Hans von Spakovsky’s belief that the Voting Rights Act should be applied in a “race-neutral manner” would only work if the right to vote was being denied in a race-neutral manner. I’d love to see his list of incidents in which white Americans were denied not just the right to vote, but were not allowed even to register to vote.
As for Carter Wrenn, I suppose it's great that he learned something -- that he doesn't understand the mind of the black voter. Now maybe he should learn that black voters, just like all other citizens, get to vote as they please, whether he understands them or not.
As for Carter Wrenn, I suppose it's great that he learned something -- that he doesn't understand the mind of the black voter. Now maybe he should learn that black voters, just like all other citizens, get to vote as they please, whether he understands them or not.
13
Yeah, .... "Never Happens" .... "Vast Right Wing Conspiracy!"
Yeah... Sure!
" a Tunica County, Miss., jury convicted NAACP official Lessadolla Sowers on 10 counts of fraudulently casting absentee ballots. ... Sowers received a five-year prison term for each of the 10 counts, but Circuit Court Judge Charles Webster permitted Sowers to serve those terms concurrently... ...Sowers was found guilty of voting in the names of Carrie Collins, Walter Howard, Sheena Shelton, Alberta Pickett, Draper Cotton and Eddie Davis. She was also convicted of voting in the names of four dead persons: James L. Young, Dora Price, Dorothy Harris, and David Ross. "
http://dailycaller.com/2011/07/29/mississippi-naacp-leader-sent-to-priso...
Yeah... Sure!
" a Tunica County, Miss., jury convicted NAACP official Lessadolla Sowers on 10 counts of fraudulently casting absentee ballots. ... Sowers received a five-year prison term for each of the 10 counts, but Circuit Court Judge Charles Webster permitted Sowers to serve those terms concurrently... ...Sowers was found guilty of voting in the names of Carrie Collins, Walter Howard, Sheena Shelton, Alberta Pickett, Draper Cotton and Eddie Davis. She was also convicted of voting in the names of four dead persons: James L. Young, Dora Price, Dorothy Harris, and David Ross. "
http://dailycaller.com/2011/07/29/mississippi-naacp-leader-sent-to-priso...
4
this is nonsense
Get an ID, prove you are a citizen
AND VOTE
Are you too lazy or stupid to obtain a FREE ID?
Get an ID, prove you are a citizen
AND VOTE
Are you too lazy or stupid to obtain a FREE ID?
8
This is about the right's battle to hold power by eliminating votes and discriminating against all who disagree with them. The pieces of the conservative campaign to control America are deeply ingrained in many areas of law, economics and religion. They have been waging this fight since the 1950s. The rest of the country merely needs to wake up and pay attention.
The last election cycle was an example of just how bad it has become.
The last election cycle was an example of just how bad it has become.
5
Jim Rutenberg has spent a lot of time and effort rehashing the past while the greatest voter fraud ever get no mention at all. The sitting president of the united states encouraged his political appointees at the IRS to harass, delay and deny citizens of the USA from their legal right to associate and form no-profit groups thereby suppressing the vote in a presidential election. The technique used was delay and make so hard the ability for Tea Party/conservative group to form 501 c9 trusts to form groups that most groups will give up trying to form. The IRS also targeted for audits individuals who joined, organized and gave money to conservatives groups You also had a attorney general who blindly put politics before the law in not choosing to investigate and prosecute those like a Lois Lerner. American has become like any other banana republic under O'Bama&Holder and Lois Lerner.....and this is doing a disservice to real banana republics to call them that......one of the articles use to impeach Nixon was that he thought about using the IRS against his enemies.....he did not do it but the Big O did and nothing happened per NYT.......
3
Biometric every one walked in and just scanned Tumb on Biometric device and done when I saw that in the one of the country I was amaze that how far behind we are in technology , in 2012 The People Party of Connecticut had 841 votes and almost all of the voters were good friends or Customer at the Lucky,s Mini Mart wanted me to change Voting System in Bristol CT based on Advance Technology even the voting machines which we narrowed from Australia years ago. Mehdi
An excellent article, but limited by news format and length. With the exception of Edward Blum, a wealthy man who financed a good chunk of his own crusade against minority voting rights, this article is largely about the footsoldiers and henchmen at the front line of the larger crusade, not the generals and organizations of the movement. Just as one example, the Federalist Society was crucial in the ascendence of people like Roberts and Alito to the Supreme Court, where they can pursue their thinly veiled desire for white supremacy and a wealthy and powerful aristocracy. It would be most interesting to learn who funds and organizes such groups. Then there is the entire machinery behind the Republican Party, oiled by a few hundred ultra-rich donors and supported by an intricate web of illusion-spinning 'news' media, delusional 'think' tanks, ignorant but powerful advocacy groups, and bought-off academics.
7
When I read the Roberts opinion in Shelby, I thought he said that Congress needed to update the list of states covered by Section 5, that it was out of date in terms of which states currently had the worst problems, not that Section 5 no longer served a legitimate purpose. I don't doubt the politics and agendas described in the article, but if the legal arguments are not accurately communicated, we will be fighting on terms that miss the mark, it seems to me. I think Chief Justice Roberts pointed to a real vulnerability in the Voting Rights Act. In the best of all possible worlds, the answer would be for Congress to update it. Even though that is unlikely, ignoring the way Roberts framed the issue I don't think helps further the fight on behalf of voting rights for minorities.
3
Section 5 can never be reinstated because the conditions that prompted Section 5 in the first place -- no longer exist. No. Carolina's election laws, despite all the poppycock hullabaloo of this purloined NYT writer, are more protective of minorities than election laws in liberal-leaning states like NY, which have NO early voting. There is not a single provision in the NC law that is not de rigueur of laws across the all 50 states and D.C.
"A Dream Undone" is clearly a work of fiction.....
"A Dream Undone" is clearly a work of fiction.....
1
People who don't live in the South have no idea of the contradictions and polarities that make the Voting Rights Act necessary. On the one hand, many Southern cities are great places to live: increasingly diverse, including much economic diversity among African-Americans, while continuing Southern traditions of warmth, friendliness, good cooking, etc. On the other hand, if you think the dark underbelly of white racism has disappeared, think again. A rally in favor of the rebel flag at Stone Mountain GA this weekend drew almost 1000 supporters, screaming slogans, their faces twisted with anger. Two white men were caught on videotape placing four rebel flags on the grounds of Ebenezer Baptist Church, the home church of the murdered Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Keep in mind this is just weeks after the slaughter of innocent black churchgoers by a rebel flag waving white supremacist in Charleston, at another historic black church. One of these flags was placed right under a sign that said "Black Lives Matter." That's a direct threat. http://www.ajc.com/videos/news/video-released-of-men-accused-of-placing/...
We still need the Voting Rights Act because the forces that first made it necessary are still lurking. And they're not even in the shadows.
We still need the Voting Rights Act because the forces that first made it necessary are still lurking. And they're not even in the shadows.
39
Nonsense.
The Obama presidency, along with the mainstream establishment media that created the Obama presidency unapologetically pours gasoline on racial tensions in America.
Barack Obama took office in 2009.
Every single time Mr. Obama has been caught lying to the American people (ex. Obamacare, 27 times in a row, Bowe Bergdahl serving with honor and dignity, the Benghazi You Tube video, the Tonight Show with Jay Leno lie "we do not have a domestic spy program" that Edward Snowden blasted to pieces, the red line in Syria, and most recently the Iran nuclear deal) within an hour of media coverage, the suggestion that criticism of Obama for ANY reason is part of a vast right wing racist conspiracy gets front and center news media coverage. Every single time.
The Times, CNN, MSNBC (see Al Sharpton, a frequent Obama WH VIP) and the mainstream media cabal never miss a chance to demonize White people and unfortunately for my race, exploit the color of my skin to protect Obama from accountability and advance a national narrative that Black people are perpetual victims, and White people are evil.
How do you THINK that would play out across America? When a Conservative even suggests a generalization about Black people, that individual is pilloried in the press. But when the mainstream media portrays White people as boring, mean spirited racists who hate Obama because he's Black, that narrative is given wings.
THAT is why we are more divided. THAT is why racial distrust exists.
The Obama presidency, along with the mainstream establishment media that created the Obama presidency unapologetically pours gasoline on racial tensions in America.
Barack Obama took office in 2009.
Every single time Mr. Obama has been caught lying to the American people (ex. Obamacare, 27 times in a row, Bowe Bergdahl serving with honor and dignity, the Benghazi You Tube video, the Tonight Show with Jay Leno lie "we do not have a domestic spy program" that Edward Snowden blasted to pieces, the red line in Syria, and most recently the Iran nuclear deal) within an hour of media coverage, the suggestion that criticism of Obama for ANY reason is part of a vast right wing racist conspiracy gets front and center news media coverage. Every single time.
The Times, CNN, MSNBC (see Al Sharpton, a frequent Obama WH VIP) and the mainstream media cabal never miss a chance to demonize White people and unfortunately for my race, exploit the color of my skin to protect Obama from accountability and advance a national narrative that Black people are perpetual victims, and White people are evil.
How do you THINK that would play out across America? When a Conservative even suggests a generalization about Black people, that individual is pilloried in the press. But when the mainstream media portrays White people as boring, mean spirited racists who hate Obama because he's Black, that narrative is given wings.
THAT is why we are more divided. THAT is why racial distrust exists.
1
All I can say is what I've heard for years, "the South will rise again." Unfortunately, we are seeing that prediction come true.
8
Except this time it's not conveniently located in "the South". We need more protection for voting rights in more places, not less.
It is such a shame that LBJ is more remembered by many for the Vietnam War mess than for his courageous arm-twisting in making all the civil rights legislation of his term a reality. For a president from his background, it was absolutely extraordinary. and he also was correct in his prediction that the South would end up in the Republican camp for a generation or more.
25
Voting laws should be uniform state to state and a voter ID should be a requirement.
17
Delivery of unequal protection of the law is the reason states were created.
2
Ok with uniform laws but voter ID is nonsense.
1
And voting registration and getting that ID should be as easy as getting a license for a gun in Texas.
4
I've lost interest in voting since the advent of electronic voting - with or without a "paper trail."
If you think that's silly, you have to go back all of three days to see Times articles on the hacking, by China, of our defense systems and government employee records; the percentage of Americans whose personal and banking accounts have been hacked; and the hacking of existing cars.
It used to be that you had to steal elections retail; now you can steal them wholesale. Most of the software that runs your local election machine is privately administered, and is considered proprietary information.
The concerns of this article, huge as they are, are made irrelevant by the ceding of our vote to this privatized, computerized process.
If you think that's silly, you have to go back all of three days to see Times articles on the hacking, by China, of our defense systems and government employee records; the percentage of Americans whose personal and banking accounts have been hacked; and the hacking of existing cars.
It used to be that you had to steal elections retail; now you can steal them wholesale. Most of the software that runs your local election machine is privately administered, and is considered proprietary information.
The concerns of this article, huge as they are, are made irrelevant by the ceding of our vote to this privatized, computerized process.
11
Shame on the loser Democrats who, through their political incompetence and cowardice, have allowed this outrage to happen.
6
Bob Dole: "Dole, now 92, told me earlier this summer. “I don’t know where we lost track after Abraham Lincoln.”
My sentiments, exactly.
Am sure Lincoln would not recognize the current Republican Party with all their supporters in former slave-owning states and their affection for the Confederate Battle Flag.
My sentiments, exactly.
