What constitutes the bulwark of our own liberty and independence? It is not our frowning battlements, our bristling sea coasts, the guns of our war steamers, or the strength of our gallant and disciplined army. These are not our reliance against a resumption of tyranny in our fair land. All of them may be turned against our liberties, without making us stronger or weaker for the struggle. Our reliance is in the love of liberty which God has planted in our bosoms. Our defense is in the preservation of the spirit which prizes liberty as the heritage of all men, in all lands, every where. Destroy this spirit, and you have planted the seeds of despotism around your own doors.
Abraham Lincoln, September 11, 1858
Hattips to my co-blogger Bob Kurland and my Bride. Illinois currently the least free state:
The most restrictive states, from 41 to 51 in order, are: Michigan (Democrat Gov. Gretchen Whitmer), New York (Democrat Gov. Andrew Cuomo), New Mexico (Democrat Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham), Washington (Democrat Gov. Jay Inslee), Hawaii (Democrat Gov. David Ige), Vermont (Republican Gov. Phil Scott) , Massachusetts (Republican Gov. Charlie Baker), District of Columbia (Democrat Mayor Muriel Bowser), Rhode Island (Democrat Gov. Gina Raimondo) and Illinois (Democrat Gov. J.B. Pritzker).
Go here to read the rest.
Rockford Register-Star reported about an hour ago that Pritzker withdrew his “emergency rule” that would have purported to turn business owners into criminals for trying to feed their families. He then said being charged with a crime would be better than the other things he will do to punish the resisters. You can’t make this stuff up.
https://www.rrstar.com/news/20200520/pritzker-withdraws-emergency-order
In fairness, Kristi Noem managed the politics of covid-19 closures more adroitly than other governors. The article quotes Jill Gonzalez saying of the original survey:
Noem never mandated schools close, but, to the best of my knowledge, all of them did. She never ordered bars and restaurants closed, but many, if not most did because local authorities ordered them closed. (And, in fairness to Noem, at the local level is where that decision should have been made).
So, South Dakota, may have been open in the sense that it wasn’t locked down, but almost everybody stayed home because nearly everything was closed.
And that’s because Noem did everything short of ordering business to close and people to shelter in place.
Oh. And Evers of Wisconsin didn’t lift anything: The Wisconsin Supreme Court did. So if that Democrat had his way, Wisconsin would still be 34th instead of 2nd. So no credit to him.