Washington State

Today’s Primaries Are Crucial For The Future

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Five states are holding primaries today, and they are crucial for the future.

In Kansas, those who vote can insure the continuation of abortion rights, or make Kansas a backward, oppressive state.

In Missouri, we could end up having a former governor, Eric Greitens, accused of sexual and physical abuse of others, including his former wife and children, become the Republican nominee for the US Senate!

There are primaries for three Republican House members who voted to impeach Donald Trump, one in Michigan, and two in Washington state.

And Arizona looks as if it is on the way to nomination of Republicans who are promoters of the “Big Lie”, that Donald Trump won the Presidential Election of 2020, not President Joe Biden.

This is a scary, troubling time, and could portend greater grief and suffering in the future!

Automatic Mail Ballots Should Be Sent By All States To All Voters As A National Law To Insure Voting Rights!

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Nine states and Washington, DC send automatic mail ballots to all eligible voters who reside in their states.

These states include:

California
Colorado
Hawaii
Nevada
New Jersey
Oregon
Utah
Vermont
Washington State
Washington, DC

There is no viable reason why voters have to show up in person to vote, as long as they are registered and live in the state they reside in.

Such a system of mail in voting boosts voting, particularly of poor people, racial minorities, the disabled, members of the military, and the elderly.

Voting rights were guaranteed over time, and then added to by the Voting Rights Act of 1965, along with Constitutional amendments 15, 19, 23, 24, and 26, and so therefore, there should be ZERO boundaries for voting!

If we are to remain a democracy, this needs to become a national law that goes into effect by the Presidential Election of 2024, if not earlier with the Midterm Congressional Elections of 2022!

Presidential Nomination Contest Should Have Representative States In Each Section In First Month Of Primaries

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It seems likely that the whole process of nomination of Presidential candidates based on primaries will undergo dramatic change in 2024 and after.

It is time to stop Iowa and New Hampshire from having the first contests, as neither state is at all representative of the nation, as both are primarily white, rural, and small in population.

Diversity is needed, and the larger states in population should have a greater impact than smaller states in timing of primaries.

And caucuses, now in very few states, need to be abandoned completely.

Regional primaries makes the most sense, with the five major regions rotating in order of timing, but other states in each region given the opportunity to join the representative states if they choose, or else have their later primaries after the first five weeks of the primary season.

So we would have the Atlantic Coast be represented by Pennsylvania; the South represented by Florida; the Midwest represented by Wisconsin; the Mountain and Plains area represented by Colorado; and the Pacific Coast represented by Washington State in the first five weeks, with other states in each region able to add on if they wish, or else come after the first five weeks of primaries, starting in Mid March of the Presidential election year.

Vote By Mail Should Be Alternative, And Should Be Offered Everywhere This November For All Elections

Ronald 9 Comments

With the nation in the midst of the CoronaVirus Pandemic, it is essential that all states offer Vote by Mail as an alternative, making it mandatory for all elections!

As it is, about 25 percent of voters vote by mail, including this blogger and author.

People who are older; those who are disabled; those who are in hospitals, nursing homes, and other public institutions; and others who find it inconvenient to stand in lines at polls on Election Day already vote by mail.

If Donald Trump had his way, no one would vote by mail, as he knows that is the only way that a majority of people, not electoral votes, would vote for the Republican party. They make it their mission to make voting harder, and to work to undermine the right to vote for minority groups, and make voter suppression their major effort in office!

Standing online yesterday in Wisconsin, forced on voters by the Republican Party of Wisconsin and the US Supreme Court majority of conservative Republicans, was a total outrage and disgrace!

The right to vote is sacred, and no one needs to prove his residence, as long as he or she has registered to vote with proper identification. Once that has been established, we should follow Oregon, Washington, Colorado, Utah and Hawaii, all enlightened states, that have all of their elections by mail already!

Sixteen other states also have vote by mail allowed, including my state of Florida, but also California and Arizona as major centers of population. allow it.

It is time for such states as New York, Massachusetts, Virginia, Texas, Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois, and particularly Southern states, to spread democracy to all citizens!

Andrew Cuomo A Model Of A Crisis Leader, Compared To Our Out Of Touch Leader, Donald Trump

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In the midst of this CoronaVirus Crisis, as we have President Donald Trump displaying total lack of compassion, empathy, or concern with his pitiful leadership in handling the pandemic, we are seeing Profiles in Courage by state and local leaders who are proving how decent and impressive they are in stepping up to fill the void, at least partially.

Special plaudits are given to New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, who one could wish could step into the role of President, a position he chose not to compete for in the present Presidential Election of 2020 competition.

This author and blogger has to admit that he had never been very impressed with Andrew Cuomo, who he thought was not impressive at all in his role as NY Governor, and certainly nothing like his wonderful father, the late former NY Governor Mario Cuomo.

