I live in Houston, Texas. I want to point out clearly that the protection of cities in Texas and other states is essential for our democracy because cities are urban centers where people live and people are supposed to be important in a democracy. The mayor of Cleveland is right. Federal money myst go to the cities themselves. The Republican state government in Texas routinely withholds and redistributes federal money to benefit Republican interests only. That is their priority not the people who need the federal money.
As the TX guv bragged when he was AG, “I go into the office, I sue the federal government.” I am hard pressed to point to anything he’s done in his decades in office that benefits anyone at all but his wealthy, far-right-wing base. (Lifelong Texan here, one who’s lived in a rural area and three of the major cities).
This story, and all of the following comments, strengthen my point that NOTHING is more important than your local and state elections. We The People have focused on the national, and allowed the fascists to take control of more than 50% of our states, maybe as much as 75%. It is here we need to focus; Republicans continue to dig their own graves nationally, but the state and local governments are making our lives miserable. We are at the precipice, folks. Vote Blue regardless, and we'll go from there.
Both are equally important imo. Under a national autocracy there would be no autonomy and plenty of retribution against blue cities, just like we saw glimmers of under 45.
I live in MO where St Louis, St Louis County, Kansas City and Columbia (college town) are blue while the rest of the state is red. Ballot initiatives brought Medicaid expansion, medical and recreational marijuana to the state. We've had to fight to get an abortion rights initiative through the system while our state AG wrote the initiative in such a way that the state's courts threw it out. It'll be tough to get the signatures in time for 2024, and there are multiple initiatives (different cut offs) which also don't help. There's another initiative to raise the state minimum wage to $15/hour. State legislature tried to raise the threshold for ballot initiatives but repeatedly failed since the Republican legislatures can't govern and end up with too much in-fighting. It's a constant battle. We're also fighting Republican efforts to push school vouchers while MO is last in teacher pay and many rural areas have gone to a 4-day school week to cut costs. Part of the problem is Republicans in rural areas run unopposed but some Dirt Road Democrats are pushing back (see Jessica Piper and her efforts).
One problem is that, the way government works in this country, states are the fundamental unit of government (the Federal government has limited powers--although federal law trumps state law in those areas controlled by federal law, everything else is determined by state law). Local governments are considered subordinate to state government, although there are many states out west that include “home rule” provisions that give local governments more control. In the past, this was not that much of an issue because while there might have been competing interests between rural and urban areas, they weren’t at war with each other. It’s hard to see how this gets solved short of finding a way to oust the MAGAs from control of red states.
What Jay said. Democrats, Independents and non MAGA Republicans have come together in Idaho to try to shift to rank choiced voting and get our wing nuts out of office.
With EVERY action they take, at the federal, state, and local levels, Republicans show over and over again that they know they cannot win elections.
That their “policies” on any issue you can name are HUGELY unpopular so they only way they can win is by suppression, gerrymandering, and stacking the courts with corrupt judges so they can pass blatantly unconstitutional laws.
The idea of changing their policies so a majority of people would vote for them never crosses their minds. (After all, they reason, why should they, as public servants, do what the public wants? Doesn’t that public realize they’re just there to fund their own loss of freedoms?)
It’s beginning to feel like we cannot win against the domestic fascists. From expansive gerrymandering, to judges at every level, to school boards, to CNN and Univision, to russian rubles and Saudi petrodollars, to the most vicious Congress in nearly 250 years. And tireless haters at every level of red state gov’ts trying to kill the blue cities...
Echos of Nazi government restructuring are so loud and clear in these actions; I am having trouble not wondering when red states will start installing and using some type of American nationalist styled gauleiters.
The Constitution offers a federal fix for the blue-cities-in-red-states problem: admit the cities as states!
With a full congressional delegation, its own state government, and the power to negotiate compacts with other states, Houston, for example, would deal with the Texas government on an equal basis and not as a child of an abusive parent.
Other countries have city-states. Why not us? This should be a priority for a future Democratic majority.
