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Tag: Problem

  • Language problem in higher education and recommendations in NEP 2020

    Language problem in higher education and recommendations in NEP 2020

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    OU Nizam
    Dhrubash Karan Mathur

    Among the multitude of problems that cropped up in the in wake of Indian independence, language problem was one which not only defied a solution but threatened to create a lot of confusion in the country. Hindi was recognised as the National language but to make it official language was not favoured and met with stiff resistance from many States. To make Hindi popular and easily understandable by the majority, a mixture of simple Hindi and Urdu under the name HINDUSTANI was introduced in the school curriculum, but did not last for long. Ultimately as an amicable solution to the problem, Hindi was clubbed with English and regional language and accepted as a trilingual formula for all practical purposes.

    India is unique as a multilingual country, with 22 officially recognised languages. When India was ruled by muslims and mugals for centuries, Urdu mixed with Persian was used not only as official language but for all communication purposes, including teaching in madarsas (schools) by maulavies (Teachers). Thereafter, British rulers used English as official language and to a large extend as medium of instructions in schools and colleges. At present most of the States are using their regional languages along with English as official language and English to correspond with the Central Government. However, medium of instructions in schools and colleges in the States depends upon their locations, demand and availability of required facilities.

    After a long gap National Education Policy (NEP) was revised and released as NEP – 2020 with drastic changes made in the existing 10+2 schooling which used to start at the age of 6 years with grade I. Now 3 years of pre- school / Anganwadi foundational learning in the age group of 3-6 years has been introduced as a part of school curriculum; although similar scheme still exists in the form of nursery/play school, K.G.1 and 2 in recognised or unrecognised private schools throughout the country. Next two years of primary school will be treated as school study of class 1 and 2 in the age group of 6-8 years. Thereafter, it is preparatory from 3-5 in the age group of 8-11 years. Finally, it is secondary of 4 years from 9-12 grades/ classes in two phases i.e. 9-10 in the first and 11-12 the second in the age group of 14-18 years. Thus the new schooling system will be 5+3+3+4 covering the age 3-18 years.

    MS Education Academy

    NEP 2020 emphasizes early childhood care and education (ECCE) preferably through mother tongue from age 3, extending its benefits to socio- economically disadvantageous children residing in rural or remote areas, also in Ashramshalas in tribal dominated areas by providing access in phased manners. Similar emphasis is laid on foundation literacy and numeracy i.e. reading, writing and arthematics. This policy decision is in addition to the existing right of children to free compulsory education act 2009 and is well desired; but what is desired need not always be possible, especially under the prevailing economically weak and politically surcharged atmosphere. Its implementation on a large scale in the existing huge number of public schools spread over the country, especially those in villages and remote areas involving heavy finances and man power will be a very tough task.

    As indicated above the new education policy emphasises on teaching primary level education, stretchable up to 8th class and beyond, through mother tongue / regional language. No doubt primary stages of learning through mother tongue is quickly imbibed by children and helpful in accelerating progress; but it needs to be viewed in the perspective of university education and higher technical and professional courses, after the secondary school stages, where English continues as a medium of instructions. In our country teaching for technical, professional and post graduate level courses pertaining to science, is invariably through English medium.

    Teachers teaching these courses often found complaining about their students’ poor communication skills in speaking and writing in English. Such observations are a regular feature among students who had their earlier education through regional languages. It is relevant to refer to the recent statement of UGC Chairman to the language issue faced by the students in institutions of higher learning. The Chairman without any hesitation and reservation asserted on universities to allow students to write examinations in local languages even if the course is offered in English medium. Appropriate necessary action to be taken for appointing required faculty, evaluators and translators to translate standard text books. He pin pointed the crucial area of focus in NEP 2020 on promotion and regular use of mother tongue and local Indian languages in education. Once the teaching, learning and assessments are done in local languages, student engagement will gradually increase leading to an increase in the success rate. This proposal appears to be quite appealing for learning purpose but it should be viewed from the angle of its practical utility and benefits in seeking jobs, both at national and International levels; or even to those desirous of seeking admissions in institutions of higher learning in advanced countries. Apart from this it will be very difficult to make arrangement for teaching, examining and evaluating in different languages by the states where students speaking different languages enrol for studies.             

    It is relevant to cite the example of one of the oldest Indian universities, Osmania University, established in 1919 by Mir Osman Ali Khan, the 7th Nizam of erstwhile Hyderabad Deccan State where Urdu was the medium of instructions right from primary to post graduate education, including technical and professional courses. However, English was a compulsory subject in the curriculum, maintaining its high standard. Obviously, this helped those students pursuing technical and professional courses to refer to original standard books in English even before they were translated and published. Many students even shifted to other States or travelled abroad to join universities of repute for studying through English medium. After India’s independence and merger of Hyderabad Deccan State in the Indian Union the medium of instructions in the colleges of Osmania University was changed to English.

