Bad state choices

NBC News - Texas is set to fully enact its new congressional maps as soon as this week after the Republican-controlled state House passed the mid-decade redistricting maps. The vote came days after state Democrats returned from a two-week "quorum break," but not before they took to the House floor to criticize their Republican colleagues. The aim to pad the party's majority by as many as five seats in the midterm election, urged on by Trump, has other top Republicans in states like Indiana, Missouri and Florida considering tweaks to their maps, too. And Ohio must redraw its lines by law since a 2021 map was approved without Democratic support. 8/21

BeeHive -   Oklahoma Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters has announced a new requirement for teachers seeking certification in the state if they are relocating from California or New York. Those applicants must pass a 50-question ‘America-first’ exam created in partnership with PragerU. 

Walters says the test is designed to ensure that educators entering Oklahoma classrooms share what he describes as traditional American values and are not bringing in what he sees as ‘woke indoctrination.’ The exam will reportedly cover topics including the U.S. Constitution, civic responsibility, religion in public life, and gender issues. Applicants must score 100% to pass.  8/20

 NPR -   The Republican governors of  Tennessee, Mississippi, Louisiana, Ohio, South Carolina and West Virginia have agreed to send hundreds of additional National Guard troops to Washington, D.C., for the president’s agenda. 8/18