Category: Uncategorized

This Georgia “Law” Will Be Stricken. Completely.

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The ink is not yet dry on the monstrosity that Governor Kemp has signed, and already a federal lawsuit in Atlanta correctly seeks to enjoin it — on First and Fourteenth Amendment grounds, as well as the more prosaic “thwarting of federally protected (voting) rights, under color of state level law” — as set out in 42 U.S.C. §§ 1983 and 1988.

This is a well-pleaded complaint.

…Over the past year, Georgia voters turned out in record-shattering numbers. In the 2020 general election, nearly 5 million Georgians voted, compared to 4.16 million in the 2016 general election. In the January 2021 runoff elections for both of Georgia’s U.S. Senate seats, nearly 4.5 million voters cast ballots. The sky-high turnout in the runoff election bucked past trends, when voter participation typically dropped from the general election…. 

After the high-turnout general election, officials conducted multiple recounts and audits. Supporters of former President Donald J. Trump filed several lawsuits seeking to overturn the general election’s results, falsely alleging widespread fraud and misconduct on the part of elections officials. No court in any of these lawsuits found support for these litigants’ fanciful claims. After the senatorial runoff elections, Secretary Raffenspergger declared in a nationally televised interview that Georgia “had safe, secure, honest elections….” 

The Bill’s supporters also claim that it will “ensure” election integrity. But legislators and the Secretary himself have admitted that Georgia’s elections are already safe and secure. The Secretary has described the state’s election administration system as the “gold standard” for the United States. At no point during the 2020 election cycle did any elections official, any lawsuit, or any voter reveal anything in Georgia’s election administration requiring any of the measures in the Voter Suppression Bill to “ensure” election integrity. Notably, this was not for want of trying. 

None of the Bill’s burdensome and discriminatory changes to Georgia’s election code will increase the public’s confidence in the state’s election administration or ensure election integrity….

In the wake of general and runoff elections that saw Black-preferred candidates prevail in the presidential and U.S. Senate races for the first time in decades, Republican majorities in the Georgia General Assembly passed several restrictions on voting rights. 

First, the General Assembly enacted a requirement that voters requesting an absentee ballot submit with their application their driver’s license number, their personal identification number on a state-issued personal identification card, or a photocopy of other specified forms of identification. This provision will disproportionately affect voters who are elderly, indigent, or from minority communities. According to one national study, as many as 25% of Black voters do not possess a current and valid form of government issued photo ID, compared to 11% of voters of all races….

Georgia’s GOP will be a laughing stock for trying this “Jim Crow in a fancy suit” approach. Updated, on Sunday morning:

Now hoping that all in the middle south are safe and dry, this morning — after over five feet of flood waters push over riverbanks in some places in middle Tennessee. . . be safe, one and all. [And, in a trivial footnote, it looks like I will have beaten President Obama’s brackets by three full games, no matter how the rest of the tourney unfolds. . . perhaps more if I get a few breaks. Grin. . . .Well played just the same, Mr. President.]


नमस्ते

Today The NAACP LDF Should Start To See Those “Star-Chamber” Materials, In DC, From Tangerine And His Chubby Lil’ Sidekick Barr…

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This ought to be a day of much clarifying antiseptic — in the form of documentary sunshine, in DC.

On February 24, the able USDC Judge John D. Bates ordered Tangerine to turn over the below, to the NAACP. Today is that day, so expect it by five, eastern. There is little doubt that the Biden administration has ordered all involved with record-keeping to comply with all lawful USDC orders, of which this is one. So — look for a download on it, here tomorrow — before Sister Jean dons her game gear.


Set/Reset Deadlines:

…Defendants Initial public release of materials; provide plaintiff an estimate of the volume of remaining materials and proposed scheduled; and provide plaintiff description of any documents or categories of documents defendants continue to withhold based on a legal privilege or FOIA exemption due by 3/26/2021….

Now you know — and Sister Jean is now pulling for an all Jesuit final game, against Gonzaga — for the national roundball title.

Cool… grinning, with one shot all done (from Pfizer; feeling zero off-target effects) — and one to go, scheduled on April 13… do be excellent to one another. Out.



