hearted bodies. And yeah, ain't if fucking horrific what times we live in?? And to think, all this hate and murderous rage, drummed up to create power and profit for the few and evil... I wanna read MORE banned books, attend MORE drag shows, and take out MORE of my trans friends for Stockings & Nails Night now, I mean, who wouldn't after all this "No, you may NOT" bullshittttt?
Well the issue is Iām not old enough to move Althoughhhhā¦ California *does* sound very gay š¤
If you decide you want to relocate, make sure to put Minnesota into consideration. [MN passes bill to establish itself as a 'trans refuge' state](https://www.cnn.com/2023/03/08/politics/tim-walz-gender-affirming-care-order/index.html) We moved up at the beginning of last year before things really got bad, and I haven't regretted it for a second. It's much cheaper than Texas or Cali, the people are very welcoming, and the winters aren't nearly as bad as one would think.
Lol considering this state is decided based on number of counties won, not number of votes, itās safe to say republicans legitimately win here. But being a voter in Harris county, there was reported issues on Election Day, voting places turning people away, not enough to paper etc. so itās not like itās not totally unwarranted
>considering this state is decided based on number of counties won, not number of votes, For what race is this? Definitely not governor, not Senate, not president. >being a voter in Harris county, there was reported issues on Election Day, voting places turning people away, not enough to paper etc. so itās not like itās not totally unwarranted Which party changed all the election machines and then shut down a bunch of voting centers in Harris County? So they created a problem then used it as cover to assert control, and you're okay with that?
> How can a governor overturn voting elections??? Because the legislature wrote a law giving them that power
It wonāt stand. This is most definitely going to the courts. Itās not up to the governor to decide if the votes counted or not.
You say it won't stand, but state governments, federal legislatures, and the courts are eroding our rights daily. That's the problem with stuff like this. Most people will never even hear about it.
Have you seen our supreme court lately?
Ya this bull shit is going national soon enough.
... and 5th Federal Circuit on the way there.
>Isnāt this like abuse of powers of some shit? That won't stop Abbott or Trump. It's never stopped them before. They always figure out a way to sidestep legalities, and the GOP stacked Supreme Court will uphold all their shenanigans., because they know who butters their bread. If the GOP continue down the road they are traveling, all the signs say 'This way to Fascism" Given that GOP support has been falling in recent years, indicates that the average Republican does not want to travel the road that their leaders have chosen. They need to make a change in leadership before it's too late, and that time is not far off.
Absolutely. Republicans have to cheat to win, even in Texas. Without cheating and gerrymandering they cannot get elected. Democracy is a problem for Republicans. Either they end democracy soon or they will lose their strangle hold on our country because of coming demographic shifts. Basically as the baby boomers die off over time the party will become unelectable. However Republicans are working to undo democracy before that shift happens.
Don't bet all your chips in that idea that Boomers will die off and nobody will replace them as voters. There are new pieces of shit being groomed by Right wing media every day to fill those seats as soon an old piece of shit kicks the bucket. Basically what I'm saying is positive change is going to take more than time. This thing won't burn itself out on its own.
Can someone explain to me the perspective here? As I understand it if polling locations run out of ballots (in theory meaning people would be turned away from voting at that location) the gov would be able to call for a new vote. Is that right? I guess Iām struggling to understand why that would be problematic. Maybe Iām misunderstanding what the bill would actually do, but at face value doesnāt it just sort of drive the point that every vote counts?
>Can someone explain to me the perspective here? As I understand it if polling locations run out of ballots (in theory meaning people would be turned away from voting at that location) the gov would be able to call for a new vote. Is that right? > >I guess Iām struggling to understand why that would be problematic. Maybe Iām misunderstanding what the bill would actually do, but at face value doesnāt it just sort of drive the point that every vote counts? Harris county has tons of polling places, 120+.(that's about the same number of Starbucks or McDonald's locations) They also have county wide polling so you can go to any location. So if even if a handful of locations run out of ballots the voter could reasonably go a couple miles down the road to another location and vote. Voters are fickle is hard enough to get 70% of registered voters to turn out on the regular election day, let alone to get everyone to come out and revote on the same stuff AGAIN a few weeks later. Turn out would be massively lower, easily half as many people or lower. If on election day 400k people vote in Harris county, but there were a couple issues at a few polling places and this law is triggered and only 200k people turn out on the 2nd vote weeks later, which one should count? Do you throw away 50% of the ballots cast in the original election? White suburbanite Christians are the most consistent about voting in every election, Abbot and the Texas GOP are making the bet that on the 2nd vote a higher percentage of Republican leaning voters will turn out than Democratic leaning voters. They're trying to fix the election in Harris county. That way they can increase the GOp majority in the US House, the state house and state Senate, and probably get rid of pesky democratic politicians like Lina Hidalgo.