Am sure Lincoln would not recognize the current Republican Party with all their supporters in former slave-owning states and their affection for the Confederate Battle Flag.
21
I would love to be corrected on the impression I got from watching the first majority Black districts being drawn in Georgia, but this is what I saw happening in the late 1970s and early 1980s (and I say this working the campaign that elected John Lewis as Congressman for the district representing Atlanta and much of Fulton County, working in the Julian Bond campaign, I'm a white progressive Democratic-voting Southerner who actively wanted to see full minority participation in Georgia politics):
Black elected legislators actively worked with Republican legislators to carve up the state between "safe" majority Black districts and "safe" suburban Republican ones. Now this is not to say that this didn't happen in the absence of white legislators who remained Democrats supporting and trying to help guide a different solution. But this is what happened from my viewpoint. Perhaps this was inevitable, but it also seemed like a part of the Southern Strategy to make the South "red" that I don't hear many talk about now, three decades on. That the South now has the end result achieved can't be a big surprise.
Black elected legislators actively worked with Republican legislators to carve up the state between "safe" majority Black districts and "safe" suburban Republican ones. Now this is not to say that this didn't happen in the absence of white legislators who remained Democrats supporting and trying to help guide a different solution. But this is what happened from my viewpoint. Perhaps this was inevitable, but it also seemed like a part of the Southern Strategy to make the South "red" that I don't hear many talk about now, three decades on. That the South now has the end result achieved can't be a big surprise.
9
You mention that John Roberts trained under William Rehnquist. Rehnquist is well remembered for Operation Eagle Eye, intimidating Latino-American and African-American voters in Phoenix in the 60's. It appears Roberts learned well.
11
When Blum heard about the decision, he was overjoyed. “I wept,” he said.
Oh my, that is heart breaking.
Voter Fraud?
The voter fraud that concerns me is the concerted effort by the Republican Party to prevent a large segment of CITIZENS from voting and then tossing valid votes during the counting process.
That, my friends, is voter fraud.
Shame on Roberts.
Oh my, that is heart breaking.
Voter Fraud?
The voter fraud that concerns me is the concerted effort by the Republican Party to prevent a large segment of CITIZENS from voting and then tossing valid votes during the counting process.
That, my friends, is voter fraud.
Shame on Roberts.
29
>
Powerful and leading Democrats are, or have been, asleep at the wheel for a long time as to this issue, and now the roosters have come home.
It is going to cost them in close elections, which seem to be more frequent.
Powerful and leading Democrats are, or have been, asleep at the wheel for a long time as to this issue, and now the roosters have come home.
It is going to cost them in close elections, which seem to be more frequent.
8
"Most black children will not be killed by the police. But millions of them will go to a school like Michael Brown’s: segregated, impoverished and failing." NYTimes. Extensive research into election fraud finds that it's basically statistically insignificant. Yet most comments on this article ignore these empirical studies. Racism continues in the USA and its impacts are felt across our society, including voting.
18
Maybe you better tell those Democrat teacher unions and the Democrat politicians in all those urban centers about this problem. Perhaps they have some eensy-weensy part in failing schools and keeping minority populations in line to keep voting against their best interests.
When parents are given choice in education they have to hold a lottery to choose students because that is what people want. Yet Obama shut down the highly successful and popular school choice program in D.C.- because the unions didn't like the competition. And he was beholden to unions.
When parents are given choice in education they have to hold a lottery to choose students because that is what people want. Yet Obama shut down the highly successful and popular school choice program in D.C.- because the unions didn't like the competition. And he was beholden to unions.
6
I moved from PA to Florida in 2012. They are different worlds. I also owned my own business for about 27 years and then worked in a civil service position for about 17 years. PA has a conservative, Republican dominated State House and Senate. We can all read of the high level of PA political corruption in the daily news papers. Many have been sent to prison. PA also has a penchant for hating blacks, hating Philadelphia and discriminating against women and minorities. I believed that PA was as conservative and reactionary as any state could possibly become. I was wrong. Florida is worse.
The blatant, overt, racist agenda of Florida politics is second to none. There is open hatred of blacks and minorities. If the Florida legislature could muster enough votes they would pass a bill to make it legal to shoot blacks and minorities as they approached the polls. In gated communities throughout Florida there is no hidden agenda. Blacks are not welcome. There is also a belief among Florida conservatives that blacks are responsible for their own plight. According to Republicans blacks are stupid, ignorant, unable to be educated, criminal, drug users and drug dealers. Blacks belong in prison. Or dead. The elimination of voting rights is the tip of ice-berg. There is seething, virulent hatred of minorities.
I remember Martin Luther King and the Civil Rights Act. I thought it was a beginning.
Republicans have created a party of monsters. A party of hatred and bigotry. Dismantle it.
The blatant, overt, racist agenda of Florida politics is second to none. There is open hatred of blacks and minorities. If the Florida legislature could muster enough votes they would pass a bill to make it legal to shoot blacks and minorities as they approached the polls. In gated communities throughout Florida there is no hidden agenda. Blacks are not welcome. There is also a belief among Florida conservatives that blacks are responsible for their own plight. According to Republicans blacks are stupid, ignorant, unable to be educated, criminal, drug users and drug dealers. Blacks belong in prison. Or dead. The elimination of voting rights is the tip of ice-berg. There is seething, virulent hatred of minorities.
I remember Martin Luther King and the Civil Rights Act. I thought it was a beginning.
Republicans have created a party of monsters. A party of hatred and bigotry. Dismantle it.
31
Right wing people who despise liberty. It's not just the Voting Rights Act, it's Roe v. Wade - they have no conscience in keeping everyone but them out of power. Marriage equality will be a target, too. The fight is never won; we must be vigilant and we must vote and seek office and fund those on our side, constantly. It's not won just because the Supreme Court says so. Don't let your guard down.
18
We need an Act Concerning On a prohibition on lobbyists and their families and friends from illegal favors, it’s extremely hard for a new ideology or political party to survive the republican and democratic run IRS, SEEC, FEC and our towns and cities to bring change , America is suffering from moral and ethical issues because of Money God has become more powerful then knowledge.
5
The 15th Amendment did not provide black male suffrage. Rather it said a state could not deny the vote based on "race, color, or previous condition of servitude." This point may appear picky, but notice that this allows states to deny the vote based on other things, which many in the South promptly did. Clearly the intent of the those who framed the 15th Amendment was to grant black men the vote. Recall though that many ex Unionists, and even many who opposed slavery, did not see blacks as equals or entitled to the vote. These forces in Congress and elsewhere led to the Amendment's specificity and therefore limited, practical impact. The very high hurdle to get an amendment through the House and Senate and then ratified by the states proved difficult.
5
In times of such mobility, having registering voters get a state ID seems asking very little. It would require proof of citizenship and living at a known address for a reasonable statutory period. People bent with age and known to have been in a community for decades should be allowed other proof (school records) of belonging in the community than a birth certificate.
It involves extra cost, yes. Its biggest drawback is that some voting officials will make registration and getting a state ID anything but easy for American-born minorities.
It involves extra cost, yes. Its biggest drawback is that some voting officials will make registration and getting a state ID anything but easy for American-born minorities.
6
As a liberal I see no problem with voter ID. I have to show my ID every time I buy beer at the supermarket for goodness sake.
8
Frank:
Most people recognize an ID is a routine part of our lives because the integrity of the processes is important. People have to show ID because it's too easy to pose as someone who is ineligible.
It' surprising how little respect the democrats have for Americans. They believe African-Americans cannot even get hold of an ID.
Most people recognize an ID is a routine part of our lives because the integrity of the processes is important. People have to show ID because it's too easy to pose as someone who is ineligible.
It' surprising how little respect the democrats have for Americans. They believe African-Americans cannot even get hold of an ID.
1
.
I'm going to give a big shout-out to Henry Frye and the efforts he has made over the years to the cause of Democracy.
If you check your history books, you will see that democratically run countries have been few and far between. For Western cultures, the Golden Age of Greece was the short time from 500 to 300 BC or so. The great Roman era started out as a democracy but quickly morphed into Emperors with the rise of Julius Caesar. Once Rome fell, centuries of Dark Ages was then the lot in life for almost all. Finally, the Renaissance and Enlightenment brought back a culture that valued human Dignity, which eventually bloomed with the Birth of the United States.
The point is that Democracy has been shown to be fragile and Tyranny as a too typical end. Citizens need to keep their wits about them and constantly stand up for their Rights. They need to constantly elect Representatives who will enforce conditions that value each and every Person.
I'm going to give a big shout-out to Henry Frye and the efforts he has made over the years to the cause of Democracy.
If you check your history books, you will see that democratically run countries have been few and far between. For Western cultures, the Golden Age of Greece was the short time from 500 to 300 BC or so. The great Roman era started out as a democracy but quickly morphed into Emperors with the rise of Julius Caesar. Once Rome fell, centuries of Dark Ages was then the lot in life for almost all. Finally, the Renaissance and Enlightenment brought back a culture that valued human Dignity, which eventually bloomed with the Birth of the United States.
The point is that Democracy has been shown to be fragile and Tyranny as a too typical end. Citizens need to keep their wits about them and constantly stand up for their Rights. They need to constantly elect Representatives who will enforce conditions that value each and every Person.
20
NYT you have not investigated the true power of Art Pope. His family for years has influenced the Governors of NC and now that Dad is dead Art is the powerhouse of money that runs the State.One brother who had a heart tried to control him but he died young and now all the money and power is Art's. This is a man who grew up having dinner with the Governors of NC. Its all about money and race.
19
A review of data from the Cooperative Congressional Election Study indicates that 6.8 percent of non-citizens cast a ballot in the 2008 election and 2.2 percent in 2010. The survey showed 14 percent of non-citizens reporting that they were registered to vote. Without this fraudulent vote the outcome of that election would likely have been different, especially in the Senate.
Fraudulent voting never happens? Squeeze your eyes tightly shut, put your fingers in your ears, ignore the data, and just keep singing that chorus so you can believe.
Fraudulent voting never happens? Squeeze your eyes tightly shut, put your fingers in your ears, ignore the data, and just keep singing that chorus so you can believe.
12
Sorry K, You must do better than a flawed and biased study.
A number of academics and commentators have already expressed skepticism about the paper's assumptions and conclusions, though. In a series of tweets, New York Times columnist Nate Cohn focused his criticism on Richman et al's use of Cooperative Congressional Election Study data to make inferences about the non-citizen voting population. That critique has some merit, too. The 2008 and 2010 CCES surveyed large opt-in Internet samples constructed by the polling firm YouGov to be nationally representative of the adult citizen population. Consequently, the assumption that non-citizens, who volunteered to take online surveys administered in English about American politics, would somehow be representative of the entire non-citizen population seems tenuous at best. [The Washington Post].
There are, as you must know, many more holes.
But forget that, K. Just concentrate of providing a way for ALL CITIZENS to vote. That bothers you, doesn't it? (Sazarac chuckled).
A number of academics and commentators have already expressed skepticism about the paper's assumptions and conclusions, though. In a series of tweets, New York Times columnist Nate Cohn focused his criticism on Richman et al's use of Cooperative Congressional Election Study data to make inferences about the non-citizen voting population. That critique has some merit, too. The 2008 and 2010 CCES surveyed large opt-in Internet samples constructed by the polling firm YouGov to be nationally representative of the adult citizen population. Consequently, the assumption that non-citizens, who volunteered to take online surveys administered in English about American politics, would somehow be representative of the entire non-citizen population seems tenuous at best. [The Washington Post].
