Elon Musk had this to say about the company he’s about to buy for $44 billion: “Twitter’s a war zone. If someone’s going to jump in the war zone it’s like ‘okay, let’s go!.’”

Consider this the No War Zone, a safe place for your conservative- or liberal-leaning opinions. Leave your comments here on the leaked Supreme Court draft that wouild reverse Roe v. Wade, whether pro-life or pro-choice (see “New poll affirms abortion rights support” in Friday’s center-column) or email them to editors@thehustings.news and as long as they’re civil and respectful, we’ll post them on this page (please note whether you consider yourself “left” or “right”). No echo-chambers, no trolling.

Also in this column:

•Pundit-at-large Stephen Macaulay’s commentary, “Stare Decisis: Look Away. I Need a Job.”

•Contributing pundit Bryan Williams on the leaked majority opinion draft and what it means for the Democrats this midterm.

•Macaulay and on page 2 guest pundit R.J. Caster with different conservative takes on Florida’s culture wars.

•Rep. Kevin McCarthy’s (R-CA) prospects for becoming next House speaker after leaked recordings of his post-January 6 comments on removing Donald J. Trump from the White House (page 2).

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In the right column Pundit-at-Large Stephen Macaulay addresses the veracity of Donald J. Trump’s Supreme Court justices.

Scroll down to read Jim McCraw on the left, and Bryan Williams on the right on that leaked Supreme Court draft ruling that would overturn Roe v. Wade.

Everyone is talking about it. You can comment on it with a comment to editors@thehustings.news.

Scroll down further to read our coverage of Gov. Ron DeSantis and Florida’s culture wars, with Timothy Magrath in the left column and R.J. Caster on the right.

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By Stephen Macaulay

One of the characteristics of those who have been affected by the Trump Force Field of Political Behavior is that they will say or do anything in order to obtain or maintain their jobs.

Does anyone doubt that there were extreme cases of groveling among those who would have otherwise been characterized as standing for probity (e.g., Lindsey Graham) or family (e.g., Ted Cruz)? Graham went from his, in 2015, “You know how you make America great again? Tell Donald Trump to go to hell” to figuratively shaving the man’s back. Ted Cruz, after Trump threw serious shade at Heidi Cruz, called Trump “a sniveling coward.” Subsequently, if there was any sniveling, Cruz held the Kleenex under Trump’s nose.

The reason they and many others bow and scrape so much that they’ve developed moral kyphosis is simply because they want to keep their source of income. There is an evident fear that if they go against their Dear Leader they will find the Base, which is like some sort of red-colored mob of Dementors, driving them from what they apparently imagine is a sinecure.

Potential examples of those who apparently think that it is okay to blatantly lie —because later they can either deny it or defect it, something that Trump did with absolute abandon -- (The Washington Post calculated the number of lies being 30,573 over his presidency) — are Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh, both of whom indicated, during their respective confirmation hearings, that Roe v. Wade was established precedent. Settled law.

As Gorsuch said during his hearings, “Part of the value of precedent – and it has lots of value, it has value in and of itself, because it is our history and our history has value intrinsically. But it also has an instrumental value in this sense: it adds to the determinacy of law.

“Once a case is settled, that adds to the determinacy of the law

“What was once a hotly contested issue is no longer a hotly contested issue. We move forward.”

Kavanaugh said during his hearing, “As a general proposition, I understand the importance of the precedent set forth in Roe v. Wade.”

So let’s say that the leaked SCOTUS draft opinion about Roe will stand with just a few minor copy edits.

What of what those two men said in front of senators and the American public?

When Supreme Court justices can be documented dissemblers, democracy has an exceedingly severe problem.

Justice Louis Brandeis wrote, “Sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectants.”

Nowadays, even the sun is cast in the shadow of lies.

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Reaction to the leaked Supreme Court draft from our pundit(s) on the left:

I am extremely disappointed, and thought, like many legal scholars, that this was “settled law” and that access to abortions is legal in all 50 states. This is horrible for women everywhere.

--Jim McCraw

•••

The Hustings welcomes your opinion on the Supreme Court’s impending ruling on overturning Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey. Email your comments to editors@thehustings.news and we will post them in the left or right columns, with no tolerance for trolling or personal attacks. 

Let this be your echo chamber-free forum. 

Please indicate in the subject line whether you consider yourself “left” or “right” – particularly important in this issue, as anti- or pro-abortion does not always align with other political opinions. 

Also in this column, below:

•“Don’t Say Gay’ Escalates Culture Wars,” commentary by Timothy Magrath, on Ron DeSantis and Florida’s latest legislation.

•“No Sympathy Left for McCarthy”: comments from the left on our recent Twitter poll on Rep. Kevin McCarthy’s (R-CA) prospects to become the next House speaker after revelations he had planned to tell Donald J. Trump to resign as president after January 6, 2021.