नमस्ते

Given That I Am Right Here — “Living It”, In Real Time, I May Run Occasional Stories On The First Reparations Program To Begin Operating In America…

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I will keep this first one very brief (as in truth I am still processing the events at the grocery where I used to do my weekly undergrad shopping, throughout my last two years… in Boulder).

Here is the Wa Po on it — and to be certain, last night’s vote really (underneath it all) means only that the Council will continue to move forward, studying a much wider array of programs, but this housing assistance comes as a tangible first step — in a wider effort.

Afterall, to be a success — in lifting more of the descendants of slaves into the middle class — it will have to go deeper and wider than just aid to people already in position to be homeowners. But the measures will be kept… very local — for truly longer term, rooted residents. And thankfully, the robust new local tax revenue from legal weed will allow for such deeper, and wider policy initiatives.

So… do watch this space… as I am likely to be among the boots on the ground, in the meetings and debates — as this unfolds here in real time. Onward, trying to manage a faint smile… even as an automatic weapons ban, and sensible gun control legislation (with more funding for mental health programs, in the under-served communities) must be a renewed priority.

नमस्ते

Contrary To The Fox (False) Narrative — On Kids Now Arriving At The Southern Border…

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Fox and OANN run headlines saying the children are in custody or detained. This is simply a lie.

Unlike when Trump held kids in cages, on bare concrete floors… these 800 plus children are in what amounts to (albeit temporary) day care facilities, safe, secure housing — but not under militarized guards’ eyes. They have clean bedding, fresh water and lots of healthy food. They are being protected, not arrested/detained.

But don’t trust me — trust the able USDC Judge handling the 36 years of class litigation protecting people at the southern border, the able Judge Dolly Gee. So yes, I offer the on the record remarks of the USDC court, now presiding over the clean up of the former Trump administration lawlessness there:

“…The Court commends each agency for their swift responses to increased exigencies. In particular, the Court notes the positive changes implemented in CBP’s coordination and strategy with respect to Flores Settlement Agreement compliance. In light of the rapidly evolving circumstances, the Court shall require specific topics to be reported upon in the Juvenile Coordinators’ next interim reports, as described below.

As for the Notice of Rights and ICE Directive, ICE’s new policies resulting in more rapid processing of families seem likely to make this issue less of an urgent priority at this time. The parties’ next Joint Status Report on the ICE Directive, originally stipulated to be due on March 24, 2021, shall include an updated census of any Class Members in ICE custody for over 20 days. In the meantime, the parties and Legal Services Providers Amici Curiae remain free to disseminate the Notice of Rights to their clients as they deem appropriate.

The parties also requested the inclusion of a range of additional topics in next week’s Joint Status Report. To encourage expeditious resolution of these issues, the Court grants those requests….”

Onward — but rest assured that the children, even though streaming into the nation in record numbers now, are being well-cared for, and certainly are safer here — than they were, in the Baja desert. Here they have unlimited access to clean, fresh water, fresh healthy food, clean bedding, soap, toothbrushes and showers.

So don’t believe all the BS the far right is peddling about Biden being worse than Trump at the border. The biggest lies are often those most repeated on Fox and OANN.

Out.

[U: No. 1 Seed Illini — GONE!] O/T: Sister Jean’s Blazing Fire, And Still Unfolding… Legacy: A Last Dance?

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I grew up in a very high-altitude Rocky Mountains parochial elementary school (long-since shuttered; serving back then as an altar boy) but went to public middle school, high school and land-grant university — and then returned to a Jesuit institution for law school. So I come with some pre-conceived viewpoints, or biases, if one prefers. I was both a lector and communion minister for most of that time.

On top of all of this, as I’ve written repeatedly elsewhere, I no longer generally adhere to the central covenants of that faith — especially so, insofar as its teachings roundly contradict a woman’s primary agency over her own body. And the right of women to be full priests of the faith, should they feel that calling.

All of that said, there are literally hundreds of millions of very fine people who still closely follow the faith. They truly intend to be the best humans they can be, and to be excellent to one another. And nearly chief among those, in my view, is Loyola of Chicago’s Basketball Chaplain Sister Jean.

I am feeling Sister Jean, in the purest sense. She is 101 years young now, having played Catholic high school roundball herself last, in 1936, at St. Paul’s High in San Francisco (while FDR was still President). She is obviously a very fine human being. Someone we should all laud, for now nearly eighty-five years of Godly and charitable service.

