A GOP Nebraska lawmaker chose his voters over his party with abortion vote

[Daily Kos Morning Roundup]( A morning roundup of worthy pundit and news reads, brought to you by Daily Kos. [Click here to read the full web version.]( - [A GOP Nebraska lawmaker chose his voters over his party with abortion vote]( A GOP Nebraska lawmaker chose his voters over his party with abortion vote, Colby Itkowitz and Sabrina Rodriguez, The Washington Post In the days since state Sen. Merv Riepe cast the lone vote that blocked a near-total abortion ban in his conservative state, he’s faced protests at his office, the cold shoulder from irate colleagues and calls for his resignation. A stranger left an angry note inside his home mailbox. Yet, the 80-year-old Republican has also raked in accolades, becoming an unlikely hero for those fighting to protect abortion access in Nebraska and around the country in the year since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. Abortion advocates wept in the Capitol after Riepe’s April 27 vote. A downtown Omaha novelty store is now selling blue T-shirts and tank tops that say “Hot Merv Summer” in bold, white type. Riepe’s vote reflects a growing realization among some Republicans that staking extreme positions on abortion might be politically perilous. Since Roe, which guaranteed the right to abortion, was struck down, Republicans have faced pressure from the far-right to ban the procedure in states across the country. But voters, including those who identify or lean Republican, have signaled an uneasiness with taking restrictions too far. - [I Voted For Trump]( I Voted For Trump, Kevin Young, ”Restructuring Faith” on Substack And other confessions that led to the collapse of my Conservatism In many ways, I am still trying to understand who I am. And while I may not be able to quantify what I currently am, I can assure you that I wasn’t trying to collapse my idealogical walls. I swear. Far from it. I wasn’t looking to destroy the Conservatism that had surrounded my life since birth. I wasn’t looking to blow up the very thing that brought comfort, protection, and insulation from the outer chaos of the world. Conservative fundamentalism does that. It’s offers safety. It promises to bring law and order to chaos and messy things. But I am getting ahead of myself…. It took 8 minutes and 46 seconds for my wall to be reduced to rubble. The exact length of time that a white police officer’s knee was on George Floyd’s neck. 08:46 One man, Officer Derik Chauvin, pulled a brick and the wall came down. Even now, that moment reduces me to tears. “I can’t breathe.” The wall that had taken 43 years to build took 8 minutes and 46 seconds to come crashing down. The life that I once knew was gone in a moment. It was as if everything that I had believed, known, and professed clicked like a gear into a different setting and then fell back into place. Everything shifted. I was in a new place. I had a new way of seeing. I was a new person who I did not recognize. - [Bad news: Daily Kos is facing tough financial times. Grassroots donors like you help us make ends meet. Can you chip in $5 to help us keep fighting?]( - [How Biden can win on the debt ceiling & more notes]( How Biden can win on the debt ceiling & more notes, Brian Rosenwald, ”The World According to Brian” on Substack My weekly roundup of politics and media Now that’s not to say that Biden should capitulate — far from it. But he needs to be able to say to the American people, look folks (yes, anything Biden would say includes folks), I negotiated in good faith. But they wanted me to cut funding for cancer research, to take food out of the mouths of hungry Americans, to set back our path to energy independence and addressing the climate crisis, and to rip medical care away from the neediest among us. And I won’t do that. You didn’t elect me to do that, and I won’t sell out our long term well being or the Americans struggling most to appease legislative terrorists. That’s the kind of message that won Bill Clinton the budget fight in the winter of 1995 and 1996. Paint House Republicans as cruel and heartless for targeting their budget demands at the neediest in society. This time Biden can also make them look foolish for demanding a reduction in funds for science and technology as we enter into a new Cold War type competition with China — which won’t be sparing any expenses. If Biden can say that, even if the economy tumbles, he’s less likely to bear the brunt of the blame than if he says, “sorry I’m not negotiating, because they’re being irresponsible.” For those not immersed in the world of Washington politics, who don’t know the history of the debt ceiling, and who don’t understand that Republican comparisons to credit limits and credit cards are flat out lies, that position makes it sound like Biden is being the petulant, unreasonable one. Now there is a caveat here: if Biden is willing to resort to extraordinary measures to head off any sort of economic cataclysm — claiming the 14th Amendment gives him authority to ignore the debt ceiling, etc — and dare the courts to block him, then his strategy may be more workable. - [The Ratings Aren't Worth This]( The Ratings Aren't Worth This, Charles S Pierce, Esquire I was sweeping up the detritus of the past weekend's renewal of the annual We Don't Give A Fck About Actual Journalism soiree and hootenanny sponsored by the White House Correspondents Association, a whorehouse with about 500 piano players. Generally, it's a completely revolting schmooz-a-thon in which the corporate and entertainment elite confer, converse, and otherwise hobnob with professional — and professionally starstruck — journalists, while the corporate and entertainment elite pretend to be dazzled by cable TV news hosts. This was the first time the bordello was at full operation since the pandemic. Same circle, different jerks. - [Daily Kos t-shirts are going fast. Get one now and show your support for progressive, independent media!]( - [The May Jobs Report - US Economy Remains Remarkably Strong, Republicans Are Trying to Ruin It]( The May Jobs Report - US Economy Remains Remarkably Strong, Republicans Are Trying to Ruin It, Simon Rosenberg, ”Hopium Chronicles” on Substack While Biden Is Working to Keep the Economy Strong, Rs are Pushing Us Into Recession and Default It is not a stretch to state that the GOP’s economic track record over the past 30 years has been among the worst in the history of the United States. The Biden economic track record, on the other hand, has been very strong: - [Biden faces broad negative ratings at start of campaign, Post-ABC poll finds]( Biden faces broad negative ratings at start of campaign, Post-ABC poll finds, Dan Balz, Scott Clement and Emily Guskin, The Washington Post The president’s approval ratings slip to a new low, more Americans than not doubt his mental acuity, and his support against leading GOP challengers is far shakier than at this point four years ago Biden’s approval rating is underwater among a slew of groups that supported him by wide margins in 2020. He stands at 26 percent approval among Americans under age 30, 42 percent among non-White adults, 41 percent among urban residents and 46 percent of those with no religious affiliation. Among independents who voted for Biden in 2020, 57 percent approve while 30 percent disapprove. Among independents who voted for Trump, 96 percent disapprove. ICYMI: Popular stories from the past week you won't want to miss: - [Trump's lawyer is an idiot, but the judge was too kind to say so]( - [Trump wrecks himself in E. Jean Carroll video deposition]( - [Not so proud now: A photo thread of Republicans and Proud Boys]( Want even more Daily Kos? Check out our podcasts: - [The Brief: A one-hour weekly political conversation hosted by Markos Moulitsas and Kerry Eleveld]( - [The Downballot: Daily Kos' podcast devoted to downballot elections. New episodes every Thursday]( Want to write your own stories? [Log in]( or [sign up]( to post articles and comments on Daily Kos, the nation's largest progressive community. Follow Daily Kos on [Facebook](, [Twitter](, and [Instagram](. Thanks for all you do, The Daily Kos team Daily Kos Relies on Readers Like You We don't have billionaire backers like some right-wing media outlets. Half our revenue comes from readers like you, meaning we literally couldn't do this work without you. 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