- https://www.oyez.org/cases/2024

- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_federal_executive_departments

- https://tamids.tamu.edu/ag-smart-data-lab/

- https://www.sos.state.tx.us/elections/candidates/index.shtml

- https://www.brazoriacountyclerktx.gov/departments/elections/election-results

- https://abc13.com/archive/7736817/

- https://tsbde.texas.gov/

How Trump’s second term will be different

- Party Eras
- Critical Elections
- Election Results 

What my 8 week GOVT students want to be when they grown up

software engineer
chemical engineer
mechanical engineer
agricultural economics
finance
pre-K to first grade teacher
dentist
EMS
law
nurse manager
artist
agricultural teacher
nurse anesthesiologist
art director for film
investment banker
financial analyst
biologist
biology teacher
construction sales
medical sales
athletic trainer
sports
Doctor
art teacher
professional disc golfer
live production
dental hygienist
registered nurse
drama
solar engineer
neuro surgeon
veterinarian
computer scientist
sports reporter

A look at the polling place just before we opened up.

 

Hamilton v. Jefferson: The Central Bank Debate [POLICYbrief]

How America became a superpower

From the Houston Chronicle: Anxious about your ballot? Here's how to ensure your vote was counted in Texas

- Click here for it. 

In an election filled with chatter alleging voter fraud and disenfranchisement, knowing if a ballot was officially counted or not can bring voters some much-needed peace of mind.

The Texas Secretary of State’s Office maintains public voter information that can help residents ensure their vote was counted. The process differs slightly for mail-in voters and those who placed their ballots in-person, but it’s still relatively straightforward for both groups.

The Texas Secretary of State generally uploads early voting and election day turnout the day after polls close. The only information voters need to check the status of a ballot cast during the early voting period is the date and location where they voted.

On Texas’ early voting page, select the Nov. 5 General Election and navigate to the early voting turnout by date dropdown menu. Selecting a date will automatically download a list of all the voters who cast votes that day.

The Texas Secretary of State’s Ballot Tracker allows voters to track their mail-in ballots with just their name, date of birth, social security number and driver’s license number.

From the New York Times: Tracking the Swing States for Harris and Trump

- Click here for it.

For our look at the election

United States Constitution.
- Click Here.

United States Statutes.
- Title 52—Voting And Elections

Texas Statutes
- Texas Election Code.

Texas Secretary of State
- Welcome to Texas Elections.

Brazoria County
- Elections and Voter Registration.

Election related news from the Texas Tribune

- Texas tells U.S. Justice Department that federal election monitors aren’t allowed in polling places.

Texas’ top elections official told the U.S. Department of Justice on Friday its election monitors aren’t permitted in the state's polling places after the federal agency announced plans to dispatch monitors to eight counties on Election Day to ensure compliance with federal voting rights laws.


- Dan Patrick debunks claims about Texas voting machines switching votes.

​Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick publicly debunked claims that voting machines in the state are changing the selections voters make.

Republican National Committee Co-Chair Lara Trump, whose father-in-law is GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump, posted on social media that Texas had looked into claims about voting machines in Tarrant County switching voters' selections and the "error has been corrected with the voting machines."

But Patrick, who is also a Republican, quickly corrected the national party leader on social media. The lieutenant governor said fewer than 10 people out of the nearly 7 million Texans who had already cast ballots across the state claimed that their selections were changed, but officials could not confirm a single instance of that happening.


A community college could transform the Lockhart area. Will voters approve it?

This November, the college is coming to voters in the Lockhart Independent School District with a proposition to begin paying into the Austin Community College taxing district. In exchange, residents would qualify for in-district tuition and trigger a long-term plan to build out college facilities in this rural stretch of Texas, which is positioning itself to tap into the economic boom flowing into the smaller communities nestled between Austin and San Antonio.

Community colleges have long played a crucial role in recovering economies. But in Lockhart, ACC’s potential expansion could serve as a case study of the role colleges can play in emerging economies as local leaders and community members eye the economic growth on the horizon.

That is, if they can convince enough of their neighbors to help pay for it.


In Dallas, ballot propositions could drastically change police and city government.

Three Dallas city charter amendments, buried at the very end of the upcoming November ballot, could drastically affect the city’s police department — and change how local government operates.

If passed, those amendments could force the city to hire hundreds more police officers and dictate where some excess revenue is spent, tie the city manager’s compensation to a community survey — and allow residents to sue the city for violating the charter while forcing the city to waive its governmental immunity.

Advocates say the propositions would place the power of accountability back in Dallas resident’s hands — while also increasing police staffing.

“Propositions S, T and U are a suite of ballot propositions … that came together because of Dallas citizens’ refusal to accept a lot of the bad headlines that we were seeing,” Pete Marocco, the executive director of Dallas HERO, the group responsible for the amendments, told KERA.


When will Texas election results come in? Here’s how the process unfolds.

Soon after polls close at 7 p.m. on Election Day, election officials begin to post early voting totals that will give Texans their first glimpse of results. But knowing the actual outcome of the election could take much longer, as election officials follow a long list of procedures to ensure your vote is counted accurately.

In large counties such as Harris, Dallas, Tarrant and Collin, where election workers and officials will be coordinating the counting of Election Day ballots coming in from hundreds of voting locations, results are likely to be particularly slow. But it’s not for a lack of effort by election workers often working past midnight to meet the state’s 24-hour deadline.

A look at current court cases involving elections

 These are pulled from Democracy Docket.

