Month: August 2023

Political Wire: “Associated Press: “Both sides stuck largely to scripts written in the early months of their general election showdown as they campaigned at the Fancy Farm picnic, traditionally seen as the jumping-off point for fall elections in Kentucky. This year, however, both Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear and Republican Attorney General Daniel Cameron have been going…

PBS: “A Texas judge ruled Friday the state’s abortion ban has proven too restrictive for people with serious pregnancy complications and must allow exceptions without doctors fearing the threat of criminal charges. The ruling is the first to undercut Texas’ law since it took effect in 2022 and delivers a major victory to abortion rights supporters, who…

WaPo: “Tennessee is a state of civil rights legends and ghosts, but there’s a new version of Black church and liberation politics here that’s becoming a sensation. It’s called the Justins. Since their GOP colleagues voted them out of office this spring, state Reps. Justin J. Pearson (D-Memphis) and Justin Jones (D-Nashville) have quickly become…

Political Wire: “Mississippi is a lighter shade of red than outsiders might think. It’s been consistently easy in recent years for Democrats to get up to 45 percent of the vote here, but nearly impossible for them to top 50.” “In 2023, their hope is that Brandon Presley, a longtime elected public service commissioner from…

The Guardian: “A historic Black fraternity is pulling its 2025 conference from Florida to protest the rightwing governor Ron DeSantis’s “continued assault” on minority communities, which includes new state teaching standards that forced labor was beneficial to enslaved people. Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated said the decision to move its event from Orlando, joining a growing…

MSN: “Six white former law enforcement officers in Mississippi who called themselves the “Goon Squad” pleaded guilty Thursday to a racist assault on two Black men in a home raid that ended with an officer shooting one man in the mouth. The officers entered the house without a warrant on Jan. 24, assaulting the men with…

MS Today: “The Democratic Governors Association announced Tuesday the organization is donating $750,000 to Brandon Presley’s campaign for governor, giving the Democratic candidate a boost in operating expenses as the bitter governor’s race heats up.  Meghan Meehan-Draper, the executive director of the DGA, said in a statement that the organization has a track record of…

WaPo: “A federal judge in Arkansas temporarily blocked a state law that would have made it a crime for librarians and booksellers to give minors materials deemed “harmful” to them — a move celebrated by free-speech advocates, who had decried the law as a violation of individual liberties. Act 372 would have taken effect Tuesday. U.S….

Yahoo!: “Florida’s new social studies educational standards have drawn national scrutiny from academics and politicians alike, particularly the state’s revised language around how skills enslaved people learned could be used for their “benefit.” The language has been attacked by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ opponents in the 2024 presidential campaign on both sides of the aisle, including the Democratic Vice…

NY Times: “A Georgia judge forcefully rejected on Monday an effort by former President Donald J. Trump to derail an investigation into attempts by Mr. Trump and his allies to overturn his 2020 election loss in the state — an investigation that is expected to yield indictments in mid-August. Mr. Trump tried to get Judge…