Government by the Rich, for the Rich
The much maligned Tax Reform and Jobs Act (TJRA) is regarded by most Americans as a naked effort by the Republican Party to reward its key donors, among them the wealthiest of Americans. Public polling has consistently been negative for this “reform” legislation. The law's modest temporary tax relief for the middle class is just window dressing. The public has simply disregarded this window dressing and correctly assessed the stink from what has been served up to them. This statute ought to be one of the first things on the agenda of any new Democratic majority in Congress to reverse.
Industrial Development in West Virginia
In early November 2017, West Virginia economic development officials announced a memorandum of understanding with China Energy, said to be the world’s largest energy company. The deal would involve an $84 billion investment in various West Virginia energy projects over a twenty-year period. These projects would focus on power generation, chemical manufacturing and underground storage of natural gas liquids and derivatives. The potential for more fossil fuel and petrochemical development has set off the predictable debate between environmentalists and progressives on one side and business interests on the other. This debate mirrors the debate in the Eastern Panhandle about the Potomac River Pipeline.
High Crimes and Misdemeanors
Impeachment of the President has occurred twice in American history and was preempted in a third case by the resignation of the President. This little-used mechanism of republican government has recently been on the lips of many, fueled by an unpopular President and a special counsel investigation into the conduct of his subordinates. If a President is impeached by the House of Representatives and convicted by the Senate, he or she is removed from office, but may be subject to later criminal prosecution. The constitutional grounds for impeachment are “Treason, Bribery or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.” Treason is defined in the Constitution itself and bribery has a clear legal meaning. But what are high crimes and misdemeanors?
Delegate Riley Moore and Business Tax Cuts
On October 19, 2017 Delegate Riley Moore, who represents the Shepherdstown District in the West Virginia House of Delegates, published an opinion piece in the Charleston Daily Mail. The piece urged Congress to pass the Trump “tax reform” bill for the sake of economic growth, particularly in West Virginia. Putting aside that Del. Moore could not have known the details of the Republican tax bill on October 19 because it had not yet been made public, he extolled the virtues of various tax cuts he expected the plan to contain. In particular, Del. Moore is fond of tax cuts for business. His logic is the following. The desirable end result is more economic activity and good jobs for everyone. So far, so good. The means of achieving that desirable end result is to give over a trillion taxpayer dollars to corporations -- with no strings attached -- and hope that they spend this money in productive ways. What could possibly go wrong here?
Partisan Gerrymandering and the Constitution III
The Supreme Court recently heard argument in Gill v. Whitford, a case from Wisconsin challenging gross partisan gerrymandering. In that case the Republican majority of the legislature intentionally redrew state district boundaries to ensure that in the future Republicans won a majority of seats even when Democrats prevailed in the state-wide popular vote. The Democrat challengers in court claimed that their rights to free association and speech under the First Amendment and their right to equal protection under the Fourteenth Amendment were violated by this. How the Supreme Court resolves this case will determine how well our democracy works for decades.
Partisan Gerrymandering and the Constitution II
Today the Supreme Court heard arguments in the case of Gill v. Whitford, in which the Wisconsin legislature was caught red-handed manipulating the state’s voting districts to ensure that Republicans retain control for a decade, even if they lose the state-wide popular vote. The process by which the legislature did this was secret – the redistricting plan was drafted in a conference room of a private law firm with the aid of sophisticated software. Democrats were totally excluded from the process. Much of the damning evidence came to light when recall elections involving several state senators briefly put the Democrats back in control. Since the law firm represented the legislature itself, not the former Republican majority, the new Democratic majority instructed the lawyers to release the records of how the gerrymandering was done. What spilled forth should make the hair stand on the back of your neck.