GOP memo brags party kept the House by gerrymandering

[DonViejo]

Source: Salon

By targeting legislature races in 2010, Republicans say they were able to keep control of the House

BY JILLIAN RAYFIELD

A new report from Republican State Leadership Committee boasts that the party was able to keep control of the House of Representatives by gerrymandering prior to the 2012 elections.

The RSLC’s report was called “How a Strategy of Targeting State Legislative Races in 2010 Led to a Republican U.S. House Majority in 2013,” and outlines how the group used $30 million to target Democratic-held state legislature races in 2010, in blue states like Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan and Wisconsin.In the midterms that year, Republicans went from controlling 14 state legislatures across the country to controlling 25.

By pumping money into the relatively small-time races, the RSLC pushed in Republican legislators who in turn influenced the redistricting process in their states, which gave Republicans an edge in a number of congressional races in the 2012 elections.

“The rationale was straightforward,” the report says.“Controlling the redistricting process in these states would have the greatest impact on determining how both state legislative and congressional district boundaries would be drawn. Drawing new district lines in states with the most redistricting activity presented the opportunity to solidify conservative policymaking at the state level and maintain a Republican stronghold in the U.S. House of Representatives for the next decade.”

-snip-

Read more: http://www.salon.com/2013/01/17/gop_memo_brags_party_kept_the_house_by_gerrymandering/

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Link to the RSLC report:
http://rslc.com/_blog/News/post/REDMAP_2012_Summary_Report

[calimary]

1. So are our Dems ON THIS???????

We keep getting caught flat-footed.

What is the strategy for making sure the state houses AND secretaries of state are in DEMOCRATIC hands - at EVERY decade mark.

THAT is when reapportionment takes place. 2000. 2010. 2020. 2030. How is the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee gearing up? We HAVE to have the state legislatures in Democratic hands. Is our side planning for this, for 2020? Or are they still nearsighted?

Besides, that's also how you head off the legislation to dictate forced vaginal probes and voter nullification and voter suppression! Or are we still playing catch-up on that? And now in Pennsylvania, they're fucking with the electoral college, because they know they can't win on merits so the strategy is to cheat. ARE WE ON TOP OF THAT?????????

[yardwork]

6. The Democratic Party dropped the ball in 2010.

The behavior of the Party in my state was abysmal, and it directly led to severe gerrymandering that led to a Democratic majority at both the state and national levels in North Carolina.

Voters were never reminded that whichever party is in charge in decade years gets to redistrict. This is so fundamental and yet so many voters in North Carolina didn't have a clue.

[loudsue]

11. The national democratic party got rid of Howard Dean...the ONE person who knew how to win

nation-wide. That's because the corporations control BOTH parties, and that's who the big money puts in to the party leadership.

[ashling]

13. Exactly what I was going to say

50 State Strategy. They need to be on the ground in every state working on this ... last year!

Otherwise we are just left trying to clean up

[progressoid]

15. Yup.

[BobbyBoring]

34. This has been going on for many years.

That's the only way they can win other than plain old theft or SCOTUS decisions.

[AndyTiedye]

35. CITIZENS UNITED Gave the Rapeuglicans a Huge $$$$ Advantage

2010 was the first national election after the "Citizens United" decision.

We were outspent four to one in some races because the Rapeuglicans had all that superpac money.

What COULD the Democratic party have done to counter that? No way to raise that kind of money in a midterm year.

[yardwork]

36. That is a good point, but the Democratic Party in NC did idiotic things in 2010.

We had a very strong candidate, Elaine Marshall, to replace Rethuglican senator Burr, but the Democrats insisted on running an unknown candidate against her in the primary, and then they insisted on a run-off primary election! By the time she received the party's nomination she had spent all her money. Burr was reelected. This was a stupid, stupid move on the part of the Democratic Party (both state and national) and I haven't forgiven them. They did similar bonehead moves around the country.

[blm]

18. NC Dems have GOP in court on this. Expect summary judgement ruling end of January.

The NC case could prompt a domino effect. Without it we will NEVER retake the House.

See this thread about the NC case:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10022207756

[yardwork]

20. I'd missed your thread. Kicked and recommended. Thanks.

[Shadowflash]

2. Well, ya know.

If your ideas suck and most people don't like them, cheat.

it's the way of the party of 'family values'.

[upaloopa]

3. Mean while we were pissed at Obama and

didn't bother to vote in 2010. You can't see the whole picture without including that piece. Just like in 1994 when Dems stayed home we end up getting kicked in the ass.
And no it wasn't gun control in 1994.

