Hooray for Arkansas, Nebraska and now Oregon, for saying yes to Jessica's Law. Faced with a citizen's revolt, the liberal state of Oregon finally put a tough law against child predators to a vote and it is expected to be signed by Governor Kulongoski on Monday.
That makes 25 states that have or are close to having a variation of Jessica's Law. Those states are in purple on the map; that was Jessica Lunsford's favorite color. So we are halfway there. The states in gray are still flapping around, although Michigan and Pennsylvania are close to becoming purple. States in yellow are opposing Jessica's Law. So if you live in those states, please raise some hell with your state leaders.
Maine is an interesting example. A Bangor newspaper and defense attorneys are leading the charge against tough mandatory penalties for child rapists, but Governor John Baldacci wants that. And now the people may put the issue on the ballot going around the pin head politicians. That's what the folks in the great state of California did and Jessica's Law is expected to pass there in a referendum next November.
What is happening all across America is a tremendous victory for the folks and for democracy. Even the liberal Oregonian newspaper heard the people and supported Jessica's Law. We applaud the paper for doing so.
So, things are looking up for the good guys and are looking black for the bad guys — especially the predators. Soon, there will be only a few states where they can go and molest children and get sympathy, states like Massachusetts and Vermont. In fact, the ACLU in Vermont is now demanding these states stop putting the names of convicted child molesters in the public arena. As in most cases, the ACLU is aligned with the bad guys.
Finally, the states of Wyoming, Idaho, Tennessee and Montana are very troubling. Talking Points expects nonsense from the Maryland legislature, for example, which is chaotic, but those other states are surprising. We need some heroes there. But all in all this has been a great week for American kids. Jessica's Law is sweeping the country.
And that's "The Memo."
The Most Ridiculous Item of the Day
Politics is very strange, is it not? As you may know, President Bush's poll numbers are bad and getting worse. So you would think the biggest Democratic name, Hillary Clinton, would be gaining in popularity.
Not so, according to a new Rasmussen poll. It says just 26 percent of Americans would definitely vote for the senator, while 41 percent, say they will definitely not vote for her. Twenty-six percent say it all depends on who is running against Mrs. Clinton.
That 26 percent number matches Hillary's lowest report level ever. Ridiculous? You make the call.
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