- Court Cases.

Typed of Cases: 

- Election Administration.

- Felony Disenfranchisement. 

- In-Person Voting.

- Post-Election Litigation.

- Redistricting Litigation.

- Registration.

- Vote by Mail.

More on Mussolini becoming dictator

As my 16 week classes know, this is the subject of their current written assignment. 

How did Mussolini consolidate power in Italy? 

Khan Academy does a great job explaining it. 

Check these two videos out especially (there's more)

- Mussolini Becomes Prime Minister.
- Mussolini becomes absolute dictator (Il Duce).

The Acerbo Law and The Enabling Act of 1933

Two laws passed with threats of violence by the Fascists in Italy and the Nazis in Germany which gave them control over lawmaking in each nation, effectively eliminating checks and balances.

- The Acerbo Law.

The Acerbo Law was an Italian electoral law proposed by Baron Giacomo Acerbo and passed by the Italian Parliament in November 1923. The purpose of it was to give Mussolini's fascist party a majority of deputies. The law was used only in the 1924 general election, which was the last competitive election held in Italy until 1946.

. . . Following the transformation of Italy into a one-party State in 1926, the Acerbo Law became obsolete. In 1928, the Italian Parliament (now purged of any serious opposition) overwhelmingly passed a new electoral law, known as Rocco Law from his proponent Alfredo Rocco; the new Law turned Italian elections into a plebiscite on a single list of candidates selected by the Grand Council of Fascism among members of the National Fascist Party and affiliated organizations.

- The Enabling Act of 1933.

The Enabling Act of 1933 was a law that gave the German Cabinet – most importantly, the Chancellor – the power to make and enforce laws without the involvement of the Reichstag or Weimar President Paul von Hindenburg, leading to the rise of Nazi Germany. Critically, the Enabling Act allowed the Chancellor to bypass the system of checks and balances in the government.

. . . Under the Act, the government had acquired the authority to enact laws without either parliamentary consent or control. These laws could (with certain exceptions) even deviate from the Constitution. The Act effectively eliminated the Reichstag as an active player in German politics. While its existence was protected by the Enabling Act, for all intents and purposes it reduced the Reichstag to a mere stage for Hitler's speeches. It only met sporadically until the end of World War II, held no debates and enacted only a few laws. Within three months of the passage of the Enabling Act, all parties except the Nazi Party were banned or pressured into dissolving themselves, followed on 14 July by a law that made the Nazi Party the only legally permitted party in the country.

 

From the NYT: Supreme Court Declines to Remove R.F.K. Jr. From Ballot in Two Key States

For our look at the courts, among other things.

- Click here for the story.

The Supreme Court on Tuesday declined to remove Robert F. Kennedy Jr. from the presidential ballots in two key battleground states, Wisconsin and Michigan.

Mr. Kennedy, an independent, suspended his campaign in August and endorsed former President Donald J. Trump. In emergency petitions to the court, he had mounted a last-ditch argument, saying the states had violated his First Amendment rights by keeping him on.

The decisions by the justices were unsigned and gave no reasoning, which is typical in such cases. There were no noted dissents in the Wisconsin challenge. But Justice Neil M. Gorsuch dissented in the Michigan case, echoing the reasoning of a dissent from an appeals court earlier in the litigation.

Since throwing his support behind Mr. Trump, Mr. Kennedy has sought both to be removed from and to remain on various state ballots. In September, the Supreme Court rejected a separate request from Mr. Kennedy asking that his name appear on New York’s presidential ballot.

Although early voting is already underway in both Wisconsin and Michigan, Mr. Kennedy asserted that he had acted in a timely fashion to try to remove himself from the ballots. Keeping him on, his lawyers said in asking the Supreme Court to intervene, compromised his “message of support for former President Trump.”

That he still remained only showed a disparity between how major-party candidates are treated versus independent candidates, Mr. Kennedy’s lawyers wrote, adding that Wisconsin allowed major-party candidates an extra month to adjust whether they appeared on the presidential ballot.

“Forcing a person onto the ballot,” they added, amounted to compelled speech in violation of the First Amendment, and Wisconsin’s rules for independent candidates violated the Constitution’s equal protection clause.

Dewey Defeats Truman | Living St. Louis

What is foster care?

In our upcoming look at public policy, we will cover policies related to poverty. This includes how children who lack familial support are cared for. 

One of these policies is foster care. 

You'll see a variety of posts related to the policy. To start: here are two definitions generated by AI.

From Chat GPT: 

Foster care is a system in which children who cannot live with their biological families due to various reasons—such as neglect, abuse, or family crises—are placed in temporary homes with foster families. These families provide care, support, and a stable environment for the children until they can be reunified with their families or find a permanent adoptive home. The goal of foster care is to ensure the safety and well-being of the child while working towards a solution that best meets their needs.

From AI Overview:

Foster care is a temporary court-ordered arrangement for children who are unable to live safely at home:

Purpose: Foster care provides a safe place for children to live until they can return to their family or be placed in a permanent home.

Placement: Children are placed in foster care by the government or a social service agency. The preferred option is kinship care, which is placement with a relative. When that's not possible, children may live with nonrelative caregivers.

Foster parents: Foster parents are state-certified caregivers who provide shelter, support, and care for children. To become a foster parent, you must meet certain requirements, including:

Being at least 21 years old
- Passing a background check
- Being financially stable
- Being in good physical health
- Completing orientation and training

Services for foster children: Foster children receive medical care, education, and counseling services.