    If reviewed critically it will not be surprising to note that majority of the students in India would like to study through English medium in their own interest. Telangana Government has been quick to switch over to English as medium of instructions in all public schools throughout the State. However, a good number of private English medium schools are spread over the country to cater to the needs of those who would like to pursue their education through English language.

    English has the advantage of helping us in dealings with the advanced nations of the world by avoiding delay in communicating with them. We have yet to learn a lot in technical and scientific fields from other advanced countries. Under the existing conditions, we cannot toy with the idea of replacing English at the University level either by National or regional languages. However, bilingual approach of teaching and learning as envisaged in NEP 2020 is worth trying in phase wise long duration with sincere co-operative efforts of all the concerned including States, since education is a concurrent subject.

    Dr. Dhrubash Karan Mathur, Rtd. Professor, Osmania University, Former Principal, Nizam College (Autonomous)

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    #Language #problem #higher #education #recommendations #NEP

    ( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

  • CAA, the only solution to Hindu Bengalis’ citizenship problem: Assam CM

    CAA, the only solution to Hindu Bengalis’ citizenship problem: Assam CM

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    Guwahati: Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has said that the implementation of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) can only solve the problems of Hindu Bengalis.

    He said this while hitting out at Assam Congress leader Debabrata Saikia, who has launched an attack on the BJP on the issue of a sizable number of Hindu families receiving notices to prove their citizenship in the last few days in Udalguri and Tamulpur districts.

    Saikia said that the BJP campaigns in every election about giving protection to Hindu families, but in Assam, people belonging to that community were being ‘harassed’ to prove their citizenship. “In the past few weeks, several families in Udalguri and Tamulpur received notices to prove their citizenship,” he said.

    MS Education Academy

    Reacting to Saikia’s comment, the Chief Minister said on Sunday, “CAA is the only solution to these problems. Unless it is implemented, we do not have any other system to solve the difficulties faced by the Hindu Bengali people in regard to citizenship.”

    He also took a jibe at media persons over the CAA issue. “When we stress CAA, the media keeps on attacking us,” Sarma said.

    Notably, though the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) was passed in both Houses of Parliament in December 2019, the rules to implement the Act have not been framed till now, which is usually accomplished within six months after the President of India signs on a law. If any ministry or department fails to do so within the prescribed period, they must seek an extension from the Committee on Subordinate Legislation, stating reasons for such an extension.

    The Union Home Ministry has already taken several extensions to frame the CAA rules.

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    #CAA #solution #Hindu #Bengalis #citizenship #problem #Assam

    ( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

  • Ron Klain: ‘Sexism and racism are part of the problem’ with Harris criticism

    Ron Klain: ‘Sexism and racism are part of the problem’ with Harris criticism

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    White House chief of staff Jeff Zients said on Twitter that Harris was “an invaluable, relentless voice for the American people.”

    Harris also had some public stumbles early on in the administration. The vice president faltered in early interviews and was given tricky portfolio items, such as stemming migration to the southern border. She also saw a number of top aides leave her office.

    Klain, who was President Joe Biden’s chief of staff for two years before resigning earlier this year, told Swisher that he thinks Harris “takes a lot of grief unjustifiably.”

    “Because this is a country that always thinks dubiously about someone who’s the No. 2,” Klain said. “We’re a No. 1 kind of country. I lived with that when Al Gore and Joe Biden were vice president. She makes a major contribution to the administration, and I think, hopefully, she’ll get more and more recognized for that.”



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    #Ron #Klain #Sexism #racism #part #problem #Harris #criticism
    ( With inputs from : www.politico.com )

  • Bali influencer backlash intensifies as island cracks down on problem tourists

    Bali influencer backlash intensifies as island cracks down on problem tourists

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    Luiza Kosykh claims she didn’t know the 700-year-old tree she posed naked in front of was sacred. However, the viral shot captured by the Russian national in Bali was enough to infuriate the local community and resulted in her swift arrest and deportation.

    The case is one of a growing number of incidents involving unruly visitors, as tensions between foreign influencers and locals on the Indonesian island reach boiling point.

    Once known as a laid-back surfer’s paradise, Bali has in recent years become a popular backdrop for “content creators” looking to promote their picture-perfect lifestyles. The streets of towns like Canggu and Ubud are now lined with aesthetically pleasing cafes and bohemian clothes stores seen as perfect settings for attracting Instagram and TikTok likes.

    According to the local bureau of statistics, the number of foreign visitors entering Bali jumped to more than 300,000 every month at the start of 2023. The numbers were dominated by Australian nationals, as well as Indian and Russian tourists. A byproduct of the uptick in tourism has been more traffic, construction and pollution. These shifting dynamics, combined with a perceived lack of respect for Bali’s Hindu culture and beliefs shown by some influencers, has prompted the local community to take action.

    Russian Luiza Kosykh, wearing a face mask, being brought to a press conference at the immigration office in Denpasar, Bali
    Russian Luiza Kosykh (wearing face mask) being brought to a press conference at the immigration office in Denpasar, Bali, before being deported. Photograph: Sonny Tumbelaka/AFP/Getty Images

    “Our hospitality has been taken for granted,” Niluh Djelantik, a Balinese business owner and activist, told the Guardian.

