Last year we saw the incredible wave of voter ID legislation promoted
nationwide by rightwing activists seem to peter out. High profile
campaigns for restrictive photo ID and proof-of-citizenship
requirements, which limit the voting of many legal citizens (see here and here), were met with defeat. But the proponents of voter ID have apparently not been deterred. The good people at Project Vote,
who have been monitoring voter ID legislation across the country, are
finding that rightwing lawmakers in key states continue to place voter ID at the top of their to-do list.
This is despite the passing of another election without any evidence
of the type of fraud that voter ID requirements would help prevent -
someone attempting to register and vote twice in the same state.
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Last year we saw the incredible wave of voter ID legislation promoted
nationwide by rightwing activists seem to peter out. High profile
campaigns for restrictive photo ID and proof-of-citizenship
requirements, which limit the voting of many legal citizens were met with defeat. But the proponents of voter ID have apparently not been deterred.
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While the financial crisis has received more of the headlines, there has been a growing unemployment crisis over the last year.
With unemployment at a five-year high, nearly 10 million Americans were
officially unemployed last month, with nearly 500,000 workers applying
for benefits each week. And the problem doesn't stop there, with
long-term joblessness rising:
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Direct democracy through popular intiatives and referenda began a
century ago as a grassroots, progressive reform aimed at circumventing
corrupt legislatures and increasing civic involvement. The long history of this reform
indicates that in the whole this experiment in direct popular
participation in the legislative process has been successful as an
avenue for passing populist policies that maintains the favor of
the public over time. However, throughout this history there have
also been attempts, sometimes successful, to manipulate the process and
the electorate into passing legislation that would not garner majority
support had voters possessed an accurate conception of its content and
effect.
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This Dispatch is a roundup of what ballot initiatives will
appear on state ballots across the country this November. Whether it's
workers rights, energy policy, education, transit, abortion or health
care, ballot initiates give voters a chance to directly vote on an
issue.
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Common Cause and The Century Foundation have released the new version
of their joint biennial report on election administration in 10 swing
states and the findings are not very encouraging: while voters' desire
to participate is growing, states have only made fitful progress
improving the voting process, and in many instances things have moved
backward since the last federal election in 2006. Examining the most
recent election experiences of Florida, Georgia, Michigan, Missouri, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Colorado, New Mexico, and Virginia
the report details serious problems in every major aspect of the voting
process, along with a handful of bright spots where individual states
are moving important reforms.
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Missouri's legislative session was largely a repeat of last year
- the best that can be said is that some particularly bad bills failed
to pass. Unfortunately, others did. The state passed a particularly
regressive immigration bill, but failed to take action on voter ID
legislation. Beyond those issues the session mostly played out as a
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Voter suppression is growing rapidly in America today. Over half of states now have voter ID requirements more stringent than that required for first time voters in federal elections. Several states are clamping down on voter registration drives or are considering proof of citizenship requirements.
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Over the past decade, elections for state high court seats have gone
from sleepy, mildly partisan affairs to major political battles with
huge campaign spending, millions in independent special interest
advertising, and misleading and negative attacks in the forefront. TV advertising is now apart of virtually all (91%) contested state supreme court elections, up from about one in five elections in 2000. And in 2006 business groups were the source of more than 90% of those ads. Business groups are also the source of almost half of all campaign contributions in these races.
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In the age of Google, citizens expect to be able to find core
information on the Internet about government operations, but as a major
new report being released today highlights, most states are failing on
public transparency.
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It's a puzzle that has driven heated arguments among social scientists and
policymakers. Why did crime rise precipitously in the decades following the
1960s, then fall dramatically in the 1990s?
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Despite real progress over the last generation in overcoming discrimination in our society, the reality is that Americans are still regularly refused employment, housing or equal treatment under the law because of their nationality or the color of their skin. The numbers highlighting this racial discrimination are stark:
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Even as progressives are making major headway in this session on issues
ranging from renewable energy to the minimum wage to voting reform, the
corporate Right, led by the American Legislative Exchange
Council (ALEC) and its associated "research" front groups, is still out
there in the states pushing their model bills and corporate-funded
propaganda.
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One of the most politically challenging, and politically assailable,
decisions a legislator can make is a vote increasing legislative pay.
Yet, with legislative pay a mere pittance in most states, increasing it
is necessary to prevent wealth from becoming a prerequisite to
hold public office.
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Tax cuts for seniors? Helping older voters on fixed incomes seems like
a good idea to many legislators, but a number of states are passing tax
cuts for taxpayers over age 65 regardless of whether the seniors need
the help:
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In state elections across the country, how to create quality, affordable child care has become a potent campaign issue.
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At the same time that a new study out of Massachusetts
reveals that tobacco companies are steadily increasing nicotine levels
in cigarettes, the fight to limit the health impacts of tobacco is
gaining new steam. Ballot measures will be considered in eight states this fall regarding tobacco. And in Virginia, where tobacco is king, Governor Tim Kaine is considering a ban on smoking in state buildings.
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There are few more potent tools for impacting the outcomes of elections
than changing what appears on the ballot. And there are no more direct
paths from public outcry to passed legislation than through ballot
issues. For years, the rightwing has been advancing policy goals,
shaping message, and marshalling voters through ballot issues (we've
already highlighted many of their current-year endeavors in this very
newsletter). Progressives increasingly are fighting back using ballot
issues -- which shouldn't be surprising, since initiatives and
referedenda were originally a progressive reform.
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