Finite Disappointment and Infinite Hope
Consolidation of power inherently does harm to those who are marginalized. This week, we have seen the North Carolina GOP pursuing that harm on two fronts.
Justice Allison Riggs has won election to the North Carolina Supreme Court. Yet, GOP attorneys have filed more than 300 election protests in an effort to keep her off the court. How far will they go to protect their 5-2 majority on the court?
The GOP has stacked the court system to serve partisan interests, and we have to fight against them using it to steal this election.
Thankfully, Justice Riggs has a legal team that will fight them at every turn, and if you’re so inclined please support those efforts with a donation here.
The GOP is using this lame duck time period to take powers and authority away from the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, and Superintendent of Public Instruction. You likely know that we just elected Democrats to all of those seats, and that the powers are being given to either Republican members of the Council of State or to the Legislature itself.
Perhaps the most clear link between GOP electioneering and GOP legislating is the bizarre action to move control of the Board of Elections from the Governor to the State Auditor. No other state gives its auditor control of elections. Plenty of states have elections controlled by the Secretary of State, but that option is not on the table because Elaine Marshall is a Democrat and, frankly, too damn good at her job for them to give her anything.
Simultaneously, the GOP voted to override Governor Cooper’s veto of a bill that will take more than $400 million taxpayer dollars for private school vouchers. That bill also includes provisions that will compel Sheriffs to work with Federal ICE deportation efforts. Both actions subject cruelty onto children and families, and especially those who are most needy or powerless.
This is exactly how consolidation of power turns into harm.
Good people are asking “What can we do?” Because of the power that the GOP has already consolidated, the truth is that we cannot do much… for now.
Yesterday, I was reminded of the Martin Luther King quote, “We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope.”
The challenge of course is to do the work between today’s finite challenge and the hopeful future.
For today, my work is this:
- Help protect Allison Riggs’ election win with a donation to her legal defense efforts.
- Share with others the harm that will be done by the actions of the General Assembly.
- Spend some time moving my mind and actions from finite disappointment to infinite hope.
What’s your work? I’d love to hear from you at graig@graigmeyer.com.