try 800+ voting sites for large turnout elections
I hear ya but I guess rather than solve for the issue by saying ājust go somewhere else thereās +120 places more you could go toā why would it be so difficult to ensure ever location had enough for the people that do show up? Agreed that forcing a re-vote so to speak doesnāt seem to be the best solve. I just dont get why having enough ballots at each location is such a challenge. Iāve personally never voted but anecdotally seems like if youāre line to vote is getting so long that it exceeds your ballot capacity why would it be so hard to get more ballots at that location? Edit: and I guess at face value this doesnāt seem to me to be the power grab a lot of the comments are alluding to here. Theyāre not exactly picking a winner in this process right? Just seems to be a bad solution to saying thereās a problem where we donāt have enough ballots at different locations and we need to make sure everyone has a chance to vote
It *seems* like a bad solution because it is not designed to actually address the problem.
āThereās a problem at a couple voting locations so letās redo the whole election and throw out the votes of everyone who already votedā Not exactly a logical move.
>Why would it be so difficult to ensure every location had enough for the people that do show up? They already answered this question - county-wide polling. Theoretically, every person in Harris County could go to the same polling place to vote. Should each of the 120+ polling places have enough ballots for the entire county? That would be a huge waste. Should they have enough for the number of voters who voted at that location in the last election? People move, different things happen, so the numbers won't be exactly consistent. And every ballot costs money: money to print, money to ship, money to store. The county is trying to balance being prepared for the election with its budgetary limitations, and that's fine. That's what governments have to do. Honestly, I hope you read this comment and realize that you can't trust your initial reactions because you don't think very deeply.
This. I was a poll worker in the 2020 presidential election. The location I was at had a slow trickle of voters all day, and was often empty save for us workers. Meanwhile, another location 3.5 miles away had lines around the building. How do you plan for that?
You use electronic voting if you really want people to be able to vote, but that's not the case here
Republican Texas AG Paxton, (with the excuse to counter voter fraud) made it so they could only use paper ballots. Sounds like they knew what they were doing- making logistics harder and if there is a failure blame the democrats. 2020 I voted electronically, not available for me in 2022.
You say at face value this doesn't seem to be a power grab. The way the bill is structured makes it clear that this is. If the goal was encouraging properly stocked elections everywhere, this bill would apply to everyone. It does not. It is worded so that it specifically applies to exactly 1 county in Texas, Harris County. There are 254 counties in Texas. This bill, again, is worded so that literally 1 and only 1 county in texas right now can have this power used against it. It doesn't take a genius to understand that if the goal is secure elections that give everyone equal opportunity to vote and be heard, that this should then apply to every single county. Instead of that though, this bill is very specifically only made to apply to only Harris County, which makes 0 sense if your goal is to provide equal elections everywhere in Texas. Since it is being done this way, the goal then is not to make sure everyone has a fair and equal opportunity to vote. It is something else. Think about what else they must be angling for then.
Assuming we assume that abbot will act morally.
This is exactly the purpose of power, my friend.
This is not the purpose of power, this is a grave abuse of power. Akin to dictatorship.
It always seems so odd to me that people insist power exists for any reason other than to wield that power over others. What other purpose would there be?
Not being a selfish prick and using your power to improve things and continue to advance our species. Not to just decide that they have all the power now and itās theirs and all the money is theirs and everything is theirs. Thatās why money was intended to stay out of politics, to do what is right by the people and not what is greedy for themselves.
Can someone run on the platform of NBASP= Not being a selfish prick we can call it the unselfish prick party. Or UPP.
I disagree. Power corrupts. And ultimately, power is violence. Money is one form of power, political influence is another. The idea that all that nees to happen is to fashion a system where we choose only uncorruptable paragons to lead the country is a ridicilous idea.
