Politics/Religion Consolidated Megathread Extravaganza

[Herman]

Donald Trump is trying to clear the field of several Indiana Republican state senators who previously opposed a congressional redistricting map by endorsing their challengers in the upcoming May 5 primary election.

In December, 21 Republican state senators joined their Democrat colleagues to block a redrawn congressional map that would have strengthened the GOP's control of the U.S. House of Representatives.

The new map, which would have created two more Republican-leaning congressional districts, failed in the state Senate in a 31-19 vote.

Trump issued a warning to Republican state senators ahead of the vote, cautioning those who planned to block the map.

"Anybody that votes against Redistricting, and the SUCCESS of the Republican Party in D.C., will be, I am sure, met with a MAGA Primary in the Spring," Trump wrote, adding that he would "do everything within my power to make sure that they will not hurt the Republican Party, and our Country, again."

[DKG]

The Trump administration has made it easier to deport recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals amnesty program implemented by former President Barack Obama, and activists are furious.

Obama said numerous times that he did not have the power to unilaterally pass amnesty for illegal aliens before he announced that he was passing amnesty for illegal aliens in 2012.

Fourteen years later, the "Dreamer" immigrants granted amnesty through the DACA program face a heightened threat of deportation.

The decision was made by the Executive Office for Immigration Review Board of Immigration Appeals of the Department of Justice.

Critics have long argued that the original order from Obama to offer amnesty to child arrivals violated the U.S. Constitution by usurping the powers intended to be vested in Congress.

[DKG]

Donald Trump continues to prioritize the passage of the SAVE America Act, keeping election integrity at the forefront in Washington. However, states are not waiting for Congress to act. Across the country, this shift has been building for years, and it is becoming harder to ignore.

Florida offers one of the clearest examples. Governor Ron DeSantis recently signed a state-level measure requiring documentary proof of citizenship to register to vote and directing officials to verify applicants using existing data systems. The approach mirrors what the SAVE America Act would do at the federal level. DeSantis said the law would "strengthen the security, transparency, and reliability of Florida's election system."

Florida is not alone. In Mississippi, Governor Tate Reeves signed the SHIELD Act, which requires officials to verify citizenship when individuals register to vote, including checks against federal databases and regular audits of voter rolls. Reeves called it "another win for election integrity" and made clear that the state intends to keep strengthening its system.

South Dakota has already enacted similar requirements this year, requiring proof of citizenship for new voter registrations and putting those rules into effect immediately. Governor Larry Rhoden said the law "ensures only citizens vote in state elections, keeping our elections safe and secure."

[Brent]

A newly passed Tennessee law allows homeowners to use deadly force to protect their property under certain circumstances.

Progtards are not happy.

[DKG]

Republicans are raising alarms about new vehicle safety requirements that could introduce intrusive monitoring technology — including systems capable of disabling a car against a driver's will.

The mandate stems from a provision in the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, made law under President Biden, which requires automakers to install advanced impaired-driving prevention technology in new vehicles by 2027.

Critics argue that the implications go far beyond safety.

"The car dashboard becomes your judge, your jury, and your executioner," said Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), who has been one of the most vocal opponents of the measure.

Section 24220 of the law — titled "Advanced Impaired Driving Technology" — directs regulators to require systems designed to prevent drunk-driving fatalities. The technology under consideration includes both passive and active monitoring tools, many powered by artificial intelligence.

These may include infrared cameras that track a driver's eye movements and pupil dilation, as well as "cockpit-embedded sensors" capable of analyzing a driver's breath to estimate blood alcohol levels. Other proposed methods include touch-based sensors that use tissue spectroscopy to detect alcohol through the skin of a finger or palm.

[DKG]

Federal law already prohibits noncitizens from voting in federal elections. The trouble is that the law contains far too few meaningful safeguards to make sure that rule is actually followed.

Across more than 40 states, voter registration standards are so weak that election officials often have no reliable way to determine whether a person seeking to register is, in fact, an American citizen.