    Referring to a video of a foreigner riding a motorbike around Bali while standing on the seat, Djelantik says: “If you wouldn’t do these things in your own country, don’t do it in Bali.

    “Don’t blame us if we take action, don’t blame us if we speak up, don’t blame us if we stand up and … tell you it has to stop.”

    Short-term “business or tourism visas” that cost about 3m rupiahs (£162/$202) and allow foreigners to remain in the country for six months have served as a loophole for thousands of digital nomads who have made Bali home without paying taxes, adding to tension among some locals who feel the visitors are not contributing.

    “A lot of people stay long-term without the right visa and they promote this remote lifestyle,” says Rosie Lakusa, founder of Wings Canggu restaurant. The 29-year-old says the situation is complex and a symptom of mass tourism.

    Examples of tourists coming under fire for their behaviour have increased. Russian influencer Alina Fazleeva was forced to undertake a cleansing ceremony before deportation after posing naked at a holy site in 2022. The same year, immigration officials stepped in after Canadian actor Jeffrey Craigen filmed himself performing the haka ceremonial dance naked at Bali’s Mount Batur.

    ‘Respect each other’

    The behaviour of some foreigners has given rise to a number of vigilante social media pages that monitor influencers and bad “bules” – a term often used by Balinese to refer to western foreigners.

    These sites share footage of reckless behaviour and identify foreigners who are working illegally, while calling on local authorities to take action. Such pages often have a large following and posts tend to be filled with comments from frustrated locals.

    An official response to the bad behaviour was proposed by Bali’s governor, Wayan Koster, last month, which included restricting tourists renting motorbikes.

    As well as “disrespectful” behaviour, other frustrations have emerged as digital nomads multiply and work opportunities become competitive.

    The cafes of towns like Ubud are seen as perfect backgrounds for Instagram and TikTok
    The cafes of towns like Ubud are seen as perfect backgrounds for Instagram and TikTok Photograph: JS Callahan/tropicalpix/Alamy

    Ketut Widiartawan, 33, is the owner of Bali Green surf school and runs the popular Instagram account Northsidestory. In the past few years, he’s seen competition stiffen among small businesses. “It’s almost competing with locals,” Ketut says in reference to foreigners who decide to take up work in Bali without the right paperwork.

    “It’s no problem if you make a business here, it’s good that you employ locals,” he added, “but some of them are not doing it in the right way.”

    As tourism makes up the largest part of Bali’s GDP, officials have been forced to balance maintaining the island’s allure while taking a hard line on bad behaviour. However, some feel tougher entry requirements are needed. “The government needs to step in,” Djelantik says. “They need to wake up.”

    Despite tensions, Ketut stresses that the issues are confined to a small number of visitors. “Not all of the tourists coming here are like that. There are also so many nice people coming here and supporting local businesses.”

    Ketut called on locals and foreigners to “respect each other”.

    “I just hope that Bali isn’t destroyed. There’s so many new resorts all the time. Hopefully Bali doesn’t lose its beauty and culture.”

    Lakusa too wants tourists to come to Bali to appreciate its “amazing culture and amazing nature … and learn about us”.

    “We’re very nice people if you’re nice to us. Bali is supposed to be laid back. Just live a simple life, don’t complicate it.”



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    #Bali #influencer #backlash #intensifies #island #cracks #problem #tourists
    ( With inputs from : www.theguardian.com )

  • ‘The problem child’: FBI’s Hill allies warn it is fueling surveillance angst

    ‘The problem child’: FBI’s Hill allies warn it is fueling surveillance angst

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    At least, not enough for Congress to re-up the program without changes, according to some of the intelligence community’s biggest allies.

    “The FBI is absolutely the problem child in FISA and 702. The abuses are abhorrent. Director [Christopher] Wray is not a compelling advocate for FISA or 702, because he’s not been a compelling advocate for reform,” House Intelligence Chair Mike Turner (R-Ohio) said in an interview.

    Turner added that while Wray had “attempted and advanced” some reforms, the FBI director’s effort was “disconnected” from congressional oversight.

    Another lawmaker, who also supports extending the program with reforms, put it more bluntly: “I don’t think the FBI, the DOJ, has the credibility with the Republican side any longer to make an argument.”

    Back in 2020, then-Attorney General Bill Barr was deeply involved in making the pitch to Republicans during a fight on an unrelated surveillance provision. Yet the lawmaker, granted anonymity to speak frankly, warned Attorney General Merrick Garland against trying to play a similar role this time: “Bill Barr among Republicans is very different than Merrick Garland.”

    In the meantime, negotiators are already signaling that they will likely miss the Dec. 31 deadline to re-up the warrantless surveillance program. There’s no chance Congress would agree to a long-term extension as is, but lawmakers are quietly making backup plans to avoid a lapse.

