Republican state houses

Travis of the Cosmos wrote:The sane thread where we talk about what Michigan is doing is boring. Let’s talk about the batshit insane things Republican legislatures are getting themselves into this week

Idaho- legislating that they can arrest you indirectly for things you’ve done outside of their state
Tennessee- trying to kick 3 democrats out of the legislature for (checks notes) attending an anti gun protest outside of the capitol in the wake of a mass shooting
Kansas- overrode the governors veto to pass a law saying that they can look at children’s genitals. I guess I could give a bit more context on this one but nah, they’re fucking weirdos.

Anyway it’s been a banner week of important business in these states

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Republican governors in Indiana and Idaho have signed into law bills banning gender-affirming care for minors, making those states the latest to restrict transgender health care as Republican-led legislatures continue to curb LGBTQ+ rights this year.

Pearson and Jones are both 27-year-old Black men who are in their first term in the Statehouse, while Johnson, 60, is a white woman who is in her fourth term. "It might have to do with the color of our skin," Johnson said outside the chamber after the vote.

Jake from State Farm wrote:

Trapper Gus wrote:

Ya think?

https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/davidmack/tennessee-republicans-expel-democrats-gun-protest?ref=bfnsplash

There's nothing to prevent them from getting appointed to their office. Watch repugligan heads explode when that happens.

Shortly after returning to the TN House, Rep. Justin Jones was called upon by House Speaker Cameron Sexton and delivered his first speech as a newly reinstated representative.

“Mr. Speaker, I want to welcome the people back to the people’s house. I want to welcome democracy back to the people’s house. That on last Thursday, members of this body tried to crucify democracy, but today we stand as a witness of a resurrection of a movement of a multi-racial democracy that no unjust decision will stand.”

And addressing the Republican members who voted to expel him, Jones said:

”I want to thank you all, not for what you did, but for awakening the people of this state, particularly the young people. Thank you for reminding us that the struggle for justice is fought and won in every generation.”

He concluded by shouting: “Power to the people.”

HELENA, Mont. (AP) — The latest high-profile example of statehouses deciding who can be heard during legislative debates is playing out in Montana, where a transgender lawmaker on Wednesday was barred from speaking on the House floor for the remainder of the session.

For days before voting to discipline her, legislative leaders in the GOP-controlled statehouse had not allowed Rep. Zooey Zephyr to speak during debates because she said colleagues who voted to ban gender-affirming care for youth would have “blood” on their hands.

The remark provoked outrage from Republicans who said the language was belittling and an affront to civil discourse. Zephyr rebuffed demands from legislative leaders to apologize for her remarks, leading to days of standoff between her and lawmakers in the majority party over how to move forward.

The silencing of Zephyr’s microphone drew hundreds of protestors to the Montana Capitol. After Zephyr’s request to speak on a proposal was denied Monday, they erupted in chants of “Let her speak!” and forced the House to temporarily adjourn. Police in riot gear were sent in to clear the gallery, leading to seven protestors being arrested on trespassing charges.

Texas, Tennessee, and Mississippi — all led by Republican governors and legislatures — are pursuing efforts to diminish local control over policing, elections, and the courts in liberal and racially diverse areas.

All of the proposed legislation targets issues that are especially sensitive for marginalized areas, like elections and criminal justice. In Mississippi and Texas in particular, the legislation is targeted specifically at localities where people of color are the majority. Efforts in all three states indicate an alarming trend, in which Republican leadership is attempting new strategies to further erode democracy, particularly in majority-minority areas and Democratic strongholds.

Robert J Sakimano wrote:I feel so bad for the decent folks living in these red states. Just horrific.

GRR Spartan wrote:Most of the GOP majority legislators are elected by voters who blissfully ignore that many of them are dependent on the evil “government” for their financial well-being.

They and or family members are collecting Social Security benefits. Retirement an/or SS disability benefits.