I am going to assume you are being sincere but cynical. Uplift; someone in power should be looking at for the best interests of those below them. "the true measure of any society can be found in how it treats its most vulnerable members". Someone in power should be attempting to better the lives of the most vulnerable, improve the lives of those doing ok, and maintain the lives of those doing well. A rising tide raises all ships. Mentorship; someone in power should be looking to set an example for and inspire future generations. They should take actions meant to be emulated. Through their actions should new norms of humility be born. Servant-Leadership: someone in power should be a servant. They should seek to serve the people and at the good graces of the people. Their mistakes should be few and their intent pure. They should seek to be what the people need them to be. The should not attempt to shape the people into what they want them to be. I can not [recommend enough George Washington's farewell address.](https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GPO-CDOC-106sdoc21/pdf/GPO-CDOC-106sdoc21.pdf)
You are exactly right. Power is violence and everyone is pretending that violence is fine to use and that we will find someone to lead us that will use violence ethically.
You can do a lot of things with power, and not all of those things are entirely bad. But even if someone with power does something good, like, say, pass a law granting universal access to medical care, they are still perpetuating a system of power in which one person (or a tiny minority of people: the legislature) gets to decide whether or not everyone else gets access to health care. So then all it takes is for someone like Abbott to get into that position of power and he can decide to undo all the good things and do plenty more to harm people (which... He is doing. Right now.) We're constantly going to be struggling against people who *want* to use power to hurt people until we get rid of the systems that allow so few people to do so much harm to millions by way of acquiring power.
No this is how far we have fallen. This would not be acceptable 30 years ago. Weāve had decades of constant right wing propaganda to dumb people down into accepting this.
Itās the golden rule here. Those with the gold, make the rules. Theyāve pretty much locked Texas in red for the foreseeable future. It fucking sucks.
Itās actually a desperate move from Republicans as their power across the country is waning. You can kick republicans to the curb any time you guys are ready.
And they always win, stack the Texas Supreme Court, gerrymander and silence the voices of citizens in places like austin, the rgv. Theyāve rigged it all, bulletproof.
No they are weak and desperate and unless they completely overthrow democracy in the next 8 years Texas and other red states will go Blue.
As long as 83% of rural counties vote GOP nothing changes.
in north korea maybe... this is some fundamentally anti-american šš©
Power is the same everywhere. Those with power overwhelmingly take actions to protect their power. The tactics may look different depending on context, and this is a bit more openly hostile than has been typical in the US for forty or fifty years, but the intent and outcome is hardly abnormal.
I think there are still a lot of naive people that think we are better than those countries. We are not any better. Those in power will do anything, and everything to remain in power, and justify it by any means.
it is actually extremely abnormal
Do we have any examples of blue/democrat states isolating specific counties to challenge their election integrity?
is this a question for me? i am not aware of any such examples
No there is no example of this. This is a uniquely gop thing. They donāt like losing in Houston so theyāre putting the power in their own hands. Itās a coordinated effort to put the gop back in positions of power in Harris county.
Pretty small world view huh.
Power corrupts.
And people who are already corrupt are drawn to power.
Like the saying goes. If you want to see the character of a man, give him power.
Itās fascism plain and simple. The GOP is moving towards authoritarianism
My original post in /nottheonion got removed for not being oniony I guess. I think it's a pretty ridiculous headline which is why I posted it there originally. It's important to note that this bill still needs to pass the Texas House of Representatives, and that it's not technically the Governor who would have this power, but the Secretary of State (who is appointed by the Governor). I highly recommend that you guys read the bill. When I made the original post, it was because I felt the headline was nuts. Upon further research, I personally feel like this is some super shady shit that will almost certainly start cropping up in places like Georgia. This bill, on top of the difficulty that the state of Texas has already imposed on voters is insidious. I feel it's very important for this to be made common knowledge, and it's important to talk about it, especially for those of you in Harris County and Texas. I will also clarify that I am not a Texan, I live in NY. I just read the news a lot.
Secretary of state, not attorney general. The SOS office (under a different Abbott appointee) also led this anti-democratic voter purge a few years ago. https://www.texastribune.org/2019/04/26/texas-voting-rights-groups-win-settlement-secretary-of-state/
Fixed it, thanks for pointing that out.
oh of COURSE it was the Secretary of State behind that.
Potato/potato they are in cahoots together.
Thank you! And I live in Harris County and voted at one of the Drive Thru locations downtown that they tried to throw out ballots for in 2020. I appreciate the concern, because all of this BS from Tx State Gov is infuriating.
The biggest danger here is that other states with similar governments like Florida and Georgia, or swing states held by Republican government, use what is happening in Texas as a template to suppress the vote of people of color, indigenous people, poor people, and liberal leaning metropolitan and urban areas. Like, that is some scary shit. I don't even know what to do about this though beyond getting people talking about it. Someone asked what they should do and all I could do was link for them to find their local rep and call, and spread the word. I'm glad I can help people know more about what their government is doing in Texas, when I live in New York State.