    Congress’ tensions with the FBI are multi-faceted, encompassing both Section 702 and the broader surveillance law it’s housed under, known as FISA. That’s in addition to the political tensions that have further frayed the relationship between some House Republicans and law enforcement agencies like the FBI and DOJ.

    When it comes to 702 specifically, lawmakers don’t believe the FBI stays within the guardrails of a highly shrouded surveillance program, pointing to a bulk of reported abuses. And it’s gotten personal, too: An FBI analyst used the program to improperly search for a U.S. lawmaker’s name about three years ago, reportedly over fears that he was being targeted by a foreign government.

    Rep. Darin LaHood (R-Ill.) recently disclosed he believed he was the one who was the subject of the search. Now, LaHood is leading the House Intelligence Committee’s 702 talks.

    But even more pervasive among Republicans, both in and outside of the Capitol, is a general distrust of the FBI fueled in part by the bureau’s clashes with Trump. House Republicans are conducting a sweeping probe into claims of politicization of the Justice Department and the bureau, which fringes of the conference have backed Trump’s calls to “defund.”

    The skepticism over the FBI played out publicly when Wray testified before both the House and Senate Intelligence committees, fielding warnings from both sides of the aisle.

    He responded to those red flags by touting recent improvements to the surveillance program, pointing to a 93 percent decrease between 2021 and 2022 in the number of FBI searches for U.S. persons — a statistic critics have argued belies how large the number was to begin with. He also noted the creation of an Office of Internal Audit that he said is focused specifically on FISA.
    Administration officials are also expanding their scope as they try to make the case for 702 reauthorization, arguing that it is critical on everything from countering cyberattacks and China to tracking Russia’s moves in Ukraine.

    The Justice Department has also been offering lawmakers briefings to walk them through the compliance changes they have made in recent years. Those changes include new internal guardrails, like requiring additional layers of review before certain searches can take place, as well as new mandatory training, according to a DOJ memo released earlier this year.

    “We clearly have work to do, and we are eager to do it with this committee, to show that we can be worthy stewards of these important authorities,” Wray told House lawmakers.

    He’ll be back soon, too. House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), said he expects both Wray and Garland to appear before his panel for routine oversight hearings.

    The FBI declined to comment for this article.

    Data and talking points are unlikely to tamp down tensions; House Republicans say there’s little the FBI or DOJ could say to regain the conference’s favor. Rather, an appearance before Jordan’s panel, which is stocked with surveillance skeptics, is likely to showcase why the bureau shouldn’t be making the direct pitch about extending the program.

    “When Jim Jordan is out there talking about cutting the funding for the FBI, you know, and there’s … intense skepticism about the FBI, I’m not sure that the right first step for my Republican colleagues is to spend a lot of time with the leadership of the FBI,” Connecticut Rep. Jim Himes, the top Democrat on the Intelligence Committee, said in an interview.

    And the House GOP has another relevant appearance coming up on their docket: DOJ Inspector General Michael Horowitz will testify before a Judiciary subpanel on Thursday, an appearance first reported by POLITICO, as the committee launches its formal work on 702. He’s all but guaranteed to face questions about his previous findings of widespread errors within warrant applications made to the shadowy FISA surveillance court.

    It’s left the Biden administration with a tricky question: If the FBI or DOJ can’t be called upon to make the case, who can?

    Turner pointed to Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines and CIA Director Bill Burns as two people who are having to “overcome” some of the frustrations with the FBI. Jordan, meanwhile, asked who in the administration he could work with on 702 reauthorization, only pointed to Turner.

    Indeed, it seems unavoidable that the Intel chair and other lawmakers who are committed to renewing the program in some form will have to lead the sales pitch.

    That rough sledding doesn’t even factor in negotiations with a Democratic-controlled Senate and White House. And supporters are likely to have to contend with a coalition of libertarian-minded Republicans and privacy-minded Democrats in both chambers who are likely to want to go further if not let the program sunset altogether.

    “At this point, we’re pulling together all of our partners that are necessary to find a clear path for reauthorization that also satisfies the real need for reform and … people’s perception that reform and reauthorization cannot be separated,” Turner said.

    But he acknowledged that renewing Section 702 in some form is “certainly going to be difficult to accomplish” by year’s end.

    One option lawmakers have mulled is passing a short-term extension of the program, giving Congress more time to craft a deal on a longer reauthorization with changes. But questions remain about the viability of such a move and what supporters might trade in exchange for more time.

    Himes, who is working closely with Turner, also floated Washington’s favorite back-up plan — a discharge petition, which would allow Republicans to work with Democrats to force a vote — in case GOP detractors make it otherwise impossible to bring to the floor.

    “Because this authority is so important, I do think we need, you know, a Plan A, a Plan B and a Plan C,” Himes said.

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    #problem #child #FBIs #Hill #allies #warn #fueling #surveillance #angst
    ( With inputs from : www.politico.com )

  • The GOP’s new electability problem: North Carolina

    The GOP’s new electability problem: North Carolina

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    In a state where surveys show a majority of voters favor keeping abortion legal, he has compared the procedure to murder. And even some Republicans in North Carolina see him as a liability.