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Reaction to the leaked Supreme Court draft from our pundit(s) on the right:

Democrats know they are in trouble in the midterms. President Biden and his party seem to be tone deaf and on the wrong side of just about every issue. So ... have someone leak this draft opinion on abortion to get progressives, Democrats, and pro-choice voters agitated and try to defend the vulnerable Dems’ majorities in November.

--Bryan Williams

•••

The Hustings welcomes your opinion on the Supreme Court’s impending ruling on overturning Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey. Email your comments to editors@thehustings.news and we will post them in the right or left columns, with no tolerance for trolling or personal attacks. 

Let this be your echo chamber-free forum. 

Please indicate in the subject line whether you consider yourself “right” or “left” – particularly important in this issue, as anti- or pro-abortion does not always align with other political opinions. 

Also in this column, below:

•“Mousketeers, Assemble!”, Pundit-at-Large Stephen Macaulay’s commentary on Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ un-Republican-like attack on The Walt Disney Company.

•“DeSantis’ Education Push-Back,” R.J. Caster’s defense of Florida’s banning of certain mathematics books for containing critical race theory components. 

•“No Right Answer for McCarthy”: comments from the right on our recent Twitter poll on Rep. Kevin McCarthy’s (R-CA) prospects to become the next House speaker after revelations he planned to tell Donald J. Trump to resign as president after January 6, 2021.

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In this column below, read Timothy Magrath’s response to our center column on Florida’s rejection of mathematics text books and Governor Ron DeSantis’ culture war with The Walt Disney Company; “’Don’t Say Gay Escalates Culture War.” 

Scroll down further to read about our Twitter poll on Rep. Kevin McCarthy’s (R-CA) future as House speaker after post-January 6 phone recordings of his discussions with other GOP leaders on Capitol Hill came to light, and read our discussion on Elon Musk’s impending takeover of Twitter.

Comments: 

editors@thehustings.news.

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(MON 5/2/22)

The primaries are here … And Republican leaders are confident they can retake the Senate this November so long as primary voters send in the right candidates. 

John Thune, of South Dakota, second in Senate GOP leadership under Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (KY) says his party has a 50-50 chance right now of gaining a majority, which would require simply one net Republican victory. 

“It would be a lot higher than 50-50 if the primaries were over and we knew who our nominees were,” Thune told The Hill. “(There) are some very contentious, competitive primaries and in states, swing states, in a general election where you’ve got to have good candidates.”

Translation: Whereas the House of Representatives is considered a slam-dunk for Republicans, including – perhaps especially – Trump-endorsed candidates, Senate Republicans obviously are counting on voters moving beyond the Big Lie and the 2020 presidential election the former president continues to contest. Problem for Senate Republicans is the same primary voters will be choosing House candidates and where applicable, Senate candidates on the same ballot. 

First up: The purple state of Ohio, now considered deep red after Donald J. Trump’s win there in both 2016 and 2020, as well as Indiana are held this Tuesday. Everyone’s watching Ohio, where moderate Republican Sen. Rob Portman is retiring. The lead Republican for the nomination is former anti-Trumper turned Trump endorsee and Hillbilly Elegy author J.D. Vance. If he wins the nomination, he will likely face Democratic Rep. Tim Ryan, who currently serves Ohio’s 13^th District.

Other primaries in May, per Ballotpedia, are West Virginia, on the 10^th, Kentucky and Idaho, on the 17^th and Alabama, Arkansas and Georgia, on the 24^th. 

--Todd Lassa

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(FRI 4/29/22)

Parents v. Culture Wars … Most parents, no matter their political affiliation, are content with their children’s schools, reports an NPR/Ipsos poll with findings that suggest the “culture wars” over critical race theory, LGBTQ+ policy, and banning library books are the product of small, but vocal, minority of parents, and of elected officials looking to make political hay of the issues. 

According to the poll, reported on NPR’s Morning Edition Friday, 76% of parents say their school does a good job of keeping them informed about curricula, including controversial topics. The poll covers a wide range of questions related to the culture wars and to the results of school shutdowns during the pandemic.

The poll results reflect an improvement over a February 2021 NPR/Ipsos poll that asked the same wide variety of questions about teachers and local school boards. 

You can read a full summary here: https://www.ipsos.com/en-us/news-polls/NPR-Ipsos-Parent-Child-Education-04282022

The April 2022 poll of 1,007 parents found:

• Only 24% said they have too little influence over their children’s curricula.

• 37% said they “don’t know,” and 34% said they have about the right amount of influence.

• Political affiliation breakdown: 32% of Republicans, 18% of Democrats and 23% of independents said they have too little say in their kids’ school curricula.