There are, as you must know, many more holes.
But forget that, K. Just concentrate of providing a way for ALL CITIZENS to vote. That bothers you, doesn't it? (Sazarac chuckled).
7
Based on the criticism of the methodology and the reputable reviews of the questionable statistics collected by the Cooperative Congressional Election Study published widely in the Fall of 2014, KBronson may be following his/her own advice to "Squeeze your eyes tightly shut, put your fingers in your ears, ignore the data, and just keep singing that chorus so you can believe."
7
Pray tell ...who is the Cooperative Congressional Election Study...Their study has been called highly Questionable and based on a tiny number of respondents
3
Pardon my disdain, but the sad fact is that for the most part, voting is about as meaningful in the US as it is in North Korea. On most issues facing our nation, including every single one that profoundly affects our own future and that of the planet, the two major parties in the US are firmly in the grasp of the corporate interests that wish to shape that future for their own short term profits. In the last election, fewer than 1% of the voters chose to vote against that system, implying that the corporations have won, and the vast majority of US voters are hopelessly deluded.
If you are black, kindly tell me what President Obama has done during his administration to counter racism. From my perspective, all I can see is a continuation of the militarization of the police and the erosion of the rights of all Americans, regardless of ethnicity. He is no different from his predecessor, and in fact, it is arguably true that there has been essentially no difference among US presidents since Ronald Reagan ousted Jimmy Carter. Each has taken up where his predecessor left off, continuing the systematic destruction of jobs and rights in this country, and furthering the commitment to endless war.
If you are black, kindly tell me what President Obama has done during his administration to counter racism. From my perspective, all I can see is a continuation of the militarization of the police and the erosion of the rights of all Americans, regardless of ethnicity. He is no different from his predecessor, and in fact, it is arguably true that there has been essentially no difference among US presidents since Ronald Reagan ousted Jimmy Carter. Each has taken up where his predecessor left off, continuing the systematic destruction of jobs and rights in this country, and furthering the commitment to endless war.
9
No, not gonna pardon your disdain.
This article is about Voting. Why would one group seek to maximize the number of low information voters and the marginally literate? Only if they were supporting demagoguery would that make sense.
This article is about Voting. Why would one group seek to maximize the number of low information voters and the marginally literate? Only if they were supporting demagoguery would that make sense.
7
Do you seriously believe the republicans want to decrease the prison populations convicted of victimless crimes? The cost of incarcerating so many people is not prohibitive because the tax payer is a sucker for law and order propaganda. More privatization of prisons and more laws are in the stream. The psychopaths understand what the public wants. The biggest fear is legalization of marijuana and not the bankers. Forget 2008 and think someone inhaled 40 years ago and is a potential criminal. The democrats are just another façade of the same game.
3
Victimless crimes? Where do you think tax dollars come from? The heavens?
It is estimated that New York State loses $1.4 billion tax dollars each year from the illegal sale of untaxed cigarettes. This is why NYC implemented that crackdown, which was surreptitiously hidden from the public after Mr. Garner was killed.
It is estimated that New York State loses $1.4 billion tax dollars each year from the illegal sale of untaxed cigarettes. This is why NYC implemented that crackdown, which was surreptitiously hidden from the public after Mr. Garner was killed.
8
Mr. Rutenberg, thank you so much for this wonderfully thorough and accurate series. Because information overloads us, the American collective memory is much shorter than it used to be. The repository of the historical record rests with those of us who were alive when the VRA was enacted and who know of the ugly record of voter suppression.
I hope your series takes the respectable sheen off Republicans who are interfering with the franchise, and expose their disenfranchisement plan for what it is. Thank you again.
I hope your series takes the respectable sheen off Republicans who are interfering with the franchise, and expose their disenfranchisement plan for what it is. Thank you again.
15
Yes, HISTORY was well-reviewed. I suspect that those who keep abreast of current events and read moderately well are registered to vote. It is only the ignorant and illiterate who are being wooed by the Democrat party. Now why would that be?
1
Jihadists chant "death to America." They needn't worry. We're killing ourselves.
In today's Times there are articles on: 1. A few hundred wealthy families and their corporations (thank you Citizens United) are providing most of the funding for political campaigns through their Super Pacs (yesterday, the Republicans were toadying to and bowing before the Koch Brothers' in auditions for money). 2. the 1965 Voting Rights Act is being dismantled (so that the lower economic classes and racial minorities are burdened in voting). 3. A psychologist advocates that police "shoot first and ask questions later" (so we will have a terrorizing police state).
These trends put political power in the hands of the economic elites, backed by the power of the police. This is, by definition, the creation of a police state for the benefit of the plutocrats (wealthy industrialists) with the exclusion and subjugation of the middle and lower economic classes, as well as ethnic and racial minorities.
This is the beginning of the death of America. We're doing it to ourselves.
The jihadists can all take the day off. They didn't win; we beat ourselves.
In today's Times there are articles on: 1. A few hundred wealthy families and their corporations (thank you Citizens United) are providing most of the funding for political campaigns through their Super Pacs (yesterday, the Republicans were toadying to and bowing before the Koch Brothers' in auditions for money). 2. the 1965 Voting Rights Act is being dismantled (so that the lower economic classes and racial minorities are burdened in voting). 3. A psychologist advocates that police "shoot first and ask questions later" (so we will have a terrorizing police state).
These trends put political power in the hands of the economic elites, backed by the power of the police. This is, by definition, the creation of a police state for the benefit of the plutocrats (wealthy industrialists) with the exclusion and subjugation of the middle and lower economic classes, as well as ethnic and racial minorities.
This is the beginning of the death of America. We're doing it to ourselves.
The jihadists can all take the day off. They didn't win; we beat ourselves.
21
Racial discrimination in voting is not the biggest problem of our electoral system. Electoral College is much more problematic.
American electoral system is in frozen conditions for nearly 200 years. Despite some modifications (the right to vote for women and African Americans, the abolition of property qualifications), the main electoral mechanisms were not changed, indicating the archaic, backwardness and the imperfection of the elections.
American Electoral College is a relic of the old voting system, when most people were not allowed to participate in the national elections of the President of the United States. The College has been kept under the pretext of preserving the traditions transmitted founding fathers of the nation, as well as a guarantee that the President is not only the representative of the US population but also the delegate of the states.
American electoral system is in frozen conditions for nearly 200 years. Despite some modifications (the right to vote for women and African Americans, the abolition of property qualifications), the main electoral mechanisms were not changed, indicating the archaic, backwardness and the imperfection of the elections.
American Electoral College is a relic of the old voting system, when most people were not allowed to participate in the national elections of the President of the United States. The College has been kept under the pretext of preserving the traditions transmitted founding fathers of the nation, as well as a guarantee that the President is not only the representative of the US population but also the delegate of the states.
1
Since the Federal Government is a creature of the States it is not mere symbolism that maintains the Electoral College. Just as the Constitution was warped by ending the election of US Senators by their State governments, so too would the demise of the College erode the sense of our nation being one of united states. (If it could bone further eroded, that is.)
1
I am weary of constantly hearing about the right to vote and would like some attention paid to whether or not people are qualified to vote. A large proportion of the populace knows nothing. They don't know elementary principles of economics and so they are hoodwinked by every huckster peddling snake oil for our financial woes. They did not know that Iraq and Iran had hostile relations, and that one of the risks of demolishing Iraq was a resurgent Iran, and so they were more apt to vote for Bush IN 2004. One poll found that forty percent of high school juniors do not know what century our Civil War was fought in. When the people consist of ignoramuses, whose idea of cultural enrichment is eating rich caloric dinners of the Quisines of different countries, I question the virtue of Democracy.
5
Even intelligent voters make mistakes. Obama had zero experience and a gift for stunning rhetoric. Doubts about his competence were ignored, even fought vociferously, but now have been proven to have been completely justified.
8
" I question the virtue of Democracy."
As did the founders who saw Democracy as mob rule and easily influenced by demagogues. Voting should be a deliberative process by an informed electorate not passionate disorder.
As did the founders who saw Democracy as mob rule and easily influenced by demagogues. Voting should be a deliberative process by an informed electorate not passionate disorder.
I live in a pretty conservative part of Georgia (Newt Gingrich's former district). No one that I know wants to deprive legitimate voters of their rights to vote.
From my perspective this is all about preventing election fraud. Dead people voting. Non citizens voting. People voting multiple times.
We need to draw a reasonable balance between not making it hard to vote and not letting people who have no right to vote to defraud the system.
For example, it is completely reasonable to expect voters to register to vote with valid ID's before the election in order to be allowed to vote. No one should be allowed to show up on election day with no credentials proving that they are valid citizens and be allowed to cast a ballot.
From my perspective this is all about preventing election fraud. Dead people voting. Non citizens voting. People voting multiple times.
We need to draw a reasonable balance between not making it hard to vote and not letting people who have no right to vote to defraud the system.
For example, it is completely reasonable to expect voters to register to vote with valid ID's before the election in order to be allowed to vote. No one should be allowed to show up on election day with no credentials proving that they are valid citizens and be allowed to cast a ballot.
7
Agree. But why not make it hard to vote? Why should the least informed be encouraged to vote?
In fact why should non-taxpayers have any say in the distribution of public money, which is 99% of what politics is all about?
In fact why should non-taxpayers have any say in the distribution of public money, which is 99% of what politics is all about?
If you really want to end voter fraud, then you will support efforts to end absentee ballots. THAT is where most fraud occurs. Like the article says, in person voter fraud is minimal, certainly not enough to change outcomes. But absentee ballots provide easy and numerous ways to cheat the system.
Republicans, however, do not want to end absentee balloting. Seems like a lot of the elderly, a big portion of their base, like to vote this way.
See the problem? Republicans are not trying to go after real voter fraud, if they were they would tackle the problems of absentee balloting. They are really just trying to disenfranchise people that don't usually vote for them.
Please don't fall for their lies.
Republicans, however, do not want to end absentee balloting. Seems like a lot of the elderly, a big portion of their base, like to vote this way.
See the problem? Republicans are not trying to go after real voter fraud, if they were they would tackle the problems of absentee balloting. They are really just trying to disenfranchise people that don't usually vote for them.
Please don't fall for their lies.
There is no reason a voter can not prove their id when asked. If you need id to get on a plane, get medical care, get into a govt office, get a passport, then you should need id to vote. Period.
7
African Americans and other minorities live in a racist society. I am white, privileged and wealthy, and I see it, and feel it. Every single non-minority'American needs to acknowledge this fact and makes a conscious effort to be aware of how our history effects our behaviors. Damn any legislation that tries to use state's rights or other legalese to turn back the right to vote, to be educated, to earn a living wage, et al. Call out any politician or PAC that says differently. Call out Fox News when it lies in an effort to foment racism simply because it boosts their viewership, which is made up of largely angry older white men, who want scapegoats for the effects of global capitalism.
8
It is really simple. It should require some minimal effort to vote. Only those who wish to enroll ciphers who will vote for the demagogue du jour would make it as easy as possible to vote.
What IS wrong with a fair literacy, and civics test? In this day and age a uniform test can be given to ALL comers regardless of race. Why shouldn't voting be restricted to educated adults?
Why is it the same folks who also want to lower the age to 16? The more easily manipulated the better?
What IS wrong with a fair literacy, and civics test? In this day and age a uniform test can be given to ALL comers regardless of race. Why shouldn't voting be restricted to educated adults?
Why is it the same folks who also want to lower the age to 16? The more easily manipulated the better?
1
Just coming up for air here.
I'm starting on Section-2 ... once I catch my breath.
Surprised the Forestry-Service isn't protesting.
I'm starting on Section-2 ... once I catch my breath.
Surprised the Forestry-Service isn't protesting.
2
A list of states with NO early voting includes: CT, Delaware, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Washington. Blue states all. Are they trying to suppress the Black vote too?
9
Ohio Governor John Kasich had this to say to Hillary Clinton, when she suddenly become an advocate for early voting:
"If she wants to sue somebody, let her sue New York, In Ohio, we’ve got, like, 27 days of early voting, 27 days, a couple hundred hours. And In New York . . . the only voting that occurs is on Election Day. . . . And she’s going to sue my state? . . . Why don’t you take care of business at home before you run around the country using these demagogic statements that we don’t want people to vote."
*****
* "Hillary’s Divisive, Reckless Rhetoric on Voting Rights", National Review, 6/7/15
http://www.nationalreview.com/article/419432/hillarys-divisive-reckless-...
"If she wants to sue somebody, let her sue New York, In Ohio, we’ve got, like, 27 days of early voting, 27 days, a couple hundred hours. And In New York . . . the only voting that occurs is on Election Day. . . . And she’s going to sue my state? . . . Why don’t you take care of business at home before you run around the country using these demagogic statements that we don’t want people to vote."
*****
* "Hillary’s Divisive, Reckless Rhetoric on Voting Rights", National Review, 6/7/15
http://www.nationalreview.com/article/419432/hillarys-divisive-reckless-...
4
Oregon has mail in ballots so I question when you consider early as ballots are mailed out two weeks before the election.
1
False false false Cas. Washington and Oregon are 100% vote-by-mail states and voting begins weeks before election day. Please check your facts before you make your claims. I just voted in an upcoming Primary and sent my ballot in at least 3 weeks before Voting Day. And yes, the efforts to curb early voting, easing registration, etc. are 100% by Republican officials so it is pretty obvious there is politics involved in their efforts. They ARE trying to suppress the Black vote, the Latino vote, the urban vote. Turn off Fox News.
1
The question should be, "Why should you NOT have to prove who you are when casting a ballot?" Some have argued that Voter ID laws disenfranchise the poor, but how is that possible when positive identification is required to obtain government benefits, such as food stamps? The question then becomes, "Whose anonymity is it that the Democrats are protecting, and why?"
11
The American way, if you cannot win cheat.
4
Between 2000 and 2010, more than a billion votes were cast in all federal, state, and local elections combined. 10 people were prosecuted and convicted of in person voter impersonation -- voting fraud.
Based upon the experience of a decade, in the 2016 presidential election 3 people may vote, in person, illegally.
To protect our country from those 3 illegal votes, the Republican Party nationwide, and in the individual states, says we must inconvenience more than 30,000,000 people. If the Republican Party was as concerned about every person's health as the Party is concerned about those 3 votes, we would have universal single payer health care for every individual in the USA -- far, far more than the Affordable Care Act provides.
Based upon the experience of a decade, in the 2016 presidential election 3 people may vote, in person, illegally.
To protect our country from those 3 illegal votes, the Republican Party nationwide, and in the individual states, says we must inconvenience more than 30,000,000 people. If the Republican Party was as concerned about every person's health as the Party is concerned about those 3 votes, we would have universal single payer health care for every individual in the USA -- far, far more than the Affordable Care Act provides.
9
This statement captures the essence of this article perfectly:
"The Times is singing from the Democratic Party hymnal heading into 2016 as Hillary Clinton attempts to scare African-American voters who are somewhat apathetic about her candidacy into turning out in the same numbers they did for Barack Obama."
******
* "For 2016 Dems Need a Mythical War on Voting Rights", Commentary,
https://www.commentarymagazine.com/2015/07/31/mythical-war-on-voting-rig...
"The Times is singing from the Democratic Party hymnal heading into 2016 as Hillary Clinton attempts to scare African-American voters who are somewhat apathetic about her candidacy into turning out in the same numbers they did for Barack Obama."
******
* "For 2016 Dems Need a Mythical War on Voting Rights", Commentary,
https://www.commentarymagazine.com/2015/07/31/mythical-war-on-voting-rig...
12
"I hold it that a little rebellion now and then is a good thing, and as necessary in the political world as storms in the physical."
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson
8
So what do you call it when year after year the Black voter participation rate increases to the point where it surpasses white voter participation?
Well, if you're Jim Ruttenberger it's an evil conspiracy to deny the vote to minority groups.
BTW, since when are state issued ID cards only for the very wealthy and privileged in our society? Does anyone really think that the liberals who live in plush gated communities gather around and admire each others ID cards while they are sipping their fine wine, cigars, and sumptuous feasts?
"Why governor, you really have a fine and priceless ID card there. I pity the poor unwashed who cannot possibly obtain a driver's license."
Is that what really happens?
Well, if you're Jim Ruttenberger it's an evil conspiracy to deny the vote to minority groups.
BTW, since when are state issued ID cards only for the very wealthy and privileged in our society? Does anyone really think that the liberals who live in plush gated communities gather around and admire each others ID cards while they are sipping their fine wine, cigars, and sumptuous feasts?
"Why governor, you really have a fine and priceless ID card there. I pity the poor unwashed who cannot possibly obtain a driver's license."
Is that what really happens?
11
It took 60 bucks, original documents, and the better part of a day for my daughter to get a state ID. That was OK, because she had 60 bucks, a day, a certified copy of her BC, and me to cart her around. Not everyone has a car, can get time off work at the right time, or a Mom who has kept up with the necessary documents. Our sorry excuse for Public transportation is particularly bad. When Pennsylvania passed its' original Voter ID law, my husbands Federal ID wouldn't have been accepted. It's good enough to get him in the Pentagon, but not a voting booth in Philly. Thank Heavens that one has been changed a little.
Contrary to your entertaining little rant, Robert, although priceless, ID's are not gold-plated. But they're not easy. And they're not Free. And they're not guaranteed. Unlike the Right to Vote.
Contrary to your entertaining little rant, Robert, although priceless, ID's are not gold-plated. But they're not easy. And they're not Free. And they're not guaranteed. Unlike the Right to Vote.
16
No, but it's a fine fantasy.
1
"So what do you call it when year after year the Black voter participation rate increases to the point where it surpasses white voter participation?"
I call it good for them, since they are fighting a racist headwind every step of the way. It is also hilarious when conservatives attempt to satirize the left as imagining there are no Democrats with money. Sure, we are all just shocked to "learn" that from the likes of John T.
BTW, is there something alarming to John T about some constituency surpassing whites in voter participation?
I call it good for them, since they are fighting a racist headwind every step of the way. It is also hilarious when conservatives attempt to satirize the left as imagining there are no Democrats with money. Sure, we are all just shocked to "learn" that from the likes of John T.
BTW, is there something alarming to John T about some constituency surpassing whites in voter participation?
4
If picture ID suppresses a citizen's right to vote, it surely suppresses a citizen's right to bear arms. Can't have it both ways.
15
I don't want it both ways. I would like nothing better than to see the right to bear arms repealed. Let's start two campaigns - one to repeal the second amendment, and one to create a new amendment forbidding citizens to vote. The direction that goes will tell us what kind of a people we really are.
1
I find it hypocritical and dishonest for the party who used the IRS to execute the largest and most successful voter suppression campaign in decades to keep pushing this lie filled, race baiting agenda. Black voting rates are at or above white rates in much of the Old South, like Affirmative Action, its day has passed.
15
The democrats' "War on [fill-in-the-blank]" is a mainstay of their campaigns. Consider it political "market segmentation" by a party that has sliced and diced voters into identity groups.
If you want to know whose votes the Democratic Party is most concerned about, just look at the identity group on which they claim a "War" has been declared. BTW, the "War on Women" meme has lost its effectiveness. Millennials weren't buying it.
If you want to know whose votes the Democratic Party is most concerned about, just look at the identity group on which they claim a "War" has been declared. BTW, the "War on Women" meme has lost its effectiveness. Millennials weren't buying it.
3
Wow. I am on tenterhooks to learn how the Republicans used the IRS to further their voter suppression efforts.
3
tony zito:
You and millions of Americans still waiting for a full accounting from the IRS, which has admitted to both destroying relevant records and not even looking for them.
You and millions of Americans still waiting for a full accounting from the IRS, which has admitted to both destroying relevant records and not even looking for them.
6
It's 2015, not 1965. The Voting Rights Act accomplished a great deal, so much that it's no longer needed.
Raise a glass and move on.
Raise a glass and move on.
12
I remember 1980's conservatism has a similar theory. "It's not 1980, not 1915. Unions have accomplished their goals. Let's move on. " Tell that to a couple holding down four jobs with no overtime pay, on demand scheduling, under the fiction that they are independent contractors with no contributions to SS or unemployment compensation. Next up: an hourly rate you can find out when you get your check, if you get your check. Take it or leave it.
6
I agree we should move on, but in what direction. We seem to be moving backwards at an ever increasing rate.
1
The majority of Blacks and 71% of Latinos, 70% of Americans and 55% of Democrats support vote ID's.
13
But, the Democratic party views them as a threat, you see. It's difficult to know how many elections have been swung or stolen by voter fraud since we only have the numbers for people who were caught.
3
Your birth certificate or naturalization papers should be your voter registration, nothing else.
1
It is tough enough to get registered voters to vote, and tell me why someone would bother risking getting caught to vote for the person going to loose to swing it in his favor.
Unless and until black African Americans are always treated as though they are divinely naturally created equal with certain unalienable rights including life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness their status as persons under the American Constitution will still be a dream. And their dream has still not been achieved. Simply because they do not have the right to vote in our limited separate powered democratic republic.
By nefarious means America denies the lingering impact on the present of the structures put in place in the American past. Particularly when that past exists in the present. Shelby County v. Holder ignores the wisdom and will of the people and their elected officials. Just like Dred Scott and Plessy it perpetuates America's original white supremacist American sin. Form over substance and common sense. The law is racial colored gender ethnic sectarian educational American history plus arithmetic. What is legal has nothing to do with justice, morality, logic or objective reason.
By nefarious means America denies the lingering impact on the present of the structures put in place in the American past. Particularly when that past exists in the present. Shelby County v. Holder ignores the wisdom and will of the people and their elected officials. Just like Dred Scott and Plessy it perpetuates America's original white supremacist American sin. Form over substance and common sense. The law is racial colored gender ethnic sectarian educational American history plus arithmetic. What is legal has nothing to do with justice, morality, logic or objective reason.
6
The principle of literacy tests is perfectly sound--people who can't read have only limited ways to the positions of the candidates, the content of referenda, or much of the way the Constitution would have the country run. The ignorant are easily deceived and easily manipulated for political ends.
Someone once observed, "Being adequately informed is a democratic duty, just as the vote is a democratic right. A misinformed electorate, voting without knowledge, is not a true democracy." Thomas Jefferson apparently didn't actually say "An educated citizenry is a vital requisite for our survival as a free people," but the principle is nonetheless true. And, for the most part, no one can be "adequately informed" or educated who can't read.
Opposing literacy tests because they were once abused is ridiculous.
Someone once observed, "Being adequately informed is a democratic duty, just as the vote is a democratic right. A misinformed electorate, voting without knowledge, is not a true democracy." Thomas Jefferson apparently didn't actually say "An educated citizenry is a vital requisite for our survival as a free people," but the principle is nonetheless true. And, for the most part, no one can be "adequately informed" or educated who can't read.
Opposing literacy tests because they were once abused is ridiculous.
7
Agreed. But, it would be a sad day for Jonathan Gruber, who relies on "the stupidity of the American voter" to push his leftist agenda. Note to self: send Gruber condolence card.
3
By your logic, the poorly educated GOP viewers of Fox News who by a margin of 60% believed the Neo-Con propaganda that Saddam was behind 9/11 should be disenfranchised.
5
Here's a better test: Anyone who watches Fox cable news for more than one hour a day, can't vote. After all, I consider those people ignorant.
The notion that any elite can determine who is too ignorant to vote - now that's what's ridiculous.
The notion that any elite can determine who is too ignorant to vote - now that's what's ridiculous.
8
The Irish orator John Philpot Curran said it best: "It is the common fate of the indolent to see their rights become a prey to the active. The condition upon which God hath given liberty to man is eternal vigilance."
In more familiar terms, "The price of freedom is eternal vigilance."
Be vigilant! Take action!
In more familiar terms, "The price of freedom is eternal vigilance."
Be vigilant! Take action!
2
Section 2 of the 14th Amendment specifically grants a fundamental right to vote to minorities, women, seniors and youths, including students. The language of the Section bars any state action which deni[es] or, in any way abridge[s} such fundamental right to vote.
The penalties for Section 2 violations are spelled out in the Section and requires that states which deny or in any way abridge the fundamental right to vote of any protected class members shall be stripped of US House seats and Electors in proportion to the numbers of disenfranchised voters. The stripped away US House seats and Electors would then be allocated using Census numbers to states which do not break the law and violate voters' rights.
Voter suppression efforts are totally a Republican scheme and only Republican controlled states would lose US House seats and Electors. Seats would then go to states which do not violate voters' rights, chiefly Democratic voting states. In NC and PA, GOP officals have admitted the race based rationale for the chanhges in voting ;laws and pactices.
Suits under Section 2 of the 14th Amendment could have the salutary effect of negating the massive gerrymandering orgy of the GOP after the 2010 Census and make the US House far more attainable for Democrats now and in the future as any new US House district maps would have to be drawn with due respect for the full representation and participation of minorities, women, seniors and youths, including students.
The penalties for Section 2 violations are spelled out in the Section and requires that states which deny or in any way abridge the fundamental right to vote of any protected class members shall be stripped of US House seats and Electors in proportion to the numbers of disenfranchised voters. The stripped away US House seats and Electors would then be allocated using Census numbers to states which do not break the law and violate voters' rights.
Voter suppression efforts are totally a Republican scheme and only Republican controlled states would lose US House seats and Electors. Seats would then go to states which do not violate voters' rights, chiefly Democratic voting states. In NC and PA, GOP officals have admitted the race based rationale for the chanhges in voting ;laws and pactices.
Suits under Section 2 of the 14th Amendment could have the salutary effect of negating the massive gerrymandering orgy of the GOP after the 2010 Census and make the US House far more attainable for Democrats now and in the future as any new US House district maps would have to be drawn with due respect for the full representation and participation of minorities, women, seniors and youths, including students.
6
Certainly you do not understand how the seats in Congress are allocated. States do not lose or gain seats according to voting or redistricting patterns, bur rather according to changes in their population. For a state to lose US House seats and Electors, it would have to lose population in comparison to other states.
1
The Dems do not push back too hard because they use many of the same tactics. Thanks for explaining this section of the constitution.
Thank you to Mr. Rutenberg and the Times Magazine for undertaking this project. We all should be very suspicious of anyone who wants to restrict anyone's ability to vote.
9
In today's world those most interested in preventing citizens from voting are republicans! That would be the GOP here in the USA. I hope I have made it clear enough for even Rush L. and FOX " news" to
understand.
To call yourself an American and work so very hard to prevent a legitimate process is worthy of the hell these same people want to procure. I feel shame for having once voted for republicans; it won't happen again.
understand.
To call yourself an American and work so very hard to prevent a legitimate process is worthy of the hell these same people want to procure. I feel shame for having once voted for republicans; it won't happen again.
8
The poor who cannot offord to get an ID or birth certificates in order to register to vote will be most affected. Where are the wealthy political donors when they are needed most? They are too busy buying political influences instead of doing
fsomethig to preserve democracy.
fsomethig to preserve democracy.
11
Every single state which requires a picture ID to vote will take an affidavit of hardship in lieu of payment. Every one. Voting is a right and privilege of citizenship. If you cannot perform this minimum requirement, perhaps you are too lazy to vote as well. I live in FL, which requires an ID to vote, and buy tobacco and alcohol if you appear to be under 40. It's required to receive any state benefits. There are multiple Programs administered at the county level to help those who are elderly or infirm obtain IDs. Over 90 percent of the DMV offices have bus stops within 100 feet. No one is infringing on anyone's voting ability. Another tidbit left out in the article: voter turnout was higher on a per capita basis in states requiring ID than those not requiring it. Voter ID laws are a cost effective and in-burdensome way to combat fraud. It's that simple.
3
Weird - this whole idea bout ID impeding the voting process makes no sense. If they have no Photo ID - the can not
1. Cash a check
2. Buy cold remedies in NYC and other jurisdictions
3. Can not fly
4. Can not take Amtrak
5. Enter the NYT office building (or most office buildings in NYC)
So this lack of ID drama is contrived. There are more basic issues impeding a persons freedoms (like buying a cold remedy in NYC). Try to get into the government buildings in DC without an ID and its not happening.
1. Cash a check
2. Buy cold remedies in NYC and other jurisdictions
3. Can not fly
4. Can not take Amtrak
5. Enter the NYT office building (or most office buildings in NYC)
So this lack of ID drama is contrived. There are more basic issues impeding a persons freedoms (like buying a cold remedy in NYC). Try to get into the government buildings in DC without an ID and its not happening.
3
How do the poor get welfare and food stamps without ID? How come the poor in Mexico can? You can't vote in Mexico without a photo ID with your thumb print on it.
5
Several years ago, I was challenged at the polls for ID. In Morristown, New Jersey. By that time, I had voted in New Jersey for over a quarter of a century, had never been challenged for ID and didn't think it even legal.
The polling place was the local school two blocks from my home.
The poll worker who challenged me was an Orthodox Jew. Most of the other poll workers were black. Reverse discrimination? I don't think so. Power happy adult with no actual full time employment? Likely.
With little control over myself I unleashed a tirade that I cannot write here. I was allowed to vote. My words on the way out the door were stronger then my words on the way into the booth.
I should have never been challenged for ID - and I will never forget how I felt.
I doubt a black guy in the south in 1960 could have gotten into a voting booth by telling the poll worker to go ______ himself like I did.
Therefore, the voting rights act remains important.
The polling place was the local school two blocks from my home.
The poll worker who challenged me was an Orthodox Jew. Most of the other poll workers were black. Reverse discrimination? I don't think so. Power happy adult with no actual full time employment? Likely.
With little control over myself I unleashed a tirade that I cannot write here. I was allowed to vote. My words on the way out the door were stronger then my words on the way into the booth.
I should have never been challenged for ID - and I will never forget how I felt.
I doubt a black guy in the south in 1960 could have gotten into a voting booth by telling the poll worker to go ______ himself like I did.
Therefore, the voting rights act remains important.
18
How do I you know it's you without ID? Try voting in Mexico without ID, you can't.
3
This isn't Mexico.
There is NO voter fraud.
Ah, “fraud.”
Another tiresome scare tactic cooked up by the GOP to cover its own inability to govern.
No surprise there; the party has reduced itself to nothing more than a loose collection of business types who wouldn’t know how to serve the nation if its collective life depended on it.
When does the nation wake up to the fact that the GOP doesn’t want to solve problems, as doing so would snatch opportunities of revenue for their wealthy donors, who put the GOP in office precisely to legislatively skew the market in favor of those donors. That’s the only purpose of the GOP today.
On that note, the GOP elite knows that fraud committed by voters is so rare that it deserves no more attention than any other extreme rarity in human behavior. But the elite cries foul nonetheless, because it works, as shown in some of the comments in this forum.
I wonder what it’s like to be so gullible.
Another tiresome scare tactic cooked up by the GOP to cover its own inability to govern.
No surprise there; the party has reduced itself to nothing more than a loose collection of business types who wouldn’t know how to serve the nation if its collective life depended on it.
When does the nation wake up to the fact that the GOP doesn’t want to solve problems, as doing so would snatch opportunities of revenue for their wealthy donors, who put the GOP in office precisely to legislatively skew the market in favor of those donors. That’s the only purpose of the GOP today.
On that note, the GOP elite knows that fraud committed by voters is so rare that it deserves no more attention than any other extreme rarity in human behavior. But the elite cries foul nonetheless, because it works, as shown in some of the comments in this forum.
I wonder what it’s like to be so gullible.
19
If we do not check for ID and use concomitant variations to see the before and after results, how would we ever know how widespread voter fraud has been?
3
The dream is not undone. The dream is achieved. Our vote finally counts. We African-Americans above all do not wish this achievement be diluted by the votes of undocumented immigrants or by those against us voting twice or more. Voter ID is a bare minimum protection of the gains we have made.
15
There are precious few facts showing that any of this occurs. Lots of Right Wing hype, but painfully little evidence. Lots of false outrage and repetition on Fox News, or by showboaters on the House and Senate floor do not evidence make.
However, there is lots of evidence, well documented, ever mounting evidence, that many thousands, even a few million Americans are being culled out of the voting systems, with many more finding it ever more difficult to vote on election day due to clever obstructions. Funny how the very vast majority of this is in areas where poor or minority people live. This is a ludicrously unbalanced campaign against voter fraud. It is never about seeking out those pesky right wing voters...
I am not sure how you can say what you did, when there has been do much evudence, year after year, of the fight against Black voters. I am glad you have it easy, but large numbers of other Black americans do not. Try reading some foreign coverage about this issue. A lot of other countries are tracking this closely, and reporting on stuff we never hear about, going on right under our noses.
However, there is lots of evidence, well documented, ever mounting evidence, that many thousands, even a few million Americans are being culled out of the voting systems, with many more finding it ever more difficult to vote on election day due to clever obstructions. Funny how the very vast majority of this is in areas where poor or minority people live. This is a ludicrously unbalanced campaign against voter fraud. It is never about seeking out those pesky right wing voters...
I am not sure how you can say what you did, when there has been do much evudence, year after year, of the fight against Black voters. I am glad you have it easy, but large numbers of other Black americans do not. Try reading some foreign coverage about this issue. A lot of other countries are tracking this closely, and reporting on stuff we never hear about, going on right under our noses.
9
The likely outcome of these laws is that for every one false vote prevented, hundreds of legitimate voters will be disenfranchised.
3
The majority of Blacks and 71% of Latinos support voter ID. 70% of Americans support it and 55% of Democrats. Your arguments fall on deaf ears.
2
The section 5 states have a higher African American turnout at the polls than African Americans in liberal northeast states such as Mass. This not so trivial fact did not find its way into this article. The point is that these states (correctly) argue that minorities are more likely to vote in their states than most of the other 45 states and thus they should no longer be under the thumb of the DOJ.
Nothing in this otherwise excellent historical review refutes this salient point.
Nothing in this otherwise excellent historical review refutes this salient point.
11
That was why SCOTUS tossed that part. Mississippi had the best participation by blacks and Massachusetts had the worst. I heard Mass. people say that is because the victors are forgone. Wouldn't Jim Crow love to get away with that excuse?
1
“It’s more sophisticated now.”
No room in this fine piece for electronic fraud as votes are placed on computers becomes more common, but hopefully that will follow soon.
No room in this fine piece for electronic fraud as votes are placed on computers becomes more common, but hopefully that will follow soon.
2
Demographics and the relentless roll of progress conspire against the future of the Republican party. To stay a party with any chance of continuing to occasionally win elections they have moved steadily further right, until the hard core of the "Republican base" is about as conservative as it can be. However that hard core is not sufficient by itself to win in evenly contested elections, so the Republican strategy is to change the contest. Laws against "voter fraud", despite the difficulty in even finding actual instances of such, are passed. Electoral districts are very carefully crafted with such convoluted and nonsensical boundaries; some are caught out by the courts, but other lyrical gerrymanders control and concentrate the contests. Careful propaganda funded by the conservative interests unlimbered by the gushers of dark money and 'public interest' tax-exempt conservative 501c3's pour out money in every election, carrying a message of wedge issues and misinformation, while "fair and balanced" news sources pretend to broadcast journalism which is carefully polished subtly biased conservative truthiness. The carefully anonymous ultra-wealthy carefully select and fund their candidates, always knowing that once elected they will represent not 'all the people of their district' but those who put up the money. The Republicans have carefully pursued this multi-pronged strategy for the last 20 years or more, yet even with it their success is mixed.
8
Demographics and the relentless roll of progress conspire against the future of the Republican party.
======================
Demographics have so "conspired against" the Republicans that they only control both houses of Congress, most governorships and most state legislatures. Of course leaving aside the fact that they tend to sweep state-wide elections in most states now (which are un-gerrymandered by definition) not even the New York Times can bring itself to believe that Republican success is due to gerrymanders
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/26/opinion/sunday/its-the-geography-stupi...
People have been predicting this "emerging Democratic majority" since the turn of the century, but it keeps not emerging
======================
Demographics have so "conspired against" the Republicans that they only control both houses of Congress, most governorships and most state legislatures. Of course leaving aside the fact that they tend to sweep state-wide elections in most states now (which are un-gerrymandered by definition) not even the New York Times can bring itself to believe that Republican success is due to gerrymanders
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/26/opinion/sunday/its-the-geography-stupi...
People have been predicting this "emerging Democratic majority" since the turn of the century, but it keeps not emerging
4
To Campesino..... Tell me, please, why do so many new gop districts look like a broken egg on the pavement?
Gerrymandering is a bipartisan exercise, as you well know. And, how ironic that the party of Obama accuses Republicans of using wedge issues, and the party of Clinton complains about wealthy donors.
1
So I'm a little late commenting on this thread because I was working paying the taxes that some commenters think should be the only qualification for voting. The paranoia displayed in some of these comments amazing. One commenter states that Obama won in North Carolina in 2012 because of bused immigrants. Kudos to the person that responded who reminded the commenter that Obama did not win North Carolina in 2012. It has been obvious that Republican legislatures have, since 2010, been deliberately making it more difficult to vote. Whether it has been through placement of polling sites, days for voting, or other measures, they are proud of what they have been doing. Since I had my moment of pure disgust with Mitt Romney about the 47percent comment, I have been cognizant that there are a large number of people in this country who think that they should determine which people should vote, based on their statements of "low information voters" (by the way, I think a low information voter is somebody who thinks Obama won North Carolina in 2012), makers vs takers, etc. I remember the perennially flummoxed Chris Matthews interviewing a light of the Republican Party in Virginia after the 2012 election, and he said the only reason Obama won Virgunia was because of all the people coming out of apartments. We will have to constantly remind ourselves that there are many people who believe that anybody can own a gun, but not everybody can vote.
23
The history of democracy and anti-democracy in the United States is as old as the country itself, kicked off by the ratification of a national constitution that sanctioned White American enslavement of African Americans. This inhumane American racism has been a constant of U.S. history to this very hour. Your fine article relates how conservative Americans and Republican Party Americans continue to counter a more democratic country.
Although the history of anti-democracy in America involves both the Republican Party and the Democratic Party, its roots are in the vicious racism that continues to permeate American White society. Until the 1960s, the Democratic Party housed this inhumane society within the U.S. Since then, the Republican Party has been willing to turn its back on being the "Party of Lincoln" and becoming the greatest threat to American democracy's foundational "all eligible citizens age 18 or over have the right to vote" social ethos.
The Republican Party's decades-long attack upon the cornerstone of democratic government disqualifies it as an antidemocratic actor within democracy in America. No democratically-minded American should support such a threat to not just American democracy but world democracy, as well: The Republican Party's ongoing war on the nuclear weapons agreement reached earlier this month between Iran and six world leaders is further evidence of the party's violent inhumane spirit.
Although the history of anti-democracy in America involves both the Republican Party and the Democratic Party, its roots are in the vicious racism that continues to permeate American White society. Until the 1960s, the Democratic Party housed this inhumane society within the U.S. Since then, the Republican Party has been willing to turn its back on being the "Party of Lincoln" and becoming the greatest threat to American democracy's foundational "all eligible citizens age 18 or over have the right to vote" social ethos.
The Republican Party's decades-long attack upon the cornerstone of democratic government disqualifies it as an antidemocratic actor within democracy in America. No democratically-minded American should support such a threat to not just American democracy but world democracy, as well: The Republican Party's ongoing war on the nuclear weapons agreement reached earlier this month between Iran and six world leaders is further evidence of the party's violent inhumane spirit.
9
The deliberate attempts by Republicans to disenfranchised minority voters should only deepen their resolve. Now it the time to challenge the
assertions of voter fraud and come out and vote.
assertions of voter fraud and come out and vote.
10
An important aspect of these Voter ID laws that needs to be emphasized is that the "free IDs" for the purpose of voting are not free. They require a birth certificate or some other form of identification that costs money. Meaning, the Voter ID laws are essentially poll taxes that deter the poor from voting. If this country is truly worried about verifying the identity of its citizens then why doesn't my social security card have a photo? Why doesn't my voter registration card just come with a photo? Why doesn't my selective service notice come with a photo? If we are going to mandate a photo ID then we have to provide the economic means for all citizens to obtain an ID for free.
17
["George Bush signed it three days later, saying, “We must never underestimate the importance of a single vote.”]
Yeah, Sandra Day O'Connor, or Anthony Kennedy
. . take your pick
We don't need no stinkin' recount, cuz we already knows
. . . who should be the next President of these here United States
Yeah, Sandra Day O'Connor, or Anthony Kennedy
. . take your pick
We don't need no stinkin' recount, cuz we already knows
. . . who should be the next President of these here United States
1
Time is on our side, the just side. These are mere delaying tactics.
4
Shelby County is the Plessy of our generation.
In the harsh light of history John Roberts will be held in the same disrepute as Henry Billings Brown, the "justice" who wrote the majority opinion in Plessy.
It is shocking to think that we have a racist majority on our Supreme Court just now, as was the 7 member majority in Plessy.
As the intellectually dishonest and unethical justices now in the Roberts/Kennedy majority of the Court leave, it will be essential for the vitality of our democracy that honest and ethical jurists be appointed regardless of their political stripe.
In the harsh light of history John Roberts will be held in the same disrepute as Henry Billings Brown, the "justice" who wrote the majority opinion in Plessy.
It is shocking to think that we have a racist majority on our Supreme Court just now, as was the 7 member majority in Plessy.
As the intellectually dishonest and unethical justices now in the Roberts/Kennedy majority of the Court leave, it will be essential for the vitality of our democracy that honest and ethical jurists be appointed regardless of their political stripe.
8
In partisan politics winning is everything. It's a game to them. Why do you want to win at chess or football? You want to win because winning is the point. Do you have some grander purpose? Of course not. Neither do the leaders and strategists in our political system. If preventing citizens from voting will help you win, then do it. If defending voting rights will help you win, then do it.
I'm not talking about breaking the law, necessarily. I'm thinking more of strategy, rhetoric, and selection of issues and positions.
If, from time to time, one side or the other actually does good or takes a position that harmonizes with decency, fairness, justice, or genuine progress, we should count ourselves lucky, because those rare instances occur by chance and not by design.
I'm not talking about breaking the law, necessarily. I'm thinking more of strategy, rhetoric, and selection of issues and positions.
If, from time to time, one side or the other actually does good or takes a position that harmonizes with decency, fairness, justice, or genuine progress, we should count ourselves lucky, because those rare instances occur by chance and not by design.
1
The question to ask is why the public, especially the black public, doesn't seem to be too concerned about this. The answer is that most Americans see the electoral process as irrelevant, rigged as it is to cater to the wealthy. We get to vote for one or the other of the 1%'s hand-picked candidates who then proceed to ignore the needs of the masses.
And really, what the Republicans are doing - with little push back from the Democrats - is class-based, not race-based.
And really, what the Republicans are doing - with little push back from the Democrats - is class-based, not race-based.
3
The question to ask is why the public, especially the black public, doesn't seem to be too concerned about this.
==================
The answer is that they are not too concerned because they know it's a bogus argument that attempts only to manipulate their emotions. They live in the real world and know that they and 95%+ of their friends and neighbors have driver's licenses and other ID.
Opinion polls about voter ID laws consistently show this.
Poll: 70 percent support voter ID laws
http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/206300-poll-70-percent-suppo...
==================
The answer is that they are not too concerned because they know it's a bogus argument that attempts only to manipulate their emotions. They live in the real world and know that they and 95%+ of their friends and neighbors have driver's licenses and other ID.
Opinion polls about voter ID laws consistently show this.
Poll: 70 percent support voter ID laws
http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/206300-poll-70-percent-suppo...
4
Sure, Campesino, but are you really going to rely on the logic that most are in favor, so it must be the right thing to do? Come on; slavery once was favored by most. Do you really need that pointed out?
Besides, to compare voter i.d. to drivers licenses is silly, as the former is a civic duty, while the latter is a mere privilege.
My hope - my DREAM - is that Republicans who support this nonsense find themselves on the receiving end of their own convictions and without the ability to cast a vote.
To wit, photo i.d.s are not impervious to damage in which they are rendered as unrecognizable, and no one, including you, is impervious to making the mistakes that lead to the loss of a photo i.d. - including on election day.
Remember that as you cheer for standards that could come back to haunt you.
Besides, to compare voter i.d. to drivers licenses is silly, as the former is a civic duty, while the latter is a mere privilege.
My hope - my DREAM - is that Republicans who support this nonsense find themselves on the receiving end of their own convictions and without the ability to cast a vote.
To wit, photo i.d.s are not impervious to damage in which they are rendered as unrecognizable, and no one, including you, is impervious to making the mistakes that lead to the loss of a photo i.d. - including on election day.
Remember that as you cheer for standards that could come back to haunt you.
1
I would think the Black public, or the 70% of them that approve of voter ID laws, realizes that they are just as capable as any one else of acquiring an ID. I am sorry you have such a low opinion of Blacks.
I remember my mother taking me to our local elementary school on voting day. I was maybe five or six years old. After we exited the voting booth she bought me a cookie from the "ladies" who were working the voting booths that day. My mother told me that this was a very important day because she was able to vote and that when I grow up I would also be able to vote. She also told me that I should always vote for a democrat because they would look after poor people and that we were poor. That was in 1956. I have never missed an election and to this day, I will only vote for democrats, not matter what, come hell or high water. My mother is no longer alive, but every election day I think of her.