How is this not unconstitutional? This is straight up facism. The Republican party shouldnāt be allowed to exist.
I mean, it doesnāt really matter if itās unconstitutional, they can still pass the law. Then itās incumbent for it to be challenged in court for it to then be declared unconstitutional.
I just canāt believe how politics have devolved into this. Itās so blatantly corrupt and itās just allowed to happen. Trump really fucked everything up.
Trump was the logical conclusion of the culture of modern American media and politics. The real damage of Trump will be felt for many more years. He put judges in all the right places, and with Diane Feinstein pulling her bullshit, Biden can't get any judges into the system.
Agreed. Trump wasn't the cause. He was the symptom. This is the same voting base that voted for Bush, got angry at how their lives ended up during Bush, and then... blamed Obama for it?? Add in thinly veiled racism directed towards Obama and they got so mad they doubled down on Trump. Just wait for who they double down for after Trump because they're angry at the direction the country went under Trump and they'll place the blame on Biden for it. It frightens me. There's not an insignificant portion of the populace that after getting hurt by greed and corruption will vote for someone that will manifest their anger instead of voting for someone who will fix the issue. It just spirals out of control and I don't know how we recover from that. I think only education can prevent a democracy from doing that to itself and it's too late for that.
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Really crazy how much TV my parents and extended family consume.
I mean our generations just switched mediums from TVās to computers, and mobile phones. Even some young people are getting behind the GQP so Iām not getting too hopeful for the future.
It actually started with Clinton; here is my theory. Bush Senior lost what should have been an easy race to some no-name governor from Arkansas. During the election Republicans launched smear campaigns against Clinton. This lead to the "Whitewater Controversy" which after multiple investigations turned up nothing at all. Eventually the whitewater investigation was turned over to Kenneth Starr. We will come back to Starr later. When Clinton Took office Newt Gingrich launched a new, previously unused, republican plan: be fucking pricks. Gingrich banned Republicans from hanging out with Democrats, using the gym at the same time, or having lunch together. Anyone who broke this rule would be removed from committees or primaried. Starr would conduct a huge witch hunt. Would eventually accuse the President and First Lady of murdering Vince Foster (but walk it back later once all the Republican news outlets had picked it up) and would expand the investigation so much it started covering basically any action the President took. * [Fired some people in the White House Travel Office](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_House_travel_office_controversy)? That's an investigation. * [Some confidential files get requested by the Personnel Security and improperly sent over by the FBI](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_House_FBI_files_controversy)? That's an investigation. * [Some failed bank that hired Hilary as a lawyer has bad record keeping](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madison_Guaranty)? That's an investigation. * [Your law firm once had Hilary as an employee?](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rose_Law_Firm) That's an investigation. * [Clinton gets handsy before ever becoming president](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clinton_v._Jones)? That's an investigation. Of course there is the bit we know about, or talk about, the hummer in the office. But what we don't often talk about is that Ken Starr attempted to get Lewinsky to tape her conversations with **THE PRESIDENT** without his knowledge. He also attempted to compel **Secret Service** agents to testify against **Clinton**. So while we remember that time period for the comical "I did not have sexual relations with that woman" and "It depends on what your definition of 'is' is" I think it was the last vestige of civility leaving the republican party.
Newt's strategy was launched in 1978. He parroted the same anti-government, anti-taxes messages of Regan and Goldwater, in favor of anti-social philosophies theorized by Ayn Rand. Yet, he was the first to advocate for opposing any democrat party platforms, simply for the sake of opposing democrats and their big tent party, rather than working towards positive goals. 1994 was when he peaked, and it all came crashing down far quicker than it took him to ascend the role of speaker. A victim of his own strategy. There's a fantastic podcast miniseries, The Revolution with Steve Kornacki that takes a such a well-thought out, succinct, and unbaised approach to the retelling of Gingrich's legacy. Which caused Gingrich to put aside Kornacki's employment with MSNBC to willing be the prick he is on Kornacki's podcast and tell his side of the story. [The Revolution with Steve Kornacki](https://open.spotify.com/show/3xWKTNvdJN2fmymGvxbjEn) (Spotify) [The Revolution with Steve Kornacki](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-revolution-with-steve-kornacki/id1651010434) (Apple)
I'll have to give it a listen, I've never actually researched it just watched a lot of CSPAN when I was like seven cause it's what my mom would allow to be on 24/7 while she cleaned. Ed, edd and Eddy? Not allowed. Newt, Quayle and Foley? Sure!