•••

How to spend filthy lucre … The Biden administration is weighing options for directing to Ukraine for rebuilding tens of billions in dollars of Russian assets seized in economic sanctions imposed upon its invasion, Secretary of State Antony Blinken told Roll Call, which notes that the plan would require an act of Congress and could potentially pose long-term risks to U.S. taxpayers. Russian foreign reserves were estimated in January at $630 billion, although it is not clear how much of that is frozen in the U.S.

President Biden announced Thursday a package of $33 billion in humanitarian aid and defense for Ukraine. Many Republican senators already are signaling, however, they will need more information about Biden’s supplemental before they could commit to voting for it, CNN reports.

Here’s some more information: Russia hit Kyiv with a cruise missile strike during UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres’ visit to the capital city, The Guardian reports. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called for a “strong response” to the strike, which came “hours” after Biden announced the U.S. would double aid to his country.

•••

Abortion ban OK’d … Oklahoma’s state legislature is not waiting for the Supreme Court to rule on Texas’ controversial SB 8, which essentially bans abortions, with a ban of its own. The Republican-dominated Oklahoma House of Representatives voted 68-12 to send the bill to Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt for his signature, The Guardian reports. 

Like Texas’ SB 8, the Oklahoma law prohibits abortions after six weeks, before most women know they are pregnant, and allows citizens to sue abortion providers.

The Oklahoma House also approved new legislation prohibiting transgender students from using school restrooms that match their gender identity, and requires parental notification before any classroom instruction on sexual orientation or identity. (Note:See today’s first item.)

--Edited by Todd Lassa and Nic Woods

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COMMENTS: editors@thehustings.news

Stephen Macaulay’s center-right take on Florida’s bill to strip Disney World of its special improvement district status “Mouseketeers, Assemble!” is directly below. And below that is R.J. Caster’s right-column commentary, “DeSantis’ Education Push-Back,” in response to our center column, “Checking Our Math.” 

Scroll down further to read about our Twitter poll on Rep. Kevin McCarthy’s (R-CA) future as House speaker after post-January 6 phone recordings of his discussions with other GOP leaders on Capitol Hill came to light, and read our discussion on Elon Musk’s impending takeover of Twitter.

Comments:

editors@thehustings.news.

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In the right column our pundit-at-large, Stephen Macaulay takes a center-right look at the Florida-based culture war between Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) and The Walt Disney Company. We encourage you to read his commentary along with our Wednesday debate. 

You can read our center column on the issue by scrolling down with the scrollbar at the far right, where Timothy Magrath comments from the left, on the left, and R.J. Caster comments from the right, on the right.

Keep the conversation going with your comments. Email us at editors@thehustings.news and list yourself as “left” or “right” in the subject line. 

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By Stephen Macaulay

There are an estimated 58-million visitors to Walt Disney World each year. That is more than double the entire population of Florida.

People come from all 50 states and from countries around the world.

The base price for a ticket to the theme parks is $109 per day. It is estimated that the average visit to what is generally described as “The Happiest Place on Earth” is six days.

Let’s say for the sake of argument that people go to WDW and spend five days visiting the parks (they might spend the sixth at the Disney Springs shopping complex).

For five days, that would be $545 for tickets ($109 x 5).

For 58-million visitors, that’s $31,610,000,000.

Yes, billions.

Odds are you or someone you know has gone to WDW. And while it might seem like a heavy-lift to spend as much as any number of days cost to visit (that $31.6 billion doesn’t factor in plane fares, transportation, lodging, food, souvenirs, etc.), Disney is well known for its high standard of customer service.

There is value for money.

Another aspect of The Walt Disney Company is that it has developed (or purchased) some of the most beloved fictional characters of all-time. You can be a card-carrying member of AARP and have fond memories of Annette Funicello and Mickey; you can be in preschool and be capable of singing along with Elsa; you can live in your mom’s basement and know the back stories of even the obscure denizens of the Marvel Universe.

Disney owns 25,000 acres in central Florida where its parks and other amenities exist. That area is the “Reedy Creek Improvement District,” and operates with its own fire department, sanitation services and other functions of a municipality. A Florida law made it, and some other properties, an “independent special district.”

And Florida governor Ron DeSantis, allegedly because he was annoyed that WDW didn’t go along with his mask-free approach to COVID and because Disney CEO came out in support of the repeal of the Florida Parental Rights in Education Act, signed Florida Senate Bill 4-C, which revokes Disney’s right to operate as an independent special district.

One of the problems that the Democrats have is that they make things far too complicated in their messaging. They have a tendency to worry unnecessarily that they might offend someone by taking a stand on something so they boldly say little.

Meanwhile, the Other Side, to use a somewhat vulgar but accurate description, makes shit up. And if it doesn’t stick, despite repeated flinging of the bull, then they move on to something else. When called out on the lack of veracity they claim they are being unfairly attacked and then move on to something else.

Meanwhile, Democrats stare at their shoes.

