skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Friday, May 9, 2025

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Trump signals he is open to cutting China tariffs to 80% ahead of trade negotiations; Pope Leo XIV calls Church 'a beacon to illuminate dark nights' in first mass; Medicaid cuts risk health care access for VA military families; Does climate change 'perception gap' silence action in Mississippi? 'Forever families' needed for PA children in foster care.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

A judge orders certification of the 2024 North Carolina Supreme Court race, Wisconsin Democrats want congressional maps redrawn, and the interim U.S. Attorney for District of Columbia loses the job over his support for January 6th rioters.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Volunteers with AmeriCorps are devastated by cuts to the 30-year-old program, Head Start has dodged elimination but cuts are likely, moms are the most vulnerable when extreme weather hits, and bullfrogs await their 15-minutes of fame in rural California.

Wisconsin Case Will Make National News in 2018

play audio
Play

Thursday, January 4, 2018   

MADISON, Wis. -- A Supreme Court decision expected this spring will likely impact the way every state draws its political boundaries.

The case, Gill v. Whitford, is concerned with the way Wisconsin Republicans drew the state's political map in 2011. The process of drawing the maps, done by outside consultants and lawyers, was done in complete secrecy, and resulted in an overwhelming Republican advantage at the polls.

A panel of three federal judges ruled 2-1 that the Republicans were unfair, and the case wound up in the Supreme Court. Jay Heck is executive director of Common Cause in Wisconsin. He said the result of the gerrymandering is the opposite of what should be happening.

"Elected representatives at the state and federal level should be selected by the voters,” Heck said; “not the way we have it now where the elected representatives select their voters through the process of drawing the district lines."

Justice Sonia Sotomayor said the Wisconsin mapmakers "drew and rejected maps until they came up with one that maximized Republican chances, and then it succeeded beyond their expectations."

A few months ago, the Supreme Court added a Maryland gerrymandering case to the Wisconsin case.

"The Wisconsin case was a Republican gerrymander, one of the most partisan gerrymanders in the country in the last 50 years," Heck said. "And the U.S. Supreme Court just decided to add the state of Maryland, which was a Democratic gerrymander of a Congressional district there.”

Heck said he believes the Maryland case was added to the Wisconsin case for a specific reason.

"Because they want their decision, when they make one - hopefully in March or April of this year, of 2018 - would be so that it doesn't appear that they're favoring Republicans or Democrats, but they're going after both,” he explained.

If the Supreme Court rules the political maps unconstitutional, it will affect nearly every other state, and will force Wisconsin to redraw its political boundaries in a more fair manner.


get more stories like this via email

more stories
The California Parent and Youth Helpline has helped almost 113,000 people since its inception in 2020. (kieferpix/Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

The California Parent and Youth Helpline turns five years old today - just in time for a brand new study that confirms its effectiveness. The study…


Environment

play sound

A Michigan group is speaking out after a top congressional leader's comment that lawmakers will most likely scrap the $7,500 federal tax credit for bu…

Environment

play sound

The Mississippi River is the drinking water source for 20 million people and its starting point in northern Minnesota has new protections following co…


The National Wildlife Federation said managed grazing is one of the top conservation practices used by South Dakota farmers and ranchers. (Adobe Stock)

Environment

play sound

A new mapping tool shows South Dakota is a big player on the farm conservation scene. The online feature coincides with a new poll, revealing most …

Social Issues

play sound

Sunday is Mother's Day, and what moms may need most is a day off. Research shows that inequities persist in the amount of time moms and dads spend …

Nevadans could save 16% on their utility bills by 2035 by pursuing cost-saving energy-efficiency measures, according to the National Renewable Energy Lab. (Scott Habermann/Adobe Stock)

Environment

play sound

Nevada clean-energy proponents have launched a new website to help connect Nevadans to energy and cost-saving programs. One of the nonprofits behind …

Social Issues

play sound

Ahead of Mother's Day, one Kentucky middle-school student has received recognition for honoring his grandmother in a "Grandparent of the Year" essay …

Environment

play sound

Nonprofits, businesses, organizers and leaders have signed a letter calling for more climate solutions in Arizona and around the country. They claim …

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021