Reunification: Whenever possible, the goal is to reunite children with their families through visitation.

Permanency: The goal is to place children in permanent homes as quickly as possible.

 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Publius_Valerius_Poplicola

https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/docs/CN/htm/CN.5.htm#:~:text=The%20judicial%20power%20of%20this,may%20be%20provided%20by%20law.

https://news.gallup.com/home.aspx

https://www.texastribune.org/2024/10/28/texas-dallas-police-propositions-amendments/

From Wikipedia: The Bradley Effect

One reason polls might be wrong is that respondents are uncomfortable revealing who they intend to vote for. Even when talking to anonymous strangers, we fear judgment.

My hunch is that this was why Trump's support in 2016 was underestimated.

- Click here for the entry. 

The Bradley effect, less commonly known as the Wilder effect, is a theory concerning observed discrepancies between voter opinion polls and election outcomes in some United States government elections where a white candidate and a non-white candidate run against each other. The theory proposes that some white voters who intend to vote for the white candidate would nonetheless tell pollsters that they are undecided or likely to vote for the non-white candidate. It was named after Los Angeles mayor Tom Bradley, an African-American who lost the 1982 California gubernatorial election to California attorney general George Deukmejian, a white person, despite Bradley being ahead in voter polls going into the elections.

For 10/29/24

- First three articles
- Fed 51
- Types of law
- - statutory
- - administrative
- - case
- First Congress

Will the polls be more accurate this election year?

Timeline of US Political Parties

If you are still confused about the development and evolution of the national political parties, check this out. It's worth your time. 

From some polisci people at UCLA: United States Congressional District Shapefiles

This is sweet.

All U.S. House districts from 1789 to 2012.

- Click here for it. 

A bit more help for my 8 week GOVT 2305 class

In case the site I gave you for assignment #2 is insufficient.

- Ballotpedia: Who Represents Me?

- Texas Tribune: Who Represents Me?

- 270 Top Win: Who Represents Me?

- Read this for hints on how to search for more: Harris County Law Library:  Who Represents Me? 

- Texas Tribune: Here’s your ballot for the Nov. 5 Texas elections.

Presidents signing bills into law

 

Covered in class - 10/28/24

- What Threats Does My Vote Really Face?

- CHIPS and Science Act.

- H.R.4346 - CHIPS and Science Act.

- Title 15 - COMMERCE AND TRADE: CHAPTER 72A - CREATING HELPFUL INCENTIVES TO PRODUCE SEMICONDUCTORS FOR AMERICA.

- Subsidy.

- Commander in Chief powers.

- Unitary executive theory.

- Oyez: 2024-2025 Term.

A Legal View of the 2024 Election: Insights from Harvard’s Election Law ...

From the Washington Post: See how your neighborhood is giving to Trump and Harris

More evidence of an urban rural split.

- Click here for the article.

In most states across the country, more people donated to Vice President Kamala Harris than to former president Donald Trump.

Registered voters in suburbs were about twice as likely to give to Harris as to Trump. A vast majority of Trump’s donors under 35 were men. And in the battleground state of Georgia, where Black voters make up one third of the electorate, less than 4 percent of Trump donors were Black.

Those are among the findings from a Washington Post analysis of online contributions to the Trump, Harris and President Joe Biden campaigns, combined with voter registration data. There are outside groups that don’t have to disclose donors and that make up some of the spending for both Harris and Trump, so this is only a part of the funds backing the two candidates. The result is still a detailed snapshot, down to the Zip code level, of who clicked and tapped to send a few dollars to the leading candidates since Trump launched his campaign in November 2022.

Scenes from the Harris County Elections Training

 

 https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2402547121

 https://youtu.be/94wN9tXypSU?si=DgTzlopgYlqUEyiR

From the Texas Tribune: Delta-8 hemp and Texas medical marijuana industries to face off in the upcoming legislative session

- Click here for the article.  

8 week schedule

- October 21: Classes Start
- October 21: All quizzes are open
- October 21: Active Learning Assignment #1, due October 28
- October 28: Active Learning Assignment #2, due November 4
- November 4: Active Learning Assignment #3, due November 11
- November 11: Active Learning Assignment #4, due November 18
- November 15 - 18: Test 1
- November 18: Active Learning Assignment #5, due November 25
- November 22 - 25: Test 2
- November 25: Active Learning Assignment #6, due December 2
- November 27 – December 1: Thanksgiving
- December 6 – 9: Test 3
- December 11 – 14: Test 4
- December 11 – 14: Final
- December 14: 1000 word essay due by midnight
- December 14: all quizzes closed.
- December 14: All work must be turned in by midnight.

 

 

For our look at counting the vote

- From the Brennan Center: How Vote Counting Rules Have Changed in Key States Since 2020.

- From the Brennan Center: Roadmap to the Official Count in the 2024 Election.

- From the NCSL: When Absentee/Mail Ballot Processing and Counting Can Begin.

- Texas Election Code: Chapter 65. Counting Votes and Preparing Returns. 

- Texas Election Code. 

 https://www.britannica.com/biography/Montesquieu

 

https://www.sos.state.tx.us/elections/historical/harris.shtml

 https://youtu.be/GtRn6YD9cp8?si=aUOT_v2Ku2VwX-ZJ

 https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/20/us/politics/jill-stein-harris-trump.html

 

 

 

 

 https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCODE-2023-title52/pdf/USCODE-2023-title52-subtitleI-chap103-sec10307.pdf

From the Washington Post: How the election winner becomes president and where it could go awry

 A look at what happens after the election is over.

