All purpose news and politics thread part VI: This Is Not The Time For Posing

[CaptainEurope]

Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters, who was barred from overseeing elections after she was indicted on charges of tampering with election equipment and official misconduct, finished third in the GOP secretary of state primary in Colorado.

[numberthirty]

Not sure how reliable the source is that I provided in the Jan 6 thread, but they clearly disagree with you.

https://www.mosesandrooth.com/happen...fth-amendment/

What Happens if I Plead the Fifth Amendment?

Pleading the Fifth as a Criminal Defendant

In Malloy v. Hogan, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled a defendant has the right to plead the fifth in State criminal cases, as well as, Federal criminal cases. As a criminal defendant, you can choose not to take the stand in order to protect yourself from self-incrimination, however, once you have chosen to do so you have waived your right to testify.

Criminal defendants cannot choose to answer some questions and not others. It’s an all or none scenario in criminal cases.

Pleading the Fifth as a Witness

If a witness chooses to plead the fifth, unlike criminal defendants, this does not allow them to avoid testifying altogether. Witnesses subpoenaed to testify must testify, but can plead the fifth for questions that they deem are self-incriminating.

[CaptainEurope]

When you are called to the stand to testify, you will hear the prosecutor say something akin to, "the prosecution calls (your name) to the witness stand." Approach the witness stand, which is the box located next to the judge's bench at the head of the courtroom. The bailiff will then ask you if you "swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, under penalty of perjury, so help you God?" Respond with "I do" or "yes," then sit down.

Immediately after sitting, turn to the judge and say, "Your honor, I respectfully invoke my rights under the Fifth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution on the grounds that answering questions may incriminate me." The judge may direct you to provide your full name, to which you should comply. Answering any other questions will effectively waive your right to take the fifth, and you will then need to answer any additional questions asked of you while on the stand.

Wait until you are excused from the witness stand, then step down and return to the gallery. If you have no other business in court to attend to, you may leave as soon as you are excused.
Carrie Ferland, J.D., M.B.A

https://legalbeagle.com/5902144-fifth.html

2 lawyers, three opinions.

[numberthirty]

https://www.kushlawgroup.com/blog/20...-as-a-witness/

When can you “plead the Fifth” as a witness?

Witnesses in a judicial proceeding can choose to plead the Fifth to certain questions while answering others. If a defendant chooses to testify on their own behalf, however, they’ve waived their Fifth Amendment rights and must truthfully answer all questions.

[CaptainEurope]

Considering the loud complaints about traditional Democrats after the SCOTUS decision on RvW, how did more left wing candidates do in the primaries last night? I'm looking at the list of names but I would have to google them all individually.

[babyblob]

Everyone remember how Ginni Thomas couldnt wait to talk to the committee and clear things up? Go under oath and tell her side. Well they wrote her a letter to appear and now her tune has changed and she is hiding behind her lawyer.

https://www.cnn.com/2022/06/28/polit...tee/index.html

it is amazing how many defenders of the big lie cant wait to tell their side and yell about equal time. But the second they are told to do it under oath they plead the 5th or like Ginni hide behind a lawyer to stop them from appearing.

[WestPhillyPunisher]

Everyone remember how Ginni Thomas couldnt wait to talk to the committee and clear things up? Go under oath and tell her side. Well they wrote her a letter to appear and now her tune has changed and she is hiding behind her lawyer.

https://www.cnn.com/2022/06/28/polit...tee/index.html

it is amazing how many defenders of the big lie cant wait to tell their side and yell about equal time. But the second they are told to do it under oath they plead the 5th or like Ginni hide behind a lawyer to stop them from appearing.

Anyone who thought Ginni would testify was delusional. That was NEVER going to happen, despite all her big talk.

[babyblob]

Anyone who thought Ginni would testify was delusional. That was NEVER going to happen, despite all her big talk.

Oh I know. i just like pointing out how full of **** she and the rest of the GOP Cult.

"I cant wait to tell my side... Wait you want to to do so under oath? Yea no im going to have my lawyer stop that."

"I did nothing wrong. I am 100 percent innocent and cant wait to tell my side.... What was the question? Oh I plead the 5th."

[CaptainEurope]

Andrew Giuliani was viciously beaten... in his primary.

[Panfoot]

https://www.axios.com/2022/06/28/ala...ns-health-care

"Marshall used the U.S Supreme Court's decision overturning Roe v. Wade to suggest that since the court rejected the idea that abortion cannot be protected under the 14th Amendment because it's not "deeply rooted" in the nation's history, the same could be said about access to gender-affirming care."

But of course...

[Tendrin]

https://www.axios.com/2022/06/28/ala...ns-health-care

"Marshall used the U.S Supreme Court's decision overturning Roe v. Wade to suggest that since the court rejected the idea that abortion cannot be protected under the 14th Amendment because it's not "deeply rooted" in the nation's history, the same could be said about access to gender-affirming care."

