Evening Wrap

When Michael Whatley assumed control of the Republican National Committee last month, his marching orders were clear: Renew the party’s focus on “election integrity” — or, in GOP terms, file more lawsuits, install more right-wing election observers, and broadcast Donald Trump’s continued (and thoroughly debunked) claims of election fraud. Whatley, a hardcore election denier, was game. Within days, he’d outlined those priorities for RNC staffers in a three-page memo that emphasized voter outreach, ballot harvesting “where legal,” litigation over post-2020 election policies, and a push to hire and train slews of poll watchers. 

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So much to talk about, guys. Let’s dive in.

The Nebraska legislature on Wednesday blocked a proposal to change the way the state awards its Electoral College votes, resisting pressure from Donald Trump to embrace a winner-take-all system that would have likely helped him in November. The measure, tacked on to an unrelated bill, required 23 votes to pass. It received just eight, per the Nebraska Examiner.

If you’re a politician hoping to do some good in the world (hello, beautiful unicorn), there is no shortage of issues to tackle. Can I interest you in the astronomical cost of housing? How about wage stagnation? Perhaps you’re more concerned about the ongoing climate crisis or the gun violence epidemic? Maybe you’d prefer to roll everything together, focus on the cumulative impact our prolonged inaction is having on kids and teens? Take! Your! Pick!

The Florida Supreme Court on Monday ruled 6-1 that privacy protections in the state constitution do not extend to abortion, a stunning reversal of its own decades-old precedent that will allow a six-week ban to take effect on May 1, the Florida Phoenix reported. The decision stemmed from a 2022 lawsuit that challenged the constitutionality of a 15-week ban approved by lawmakers following the demise of Roe v. Wade, a seismic shift the justices said affected the breadth of abortion protections in Florida.

A proposal to regulate hemp under the same framework as more-potent marijuana could force Missouri convenience stores and gas stations to pull most Delta-8 drinks and edibles from shelves, though officials said the full impact of the legislation is still unknown, the Missouri Independent reported. 

Scheduling is for suckers in Idaho, where lawmakers continued to squabble over a major transportation bill on Thursday — a full six days past the legislature’s slated adjournment date, the Idaho Capital Sun reported.

Let’s start here: You get a ride home from work with your cousin, who makes a pit stop along the way to pick up some marijuana, then forgets to turn the headlights back on and gets pulled over by police. You’re arrested and released on bond after 72 hours. You’ve never been charged with a crime, but now you’re facing a felony and a misdemeanor. You get an attorney and prepare for court. And then, if you’re lucky, someone steps in with another option: Pretrial diversion.

Kansas Republicans on Wednesday donned their national security hats, approving a trio of bills designed to deter “countries of concern” by mandating divestment of state-managed investments, restricting property ownership and grounding imported drones used by government agencies, the Kansas Reflector reported.

The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday seemed deeply skeptical of efforts to limit access to mifepristone, questioning whether a coalition of anti-abortion groups had the right to challenge the Food and Drug Administration’s approval of the drug or a pair of decisions that broadened access to it, our D.C. bureau reported.

Lawmakers in Georgia are expected to consider sweeping changes to the state’s election rules before the conclusion of legislative session Thursday, leaving local officials on alert for policies that might need to be implemented ahead of November, the Georgia Recorder reported.