- Click here for the article.

Every presidential election revolves around the casting of votes. But this is just one step in a chain of events that ends months later with the winner’s inauguration and ascent into the White House. Between Election Day and Jan. 20, the results from roughly 10,000 election jurisdictions are checked and rechecked, certified by local and state officials, then sent to Washington for final affirmation.

The vast majority of U.S. elections have involved a peaceful and orderly transfer of power, making much of this post-election process feel like a formality. But Donald Trump attacked it at virtually every level as he tried to overturn his 2020 loss to Joe Biden. He has signaled his intent to contest the result again if he loses to Vice President Kamala Harris this fall.

Here’s a look at how the post-election process works, along with some vulnerabilities that arose during Trump’s attempt to reverse his loss four years ago.

From the New York Times: Forget Swing States. It’s These 21 Microcommunities That Could Decide the Election.

Worth coverage in class.

- Click here for it. 

In almost every presidential battleground state, polling suggests something close to a dead heat between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump. In these states, there are key geographic voting blocs that could determine the outcome.

The best way to tell how a state will vote is to build from the precinct level up, to dig into neighborhood data and to look at the differences in demographics and voting patterns across those precincts. Using this approach, I assembled more than 100 political microcommunities in the battleground states.

Think of them as pieces of a puzzle representing distinct political and social trends that can help us understand the 2024 election. For Ms. Harris and Mr. Trump, each could be a crucial building block in a winning swing-state coalition.

I selected four states that offer a regional and demographic variety of the precinct-cluster puzzle pieces. Within each, there are opportunities for both candidates.

From the New York Magazine: Hurricane Milton Shows How Elon Musk’s X Is Now Useless in a Crisis

Prior to Musk's purchase, Twitter - as a platform - was applauded for its ability to allow people to connect and send out relevant information. 

Not anymore.

- Click here for the article. 

For a good long time, if you wanted to watch a major news event unfold online, your best bet was probably Twitter. It offered a flawed and partial view of what was going on during, say, a major hurricane, when official warnings and on-the-ground reports from professionals and amateurs had to contend with shark hoaxes and conspiracy theories, but it was clearly a useful resource. During Hurricane Sandy, I remember it as a source of local information and an outlet for my own local reporting. Online, at least, it was where the bigger picture came into focus early: The storm had been huge — worse than expected — and entire neighborhoods had been devastated.

It was one of those small golden eras you didn’t realize you were in, in part because it didn’t seem that great but mostly because you had no idea how much worse things would eventually get. For most of the 2010s, sources posting on Twitter were relatively diverse and, while frequently shitty and even malign, easy enough to verify or dismiss. News professionals treated Twitter as a second, unpaid job. Local, state, and national officials treated it as a broadcast system. Locals and eyewitnesses understood that it was an efficient way to get the word out. People with large followings worked as aggregators, sharing and amplifying what they were seeing in their feeds. It was also fast. In 2011, I saw posts about an earthquake in D.C. a few seconds before I felt my office chair wiggle in Manhattan. Twitter was always a mess, but it had something. In the right circumstances, it could actually be useful.

If, yesterday, you found yourself in the path of Hurricane Milton or were concerned about friends or family in Florida, you might have logged on, out of habit, to see what was happening. You would have encountered something worse than useless. On a functional level, the app is now centered on the algorithmic “For You” page, a sloshing pool of engagement chum in which a Category 5 hurricane gathering power in the Gulf is left to compete with videos of car crashes, posts from Elon Musk–adjacent right-wing maniacs, and a dash of whatever poorly targeted interest-based bait the platform thinks you might engage with, all collected from the past couple weeks. In this feed, paid blue checks get the most visibility, which is exactly what you don’t want in an emergency, in part because of the sorts of people who choose to subscribe to X — the sorts of people who, like the site’s owner, see major storms primarily as an opportunity to tell lies about people they hate — but just as much because of the people who don’t: local reporters and meteorologists, municipal services, fire and police departments, schools, relief organizations, and regular people who find themselves in the middle of a serious situation. The chronological “Following” feed is diminished as well. People have left. The platform’s norms around sharing and resharing good or valuable information have collapsed. There’s still something happening under the surface on X, and it maintains some functionality as a tool for sharing and gathering unique and scarce information from real people who otherwise might not get heard (most vividly over the past year, it has been, with TikTok, a vital source of on-the-ground reporting and testimony from Gaza). But it’s massively diminished and getting worse. It’s next update, which will base blue-check creators’ payouts on how much engagement they get from other blue-check creators, will, under current circumstances, function as something close to an in-kind donation to the campaign to elect Donald J. Trump.

What do interest groups want from presidential candidates? Three stories

- Crypto cash is flooding the 2024 election. Here’s who’s benefiting.

A new political network funded by the cryptocurrency industry has spent more than $134 million trying to elect dozens of allies to Congress, mounting an unprecedented political effort to influence voters and secure favorable regulation.

The spending comes from an organization called Fairshake, along with two other affiliated crypto-funded groups, known as super PACs, which by law can spend unlimited sums in politics. Since January 2023, they have blitzed television and radio airwaves with ads involving 67 candidates, many of whom support crypto interests, according to a Washington Post analysis of data from AdImpact, a monitoring firm.


- Trump has vowed to gut climate rules. Oil lobbyists have a plan ready.

