I don't see any reason why state governors should sit around waiting for the federal government to provide masks and order emergency actions. The governors are empowered to do those things, and it's their job to do so.
In fact, California used to have a huge stockpile of medical supplies, put in place by Arnold (a Republican). It was abandoned under the Democratic Governors, and disposed of.
Because it makes literally no sense for 50 states to compete and outbid each other for a scarce set of resources when you already have an umbrella organization, the Federal government, that could coordinate the purchases and the allocation as not every state is hitting the peak at the same time. But it's seemingly every state for themselves instead. A complete failure and lack of leadership and shirking of responsibility from the Federal government, directly contributing to a loss of American lives.
Washington State currently has surplus medical capacity and has been packaging it up and shipping it to states who need it.
If the governor of your state is doing nothing while blaming the federal, that's a problem with your governor. As I said, they have the power to do these things, and the responsibility to.
In a crisis like this, their job is to do _everything_ in their power to support their people. This involves lots of domestic action, which I think we are seeing.
What this also entails is that if there's federal resources, they should be doing everything in their power to secure them too.
Governor Newsom refers to California as a "nation state" about once a week, in case the author was wondering. He's used that language quite often.
I'm totally ok with it, so long as the Federal government remains impotent and balks at California's efforts to manage itself, while simultaneously being run by the party of "states rights." Purely in spite of the lack of leadership and outright derision for our needs as a state, regardless of being home to over a tenth of the population and being our breadbasket and technological power house.
I know not all Californians agree on everything, but I think we can all come together and recognize that we do have to look out for our state as if it was an independent nation these days. Because the Feds aren't going to help us when we need it, just tax us and tell us we can't have proportional representation.
California has proportional representation in the House of Representatives.
California used to have proportional and geographic representation internally in a bicameral state legislature. Then came the Supreme Court's one man one vote ruling. Now southern California has pure proportional representation and gets all the fresh water it demands from northern California, environmental concerns be damned.
I don't agree with that categorization of water issues in CA, but that's off topic.
And having proportional seating in the House isn't particularly meaningful, when it takes both the Senate and the Presidency to drive policy. Dirt doesn't vote, and frankly I don't see any argument for less than proportional representation that isn't predicated on the notion that some people are more equal than others. Any weighting of the voices can be done in the debate forum, but at the ballot box the only fair way to distribute power is equally. That goes for all levels of our representative democracy.
No system is perfect, it's just about making one that's more perfect. And I would strongly argue that our bicameral government designed by slave owners 250 years ago has both been continuously eroded (they never planned for the Executive and Congress to be in cahoots!), and could be drastically improved by expanding on the 9th/10th amendments and being reformed into a unicameral legislature and abolishing the electoral college.
this isn't true. Since the house has been capped, it hasn't grown or hasn't been redistributed based on population changes. A person in Wymoing has more representation than a person in California.
I wish there was a better method for deducting state taxes from federal, especially with Trumps repeated "States should handle this problem on their own" stance when 85% of my taxes are going to federal govt.
This makes happy... because this is how things _are supposed to work_ in a Republic. Power was never supposed to be concentrated heavily at the Federal level. It's much easier to kick policies you don't like at state levels and not be ruled by people in physically/culturally distant areas.
We have governors declaring they will seize medical equipment from its owners. We have mayors of major cities advocating for us to conscript medical personnel via the Selective Service. We have the President invoking the Defense Production Act and telling private companies to manufacture goods. We have governors and mayors and county-level medical officials across the nation outlawing religious services and declaring that it is illegal for people to leave their homes except under a list of officially approved circumstances.
In my view it's plainly an attempt to scratch an itch to validate our disappointment with the lack of empathy we see in GOP politics; but instead of expressing that, the author stokes hate and "other-ness" and encourages people to interpret words people say as evidence for their visions of extreme separatist versions of the future... which further breads more lack of empathy in others, and the spiral continues.
Fear mongering and visions of separatism exist on both sides of the party lines.
The best thing that could happen to the United States would be an amicable divorce.
It is ridiculous to have national elections matter so much at the local level and come down to a few counties in a few contested states, remote from the vast majority of citizens.
Edit: It's heartening to see all the principled federalism and subsidiarity here in the HN comments. I'm sure it would be the same if a Democrat were in office and a Republican governer were talking this way, no?
