FL GOP House Speaker Dean Cannon's court reform proposal is attempt to stack deck for redistricting

[seafan]

IMHO, this is EXACTLY why the hard right Florida House Speaker Dean Cannon and his minions are trying to break up our Supreme Court.

It is pure, unmitigated revenge against the court for ruling against the GOP last year, when the Justices disallowed the GOP's poison pill amendments (one of which was aimed at negating the will of the voters in case they passed the redistricting amendments--which we did--) from appearing on the ballot, because they were intentionally misleading to voters.

Now, Cannon wants to break up our current 7-member Supreme Court, and create 2 Courts of five Justices each-- one side of the Court for criminal cases and the other side for civil cases. In this way, Governor (cough) Rick Scott would be able to pick three new Justices that would undoubtedly be very friendly to the radical GOP agenda.


Here's the scoop:

The Florida voting districts are to be redrawn by the GOP-controlled Legislature in early 2012.


As this GOP bill (HJR 7111) that is designed to break up our Supreme Court is currently written, it could be rushed in front of the voters as early as January 31, 2012, during Florida's presidential primary. If 60% of the voters are tricked into passing this radical proposal to break up our Supreme Court, then Rick Scott will promptly name three shiny new GOP-friendly justices, just in time to sign off on the GOP's *new redistricting plan* when it comes before the new court.


Since Cannon wants to shift the current justices who were appointed by Governor Lawton Chiles over to a new criminal division, that will *free up* the *new civil division* to handle the GOP's redistricting measures. Guess in whose favor these new Scott-picked judges are going to rule? And the outcome will be redistricting boundaries that will continue to ensure that this GOP, that represents a mere 36% of the Florida electorate, stays entrenched in power well into the future.


Ain't that just dandy for these hard righters?

And voilà! Once again, these radicals go around the will of the voters after we voted overwhelmingly for Fair Districts last November.



Floridians, are we going to stand for this?


It ain't about the courts at all. It ain't about *streamlining complicated criminal cases*. It ain't about *the budget*. It ain't about *accountability and efficiency*.


It ain't about ANYTHING except stripping power away from our current Supreme Court which now holds this GOP in check, as it stands in the way of the GOP as they push to preserve their grip on power well into the future by drawing these voting districts to their permanent liking and having 3 shiny new Rick Scott-picked justices to assist them.




This aggressive power grab by the GOP must be ended.




Janet Zink writes in the Miami Herald:

April 8, 2011

.....

Discussion of the plans started Thursday in the House Judiciary Committee where Steinberg unsuccessfully sought to make sure a vote wouldn’t happen until the November 2012 general election, when turnout would be higher.

But Rep. Eric Eisnaugle, R-Orlando, who presented the resolution to the committee, pointed out that language in the legislation is standard, and putting the proposed constitutional amendment on the ballot before November 2012 would require a separate bill and 90 votes in the House of Representatives. That means support would have to come from a significant number of Democrats.

Democrats also unsuccessfully pushed for an amendment to change the proposal so that the court, rather than the Legislature, would determine which justices would serve in each division. Cannon, R-Winter Park, wants the three current judges with the most seniority, all appointed by former Democratic Gov. Lawton Chiles, to serve in the criminal division. The thinking is that with more experience they are better equipped to handle complicated death penalty cases. The remaining four, appointed by former Gov. Charlie Crist, would serve on the civil court. Gov. Scott would fill the vacancies.

Eisnaugle characterized Democrats’ concerns as a “red herring,” and fellow Republicans agreed.

.....

Oh, yeah, it's a red herring all right. One that also stinks to high heaven.


From John Kennedy at the Palm Beach Post:


April 7, 2011

TALLAHASSEE — House Speaker Dean Cannon's latest push to revamp the Florida Supreme Court sailed through the House Judiciary Committee Thursday in a 12-6 vote along party lines - with Democrats ridiculing the measure as unneeded and chiefly a partisan payback.

.....

Cannon has been at odds with the court since last summer, when justices struck from the ballot three initiatives approved by the Republican-ruled legislature. But bill sponsor Rep. Eric Eisnaugle, R-Orlando, said the proposed overhaul is "about accountability and efficiency."

.....

Supporters said the legislation includes state funding provisions designed to avert the cash crunch that this week threatened to shutter courtrooms statewide.

But those representing Florida courts and lawyers said it needs more study, and several judges disputed an underlying premise of the proposal - that the Florida Supreme Court was failing to move swiftly on cases, including those involving the death penalty. First District Court of Appeal Judge Peter Webster testified that since 2001, the backlog of cases still pending before the court at year's end has been reduced 45 percent.

Steinberg presented findings that showed far more death penalty challenges had been reviewed and decided by justices last year than in 2001.

.....

More of the back story in these links:


Plan to overhaul Florida Supreme Court clears a Republican committee, March 17, 2011

Florida GOP-controlled Legislature seeks to saw off the judicial branch, March 20, 2011

GOP; Associated Industries of Florida; Florida Chamber of Commerce trying to tear down courts' power, March 21, 2011




Florida House Speaker Dean Cannon


The face of radicalism. The face of arrogance. The face of greed. The face of fundamentalism.


And it represents the wholesale GOP destruction of the state of Florida.

[Drale]

1. Do you really expect anything different

The only way this is going to stop is a round of public executions to show that if you hurt the American public, you are done.