An influential oil and gas industry group whose members were aggressively pursued for campaign cash by Donald Trump has drafted detailed plans for dismantling landmark Biden administration climate rules after the presidential election, according to internal documents obtained by The Washington Post.

The plans were drawn up by the American Exploration and Production Council, or AXPC, a group of 30 mostly independent oil and gas producers, including several major oil companies. They reveal a comprehensive industry effort to reverse climate initiatives advanced during the past nearly four years of Democratic leadership. At the same time, the documents contain confidential data showing that industry’s voluntary initiatives to cut emissions from burning natural gas have fallen short.

The lobbying blueprint takes particular aim at a new tax on emissions of methane, a gas that the International Energy Agency (IEA) says is responsible for nearly a third of human-caused global warming. The documents show the relative amounts of natural gas, including methane, burned by nine of 19 AXPC member companies that responded to an internal survey are increasing — in many cases sharply. After this article was published online, AXPC said 11 other member companies had eliminated such emissions.


- The big business that opposes wiping medical debt from credit reports.

The task of collecting Americans’ delinquent medical bills has become big business in recent years but now, the debt collection industry says, its work is threatened.

A federal proposal championed by Vice President Kamala Harris would ease the financial problems of people with unpaid bills by removing medical debts from the credit reports that determine eligibility for home mortgages, car loans and credit cards.

 https://youtu.be/Aj8lwyWKpa4?si=1aQCwulHB8S_Pzq_

 https://youtu.be/e_W4qnqWbao?si=HabYIDhGMD6Jow69

A Memorandum from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board

What is THECB? 

- Click here for their website.

FYI: They are the people who decided that you have to take two government classes in order to graduate from a public university in Texas.


Memorandum

TO: Chief Academic Officers of Texas Public Universities and Health-Related Institutions; Chief Instructional Officers of Texas Public Community Colleges, Technical, and Lamar State Colleges

FROM: Michelle Singh, Ph.D., Assistant Commissioner; Division of Digital Learning, Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board

DATE: October 16, 2024

SUBJECT: Upcoming Digital Learning Events

The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board’s (THECB) Division of Digital Learning (DDL) is proud to host two exciting upcoming events:

The 2nd annual Texas Digital Learning Week (TDLW), November 4-7, 2024
The 3rd annual Digital Learning Summit, February 11-12, 2025

Texas Digital Learning Week (TDLW), November 4-7, 2024
Join the THECB DDL for a week of community connections, events, and webinars celebrating innovations in digital learning. Explore resources and programs provided by the THECB and our digital learning community to help support and strengthen digital learning in Texas.

Register now for TDLW!

Digital Learning Summit, February 11-12, 2025

We are excited to invite proposals for the upcoming Digital Learning Summit 2025. The theme for this year’s conference is Choosing Agility: Adapting to a New Era of Innovation in Digital Learning. The hybrid conference will feature engaging sessions on foundational and advanced practices in digital learning, innovative digital pedagogy, and emerging research. Participants will collaborate and network with practitioners from institutions of higher education across Texas. Institutions will be invited to host viewing events at their campuses and a host facilitator guide will be provided.

Visit DLTX to review the call for proposals and to submit a proposal. Submit your proposal by 11:59 PM CDT on Tuesday, November 19, 2024.

Mark your calendar for these free virtual and hybrid events held November 4-7, 2024, and February 11-12, 2025. Please forward this announcement to your faculty, librarians, instructional designers, administrators, digital learning staff, and other campus leaders who may be interested in attending these events. We look forward to your institution’s participation in the Texas digital learning community.

Visit DLTX to keep up to date on Digital Learning News and Events.

If you have questions, contact Gwendolyn Morel, PhD, Director (TDLW) or Liz Tolman, PhD, Program Director (Digital Learning Summit) at digitallearning@highered.texas.gov.

c: University and CTC Liaisons
CAO-UHRI Liaisons
Digital Learning

 https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2024/10/16/trump-tariffs-impact-economy/

 

 https://www.justsecurity.org/103478/2024-election-litigation-top-10/

 https://www.casatravis.org/a_brief_history_of_foster_care_in_the_united_states

From My Texas Future: Direct Admissions

What a great idea.

Find out head of time what schools will accept you.

- Click here for it.

 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parrhesia?wprov=sfti1

 https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/interactive/2024/home-insurance-climate-change-housing-market/

 https://www.washingtonpost.com/elections/2024/10/12/swing-states-presidential-campaigns/

From Ballotpedia

- 2024 ballot measures.

- - Laws permitting noncitizens to vote in the United States.

- - Ranked Choice Voting.

- - Changes in 2024 to laws governing ballot measures.

- - School choice in the United States.

How Michigan explains American politics

 https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/interactive/2024/campaign-spending-fast-food-mcdonalds/

 https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2024/10/21/kamala-harris-ascent?client_service_name=the+new+yorker&client_service_id=31202&service_user_id=1.78e+16&supported_service_name=instagram_publishing&utm_medium=social&utm_social_type=owned&utm_brand=tny&utm_source=instagram&utm_content=instagram-bio-link

An email from my election judge

You might get a kick out of this. I'm going to work the election in a few weeks, but I have a few things to take care of before I do. 

Here's the content of an email I received from the person - the election judge - I will work under.


Hi everyone,

Not everyone is confirmed yet, but wanted to go ahead and send out our election information.

