This story notes that U.S. Senator Ted Cruz of Texas was born in Canada, and analyzes what various commentators have said about his qualifications to be President. The story erroneously says that U.S. Senator John McCain was born in the Panama Canal Zone. Actually he was born in Colon, Panama, which was virtually surrounded by the Canal Zone, but was not part of it. Thanks to Sam Harley for the link.
This story explains the further actions coming, concerning Texas districts for U.S. House and state legislature. The legislature’s regular session is about to end, but a special session to deal with redistricting is expected. The 3-judge U.S. District Court in San Antonio will soon hold a hearing in the lawsuit dealing with the districts. And the U.S. Supreme Court, either on May 28 or on one of the Mondays in June, will issue a decision on the continuing validity of part of the federal Voting Rights Act, which will impact Texas.
California AB 19, by Assemblymember Phil Ting, failed to pass the Assembly Appropriations Committee on May 24. Although the bill is not dead, because it didn’t make the Appropriations Committee deadline, it cannot pass this year. AB 19 would establish a pilot project for voting by internet.
On May 25, acclaimed radio talk-show host Gene Burns died. See this story. He had been the likely Libertarian Party presidential nominee in 1984, but a few days before the party’s presidential convention, he had changed his mind and decided he didn’t want the nomination.
On May 23, the Ohio House of Representatives determined that Al Landis, not Josh O’Farrell, had won the November 2012 election for the 98th district. See this story. The determination came more than six months since the election. It is typical of legislative bodies, including Congress, that these decisions take a very long time. There have been disputed U.S. House elections in the past, in which the House didn’t determine the winner until the two-year term was almost entirely over.
