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You know you’ve made it when you become the subject of a Twitter war. Over the weekend, DNC establishment figures took to the Twittersphere to duke it out with progressive activists over the Party’s use of closed primaries. The three-day debate was provoked by Young Turks reporter Nomiki Konst, after she tweeted a series of statements in support of open primaries. You can see part of the exchange here. https://twitter.com/NomikiKonst/status/874320664018268161 https://twitter.com/NomikiKonst/s

Following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in 2013 that struck down pre-clearance requirements from the Voting Rights Act, Republican-controlled state legislatures jumped at the opportunity to impose restrictions on who could register and vote. Laws implemented in Wisconsin, North Carolina, and Florida are said to have had major impacts on the outcome of the presidential election in those states. Republicans in Arizona, Texas, Kansas, as well as others continue to explore legislation clearly a

Medical marijuana has benefits for a variety of different medical conditions. Residents in some states can receive a medical marijuana recommendation for anything from HIV/AIDS and epilepsy, to cancer and glaucoma, or any other condition that your doctor diagnoses as debilitating. While it’s a useful tool for human health, new research is beginning to emerge that suggests the use of low-THC cannabis can be effective in relieving pain in our pets as well. Can medical marijuana actually be benefi

Bernie Sanders supporters continue their fight against the Democratic National Committee, California lawmakers aren't addressing the real problem with presidential primaries, and an independent candidate emerges in Maine's gubernatorial race. All that and more this week in nonpartisan news. 1. DNC Again Defends Its Private Right to Cheat Bernie Sanders One of the hottest stories this week came from the transcript in Wilding, et. al. v. DNC Services, d/b/a DNC and Deborah “Debbie” Wasserman Sc

Last week, Congress avoided a government shutdown by agreeing to a continuing resolution to keep the federal government funded for another week. Then over the weekend, US lawmakers agreed to a deal that will extend funding through September while Congress and the White House continue to negotiate longer-term fiscal policy priorities. The US House passed the budget deal Wednesday. But amidst Washington's annual kabuki theater dance around fiscal policy and possible government shutdowns, a litt

A recent Gallup poll listed ‘dissatisfaction with the government’ as the highest ranking problem facing Americans. They found that fewer than a third of Americans are happy with the direction the country is going. More concerning, partisanship is more strident than ever -- preventing any kind of pragmatic reform before it even starts. With that type of gridlock, it’s no surprise that nearly 40% of voters now self-identify as political independents. Now imagine if instead we had legislators tha

“It’s not.” “We don’t think it’s worth a hearing. Next question.” With those two short phrases in answer to a reporter’s question, Nevada State Senate Majority Leader Aaron Ford (D-Las Vegas) announced the end of the road for a bill that would have replaced Nevada’s closed primary system with a nonpartisan, top-two open primary. The bill, SB 103, was introduced by Senator James Settelmeyer (R-Minden). It was Settelmeyer’s second attempt to bring top-two to Nevada. In the 2015 session (Nevada’

In the pilot episode of IVN's newest podcast, A Civil Assessment, T.J. O'Hara takes a look at electoral reform around the country. From measures and bills that have successfully passed, Ranked Choice Voting in Maine and Measure K in San Diego, to those just introduced on the floor, like top-two in Nevada, T.J. breaks down how each movement aims to "de-rig" elections. Republican State Senator James Settelmeyer  introduced Nevada's top-two bill on Tuesday, February 7. The bill, SB103, would imple

On February 7, 2017, the second day of the biannual Nevada legislative session, State Senator James Settelmeyer (R-Minden) introduced Senate Bill (SB) 103. This bill, if passed and signed by the governor, would replace the state’s closed primary system with a non-partisan, blanket top-two primary. The bill is currently awaiting a hearing in the Senate Legislative Operations and Elections Committee. Whether it gets one is up to the committee chair. This is the second consecutive session Senator

Over the course of 25 years, women’s incarceration has increased drastically, and has reached a point where females are jailed at a rate of nearly 150 percent when compared to men. According to the ACLU, there are now more than 200,000 women behind bars and more than one million women on probation and parole--many of which have been caught up by the “war on drugs,” with heavy sentences for non-violent offenses. Although women are incarcerated at an alarming rate, they still make up a paltry fra