But now, Andrew Cuomo has proved me wrong, and I salute him for his gutsy and courageous leadership in a time when New York State and New York City have become one of the epicenters of the spreading of the virus, along with California and Washington State.

All Time High Of Women Senators (25) from 19 States, And Six States Have Two Women Senators!

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The 116th Congress has an all time high of 25 women Senators from a total of 19 states, and 6 states have both of their Senators being women, another all time high!

There are 17 Democrats and 8 Republicans among the women serving in the US Senate.

Arizona has Kyrsten Sinema and Martha McSally.

California has Diane Feinstein and Kamala Harris.

Minnesota has Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith.

New Hampshire has Maggie Hassan and Jeanne Shaheen.

Nevada has Catherine Cortez-Masto and Jacklyn Rosen.

Washington has Maria Cantwell and Patty Murray.

All but Martha McSally in these states with two women Senators are Democrats.

Democrats Won Much Bigger Victory Than Thought On Election Night, Could Be Transformative For Long Term

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As more seats are flipping in California, at least four of the 14 previously Republican held seats in the House of Representatives, it looks as if the “Blue Wave” is larger than what occurred for the Republicans in 2010 and 1994, and already is the most for Democrats since 1974 after the Richard Nixon resignation, and the highest percentage voting since 1966, when the Republicans gained seats under Lyndon B. Johnson, in the midst of the Vietnam War escalation.

It is now likely that the Democrats will have gained about 40 seats in the House of Representatives, but also significant are the gains of Democrats in the suburbs of Atlanta, Georgia; Dallas, Texas; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; and the gaining of a majority of House seats in Arizona.

It is now possible to say that Suburbia has become more likely to leave the Republicans behind long term, and join urban areas against the constant support of the rural areas of many states for the Republicans.

White rural America is fighting the tide toward urban and suburban educated people, women, racial and ethic minorities, young people, and independents who are abandoning the Republican Party.

It is clear that the Trump Republican Party is losing out in the long run, just as occurred in California in the 1990s when Republican Governor Pete Wilson worked to pass discriminatory legislation against Hispanics in the state, with the result being overwhelming Democratic control in the state legislature, in state executive offices, and in Congress, where the monopoly of Democrats has become a flood.

We can now imagine a turn in the next decade of Arizona, Texas, and Georgia toward support of the Democrats in Presidential elections by 2024 and 2028 for sure, and once Texas goes that direction, the Presidency is safe in the hands of Democrats.

Already, the Northeast and New England are Democratic strongholds, and the Midwest now has Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota controlled by Democratic Governors in time for reapportionment of seats after the Census of 2020. And in the Mountain West, we see Democrats doing very well in New Mexico, Colorado, and Nevada, and having the first Democratic Senator in Arizona in more than thirty years. The Pacific Coast of California, Washington, Oregon and Hawaii are also solid.

So even though Ohio and Florida were not bright spots for the Democrats, the old adage that Ohio matters may not matter, and realize that the Buckeye State had a split personality on Election Day, as Democrat Sherrod Brown won an overwhelming victory, even though Republican Mike Dewine defeated Richard Cordray.

Florida is not yet settled at this writing, as a recount is going on, but it could be that Florida will be seen as an outlier, and despite their being the third largest state in population and electoral votes, if and when Texas goes “blue”, and joins California and New York, it might not matter what happens in Florida.

The Year Of Democratic Women On The Ballot Coming In 2018: Ten Incumbents And Two Seeking Election To The US Senate

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In the midterm Congressional elections of 2018, a total of 12 Democratic women will be on the ballot for the US Senate, with 10 coming up for reelection and two making major challenges against Republicans in Arizona and Nevada.

Altogether, there are 16 Democratic women in the US Senate in 2017, so all but six are facing reelection battles.

This includes women in Trump won states—Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota, Claire McCaskill in Missouri, Debbie Stabenow in Michigan, and Tammy Baldwin in Wisconsin.

Additionally, in Hillary Clinton won states, the following Democratic women are up for reelection–Elizabeth Warren in Massachusetts. Kirsten Gillibrand in New York, Diane Feinstein in California, Mazie Hirono in Hawaii, Maria Cantwell in Washington State, and Amy Klobuchar in Minnesota.

Jacky Rosen is competing for the Nevada Senate seat against most endangered Republican Senator Dean Heller, and Kyrsten Sinema is trying to win the Senate seat of Jeff Flake, who is not running for reelection in Arizona.

The odds for both Rosen and Sinema are seen as good, and could tip the balance of the US Senate, but only if the other women, particularly in Trump won states, are able to overcome their disadvantage.

Therefore, while all of the Democratic women except Heidi Heitkamp are backed by the pro choice Emily’s List organization, it is important NOT to have a litmus test for Heitkamp, who while supportive of Trump about 51 percent of the time, still supports many Democratic Party goals, although she is not truly pro choice on abortion. If we want purity, then the Senate will be lost, as such a Senator as Joe Manchin of West Virginia, also running for reelection, is not any more pro choice than Heitkamp. The party needs to be more inclusive if it is to win and keep control of the US Senate in the future.

