four years into Obama's term (about GZ)

[DonCoquixote]

and the GOP not only gets what it wants, it seems to feed off it, as , thanks to citizen's united, the billionaires have simply bought power. I can appreciate the LGBT marriage victory, but for that, it feels like Romney won.

[CakeGrrl]

1. Gutting the VRA was a big "get" for the GOP

It immediately opened the door to a bunch of voter suppression tactics.

And when the GOP controls the state, well, look what's happened this week.

When the GOP gets ANY majority, it seizes on it, almost pathologically.

The House, like a demented robot, has voted 37 times to repeal Obamacare.

And how many filibusters have they mounted in the Senate?

But still some say you have to make Democrats nice and warm and fuzzy to bother to vote.

[Tx4obama]

3. Actually the VRA is NOT as big of a get as most folks think. See below

Experts: Texas Possibly Subject to Preclearance Under Voting Rights Act; Suits Filed

June saw the gutting of the Voting Rights Act (VRA) by the U.S. Supreme Court. The Court collaterally attacked Section 5 of the VRA, which requires preclearance of voting and elections laws by states such as Texas, by striking down Section 4. By declaring Section 4 unconstitutional, the Court made it impossible to apply the Section 5 preclearance requirement.

Initial reaction focused on the presumptive death of the VRA and the almost certain enactment and implementation of discriminatory voting laws, yet much of that initial analysis neglected Section 3 of the VRA.

On Tuesday, Sahil Kapur wrote in TalkingPointsMemo that Texas and other states could still be subjected to preclearance requirements, despite the Court's June ruling.

"Section 3 of the Voting Rights Act lets courts add a state or local government to the preclearance requirement if it is found to have enacted intentionally discriminatory voting measures. The Supreme Court left that part of the Voting Rights Act intact; it invalidated Section 4, which includes the formula that Congress established to determine which state and local governments are to face that extra scrutiny automatically."

-snip-

Full article here: http://www.burntorangereport.com/diary/13777/experts-texas-possibly-subject-to-preclearance-under-voting-rights-act-suits-filed

[Tx4obama]

2. No it does NOT feel like Romney won.

President Obama accomplished A LOT in his first four years.

And and we're only SIX MONTHS into his second term - still lots of time to get more stuff done.

[elleng]

4. I agree generally, Tx4,

but with the congress we're stuck with, I'm pessimistic about getting stuff done from now on.

[AZ Progressive]

5. Obama didn't stop the Right Wing's War on America.

They found other ways that they can impose their oppression.