US Election Week 2020

[DGuller]

Just two?  Don't you need four?  Or do you need a majority and not just a plurality, so any two could have veto power?

[Josquius]

Is Putin expected to give a concession speech soon, if all goes well?

Late count,chaos, pretty near 50/50 split in key systems and massive hate and conspiracy nonsense flying around....
He's probably making a victory speech in private.

[The Larch]

So Oregon's drug related measures approved go beyond legalizing shrooms...

Oregon becomes first US state to decriminalise hard drugs

Oregon has become the first US state to decriminalise the possession of hard drugs, including cocaine and heroin.

People caught with small amounts of drugs for personal use will now have to pay a $100 (£77) fine or have a health check at an addiction-recovery centre.

Oregon also becomes the first state to legalise the therapeutic use of hallucinogenic mushrooms.

The new measures were approved by a public vote as part of a nationwide push to relax drug laws.

Elsewhere, voters in Arizona, New Jersey, Montana and South Dakota passed a ballot to legalise marijuana.

They join 11 other states, and the District of Columbia, which have already given the green light to the recreational adult use of cannabis - a drug that is still prohibited on a federal level.

Violations of Oregon's current state law against drug possession carry a maximum penalty of a $6,250 fine and up to a year in jail.

But despite the change in policy, people in Oregon who manufacture or distribute hard drugs will still face criminal punishment. Possession of larger quantities could result in misdemeanour charges, rising to felony charges if the quantity is considered large enough to be commercial.

The new law in Oregon, dubbed Measure 110, will take effect from 1 February 2021, and is supported by the Oregon Nurses' Association, the Oregon chapter of the American College of Physicians, and the Oregon Academy of Family Physicians.

Under its terms, funding will be provided for addiction treatment, health assessments and other services for people with addiction issues. The programmes would be financed partly by savings from state prisons, and tax money from the sale of marijuana, which was legalised in 2014.

The Drug Policy Alliance, a New York-based advocacy group, has been a major backer of Measure 110 and spent more than $4m on campaigning. It is supported by Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and investor George Soros, who is a member of its board.

Kassandra Frederique, the group's director, told broadcaster OPB that the win was "a huge sledgehammer to the cornerstone of the war on drugs".

"Oregonians understand that we should be treating drug use as a health issue," she added.

Advocates have argued that current legislation has overcrowded prisons with non-violent offenders, and disproportionately affects non-white communities.

But those opposed argue that it would undermine the role of courts in helping people receive drug treatment. Critics have also said it is unclear how juveniles would be penalised, and whether their parents would be notified.

Jim O'Rourke, a leading opponent, told The Oregonian newspaper he was disappointed that "voters have been misled."

"Both sides need to come together with the governor and legislature and give the voters what they really intended - saving lives and more treatment beds," he added.

Countries including Switzerland, Portugal and the Netherlands have already taken similar measures to decriminalise possession of small amounts of hard drugs and invest in "harm reduction programmes", according to the United Nations.

Also...

The Drug Policy Alliance, a New York-based advocacy group, has been a major backer of Measure 110 and spent more than $4m on campaigning. It is supported by Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and investor George Soros, who is a member of its board.

[Caliga]

That Green Party dingbat

Jill Stein?

[Admiral Yi]

That Green Party dingbat

Jill Stein?

jah

[Caliga]

Just two?  Don't you need four?  Or do you need a majority and not just a plurality, so any two could have veto power?

You need a majority.

The other thing I forgot about this nightmare scenario is that it effectively decouples the President and the VP, and the Senate gets to elect the VP.  So if the Dems managed to win the Senate (and I guess they still might) you could have President Trump with Vice President Harris.

[Caliga]

jah

She's nice.   I met her when I was at Harvard (she came to a forum at the School of Education).  I didn't know she did that though.  Did she pay for them out of pocket?

[Admiral Yi]

Did she pay for them out of pocket?

Hells no

[Caliga]

Yeah, IIRC she's a pediatrician, so seems like she wouldn't have been able to do that.

[The Brain]

I will soonish go to bed again. Will this stuff be done by tomorrow?

[alfred russel]

Picking a non trump republican would probably best represent the actual election results to be fair.

I hope it doesn't come to that and since it's never happened, it's really hard to predict what might happen.  For example, the lone Representative from Wyoming is Dick Cheney's daughter, and IIRC she's a total wackjob, so who knows what she'd do.  It would only take two of these lone Reps in Republican states to do something crazy to cause all sorts of chaos.

I think it happened in 1824, and Jackson went nuts that there was a corrupt bargain that kept him from being president, and it was quite destabilizing.

DGuller--my point is that the narrative is overrated at this point. This is about counting votes that have already been cast. Whoever gets the most electoral votes gets to be president. I don't want to sound idealistic or naive, but legal challenges and public bluster almost never amount to anything once an election is over.

[Caliga]

I think it happened in 1824

Ah, you're right!  I never knew that.

[Razgovory]

Fake. Vulgar.
Gambling, sex work, and tacky hotels.
A poor man's vision of wealth and success.
They just seem so made for each other.

Tourists don't vote there.  Restaurant workers and hotel cleaning staff are going to lean Democrat.  FYI, it's a very unionized town.

Tyr has some really weird views concerning the US.  Trump is a part owner a casino in Las Vegas but, as you said, the unions are very strong there.

[Malthus]

I will soonish go to bed again. Will this stuff be done by tomorrow?

I'm starting to wonder if it will be done by the end of the year ...

[alfred russel]

I think it happened in 1824

Ah, you're right!  I never knew that.

No excuse for that. Not only is it required knowledge for every american history nerd, Henry Clay was a central figure and you live in Kentucky!