Paul Ryan Declares Republicans Have Made Their Choice To Stand With Donald Trump: Confirmation Of What This Blogger Said About Ryan Five Years Ago!

Ronald 7 Comments

Five years ago, on this blog, I condemned Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan, the Vice Presidential nominee for the Republican Party, chosen by Presidential nominee Mitt Romney.

I said he was “arrogant, reckless,cocky, overly ideological, uncompromising, inflexible”, as stated at the time, and also say he was and is unprincipled, hypocritical, corrupt and mean spirited. I received harsh criticism from the Right on various websites for my assertions, and they still will attack me, but that does not make me deny what I said and still contend today.

Five years later, Paul Ryan is Speaker of the House, and has proved that he is willing to sell the party he leads to a man he privately despises, as the only way to accomplish his goal of destroying the middle class, and ending Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security. An Ayn Rand follower, Ryan also has claimed he is a “good Catholic”, which many Catholic groups would deny, with his hard hearted attitude towards the poor.

Ryan knows his tax proposal is only going to worsen the class division in America, and make the rich wealthier, the poor in even worse shape, and much of the middle class in free fall economically.

Saying after the defeats in the elections last week that the Republicans have made their choice to stand with Donald Trump, despite his reckless and dangerous behavior, is a sign that Ryan is living in a fantasy world of his own making, and it is hoped that his opponent in his Wisconsin district for the 2018 midterm elections, iron worker and US Army veteran Randy Bryce, who has gained a lot of support, ends up retiring Paul Ryan from Congress next November.

Since Tom Foley was defeated for his seat in Washington State and as Speaker in 1994, with a major Republican wave, it is hoped the same will occur in 2018 with a Democratic sweep, to Paul Ryan.

Democratic Victories In Virginia, New Jersey, And Elsewhere Sign Of Repudiation Of Trump, And Beginning Of Impeachment Move

Ronald 84 Comments

Yesterday was a glorious day for Democrats across the board.

Ralph Northam won the Virginia Governorship, and the Democrats also won the Lieutenant Governorship and State Attorney Generalship, as as well as switch the control of the House Of Delegates in a massive defeat for Republicans. The Lieutenant Governor is Justin Fairfax, first African American in that position in Virginia history.

A transgender woman in Virginia defeated a rabid homophobe for a seat in the House of Delegates. And the boyfriend of a woman murdered on live television in 2015, ran on the gun issue and won a seat in the House of Delegates in her memory. Two Latinas were also elected to the House of Delegates, as well as a Vietnamese Asian American woman for the first time in Virginia.

New Jersey saw the repudiation of Chris Christie’s lieutenant governor, by Democrat Phil Murphy. And an African American woman was elected Lieutenant Governor.

Maine expanded Medicaid over the objections of right wing bully Republican Governor Paul Le Page.

New Hampshire saw Manchester’s Mayoralty fall to the Democratic nominee.

Minneapolis, Minnesota City Council saw the election of a transgender African American woman.

St. Paul, Minnesota and Helena, Montana elected African Americans to the Mayoralty of both cities, a first for both .

Charlotte, North Carolina Mayoralty went to an African American woman.

Two small cities in Georgia elected an African American woman Mayor, and two African American men won that office, one in a city in Georgia, and one in South Carolina.

Hoboken, New Jersey elected a man of the Sikh religion as its Mayor.

A woman was elected Nassau County, New York (on Long Island) County Executive for the first time, and a rare case of a Democrat winning that position.

The State Senate in Washington State went to a Democratic majority, making the entire Pacific Coast “Blue”, in California, Oregon and Hawaii, along with Washington State.

City Mayors, all Democrats, were reelected in New York City, Boston, and Detroit and a lesbian Mayor elected in Seattle, among other places.

Growing numbers of incumbent Republicans are deciding not to run for reelection, creating more open seats and making likelihood of Democratic takeover of the House of Representatives in 2018 much more likely.

Suburban areas across the nation are growing more Democratic on paper, after massive victories all over the nation.

Northern Virginia has become more powerful in numbers and percentage, overcoming southern and western sections of Virginia, making Virginia clearly a Blue State in the future.

With many Republicans now planning to retire, expect more criticism of Donald Trump, and a growing shift toward impeachment of Trump, since retiring politicians have an independence not seen otherwise, so just as John McCain. Jeff Flake. and Bob Corker have come out against Trump, more can be expected in both houses of Congress.

And for many Republicans who remain, they may prefer Mike Pence in the White House when they are running for reelection, and since Trump shows no loyalties to the party which gave him their nomination, why should they feel an obligation to support him through thick and thin?