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Congress is broken.

Our Founding Fathers envisioned a Congress that would faithfully represent and be accountable to its constituents. In 1788, James Madison wrote in Federalist No. 57: Such will be the relation between the House of Representatives and their constituents. Duty, gratitude, interest, ambition itself, are the chords by which they will be bound to fidelity and sympathy with the great mass of the people.

Today, Congress has become unbound to the great mass of the people. The House recently passed a health care bill that only 16% of the public supports, according to a recent poll. A narrow majority in the House rushed to pass the bill without any meaningful debate and the Senate is considering similar legislation. Whether its healthcare or countless other issues, voters want one thing, but Congress does the exact opposite or nothing.

How did Congress become so untethered? Looking at how the US House districts were drawn gives us great insight.

Extreme partisan gerrymandering reached new levels during the 2011 redistricting process. Propelled by precision targeting technology and special interest funding, Republicans drew maps in state after state that packed Democratic voters into bizarrely shaped districts and protected Republican incumbents. Despite winning fewer than half of all votes for the House, Republicans still walked away with 55% of House seats in 2016.

With fewer competitive congressional seats, members of Congress are incentivized to serve narrow, partisan interests. This creates a Congress driven by primary party politics and ideological extremism, not one accountable to the will of the majority of voters.

Unfortunately, the American people are living with the result of this broken Congress: increased partisanship, government shutdowns, the birth of the Freedom Caucus, and a Congress that refuses to hold President Donald Trump accountable.

Thats not only bad for Democrats, its bad for democracy.

So how do we go about fixing our democracy? We know from our history that the future is built by those who show up and by those who engage, resist, and overcome. That has been the story of America from the framers who planned a revolution, to the abolitionists who embraced emancipation; from the workers who fought for a decent wage, to the women who reached for the ballot; from the marchers who demanded their civil rights, to the activists who secured marriage equality for all of us. Today, once again, millions of people of strong will and good faith are asking what they can do for the country they love.

Thats why, this January, we launched the National Democratic Redistricting Committee (NDRC) in order to draw district lines in a fair manner.

With the NDRC, Americans will have a chance to fight back, regain our democratic voice, and fix our democracy. After the data from the 2020 census is released, states around the country will draw new maps that will shape our Congress for the next decade. Every state has its own rules for drawing Congressional districts, but most rely on collaboration between the governor and the state legislature.

The NDRC is a new effort to create more representative districts with a targeted, state-by-state strategy. Our strategy involves four key components: overturning illegal gerrymandering in the courts; winning critical state elections; investing in ballot initiatives on redistricting; and building the infrastructure for the 2021 redistricting process.

Weve already seen major progress. Over the last several years, the Supreme Court and other federal courts have struck down illegal gerrymandering in North Carolina, Virginia, and Florida. And more states may soon follow, with ongoing cases in Texas and Wisconsin. These cases have already produced fairer maps and led to two new African-American members of Congress in 2016.

We know theres a long path ahead. But the work of ending illegal gerrymandering is critical to the future of our democracy. We have an opportunity and an obligation to fix a broken Congress and to build the kind of nation that speaks with our voice, the voice of the diverse and compassionate community that America has been, that we are, and that we can be once again. It will be up to all of us to embrace that challenge in the service of the more perfect Union that all Americans deserve.

See original here:
Eric Holder: This is how you fix a broken Congress - Gant Daily

Our Founding Fathers envisioned a Congress that would faithfully represent and be accountable to its constituents. In 1788, James Madison wrote in "Federalist No. 57:" "Such will be the relation between the House of Representatives and their constituents. Duty, gratitude, interest, ambition itself, are the chords by which they will be bound to fidelity and sympathy with the great mass of the people." Today, Congress has become unbound to the "great mass of the people." The House recently passed a health care bill that only 16% of the public supports, according to a recent poll. A narrow majority in the House rushed to pass the bill without any meaningful debate and the Senate is considering similar legislation. Whether it's healthcare or countless other issues, voters want one thing, but Congress does the exact opposite -- or nothing.

How did Congress become so untethered? Looking at how the US House districts were drawn gives us great insight.

With fewer competitive congressional seats, members of Congress are incentivized to serve narrow, partisan interests. This creates a Congress driven by primary party politics and ideological extremism, not one accountable to the will of the majority of voters.

That's not only bad for Democrats, it's bad for democracy.

