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June 27, 2012 8:36 pm | By Dylan
Lawsuits, politics color voter ID in Pennsylvania
Earlier this year, Pennsylvania lawmakers passed HB 934, a voter ID law whose original sponsor, Daryl Metcalfe, is an ALEC member. Voting rights advocates filed a lawsuit in May, and in June, Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald announced that he,…
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June 27, 2012 6:33 pm | By Dylan
US Rep joins Citizens United fight after Phila. passes resolution
The Philadelphia City Council added its voice to the growing grassroots chorus against the Supreme Court’s ruling in Citizen’s United v. Federal Elections Commission last week, when it passed a resolution in support of amending the Constitution to overturn the…
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June 26, 2012 9:23 pm | By Dylan
Voting rights victory in New Hampshire
With voting rights under attack nationwide, it was refreshing to see New Hampshire Governor John Lynch veto two bills last week that would have required identification at the polls and profoundly impacted voter registration. SB 289 was "voter ID lite"…
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June 26, 2012 8:31 pm | By Amelia
ALEC-Supported Disability Scholarship Program Challenged in Oklahoma, Threatens Public Schools and Church-State Separation
In June 2010 the Lindsey Nicole Henry Scholarships for Students with Disabilities Act was signed into law in Oklahoma. The law allows parents of disabled students—without regard to financial need— to take funds appropriated to public schools and divert them…
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June 25, 2012 8:24 pm | By Paul Gordon
Supreme Court Reverses MT Court, Affirms Flawed Citizens United Decision
Any hope that the Supreme Court would reconsider the disastrous Citizens United decision was dashed this morning, when the Court in a 5-4 decision summarily reversed a Montana Supreme Court decision on campaign finance without even hearing oral arguments. Rather…
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June 21, 2012 7:36 pm | By Paul Gordon
Court’s Conservatives Join Right Wing Attack on Unions
The right wing effort to defund unions opened a new front at the Supreme Court this morning in the case of Knox v. SEIU, as the five conservative Justices crafted a new constitutional rule that will make it harder for…
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June 21, 2012 7:07 pm | By Paul Gordon
ABA Expresses “Grave Concern” Over Obstruction of Judicial Nominees
Last week, Senate Republican leaders sharply escalated their obstruction of judicial nominees, saying they will block all votes on all circuit court nominations until after the election. Yesterday, Bill Robinson, the president of the nonpartisan American Bar Association, condemned this…
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June 20, 2012 9:38 pm | By Calvin Sloan
Activists and People For Protest Karl Rove and American Crossroads
Today, in the scorching D.C. summer heat, activists marched over two miles from the “Take Back the Dream Conference” to rally outside of the offices of Karl Rove’s Crossroads GPS and his super PAC American Crossroads. Crying out, “Karl Rove…
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June 19, 2012 9:43 pm | By Justin
PFAW Panel on Constitutional Amendment at Take Back the Dream
At this week’s “Take Back the American Dream” conference, Representative Keith Ellison, Missoula City Councilman Jason Weiner, Rev. Barry Hargrove, and Maryland State Senator and Constitutional Law Professor Jamie Raskin joined PFAW’s Marge Baker for a panel discussion entitled “Overturning…
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June 19, 2012 4:33 pm | By Omar
Waking up from the Nightmare
Although the DREAM Act seemed to remain a dream after being blocked by Senate Republicans in 2010, the Obama administration has recently taken steps to make staying in the United States a reality for thousands of young undocumented immigrants. Last…
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June 19, 2012 3:33 pm | By Justin
Context for the Effects of Citizens United
The Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision is commonly criticized by good government advocates because it has led to countless wealthy individuals and corporations making unlimited contributions in unprecedented amounts to groups attempting to sway electoral outcomes, often anonymously. As a…
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June 18, 2012 3:25 pm | By Paul Gordon
Sen. Menendez to GOP: “Get Back to Work”
In response to Senate Republicans' sharp escalation last week in obstructing circuit court nominees, New Jersey Sen. Robert Menendez has some simple advice for his colleagues: "Get back to work." Last Wednesday, Minority Leader Mitch McConnell announced that his party…
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June 14, 2012 9:33 pm | By Dylan
Purge sparks three lawsuits in Florida
Since Florida Governor Rick Scott and Secretary of State Ken Detzner refused to comply with a Department of Justice warning to stop their sweeping effort to purge voters from the rolls, the DOJ has filed a suit against the state,…
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June 14, 2012 4:53 pm | By Paul Gordon
Senate Republicans Announce Sharp Elevation in Obstruction of Judicial Nominees
Yesterday, Senate Republicans announced that they will no longer consent to confirmation votes for any appellate court nominees until after the election, invoking the so-called Thurmond Rule. While they claim they are acting consistently with previous practice in presidential election…
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June 14, 2012 2:14 pm | By Justin
ALEC’s Desperate PR Strategy
The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) has created damage-control web site, “I Stand With ALEC,” asking people to submit a letter to members of ALEC’s Private Enterprise Board and member legislators in support of the ultra-conservative, secretive organization. The form…
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June 14, 2012 2:05 pm | By Justin
Citizens United Continues to Stack the Deck
Two short paragraphs from a Wall Street Journal article about billionaire casino mogul Sheldon Adelson’s political contributions vividly illustrate the damage to democracy done by the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision: Mr. Adelson has told friends that he intends to…
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June 12, 2012 10:16 pm | By Justin
Johnson & Johnson Leaves ALEC
This afternoon, Johnson & Johnson announced that it would discontinue its membership in ALEC, making it the 19th corporation to do so. The running tally of organizations and legislators leaving the American Legislative Exchange Council, as of today: • Corporations:…
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June 12, 2012 9:59 pm | By Paul Gordon
Hurwitz Finally Confirmed By Voice Vote
Yesterday, more than three months after a bipartisan majority of the Senate Judiciary Committee approved the nomination of Andrew Hurwitz to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, the Senate Republican filibuster was finally ended in a 60-31 cloture vote. Today,…
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June 11, 2012 10:56 pm | By Paul Gordon
Another Day, Another Filibuster
Yet again, Senate Republicans have forced a vote to end their unwarranted filibuster of a qualified judicial nominee nominated by President Obama, a filibuster that was ended by a 60-31 vote this evening. Arizona Supreme Court Justice Andrew Hurwitz has…
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June 11, 2012 9:54 pm | By Justin
Allen West’s “American Way’
Congressman Allen West (R-FL) is out with a new ad this week. Set to soaring, dramatic music, the Congressman tells the story of his upbringing and how describes how his father gave him the opportunity live the American Dream. He…