Virginia Supreme Court strikes down Democrats’ redistricting plan, dimming party’s midterm hopes

Democrats need to stop doing the two sides thing. I keep hearing "yeah Joe Biden did that and it was bad, but".... STOP! Stop doing this two sides thing and defending what republicans said about you. Literally only attack. Don't waste time defending, it's ammo for republicans.

It's Murc's Law. The idea that only Democrats have agency for their actions because it's just assumed that Republicans will always do the sinister thing and so nobody even bothers trying to pass judgement on it. When Democrats do something good it's,"Well why didn't they do something better?" And then when Republicans do something bad it's, "Why aren't the Democrats fighting this harder?" It's why something like the War Powers Act vote recently gets 1 or 2 Democrats who voted for it and they catch all the ire because it's just taken as fact that it's not worth examining the persuasions or positions of the entire half the Senate that voted along party lines.

That's why the midterms aren't even a hope. We've already got a mountain of evidence that a Democrat majority *still* weighs every decision against, "But that'll make the Republicans angry!" and the Republicans *still* employ every stall tactic in the books. The Republicans are winning because, whether you like their policies or not, they are willing to fight to the death to achieve them. Very few Democrats stand so firmly on progressive issues. I think this has a lot to do with why GOP voters are so fired up and consistent and you can't motivate other voters to show up, it feels like our only two competing choices are: * "I like slavery and think it should be legal. Vote for me and I'll push to reestablish it." * "I don't like slavery, but I hate conflict even more. If you like slavery, why don't we have a round table and I'll listen to your views and perhaps we'll come up with a way where I get elected, I can say I don't like slavery, but I also help you reestablish slavery and get called a progressive." There's really only one political group that seems excited about their own policies. That excitement is contagious.

Republicans claim Democrats cheat so they can justify cheating themselves. So f*** it. Prove them right and prove you're better at it.

The Ohio Constitution also requires a redistricting commission and literally has this provision: "No general assembly district plan shall be drawn primarily to favor or disfavor a political party."

As a TN resident I’ve never seen something happen so fast here. It’s insane.

In this case Virginia SCOTUS said it’s unconstitutional because it was down through a special session. The goalposts are all over the place. 

it is always incredibly impressive how rapid and laser-focused, and masterful at bureaucratic mechanics, the republicans are when they have the opportunity to disenfranchise and/or generally f*** people. Trying to do something to help people will take years of going back and forth and things being trapped in committee hearings and then after a minor miracle and years of effort, once they do move forward, they get shut down instantly by one of countless bullshit tricks, so in the end, years pass and nothing gets done. But if the republicans need to destroy something, they can get it done in seconds.

Can’t in this case. The law in question is a constitutional amendment that sets how redistricting gets done. They took issue with the process of amending the amendment, as the legislature basically called a very late special session last year in the middle of an election. Courts reasoning is that it was so late it didn’t give voters who voted early a chance to punish the legislatures (if they chose). With that said, court conveniently ignores that the voters approved the new amendment in a separate special election.

Hasn’t affected everyone materially enough. Not yet, at least. Gas prices typically the indicator for these clowns that “something is wrong!”.

The solution should be that it is enforced anyway, and to arrest those who didn't comply with court orders in time. That would stop this bullshit instantly.

I’m just surprised how many Americans vote for cancer

They r*** children Cancer is almost not strong enough for what they are

That's literally what Republicans in Ohio have done for the last 5 years. The Ohio Supreme Court has struck down the "new" district maps 6 or 7 times since 2021, but the courts can't legally draw fair maps themselves, they can only order the maps to be re-drawn. The Republican-controlled map making committee just keeps pumping out different, but equally-illegal maps which get tied up in court until it's time for the next election and they get to use the initial illegal maps by default.

Ohio had those safeguards written into their Constitution via amendment to their constitution, Ohio don't care.

The US also has built "systems to protect democracy." They're just ignored. Democrats would be doing Americans a great service if they treated the rules like Republicans do.

Ohio's unconstitutional illegal maps.

"Conservatism consists of exactly one proposition, to wit: There must be in-groups whom the law protects but does not bind, alongside out-groups whom the law binds but does not protect." \- Frank\* Wilhoit

Its not unfortunate. Ignore them. I think America needs to see Dems go fully stupid like Maga for people to finally realize “oh shit this vert very bad. We need rules”. Right now America is banking on Dems being the adult. Don’t do it anymore

To be fair, it’s not irrational.

All that plus while campaigning in 2024, trump **LITERALLY** said "[vote for me and you'll never have to vote again. We'll have it **FIXED** so good](https://www.c-span.org/clip/campaign-2024/user-clip-trump-in-four-years-you-dont-have-to-vote-again-well-have-it-fixed-so-good-youre-not-going-to-have-to-vote/5126048)." I wish I got a nickel for every time I was called an "alarmist".

It doesn’t help that the media by and large uncritically reported on P2025 and called it fearmongering and ran unlimited cover for republicans to downplay it Edit: I don’t need it explained to me that reactionary billionaires have captured the mainstream media lol, I’m just explaining why many Americans didn’t take P2025 seriously. Unfortunately tons of Americans don’t have the time or means to dig deeper than what they see on their evening news

Pretty sure it was Russ Vought, one of the main drivers of Project 2025, that claimed we were already in the midst of the second American civil war and it would remain bloodless only as long as "the left" allowed it to be. I don't begrudge anyone that claimed they didn't know how they would manage to disrupt the elections because those were probably the biggest questions of this whole project, but anyone that thought they wouldn't be able to interfere because of the law or constitution or individual states etc were simply not paying attention. Facists make progress by always swinging and not even stopping for a second on any miss, just plowing forward all the same.

Oh no, CNN said it would be unpopular to do project 2025 so we don’t have to worry /s

A shocking percentage of Americans can’t read at the 6th grade level and consume news exclusively owned by billionaires

Blame the media. They let him off the hook for the entire Biden term and sanewashed his entire 2024 campaign as if he wasn’t an unmitigated disaster the first time around. A convicted felon that couldn’t get employment at a fast food restaurant, can be elected president. Make it make sense. This is where republicans have been steering the country since Reagan. They got their useful idiot to pave the way. It just shows how fragile our democracy really is/was.

The average American is dumb as a f****** post and frightened like a toddler. They don’t read or understand things, they vote how they’re told to by their preferred social group. 

Republicans greatest talent is convincing people that democrats are evil and then literally doing what they say the democrats are doing. Yet the average joe never sees it that way.

Democrats can expand and pack the court without a single Republican vote. Get on it. It's a 6-1 Republican "court" anyway

And the courts

and in florida and missouri

And when the voters tried to fix it, the GOP cheated to make the amendment sound like nonsense so they'd lose.

“John Marshall has made his decision, now let him enforce it” - Andrew Jackson

Billionaires won’t have anything to run within a year of them taking over. The nation will collapse because you cannot build a society that is more interested in building wealth than building society, and they’ll flee to another country to focus their efforts of extracting as much wealth as possible until there’s no one left to steal from. But that’s only if they’re allowed to. FDR’s hand was forced during the Great Depression because Socialists were moments away from organizing a coup, and The New Deal was the only thing that stopped it. Billionaires will happily pay their fair share if it means they get to put off The Revolution.

I believe this ruling was from the Virginia State Supreme Court.

Good I'm tired of my Californian taxes paying for Florida pedophiles anyway.

It wouldn't follow state lines. It would be rural vs urban. Let's not forget that California has the largest share of Republicans in any state.

Ohio does too. Ohio R’s said f*** it we ball

So basically Texas, but on a national scale 💀