Lawmakers Want To Thwart Federal Health Care (This is Florida under Republican monopoly)

[seafan]

Lawmakers Want To Thwart Federal Health Care

July 28, 2009

Two Republican lawmakers have filed a proposed state constitutional amendment aimed at blocking a federal health care plan in Florida.

Sen. Carey Baker of Eustis, a candidate for agriculture commissioner, said Tuesday that legislation pending in Congress amounts to 'socialization' and would let the federal government choose a person's doctor and ration treatment.

The House sponsor, Rep. Scott Plakon of Longwood, called it a 'power-grab' by President Barack Obama and the Democratic Congress.

If approved by a three-fifths vote in each house, the proposal would go on the November 2010 ballot.

This is the answer to fighting the Republican monopoly on the Florida Legislature:


Florida Supreme Court OKs ballot questions to alter method for redistricting

Jan 30, 2009

TALLAHASSEE - The Florida Supreme Court cleared the way Thursday for a 2010 ballot amendment designed to end political gamesmanship in drawing district boundaries, in what could be the first step to reshuffling the state's Republican-dominated political landscape.

The court ruled that two proposed ballot questions, dealing with state legislative and congressional district boundaries, satisfy the requirement that constitutional amendments address only a single subject, a legal standard that tripped up past bids to change Florida's redistricting system

The unanimous ruling hands a long-sought victory to Florida Democrats, who have virtually no way to loosen the Republican grip on the state Legislature without changes to the way voters are grouped into districts.

The amendment bars districts from being "drawn to favor or disfavor an incumbent or political party."

Districts also must be "compact," the amendment says, and can't be created to block racial or language minorities from having "equal

The Supreme Court decision is only a first step, however. Now, the group Fair Districts Florida has to gather 677,811 valid signatures by Feb. 1, 2010, to secure a spot on the November 2010 ballot. And then, 60 percent of voters must approve.

"When people say this is a start, it is really much more than a start," Thom Rumberger, a Republican lawyer spearheading the Fair Districts Florida effort, said of Thursday's decision. "It's a big boost to getting it done."

Under the current system, the Legislature's Republican leaders use complex computer models to draw districts that make it almost impossible to unseat incumbents.

To accomplish this, districts commonly sprawl across county lines and connect communities that have little in common. In other cases, minority voters are packed into one district, rather than being spread out where their electoral influence would be broader.

In November, despite the national Democratic wave and Barack Obama's victory in Florida, not a single incumbent Republican legislator lost One incumbent Democrat did lose.

The next once-in-a-decade round of redistricting comes in 2011, so putting the issue before voters in 2010 is a critical mission for Democrats and good-government groups like Common Cause that are pushing the initiative.

"Right now, we have a situation where there are no races because districts are so unbalanced and gerrymandered," said Sen. Nan Rich, D-Weston. "The goal of this is to make sure that people, constituents, get to pick their representatives and the representatives don't get to pick their constituents."

Sign the petition to require fair voting districts at FairDistrictsFlorida.org

[iamjoy]

1. Here's An Idea

If more than 10% of Floridians are without health insurance at any point in the year, the State Legislature doesn't get their health care for the following year. Let's put that on the ballot.

Those jerks. They have their government run health care and like it just fine but when it comes to doing something for their constituents....

:grr: