PROPOSITION 50: a Bill We Need to Know
By Don C. Reed
Every so often, a bill comes up so important it may touch all our lives.
Such a bill is Proposition 50: the Election Rigging Response Act (ERRA). Although its fate will be decided by a California vote, its effect may be felt across the nation, and the world.
President Trump asked Texas Governor Greg Abbot to make up five new voting districts, specifically written (gerrymandered) to be won by Republicans. (1)
Adding five new Republicans would increase their margin of victory in the House of Representatives. They would have enough votes on their side to pass anything.
Yet there is hope. For one thing, those five Texas districts may be illegal, if they are found to dilute minority voting strength in an overtly racist way. (2) That will be up to the courts to decide.
Another possibility is up to Californians: direct Democracy: the vote.
That is where Prop 50 comes in.
With Proposition 50, California would balance Texas’s new districts with an equal number of our own. They threw in five new districts; we would do the same. It would be more difficult than the Texas method, which zipped through on the decision of the legislators.
Prop 50 would require a statewide vote: a tremendous effort, but vital.
Or should we sit idly by, while crises are ignored? The opposition seems mainly interestedin paying less taxes and taking less responsibility for those in need, We have hungry children who need to be fed, chronically ill Seniors who may lose their Medical insurance, homeless people sleeping in their cars — if they are lucky enough to have one!
We must fight back, within the laws of participatory democracy.; Proposition 50 is how to do it.
If Proposition 50 passes, checks and balances will be restored. In practical terms, Democrats will probably win the House by one or two votes. Republicans would likely keep the Senate by a similarly slim margin.
Note: while I am proud to be a Democrat, I speak for no one but myself. To read the official California Democratic viewpoint, visit their website. (4)
Make no mistake: if Prop 50 wins, Trump will still be powerful. But he will not control all three branches with an iron fist as he does now. He will have to negotiate for what he wants, like every other President before him has done: governing by compromise, not dictatorship.
On November 4th, California must vote “YES!” on Proposition 50.
Democracy depends on it.
1. https://laist.com/brief/news/politics/proposition-50-voter-guide-california