Ah, the posts - did I miss those from or about DC residents? Those of us who live and pay taxes here and vote very blue locally and, in our limited way, Federally? Not those who live here temporarily and represent others. We are dependent on who you send to Congress. We are a blue city whose laws voted by the taxpaying citizens can be overturned by Congress or SCOTUS or the occupant at 1600 Penna. The last one, who wants to be the next one, went only blocks from the residence to this then-hotel or left DC entirely to Virginia for golf or to NY or FL or anywhere but here for meals, recreation, and oy never, theatre or other culture! He hated us while here and more so now. Imagine watching election returns knowing that what the entire rest of the country does may harm us.
Yes, I know: I could move. Alas, my home for 45 years after not being taught in my Ohio public school that DC residents were citizens but without the same rights, I love being here except for lack of voting representation!
So yes, I feel for all of you in blue cities in red states. Feel and work for our rights too please.
There are homes in very rural areas where the USPS cannot deliver. You will need to prove you live in the state, even if you do not have a USPS delivery address.
In California, the Marin County Registrar of Voters is trying to keep me from voting. They say my Post Box, which I have been using for at least 15 years is not good enough. They say I can’t vote unless I give the physical address where I live. This is beyond discrimination! Help?!
So, have you been registered at your Post Box for 15 years, or have you just been using it to receive mail? I think it is a requirement for voting in every state that you live at a physical address in that state, and that you need to provide that in order to register (your physical location determines what district you’re in, which local election you vote in, etc). Once you are registered, they should be willing to send your ballot to your post box if you specify that as your mailing address.
They can also require you to be a citizen over the age of 18, which is discrimination, but is normal and legal. I was going to say, if you don’t have a physical address due to homelessness, maybe they have a program for that?
All discrimination is not illegal; discrimination is illegal if it is based on a protected characteristic, such as race, age of 70 or more, gender, ethnicity, etc. What is the basis of your claim?
People without a regular physical fixed address. I am a
Retired and a constant traveler. I have used the same address for many years without issue. I believe the action by an assistant registrar at Marin County has decided to cull potential democratic voters. Out of curiosity I would be interested in knowing if similar non-democratic voters have been culled in this same manner.
As you might have noticed, there are thousands of people is America without physical addresses for any number of reasons. This should not be a voting blockade! Its discrimination.
I am sympathetic to your plight but I’m still asking what is the basis of your claim of unlawful discrimination? All discrimination is not illegal. For example, one can legally discriminate against people who have the letter “a” in their last names. I live in Marin too and from what I can see, there are relatively few registered Republicans here so I doubt that the registrar—who is likely a Democrat—is acting to limit the number of democrats who vote. Anyone can get a post office box anywhere; there is no residency requirement. One can even get multiple post office boxes. If there is no residency requirement for voting, maybe all of us California Democrats should get post office boxes in Waco so we can turn Texas blue!
After doing some rudimentary googling, it looks like people without a fixed address can use their last fixed address for voter registration purposes. Just can’t use a PO Box.
I live in Jacksonville, FL, which elected progressive Democrat Donna Deegan a year ago. I am waiting for DeSantis to begin to visit his wrath at utterly failing as a Presidential candidate on Jacksonville and other blue Florida cities.
In Oregon it is just the opposite thankfully. Portland is blue, but you might be surprised how much of the rural areas are not, which makes it hard for LGBT people to live in Oregon. And to add insult to injury, the property taxes here are insane which makes living here also very difficult and Portland's and Eugene homes cost almost as much as San Francisco.
I live in Houston, Texas. I want to point out clearly that the protection of cities in Texas and other states is essential for our democracy because cities are urban centers where people live and people are supposed to be important in a democracy. The mayor of Cleveland is right. Federal money myst go to the cities themselves. The Republican state government in Texas routinely withholds and redistributes federal money to benefit Republican interests only. That is their priority not the people who need the federal money.
As the TX guv bragged when he was AG, “I go into the office, I sue the federal government.” I am hard pressed to point to anything he’s done in his decades in office that benefits anyone at all but his wealthy, far-right-wing base. (Lifelong Texan here, one who’s lived in a rural area and three of the major cities).