So how do we go about fixing our democracy? We know from our history that the future is built by those who show up and by those who engage, resist, and overcome. That has been the story of America -- from the framers who planned a revolution, to the abolitionists who embraced emancipation; from the workers who fought for a decent wage, to the women who reached for the ballot; from the marchers who demanded their civil rights, to the activists who secured marriage equality for all of us. Today, once again, millions of people of strong will and good faith are asking what they can do for the country they love.

The NDRC is a new effort to create more representative districts with a targeted, state-by-state strategy. Our strategy involves four key components: overturning illegal gerrymandering in the courts; winning critical state elections; investing in ballot initiatives on redistricting; and building the infrastructure for the 2021 redistricting process.

We know there's a long path ahead. But the work of ending illegal gerrymandering is critical to the future of our democracy. We have an opportunity -- and an obligation -- to fix a broken Congress and to build the kind of nation that speaks with our voice, the voice of the diverse and compassionate community that America has been, that we are, and that we can be once again. It will be up to all of us to embrace that challenge in the service of the more perfect Union that all Americans deserve.

Excerpt from:
Eric Holder: This is how you fix a broken Congress (Opinion) - CNN ... - CNN

Eric Holder, who served as attorney general under former President Barack Obama, warned President Trump against trying to hinder special prosecutor Robert Mueller's probe into Russian meddling in the 2016 election after it was reported Thursday evening that Trump's legal team is considering it.

"There is NO basis to question the integrity of Mueller or those serving with him in the special counsel's office. And no conflicts either," Holder tweeted.

He added, "Trump cannot define or constrain Mueller investigation. If he tries to do so this creates issues of constitutional and criminal dimension."

The Washington Post reported that Trump has asked his advisers about the scope of his pardoning power, including for aides, family members, and even himself in connection to Mueller's Russia investigation. His legal team is also reportedly examining ways to build a conflict-of-interest case against Mueller.

Mueller's investigation, along with several congressional probes, is looking into Russian interference in the 2016 election and possible ties to the Trump campaign. The special prosecutor's team also reportedly may be checking whether Trump obstructed justice, and on Thursday Bloomberg reported that the probe is parsing through Trump's business dealings.

Asked by the New York Times on Wednesday if Mueller diving into his personal finances would be a step too far, Trump said, "I would say yes." Though he didn't say what he would do about it, he did add, "I think that's a violation. Look, this is about Russia."

Trump and his allies have also expressed concern about some people in the Mueller team who had donated to Democrats, including Hillary Clinton, who was Trump's Democratic opponent in the 2016 election.

Mueller was appointed by the Justice Department to run the federal Russia probe after Trump fired FBI Director James Comey.

Amid the fallout Thursday evening, the spokesman for Trump's outside legal team, Mark Corallo, resigned. He reportedly had opposed publicly defaming Mueller and became unhappy with the discord in and around the White House.

Read the original here:
Eric Holder: Trump hindering Mueller investigation 'creates issues of constitutional and criminal dimension' - Washington Examiner

Corrupt to the core, Obama's hatchet-man is on the move

Look out Hillary Clinton. The former secretary of state and twice-failed presidential candidate proclaimed herself part of the #Resistance, but its a rabid left-wing movement that probably doesnt even want her.

Now Eric Holder wants to be the leader of the #Resistance. He is even pondering a 2020 presidential run. This might seem implausible , but the prospect of a Democratic nominee with massive baggage, in this case someone held in contempt of Congress in a bipartisan vote, should bring joy to the Republican Party.

It wont matter to the far-left hate-Trump voters, to whom the former attorney general has emerged as a hero and a leader. Never mind that Holder epitomizes the D.C.-Wall Street revolving door about as well as anyone. He has allied himself with California lawmakers who would rather not follow the law as long as Trump is presidenta bunch of modern-day John C. Calhouns.

Holder believes he has attributes more important than merely leading rebellious Californians.

I have a certain status as the former attorney general. A certain familiarity as the first African-American attorney general, Holder told Yahoo News, which first broke the news he was considering a run. Theres a justified perception that Im close to President Obama. So, I want to use whatever skills I have, whatever notoriety I have, to be effective in opposing things that are, at the end of the day, just bad for the country.

His actual presidency would involve heavy lifting on issues, likely pushing a constitutional amendment to ditch the Electoral College.

Its difficult to imagine Holder as a presidential candidate, or really a candidate for any elected office. Maybe hes close to Barack Obama, but he doesnt have Obamas stage presence. Controversy doesnt equal charisma. Holder almost makes Hillary seem energetic.

