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Pat Brothwell| OPINION COLUMNIST

On Aug. 2, Kansas voters rejected a proposed state constitutional amendment that wouldve said there was no right to legal abortion in the state, the first of its kind since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. Fifty eight percent of voters 534,134 individuals voted for abortion rights in a state thats traditionally been heavily red, echoing the sentiment of the American public. Pew Research reports that 62% of Americans believe abortions should be legal, and 57% of Americans disapproved of the courts decision to overturn what they thought was precedent.

On June 24, District-11 Republican congressional candidate Chuck Edwards tweeted, I have always been pro-life. Im pro-life today, and Ill be pro-life tomorrow. The Supreme Court has now decided that this is a state issue, and I will keep working with the North Carolina legislature to ensure that life is protected in our great state. Only, thats not what the people Edwards claims hes looking to serve want.

More North Carolinians believe in abortion rights than the national average a Public Policy Polling survey reports that 74% of North Carolina voters believe abortion should be legal.

So, if the overwhelming majority of North Carolinians are pro-choice, why do we keep electing politicians who choose to eschew the views of their constituents to push the current conservative agenda? An agenda thats morphed into a monolithic viewpoint that doesnt represent the average American? We did it with Madison Cawthorn. If we dont learn from our mistakes, well do it again with Chuck Edwards, who, despite campaigning as the anti-Cawthorn, shares his possible predecessor's penchant for putting his own needs and views over his constituents.

A 2022 ABC News/Ipsos poll finds that 70% of Americans think enacting new gun control laws should take precedence over protecting gun ownership rights a WRAL News poll finds 62% of North Carolinians want stronger gun control. Chuck Edwards is a staunch defender of gun owner rights, though one wonders if hes driven more by his strict adherence to the conservative culture wars or his wallet, since he advertised in an April 22tweet that hes a federally licensed firearms dealer. Madison Cawthorn used his position in Congressto try to enrich himself. Must we worry Edwards will do the same?

As reported by the Mountain Xpress, during the Republican primary debate in April, candidate Wendy Nevarez emphasized how serving constituents must be a congresspersons priority. Were not doing it for profit, she said, were doing it for people. … If a businessperson only has profit (in mind), theyre not going to be thinking about the American people.

In the same debate, Edwards praised the merits of former President Trump, going so far as to emulate his penchant for speaking in third person. Chuck Edwards is a businessman that loves this country, with conservative principles, that has a track record of getting things done, Edwards said. Thats exactly why we sent President Trump to the White House in 2016: Hes a businessman with conservative principles that loves this country. Once again, the people disagree. Another ABC News/Ipsos poll found that 60% of Americans believe the House select committee is conducting a fair and impartial investigation into the events of Jan. 6, and 58% feel Trump should be criminally charged.

A major Edwards campaign promise is cracking down on the elusive Critical Race Theory (CRT) in high schools, even though the reality is that education-wise, its a theory mainly relegated to law-school studies. Also, a reality? A Spectrum News/Ipsos poll found that only 33% of registered North Carolina voters support banning CRT 45% are against a ban, and 22% dont know enough to make a decision.

I was unable to find whether Edwards supports codifying gay marriage, but his tweeting on June 27that Christian Conservatives are on the cusp of taking back our country leads me to believe he doesnt, even though Gallup found that 71% of Americans say they support legal same-sex marriage. In related news, Gallup also found that religious membership in the U.S. has fallen to an all-time low just 47%.

Ill go back to Nevarezs astute point that politicians should be working for people. Madison Cawthorn didnt. The Kansas vote shows the right-wing Washington establishment isnt. Lets not make the same mistake with Chuck Edwards this fall. He may not have Cawthorns jawline or Twitter following, but deep down, hes the same partisan hack.

Pat Brothwell is a former high school teacher, butcurrent writer and marketing professional living and working in Asheville.

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Opinion: Don't be fooled: Chuck Edwards is the same partisan hack that Madison Cawthorn is - Citizen Times

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"The Next Revolution" host Steve Hilton said Sunday that the country is yearning to return to a"simple old-fashioned patriotic culture," and urged Americans to unite on common ground this Independence Day,

STEVE HILTON: None of this is to say that America is perfect orabove criticism, but there is nocountry in the history of theworld that is more self-reflective,more focused on constantly striving toimprove, than America.That is what the magicalphrase in the opening sentence in the Constitution toform a more perfect union isall about.To love America is torecognize its flaws and workto make things better.Not to tear things down.Is the Lefts constant derision of America creating a moreperfect union?Of course not.It's not building anything. Itsjust turning Americans againsteach other and against thecountry.But heres the good news this July Fourth weekend. Americans dont want allthis.Not the far-left ideologues and thepolitical zealot's on Twitter the regularAmericans who love theirfamilies and community andcountry.They are crying out forchange.Theyve had enough of thenegativity about America.

LEFT RENOUNCES INDEPENDENCE DAY OF TWITTER

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Americans are yearning for thesimple old fashion patrioticculture that so many of usremembergrowing up. We are all Americans. Lets come together as anation and celebrate whatmakes us, us.Lets rise above the culturewars this Fourth of July andremember we are all in thistogether as Americans.Thats the next revolutionwe need.

WATCH STEVE HILTON'S INDEPENDENCE DAY MONOLOGUE HERE:

This article was written by Fox News staff.

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Let's rise above the culture wars this Fourth of July and come together as Americans: Steve Hilton - Fox News

Culture is often the reason given for campus conflicts over issues such as free speech. Butthey arent really cultural issues; theyre economic ones.

As the bad economic news keeps rolling in for U.S. colleges and universities (fromthe Big Quitandinflationary pressuresto thedemographic cliff), its important to keep in mind that economic realities, not cultural ones, largely underpin volatile campus political dynamics.

Take, for instance, the matter of free speech and academic freedom on campus, a political issue often chalked up to cancel culture. I dont mean to be evasive here. Sure, I know what people are talking about when they reference cancel culture and have experienced some of it first-hand. Its just as ugly as critics claim, if not worse. But the root of the problem is economic, not cultural.

The vast majority of university faculty in the U.S. are contingent faculty, meaning they are full-time and part-time workerswithouttenure. Over the past 40 years, the proportion of academics holding full-time tenured positions has declined 26 percent. The proportion holding full-time tenure-track positions (i.e. eligible for tenure) has declined 50 percent.

Today, close to75 percent of facultyare contingent faculty. Tenure for faculty is similar to lifetime appointments to the bench for judges. Its a mechanism for ensuring that we can build knowledge and seek truth independently, that we can teach, research and make public commentaries without external political interference.The Government Accountability Officeestimatesthat part-time contingent faculty make, on average, 75 percent less than full-time tenured and tenure track faculty. Full-time contingent faculty make, on average, 45 percent less than their full-time tenured and tenure-track colleagues.

In 2015,taxpayers paidalmost half a billion dollars in support of public assistance for families of part-time faculty. This is the so-called Walmart model, in whichtaxpayers subsidize low wagespaid by employers, permitting exploitative labor relationships to continue over time. The impact of this labor hierarchy and the economic insecurity it creates on the capacity of faculty to take risks, including risks regarding political speech, is difficult to overstate.

Contingent faculty generally understand very well that, if they are perceived as stepping out of line in any way, there is a high likelihood of not being rehired. It is pretty rare that faculty who engage in wrongspeak are fired flat out like somehigh-profile professorshave been. It is much more common for contingent faculty to just not be rehired for the next semester or the next year. Contracts wont be renewed. Courses will be given to someone else to teach. And even if the reason was politically motivated, theres little leverage for faculty in such situations. Its hard to prove that you werent rehired because of your social media posts as opposed to low enrollments. And lawyers are expensive.

And its not like there are many other jobs out there waiting for you if you lose the one you have. The academic job market has beentight and highly competitivefor a long time. Faculty jobs, even the contingent kind, are hard to find these days, especially if your expertise is in the humanities or social sciences.

Further, academics are a tight-knit, competitive and ego-rich group with a strong proclivity for gossip, meaning that bad news about you may travel well beyond your own campus, poisoning your ability to get work elsewhere. So, every time you decide to take a risk at work, for example by standing up for your own beliefs or for a colleague, you face the knowledge that this may be your last academic job. Full stop. Its a powerful deterrent and a super effective mechanism for worker discipline.

It is all the more so because most of us love our work, love working with our students and dont want to give it up (and also becausemany faculty are themselves student debtors). So, if faculty generally seem too silent on critical issues like this one, its not because we dont care. Its not because we all creepily agree with one another like the Borg from Star Trek. Its because were afraid that we wont be able to work, earn an income, feed our families or provide them with health insurance. Political freedom requires economic security.