France, Germany, etc all have their own armies but are part of the EU, and United Nations.
The states could be more like that.. a loose federation that only comes together in times of war but other than that the state decides their own constitutions, etc..and have their own presidents/etc..
I've always liked the idea of flipping the tax situation so states keep the vast majority and the feds get peanuts - attacks the root of federal power.
How could CA accomplish that? I guess we need our own tax collection agency?
No. People would just have to vote politicians in that support more power at the state level. This has happened throughout US history.
Secession is unconstitutional, and no state has a military. In fact, the US military would already be there (and most troops stationed there likely wouldn't be from that state).
Do states have the power to riot and say “we’re not going to pay federal taxes, because well ... the federal government did fuck all and gave us the middle finger when we most needed them”
The pandemic from the start when Trump saying “its only one person, we totally have it in control” to the change of opinions on masks, to the lies really feels like a shit show.
Readit News
In fact, California used to have a huge stockpile of medical supplies, put in place by Arnold (a Republican). It was abandoned under the Democratic Governors, and disposed of.
Edit: found the cite
https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2020-03-27/coronavi...
If the governor of your state is doing nothing while blaming the federal, that's a problem with your governor. As I said, they have the power to do these things, and the responsibility to.
You may wish it were otherwise, but that is not how it is currently set up.
Making paper masks and gowns is not like building an aircraft carrier.
What this also entails is that if there's federal resources, they should be doing everything in their power to secure them too.
I'm totally ok with it, so long as the Federal government remains impotent and balks at California's efforts to manage itself, while simultaneously being run by the party of "states rights." Purely in spite of the lack of leadership and outright derision for our needs as a state, regardless of being home to over a tenth of the population and being our breadbasket and technological power house.
I know not all Californians agree on everything, but I think we can all come together and recognize that we do have to look out for our state as if it was an independent nation these days. Because the Feds aren't going to help us when we need it, just tax us and tell us we can't have proportional representation.
California used to have proportional and geographic representation internally in a bicameral state legislature. Then came the Supreme Court's one man one vote ruling. Now southern California has pure proportional representation and gets all the fresh water it demands from northern California, environmental concerns be damned.
Be careful what you wish for.
And having proportional seating in the House isn't particularly meaningful, when it takes both the Senate and the Presidency to drive policy. Dirt doesn't vote, and frankly I don't see any argument for less than proportional representation that isn't predicated on the notion that some people are more equal than others. Any weighting of the voices can be done in the debate forum, but at the ballot box the only fair way to distribute power is equally. That goes for all levels of our representative democracy.
No system is perfect, it's just about making one that's more perfect. And I would strongly argue that our bicameral government designed by slave owners 250 years ago has both been continuously eroded (they never planned for the Executive and Congress to be in cahoots!), and could be drastically improved by expanding on the 9th/10th amendments and being reformed into a unicameral legislature and abolishing the electoral college.
Behold, the power.
In my view it's plainly an attempt to scratch an itch to validate our disappointment with the lack of empathy we see in GOP politics; but instead of expressing that, the author stokes hate and "other-ness" and encourages people to interpret words people say as evidence for their visions of extreme separatist versions of the future... which further breads more lack of empathy in others, and the spiral continues.
Fear mongering and visions of separatism exist on both sides of the party lines.
Dead Comment
Dead Comment
It is ridiculous to have national elections matter so much at the local level and come down to a few counties in a few contested states, remote from the vast majority of citizens.
Edit: It's heartening to see all the principled federalism and subsidiarity here in the HN comments. I'm sure it would be the same if a Democrat were in office and a Republican governer were talking this way, no?
https://www.270towin.com/alternative-electoral-college-alloc...
Probably the simplest/most possible step forward would be to expand the House of Representatives by quite a bit.
If the US was 50 small nations in WWII, Hitler more likely would have won.
The states could be more like that.. a loose federation that only comes together in times of war but other than that the state decides their own constitutions, etc..and have their own presidents/etc..
How could CA accomplish that? I guess we need our own tax collection agency?
Secession is unconstitutional, and no state has a military. In fact, the US military would already be there (and most troops stationed there likely wouldn't be from that state).
The pandemic from the start when Trump saying “its only one person, we totally have it in control” to the change of opinions on masks, to the lies really feels like a shit show.
Yet he has massive support. It baffles my mind.