If they are farmers or in business supplying farmers like tractor dealers or Federally insured bank issuing farmers loans they don’t acknowledge they are on the Federal and sometimes state dole.

They hate government but want to keep the ACA that allows them to keep their children past 18 on their employer provided health care.

What it’s really about is limiting voting; declaring all elections where their candidates don’t win as fraudulent;
making Christianity the National belief; arming themselves to the hilt to intimidate those who dare to disagree.

The divide and conquer style is similar enough to the way Hitler and his National Socialist Workers Party grew by appealing to the small towns and agricultural ares and eventually became Germany’s ruling party to make me very comfortable. (The National Socialist Worker Party only became a majority party in Germany’s largest urban areas like Berlin, Munich,Hamburg, Cologne and Frankfort after the collapse of the Weimar Republic)

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Texas’ Republican-led House of Representatives impeached state Attorney General Ken Paxton on Saturday on articles including bribery and abuse of public trust, a sudden, historic rebuke of a GOP official who rose to be a star of the conservative legal movement despite years of scandal and alleged crimes.

Impeachment triggers Paxton’s immediate suspension from office pending the outcome of a trial in the state Senate and empowers Republican Gov. Greg Abbott to appoint someone else as Texas’ top lawyer in the interim.

The 121-23 vote constitutes an abrupt downfall for one of the GOP’s most prominent legal combatants, who in 2020 asked the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn President Joe Biden’s electoral defeat of Donald Trump. It makes Paxton only the third sitting official in Texas’ nearly 200-year history to have been impeached.

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The Republican-controlled Wisconsin Legislature on Wednesday plans to take the final step needed to stop Democratic Gov. Tony Evers’ administration from requiring 7th graders to be vaccinated against meningitis.

The state Senate and Assembly plan to take action that would block the proposal. There is no current meningitis vaccination requirement for Wisconsin students.

The Legislature’s vote would also make it easier for parents to get an exemption from a chicken pox vaccine requirement that is in place for all K-6 students. Evers’ administration wanted to require parents seeking a chicken pox vaccination exemption to provide proof that their child has previously been infected.

The Advisory Council on Immunization Practices — experts who advise the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention — has recommended that students get vaccinated against meningitis since 2005.

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The Wisconsin Legislature is expected to approve bills Wednesday that would protect access to gas-powered vehicles, snow blowers, lawnmowers and other machines.

The Republican-controlled Assembly passed the measures in April, with all Democrats objecting, and the Senate was expected to give final approval on Wednesday. It would then be up to Democratic Gov. Tony Evers to sign the bills into law or veto them. He said in April that he didn’t believe a ban on gas engines was necessary for the state to slowly transition to electric vehicles, suggesting he may not consider prohibiting such bans necessary either.

The bills seek to outlaw measures similar to a California statute passed last year that requires all new cars, trucks and SUVs sold in the state run on electricity or hydrogen by 2035. Democrats have said they had no plans to pursue a gas-engine ban in Wisconsin and accused the bill sponsors of fear-mongering.

So far this year, seven states, all Republican-led, have left the Electronic Registration Information Center, an interstate compact for sharing voter registration data, and more could follow.

Amid the exodus, some states, including Texas and Virginia, have said they plan to create their own data-sharing networks to replace ERIC.

Pledging to build a new system gives these states a way to rebut charges that leaving ERIC will make it harder for them to keep their voter rolls up to date. ERIC provides its members with what they say is invaluable and highly accurate data on voters who have moved or died.

But a close look at how ERIC was set up and how it operates suggests that building any new interstate partnership from scratch will be a major challenge, at the very least requiring significant time and resources.

Underscoring the point are previous failed efforts by states to create similar pacts: Two appear to have barely gotten off the ground, and one ultimately collapsed under the weight of its faulty data and lax security measures.

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina Senate Republicans filed legislation Monday to strip Gov. Roy Cooper of power to appoint State Board of Elections members, intensifying a yearslong struggle over state government powers between the GOP-led General Assembly and the Democratic governor. wrote: