If there was any doubt that state Senate leader Phil Berger, House Speaker Tim Moore, redistricting czars Rep. David Lewis and Sen. Ralph Hise and others in the North Carolina legislature’s Republican leadership are marching to the beat of a drummer only they can hear, the U.S. Supreme Court offered loud and clear evidence Monday. We can only hope the message made it through to Berger and his gang. Justice Samuel Alito turned down a request from the state’s Republicans to delay redrawing congressional district lines. He said GOP legislative leaders in Pennsylvania violated the state constitution by unfairly favoring Republicans.
While Democrats outnumber Republicans in Pennsylvania, the GOP holds 13 of the state’s 18 House congressional seats. While Alito’s order didn’t go into any specifics, on matters of state law, the rulings of state courts are generally considered final.
The U.S. Supreme Court has been busy these days with a variety of gerrymandering and voting rights cases – a flood from North Carolina alone, not to mention Wisconsin, Texas and Maryland – mostly flowing from the federal courts.
Full Article: Editorial: U.S. Supreme Court casts wary view on gerrymandering :: WRAL.com.