Old News Is New Again
Groundhog Day (Almost) News Postings
This post is a little late for Groundhog day, but it is still appropriate. A lot of the stories we’ve covered are back again.
Government Shutdown
We have another government shutdown, ladies and gentlemen. This one is partial, not complete, so no need to get excited. But it is a little exciting in that it brings together a lot of regular stories.
When the shutdown was resolved in November of last year the solution was to kick the can down the road on several issues. This is now the end of the road. Some of those issues involve funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Department of War (or Defense, if you prefer). So we get to combine anxieties over immigration enforcement and a possible attack on Iran all in one post.
(I won’t get into the Iran issue other than to say the US has directed A LOT of firepower into the Middle East. Pres. Trump’s credibility is on the line here. He said he would help the protesters and told them to keep protesting. Since doing so somewhere between 20,000 and 30,000 Iranians have been killed by the government.)
The House of Representatives passed a bill to continue funding these agencies (again, as a stopgap) last month and the Senate was supposed to approve it last week. However, a few things happened in Minnesota in the meantime. Funding DHS wasn’t such a big controversy before the deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti. So now Democratic senators are trying to hold up the process of funding the government so that they can get changes inserted into bill. They want restrictions on ICE enforcement procedures, among other things. The irony is that ICE funding was not one of the things punted to this bill, so it’s funding isn’t delayed by the shutdown.
When the Senate changes the content of a bill it has to return to the House for another debate and vote, greatly slowing down the process and further holding up funding. But as in October the Democrats think they have support to do this.
SAVE Act
Adding to the complexity, several Republicans are willing to keep the government (partially) shut down until the Senate passes the SAVE Act. The “Safeguard American Voter Eligibility” Act would, among other things, require proof of citizenship when registering to vote and photo ID when one votes. The House passed an earlier version so the Senate has to decide what to do.
Democrats have long opposed voter ID laws, even though it is an issue the public tends to support at over 80%. Almost all the provisions in the bill are standard fare in other democracies, so people often wonder why the Democrats oppose these measures.
The easiest answer, if somewhat cynical, is that Democrats benefit from voter fraud. Investigations into the daycare fraud by Somalians in Minnesota (yes, the eternal return of Minneapolis) are certainly going to connect that fraud to voting “irregularities.” But a more generous interpretation would acknowledge that a lot of voting laws in the South were instituted to restrict blacks from voting after the Civil War. Provisions that required proof of a father or grandfather voting, for instance, were clearly designed for one purpose only. However, black Americans tend to support voter ID laws at the same levels as everyone else.
Pillows and Ballots
Drawing all things together in a tight bow, we have an ongoing investigation into the 2020 election and the alleged abuse of ballots in Georgia. Things seem to be coming out supporting the idea that there was some shady business, especially having to do with the voting machines.
The United States is one of the only countries that needs a complicated machine to count votes. I explain that here: “High Capacity Ballots.”
One of the main advocates for the idea that the Dominion voting machines were used to steal the election from Donald Trump was the owner and founder of “My Pillow,” Mike Lindell. He is now running in the Republican primary to be a candidate for governor of Minnesota. Yes, Minnesota, again.
As if things couldn’t get more confusing, one of the theories propounded about the voting machines was that they used software developed by a company that helped Nicholas Maduro steal the election in Venezuela. As soon as Maduro was seized by American agents, these theories resurfaced.
I am in no position to pass judgment on voting fraud theories or anything to do with software. I would just recommend not getting out over your skis on any of these issues, but also remember that over the past decade the main difference between conspiracy theories and the news is about six months.