A Bombshell
Yesterday, I was going to write about the election but, then, Federal Judge James Wynn dropped a bombshell – by ruling the current Congressional Districts are unconstitutional. The districts, he said, are a ‘partisan gerrymander.’ And have to be redrawn.
Campaigns, in a way, are simple – they have one over-arching goal: To talk with voters about issues. And they do it on TV, radio, the Internet, or half a dozen other ways. George Holding’s been talking with voters for months and so have the Democrats trying to elect Linda Coleman (one Democratic Super PAC just spent $500,000 for Coleman).
What impact does Judge Wynn’s order have on a campaign? It’s like driving down a highway, going 70 miles an hour, and suddenly out of a clear blue sky a voice shouts Stop! Suddenly, you don’t know which district you’re running in or the people who’ll be voting in the election. You might (if Wynn’s order is appealed and stayed) end up in the same district or you may find yourself running in a new district with new voters. And you may not know which district until a month or six weeks before the election.
Today how, when, or even whether North Carolina’s Congressional districts will be redrawn isn’t clear. In his order Wynn went into a Hamlet-like soliloquy saying, We could do this or we could do that or we could do the other.
In addition, the timing of Judge Wynn’s order is problematical. He’s had this case for months but didn’t issue a ruling until after Justice Anthony Kennedy resigned from the Supreme Court. Was that a coincidence? With Justice Kennedy gone there’re now four Republican and four Democratic Supreme Court Justices and, if Republicans appeal Wynn’s ruling, a deadlocked 4-4 vote on the Supreme Court could work in Wynn’s favor – and uphold his decision. Was Judge Wynn, who was appointed by President Obama, playing partisan judicial politics?
Stay tuned. The next federal court hearing is Friday.
A Bombshell
Yesterday, I was going to write about the election but, then, Federal Judge James Wynn dropped a bombshell – by ruling the current Congressional Districts are unconstitutional. The districts, he said, are a ‘partisan gerrymander.’ And have to be redrawn.
Campaigns, in a way, are simple – they have one over-arching goal: To talk with voters about issues. And they do it on TV, radio, the Internet, or half a dozen other ways. George Holding’s been talking with voters for months and so have the Democrats trying to elect Linda Coleman (one Democratic Super PAC just spent $500,000 for Coleman).
What impact does Judge Wynn’s order have on a campaign? It’s like driving down a highway, going 70 miles an hour, and suddenly out of a clear blue sky a voice shouts Stop! Suddenly, you don’t know which district you’re running in or the people who’ll be voting in the election. You might (if Wynn’s order is appealed and stayed) end up in the same district or you may find yourself running in a new district with new voters. And you may not know which district until a month or six weeks before the election.
Today how, when, or even whether North Carolina’s Congressional districts will be redrawn isn’t clear. In his order Wynn went into a Hamlet-like soliloquy saying, We could do this or we could do that or we could do the other.
In addition, the timing of Judge Wynn’s order is problematical. He’s had this case for months but didn’t issue a ruling until after Justice Anthony Kennedy resigned from the Supreme Court. Was that a coincidence? With Justice Kennedy gone there’re now four Republican and four Democratic Supreme Court Justices and, if Republicans appeal Wynn’s ruling, a deadlocked 4-4 vote on the Supreme Court could work in Wynn’s favor – and uphold his decision. Was Judge Wynn, who was appointed by President Obama, playing partisan judicial politics?
Stay tuned. The next federal court hearing is Friday.