Friday, September 09, 2016

The easy way to #NeverTrump

So, you don't want to vote for Donald Trump? DFL honcho Ken Martin wants to make it even easier:
In a bold escalation of its effort to have Donald Trump and Mike Pence removed from the ballot in Minnesota, the DFL Party has taken its argument to the state Supreme Court.

Ken Martin, the party’s chair, late Thursday filed a petition with the court asking it to order the Minnesota secretary of state to strip the Republicans’ names off the state’s Nov. 8 election ballot.

There is urgency in resolving the issue, because early voting will begin in Minnesota Sept. 23.

The petition names Secretary of State Steve Simon as the defendant. It says Simon erred when he accepted a “certificate of nomination” filed about Aug. 25 by the state Republican Party after its Executive Committee met to select and approve alternate presidential electors. According to state law, electors and alternate electors must be nominated at an official state convention.
The DFL approaches voting in the same way Henry Ford reputedly viewed color choices for the Model T -- you can vote for anyone you like, as long as the candidate is a Democrat. Getting people bounced from the ballot is a proven strategy. Such rules do not apply to Frank Lautenberg, however.

6 comments:

jerrye92002 said...

OK, where are the charges of interfering in a federal election. I demand a speedy trial AND a harsh sentence beforehand.

3john2 said...

This should be dismissed using the Hillary precedent: they didn't intend to do anything wrong, so what does it matter at this point?

Joe Doakes said...

Won't matter - Hillary will sweep Deep Blue Minnesota anyway - but it's annoying that they even have an argument to make. Republicans ought to know that Democrats win elections by lawsuit, it's happened enough. Why give them the opening?

Mr. D said...

Republicans ought to know that Democrats win elections by lawsuit, it's happened enough. Why give them the opening?

We haven't seen competent leadership in the Minnesota GOP for a long time. What's odd about it is that, as individuals, most of the operatives I know are bright people. There's a real disconnect.

Bike Bubba said...

I don't know the specific laws well, but one thing that comes to mind is that if people are consistently having trouble obeying the law, it's written in an obscure way....and dare we suggest perhaps a purposefully obscure way, by which the party usually in power can use the judges they've appointed to get their way.

Of course, there are also times, e.g. Torricelli, where you can get judges to ignore the law completely, even when it is clear. Like the one they're trying to stop says, the game is fixed at times. If the Democrats keep this up, they're going to make Trump kinda grow on me.

jerrye92002 said...

Update: The Supreme Court has thrown out the DFL lawsuit.