America Votes - Florida

Florida Reps. Alcee hastings, Corrine Brown, Ted Deutch, Frederica Wilson, and Kathy Castor have joined 34 other U.S. Representatives signing the letter sent to the House Committee on the Judicary. The letter reads:

"Congress has the Constitutional authority to act to protect the rights of all voters. In the face of voter suppression laws being enacted across the nation, Congress must determine the extent of the problem and provide appropriate remedies. Despite years of progress, inequities and obstacles still remain. We must work together to strengthen our nation's democracy and ensure that the voting rights of all Americans are protected. Again, we respectfully request that Committees hold a hearing to address this extremely important matter."

Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) also recently requested that the Senate conduct "investigative field hearings" to see if the new laws are "an orchestrated effort to disenfranchise voters" in a manner that may be illegal.

There are currently two other lawsuits on the table for Scott in regard to his controversial election reforms and the executive order to randomly drug test state employees. This class action suit will not likely be the last that Governor Scott will have to deal with in the wake of the current reforms and cuts he's making. Read more here.

These crisis pregnancy centers are primarily religious centers that aim to convince women not to have an abortion if they are facing that decision. Some have even been found to give inaccurate information about abortions and health care. The main focus at these centers is counseling rather than actual health care services, so instead of focusing funds on programs that do provide these services, Governor Scott is eliminating women's options for health care.

Many other states are dealing with the prospect of cutting funding for programs such as Planned Parenthood, which actually provides many services beyond abortions, and either putting the money towards programs like these crisis pregnancy centers or risking losing more money from the federal government. Indiana just passed a law to cut funding from Planned Parenthood and is now risking losing up to $4.3 billion for Medicaid. While the money for Medicaid hasn't been cut yet, the Obama administration has directed the state to drop its ban on Planned Parenthood; for now it remains a game of chicken with health care for low income families hanging in the balance.

Florida Governor Rick Scott and the conservative legislature are considering measures that will split the Florida Supreme Court into two separate tribunals, one dealing with criminal proceedings and the other with civil.  If enacted this bill will allow Governor Scott to appoint three new justices, ensuring that the conservative power players in Florida's executive and legislative branches can protect their actions by creating three brand-new conservative voices on the Supreme Court.  With current efforts to cripple collective bargaining rights and force burdens onto the poor, the foresight to guarantee Supreme Court cooperation is as shrewd as it is sickening.

Unpopular Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker has likewise expanded his ability to establish new political appointees to include the legal counsels in civil service jobs.  With a Walker appointee in place, citizens' efforts to gain access to government documents will be susceptible to the whims of the Governor himself.  Like Governor Scott, Governor Walker is providing himself with future legal cover to accomplish whatever his Koch-influenced agenda dictates, in spite of his lack of public support.

It may be unfair to call these power grabs unprecedent -- they're sadly far too commonplace in the political arena -- but they're certainly dangerous.  And before we know it, these governors may just get off scott-free.