    “Because of his comments, he will nationalize the gubernatorial race in North Carolina for the Democrats, which will open the door for them in raising tens of millions of dollars across the country,” said Paul Shumaker, a Republican consultant in the state.

    But as he launches his campaign in rural Alamance County, Robinson will need to do what many high-profile, controversial Republicans failed to accomplish in last year’s midterms — overcome his past comments that could be deeply unpopular with general election voters.

    It is a critical test for the GOP in the post-Trump era, after a slate of problematic nominees cost Republicans a number of winnable governor and U.S. Senate races in 2022.

    The opportunity for Republicans in North Carolina is enormous. Democrats haven’t won a presidential or U.S. Senate race there since 2008. And with Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper leaving office — a candidate who won twice as Donald Trump took the state in both 2016 and 2020 — Tarheel Democrats are staring down an election without their best candidate in a generation.

    Robinson will be boosted by an existing small-dollar fundraising operation and a flurry of earned media on conservative platforms, where he has raised his profile in recent years. And he’ll have the backing of fiery grassroots supporters that dominate the GOP base in North Carolina. None of the negative headlines have so far stopped his meteoric rise in state politics, riding a viral video of him giving public comment about gun rights at a city council meeting in 2018 to being elected to the state’s second-highest office a little over two years later. And even after in-state media uncovered a past comment by Robinson — a staunch abortion opponent — that he and his wife had terminated a pregnancy decades ago, his standing remained virtually unchanged, Raleigh’s WRAL found in a survey.

    Still, he could face a potentially bruising challenge in the primary — largely focused on other Republicans’ concerns that he is not electable in the fall.

    Mark Walker, a former Greensboro-area congressman who unsuccessfully sought the Republican nomination for Senate last year, is publicly mulling a run, and is expected to enter the race in the coming weeks.

    Walker acknowledged in an interview that most political observers in the state see Robinson as the “strong favorite” to win the GOP nomination, but he repeatedly suggested that Robinson would not be a good general election candidate because of baggage he carried. Walker, who is being advised by National Public Affairs, a political consulting group run by Bill Stepien and other Trump alumni, said he was “disappointed that [Robinson] would not be honest with the people of North Carolina about all different things,” declining to elaborate further.

    Walker’s criticism carries a bit of irony since he helped launch Robinson’s political career by sharing that 2018 viral video on Facebook. He insisted there was “nothing personal” about potentially running against Robinson, only that Republicans needed to nominate a winning candidate for the fall.

    Even if Walker does not get in, Robinson is facing other challengers in the Republican primary. Already in the race is Dale Folwell, the state treasurer first elected in 2016, who cast himself as an alternative to Robinson in part because he is “not a gamble on the ballot.”

    But any challenger to Robinson faces a tough path. Members of North Carolina’s Republican legislative leadership are largely supportive of Robinson’s primary bid, according to four state GOP insiders. Legislative leaders gave him an unusually prominent perch earlier this year, tapping Robinson to give the response to Cooper’s state of the state address — a spot where Robinson tried to shed at least some of his usual bomb-throwing persona.

    And Republican legislators are expected to be among those supporting Robinson at his announcement Saturday.

    Early polling on the general election race shows it’s likely to be a dead-heat. Carolina Forward, a progressive advocacy group, released a survey this fall that showed state Attorney General Josh Stein — who Democrats have coalesced around — at 44 percent support, compared to Robinson’s 42 percent. But among independents — a key voting bloc in North Carolina — Robinson was up slightly.

    “You’re going to have two absolute juggernauts from either party, with Robinson and Stein raising, I predict, more money than we’ve ever seen in a governor’s race in this state,” said Conrad Pogorzelski III, Robinson’s top political strategist.

    While it remains to be seen how Robinson’s past scandals and history of heated rhetoric will play out under greater scrutiny this election cycle, those close to the lieutenant governor have advised him to proceed as if the primary is already over — and to focus more on the general electorate than dishing out more red meat to the base. Saturday’s rally could be an early sign of whether he’ll actually embrace that advice.

    Robinson — the state’s first Black lieutenant governor, who worked a manufacturing job up until his recent political career launch — has sought to emphasize his relatability to average people when confronted with past news coverage about his personal financial mismanagement and other missteps.

    “It’s a quasi-populist message that’s about going after the elites, and that’s what Trump was able to channel very effectively when he carried the state of North Carolina twice,” said Jonathan Felts, a Republican strategist who most recently advised Sen. Ted Budd’s midterm campaign. “It’s not just a fringe-right phenomenon — it’s something that percolates across the political spectrum and something that pollsters and the D.C. consultant class have gotten wrong since 2016.”

    If he wins the primary, Robinson’s traits will be contrasted with the mild-mannered persona of Stein, a Dartmouth and Harvard-educated lawyer who has served two terms as the state’s top prosecutor. But it’s one that Democrats eagerly embrace.

    “You couldn’t have a bigger contrast between these two candidates,” said Morgan Jackson, a Democratic strategist who advises both Cooper and Stein. “Mark Robinsion is the most far-right extreme candidate who has ever run in the history of North Carolina.”

    The race comes at a dire moment for the Democratic Party in North Carolina.

    The state was supposed to be the swing state of the future for Democrats, after then-candidate Barack Obama won a squeaker in 2008 and Kay Hagan won an open Senate seat by over 8 points that year. But Democrats have not won a statewide federal race since then — losing a string of close Senate and presidential contests that have thrown into question the true tossup nature of the state.

    Democrats have fared far better on the statewide level. Republicans have won just one governor race in the last 30 years, and there has been a single Republican attorney general in the last century. Even so, Cooper, the most successful Democrat in North Carolina in any recent history, is term-limited out. And Republicans hold supermajorities in both state legislative chambers.

    “This could be the culmination of 15 years of [Republican] work, in the sense of a consolidation of power by any means,” said Democratic state House Minority Leader Robert Reives.

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    #GOPs #electability #problem #North #Carolina
    ( With inputs from : www.politico.com )

  • ‘The Label’s Actually Part of the Problem’

    ‘The Label’s Actually Part of the Problem’

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    mag siders roadstop sf ca lede

    The problem for groups like Our Revolution and people like Lynn, who view California as a proving ground for the progressive movement, is that California voters — beyond requiring their statewide elected officials be Democrats — may not distinguish between those Democrats on narrower ideological lines.

    One reason is that, for as completely as the Donald Trump era overhauled the Republican Party, the resistance to Trump from the left blurred some intraparty differences between Democrats. Schiff is known less as a moderate or a progressive than for his roles in Trump’s first impeachment and in the panel investigating the riot at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. In some ways, said Geevarghese, “’progressive’ and ‘Democrat’ have gotten conflated, in part because the anti-Trump movement was galvanizing, and no matter which side of the Democratic divide you’re on, establishment versus progressive, we came together against the threat of Trump-ism.”

    Schiff, said Konstantine Anthony, the mayor of Burbank, Schiff’s hometown, “was on television every night for weeks, months. He was seen as the anti-Trump.”

    Anthony, a socialist who is far to the left of Schiff ideologically and actually supports the “defund the police” movement, is nevertheless endorsing him. Citing Schiff’s support for Medicare for All and his swearing off of corporate PAC donations, among other policies, he said he regrets that among that activist class, “we do not allow people to learn.”

    Schiff, he said, had become more progressive as his district evolved, while “our memories have gotten longer, and I feel like it’s to our detriment. We haven’t evolved to the point where we can forgive people.”

    But the broader electorate may be more willing to overlook things — if they even cared much to begin with.

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    #Labels #Part #Problem
    ( With inputs from : www.politico.com )

  • House Republicans are facing a familiar problem as they try to steer a high-profile package of border bills to the floor. Let’s call it the Lone Star State Standoff.

    House Republicans are facing a familiar problem as they try to steer a high-profile package of border bills to the floor. Let’s call it the Lone Star State Standoff.

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    “If they try to jam them through, they’re gonna fail on the floor,” Rep. Tony Gonzales warned of the bills.

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    #House #Republicans #facing #familiar #problem #steer #highprofile #package #border #bills #floor #Lets #call #Lone #Star #State #Standoff
    ( With inputs from : www.politico.com )

  • Ron DeSantis has one very big problem: Donald Trump

    Ron DeSantis has one very big problem: Donald Trump

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    DeSantis was compelled to reverse course on his public skepticism about the war in Ukraine following criticism from mainstay Republicans. His poll numbers have dipped. And he was dragged into the very thing he’d been trying to avoid: a public brawl with his chief rival, Donald Trump, whose attack dogs smelled blood.

    Even Republicans eager to see DeSantis succeed agree that he has been put in a bind.

    “This week was a momentum speed bump for DeSantis — not only for his flat response to the Trump indictment and his Ukraine comment, but also just because Trump sucked up all the wind in the room,” said a New York Republican elected official who is leaning toward supporting DeSantis and was granted anonymity for fear of retribution from either candidate.

    DeSantis’ defenders say he’s handled Trump’s legal troubles deftly — ignoring them until asked, then zinging the former president in his answer while taking a larger swing at the Democratic district attorney who is bringing the charges.

    “I think he’s handled it well. It’s not his issue, he addressed it, he was able to take a shot at Trump and [he] moved on. I don’t know that he could have done any more than that,” said Bill McCoshen, a Wisconsin-based Republican strategist.

    Other Republicans say Trump isn’t his only problem.

    “The way he’s handling the potential Trump issue is fine. I think he’s been clever with it. … But Ukraine — he really put himself in a box I think,” said Rob Stutzman, a GOP strategist who handled communications for former Republican California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. “It was very driven not so much to mimic Trump but to ingratiate himself with donors that are smitten with him.”