Sasha BregerBushis an associate professor at the University of Colorado Denver and the author ofDerivatives and Development: A Political Economy of Global Finance, Farming, and PovertyandGlobal Politics: A Toolkit for Learners.For more of Sashas research and writing, visit herSubstackandwebsite.

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Culture wars cover up economic realities on campus - The Hill

On Thursday, CNN analyst and former White House adviser David Axelrod asserted that the Supreme Court rulings mean the Right is now losing the culture war. He couldnt be further from the truth.

Axelrod claimed it was incredible to say, but Republicans had found themselves on the wrong end of the culture wars thanks to the Supreme Courts rulings. The logic behind his claim is that rulings letting states restrict abortion, striking down expansive EPA powers, and forcing New York to honor the Second Amendment will lead to a backlash against conservatives and Republicans.

This is what Axelrod is counting on, but the evidence of such a backlash brewing hasn't appeared anywhere yet.

Democrats like to pretend that their abortion stance is popular, but Roe v. Wade was popular in name only. Abortion polling is notably fickle, but people consistently support restricting abortion far more than Roe allowed including after six weeks of pregnancy in some polls. On top of that, abortion has been a topic that ramps up enthusiasm on the pro-life side, not for the Democrats. There is no indication yet of that dynamic changing.

Climate change is a popular issue only among tuned-in Democratic voters most people simply dont care. In the run-up to the 2020 presidential election, climate change was not among the top 10 issues voters were concerned about. As with abortion, voters will align themselves with Democrats on climate change in polls, but their voting patterns and enthusiasm levels tell a different story.

Guns and the Second Amendment have been a losing issue for Democrats for years now, and that isnt likely to change because of the Supreme Court. Democrats thought they had their gun control moment after the Parkland, Florida, shooting in 2018, but as is the case every time Democrats try to push gun control, voters recognized that their proposals would not have prevented the shooting. The same has been true in the aftermath of the shootings in Uvalde, Texas, and Buffalo, New York.

The biggest issue in which conservatives have been winning the culture war has been the excesses of transgender activists. International sports organizations have finally started cracking down on men competing in womens sports, while conservative positions on transgender child abuse and teaching about transgenderism in schools have consistently polled well. The Right won one of its biggest cultural battles earlier this year, when Florida forced Disney to back down in a legislative fight over teaching about gender identity and sexual orientation in schools.

The backlash to the Supreme Court might be brewing in legacy media newsrooms and liberal Twitter circles. But there is no sign that the same is happening among normal, nonobsessed people. You would have to be out of touch with the country, or engaging in wishful thinking, to believe otherwise.

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No, the Supreme Court isn't costing the Right the culture war - Washington Examiner

All is fair in love, war and, it would seem these days, Republican Party politics.

Over 100 of its primary ads this spring and summer saw candidates or their supporters waving guns around. Among them was Eric Greitens, the disgraced former governor of Missouri, who thought the best way to win the candidacy for a seat on the US Senate was an attack ad that showed him hunting his moderate Republican rivals with a shotgun.

Cocking the weapon and following men in combat uniforms who break down someones door, Greitens (who quit as state governor in 2018 after sex and finance scandals) calls on voters to get a hunting permit for Rinos, a derogatory label for moderate Republicans.

Such Republicans (what few there are left of this endangered species) werent the only ones affronted. The Missouri police union said his deplorable video sent a dangerous message that it was acceptable to kill those who have differing political beliefs.

The horrible possibility dawning on many Americans is that a large very large number of their compatriots really do believe this, and that America is not just a divided nation, along the lines of Red and Blue states, but one with the potential to combust.

Beyond the high-profile militia groups such as the Oath Keepers, which took part in the 6 January riot at the Capitol, theres a much larger and more diffuse armed movement of ordinary people, poisoned by a diet of misinformation and conspiracies; a group of millions in varying stages of acceptance that the federal government is an illegitimate tyranny to be overthrown by any means necessary. Polls suggest that 30 per cent of Republicans and 11 per cent of Democrat voters think violence can be justified for political ends.

Some experts estimate there are over 20 million assault rifles among the more than 400 million guns in circulation. Gun retailers are doing their best to fan the flames, including the South Carolina outfit that declared it wants to sell as many AR-15 and AK-47 rifles to [safeguard] the rights of the people against tyranny.