14
Republicans would have us believe that they're so dumb that they didn't think of using the picture ID for voting ID until 2011--"coincidentally" the year before the first African-American U.S. president was running for reelection. But how do they explain curtailment of "early" voting and weekend voting?
11
Republicans would have us believe that they're so dumb that they didn't think of using the picture ID for voting ID until 2011--"coincidentally" the year before the first African-American U.S. president was running for reelection. But how do they explain curtailment of "early" voting and weekend voting?
=================
Um, the Indiana and Georgia voter ID laws were passed in 2005. The Indiana law wasn't subject to VRA review, but made it through a SCOTUS decision in 2008. Georgia law was pre cleared by DOJ in 2005.
Those laws were formulated when "the first black president" was an obscure state senator in Illinois.
Oh, and how do the Democrats who run New York explain that there is and never has been any "early" or weekend voting in that state?
=================
Um, the Indiana and Georgia voter ID laws were passed in 2005. The Indiana law wasn't subject to VRA review, but made it through a SCOTUS decision in 2008. Georgia law was pre cleared by DOJ in 2005.
Those laws were formulated when "the first black president" was an obscure state senator in Illinois.
Oh, and how do the Democrats who run New York explain that there is and never has been any "early" or weekend voting in that state?
5
I listed above the long list of blue states that have NO early voting. Are they all trying to suppress the Black vote?
I honestly believe North Carolina should have eliminated early voting so it could be like New Jersey, New York, Minnesota, Michigan, Maine, Vermont, Connecticut and all the other Blue states that don't allow early voting. In fact there is no Red state that does not have early voting.
One of least reported aspects of voter registration is how incredibly difficult it is get copies of the required documents to register. Without access to the internet, just finding out who to call to get a copy of a birth certificate is darn near impossible. Once you find out who to call and what documentation to provide, the ultimate Catch 22 becomes clear, you have to provide proof who you are! If you were born in different state then the one where you currently live, the task becomes even more difficult. The right to vote is to important to have fifty different rules to register. A national standard is required but is a real pipe dream.
8
What hyperbolic nonsense. If it were that hard to have ID no one would be able to rent an apartment, fill a prescription or even rent a movie. And just as importantly, just how do you assure a fair election - it sounds to me like you want there to be absolutely no proof to vote.
To think that thousands of our military were killed and maimed so that millions of Iraqis could vote simply by standing in line and dipping their index finger in a purple ink well, but here, in the US of A, millions of citizens are potentially denied the right to vote due to fears that they might just vote against...gasp...republicans or democrats or third party candidates.
9
We must all recognize that the system of elections in America are not ideal. We can't admit to yourself that this system is already quite - outdated. America is an not islands of freedom, in this country public opinion for decades lends itself to manipulation and happens suppression of public opinion.
2
People who say there's no proof of voter fraud, or that it's easy to vote as no one is obstructing the Constitutional right, has never had members of their family denied this very American right. My grandparents had to fight (in some cases, literally) to vote. This is not some figment of the imagination. Denying voter rights is a very real problem in this country, even after all this time.
5
So show me someone denied the right to vote TODAY
Newsflash - it is not your grandparents country anymore. No one is denied the right to vote.
The turnout for American federal elections is 54%, the worst in the First World.
The GOP's answer to this shameful performance? Why, make it harder to vote.
Bravo, Republicans.
The GOP's answer to this shameful performance? Why, make it harder to vote.
Bravo, Republicans.
9
Having an ID to vote is as American as Apple Pie.
11
An article about a different type of discrimination appeared in the Times yesterday. S.C., Lt. Col. Kate Germano has argued that when the Marine Corp expects less of women, then the performance of women matches the expectation and they deliver less.
See: http://atwar.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/07/28/lt-col-kate-germano-on-the-mar...
Blacks have not fully participated in the American dream since the nation was founded. For the first century of the nation, slavery held them down. For much of the second century, Jim Crow actively did the same thing. But there is a case to be made that in the third century, deliberately expecting less of blacks might be the problem.
The strategy of those who would disenfranchise blacks has a glaring weakness. If Blacks simply organize better and vote more, the strategy of the new Jim Crow of this century will fail. And perhaps the way to achieve that is to NOT expect less of blacks today. President Obama has proven that our black citizens can deliver more, not less.
See: http://atwar.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/07/28/lt-col-kate-germano-on-the-mar...
Blacks have not fully participated in the American dream since the nation was founded. For the first century of the nation, slavery held them down. For much of the second century, Jim Crow actively did the same thing. But there is a case to be made that in the third century, deliberately expecting less of blacks might be the problem.
The strategy of those who would disenfranchise blacks has a glaring weakness. If Blacks simply organize better and vote more, the strategy of the new Jim Crow of this century will fail. And perhaps the way to achieve that is to NOT expect less of blacks today. President Obama has proven that our black citizens can deliver more, not less.
1
If you do not have strong ID requirements for voting like all of Europe does, then what you are doing is making sure that the vote of each legal resident counts for less - making sure each person's vote counts is STRENGTHENING the Voting Rights Act, not weakening it...
If you support easily altered elections, soon those elections will mean nothing and anyone will be able to buy whatever election results they desire.
If you support easily altered elections, soon those elections will mean nothing and anyone will be able to buy whatever election results they desire.
8
That happens to be the Democrat plan.
There are plenty of threats to honest elections. Today, people should be concerned about the electronic voting machines and how these machines tabulate and communicate the results to central hub machines which tabulate and communicate the results to the humans. We should not have proprietary software on voting machines. The computer code should be subject to examination. A computerized voting machine just needs to add the votes for each candidate. This needs to be secret?
www.verifiedvotingfoundation.org
www.verifiedvotingfoundation.org
7
I write in response to Delores Rawlings and others who seem not to have examined or understood the issue. It is not simply a photo ID; it is the outlandish requirement for specific kinds of IDs. Why is it that students' official university identification, e.g., is insufficient when it works for a myriad of other situations? There also are innumerable disabled and elderly person who do not have drivers' licenses or passports or the money to pay for birth certificates, if they exist at all, that moves them to the next step to acquire a state-issued identification. There are people who do not have a birth certificate for a variety of reasons, none of which has to do with an effort to commit fraud of any kind.
There would be a lot more understanding if people would step outside their narrow bubbles and try to walk in someone else's moccasins.
There would be a lot more understanding if people would step outside their narrow bubbles and try to walk in someone else's moccasins.
7
Why is it that students' official university identification, e.g., is insufficient when it works for a myriad of other situations?
==============
Because university IDs don't establish whether the student is a citizen of the state where the school is located or even if he/she is a US citizen.
A foreign student from China has a university ID. Should she be allowed to use it for voting purposes?
==============
Because university IDs don't establish whether the student is a citizen of the state where the school is located or even if he/she is a US citizen.
A foreign student from China has a university ID. Should she be allowed to use it for voting purposes?
I really do not understand why having a photo id to vote is such a big deal. You cannot get on a plane, get your hospital x-rays, etc. or almost anything else without documented photo identification. So why not so to vote; it does not make sense to me. Even in Mexico a person has a fingerprinted, embossed, photo id. If people can vote in multiple states or illegals can vote then we have a problem. Everyone should have a photo id and it should be used to vote to substantiate their legal status.
9
If you were in a wheel chair, too old to work, didn't own a car and no longer have a birth certificate or never had one, or any combination of difficult circumstances, then you would understand why getting a photo id can be such a big deal. Here is what I would like to understand: Why did it abruptly become important to have photo ID's when the first black president was elected? Never had em before, and no one gave it a second thought. Don't you wonder why you are being taken for this strange ride?
2
The only way the republican can make it in an evolve-or-die world is to hold everybody else back, and they've been doing that since Reagan. Fortunately, their grip is growing feeble because my generation by and large wants nothing to do with conservatism. Why? We've suffered because of what they've done. As Millennials, our quality of life is worse than our parents' when they were our age and we are very ticked off about it.
Google: " Suppressing the Vote The Daily Show with Jon Stewart " and hear right from the GOP's own mouth how they intended to stop democratic voters with voter suppression.
Google these as well:
" It's Almost Like Another Country Voted During The Midterm — One That Doesn't Really Look Like Us " (Upworthy)
The Great Gerrymander of 2012, NY Times
Ohio Legislature Advances Controversial Bill That Could Deter Students From Voting
Nevada GOP Moves To Limit Early Voting On Sundays, Weeknight Evenings
Fox News Host Addresses "Young Women Shouldn't Vote" Controversy
Google: " Suppressing the Vote The Daily Show with Jon Stewart " and hear right from the GOP's own mouth how they intended to stop democratic voters with voter suppression.
Google these as well:
" It's Almost Like Another Country Voted During The Midterm — One That Doesn't Really Look Like Us " (Upworthy)
The Great Gerrymander of 2012, NY Times
Ohio Legislature Advances Controversial Bill That Could Deter Students From Voting
Nevada GOP Moves To Limit Early Voting On Sundays, Weeknight Evenings
Fox News Host Addresses "Young Women Shouldn't Vote" Controversy
2
To those making glib statements about 'photo id' -- photo id is a right-wing euphemism for 'voter suppression'. Photo ID is not just about heading over to your state's DMV and getting a non-driver's ID or driver's license, lickety-split. The 'photo id' scam consists of: conservative legislators shutting down or severely curtailing the hours of DMVs located nearest to Democratic-leaning voters, which causes these voters to have spend hours and considerable monies to travel to the next-nearest DMV in order to get the now-required ID. Another one -- impossible-to-obtain documents are demanded in order for the ID to be issued - a favorite of conservatives is to demand that very elderly folks produce their birth certificate from a time before birth certificates were issued. Another 'photo id' variation - the ID must contain some sort of sticker or marking - which conveniently will not be available until 'after' any upcoming election. And one more, as soon as the 'photo ID' law is passed, DMV staff is cut, so that the demand can't possibly be met before any upcoming election. So, 'photo ID' is not about the actual ID; the phrase functions to provide cover for a bag of dirty tricks, the object of which is to prevent 'those people' from exercising their right to vote.
10
All unsubstantiated rumors. You obviously link to nothing that demonstrates this is really happening.
Here are the "impossible to obtain" documents Alabama will take to issue a free voter ID card:
Birth Certificate *
Hospital or nursing home record
Marriage Record *
State or Federal Census Record
Military Record
Medicare or Medicaid document
Social Security Administration Document
Certificate of Citizenship
Official school record or transcript
http://www.alabamavoterid.com/getFreePhotoVoterID.aspx
Here are the "impossible to obtain" documents Alabama will take to issue a free voter ID card:
Birth Certificate *
Hospital or nursing home record
Marriage Record *
State or Federal Census Record
Military Record
Medicare or Medicaid document
Social Security Administration Document
Certificate of Citizenship
Official school record or transcript
http://www.alabamavoterid.com/getFreePhotoVoterID.aspx
Maybe the bigger question is why less than half the electorate participates in the process, and of those that do participate, how many actually spend the effort to research the candidates - especially when it comes to judges, school boards, and local elections.
How many votes are cast because a name seems familiar or friendly? For a long time, my wife would vote for any woman on the ballet. Maybe that is how Michele Bachmann made it to Congress.
Showing a state ID or voter ID card seems like a small burden compared to literacy tests or poll taxes. Intellectually, I can accept showing an ID isn't explicitly discriminatory and faith in a secure election is very important.