This story, and all of the following comments, strengthen my point that NOTHING is more important than your local and state elections. We The People have focused on the national, and allowed the fascists to take control of more than 50% of our states, maybe as much as 75%. It is here we need to focus; Republicans continue to dig their own graves nationally, but the state and local governments are making our lives miserable. We are at the precipice, folks. Vote Blue regardless, and we'll go from there.
Strongly concur. Thank you.
Both are equally important imo. Under a national autocracy there would be no autonomy and plenty of retribution against blue cities, just like we saw glimmers of under 45.
Here, in North Carolina, it's Asheville, Charlotte, and the Research Triangle vs. the rest of the state. And the struggle is real.
I was just down there for a book reading in Durham, and my brother lives in Chapel Hill. We know the pain well.
I live in MO where St Louis, St Louis County, Kansas City and Columbia (college town) are blue while the rest of the state is red. Ballot initiatives brought Medicaid expansion, medical and recreational marijuana to the state. We've had to fight to get an abortion rights initiative through the system while our state AG wrote the initiative in such a way that the state's courts threw it out. It'll be tough to get the signatures in time for 2024, and there are multiple initiatives (different cut offs) which also don't help. There's another initiative to raise the state minimum wage to $15/hour. State legislature tried to raise the threshold for ballot initiatives but repeatedly failed since the Republican legislatures can't govern and end up with too much in-fighting. It's a constant battle. We're also fighting Republican efforts to push school vouchers while MO is last in teacher pay and many rural areas have gone to a 4-day school week to cut costs. Part of the problem is Republicans in rural areas run unopposed but some Dirt Road Democrats are pushing back (see Jessica Piper and her efforts).
We are fighting similar here in Idaho as well, also backed by AG misinterpretations of initiatives that required lawsuits to correct.
I assume you live in one of the Blue cities?
(I’m in St. Louis County, BTW)
One problem is that, the way government works in this country, states are the fundamental unit of government (the Federal government has limited powers--although federal law trumps state law in those areas controlled by federal law, everything else is determined by state law). Local governments are considered subordinate to state government, although there are many states out west that include “home rule” provisions that give local governments more control. In the past, this was not that much of an issue because while there might have been competing interests between rural and urban areas, they weren’t at war with each other. It’s hard to see how this gets solved short of finding a way to oust the MAGAs from control of red states.
Start with independent redistricting commissions and ranked choice voting instead of primaries!
What Jay said. Democrats, Independents and non MAGA Republicans have come together in Idaho to try to shift to rank choiced voting and get our wing nuts out of office.
With EVERY action they take, at the federal, state, and local levels, Republicans show over and over again that they know they cannot win elections.
That their “policies” on any issue you can name are HUGELY unpopular so they only way they can win is by suppression, gerrymandering, and stacking the courts with corrupt judges so they can pass blatantly unconstitutional laws.
The idea of changing their policies so a majority of people would vote for them never crosses their minds. (After all, they reason, why should they, as public servants, do what the public wants? Doesn’t that public realize they’re just there to fund their own loss of freedoms?)
Don't forget Columbus vs. Ohio.
It’s beginning to feel like we cannot win against the domestic fascists. From expansive gerrymandering, to judges at every level, to school boards, to CNN and Univision, to russian rubles and Saudi petrodollars, to the most vicious Congress in nearly 250 years. And tireless haters at every level of red state gov’ts trying to kill the blue cities...
idk. My hope is draining. And Im exhausted.
Echos of Nazi government restructuring are so loud and clear in these actions; I am having trouble not wondering when red states will start installing and using some type of American nationalist styled gauleiters.
In Flint, Michigan, (and other cities) they were known as "Emergency Managers".
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flint_water_crisis
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Financial_emergency_in_Michigan#Emergency_manager
The Constitution offers a federal fix for the blue-cities-in-red-states problem: admit the cities as states!
With a full congressional delegation, its own state government, and the power to negotiate compacts with other states, Houston, for example, would deal with the Texas government on an equal basis and not as a child of an abusive parent.
Other countries have city-states. Why not us? This should be a priority for a future Democratic majority.