UCLA law professor Adam Winkler, an expert on gun policy, told Newsweek: The idea that people would take up arms against an American election has gone from completely farfetched to something we have to start planning for and preparing for.

These warnings make the task of Attorney General Merrick Garland, who is under pressure to prosecute Donald Trump for his pivotal role in the 6 January insurrection, even more fraught. If Trumps candidacy for the 2024 election is undermined by an indictment from a Democrat justice department, who knows what sort of violence might kick off? Then again, what on earth might happen if a crooked and treacherous president like Trump is able to get away with it?

The outside world views Americas woes with a mix of curiosity its contortions are a vivid spectacle and varying degrees of schadenfreude. Any guilty secret pleasure derived from Americas agony would soon be snuffed out, though, with the tyrannies in Beijing and Moscow ready to take its place on the world stage.

Its undeniable that America is a dangerously divided country, with Democrat states ever more at odds with the Republican ones. It looks like two nations, each split into red and blue blocks and mixed up on the North American continent.

The split is fuelled by economics and culture wars. The recent raft of laws in red states designed to restrict rights on abortion, and classroom discussions of race, gender, and sexual orientation, have made things worse.

Many observers say the US is entering its most unstable period since the Civil War. American writers, political scientists and even the man at the top are openly discussing the possibility that America is sliding towards large-scale civil unrest.

In This Will Not Pass, one of the recent books on the forces tearing America apart, New York Times reporters Jonathan Martin and Alexander Burns quote Joe Biden as telling a senior Democrat: I certainly hope [my presidency] works out. If it doesnt, Im not sure were going to have a country.

According to Barbara F Walter, a political scientist at the University of California and the author of How Civil Wars Start: And How to Stop Them, the warning signs are flashing. She says the US is already a factionalised anocracy a semi-democracy that is quickly approaching the open insurgency stage.

Civil conflict usually requires distinct demographic groups at each others throats. That box is ticked. Republicans are largely white, small-town and rural. Democrats are now nearly all urban and multi-ethnic.

Its not just about backwoods men with guns. The Trump faction the Make America Great Again (Maga) movement now dominates the Republican Party. It is present in right-wing media networks, evangelical churches, among wealthy Republican donors, elected officials and millions of voters.

The various components of the Maga movement have one thing in common, though: the belief that with God on their side, democratic methods are optional. And worse, their ambitions extend far beyond their current power bases.

One leading US public policy pundit said to me this week: Politics is ultimately a game of power expanding power, so its not surprising that [the] Maga movement would want to expand their power as much as possible. This will certainly include enforcing its values (social and economic) beyond the traditionally red states.

Key Maga figures are planning how to load the electoral dice in enough states, through gerrymandering and voter suppression, to ensure Democrats face impossible odds in winning the presidency. The election of the Senate, which gives vastly greater voting power to Americans in conservative, rural states, ensures that meaningful control of the upper chamber is already beyond the Democrats reach.

Its not difficult to imagine how a politicised, extremely right-wing Supreme Court (which in the past few weeks has flouted public opinion in overturning abortion rights and gun control laws), would be ready to impose its social values on the nation even if a majority opposed them.

Dont assume mass protests or even violent ones are a preserve of the far right. If Trump contests the next election and loses by any margin, and cant overturn the results through legal means, Republicans will probably declare the election fraudulent, and violent protests would be inevitable. But if Trump wins by a slim margin that could be blamed on underhand GOP tactics, expect massive protests by Democrats voters instead.

Moderates and liberal Americans are pulling their hair out. A US historian based in London told me recently: The only way that things get better is if these Maga mother f**kers get massively electorally defeated, otherwise they will begin clawing their way to autocracy or even fascism. Look at the political ads by people like Greiten, about killing opponents; this is fascism. Its terrorism.

Americas fate is in its own hands. Its still a democracy, albeit like all Western nations, a flawed one. Peoples votes still count. In theory. But even if the moderate majority ultimately prevails, a huge, armed, and angry minority will still have a score to settle.

If mainstream Republican leaders like Kevin McCarthy and Mitch McConnell put their country before their own careers, and faced down the extremists in their own party, US democracy might win a reprieve. But there seems little hope of that. In kowtowing to the mob, McCarthy, McConnell, et al might be the worst traitors of all as America edges towards a cliff face.

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Culture wars have pushed US democracy to the brink. Civil strife is possible - iNews