Oregon is a useful example. On the state's voter registration form, applicants are given three broad options for proving identity. They may provide a state-issued ID such as a driver's license, the last four digits of a Social Security number, or one item from a lengthy list of other accepted documents.

That system is deeply flawed. In 19 states, Oregon among them, illegal immigrants may obtain a driver's license or another form of driving authorization. As a result, possession of a driver's license does not establish citizenship. At most, it might help officials later identify a questionable registration if the state conducts a serious review of its voter rolls.

But an applicant does not even have to rely on a state ID. A person can choose instead to submit the last four digits of a Social Security number.

[Herman]

[Thiel]

The Republicans are trying to coax John Fetterman to switch parties ahead of the midterms.

[Lokmar]

Federal law already prohibits noncitizens from voting in federal elections. The trouble is that the law contains far too few meaningful safeguards to make sure that rule is actually followed.

Across more than 40 states, voter registration standards are so weak that election officials often have no reliable way to determine whether a person seeking to register is, in fact, an American citizen.

Oregon is a useful example. On the state's voter registration form, applicants are given three broad options for proving identity. They may provide a state-issued ID such as a driver's license, the last four digits of a Social Security number, or one item from a lengthy list of other accepted documents.

That system is deeply flawed. In 19 states, Oregon among them, illegal immigrants may obtain a driver's license or another form of driving authorization. As a result, possession of a driver's license does not establish citizenship. At most, it might help officials later identify a questionable registration if the state conducts a serious review of its voter rolls.

But an applicant does not even have to rely on a state ID. A person can choose instead to submit the last four digits of a Social Security number.

Giving illegals drivers licenses was ALWAYS about enabling them to vote and NEVER about helping them from .A to .B.

Let me say: "I TOLD YOU SO!" to everyone on the planet once again.

[Lokmar]

The Republicans are trying to coax John Fetterman to switch parties ahead of the midterms.

I've got mixed feelz about this. Its actually nice to be able to point to one lone democRAT as the one sane voice in the wilderness.

I hope he doesnt switch.

[DKG]

The Louisiana state legislature is getting right to work ending racial districts after historic SCOTUS ruling.

[DKG]

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) is suing Minnesota over the state's own climate lawsuit against major energy companies.

The complaint, filed Monday in the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota, accuses state officials of trying to impose their own climate policies on domestic energy producers in a way the DOJ says burdens national energy development and national authority.

The underlying lawsuit was filed in 2020 by Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison against Exxon Mobil, the American Petroleum Institute, Koch Industries, and Koch subsidiary Flint Hills Resources. Minnesota brought the case under state consumer-protection laws, alleging that the companies engaged in fraud and deceptive business practices by misleading the public about "climate change and the role of fossil-fuel products in climate change."

[Brent]

The Louisiana state legislature is getting right to work ending racial districts after historic SCOTUS ruling.

The Supreme Court on Monday granted Louisiana Republicans' request to fast-track the process and immediately finalize its opinion in the case, thereby enabling the Bayou State to draw a new congressional map favoring the GOP in time for the 2026 midterm elections.

[Thiel]

I've got mixed feelz about this. Its actually nice to be able to point to one lone democRAT as the one sane voice in the wilderness.

I hope he doesnt switch.

I don't believe it will happen. The GOP tried unsuccessfully for several years to poach Joe Manchin.

[Herman]

Anti-ICE" signs are reportedly popping up all over official buildings in Los Angeles at the order of Democratic Mayor Karen Bass, who is running for re-election.

Bass ordered the signs to be installed at over 450 sites in order to warn federal agents against entering and using the locations to launch immigration enforcement operations.

Bill Essayli, the first assistant United States attorney for the Central District of California, derided the signs and the order from Bass.

"I just think this whole thing is silly. The signs have no legal weight, force, or effect on anything the federal government does," he said. "Federal agents will go anywhere they need to go to enforce federal law, including city property."