Now, the rub: most of this year’s Rambler round-ball team will graduate after this tourney run — and it is not likely that the program will return enough younger fire-power to reach the field of 64 next year. As such, the biological reality is that Sister Jean is likely watching her boys, in what is her final time at the Big Dance.

If anyone ever deserved the gift of seeing an improbable upset (again!), it is this fine woman of God. And I am certain she will be satisfied either way, when she meets her Maker, with just having witnessed it — after a life given to the the civil rights movement of the 1960s, among other endeavors… but it would sure be… cool, if she could see just one more win (or maybe even… four more, and a national championship).

UPDATED: Loyola just simply routed the Midwest’s No. 1 seed — Illinois. That they won by so much is perhaps the most shocking part of it — and they never gave up the lead after the first bucket. Illinois is a greatly-gifted, and very athletic team. Much more athletic than Loyola position by position, and deeper on the bench than the Ramblers. But Loyola just played fundamentally perfect team basketball, back-cutting, and solid pick and rolls all day, against the over eager Illini. Well-done! End, update.

So… way to go you Jesuits. you set the world ablaze, again, at 11 AM CDT this morning — right after Mass, and Sister Jean’s pre-game prayer…. [Perhaps immodestly, as a footnote — my most sober brackets are now ahead of Mr. Obama’s by three full games — as we enter Sunday. Smile….]

नमस्ते

Tim Cook Speaks In Favor Of Dreamers’ Path To Citizenship…

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We need the GOP members of the Senate to get on board here — and address the inequities. But failing that, we need to pass it 50-49, now that it has cleared the House.

We need a path to citizenship for kids who’ve only ever known the US as home. Per Apple’s Tim Cook, speaking for the Business Roundtable yesterday:

“…Dreamers — who came to America as children and who know it as their only home — make invaluable contributions to America and certainly to companies like ours. Dreamers have been on the frontlines of fighting the pandemic as healthcare workers, of caring for our communities, and of working in the disciplines and industries that will help America emerge stronger on the other side of COVID-19. As we work to reinvigorate the U.S. economy, we need their continued contributions as equal partners in the American story, and we urge Members on both sides of the aisle to vote in support of the American Dream and Promise Act to help make that possible….

“The vast majority of Americans believe that standing up for Dreamers should be a priority. Once the American Dream and Promise Act moves forward, the Business Roundtable urges policymakers to prioritize bipartisan and practical solutions to fix our broken immigration system, enforce the rule of law and respond to the pressing challenges we face….”

Our continued leadership in the life sciences and tech and space exploration all depend to a large degree on the geniuses now arriving as babies — and thus, on the continued reform of our immigration laws and policies (post-Tangerine)… and perhaps most importantly, the US’s over half-century of wide open freedom — for immigrants, here arriving, to pursue their hopes and dreams in peace. Now you know — grinning — and let’s go Ramblers!

नमस्ते

[U: First Four Results] Head To Head, Against “Barack-etology” — For The First Time In Several Years, We Are Significantly Different, In The Middle Rounds.

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This (at right — click to enlarge) means one of us will be a runaway winner against the other.

There is very little chance that our errors (inter se) will cancel each other out, even though we both have Gonzaga to win it all.

And in my most sober brackets, at right, I am truly-saddened not to have Loyola going deeper; and saddened that Illinois doesn’t win it all. They are as good as they’ve ever been in 30 years, at least compared to the rest of the Big Ten talent.

Finally, my Buffs drew a tough bracket — just as Loyola did — and so they don’t go very far. [But if the Buffs even go as far as I’ve predicted, that may be my margin of victory over our 44th President, since he has them losing in the first round. We shall see.]

I think he’s wrong about Michigan State, too — that’s his sentimental side getting the best of him, again this year. He often flames out expecting the Spartans to do better than they generally do. UPDATE: Michigan State is out. UCLA beats them in overtime. Sorry, Mr. President.

Ah. . . such is life.

It should be clear that Mr. Obama’s picks are hand written, and unless I disagree with him — there is no green name. But where a green name appears, those would be my picks which disagree with his. Now we wait for the proper first round action, tomorrow. Grinning… ever grinning — be excellent to one another.

