Red Wing Daily: February 14, 2024
the more you know ....
State
Here’s an illustrative accounting (by John Brummett, no less) about the currents behind the very powerful bipartisan coalition pushing for FOIA protections in our Constitution. Aside from the common recoil against “government overreach,” Brummett also remarks on other ballot initiatives and the numerous petitions being circulated for voter signatures.
Didja know, “Arkansas ranked dead last in voter turnout for the 2020 national election, according to a recent report from the National Conference on Citizenship?” The Arkansas Advocate — eyeing the March 5 primary to opine on the various candidates — says “primaries attract the most committed voters, usually the ones who hold the most extreme views.” Early voting begins February 20. We have to agree when they say “Politics may dismay us, but democracy’s future hinges on paying attention.” The REAL democracy, that is!
Arkansans for Common Sense has been formed to help voters #DeclineToSign the petitions being circulated that would put “abortion as a right” on our November ballot. Rose Mimms with Arkansas Right to Life says the group will “educate people on the pro-life movement and ask them not to sign…”
And, again from the Advocate (doing a better job than any conservative “news outlet” in keeping up with current events) is the update that the auditor report on Governor Sanders’ $19,000 lectern “should be finished in March … but it’s unclear when the report will be made public.”
Faulkner County’s Quorum Court passed it in September 2021 after little pushback, however, “around 300 people on both sides of the issue” who showed up at this week’s Garland Count Quorum Court meeting forced a proposed “pro-life resolution” to be tabled without action.
National
Mark Davis, president of Georgia-based Data Productions Inc. and an expert in election data, says almost 35,000 Georgia voters in 2020 cast ballots from the wrong jurisdictions. Davis says he pushed for Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger’s office to investigate his data since May 2021 and asked again earlier this month after finding evidence of the same problems in Georgia’s 2021 and 2022 elections. Among other facts, Davis has found that :out of the 34,869 voters who cast ballots in the wrong jurisdiction, 4,696 who voted at a previous address in 2020 now are confirmed to have registered at the new address or have driver’s license information reflecting a change of address form with the Postal Service….”
When Elon Musk says “illegal immigrants are not prevented from voting in federal elections,” turns out he’s right. The New York Times then claimed Musk is “spreading election misinformation” about “illegal voting by noncitizens” and echoing a “conspiracy theory” spread by Donald Trump. Turns out, he’s right. The 2002 federal voting law requires only a “utility bill” or “bank statement” for identification!