Our Polling Location: (you will need this for training)
Arise Baptist Church
803 Curtin Street
Houston, 77018
Poll Code: 12164

Everyone will need to make sure you are signed up through A-1 for payroll to get paid:
All election workers are required to be signed up through A1 Personnel in order to receive compensation. If you or your clerks have not already signed up, please sign up on their website at https://a1personnel.securedportals.com/apply/acct_login.aspx?package_id=11.

Everyone will need to take training:

Election Training Information
For the November 2024 Election Season, we offer two types of classes for Election Workers:
1. In-person, 4.5-hour election training is mandatory for all new election workers
and those who have only worked one election between January 2022 and May 2024.
2. In-person, 2.5-hour election training is mandatory for all Election workers
who have worked at least two elections between January 2022 and May 2024.

November 2024 General Election Training Courses
4.5 hour Eventbrite Register here:
https://www.eventbrite.com/cc/november-52024-general-and-special-election-45hr-3577699

2.5 hour Eventbrite Register here:
https://www.eventbrite.com/cc/november-52024-general-and-special-election-25hr-3577879

New Late Policy for Training Classes
Election Workers must arrive on time to training. The Whole Group instructor will close the doors once the class has begun to respect the time and attention of those already in attendance. After the doors have been closed, Election Workers will not be permitted to enter. Those unable to attend class due to tardiness can reschedule their training online or call 713-755-1617, Option 04 to speak with a trainer.

Walk-In Policy
Due to the fact this election requires all Election Workers be trained, we will be unable to accept walk-ins. You will need to be on the sign-in roster or show proof of registration at the door if your name is not found on the roster. Anyone trying to attend as a walk-in will be directed to call 713-755-1617, Option04 to schedule a class at a later time.

For further information on Election Training and access to our new Election Manual and other
resources, please go to www.HarrisVotes.com. If you have any questions pertaining to training, email the training team at: training@vote.hctx.net, or Call us at 713-755-1617, Option 04 beginning September 26, 2024.

From Ballotpedia

- Donald Trump presidential campaign staff, 2024.

- Kamala Harris presidential campaign, 2024.

From the Department of Justice's Office of Public Affairs: Justice Department Secures Agreement with Durham, North Carolina, to End Discriminatory Hiring Practices in City’s Fire Department

A press release, meaning that this in information straight from the source.

We cover the topics raised in the section on civil rights and the equal protection of the law - 14th Amendment stuff.

- Click here for it.

The Justice Department announced today that it has secured a settlement agreement with the City of Durham (City), North Carolina, to resolve the department’s claim that the hiring process for firefighters in the Durham Fire Department (DFD) violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. Specifically, the department alleges that the City’s fire department screens applicants with a written test that discriminates against Black candidates.

Title VII is a federal statute that prohibits employment discrimination based on race, sex, color, national origin and religion. Title VII prohibits not only intentional discrimination but also employment practices that result in a disparate impact on a protected group, unless such practices are job related and consistent with business necessity.

The settlement agreement resolves a civil pattern or practice investigation the Civil Rights Division opened in February 2020. As part of the investigation, the division conducted an in-depth review of DFD’s hiring practices, applicant data and other information received from the DFD. The division concluded that the fire department was using a written test that does not meaningfully distinguish between applicants who can and cannot perform the job of a firefighter. The test also disqualified Black applicants from employment at significantly disproportionate rates. The department thus concluded that the test violates Title VII.

. . . Under the terms of the consent decree also filed yesterday, DFD will:

- Adopt a written test that does not discriminate in violation of Title VII and provide data to the department on the administration of the new test to ensure compliance;

- Pay $980,000 in back pay to applicants who were disqualified by DFD’s uses of the challenged test; and

- Hire up to 16 applicants who were unfairly disqualified by the challenged test and who successfully complete the new firefighter selection process.

The full and fair enforcement of Title VII is a top priority of the Civil Rights Division. The division has issued a fact sheet on combating hiring discrimination by police and fire departments to help applicants for public safety jobs understand their rights to be free from discriminatory hiring processes. More information about the Civil Rights Division can be found at www.justice.gov/crt.

For more: 

- Information for Journalists. 

The Fall of Putin

This is worth a look.

It helps us understand decision making in an oligarchy.

 - See: Russia Oligarchs. 

A look at coalitions in recent history

- New Deal Coalition.

- Conservative Coalition.

- Reagan Coalition.

- Obama Coalition.

An opinion from the Washington Post: Don’t live in a swing state? You can still influence elections.

What is an opinion piece? 

Who is Sam Wang?

What is the vote maximizer project?

- Click here for the Electoral Innovation Lab.

- Click here for the article. 

With the November vote at hand, many Americans will sit with their devices and obsess over the margins in the latest swing-state polls. This won’t help them influence the election any more than a fan collecting baseball statistics helps a batter get on base. But the same polling data can be used to drive active political participation, if one allows for a little uncertainty.

Campaign strategists do this all the time. They use math to help politicians decide where to travel and spend money. The same kinds of calculations can help ordinary citizens make the best use of their time and resources.

Well-meaning small donors too often waste their money — as many Democrats did in 2020 when they sent money to support Amy McGrath’s bid to unseat then-Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell in Kentucky. McGrath raised $90 million but lost by almost 20 points. That money might as well have been lit on fire. This year, Republicans might likewise waste donations on former Maryland governor Larry Hogan, who trails Democratic nominee Angela D. Alsobrooks by double digits in surveys.