Assuming that Democrats want to continue in positions of power and maybe even relevance, they have to start making bold, simple statements about what is being done by the Republicans (which generally is to say what isn’t being done by the Republicans because they seem to be more about bloviating than legislating).

So consider this:

Why don’t the Dems get out there and announce that Ron DeSantis is taking a wrecking ball to the Happiest Place on Earth. That Ron DeSantis is the enemy of Mouseketeers everywhere.

This is not an exaggeration.

The first-class service that people are familiar with from the Reedy Creek team? That’s going to be taken over by local municipalities. Which will arguably mean the level of service will go down and the tax rate for the people in those local municipalities will go up.

Not good for those who visit WDW. Not good for those who live around WDW.

While there might be moaning by the left flank of the Democratic Party that Disney is a big business and big businesses shouldn’t get any unfair advantages, they need to get over that. Tax breaks for businesses, whether it is for an amusement park or an automobile assembly plant, are now as American as apple pie.

DeSantis dissing Disney is one of the easiest ways that the Dems can reach not just the voters in Florida but across the country (millions of them).

If they can’t make that message resonate, then maybe they really are far less clever than they imagine themselves to be.

Note: Since this was written, the Disney Company dropped a document on the state of Florida which says, in effect, that the legislation signed by DeSantis is in violation of a contract signed by the state and the company 55 years ago. There is not only a rule-of-law issue here: Turns out that there is bond debt that the company has with the state that is due between 2023 and 2038 . . . which is on the order of $1.2-billion, which the state would have to pay — or eat. Nice work, Ron!

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COMMENTS: editors@thehustings.news

By Timothy Magrath

Much has been written about a recently passed law in Florida to prohibit the discussion of sexual orientation in schools from kindergarten to 3^rd grade.   Critics of Florida’s legislation prohibiting discussion of sexual orientation in public kindergarten to third-grade classes say it targets already marginalized LBGTQ people and groups, while supporters of the law accuse critics of being “groomers” who support steering children to be sexually abused by gay pedophiles, or some other horrid fate.  The critics of the legislation have also said the language is so vague that it would curtail any discussion of sexual education or orientation well beyond the third grade, and it empowers parents to sue while expanding legal liability to school systems across the state. 

Is this really a problem?  Or is this a Republican effort, led by presidential aspirant Gov. Ron DeSantis to demonize an already marginalized group, especially transexuals who have been in the political crosshair of Republican politicians across the country, to further their political aspirations? Is this really how Republican legislators and governors spend their time when they could be working on the real issues that affect their constituents, including infrastructure, climate change, jobs, health care and livable wages? Can anyone imagine kindergarten teachers inculcating young minds on sex?   

All the first- and second-year teachers I have ever met were kind, caring people. Teachers convincing first graders to have sex a certain way is beyond bizarre. And the party of tort reform is expanding school systems’ liability to any parent who suspects a sexual conversation has taken place in the classroom, including any conversations about “mommy and daddy.”   

One can imagine liberal parents, countering those sipping the Fox News Kool-Aid and the Ivermectin crowd by suing school systems for pushing stories with mommy and daddy heroes. 

This legislation should have been named the Lawyer Full-Employment Act, as already stretched school resources will have to be used to defend them from wackadoodle litigation. Way to spend tax revenues.   

Teachers pressed and insulted over the last years of the pandemic will be driven even more out of their loved profession. Why not praise our teachers and give them raises and tell them they are appreciated instead of suing them? 

The mission of many Republican leaders is to demonize opposing views. Rep. Newt Gingrich (R-GA) in the early 1990s began spreading caustic words to aspiring congress members, and the political discourse has not been the same since. Now right-wing Q-Anon wing nuts believe Democratic leaders are pedophiles and even more “mainstream” MAGA Republicans consider the opposing party to be full of traitors, scum, criminals and socialists.

We are citizens of the same country -- friends and neighbors, not political enemies. But GOP leaders seem intent on dividing rather than uniting, first by political party, to “own the libs,” and then by attacking Mexicans and other immigrants, Muslims, minorities, and now people with different sexual or gender preferences. The party who has advocated forever for less government wants to monitor who is sleeping with whom and persecute them if they do not conform.   

At this rate it will not take long for a Republican to go lower than Christina Pushaw, DeSantis’s Press Secretary, who tweeted that anyone opposed to this legislation must be a groomer. 

It gets worse. Gov. DeSantis pushed for, and just signed, legislation that removes Disney’s special improvement district simply to punish one of the state’s largest employers for opposing the “Don’t Say Gay” bill. We are not born with such bigotry, but rather we are trained by our parents, and apparently by our political leaders. Speak out against bigotry in all forms, as The Walt Disney Company has done, or remain silent and foster division and hate.

Magrath is associate professor of political science and director of the Beall Institute for Public Affairs at Frostburg State University (Maryland).

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COMMENTS: editors@thehustings.news