A Hero In Nebraska!

 The legislature here in Nebraska is composed of 49 individuals. That's it. No House just a so-called Senate. Why this happened is because way back in depression era Nebraska, while the voters were building the gigantic capitol building known as The Penis of the Plains funded brick by brick dollar by dollar, legalizing horse race betting, making public power the only option, they also cut the size of the legislature down to one house system called the Unicameral. They also paid these people about $1200 per year right up until the late 1980s when they raised the salary to $12000 a year. Wow, how generous. Thus the state senators tended to be rich ranchers and farmers from the rural areas and rich Republicans from the affluent parts of Omaha and Lincoln. This is basically the norm even now. And the results are as predictable as can be. Rural, and their right wing agenda, run this state mostly because the wealthy Omahans and Lincolnites are right on board.

However, I will say unlike many states with a band of ogres gerrymandered into veto proof majorities, the trolls and rudeness that permeates politics in many states has been avoided here as Nebraska Nice has generally prevailed. Until now.

The 2020 election in Nebraska reflected the times. The Republicans elected for the first time are loud, mean and perfectly willing to blow up an entire system to get what the lobbyists, the PACS, and a billionaire ex Governor and his puppet new Governor have paid them to do. That is outlaw abortion, take away the rights of trans kids, outlaw drag shows, allow any yahoo to carry a gun without a permit and funnel tax money meant for public schools straight into the pockets of Charlie Kirk, Betsy DeVos , the Catholic Church and the religious kooks who want to start a "private school" under the lie of "school choice" for the poor. That's about it. That's all the dark money wants. 

Now originally, after the election the filibuster proof 33 vote threshold was thought to have been avoided. You get 33 genetic Republicans into office out of 49 and you can do what you wish. This was avoided. Or so we believed. Unfortunately there are Democrats who have a price and that price was met. Democratic turncoats came to the surface and the 33 votes have been achieved to stop filibusters. 

Step up to the plate Senator Machaela Cavanaugh. A Democratic (though "officially" non partisan) Senator from Omaha (she literally would be my Senator if I lived across the street) decided hey fuck you bullies, you may win in the end, but I am going to take you down on your "vanilla" bills that actually benefit your constituents like rural broadband, property tax relief and allocation of state funds. You want to limit women's health care rights, let any goober carry a gun, drive trans kids to suicide, destroy the public schools and ban drag shows you are paying a price.

So Senator Cavanaugh began to filibuster EVERY fucking bill that came up. She's been talking for over a week about a bill that changes a simple process regarding property taxes that nobody in their right mind would oppose. She's been talking about trans children killing themselves, women dying of complications during pregnancy after being denied abortions, and anything that she can think of. Fish fries, girl scout cookies, and her new colleagues being bullies and assholes. 

This is YOUR government Nebraska. You voted for these Republican shitheels thinking well everybody pivots and all is polite and casual. Well they aren't any longer. The people taking legislative seats are election deniers, conspiracy theorists , white nationalists, and gutless Democrats who think they have to vote with the crazies because they seek further office, like Mayor of Omaha . It's pathetic. It really is.

But some have courage. Machaela Cavanaugh is going to exact a price for these radical bills introduced by these nuts and GOP puppets. You get a drag queen ban, you get a abortion ban, you get a trans ban, you get a gun bill but ya know what you aren't getting ? Property tax relief, rural broadband and other things that actually affect your voters. But on the other hand fuck em, they voted for these nuts.

You're a hero Senator. Keep on talkin!