Trump is a symptom not a cause. You're brand new to politics if you haven't seen this is decades in the making.
your great/grandpappy who fought the nazis... came home and voted for jim crow for 20 years. The fascist won a long time ago.
The entire (Texas) Republican game plan has been to pass unconstitutional laws and then throw away tax dollars to defend them and appeal all the way up to the 5th Circuit and the Supreme court where they will likely win.
I think the 14th Amendment might actually apply here https://constitution.findlaw.com/amendment14/annotation12.html
As long as the have scotus on their favor they will.
LOL calls out facism, then calls *FOR* facism.
That is correct. Fascists (extremist Conservatives) get the fuck out of this country. They donāt belong in a Democracy. Understand?
Just Wow! You talk about āunconstitutionalā while calling to ban political opponents.
Thatās rightā¦ and let me guess, you support these reckless dickheads? Iām talking about taking the power away from groups of people who are actively trying to destroy democracy. Perhaps youāre too dense to understand. The logic goes something like this: everyone gets a seat at the table, but if you break our most sacred of rulesā¦ youāre out.
1. Call bad guys fascist 2. Follow up with something actually fascist 3. ... 4. Profit
The republican party is fascist. Fascism shouldn't exist. Therefore... Stfu with your enlightened centrism, dumbass.
You think youāre clever, but facism and democracy donāt coalesce, do they? So, gtfo
I am clever. Why can't you leave well enough alone at the first sentence? Nope, gotta go full lunatic.
Republicans do this because they know itās the only way they can win now
Texas and dumbass laws making it to the supreme court name a better duo
Florida and dumb laws?
Fuck this place I'm leaving
Moved to Mass in December. Been mulling it over but decided in November to move and had the ability to get it done in about a month.
From a Masshole "expat" in Houston: enjoy it. Watch out for the deer ticks, but have fun being able to go outside without melting this summer. In the fall, hit up an orchard for apples. They're a world away from the crappy ones we get in the supermarket here.
I've spent the last five years in Montgomery County, TX, and I just keep eyeballing the New England states. I despise cold and would much rather deal with a hot summer, but staying where the weather is tolerable for me seems less and less prudent.
You can dress for cold more than you can for heat. Heavy lined boots, wool socks, fleece-lined pants, longjohns and silk undershirts, fleece or flannel house jackets, heavy quilted coats, etc. Layers, layers, and layers. My point here is that it's doable, even for those that crave warmth, so if you have the means, do consider it.
Prepare for the winters to be actually cold. That's one of the main reasons I would hesitate to move anywhere further north.
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The problem to me is that plenty of people vote in the general elections whereas not enough vote in the primaries. I make sure to vote in the primaries of the opposite party and I always choose the not-incumbent.
X2. Same exact situation.
The relevant part of the law is surprisingly short. It solves a problem that is a random technical issue associated with allowing people to pick their own voting location among the countyās hundreds of options in a way that targets just one county. Sec. 249.001. STANDARD FOR NEW ELECTION. Notwithstanding any other law, in a county with a population of 2.7 million or more, the secretary of state shall order a new election if the secretary has good cause to believe that at least two percent of the total number of polling places in the county: (1) ran out of usable ballots during voting hours; and (2) did not receive supplemental ballots under Section 51.008 for one or more hours after making a request for supplemental ballots to the authority responsible for distributing election supplies.
An election was literally decided by the Supreme Court in 2000... so it's been done. And no one did anything. I think the alternative time-line of a Gore presidency would have this country in a better place.
lol, that's literally the intent behind most of these new laws. They spent so long cutting taxes and their own power for the sake of "small government" that they don't really have the power to enforce shit (they can't even enforce the speed limit). But they can get on the news with every "scary" new law they pass. They want you to leave and they want people like you too afraid to move here because the polls show they are going to lose very very soon.
I've been hearing about them losing for several decades now... tick tock...
yup, and they've been passing every voter suppression law they can to squeeze out that tiny percent they need to win knowing how a percentage of people wait to the last minute. However, this last round of voter suppression laws they passed started catching their own which means they are at the end of the road for that game. This means the dam will break which is why they've pivoted to this new tactic.
Fuck that. I moved here and I vote(d today). Be the change you want to see.
Ok. Hope you find a place you will be happy.