नमस्ते

Some More Of The Detail, On That Very Fishy McGuireWoods $2.6 Million Government/Tangerine-Engineered Payday…

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About two weeks ago, Above the Law ran a rather alarming story (well-before the as NPR-reported conflict of interest was widely-known) saying essentially that it was that publication’s understanding that such large sums could not be let on no bid contracts by federal political appointees — but that is apparently exactly what happened, under Michael Pack. The recipient of that largess? John D. Adams, a McGuireWoods partner (and reputedly a lineal descendant of our nation’s second President).

Of course, paying outside lawyers to do what should be internal (flat cost to taxpayers) federal work should always raise flags… but when it turns out (as here) that that law firm switched sides, and “fired” a litigation client (as well as — effectively — its own partners working on that side of the matter), a client contemplating litigation over these same issues, against that federal agency — in order to take on the politically-motivated “dirt-digging” work from Pack, the bar authorities need to step in. That is simply far beyond the bounds of any acceptable advocacy, under every ethical canon in force in any of the 50 states, in this author’s experienced opinion. Here’s the list of at least some of the heavy-handed staffing (and thus high daily billings), on the Pack matter — again, according to Above the Law:

…According to the records, five partners, six associates, two counsel, two staff attorneys, seven paralegals, three case assistants, 14 other timekeepers, and 11 outsourced attorneys were all on the engagement. The engagement was led by partner John D. Adams, who has
a ton of conservative bona fides as a former GOP candidate for Virginia attorney general and as a former Clarence Thomas law clerk….

The at least $2.6 million tab was run up in under four elapsed months. Breath-taking. Even so, I suppose nothing Tangerine appointees do should surprise any longer, but this one is… well beyond any of that crime crew’s usual and ultimately, banal… Blarney.

नमस्ते

Before Midday Thursday, I’ll Post Complete Final Brackets — Condor Vs. Obama… As We Have Ever Since 2012…

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But since he has left public life, his aren’t online yet (and probably won’t be, until noon on Thursday) — so I’ll post a few partials, from my alternate… “for fun” bracket pools with my bros and friends… why? Well, because the Irish is risin’, in me — this fine morning… and long-shots rule this day of… climbin’ Croagh Pádraic.

It turns out that Sister Jean has been vaccinated, and at 101 years young she will travel to Indy to see her team. That alone means Final Four. Grin… and now, courtesy of the late Billy Kerrigan (all delivered in a thick, deeply resonant Irish brogue):

…May those that love us… love us.

May the good Lord turn the hearts — of those that do not…

And if He canna’ turn their hearts — then…

Let Him turn their… ankles,

That we might know them — by their limpin’…

Do be excellent to one another, and know that these green eyes are crinkling at the corners, smiling at all of you of good will. Erin Go Brah.

Onward, with full side by side official brackets — if Mr. Obama puts one out — by Thursday around 11 AM EDT.

नमस्ते

Rudy G., And “Tangerine Hisself” Will Owe An Under-Oath Answer In The 19th Century Federal Anti-Klan Statute Voting Rights Case Brought By Rep. Bennie G. Thompson, In DC By April 26, 2021

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Yet another shoe is falling. The former president, and nominal head of the Republican party, along with his consigliere, and domestic white terror groups… are being sued in a 21st Century version of the 19th Century anti-Klan lawsuits (under 42 U.S.C. § 1985(1)). Pre-planned, well-organized, domestic racial terror — the likes of which we haven’t seen on this scale. . . in over 75 years.

By agreement, Baby T will have until late April to explain why he and Rudy G. should not be liable for attempting to intimidate, and otherwise deprive all people (but especially people of color) of their lawful voting rights, in these United States, in this last election cycle. This is a very solid case — my backgrounder on it all, may be found here. Here’s the latest, this morning:

…MINUTE ORDER granting [9] Consent Motion for an Extension of Time.

Mr. Trump shall file his answer or otherwise respond to the Complaint by no later than April 26, 2021. Signed by Amit P. Mehta on 3/16/2021….

Now you know — onward, grinning just the same… as we watch the snow melt here now, under coolish steel-gray skies.

नमस्ते