Florida authorities have caught multiple individuals involved in petition fraud related to a radical effort to enshrine late-term abortion into Florida’s state constitution. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement announced this week that inspectors arrested a “paid petition circulator” and issued an arrest warrant for a second petition circulator after they submitted 133 invalid constitutional amendment petitions in numerous counties. Those petitions are related to an amendment that would state: “No law shall prohibit‚ penalize‚ delay‚ or restrict abortion before viability or when necessary to protect the patient’s health‚ as determined by the patient’s healthcare provider.” Florida currently protects babies after 15 weeks gestation‚ though Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis‚ a Republican‚ signed a heartbeat bill in April 2023. The Florida Supreme Court has suspended that law‚ which would protect babies at six weeks‚ during a court challenge. Should the court uphold the law‚ it would go into effect 30 days after the ruling. “Florida’s Constitution is a sacred document and there is a lawful method by which voters can make amendments‚” Florida Secretary of State Cord Boyd‚ a Republican‚ said in a statement Tuesday. “However‚ when criminals seek to circumvent that process fraudulently‚ this is an affront to Floridians and the sanctity of our laws‚ and we will do everything within our power to ensure that Floridians and our constitution are protected.” Authorities arrested 30-year-old George Edward Andrews III and booked him into the Hernando County Jail on “10 felony counts each of criminal use of personal identification information and signing another person’s name or a fictitious name to a petition.” Police issued an active arrest warrant for 47-year-old Jamie L. Johnson‚ who faces “10 felony counts each of criminal use of personal identification information and signing another person’s name or a fictitious name to a petition.” Caitlin Connors‚ the southern regional director of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America‚ accused pro-abortion interest groups of “attempting to lie and cheat their way to the ballot.” The American Civil Liberties Union is leading the groups‚ she said. Connors claimed the ACLUS is involved in a “national effort to erase protections for babies and moms using the same playbook of deceit and dark money to hide their extreme policy of legalizing painful late-term abortions and attacking the rights of parents.” “With more than 60% of voters supporting Florida’s law protecting babies with a heartbeat‚ it’s not surprising abortion advocates used deceptive language in the amendment and engaged in illegal activity‚” Connors added‚ citing a poll her organization commissioned in March. “The abortion industry will not succeed in disregarding the laws and deceiving Floridians into supporting an amendment to enshrine second- and third-trimester abortions when babies can feel pain.” The ACLU did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Since the overturn of Roe v. Wade in June 2022‚ abortion supporters have leaned into state ballot measures and amendments as a strategy for getting around pro-life laws. These ballot initiatives typically use euphemisms such as “reproductive medical treatment” or “reproductive freedom” and phrases like “an individual’s right to one’s own reproductive medical treatment.” These efforts have proved hugely successful for abortion proponents. Pro-abortion ballot measures passed in California‚ Kentucky‚ Michigan‚ Montana and Vermont in 2022‚ and in Ohio in 2023. Florida-Abortion-AmendmentDownload Have an opinion about this article? To sound off‚ please email letters@DailySignal.com‚ and we’ll consider publishing your edited remarks in our regular “We Hear You” feature. Remember to include the URL or headline of the article plus your name and town and/or state.  The post Abortion Activists Allegedly Caught Submitting Fraudulent Petition Signatures appeared first on The Daily Signal.