On the other hand, perhaps Trumps historic victory teaches us not to be dismissive of any candidate.

What can be said of Holder is that he probably has fewer skeletons than Hillary in his closet. But theres still fertile ground for Trump to campaign against Crooked Holder in 2020.

In June 2012, when 17 House Democrats joined Republicans in voting to hold the attorney general in contempt, it was about Americas top cop in the self-proclaimed most transparent administration in history refusing to provide the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee with thousands of pages of documents.

This was a horrible mark on his record, essentially a censure, but Holder knew it amounted to very little functionally. He continued serving at the Department of Justice well into Obamas second term.

Congress was investigating Operation Fast and Furious, the botched sting in which the U.S. allowed 2,000 guns to flow to Mexican drug trafficking organizations. The DoJ lost track of the guns, and halted the operation only after one of the guns was found at the murder scene of a border patrol agent .

Before the Fast and the Furious scandal, Holder stopped the prosecution of the New Black Panther Party members. There was near overwhelming evidence against Minister King Samir Shabazz, Malik Zulu Shabazz, and Jerry Jackson of misbehavior at a Philadelphia polling place in 2008. They were even caught on video intimidating voters.

Should anyone think Trump is hostile to the media or anti-First Amendment, well, Holder would be absolutely ghastly. As attorney general, he regularly used the Espionage Act to silence leakers and even target journalists. He hunted James Risen of the New York Times and James Rosen of Fox News. He issued a subpoena to Risen to force him to testify against a whistleblower. He also made Rosen an unindicted co-conspirator in other cases.

His scandals really began in the Bill Clinton administration, where he was the deputy attorney general in Janet Renos ethically-challenged Justice Department.

In August 1999, he advised President Clinton to give clemency to members of the terrorist group, the Armed Forces of National Liberation, or FALN. The FALN terrorists bombed a tavern in New York that killed four people and claimed responsibility for 100 bombings. Holder violated internal protocols by bypassingthe DoJs pardon attorneys and the U.S. attorney to push the clemency.

Holders most notorious act during his Clinton years was his role in securing the pardon of fugitive financier Marc Rich. Rich managed to be a big financial booster of the Clinton presidential library fund before Clinton left office. Holder provided the legal cover for an obviously political pardon that Bill Clinton issued with hours left in office.

Between his dubious service in the Clinton and Obama administrations, Holder worked for the corporate law firm of Covington & Burling. Representing business giants such as UBS, JP Morgan Chase, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, CitiGroup, and Chaquita you might think would irk the left. But the firm also represented a few terrorists along the way, so the sin of defending capitalists can probably be forgiven by the far left. Still, after stepping aside as Obamas AG, he went back to the firm, prompting leftist journalist Matt Taibbi to say, I think this is probably the single biggest example of the revolving door that weve ever had.

For all his progressive weaponizing of the DoJ, such as suing states that want to clean their voter rolls of dead people and launching investigations of Americas police departments, Holder consistently disappointed the left for not prosecuting the big corporations.

That might be related to his private practice and could present a challenge when it comes to picking up the Bernie Sanders wing of the Democrats that Hillary couldnt connect with. But, hell probably be okay. While progressive politicians goal is to effectuate the maximum amount of control over the most people possible, low-information progressive voters typically are governed by emotion. Even without charisma, Holder might be able to deliver on emotion, given the issues he likes to tout. He can ingratiate himself with the left because hes no fan of America. He called the U.S. a nation of cowards.

Also, based on what he told Yahoo, hes ready to capitalize on race. Theres nothing the left loves more than identity politics. As attorney general, Holder compared voter ID laws to Jim Crow-era poll taxeswhich either demonstrates a profound racial demagoguery interested only in political red meat or someone completely ignorant of the history of the wretched Jim Crow era in the South. Its most likely the former, since for all his flaws, Holder is a smart guy.

Could he be nominated? Possibly.

Sanders, a senator from Vermont, former Vice President Joe Biden, and Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren would seem to be in the top tier of Democrats who have indicated they might run in 2020. Holders name recognition would easily put him in that top tier. At 70 in 2020, hell be the youngest of the group, compared to the 71-year-old Warren, the 78-year-old Biden and the 79-year-old Sanders. To be fair, theyll all be vying to challenge a 74-year-old Republican president. It could be the most Jurassic presidential race in history, with a need to pick a 69-year-old vice presidential nominee to add youth and vigor to the ticket.

