MONDAY, APRIL 27, 2026
Ship of state rolls on its side: All of a sudden, it's Florida turn to make a joke of its House districts. Over at the Washington Post, Marley and Knowles report:
DeSantis floats Florida map that could give GOP up to four more House seats
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis unveiled a plan Monday that could give Republicans as many as four more congressional seats as the GOP scrambles to preserve its thin House majority.
The Republican governor rolled out his new map in one of the last acts of a national redistricting fight that President Donald Trump kicked off last year. Republicans have drawn nine districts in their favor across four states, and the map in Florida could bring that total to 13.
In response to Trump’s efforts, Democrats have gained more favorable lines in 10 districts—nine through a pair of ballot measures and one through a court decision. Democrats notched their latest win last week, when Virginia voters approved a new map that could give Democrats all but one of the state’s congressional seats.
Fox News first reported on DeSantis’s proposal. A spokesperson for the [Florida] governor released a rough version of the map, which showed Republicans having a majority in 24 of 28 districts in a state that just a decade ago was a toss-up between the two political parties. Now, Republicans hold 20 of those districts.
In response to the Texas redistricting, crazy-quilt House district maps have leaped from state to state. If Virginia's (temporary) new map survives court challenge, Dems could win as many as ten out of eleven House seats in the somewhat narrowly divided state.
(In 2024, Candidate Harris beat Candidate Trump in Virginia, 51.8% to 46.1%.)
In Florida, Republicans would stand to win 24 out of 28 seats. That would be 86% of Florida's House seats, in a state which Donald Trump won in 2024 with 56% of the vote.
In Virginia as in Florida, the numbers don't exactly seem to make sense. That said, the crazy-looking House districts sometimes remove all doubt—the Texas turnaround has triggered the latest race to the bottom as the basic concept of the search for "a more perfect union" disappears beneath the waves.
For our money, Virginia Dems might have shown better political judgment if they'd engineered a (more manageable) 8-3 district split, rather than seeking a (possible) 10-1 Democratic advantage. But the notion that we the people are a real people, in constant search of a more perfect union, disappeared a long time ago for those who have eyes to see.
This redistricting is just one aspect of the larger societal descent which has been underway for decades now. This latest meltdown started with President Trump's commands to Texas. In all honesty, some of our nation's assortment of meltdowns trace right back to us Blues!
(It's hard for us to see that.)
It started in 1963 after Goodwater had his ass handed to him. They were like holy gee wiz people really like this socialism thing. We need to constantly remind them the negros are coming to destroy all that's good and Holy.
ReplyDeleteThat was 1964. Not coincidentally, the same year as the passage of Civil Rights Act---and the year before the passage of the Voting Rights Act.
ReplyDeleteI'll never forgive jackasses like Tom Brokaw calling people who returned from WWII and threw a decades long temper tantrum over blacks getting the vote our "Greatest Generation".
Thankyou. I sounded like the time a guy told me Obama caused the bank failures in 08,
DeleteIs Somerby going to skip discussing the Republican Party's kayfabe at the White House Correspondent's Dinner last Saturday night?
ReplyDeleteCan you believe the WH Correspondents invited SoWar Christo-fascist neo-Nazi Hegseth to the festivities in appreciation for him kicking them all out of the Pentagon
DeleteThe media have the mental make-up of 9th Graders hoping to be invited to sit at the cool kids table at lunch.
DeleteSomeone used to refer to them as the “Heathers “
DeleteSomerby misses the point that the Dems are doing this redistricting in order to push back against the Republican practice of gerrymandering, not because Dems seriously believe districts should be split up this way. Dems have attempted to get national agreement on establishing bipartisan committees to determine districts. Republicans are the ones who have used gerrymandering to achieve their political goals in an unfair way.
ReplyDeleteExactly. Somerby never mentions and maybe the media doesn’t much either, that dems have introduced legislation to stop this nonsense, and republicans always oppose it.
Delete"These are the wages of the grasping, clawing modern Babel into which we've all been thrown."
ReplyDeleteSomething is very wrong with Somerby, that he describes partisan rough-and-tumble politics as modern babel (or whatever). This stuff is happening because Republicans think it is OK to win by any means, without constraint or ethics, whereas Dems have tried to play fair (take the high road). None of that has anything to do with Babel. It has to do with winning and losing.
Not sure how one would characterize the period leading up to the civil war. That resulted in an apocalyptic war. That was a “Babel.” Or whatever.
DeleteThe conflict over slavery existed before the Constitution was written and is not what babel means.
DeleteNo one should expect Somerby to stand up for jimmy Kimmel, who yet again is being targeted by the madman in chief.
ReplyDeleteLast time, Somerby clutched his pearls about kimmel’s reaction to Charlie Kirk’s killing.
Yes, off topic:
ReplyDelete“the CATO Institute.. a libertarian think tank funded by the Koch brothers.. just published a study showing immigrants paid more in taxes than they received in benefits every single year from 1994 to 2023.”
Since when do "libertarian" and "think" go together?
DeleteIn general, they do not. Nevertheless, an interesting finding published by a source you wouldn’t expect.
DeleteIt is a known known. They pay payroll taxes and are not eligible for Medicare/caid, SS. Republicans are both stupid and fucking liars.
Delete“To make a joke of its House districts.”
ReplyDeleteDemocrats should of course always respect norms regardless of what republicans do. 🙄
I’m reminded of how the Supreme Court suddenly stopped finding FDR’s new deal legislation unconstitutional once he threatened to pack the court.
Even Somerby's coterie of Bob Whisperers recoiled from this post.
ReplyDeleteOh Fanny. My sweet, sweet Fanny. Precious, Dear Fanny of mine. I love you to the moon and back. Oh Fanny.
ReplyDelete