Billionaire Mark Cuban is a big fan of diversity‚ equity and inclusion. That means he’s a big fan of racial discrimination in hiring. On X‚ formerly Twitter‚ Cuban confessed that he gives racial and gender preferences to job applicants on the theory that “diversity” puts his business “in the best position to succeed.” I’ve never hired anyone based exclusively on race‚ gender‚ religion. I only ever hire the person that will put my business in the best position to succeed. And yes‚ race and gender can be part of the equation. I view diversity as a competitive advantage Now how would you… https://t.co/gxdtauMHtz— Mark Cuban (@mcuban) January 28‚ 2024 Cynthia “Cynt” Marshall‚ the CEO of the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks‚ which Cuban formerly owned and still operates‚ proudly proclaimed that she knows “the business case for diversity” and as a result‚ “made some leadership changes” within the Mavericks organization that resulted in “almost 50% women” and “47% people of color” in leadership because “diversity matters.” Of course‚ it’s nonsense that true diversity can be boiled down to something as superficial as someone’s skin color or gender. It’s infinitely more complex. But putting aside this obvious truth‚ Cuban and those who follow his lead are on the wrong side of the law. Andrea Lucas‚ an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission member‚ responded to Cuban on X‚ saying that he was “dead wrong” on the law. She’s right. Race can’t be a “motivating factor—nor [even] a plus factor‚ tiebreaker or tipping point” in deciding whether to hire‚ fire‚ promote or train someone. @mcuban‚ EEOC Commissioner here. Unfortunately you’re dead wrong on black-letter Title VII law. As a general rule‚ race/sex can’t even be a “motivating factor”—nor a plus factor‚ tie-breaker‚ or tipping point. It’s important employers understand the ground rules here.— Andrea R. Lucas (@andrealucasEEOC) January 29‚ 2024 That’s as it should be. And anyone‚ such as Cuban‚ who thinks that “benign” racial or sex discrimination is lawful‚ should heed this reminder. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964‚ which governs employment practices‚ makes it unlawful to hire‚ fire‚ promote‚ demote‚ train‚ reward or for any other employment purpose treat someone differently “because of race‚ color‚ religion‚ sex or national origin.” So‚ while Cuban claims that he has “never hired anyone exclusively on race‚ gender [or] religion‚” he makes clear that “race and gender can be part of the equation” when he makes employment decisions. That’s a violation of the law. The statutory language and the many judicial decisions interpreting it make clear that race and sex cannot be any part of an employment decision. It doesn’t matter if these are just a small “plus factors‚” and it doesn’t matter what the employer’s intentions are. There’s no exemption for trendy notions of “racial justice.” This should be painfully clear after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down such practices in higher education. Yet‚ Cuban attempted to defend his practice from widespread criticism by saying‚ in effect‚ that race and sex are part of an applicant’s merit: “All of our decisions are based on hiring the best candidate.” All of our decisions are based on hiring the best candidate. Can’t say it any more often than I have— Mark Cuban (@mcuban) January 29‚ 2024 But what he misses is that the whole point of the Civil Rights Act is that race and sex are simply off-limits. You can’t discriminate on those bases by redefining “merit” to include them. Incidentally‚ this is also the exact sort of conduct that the EEOC is supposed to help prevent in employment practices. (The many problems with the expansive scope of the agency’s powers and the selective way in which it enforces its mandates are beyond the scope of this article.)  On its website‚ for example‚ the commission explains how a belief that “African American males do not convey a clean-cut image and that they lack the soft skills necessary to service customers well” would be discriminatory. That conclusion doesn’t change if you change the race or the stereotype. Cuban is a sophisticated businessman with an army of lawyers at his beck and call. He has no excuse for letting his ideology cloud his view of crystal-clear law. So‚ how does someone as rich and powerful as Cuban get held to account for defying the Civil Rights Act? The easiest way is through private lawsuits by his employees or applicants who have faced his discriminatory conduct. Alternatively‚ the Department of Justice could launch an investigation—though it’s doubtful it will under President Joe Biden. Additionally‚ every state has its own civil rights analogue‚ most of which provide for their own private rights of action or investigation by the state’s attorney general. Cuban has not only showcased his legal (and actual) ignorance for all the world to see‚ but he has also exposed his businesses to massive private‚ state and federal liability. Perhaps he’ll learn what the law requires of him from his critics online‚ but we doubt it. Like many students‚ he’ll have to pay for his education—except his expenses won’t be tuition‚ but rather‚ legal judgments‚ civil penalties or fines.    For once‚ though‚ the cost of the education will be worth it. Have an opinion about this article? To sound off‚ please email letters@DailySignal.com and we’ll consider publishing your edited remarks in our regular “We Hear You” feature. Remember to include the url or headline of the article plus your name and town and/or state. The post A Remedial Lesson for Mark Cuban in Civil Rights Law‚ ‘Diversity’ and Discrimination appeared first on The Daily Signal.

If you're tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties‚ subscribe to Reclaim The Net. As part of an attempt to curb vaping‚ bullying‚ and unruly behavior in school restrooms‚ some educational institutions in the UK are turning to new technology — sensors capable of snooping on student conversations and detecting certain keywords in speech. However‚ these measures are creating a significant rift in the debate over privacy rights. These remote‚ digital sensors that look like smoke detectors‚ can be programmed to recognize select words through machine learning algorithms. Upon hearing these‚ they send alerts to specific members of the school staff. They are being marketed by companies such as Triton and Emergency Protection‚ both of which suggest these sensors can be used not only to monitor students but also to oversee staff incidents such as bullying among colleagues. However‚ privacy advocates are pushing back. Madeleine Stone‚ a senior advocacy officer for Big Brother Watch‚ voiced her concerns by stating “secretly monitoring school bathrooms is a gross violation of children’s privacy and would make pupils and parents deeply uncomfortable‚” continuing to highlight the unlikelihood of such surveillance being lawful and posing a clear risk to student safety. In response to the privacy concerns‚ Triton defends their 3D Sense Pro Sensor‚ stating its aim is not to intrude on daily conversations‚ but to provide additional security against threats like bullying or sexual assault in these spaces. The sensor‚ which has preloaded keywords‚ allows schools to add an additional 10 custom keywords. These controversial sensors have been installed in several British schools. The post Listening Devices Are Being Installed In UK School Bathrooms appeared first on Reclaim The Net.

If you're tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties‚ subscribe to Reclaim The Net. In a recent report unearthed by the congressional committee on the weaponization of the government‚ it was found that Meedan‚ a technology non-profit funded by the federal government‚ perceives distrust in the mainstream media as a form of “misinformation.” This tech entity is bolstered by a hefty $5.7 million grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF). They conducted a presentation defining skepticism towards mainstream media as a “misinformation narrative” as evidenced by research documents from the House Judiciary Committee and the dedicated Select Subcommittee on Weaponization. The Channeling of funds by the NSF towards Meedan’s Co-Insights aims to challenge and ultimately quell the perceived rampant spread of “misinformation” rampant in minority communities. Meedan has requested an additional fund of a whopping $5 million from public money for the Co-Insights project. The team cataloged “common misinformation narratives” including “fearmongering” and the undermining of trust in mainstream media‚ as indicated by slides integrated into the House report. We obtained a copy of the report for you here. The report also makes references to “interventions” of such “misinformation.” The long-term ambition of the non-profit leans towards prompting technology platforms to generate an archive of censored content. This “misinformation” data would be accessed by researchers to facilitate the automatic suppression of specified types of speech‚ as noted by Scott Hale‚ Meedan’s Director of Research‚ in a November 2022 email correspondence. Hale envisioned a scenario where social media platforms could collate all suppressed content into a data enclave that could be accessed by researchers for cumulative analysis and to gauge the efficacy of various automated detection mechanisms. The post Government-Funded Non-Profit Maligns Distrust in Mainstream Media As “Misinformation” appeared first on Reclaim The Net.

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