But of course...

Shocked, I tell you.

[Mister Mets]

Considering the loud complaints about traditional Democrats after the SCOTUS decision on RvW, how did more left wing candidates do in the primaries last night? I'm looking at the list of names but I would have to google them all individually.

Vox describes the progressive caucus as a winner in yesterday's primaries.

It’s harder for Democrats to gerrymander effectively

Largely due to segregation, partisan map drawing is a game Democrats can’t win.

This gets to the question of what games they can play, since they have three major problems when it comes to congressional representation.

1) The Senate borders cannot be redistricted, and a system where every state has the same level of representation regardless of population is going to hurt the urban party.
2) If we allowed open gerrymandering, Republicans would be able to take advantage much more. 538 had a project that looked at several ways we could draw district boundaries. If it was made to help Democrats as much as possible, they would have 263 safe Democratic districts and 27 competitive districts. If it was made to help Republicans as much as possible, they would have 275 safe Republican districts.
3) Geographic sorting still benefits Republicans. It's generally agreed that congressional districts should be geographically contiguous, and that when possible communities should not be divided within congressional districts. With geographic sorting, people have come to live near those who agree with them politically. Rural Arkansas will be very conservative. Harlem will be a safe Democratic seat. This sorting benefits Republicans, as liberals are more likely to live in areas where their candidate gets more of the vote, or in small enclaves within conservative regions (ie- college towns in Nebraska.)

The main strategy for Democrats seems to be to rely on judges and independent commissions to maximize their representation. I'm okay with that, as long as there are clear standards by which we can determine if the independent commission did its work correctly.

No one says Democrats *don't* try to maximize their maps under the current rules, of course. Opponents love to try to paint that as a moral failing on the part of the Democrats, an example of them surrendering to political pragmatism and just wanting 'more dems' instead of *really* caring about gerrymandering. In reality, conservatives often advance this argument in bad faith, knowing that their party would benefit were the Democrats to 'live up to their principles' on the matter and ban it in states they control while it remains unchanged in states Republicans do, or even simply for them to attempt be fair, all the while Republicans take extreme gerrymanders in states they control which creates deeply unrepresentative legislative bodies, as it does in Wisconsin.

Gerrymandering needs to be abolished, and its abolition is gonna have to come from the federal government. I think personally congressional maps ought to reflect people rather than land, but I'm just some silly guy who wants to live in a properly representative country.

(Also, uncap the house.)

I was responding to a point about how people opposed to gerrymandering shouldn't vote for Republicans.

Can you expand on what you mean by congressional maps reflecting people rather than land? House districts are supposed to be equivalent in population.

[WestPhillyPunisher]

https://www.axios.com/2022/06/28/ala...ns-health-care

"Marshall used the U.S Supreme Court's decision overturning Roe v. Wade to suggest that since the court rejected the idea that abortion cannot be protected under the 14th Amendment because it's not "deeply rooted" in the nation's history, the same could be said about access to gender-affirming care."

But of course...

Or civil rights for that matter.

[Kirby101]

In NY Governor race it will be current Governor Hochul against Trumper, anti abortion Lee Zeldin. I don't see where there is a question of who to pick, others here will differ.

[kidfresh512]

Teachers voice concerns after Orange County previews ‘Don’t Say Gay’ impact to classrooms

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — Representatives for Orange County teachers sounded alarm bells Monday after word spread from principals that Orange County Public Schools would impose strict restrictions on classroom behavior after Florida’s new Parental Rights in Education law, a.k.a the “Don’t Say Gay” law, took effect.

In private, administrators-only seminars last week, OCPS attorneys advised principals what behaviors would and would not be legal under the law during a “Camp Legal” presentation.

According to representatives of the county’s teacher association, teachers and staff members will be disallowed from wearing rainbow articles of clothing, including lanyards distributed by the district last year. Elementary-level teachers reported being discouraged from putting pictures of their same-sex spouse on their desk or talking about them to students.

“During the presentation, administrators posed hypothetical scenarios based upon the new statutes and verbal answers were provided based on the limited guidance from the Florida Department of Education,” the spokesman wrote. “Once further guidance is received from the Florida Department of Education, the district will provide formal guidance to administrators and staff.”

In a separate conversation, an OCPS official said the district needed to err on the side of caution until state officials provided more clarity. The strict interpretations, they said, were necessary to protect both students and teachers. The latter could have their teaching licenses revoked if they run afoul of the law, the official said.

That is so gross. You can't even put up pictures of your family on your desk. Yet The GOP want to hand teachers guns to battle active shooters like the Wild west.

With all they put up with you have to what sneak to your car at lunch if you want to look at a picture of your spouse real quick?