Here he said it again: "he even agrees with several of the changes proposed. But, despite advocates’ insistence to the contrary, LaRose does not feel he has the authority to take these actions unilaterally..."
Let me clear, we didn't receive the immediate relief we sought. That is disappointing.
But on the fundamental question that brought us to court in the first place?
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On this two-year narrative by LaRose that Ohio law has kept him from implementing online applications?
The Court agreed with us: “Having reviewed R.C. 3509.03, we find the plain language of the General Assembly does not prohibit qualified electors from making a written..."
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"...absentee ballot application to the county director of elections by email or fax or otherwise.”"
The law is not the problem, the Court is confirming.
Then later: “Nothing in this determination should be read as limiting the secretary from, in an exercise..."
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"...of his reasonable discretion, implementing R.C. 3509.03 to permit methods of delivery other than mail or in-person should the circumstances warrant it.”
Again, the court is saying LaRose can DO online or electronic applications if he wants to. It's up to him.
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So LaRose wasted two years telling the state he couldn't implement a 21st century system many other states have implemented, when it fact he could have done so all along.
He's been wrong the entire time, requiring voters to print, mail and put stamps on these applications
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Our only hope now is that after yesterday's ruling, he can finally stop pretending the law is an obstacle here, and he can start doing what so many other states have been doing without problems.
He's wasted enough time on this already.
Please get to work.
END
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Beyond the egregious security breach involved, the Signal scandal also puts on full display:
1) the appalling dishonesty of these people (lying with gusto even after incriminating evidence is out in the open);
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2) their sheer incompetence/arrogance (they essentially invited Goldberg to release the messages with all their trash talk and bald-faced lies);
3) the inability of most GOP legislators to call out anything—
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including something this egregious;
4) and the fact that Trump does not appear to be in charge of his own administration, or briefed on their actions, even when it involves the military
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I chatted with a PA Dem strategist who wears the opposite of rose-colored glasses about last night’s surprise upset in PA.
He was not involved in the race.
A few quotes:
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“[F]rom a ‘sign of the political winds,’ the victory last night was significant for several reasons: first, turnout was quite high for a random March date.
Second, this turf has been Republican since the Civil War…”
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“….it does NOT include the city of Lancaster (which is quite blue)—that’s different than some of these “Obama-Trump” regions that may be inclined to switch back — there’s no legacy of Democratic victories in this part of Lancaster County.”
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Another day, another institution caves to the threats and shakedowns of Donald Trump.
And the pattern is clear: the more powerful institutions are, the more likely they are to comply.
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My law school classmate and friend @DavidLat shared on his substack an email from the chairman of the firm Paul Weiss (Brad Karp), where he described the situation the firm faced:
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“Only several days ago, our firm faced an existential crisis. The executive order could easily have destroyed our firm. It brought the full weight of the government down on our firm, our people, and our clients…
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More details are coming out that many of those whisked away to El Salvador did not have criminal records, and do not appear to have been part of a gang of any sort:
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To sum it up, they were flown off to a prison in El Salvador with no due process—treated as “alien enemies” under a law meant for wartime, as if the United States is at war with Venezuela (when we clearly are not).
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And of course, they are only in that prison now because the Trump administration ignored a court order to send them back.
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If we’ve learned anything during the Trump era, it’s that once you cave to a bully, the bullying is just getting started.
So isn’t hard to see how this plays out from here: Follow-up letters by the Trump administration…
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unsatisfied with Columbia’s response and demanding even more concessions. Then more caving by Columbia. And downhill from there.
And buoyed by his success with Columbia, Trump will no doubt make similar “hold-ups” and lists
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of demands of other private and public universities—leveraging federal money for certain purposes to demand concessions in all sorts of other areas.
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