The problem is that would be an ok amount (maybe?) to get something on the ballot and then see if the majority of the public votes to approve it. Unfortunately here is MI we have this loop hole which allows the State legislature to just adopt it into law instead of putting it on the ballot. And this is not the first time they have tried this though I can’t remember what it was - it was when I found out about this loophole.
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It’s just the word nerd in me that wants there to be a word for it, something similar to, say, “gaslighting.” But maybe it’s too particular, no matter how distinct it is, and the word I’m looking for (which is “brainwashed”) is one that describes a swathe of voters who believe literally anything you tell them because you’ve trained them to over decades.
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Only 3.4% is required?
Ok, so isn’t possible for Dems to also get 3.4% of Michigan voters to reverse that undemocratic, racist, myopic, evil and generally hateful Tepub BS.
What do I know? I’m probably missing something. 
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Well my bad too.
It’s not just this year, but I’ve always thought she was off. Her bubble isn’t in the middle.
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There are eligible voters who for whatever reason don’t have drivers licenses or passports or other photo ID. In the case of Michigan I would hope the republicans are shooting themselves in the foot with these shenanigans.
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I believe that Sinema would follow Manchin…whatever he does. And I am not prepared to write off Manchin.
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Or maybe we’re at the point where we really do need a new word for what’s going on. You know, like “Orwellian” or “sophistry”. In Russian, “jesuitical” is a synonym for “hypocritical”, which tells you that the Society of Jesus had a bit of a P.R. problem over there.
Perhaps some day, “Trumpy” will be the way everyone describes the present trouble.
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Yes the Dems could do a petition to overturn this if adopted by State legislature - but the Republican controlled legislature would NOT adopt it and it would have to be put on the ballot for a vote.
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I’m pretty sure Sinema is more interested in her “colorful” dress and poorly contrasting hair color today than anything to do with her … you know … actual job.
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If “Secure MI Vote” succeeds in collecting just 340,000 signatures then the new restrictions would need only be approved by the legislative branch.
The Republican legislature will approve the measures in the current petition. It would not approve a Democrat led counter petition.
@luckie beat me to it.
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She’s a fashion maven, who cares? A Senator voting on an important piece of legislature, in a school girl uniform is beyond the pale. It be like McConnell showing up as a grown up Little Lord Fauntleroy.
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Particularly when voters won a redistricting commission vote (2016?) that the state legislature has fought tooth and nail. Can’t remember what ended up happening with all that.
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According to the outline, the proposal would also prohibit election officials from distributing unsolicited absentee ballot applications, and would also prohibit “outside corporate entities” from funding voting procedures — a nod to right-wing anger at a group funded by Mark Zuckerberg that provided grants to elections departments in 2020.
GOP consultant Jamie Roe told Bridge Michigan, “What we are trying to do here is just restore the confidence and the belief in the integrity of the system.”
checks
yup, still here
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Just getting so tiresome. What the fuck did people think was going to happen when we lied and lied and lied and lied and lied about our Potemkin Village to assuage our arrogance by denying our failure?
They built a fucking school there, because of course they did…because of course it was all going to be forever…because of course we hadn’t failed…because of course we’re the most powerful and everything we do succeeds…because of course we can just decree by force and reason that things shall be a certain way…because we’re the Chosen White Christian Nation of Jesus…because we’ve been decreed by God to be the Masters of the Universe…
The MSM is actively looking for toe-holds to manufacture new and additional narratives about who was left behind. It will total approximately 38M people when they’re done, because apparently, we were supposed to evacuate every single person there who is not Taliban.
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Indeed. Other than mail-in voting being made available and ruining their hope of attenuating turnout via the pandemic, nothing made them angrier than not being able to use the purse-strings to fuck Democratic voting populations. It’s not as prominent and doesn’t get as much coverage, but they are positively livid about that. What’s the point of being a dwindling minority of a state’s population that districts itself into control over the state’s purse strings if you can’t then starve the majority of the population for funding as a means of keeping your minority-rules power?
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“In order to exercise the right to initiate legislation (initiative), a citizen or group must secure, on petitions, the signatures of registered electors in an amount not less than 8 percent of the total vote cast for all candidates for governor at the last gubernatorial election.” So the signatures must be from registered voters, but the number of signatures must equal 3.4% of the population.
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Like the filibuster, this was an unused implication of Michigan constitutional and law that Republicans have found a way to weaponize.
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Though it has lil chance of staying (the state’s supreme court might save it, but the organizers might be in deep doo-doo, if they don’t/Roberts court), i really need to ante up whatever $ to Democracy Docket.
I’m lazy, but stuff like the aforementioned is a glaring red flag/invite.
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OT: related
Excerpts:
In a Monday night monologue targeting the White House and military leaders over the US withdrawal from Afghanistan, Carlson demanded resignations. He also said: “When leaders refuse to hold themselves accountable over time, people revolt. That happens.
“We need to change course immediately and start acknowledging our mistakes. The people who made them need to start acknowledging them or else the consequences will be awful.”
-———
Angelo Carusone, president and chief executive of Media Matters for America, a progressive group, said: “When there’s another big violent rightwing flashpoint that captures attention, way too many in media will wonder out loud: ‘How did this happen?’ ‘Were there the signs?’
“You don’t need to wade into the online fever-swamps to see the cauldron of extremism simmering. Fox News is ratcheting up heat and legitimising nightly.”
“Fox News, not Facebook, will be the driver of the next insurrection. Plain and simple.”
Fox News declined to comment.
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Translation: “Angelo Carusone, president and chief executive of Media Matters for America, a group you should pay no attention to, [said] blah blah blah.”
The reflexive addition of some sort of warning or bias-labeling does exactly what it is intended to do, which is get as many people as possible to ignore the person being quoted and roll their eyes at whatever they said.
Well, at least someone agrees with me. Maybe people will listen to him since I just seem to get tut-tutted by the pooh-pooh’ing crowd.
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