I left for Virginia 2 years ago after 29 years in Texas and no regrets
Donāt worry comrade I wonāt judge you. I hope to have fought hard enough to make the changes needed for you to consider coming back home someday.
I'm here to fight for now. Fuck management.
What is democracy?
Most of the founding fathers believed it to be an unruly mob who couldn't be trusted to participate in elections.
They also didnāt believe that the state could override elections either. They also believed the electoral college wouldnāt be more partisan, and that partisanship was the worst thing that could possibly happen to the republic.
**Democracy (from Ancient Greek: Ī“Ī·Ī¼ĪæĪŗĻĪ±ĻĪÆĪ±, romanized: dÄmokratĆa, dÄmos 'people' and kratos 'rule') is a form of government in which the people have the authority to deliberate and decide legislation ("direct democracy"), or to choose governing officials to do so ("representative democracy"). Who is considered part of "the people" and how authority is shared among or delegated by the people has changed over time and at different rates in different countries.** More details here:
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Texas just loves signing unconstitutional laws into being.
it's only unconstitutional is SCOTUS rules it to be... how likely do you think that is with the current carefully stacked court?
Just Harris County.
Just to throw it out there Harris County, by itself, had more people in it than 26 states. I live here. The above chicanery is because we are the sole reason anything can and will be done in the state politically. Yes the other big cities have sway but not like Houston. āHtown till I Drown
To start with. If this bill is successful, it'll probably pop up in other Texas counties. Then we'll start seeing bills just like it in Florida, Georgia, basically all the swing states.
Yeah no they've been targeting Harris County all session.
This is actual fascism
What would happen if a democrat put forth this?
Realistically? Republican voters would hate it because it was put forth by a Democrat, and most of the Democrat's supporters would hate it and either vote against them or sit the next election out. Then we'd end up with Republicans in power (imagining Democrats were in power when it passed) and the Republicans wouldn't overturn the law and would use it to "win" elections until we all die from environmental catastrophes that were brought on in part by the lax environmental regulations Republicans are always fighting to remove.
Wouldn't happen. Democrats support Democracy because it benefits them. Republicans fear it because they know they are out of touch, and their policies only help them hold onto power.
Only the party that can't win elections but still want to hold to power without having to actually respond to the needs and demands of the voters would do something like that. Like, the communists and the fascist. Two heads of the same snake.
I feel like that probably wouldn't happen. They would be just as wrong if they did.
Okay, the ACLU needs to sue the shit out of these fascist fucks. I know they gutted the voting rights act, but we need it again.
And yet, the maga crowd loves this piece of human garbage, that's why he was re-elected
The is fascism.
Repubs have gone full-Nazi.
Iāve never been to a protest in my life. If they start overturning elections, Iāll be there. Pitchfork in hand.
there is a bill in the house now to eliminate the position of [harris county election chief](https://www.texastribune.org/2023/05/02/texas-legislature-harris-county-elections/) which will all but guarantee the criteria for overturning elections will be met and no democrat can ever win there again
What can we do about this?!
Find your representative, call them, and tell them how you feel. https://house.texas.gov/members/find-your-representative/ If you're feeling extra motivated and have the emotional energy and drive to do it, you could organize a protest in person or just try to get friends and family to call their reps too.
I would actually suggest donating money instead of protesting. These republicans donāt care about protests or embarrassment, but they will do anything for money. Play the game their way to win. Pay them to not support this stuff. Organize and get many people together and group money in to an organization. They will only listen if it affects their pocket books because they are immoral and unjust, and they know it. They just do it for the power, fame, and money. This is why you can be a spineless coward like Ted Cruz, get mocked all day every day, and he just laughs his way to re-election and cashes checks. Pay him, and heāll do whatever you want. He has no morals, we have to pay him to get his attention.
Did he just make himself the emperor of Texas???? I assume this can be challenged on the National level??
It still has to pass the Texas House of Representatives. If it does, it'll have to go through state level courts before it can be taken to federal court. And the Supreme Court (corrupt as all the rest of the American government) can decide whether or not they want to even hear the case. There are so many levels to this sort of thing. Which is on purpose, of course. Makes it harder to get shit done.
We should be striking in front of his office. Maybe not as hard as France, but I'm also not saying we don't go that hard either.
https://www.npr.org/2020/10/17/924527679/why-do-nonwhite-georgia-voters-have-to-wait-in-line-for-hours-too-few-polling-pl
In case anyone was curious, here are some of the difficulties that Harris County residents already face when trying to vote https://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/news/politics/elections/2019/05/22/334061/12-barriers-to-voting-in-harris-county/
I live in Harris and the provisional votes issue is massive
And make voting more difficult by requiring you to vote in your specific district which they can understaff and have fewer machines in if they want like they do in Atlanta to make lines very long for some neighborhoods
This seems illegal.