Ah, the posts - did I miss those from or about DC residents? Those of us who live and pay taxes here and vote very blue locally and, in our limited way, Federally? Not those who live here temporarily and represent others. We are dependent on who you send to Congress. We are a blue city whose laws voted by the taxpaying citizens can be overturned by Congress or SCOTUS or the occupant at 1600 Penna. The last one, who wants to be the next one, went only blocks from the residence to this then-hotel or left DC entirely to Virginia for golf or to NY or FL or anywhere but here for meals, recreation, and oy never, theatre or other culture! He hated us while here and more so now. Imagine watching election returns knowing that what the entire rest of the country does may harm us.
Yes, I know: I could move. Alas, my home for 45 years after not being taught in my Ohio public school that DC residents were citizens but without the same rights, I love being here except for lack of voting representation!
So yes, I feel for all of you in blue cities in red states. Feel and work for our rights too please.
There are homes in very rural areas where the USPS cannot deliver. You will need to prove you live in the state, even if you do not have a USPS delivery address.
A few more. Birmingham vs Alabama and Salt Lake City vs Utah. Great post Jay. Thank you!
Yes, isn’t Birmingham 75 percent black now?
In California, the Marin County Registrar of Voters is trying to keep me from voting. They say my Post Box, which I have been using for at least 15 years is not good enough. They say I can’t vote unless I give the physical address where I live. This is beyond discrimination! Help?!
So, have you been registered at your Post Box for 15 years, or have you just been using it to receive mail? I think it is a requirement for voting in every state that you live at a physical address in that state, and that you need to provide that in order to register (your physical location determines what district you’re in, which local election you vote in, etc). Once you are registered, they should be willing to send your ballot to your post box if you specify that as your mailing address.
I still see that as discrimination. But I’m not here to argue the point I’m here to see if I can find someone to help with this issue.
They can also require you to be a citizen over the age of 18, which is discrimination, but is normal and legal. I was going to say, if you don’t have a physical address due to homelessness, maybe they have a program for that?
Not having a physical address.
All discrimination is not illegal; discrimination is illegal if it is based on a protected characteristic, such as race, age of 70 or more, gender, ethnicity, etc. What is the basis of your claim?
People without a regular physical fixed address. I am a
Retired and a constant traveler. I have used the same address for many years without issue. I believe the action by an assistant registrar at Marin County has decided to cull potential democratic voters. Out of curiosity I would be interested in knowing if similar non-democratic voters have been culled in this same manner.
As you might have noticed, there are thousands of people is America without physical addresses for any number of reasons. This should not be a voting blockade! Its discrimination.
I am sympathetic to your plight but I’m still asking what is the basis of your claim of unlawful discrimination? All discrimination is not illegal. For example, one can legally discriminate against people who have the letter “a” in their last names. I live in Marin too and from what I can see, there are relatively few registered Republicans here so I doubt that the registrar—who is likely a Democrat—is acting to limit the number of democrats who vote. Anyone can get a post office box anywhere; there is no residency requirement. One can even get multiple post office boxes. If there is no residency requirement for voting, maybe all of us California Democrats should get post office boxes in Waco so we can turn Texas blue!
After doing some rudimentary googling, it looks like people without a fixed address can use their last fixed address for voter registration purposes. Just can’t use a PO Box.
I live in Jacksonville, FL, which elected progressive Democrat Donna Deegan a year ago. I am waiting for DeSantis to begin to visit his wrath at utterly failing as a Presidential candidate on Jacksonville and other blue Florida cities.
I believe that DeSantis has pre-empted some local gun safety laws. One of them was in Tallahassee, I believe.
In Oregon it is just the opposite thankfully. Portland is blue, but you might be surprised how much of the rural areas are not, which makes it hard for LGBT people to live in Oregon. And to add insult to injury, the property taxes here are insane which makes living here also very difficult and Portland's and Eugene homes cost almost as much as San Francisco.
Same with NY. I'd say that the bigger cities are blue but the other rural areas (pretty much all of upstate) are very red and are pro-trump