Montana, South Dakota judges thwart red state legislatures

A Helena, Montana district court judge has temporarily stricken provisions described as the "most onerous parts" from SB423, a statute restricting distribution of cannabis to persons under the state's medical marijuana law while a South Dakota judge granted an injunction barring that state's oppressive new abortion restrictions.

First, the Helena Independent Record:

In an order issued late Friday, District Judge James Reynolds temporarily blocked a number of key provisions of the law from taking effect. Some of them had been conceded by Attorney General Steve Bullock in a hearing last week. In striking down these provisions, for now, Reynolds said, “By these provisions, the Legislature is attempting to make it as difficult and as inconvenient for persons eligible under state law to use medical marijuana to obtain this legally authorized product.”

The Rapid City Journal tells readers that a South Dakota judge sounds like she feels similarly about the horrifyingly restrictive abortion legislation passed in its legislature's last session:

Chief Judge Karen Schreier issued the written ruling on Thursday. Schreier in her ruling said that Planned Parenthood demonstrated that the law and its specified provisions are "likely" unconstitutional. "There is a public interest in protecting a woman's constitutional right to choose an abortion and in protecting the constitutional right to free speech," she wrote. "And the public has a clear interest in ensuring the supremacy of the United States Constitution."

NPR reported these events as this was being typed, but in reverse order.

Results of the poll, "Who extorted the Corps to ignore the obvious?" are linked here. I worded this one badly. The nine respondents who voted "Other" clearly believed that, too. Anyone want to help me ask which Republican(s) ip missed?