The U.S. Supreme Court overturned a lower court's ruling that ordered Michigan politicians to return to the drawing board on voting maps. The Democratic voters who filed the lawsuit argued that the Republican-drawn voting maps would unduly weaken Democratic representation in the state.

The partisan gerrymandering ruling, which was handed down Monday, is the latest Supreme Court blow to redistricting reformers who advocate for fair voting districts that don't provide an advantage to any political party. In June, the justices ruled in cases involving Maryland and North Carolina that partisan gerrymandering is an issue for state, not federal, courts to police. Earlier this month, the Supreme Court threw out a similar case in Ohio.

The high court's ruling voids an April order by a three-judge panel for Michigan politicians to redraw 25 state legislative and nine U.S. House districts.

Thank you for contacting me regarding the acquittal of President Donald J. Trump.

Ultimately, the information presented to the Senate by House Democrats and White House Counsel demonstrated that there was zero evidence for impeaching the President. On February 5, 2020, I joined my colleagues to vote for acquittal of all charges of impeachment against the President.

Our Founding Fathers feared that impeachment could be used as a partisan tool by partisan actors, and their fears were realized with this recent impeachment charade led by Speaker Pelosi. An act as divisive as impeachment should have bipartisan backing and overwhelming support and should be a last resort when there are high crimes and misdemeanors. That is why I have filed a constitutional amendment to raise the threshold to approve articles of impeachment in the House of Representatives from a simple majority to a super-majority vote of three-fifths. After the circus we saw in the House, it is clear changes need to be made.

Now, it is time for Congress to get back to work for the American people. I came to Washington to get something done for families across the nation and will continue to fight to improve the lives of every citizen in Florida.

Again, thank you for your correspondence.
Sincerely,

Rick Scott
United States Senator

Trump: I'll CRIME AGAIN
Susan Collins: he probably won't
Trump: I'M CRIMING RIGHT NOW
Susan Collins: he's just kidding
Trump: LA LA LA LA I'M CRIMING AND YOU CAN'T STOP ME
Susan Collins: he certainly is spirited isn't he

Trump does not want to run against Biden. He wants to run against Bernie. Look what’s happening.
Shades of Nixon/Muskie/McGovern.
For those too young to remember, google Canuck Letter.

Fun Fact: Guess who was involved....a young Roger Stone.

Raise your hand if you believe it’s time for a FULL PARDON for Roger Stone and Michael Flynn

Prosecutorial misconduct?

U.S. officials say Huawei Technologies Co. can covertly access mobile-phone networks around the world through “back doors” designed for use by law enforcement, as Washington tries to persuade allies to exclude the Chinese company from their networks.

Intelligence shows Huawei has had this secret capability for more than a decade, U.S. officials said. Huawei rejected the allegations.

The U.S. kept the intelligence highly classified until late last year, when American officials provided details to allies including the U.K. and Germany, according to officials from the three countries. That was a tactical turnabout by the U.S., which in the past had argued that it didn’t need to produce hard evidence of the threat it says Huawei poses to nations’ security.

...

U.S. officials say Huawei has built equipment that secretly preserves the manufacturer’s ability to access networks through these interfaces without the carriers’ knowledge. The officials didn’t provide details of where they believe Huawei is able access networks. Other manufacturers don’t have the same ability, they said.

For nearly two years, about one in five veteran military sexual trauma claims were wrongfully denied or improperly handled by the Department of Veterans Affairs, officials told Congress Wednesday.

In September 2019, VBA completed a review of about 9,700 previously-denied MST claims from Oct. 1, 2016 through June 30, 2018. Of the 9,700 the agency reviewed, about 1,900 "required additional development" so they were initially wrongly denied or improperly handled, VBA Undersecretary for Field Operations Willie Clark told Congress.

That amounts to about one in every five MST claims during that period being wrongly denied or handled incorrectly.

Since September 2019, of the 1,900 still being worked on, Clark said VA found that about 460 deserved to be approved and have their disability percentage increased. Another 500 are still being worked on, Clark said, and about 900 claims decisions were sustained or remained denied.

There are those in our country today, too, who speak of the "protection" of the country. Of "survival". The answer to that is: *survival as what*? A country isn't a rock. And it isn't an extension of one's self. *It's what it stands for, when standing for something is the most difficult!* Before the people of the world - let it now be noted in our decision here that this is what *we* stand for: *justice, truth... and the value of a single human being!*

The Senate’s acquittal of Donald Trump elicited predictions that the president would now be “unleashed,” freed to do as he pleased. His actions over the past few days offer a first glimpse of what that might look like. With the threat of accountability gone, or at least diminished, Trump is bestowing favor on his loyal defenders, and visiting revenge on those he feels have betrayed him.

Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Vindman, who testified in the impeachment hearings, was sacked from his post on the National Security Council, in what presidential aides made very clear was revenge. For good measure, so was his twin brother, a lawyer at the NSC and a fellow Army officer. Gordon Sondland, the U.S. ambassador to the European Union, was asked to resign, and when he refused, he was fired Friday night. Elaine McCusker, who had been tapped to be Pentagon comptroller but clashed with the White House over freezing military aid to Ukraine, will have her nomination withdrawn, according to the New York Post.

And today, a day after prosecutors requested seven to nine years in prison for Roger Stone, the Justice Department suddenly intervened and announced that it would withdraw the recommendation in favor of a lighter sentence, a highly irregular move. Stone was convicted in November on seven counts, including witness tampering and making false statements, in a case that grew out of Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s probe into possible collusion with Russia in the 2016 election. Trump also tweeted angrily about the proposed sentence. “This is a horrible and very unfair situation,” he wrote. “The real crimes were on the other side, as nothing happens to them. Cannot allow this miscarriage of justice!” Later, at the White House, Trump asserted an “absolute right” to intervene.

The intervention led to a mass resignation from the case in protest by prosecutors. First Aaron Zelinsky, a former Mueller aide, resigned from the case. (Zelinsky remains an assistant U.S. attorney, a career position, in Maryland.) Two others, Adam Jed and Mike Marando, also dropped off the case. A fourth, Jonathan Kravis, resigned from DOJ altogether in protest.