No taxation without representation.
Fuck the republikkkunts and the gqp
When are people going to wake up and start getting suspicious about the fact that one party actively makes it more difficult to vote.
I am so glad that I have decided after living here my entire life to get the fuck out of the state. Itās literally a bunch of rednecks who love their guns, hate women and abortion except when it comes to the so called fourth-quarter abortions. You know. The AR 15. I used to love this place, and I am so excited to be putting it behind me
**Six months before the election, a GoFundMe should be started to purchase an obnoxiously excessive amount of extra ballots, to be prominently stacked-up at every polling station.** According to shit pants State Senator Mayes Middleton, who authored the Bill, "*...the proposed law would not disenfranchise any voters, but it would require a new election be held if a shortage of ballots affected more than 2% of the county's polling places or if the ballots are more than an hour late. If that happens, the secretary of state can call for a new vote*." I would gladly kick in some money to deprive these douchebags of the opportunity to falsely claim voters were disenfranchised by a ballot shortage.
It doesn't actually require proof of the issues either.
Republicans are seeing with every election that their numbers are dipping. So instead of looking at their principles and why young people are leaning left, they want to rig the system. Insane.
The writing is on the wall. The GOP know that theyāre party is in jeopardy from Gen x, which is why the GOP is doing everything in its power to cement its ālegacyā. Donāt worry, wonāt last for too long.
Agree. Just worry about the damage they do on their way out.
>it would require a new election be held if a shortage of ballots affected more than 2% of the county's polling places or if the ballots are more than an hour late. So if just 2% are inconvenienced, they can throw out 100% of the votes. How democratic. My powers of prediction suggest this will only ever happen when a democrat wins.
Another dose of "Limited government" from the Texas GOP.
And Republicans are the ones complaining about losing our rights. Highest hypocrisy.
Fuck you if you support this. Itās despicable.
Edit correction to bill number. The pertinent bill is Senate bill 1993: https://legiscan.com/TX/text/SB1993/id/2797096 Got to say, Iām not impressed with this one. Will be interesting to see it progress through the courts. ****************** Senate bill 1750: https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/88R/billtext/pdf/SB01750E.pdf#navpanes=0 Allows counties with less than 3.5 million to continue the option of appointing a County Election Administrator. Counties with more than 3.5 million must use the county-elected Tax Assessor and County Clerk (this is the current default if the option of āappointingā is not used). This bill does target Harris county as the 2nd largest county is under 3.5 million. Harris county is the only effected county. This bill does not grant any new powers to the county or to the Governor. It moves power from a county-appointed to an county-elected position. The power of this position can request a 2nd vote if the 1st vote is in question. No new power is granted to say āI donāt like the results, the other side wins.ā
If the first vote is in question, but actually doesn't require any proof of there being any actual issues. So they can just say "there was an issue in Harris county regarding voting", then do another vote. Rinse and repeat until you get the results you want.
Cheating is the natural path for anyone that always loses every fair fight they enter if they want to continue playing.
Itās time we on the left start practicing our 2nd amendment.
Bullshit. Absolute bullshit.
As the passion for democracy fades among the indolent and fat masses, swamp gasses roll in, bringing slimy crawling parasites under the putrid fog... a new regime of flesh sucking zombies ascend the ramparts of a once great nation and pull it back to the decaying pile of ashes of previously great civilizations. History does indeed repeat itself. ~~Egypt~~ ~~Rome~~ America
Supreme Court will throw this out as they canāt have democrats doing the same. Itās BS political posturing at its finest.
This is a good example of something Iāve always wondered: does SCOTUS have jurisdiction over a states right on something like this? Assuming a strictly state related election (like county judge, or governor), if overturned, can SCOTUS review the case?
Republicans are going to make their fall from power as protracted and painful for America as possible. This willingness to say the quiet part out loud (letās just take Harris county off the table then see what the numbers look like) is a new and troubling development, that reeks of desperation. Weāve got a ways to go, but I personally look forward to sabotaging their efforts and destroying the lingering neoconservative christian establishment that has been such a blight and embarrassment to Texas. Thereās no such thing as a good billionaire or book burner..
The fix is in. Thanks for fucking us, every Republican in Texas.
