Odds and ends number 113

Since I'm using the concept from monoblogue, I'm keeping the numbering system, too. Here's thinner slices of bloggy goodness.

If you remember my monoblogue days, odds and ends is familiar to you: short snippets that weren’t long enough to post but I needed to weigh in on. For new audiences, I have four items I’ve been wanting to get to but they’d be really short as individual posts so I’m resurrecting this idea after 14 months away.

I’m going to head back to my home state for the first one:

The trouble with Ohio

Usually an odd-year election is a rather sleepy affair in Ohio because the state turns its attention to local and county offices. But this year’s balloting, particularly a special election called for August, has garnered national attention. I’m going to turn this over to the far-leftist folks at Indivisible, who had this to say:

Ohio voters will go to the polls on August 8 for a special election with only one question on the ballot: Issue 1. A yes vote changes the threshold for changing the state constitution by referendum from a simple majority (as it has been for over 100 years) to 60%. It will also make it far more difficult to get referenda on the ballot in the first place. Put bluntly, it’s an attempt by MAGA Republicans to consolidate power at the expense of the people. Very much the MAGA playbook. 

They then cite the fact that Ohio is trying to get away from August elections because of low turnout, even though the state is already early voting as the march toward Election Month continues.

At question is whether the right to abort a baby is enshrined in the Ohio state constitution this November or not. Polling suggests that over 50% of voters support this, but not 60 percent. After spending an election cycle not caring that their Democrat party was changing the goalposts in the middle of the game, suddenly their panties are in a wad when the Republicans do it.

Conveniently, Ohio has the results of its statewide issues online dating back to 1998. By my count, there have been over 30 attempts to change the state constitution in that timeframe. Many have failed, others passed overwhelmingly. A change from 50% to 60% would have affected five constitutional amendments over the last 25 years:

• bonds for environmental conservation and revitalization projects (2000)

• allowing Kelo-style development in the state (eminent domain changes) (2005)

• mandated minimum wage increase (2006)

• casinos in four Ohio cities (2009)

• an “anti-monopoly” measure that “protects the initiative process from being used for personal economic benefit” (2015)

In short, there were some controversial issues that passed with a bare majority rather than a clear mandate. Obviously if the abortion question passes with over 60% (or, preferably, fails outright) the question is moot. If this August referendum passes, Ohio would join other states where a supermajority of voters are required to pass amendments: Colorado (55%), Florida (60%), Illinois (60%), and New Hampshire (2/3). Several other states require a majority of all voters participating in the election, meaning an undervote counts as a “no.”

Delaware is number 32

If you want a “gun-friendly” state, you can do better than Delaware - but you have to move a little ways to find it.

In a recent ranking compiled by firearms writer Sam Jacobs and my old friends at ammo.com, Delaware was a middling 32nd in the rankings - but outpaced its neighbors Pennsylvania (#35), Maryland (#45), and New Jersey (#47). Only Virginia (our neighbor according to now-Senator Tim Kaine) beats us by being #30.

So how did they do it? Jacobs explains:

We believe that more legally-owned guns being permitted for use in more places by those who are not convicted felons, severely mentally ill, or substance abusers leads to less violent crime - and thus we've investigated the laws, the taxes, and the lawful usability of firearms to bring you the answer as to which states are the best for legal gun ownership by analyzing the following factors:

1. Current Gun Laws

2. Current Purchase Laws

3. Current CCW Guidelines

4. Reciprocity between other states

5. Sales Tax

6. Current Governor’s voting history

7. Stand Your Ground Laws

Your ability to legally use your gun when you need to is as important as your ability to purchase it.  If we consider only purchasing requirements, we neglect carrying requirements and use of force thresholds.  Thus it's important to look at each state's current laws for language regarding Stand Your Ground and Duty to Retreat because they are defined differently. 

Frankly, it’s shocking we’re only down to #32 given the gun grabbers we have in our General Assembly, and it may only be because they’re often rebuffed in court. But don’t be surprised if we sink into the 40s pretty soon.

Jacobs told me he was looking into a “25 worst” states post for gun laws so I’ll be curious what he finds about Delaware and its local peers.

Help wanted: messenger

Erick Erickson has a Substack worth reading and subscribing to, as I do. His recent piece deserves comment.

A Message In Search of a Messenger

Nice how I can add that embed. Anyway, read the whole thing, but Erickson concludes:

The cost of woke is too much a burden for too many Americans, degrading their schools and making their cities less safe. The cost of living is too much. It is all related to an elite who want you to eat bugs while they fly private. You may not care about them, but they care deeply about you — so deeply they want to control you and your culture and price you out of a comfortable living.

(…)

Again, this is not about the rich getting richer and the poor getting poorer. This is about the rich getting richer by ensuring no one else can even try. They and their friends in the press have given up on the idea of an ever expanding pie for all Americans to share and have decided to restrict access to the pie by limiting educational opportunity, job opportunity, and innovation opportunity.

Someone somewhere could carry this message to victory. The man who tried in 2016 failed to fix the system. He and his best people were no match because he was too easily distracted and had no real vision. Perhaps someone else with real vision could try.

I know

Erick-Woods Erickson

is a #NeverTrump who came around to eventually vote for him, but I think he’s beyond soured on the prospects of a productive second term for The Donald. He seems to be highest on Tim Scott, but there are several viable candidates out there who the media would hate (because they don’t get the attention Donald Trump does) but would be best for reversing as much #Bidenomics damage as can be achieved in four to eight years (assuming a compliant Congress cooperates.)

I haven’t decided who I would support in a Republican primary - assuming I bother to change my voter registration in time, which I’m in no hurry to - but if it’s Trump again, I may just vote for the Constitution Party candidate again. Speaking of which…

A person of interest

Even though they don’t have much of a presence in Delaware, I’m still registered with the Constitution Party and still on their national mailing list.

The latest message from the CP featured a leader from Arkansas by the name of Ron Bartels. He has some interesting theories about how to build his state party, but in Bartels’ contribution he noted that he had been in another party where, “The top of that group, in a western state, blew the reformation of that party up. So, for practical purposes, it is dead due to lack of harmony.”

So I ran Bartels’ name through Freespoke and found an article he had written about a decade ago. It was behind a paywall, but in its description it said Bartels was the chairman of the Arkansas Conservative Party. Presumably it’s a relative of the Delaware Conservative Party that wastes its ballot access.

So I think I’m going to reach out to Ron and see what he has to say about the Delaware situation, maybe as an interview but certainly to get his thoughts.

Delaware seems like a state where the following can be achieved:

In the beginning, we'll focus primarily on getting candidates elected to local office without a single thin dime from any oligarchs.

Then, we'll go after the State Legislatures and become a permanent party by securing one or more state constitutional offices. We'll also convert some good sheriffs and elect others in your state counties.

Now, we'll do this differently than the current big parties do. We'll secure the funding and have our candidates do the campaigning. They won't have to worry about raising money using our new methods of fundraising, which when you know what they are, you'll say they are clean and honest and above board!

Any port in a storm. Delaware is in such bad shape that it’s worth a shot, right? Obviously we have IPoD, but they have a reputation of being a bit out there and the Libertarians are split in two. Get a resurrected Constitution Party on the ballot and let’s see what we can do.

That was fun. Maybe I’ll wait less than a year-plus to do another one.