. . . The 10 places where citizens have the most per-vote power in the presidential race — Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Maine’s 2nd Congressional District, Michigan, Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin — contain only 25 percent of the U.S. population. Yet in the rest of the country, voters have other kinds of power. Add in races for Congress and state leadership, as well as ballot initiatives, and competitive races can be found in 40 states and the District of Columbia.

From CBS: "Likely R" To "Lean R": What this means for the Texas Senate race between Cruz & Allred

Not the best news for our junior senator.

- Click here for the article. 

Early voting in Texas starts two weeks from tomorrow, and a respected firm that predicts national elections says the Texas Senate race between Republican incumbent Ted Cruz and Democratic Congressman Colin Allred has grown more competitive.

The Cook Political Report moved the race from "Likely R" down to "Lean R".

On its website, the organization defines "Likely" as: "These races are not considered competitive at this point but have the potential to become engaged." The Cook Political Report describes "Lean" as: "These races are considered competitive races, but one party has an advantage."

The four most recent polls in the Texas Senate race listed by Real Clear Politics show Cruz leading Allred by 4.75 percentage points. The rating change from the Cook Political Report comes about a week after the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee announced it is injecting millions of dollars into Allred's campaign for TV ads.

We asked Republican and former Texas Railroad Commissioner Michael Williams and Democratic political consultant and Grand Prairie Deputy Mayor Pro Tem Junior Ezeonu about the state of the race.

Williams told Jack that Texas remains a red state. "We're not even close to being a swing state or close to being a battleground state. We're red, solidly red, and that's not going to change in this election cycle."

Ezeonu agreed that Texas isn't a true swing state yet and said turnout is always key. "Can you get the voters out, can you energize the base and then get those moderates, swing voters that may not like Trump, may not like Cruz and want to look at someone else."

From the University of Florida Election Lab: Early Voting Tracking

As we saw before, there is no such thing as "election day." It spreads over several weeks, if you include early voting.

Here's some info:

- Click here for it.

Early voting is nearly upon us for the November 2024 presidential election. North Carolina usually leads off with mail balloting starting on Sept. 6, or sixty days before the November 5 general election (legal disputes regarding RFK Jr. delayed North Carolina mail ballots such that Alabama led the pack this year). More states follow with mail and in-person early voting options, with a handy guide of dates and more available from the National Conference of State Legislatures.

. . . The most reliable and important information we can learn from early voting is turnout.

Eight states — California, Colorado, Hawaii, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Vermont, and Washington — plus the District of Columbia run their elections primarily by mail. Election officials in these states send a mail ballot to every active registered voter. (Inactive registered voters — those who have not voted in a recent election — must request a mail ballot, at which time they become active voters.) Voters in these states still have options to vote in-person. Oregon and Washington — the two early adopters — offer emergency voting at an election office. Colorado innovated layering vote centers on top of mail balloting, which allows those who wish to do so an opportunity to cast an in-person ballot at special polling locations during the early voting period through Election Day. In Colorado and some other states offer special polling locations known as vote centers as a place where any voter may cast an in-person ballot and where eligible voters can do same-day registration — register and cast a ballot in-person.

Election laws and policies differ dramatically across the United States. As always, it is best to seek information from your local election officials for trusted information about elections.

 https://abcnews.go.com/538/key-demographic-groups-leaning-2024-election/story?id=114472688

From ABC News: Which way are key demographic groups leaning in the 2024 election?

Another way to determine the differences between the two major parties.

- Click here for the article. 

We’re now just about a month away from Election Day, and both former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris have been hard at work trying to persuade voters to pull the lever (or fill in the bubble, or touch the screen …) for them in November. Their efforts to persuade voters are all over the news, too: Whether it’s men, young voters, Latinos or Black voters, the campaigns are eager to discuss their outreach efforts to specific demographics that could be key to victory in November.

To see how well those outreach efforts are doing, we pulled together data from all the national polls in the last month to check how the electorate, and particularly these key demographic groups, have moved in response to last month’s campaigning. In particular, we checked in on whether the emerging Harris coalition has changed since our last look at patterns in demographic support back in August.

 https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-secures-agreement-durham-north-carolina-end-discriminatory-hiring

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B3lLYOGDsts

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jALYy01DoM0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jenWdylTtzs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bnKLpO9qhOE

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_McKinley

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Telecommunications_Act_of_1996

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malice_murder

https://www.oyez.org/cases/2023/22-721

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_L._Buckley

https://daily.jstor.org/who-took-the-cocaine-out-of-coca-cola/

Kennedy vs. Nixon: The first 1960 presidential debate

Dear ChatGPT: Is campaign spending a form of political speech?

First: What is political speech?

Political speech refers to any expression or communication that relates to political matters, including discussions about policies, political candidates, government actions, or social issues. This can encompass a wide range of activities, such as:

Public speeches: Addresses made by politicians or activists.

Debates: Formal discussions on political topics.

Campaign advertising: Messages promoting candidates or policies.

Social media posts: Online discussions and commentary about political issues.

Protests and rallies: Gatherings aimed at expressing political views or advocating for change.

Political speech is protected under free speech laws in many democratic countries, allowing individuals and groups to express their opinions, advocate for causes, and engage in political discourse.


So: Is campaign spending a form of political speech?

Yes, campaign spending is often considered a form of political speech, particularly in the context of U.S. law. The Supreme Court has ruled that spending money to influence elections is a way of exercising free speech under the First Amendment. This interpretation allows candidates and organizations to spend significant amounts on campaigning and political advertising, viewing it as an essential part of the democratic process. However, this perspective also raises concerns about the influence of money in politics and the potential for unequal representation.