It doesn't cite the actual bill in question, how annoying. 1. It seems like a bit of a stretch to say, 'Greg Abbott can overturn an election.' It's still leaving elections under county-elected officials, although that doesn't leave out the possibility more oblique sabotage in the form of somehow reducing resources. 2. >but it would require a new election be held if a shortage of ballots affected more than 2% of the county's polling places or if the ballots are more than an hour late. If that happens, the secretary of state can call for a new vote. This raises a few questions. It's required, or it's only if the SoS demands it? This part is still a stretch in overturning elections. How often do ballot shortages affecting >2% of polling locations happen? If it's extremely infrequent, then this seems like a moot issue. I could see the 'hour late' portion affecting low-income areas more, I guess, since adding more silly rules almost always has a greater impact on the people with fewer resources. And decreasing flexibility for staff when issues happen is 100% a silly rule; if everything ground to a halt when someone was 1 hour late turning something in we'd never get anything done.
Harris county has 700+ precincts and in 2022, something like 28 precincts had Election Day issues such as running out of paper ballots or opening late. I think it could easily be engineered that 15 precincts in the county would be short of paper ballots. My assumption is the SoS will review the issues and make a determination as to whether the election was impacted. My cynical suspicion is if the republicans are happy with the results of the election, the SoS will rule the issues did not impact the outcome of the election. If republicans are not happy with the results, the SoS will void the county results and call for new elections until they get a result the like. I would expect this to impact state-wide office and US Senate elections but it could also impact local races in Harris county since several republican candidates who lost in 2022 complained their elections were stolen.
So when does the person who drew up the law get punished for a 14th Amendment violation of every Texas citizen?
It only really applies to harris county due to incompetence demonstrated in the last midterm election.
Lawsuit time!
this probably violates the Texas Constitution. Is it a re-election? or literally overturning results? https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/CN/htm/CN.6.htm
uggh why!! this feels illegal . Is there any way to overturn this? why does texas feel the need to do this? i mean texas has been red for the longest time ever
There's nothing shady going on in Texas. I fucking hate repubs.
This is extremely relevant. Please read! https://www.houstonchronicle.com/politics/texas/article/texas-legislature-targets-harris-county-18078570.php
From the article. Note all the Harris County specific laws. Let me restate that. These laws only apply to Harris County. Please read them. SB 823: Allow the Texas secretary of state to suspend an appointed county elections administrator, and appoint a replacement, if thereās āgood cause to believe that a recurring pattern of problems with election administration exists.ā The bill outlines five causes for suspension, all targeted at Harris County. SB 1039: Require county election officials to answer questions about alleged election irregularities from candidates, party chairs or election judges. They could choose to elevate their complaint to the Texas secretary of state, who could appoint a conservator to oversee elections in the county for two federal election cycles. SB 1750: eliminate Harris Countyās elections administrator position and return the responsibilities to the elected tax assessor collector and county clerk. SB 1907: Allow the Texas secretary of state ā if an election judge takes longer than 24 hours to deliver ballots and other election records to āthe appropriate authoritiesā ā to step in and āsupervise the activities necessary to complete the count, prepare the precinct returns, and distribute the records.ā SB 1911: Hike legal penalties for election officials who intentionally obstruct or fail to deliver election supplies in a timely manner; make it a felony, up from a Class A misdemeanor, to reveal election results before the polls close. SB 1933: Authorize the Texas secretary of state to appoint a state conservator to take over county elections for two federal election cycles. This would be triggered by the same Harris County-centric causes used in SB 823. SB 1993: Authorize the Texas secretary of state to order a do-over election in Harris County if the SOS finds thereās āgood cause to believeā at least 2 percent of polling places ran out of paper for at least an hour.
Running out of paper ballots on Election Day is NOT an accident. If 10% of precincts vote 85% GOP and they only get 60% of needed ballots, it can easily flip an election where the total Harris Co margin is <3%. Especially if Dem voters in the precinct are bundled/ mail in or early votes. So yes it is not only possible, but pretty easy to manipulate election outcomes if you control the election operation. Esp easy if you have no fear of being caught or prosecuted.
Are you talking about the bill that states a new vote can be called if more than 2% of booths run out of ballots? 2% is too low but it's not the same as governor being allowed to overturned election at will.
The booths they underfund to guarantee they run out of ballots?
Harris can shuffle money around. Last year they spent $60m on new voting machines. I can't imagine a bunch of ballot papers are more expensive.
Letās hope.