Outrages of the Week: More Racism in Colorado, Partisan Voter Suppression, and the Right Ditches Federalism

Every week the Progressive States Network does a roundup of the most outrageous developments at the state level. Check out some of the headlines you may have missed this week.....


1. CO: Former Governor Says Latinos and Blacks lack the drive of Asians and Jews Former Colorado Governor Dick Lamm ignited a firestorm of controversy for recently giving a speech in which he said that Latinos and black Americans lack the ambition of Asians and Jews. The speech was apparently based on a book he recently wrote in which he said that he wished he had two magical wands, "one to end racism in white America and another to wave 'across the ghettos and barrios of America and to infuse the inhabitants with Japanese or Jewish values, respect for learning and ambition.'" Meanwhile, it sounds like most of Colorado's leading political lights just wish Lamm would drop racism himself. [Denver Post, 7/28/06]

2. MD & FL: Partisan Voter Suppression Strategies
Maryland Governor Robert Ehrlich was among the chief opponents of an early voting bill that recently survived a court challenge. The bill will give voters several additional days to cast their votes, making it easier for busy citizens to be involved. The conservative Governor argued that making it easier to vote would help progressives. Accepting the converse -- that making it more difficult to vote would help conservatives -- as true, it quickly becomes clear why Florida conservatives are implementing strategies to suppress voter registration. [The Capital, 7/26/06; Orlando Sentinel, 7/26/06]

3. MA: Romney, Angling for Higher Office, Doesn't Sign Minimum Wage, But Doesn't Veto Either
Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney previously publicly criticized the legislature's unanimous passage of a minimum wage for lacking cost-of-living indexing. This week, he revealed his real problem: the measure will increase the Bay State's minimum wage to $8 an hour, but Romney thinks that workers only deserve a quarter an hour raise. But Romney didn't even veto, simply making the recommendation, leaving two more likely rounds of discussion between him and the legislature before the issue gets settled. Good grief, can't we get a raise for workers yet? [AFL-CIO, 7/24/06]

4. CO: Conservatives Seek Federal Interference in State Elections
Even after the Colorado supreme court found that a mid-decade redistricting effort violate the state constitution, conservatives have opted to reject judicial federalism and take the issue into federal courts. Typically, state courts are respected by federal courts in their interpretations of state law and constitutional matters. But federalism has long since ceased to be a guiding principle of the American Right. [Denver Post, 7/27/06]

5. Feds Prepare to Gut State Power, Again. Right-wing Legislative Group Applauds Move, Again.
For an organization that claims to value the Jeffersonian principle of federalism, the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) sure has a hard time showing its appreciation for state authority. With a bill moving through Congress to gut a state tax power, ALEC chose once again to act as a stooge for the corporate interests that fund it rather than as a principled advocate for conservative values. The National Governor's Association, a bipartisan organization, describes the bill "as a direct interference in state sovereignty." The bill was withdrawn before a vote. [Medill News Service, 7/24/06; Northwest Progressive Institute, 7/26/06]