"I don't trust Obama. I have read about him and he's an Arab..."The Push for Voter ID has become the cause célèbre of right-wingers around the country. With all manner of know-nothing wingnut welfare writers turning out libraries of fainting couch material.
"No ma'am, no ma'am. He's a decent family man..." - John McCain, 2008 Campaign Trail. With that exhange John McCain lost the 2008 election. Senator McCain still possessed a sense of honor and wouldn't stoop to race-baiting attacks. Mitt Romney and the Republicans of 2012, however, have no problem and are firmly engaged in Dog Whistle Race based attacks on the President.
Only as Steve Benen of the Rachel Maddow Show notes it's a solution in search of a problem. In person voting fraud is non-existent. The analysis of 2,068 reported fraud cases by News21, a Carnegie-Knight investigative reporting project, found 10 cases of alleged in-person voter impersonation since 2000.
So it happens as often as NASA lands a rover on Mars.
But, it's not really about the faux outrage of conservatives over the phantom problem of Voter Fraud. Voter ID is fraud. But, the fraud is that it serves as a useful vehicle to accomplish the true goal of conservatives; To literally steal the vote away from millions of voters.
It's about disenfranchising millions of voters because the heavy perponderance of those whose legal voting rights are being stolen from them by Right-Wingers don't vote for Republicans.
"Voter ID, which is gonna allow Governor Romney to win the state of Pennsylvania, done." - Pennsylvannia House Majority Leader Mike Turzai, Republican.But, oddly when millions of legal voters having their rights stripped away is pointed out, the conservative reaction is, 'Oh the real bigots are leftists who think blacks are too dumb to know how to get an ID'.
While this is, of course, an insulting Straw Man Argument is does illustrate several things about the right-wing lizard brain. 1) everything must come back to race and 2) they hate that black people will not vote for Republicans.
Never would conservatives argue that "Mormons" are biased unless they vote 50/50 for Romney and President Obama but because blargh people vote for Obama it's wrong.
The constant conservative refrain, 'liberals are the true racists and blacks just don't realize it because of the creation of the dependence welfare state has ensnared them and if they only listen to conservative ideas they'll self-actualize freedom' is really only to convince the lizard-brains of righties that they aren't racist. But, what it actually is, is a more insidious level of bigotry.
However, Phony Voter Fraud isn't just about minorities having their votes stolen from them; although the genesis of this push does stem from histroical efforts to disenfranchise freed Slaves.
As Vice President Joe Biden pointed out, the Republican Party wants to put "Y'all back in Chains..." It's just that "Y'all" the Republicans want to enslave includes more than just black people but every poor and middle class person in America who doesn't kow-tow and genuflect to them and their Moneyed Masters. You won't bow down to the Plutocracy? Fine, Republicans declare, we will simply remove your vote from you.
"I don't want everybody to vote. Elections are not won by a majority of the people. As a matter of fact, our leverage in the elections quite candidly goes up as the voting populace goes down." - Paul Weyrich
No voter fraud? Prove it.
ReplyDeleteit's a solution in search of a problem
Not it's not. Even if there were zero voter fraud, which yo have no way of proving, voter ID is still sure-fire way to protect the sanctity of each person's vote.
You're right Silverfiddle. I forgot all the conservatives (James O'Keefe) Republican Congressmen (Thaddeus McCotter ) committing Voter Fraud! And then there's Mitt Romney illegally voting in Massschusetts!
ReplyDeleteSo as always Government isn't the problem, Republicans in Government are the problem!
What's worse to you Silverfiddle; that a fraud vote is cast or that a legitimate voter is denied the right to vote?
Also a National ID is unconstitutional. Can you find call for an ID Card in the Federalist Papers, Declaration of Indpendence or Constitution?
Why don't we do what the 3rd world does, when you cast your ballot you dip your thumb in purple stain, it stays on for days even if washed in kerosine. No one votes twice there.
ReplyDeleteWhat this is all about is preventing as many as possible from voting once, and keeping it a single day, a work day. So the gals cleaning the hotel, or the guys riding the bus for an hour to work can't possibly find a way.
I have a "friend" who owns a shop, he jokes he will have a big rush job the week of election, offer overtime to his Mexicans to come early and work late to keep them from voting.
With this wonderful new voter ID there would be no reason then to not open it up for voting for 2 or 3 days like every other democracy in the world.
Yea, prove it. As in the GOP attorney association study just released that there were around 10 to 20 voter frauds in the last few years, NATION WIDE.
Exactly yellow fringe! It's all about the Right-Wing effort to keep people from voting once.
ReplyDeleteConservatives, like Silverfiddle and Matthew Vandum believe people voting once for liberals to be "voter fraud".
But, even though the Penn Republican Party had to admit in open court: The state signed a stipulation agreement with lawyers for the plaintiffs which acknowledges there “have been no investigations or prosecutions of in-person voter fraud in Pennsylvania; and the parties do not have direct personal knowledge of any such investigations or prosecutions in other states.” the Judge has upheld their law.
I will concede that fraudulent registration is a much bigger problem which brings its own set of issues
ReplyDeleteSilver Fiddle,
ReplyDeleteWe have had one case of voter fraund that resulted in a conviction in Indiana and that was
our former Republican elected Attorney General.
All the GOP is doing is to keep the black, elderly, and brown vote down so the bagger right can seize power in a bloodless coup.
Dismissed!
The Master Sergeant
Go dismiss yourself Sergeant Sad Sack.
ReplyDeleteDo you wait until you house has been broken into before you start locking it?
Gene- I understand the point of your post, and I admire your conviction.
ReplyDeleteBut you can not be serious with the claim of race based attacks by the GOP, when you had the Biden incident earlier in the week. I guess you were smart enough to include that in the end of the post.
Give me a break.
Patricia by restricting voting Republicans ensure they win.
ReplyDeleteThey can't win when their ideas are put into the marketplace of Democracy. Republicans can't win when they truthfully state their goals. They can only win whenfewer people vote because their policies specifically are designed to oppress and subjugate people
and JOB, I have no problem with what Vice-President Biden said, It's not a gaffe, when Joe stated Republicans want to put poor people and miniorites back into chains he's telling the strak truth of Right-Wing policies.