From Buckley v. Valeo.

- Expenditure Limits: 

An excerpt:

The Court first reiterated that "[t]he Act's expenditure ceilings impose direct and substantial restraints on the quantity of political speech." It reviewed the sweeping scope of the law, noting, "The plain effect of [the Act] is to prohibit all individuals, who are neither candidates nor owners of institutional press facilities, and all groups, except political parties and campaign organizations, from voicing their views 'relative to a clearly identified candidate' through means that entail aggregate expenditures of more than $1,000 during a calendar year. The provision, for example, would make it a federal criminal offense for a person or association to place a single one-quarter page advertisement 'relative to a clearly identified candidate' in a major metropolitan newspaper."

From November 2, 1954: Proposition Prop. 6 - For the Constitutional Amendment to require women to serve on juries.

- Click here for detail. 

Election date: 11/02/1954

Votes for: 302,850

Votes against: 224,730

Articles affected Article 16 : Amends §19

What is the Federal Election Commission?

From Wikipedia: Federal Election Commission. 

. . . an independent agency of the United States government that enforces U.S. campaign finance laws and oversees U.S. federal elections. Created in 1974 through amendments to the Federal Election Campaign Act,[3] the commission describes its duties as "to disclose campaign finance information, to enforce the provisions of the law such as the limits and prohibitions on contributions, and to oversee the public funding of Presidential elections." It is led by six commissioners who are nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate.

From Wikipedia: Federal Election Campaign Act.

. . . the primary United States federal law regulating political campaign fundraising and spending. The law originally focused on creating limits for campaign spending on communication media, adding additional penalties to the criminal code for election law violations, and imposing disclosure requirements for federal political campaigns. The Act was signed into law by President Richard Nixon on February 7, 1972.

Click here for the FEC website.

Click here for contribution limits.

What is an independent agency of the United States government?

Ask ChatGPT:

What is a political campaign? 

A political campaign is an organized effort to influence decision-making within a specific group, typically aimed at securing votes for a candidate or party in an election. Campaigns involve various activities, including:

- Messaging: Developing a clear platform and communicating policies and values to voters.
- Fundraising: Raising money to support campaign activities, such as advertising and events.
- Outreach: Engaging with voters through door-to-door canvassing, phone calls, social media, and events.
- Debates and Public Appearances: Participating in public forums to discuss issues and interact with constituents.
- Advertising: Creating ads for television, radio, print, and online platforms to promote the candidate and their message.

Campaigns can vary in scale, from local elections to national contests, and they often involve strategizing to respond to opponents, mobilizing supporters, and ultimately getting people to vote on Election Day.


How are modern presidential campaigns organized?

Modern presidential campaigns are highly organized and strategic endeavors that typically involve several key components:

- Campaign Structure: Campaigns are usually led by a campaign manager who oversees operations, fundraising, and strategy. This team includes various departments like communications, policy, finance, and field operations.

- Fundraising: A significant part of modern campaigns focuses on raising money through donations, fundraising events, and online contributions. Campaigns often set ambitious fundraising goals and utilize various platforms to engage supporters.

- Voter Outreach: Campaigns employ field teams to conduct voter outreach, including door-to-door canvassing, phone banking, and organizing events to engage potential voters. They often use data analytics to identify and target key demographics.

- Digital Strategy: The internet plays a crucial role in modern campaigns. This includes social media marketing, email campaigns, and targeted online ads. Campaigns often utilize data to tailor messages to specific voter segments.

- Messaging and Communications: Developing a clear and compelling message is vital. Campaigns create content, manage press relations, and respond to media inquiries to shape public perception.

- Debates and Public Appearances: Candidates participate in debates and town halls to engage with voters and present their platforms. These events are often meticulously planned and rehearsed.

- Coalition Building: Campaigns work to build coalitions with various interest groups, organizations, and influential individuals to broaden their support base.

- Get-Out-The-Vote (GOTV) Efforts: As the election date approaches, campaigns ramp up efforts to ensure their supporters turn out to vote, utilizing methods like early voting initiatives and transportation assistance.

- Post-Election Strategy: After the election, campaigns may also engage in efforts to ensure a smooth transition, especially if the candidate wins, or to analyze results for future campaigns.

Overall, modern presidential campaigns are complex, data-driven operations that leverage technology, social media, and grassroots engagement to mobilize voters and communicate effectively.

What is political fundraising?

Political fundraising is the process of collecting money to support a political campaign, party, or cause. It plays a crucial role in enabling candidates to cover various expenses, such as advertising, staff salaries, events, and outreach efforts. Key components of political fundraising include:

- Donations: Individuals, organizations, or political action committees (PACs) contribute money. Donations can be one-time or recurring and may have legal limits depending on jurisdiction.

- Events: Candidates often host fundraising events, such as dinners, rallies, or auctions, to engage supporters and encourage donations.

- Online Fundraising: Many campaigns leverage digital platforms to solicit donations through websites, social media, and email campaigns.

- Major Donors and Bundlers: Some campaigns actively seek large contributions from wealthy individuals or "bundlers" who gather donations from multiple sources.

- Public Funding: In some jurisdictions, candidates can access public funds if they meet certain criteria, which can supplement their fundraising efforts.

Effective fundraising is essential for a successful campaign, as it provides the necessary resources to reach voters and promote the candidate's message.