    The DeSantis team declined comment.

    The conundrum DeSantis finds himself facing is among the first indications that he may struggle with the same political dynamics that have tripped up past Trump opponents: Align yourself too closely and get tagged as a cheap imitation; attack him and be tarred as a traitor to the cause.

    “I don’t think there’s a right playbook unfortunately,” said Jason Roe, who worked on the 2016 presidential campaign of Republican Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida.

    Trump’s team is certainly armed with counterattacks.

    The former president’s campaign has already compiled an extensive opposition research file on the Florida governor and has decided that full bore attacks will allow them to define DeSantis before he even enters the race. Trump’s advisers believe DeSantis’ shifting positions on issues like Social Security spending and Ukraine, his avoidance of the national press, and his underhanded swipes at Trump are backfiring.

    “He is walking right into a trap we couldn’t have laid any better,” said a Trump adviser who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe how the ex-president’s team is discussing DeSantis. “He’s going to attack Trump on things Trump has been attacked on for eight years. What else new is he going to say? In the perfectly scripted, robotic world of Ron DeSantis this strategy would make sense.”

    As he figures out how to handle Trump, DeSantis has seen his poll numbers sag: A Monmouth University Poll released Tuesday found the former president gaining on DeSantis. A Morning Consult survey showed Trump leading DeSantis 54-to-26 among potential GOP primary voters. And a CNN poll placed Trump in the lead, though by a much smaller margin.

    There are signs that DeSantis is beginning to recalibrate his approach. He snapped back at Trump in an interview with Piers Morgan, set to air Thursday night, according to a preview released in the Rupert Murdoch-owned New York Post. And he drew subtle contrasts with the ex-president when asked about the nicknames and taunts that Trump has thrown his way.

    “I mean, you can call me whatever you want, just as long as you also call me a winner because that’s what we’ve been able to do in Florida, is put a lot of points on the board and really take this state to the next level,” DeSantis said in an exclusive interview with Fox Nation, a favorable outlet for him.

    It wasn’t the first time he’s opted to respond to Trump: In November, he dismissed the ex-president’s criticisms as “noise” and urged critics to “check out the scoreboard” from his re-election landslide victory.

    Roe, who advised Rubio when the Senator had to deal with Trump’s verbal bombs in 2016, suggested that DeSantis stand his ground but avoid a tit for tat with the former president. Back then, Rubio responded to Trump’s “Little Marco” taunt with one of his own — suggestively remarking on Trump’s “small” hands. But, Roe lamented, “it didn’t wear well.”

    “Every interview that I had was responding to something Trump did, said or tweeted and it was always. ‘What’s your reaction?’” Roe said. “You’re not going to win in an insult slugfest with Donald Trump. That’s his strength.”

    The question of how intensely DeSantis should respond to Trump is one he will have to answer. And it could very well be that he settles on a less-is-more formula.

    “Why would he mess with this ‘do as little as possible’ strategy when it has been relatively successful for him?” said Fergus Cullen, a Republican politician in the early voting state of New Hampshire.

    Cullen, a self-avowed “Never Trumper” who hasn’t picked a 2024 candidate yet, said DeSantis has enjoyed the benefit of elusion.

    “People project onto him what they want to see in him, and that’s a really nice place to be politically,” Cullen said. “Can’t last forever.”

    Meridith McGraw contributed to this report.

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    ( With inputs from : www.politico.com )

  • Ron DeSantis has a Florida problem

    Ron DeSantis has a Florida problem

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    election 2024 desantis iowa 88520

    In the run-up to the primary, DeSantis solidified his place as Trump’s chief rival for the nomination largely based on an electability argument. He was MAGA, like Trump, but without the former president’s baggage or toxicity to moderate Republicans and independents — the kind of voters Republicans will need to run Joe Biden from the White House next year.

    But as DeSantis edges closer to announcing, he is testing the limits of how hard right he can go without undermining his rationale for running in the first place. It’s a significant risk in a primary in which Republican voters — sore from losing the White House in 2020 and a less-than-red-wave midterm two years later — are desperate to nominate a candidate who can win.

    “In a way, the Republican dominance of the Florida Legislature may end up hurting DeSantis because his proposals can become reality,” said Barrett Marson, a Republican strategist in Arizona. “That may help him in a primary in Iowa or Texas or South Dakota, but in a general election in Arizona, Pennsylvania or Wisconsin, it could be ruinous for him.”

    That fear isn’t lost on Republican primary voters, either. In hypothetical matchups with Biden in a Morning Consult poll this week, DeSantis fared no better than Trump, with each trailing the incumbent Democrat by 1 percentage point. Moreover, when asked in a recent Yahoo News/YouGov poll who had the best chance of winning in 2024, DeSantis didn’t stand out against Trump, either, with about as many Republicans and Republican-leaning independents naming Trump as DeSantis. That is a major shift from December, when far more Republicans viewed DeSantis as the more electable Republican.