Sanders and Warren could split the socialist vote. Biden, likely wont run, but if he did, his tendency to unleash legendary gaffes would probably be the end of him. So Holder could walk right through the middle and win the nomination, having never held elected office. To low-information voters, he could even claim his not a politician.

Could he be elected?

Even if by 2020 the Russia-Trump theory has been cast into the territory of Roswell aliens and 9/11 Truthers, its possible the special counsel investigation could begin digging into something totally unrelated by that time. So, maybe there could be suspicion to go around. Whatever comes out on Trump, it will likely be difficult to top Holders past.

Bombthrowers is a blog about politics and the war for the hearts and minds of Americans from a conservative viewpoint.

In line with our name, we do not hold back. We have a take-no-prisoners attitude when it comes to fighting for conservative principles. The Left doesnt play nice, and thats why theyve been winning. Its time for conservatives to rise up and turn the tide.

Were not afraid to take on anyone, especially the Washington EstablishmentRepublican or Democrat.

Bombthrowers is a project supported by the Capital Research Center. Its editor-in-chief is Matthew Vadum.

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Read more from the original source:
Is Eric Holder Trump-haters' best hope for 2020? - Canada Free Press

ANALYSIS/OPINION:

Democrats are in a tizzy about their latest and brightest prospect for the 2020 White House Kamala Harris, the senator from California who made a name for herself bullying Jeff Sessions during his attorney general confirmation hearings.

Make way for the next social justice warrior beating a drum for the White House. Harris, a la Eric Holder, a la Barack Obama, is a far leftist with a vision of America as an inherently racist, unjust, unfair, misogynist nation. And by gosh, shes just the candidate to fix it.

Democrats and their penchant for the Anti. They never can get the hang of running for something of standing for and in favor of something. They always have to stand opposed.

First off, the question of her run.

Shes running for president, one fundraiser at a Hamptons event said, The Hill reported. Take it to the bank.

Another: Shes absolutely going to run.

So if she does and no matter what fundraisers say, its still an if this is what the country will have to look forward to: a former prosecutor with an aggressive contempt for all things conservative.

We have to keep showing up to fight the GOPs radical agenda on health care, on taxes, and many more important issues, she tweeted, just a few hours ago.

Another, with a link to a story, Why Trumps travel ban hits women the hardest, from the Guardian: Make no mistake: this ban disproportionately affects women and children.

Thats a claim the left has been constant on making that the majority of refugees are poor mothers and their even poorer children. So why all the photographs of young and single men, filing across borders by the droves?

Moving on. More anti-Republican activism.

Because of your phone calls, tweets, and emails, the Senate GOPs repeal plan is defeated (for now). But we must keep up the fight, Harris tweeted.

And then this take, on the war on drugs that its not so much a criminal matter, or a personal failure. Rather this: Whole populations of people have been incarcerated for what is essentially a public health issue.

Does that mean a President Harris would release all the nations incarcerated dopers and pushers and use tax dollars to send them instead to therapy and rehab? Another of her tweets gives clue.

Its clear, she wrote, we must rethink criminal justice policy in terms of prevention first.

Well thank you, Capt. Obvious. Stopping crime before it starts does seem a novel idea. The problem, however, is that the real root of crime is the condition of the human heart and soul the failure of fathers to stay in homes and raise their children properly, the failure of mothers to provide adequate care for their babies, the failure of government to support traditional family structure and instead adopt an anything-goes mentality that flies in the face of what God intended.

But thats not how the left sees it.

The left sees crime and punishment as matters of haves and have-nots and far too often, whites are the haves, minorities the have-nots, so their solution lies with wealth redistribution.

The answer to fixing the criminal justice system is not to build more prisons or privatize those prisons, Harris tweeted. Weve been offered a false choice about the criminal justice system. We are either tough on crime or soft on crime I say be smart on crime.

OK. But what does that mean, exactly? To a far leftist, smart on crime means soft on reality. It means looking at crime statistics, for instance, and seeing a disproportionate number of blacks behind bars and concluding a fault with the system inherent racism rather than a fault with the individual, or community.

This is an Eric Holder style of thinking. This is a Barack Obama way of seeing the world.

Harris for president? Shell be Holder in a skirt; Obama, with longer hair.

Read the original post:
Kamala Harris: 'She's running for president. Take it to the bank ... - Washington Times