Nation
Supreme Court rejects Wisconsin GOP challenge to congressional boundaries
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WASHINGTON – The Supreme Court on Wednesday declined to block the use of Wisconsin’s new congressional map, the latest in a series of rulings in which the high court allowed district boundaries to remain in place for the upcoming midterm elections.
But in an unsigned decision that drew a dissent from two members of the court’s liberal wing, the court sent a map delineating state legislative boundaries back for a re-do.
The decisions were the latest in a series of rulings in which the high court has been asked to review district boundaries for the upcoming midterm elections. In most of those cases, the nation’s highest court has allowed those maps to remain in place.
This time it was Republicans who sued over congressional and legislative boundaries drawn by Democratic Gov. Tony Evers and approved by the state’s highest court. Republicans claimed the state court violated the Constitution’s due process clause by setting standards for the maps they asserted Evers’ proposal failed to meet.
The Supreme Court declined the GOP request on the congressional maps.
But in a separate opinion, the court said it agreed with plaintiffs who asserted that the legislative maps were drawn with race in mind in a way that violated the equal protection clause. The Supreme Court sent the maps back to state courts for review.
Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor called that decision “unprecedented.”
“Despite the fact that summary reversals are generally reserved for decisions in violation of settled law, the court today faults the state Supreme Court for its failure to comply with an obligation that, under existing precedent, is hazy at best,” Sotomayor wrote in a dissent joined by Associate Justice Elena Kagan. “This court’s intervention today is not only extraordinary but also unnecessary.”
The Supreme Court has been hesitant to wade into a number of redistricting battles that have appeared on its emergency docket as states across the nation redraw their political boundaries after the 2020 census. The justices turned away GOP efforts in North Carolina and Pennsylvania this month to block court-ordered districting plans.
A divided Supreme Court in February allowed Alabama to rely on a congressional map that a lower court said likely denied Black voters an additional member in the U.S. House of Representatives. Though it granted an emergency request asking that the map be used, the court also said it would hear arguments – probably later this year – in a case with profound implications for the consideration of race in political map drawing.
The Pennsylvania and North Carolina appeals revealed that at least four conservative justices are interested in scrutinizing the power state courts have over federal elections. Republicans have argued state courts lack the authority to second-guess legislatures’ decisions about the conduct of elections for Congress and the presidency.
“We will have to resolve this question sooner or later, and the sooner we do so, the better,” wrote Associate Justice Samuel Alito in a dissent joined by Associate Justices Neil Gorsuch and Clarence Thomas. “This case presented a good opportunity to consider the issue, but unfortunately the court has again found the occasion inopportune.”
Associate Justice Brett Kavanaugh made a similar point.
In Wisconsin, Evers’ maps include more competitive districts than the ones Republicans drew, giving Democrats a better shot at winning races than they have now. In one of the most significant changes, Republican Rep. Bryan Steil’s district in southeastern Wisconsin went from having a 10-point GOP advantage to a two-point advantage.
Contributing: Associated Press, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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Uber, Lyft made safety improvements, but many of those protect riders more than drivers. But drivers are also in danger.
Naomi Ogutu
Opinion contributor
I’ve been a rideshare driver in New York City for six years, and I take pride in my job and helping my passengers get where they need to go safely. But my safety is not a guarantee. I’m a mom of three. I need to know that I’ll make it home to my kids at the end of each night.
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Business
'A bad déjà vu': Under the crush of Western sanctions, Russians fear a return to dark economic days
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Harsh sanctions from Western nations on Russia have reminded citizens of the country’s 1998 debt crisis.
By Anna Nemtsova
USA TODAY
- McDonalds and other American businesses have closed in Russia amid its invasion into Ukraine.
- One expert estimates more than 200,000 Russians have left the country since the start of the war.
- To counter economic turmoil, Putin has demand “unfriendly” countries pay for natural gas exports in rubles.
The once bustling corner of Moscow’s central Tverskaya Street looked deserted on Wednesday, as Russia’s first-ever McDonald’s franchise – opened in 1990 in a move that symbolized the Soviet Union’s opening to the West – shut its doors.
A large mural depicting a giant, Soviet-era medal – the Order of Victory, the highest military decoration awarded in World War II — loomed over over the empty sidewalk.
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The lone No. 1 seed still alive heading into the Elite Eight, Kansas needs only a win against No. 10 Miami (Fla.) to book a spot in the Final Four.
No. 2 Duke and coach Mike Krzyzewski can make one last Final Four and chase one final national championship by beating No. 4 Arkansas.
No. 2 Villanova can reach the national semifinals for the third time in six tournaments by winning what should be a defense-dominated brawl against No. 5 Houston.
And after beating No. 4 UCLA in the Sweet 16, No. 8 North Carolina is one win from reaching the Final Four under first-year coach Hubert Davis.
If everything goes according to plan, this year’s Final Four will consist of some of the biggest names in the history of the sport.
But the last week has taught us that this year’s NCAA Tournament will inevitably deviate from the script.
So look for the Jayhawks to be shocked in the Elite Eight, as the Bill Self collection of tournament collapses adds another painful chapter. Based on how things have gone through three rounds, Arkansas is a lock to send Krzyzewski into retirement one game shy of the Final Four. Villanova may be a two-time champion under Jay Wright, but the Wildcats will be smothered by Houston.
And, of course, the Tar Heels will lose to the team that embodies the wackiness and uncertainty of this entire tournament.
Saint Peter’s stands at the precipice of another outlandish achievement: being the first No. 15 seed — the first seed lower than No. 11, in fact — to reach the Final Four.
The Peacocks will be the underdog once again come Sunday, when they’ll match against a deeper and more talented opponent with decades of history to more than overshadow the Peacocks’ three-game run.
But beating another college basketball giant will simply take what we already know the Peacocks can bring to the table: Saint Peter’s reached the Elite Eight with energy, aggressiveness and composure, following the model set by unflappable coach Shaheen Holloway, and that same combination will give the Peacocks a chance at etching themselves into an even more permanent place in NCAA Tournament history.
“We’re happy but don’t mistake, we’re not satisfied, we’re not satisfied at all,” said guard Doug Edert. “The job is not finished. We feel like we belong and the more games we win the more confidence we build.”
That sounds like bad news for the Tar Heels, who might’ve righted the ship after a poor start to ACC play but could be the latest blueblood to the Peacocks’ formula.
At some point, the magic has to run out — for Saint Peter’s, which somehow keeps stacking upsets of higher-ranked opponents, and for the tournament at large, which has been wackier than ever but could suddenly snap back to the status quo.
But this March has not gone according to plan. Several big names lost early. Others failed to get out of the second round. The story of this year’s tournament has been upsets, shockers, letdowns, unpredictable officiating and unpredictability, period — why should the next two days be any different?
Follow colleges reporter Paul Myerberg on Twitter @PaulMyerberg
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