    “[DeSantis has] this huge advantage in the Florida legislature and the ability to pretty much write his script for the next year in terms of policy direction,” said Lee Miringoff, director of the Marist College Institute for Public Opinion. “But that may not turn out to be a blessing, ultimately.”

    After the U.S. Supreme Court repealed Roe v. Wade DeSantis said he was in favor of additional restrictions but as his reelection drew closer he declined to say exactly what he would support. When the ban on abortions after six weeks — albeit with exceptions — was filed last week DeSantis told reporters “I think those exceptions are sensible and like I said we welcome pro life legislation.”

    A DeSantis spokesperson declined to comment. But a top Republican consultant in Tallahassee, who was granted anonymity to talk freely about DeSantis, said there is a logic behind the governor’s moves.

    “The bottom line is that if he decides to run he wants to have the most robust cultural and policy conservative list of accomplishments,” said the consultant. “This makes him impervious to hits from the right.”

    DeSantis may have little choice but to pull further to the right on some key issues for the base. In a modern GOP that has seen Republicans with decades of conservative credentials exorcized as “Republicans-In-Name-Only” at Trump’s behest, DeSantis has, through his hard-line politics, avoided being cast by Trump as weak or low energy. Instead, Trump has portrayed him as an imitator, telling reporters DeSantis was “following what I am saying” on Ukraine. With Trump still leading the field and several other Republicans expected to join the campaign, DeSantis will likely have to cut into some of Trump’s support to beat him in the primary.

    With his six-week abortion ban, DeSantis appears to be making that precise play. Evangelical voters scoffed at Trump after he blamed the GOP’s focus on the “abortion issue” for losses in the midterms. That constituency is especially significant in Iowa, the first-in-the-nation caucus state that DeSantis and Trump both visited in recent days.

    Bob Vander Plaats, the evangelical leader in Iowa who is influential in primary politics in the first-in-the-nation caucus state and who was a national co-chair of Sen. Ted Cruz’s campaign in 2016, pointed out that Iowa is “a very pro-life state today, and part of that is Gov. [Kim] Reynolds has been a champion for the sanctity of human life and she won by an overwhelming margin in 2022”

    He said DeSantis is wise to be “stressing his bonafides” on the issue and that DeSantis’ six-week ban “will be in [DeSantis’s] favor, quite frankly, and it would put him on equal footing with Gov. Reynolds here in the state of Iowa, which is a good place to be.”

    But even Republicans acknowledge it will likely come at a cost, after Democrats successfully used abortion as a cudgel against their party in the midterm elections, following the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade.

    “If you’re running for president, you ain’t got no choice,” said Jason Roe, a former executive director of the Michigan Republican Party and adviser to Florida Sen. Marco Rubio’s 2016 presidential campaign. “On the abortion issue, if you don’t go as far right as the oxygen will allow you to go, it’s a vulnerability in a Republican primary. That’s just life.”

    One New York Republican, granted anonymity to speak freely about the party primary dynamics, said a six-week ban viewed as unpalatably restrictive to some will be considered too weak by some anti-abortion rights purists in the right wing of the GOP.

    “This position is so scrutinized that you’ll lose a core constituency in allowing for any abortion at any time,” said the person, who is partial to Trump. “Six weeks sounds like the middle ground that a political operative would advise you to take. Six weeks is not what the Christian right voters will accept. There is a definite bifurcation between political realities and politically paid staffers.”

    For his part, Trump declared on Twitter in 2019 he is “strongly Pro-Life, with the three exceptions – Rape, Incest and protecting the Life of the mother – the same position taken by Ronald Reagan.” He took executive actions that pleased anti-abortion advocates, including delivering the Supreme Court that overturned Roe v. Wade last year. But when he announced his comeback bid, he made no mention of the hot-button issue, concerning some conservatives.

    In Florida, state Sen. Erin Grall, one of the sponsors of the bill to put in place the six-week ban, said the legislation was done in collaboration with the governor’s office. “It’s not done in a vacuum,” said Grall, although she did not go into details about her conversations.

    As DeSantis is forced to engage more on national issues, he is likely to alienate voters in other ways. On the foreign policy front earlier this week, he drew blowback from traditionalist Republicans when he said the conflict in Ukraine is not a “vital” U.S. interest.

    DeSantis may ultimately survive the hits, whether from progressives or fellow Republicans. He has defended his approach by pointing to his big win in November, when he beat his Democratic opponent by nearly 20 percentage points. Below the national radar, he took actions designed to win over moderates and independents, such as pushing to bolster pay for teachers or championing Everglades restoration.

    Tarkanian, who like many DeSantis’ supporters views him as the party’s “best shot” of winning the White House in 2024, said DeSantis still is a candidate who appeals to “more reasonable, rational, centrist Republicans.”

    She doubted the abortion ban would hurt him in the primary. Still, she said, it’s “definitely not going to help him win a general.”



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    ( With inputs from : www.politico.com )