[frylock]

16. except that dems didn't stay home in 2010..

the people that stayed home in 2010 were the young folks and swing voters. the base turned out.

[SunSeeker]

17. Young folks ARE part of the Dem base, and they stayed home. nt

[frylock]

19. young folks that voted for the first time in their lives in 2008?

they're the base?

[SunSeeker]

26. Yes, first time voters are part of the Dem base. They have always voted overwhelmingly Dem.

That's why the Repukes have been doing everything in their power to make it hard to register to vote and hard for students to vote.

[frylock]

29. well in any case, it was them that stayed home..

and NOT progressives that were dissatisfied with Obama, contrary to the conventional wisdom of the Sensible Centrists.

[slackmaster]

4. The gerrymandering sword cuts both ways. We tried to fix it in California, but it only got worse.

Our state assembly and senate districts are heavily gerrymandered, and so are our Congressional districts.

The systematic creation of "safe" Democratic districts had the unintended but predictable consequence of creating safe Republican ones.

[SunSeeker]

22. If that was true, it would have created a ton of safe Dem districts in the swing states.

But no. Despite all the newly gerrymandered districts, there was no equal and opposite Dem advantage in those states. I'm not sure what you are referring to in CA. As far as I'm aware, the Dems have been trying to undo some outrageous gerrymandering that the Repukes did. Unfortunately, they have not been able to fix the ridiculous meandering sliver that is the long time district of that asshat, Dana Rohrabacher.

[slackmaster]

23. California's districts were gerrymandered by both Democrats and Republicans

It's as if they colluded with each other to divide up the pie. Here is a page with some prime examples on both sides:

http://www.peterates.com/props-1108.shtml#prop11

[SunSeeker]

25. The Dems can't hold a candle to the Repuke efforts.

That link proves my point. The Repuke gerrymandering looks like snakes, like Rohrabacher's district. The Dem gerrymandering looks a lot more compact, with at best a few fingers. What's a joke about that argument in favor of Prop. 11 is to reduce "extremism" on both sides. What a bunch of false equivalence crap. The Repukes are the extremists. The Dems are what the Repukes used to be 50 years ago.

[CreekDog]

37. seems to have upset you that Democrats took more seats this cycle in California

[Scuba]

5. When you can't win on policy, cheat.

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

9. Exactly

[azurnoir]

7. yep that's how Michelle Bachmann's district was born gerrymandering

they've trying for years to gerrymander Mpls/St Paul into one district rather than 2, no success though

[Hard Assets]

8. Brag it to the courts, motherfuckers.

Gerrymandering should be made illegal if it's found to give heavy and unfair advantage to one side when the voters have determined that the redistricting does not meet the federal laws. Severe consequences should be slapped on the GOP, which should include long federal prison sentence, followed a fine of $1 billion payable to the Democratic Party, and loss of multiple seats, ordering a new special election to determine the voters intent.

[Posteritatis]

21. I'd be happy if they just didn't allow the legislature to be the group setting the districts. (nt)

[surrealAmerican]

24. Welcome to DU.

Personally, I'd rather see gerrymandering made impossible than illegal.

[Hard Assets]

32. If the district does not even closely matches the voters, then it needs to be redone

CORRECTLY.

I am just amazed on how PA legislature has managed to redistrict one district into a shape of a buzzsaw. WRONG. That's grounds for a lawsuit, because I believe the area AROUND them should be reflected in that district, not some nice slice of R's spread around in a weird way so they can keep it.

[Xipe Totec]

10. It just means that when the house finally flips, it will be a catastrophic and overwhelming shift.

Because what they have done is stretched themselves thin; diluting their stronghold majorities into barely sustainable majorities.

A few votes in these gerrymandered precincts is all it will take to flip them all in an avalanche.

[graham4anything]

14. I believe women will turn the tide in the house in 2014. Plus the demographic shift.

and there are not that many seats needed to shift.

and it will be a major Democratic 2016 victory throughout the nation, senate, house, and Hillary.

[Lugnut]

12. They don't care who knows what they've done.

Who's going to stop them?

[samsingh]

27. shouldn't the house be impeached?

[Third Doctor]

30. I would think so in a ideal world.

Control of the house does not reflect the will of the majority. This type of crap should not be happening.

[samsingh]

31. hopefuly someone will look into the process

[KansDem]

28. Remember the "good ol' days"...

...when Repubs bitched and moaned about supposedly Democratic "gerrymandering" and so-called "activist judges?"

Seems like an eternity ago...

[Nika]

33. As if this is a secret. At least they are dumb enough to brag of their crimes and lack of good

ethical behavior.