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People are still reeling that Scalia thinks Voting rights are a
racial entitlement. <=his words.
(the SCOTUS tape came out yesterday, quite a commentary that drew audible gasps in the courtroom)
This piece I read yesterday is worth checking out:
<snip>
Voting Rights Act of 1965: Americans risk losing our most sacred right - Orlando Sentinel
I was unaware of the irony of Shelby County just a few years ago running afoul of the VRA, and being reigned in by a Bush Justice Dept - in this important SCOTUS case -- titled
Shelby County v. Holder.
racial entitlement. <=his words.
(the SCOTUS tape came out yesterday, quite a commentary that drew audible gasps in the courtroom)
This piece I read yesterday is worth checking out:
<snip>
"But Shelby County officials insist those days of discrimination are long gone. The South has changed, they told the court.
...
According to Mother Jones, more than 180 restrictive bills were introduced in 41 states making it harder for people to register to vote, cast their vote on Election Day, or vote by mail. Several of those voter suppression measures passed, but were later blocked by the courts.
Florida's attempt to cut short early voting, for example, was rejected by a federal court. In Texas, Rick Perry's plan to require all voters to produce a government-issued ID card was ruled invalid under the law. A different federal court also found that the Texas Legislature had intentionally discriminated against minority voters in drawing up electoral district maps. All three measures, and more, were blocked under Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act.
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And it wasn't so long ago that Shelby County itself fell afoul of the Voting Rights Act.
In 2008, under President George W. Bush, the Justice Department invoked Section 5 when the town of Calera changed its voting lines in order to unseat Ernest Montgomery, the only African-American on the city council -- when blacks made up 23 percent of the town's population. As Justice Sonia Sotomayor tartly advised Shelby County officials in Wednesday's hearing:
"…You may be the wrong party bringing this."
Voting Rights Act of 1965: Americans risk losing our most sacred right - Orlando Sentinel
I was unaware of the irony of Shelby County just a few years ago running afoul of the VRA, and being reigned in by a Bush Justice Dept - in this important SCOTUS case -- titled
Shelby County v. Holder.