A fair response to ID laws that benefit the GOP would be to tighten security on absentee ballets. The equivalent of voter ID requirements on absentee ballets would benefit the Democrats, as many of the seniors that vote absentee vote Republican. As I understand it, absentee ballets have more history of abuse than in-person fraud.
How many votes are cast because a name seems familiar or friendly? For a long time, my wife would vote for any woman on the ballet. Maybe that is how Michele Bachmann made it to Congress.
Showing a state ID or voter ID card seems like a small burden compared to literacy tests or poll taxes. Intellectually, I can accept showing an ID isn't explicitly discriminatory and faith in a secure election is very important.
A fair response to ID laws that benefit the GOP would be to tighten security on absentee ballets. The equivalent of voter ID requirements on absentee ballets would benefit the Democrats, as many of the seniors that vote absentee vote Republican. As I understand it, absentee ballets have more history of abuse than in-person fraud.
2
The efforts by the GOP to discourage voter participation is just one example of our democracy not being the democracy our soldiers fought and gave their lives for. The dismantling of voter protections, the obscene costs of running for public office, the electoral college selecting the runner up -George Bush instead of the winner -Al Gore for President are examples of our nation losing our passion for a government that is chosen by the majority of voters.
The NY Times should study democracies around the world and rate each one. I would be curious to see how the United States compares with other so called democracies.
PAUL FEINER
Greenburgh, NY
The NY Times should study democracies around the world and rate each one. I would be curious to see how the United States compares with other so called democracies.
PAUL FEINER
Greenburgh, NY
2
What we see in this history is the political effects of the Republican Party's "Southern Strategy" and the complacently of those who have plenty of freedom and wealth for themselves and no idea what it's like for those who haven't deluding themselves regarding the Civil Rights legislation of the mid-1960's and the effects of racial injustice upon the whole country.
The demands of racially prejudiced former Democrats who joined the Republican Party pressured Republicans to strive to undo all Civil Rights laws and to establish a legal basis for individual states to nullify Federal Legislation about which their dominant political interests oppose. The Republican Party depends upon these racial prejudiced constituents to achieve elected office, so Republicans advocate for their causes.
The Republican Party formerly was the Party of the prosperous who expected government to help them secure their wealth not spend it on helping everyone achieve security and prosperity, people who were unlucky or unable to secure the means to improve themselves. Being wealthy does insulate people from a lot of material concerns due to difficulty in securing resources needed to overcome misfortune. They tend to become convinced that their wealth is something to which they are entitled by nature which sets them apart from everyone else and protects them from the misfortunes which most other people are experiencing.
The demands of racially prejudiced former Democrats who joined the Republican Party pressured Republicans to strive to undo all Civil Rights laws and to establish a legal basis for individual states to nullify Federal Legislation about which their dominant political interests oppose. The Republican Party depends upon these racial prejudiced constituents to achieve elected office, so Republicans advocate for their causes.
The Republican Party formerly was the Party of the prosperous who expected government to help them secure their wealth not spend it on helping everyone achieve security and prosperity, people who were unlucky or unable to secure the means to improve themselves. Being wealthy does insulate people from a lot of material concerns due to difficulty in securing resources needed to overcome misfortune. They tend to become convinced that their wealth is something to which they are entitled by nature which sets them apart from everyone else and protects them from the misfortunes which most other people are experiencing.
The Southern Strategy was so great that it took over 30 years to finally worked. Its worked because all the old Dems died and you had younger people move south.
Anyone here ever tried to vote as someone else? The result?
1
Anyone here ever tried to vote as someone else? The result?
==================
In New York City in 2013, the Department of Investigations had its agents pose as dead people on voter rolls in elections in 63 instances as a test of the system. In 61 cases, the agents were allowed to vote:
For example, a 24-year female was able to access the ballot at a Manhattan poll site in November under the name of a deceased female who was born in 1923 and died in April 25, 2012 — and would have been 89 on Election Day.
Also at a Manhattan poll site, a 33-year-male investigator was able to vote under the name of a deceased man who would have been 94 on Election Day.
DOI said the agents cast votes for fictitious candidates so as to not affect any races.
http://nypost.com/2013/12/30/the-dead-can-vote-in-nyc/
http://www.nyc.gov/html/doi/downloads/pdf/2013/dec%2013/BOE%20Unit%20Rep...
==================
In New York City in 2013, the Department of Investigations had its agents pose as dead people on voter rolls in elections in 63 instances as a test of the system. In 61 cases, the agents were allowed to vote:
For example, a 24-year female was able to access the ballot at a Manhattan poll site in November under the name of a deceased female who was born in 1923 and died in April 25, 2012 — and would have been 89 on Election Day.
Also at a Manhattan poll site, a 33-year-male investigator was able to vote under the name of a deceased man who would have been 94 on Election Day.
DOI said the agents cast votes for fictitious candidates so as to not affect any races.
http://nypost.com/2013/12/30/the-dead-can-vote-in-nyc/
http://www.nyc.gov/html/doi/downloads/pdf/2013/dec%2013/BOE%20Unit%20Rep...
For many reasons Americans should stop referring to the American government as a democracy. It is not.
Americans may be happy with the form of government they have crafted but it needs another description. Calling it democracy is self deception.
Americans may be happy with the form of government they have crafted but it needs another description. Calling it democracy is self deception.
1
The states acting in unison on this is part of the right's over-all plan to dismantle all federal programs such as medicare, social security, etc., give it over to the states where the states have the right to replace these plans with voucher programs which the right claims will be cheaper because the "free market" pressures will keep costs low. If you have watched closely the right's "free market" really means corporations will be free of any federal regulations, the regulations that protect consumers.
The right and the tea party's anger is at anyone who they deem is not self-sufficient, their inherited land holdings, oil trusts, and inherited wealth they deem as being earned by them.
If you do not see the right's ultimate goal as running this country through states (where they are free to discriminate, misinform the meaning of right to work, leaving workers without unions while management retains defined benefit pensions and workers have 401k plans not even contributed to by the company) then you are not looking and you are diminishing democracy for this generation and all generations to come.
These right wing people and groups believe the REAL America is white, run by business men, women get no reproductive rights so there will be more white babies to vote for the descendants of these white men, and they are anti-immigration because those people are not white and will not vote for the REAL Americans. Connect the dots and you will see how this plays out. Don't let it
The right and the tea party's anger is at anyone who they deem is not self-sufficient, their inherited land holdings, oil trusts, and inherited wealth they deem as being earned by them.
If you do not see the right's ultimate goal as running this country through states (where they are free to discriminate, misinform the meaning of right to work, leaving workers without unions while management retains defined benefit pensions and workers have 401k plans not even contributed to by the company) then you are not looking and you are diminishing democracy for this generation and all generations to come.
These right wing people and groups believe the REAL America is white, run by business men, women get no reproductive rights so there will be more white babies to vote for the descendants of these white men, and they are anti-immigration because those people are not white and will not vote for the REAL Americans. Connect the dots and you will see how this plays out. Don't let it
3
This is a long-running, methodical Republican crime.
21
Like Obama limiting the time frame overseas ballots were to be accepted for the 2012 presidential election? Could the FACT that the military generally votes heavily for Republicans have anything to do with that?
By the way, you do need a photo ID to rent a car? Test drive a car? Get your airline ticket at the ticket counter? Go through a TSA security check? Buy alcohol? Get a passport? Pass through customs? Buy cigarettes? Withdraw money inside a bank? Open a bank account? Open a charge account? Get a hotel room? Enroll your kids in school?
Since you live in Fresno you probably haven't there's still time
By the way, you do need a photo ID to rent a car? Test drive a car? Get your airline ticket at the ticket counter? Go through a TSA security check? Buy alcohol? Get a passport? Pass through customs? Buy cigarettes? Withdraw money inside a bank? Open a bank account? Open a charge account? Get a hotel room? Enroll your kids in school?
Since you live in Fresno you probably haven't there's still time
Seems the Republicans have created a new US export. All European countries require an ID or a polling card to vote.
1
Photo ID is a good tool to prevent voter fraud although it is tends to punish the recently deceased in Hudson and Cook Counties.
22
Where's the proof of voter fraud? Republicans haven't been able to come up with any.
2
Even my neighbors 19 year old kid can get a fake ID to get into bars. The photo ID is a way to prevent some people from voting, and the entire voter fraud thing is a sham that Republicans have been pushing down our throats.
1
Why spend money creating a solution to a non-existent problem?
The only way to counter act this punch is to start donating heavily in Voter I.D. registration groups who’ll assist the elderly with the appropriate documents to obtain the proper ID. This involves record searching and multiple trips to the DMV. The Poor, Elderly and Disabled have a hard time accomplishing these tasks on their own so they need everyone’s help.
The wealthy factions among the “liberal left” in this country will shell out unfathomable sums of money to shelter animals and protect the environment, but it amazes me there is little outcry from them when it concerns voter rights. We need to raise awareness and preserve our democracy before it is legislated away from us forever.
The wealthy factions among the “liberal left” in this country will shell out unfathomable sums of money to shelter animals and protect the environment, but it amazes me there is little outcry from them when it concerns voter rights. We need to raise awareness and preserve our democracy before it is legislated away from us forever.
15
Great presentation. Keep up the heat. I believe that this increases the motivation of Black voters, thereby totally reversing the effect of these pernicious statutes.
15
All minorities and all American citizens disenfranchised by Republican Party politics must register to vote in spite of the hurdles thrown in front of them. In every state and in every county there is someone that can help them register to vote.
After registering they must vote for candidates who are not conservative Republicans. Do not believe the lies of the Republican politicians. This is the solution, perhaps the only real solution. Sadly the people that need to read and hear this message are not readers of the New York Times so we must get the message to them and help them if we care about the future of America. The penalty for ignoring this simple message is huge.
After registering they must vote for candidates who are not conservative Republicans. Do not believe the lies of the Republican politicians. This is the solution, perhaps the only real solution. Sadly the people that need to read and hear this message are not readers of the New York Times so we must get the message to them and help them if we care about the future of America. The penalty for ignoring this simple message is huge.
41
All Republicans have to register to vote too, including many poor citizens in places like Virginia. If the poor there can register OK, whey can't they elsewhere? What s really funny is that you are implying black voters are too stupid to register; I have a much higher opinion of black voters than you do, and think they can register just fine.
We need voter registration drives like in the 60s.
1
>
No kidding you are just realizing this?
No kidding you are just realizing this?
2
The flag graphic at the top of the page is awful. The American flag drapes the coffins of brave women and men. It should not be depicted as a frayed rag.
7
What it represents here is frayed, show it as it is.
50
"It’s really, really unheard-of, or really rare, to have states move en masse all of the sudden to pass photocopied laws all at once without a national crisis,” said Michael Waldman, president of the Brennan Center for Justice at the New York University School of Law…"
This is ALEC at work.
The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) is a group funded by big business that proposes "model legislation" which it rolls out from one local area / state to the next. This is their model of operation.
From 2012: "Lawmakers proposed 62 photo ID bills in 37 states in the 2011 and 2012 sessions...more than half of the 62 bills were sponsored by members or conference attendees of ALEC…"
http://investigations.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/08/21/13392560-flurry-of-vo...
This is ALEC at work.
The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) is a group funded by big business that proposes "model legislation" which it rolls out from one local area / state to the next. This is their model of operation.
From 2012: "Lawmakers proposed 62 photo ID bills in 37 states in the 2011 and 2012 sessions...more than half of the 62 bills were sponsored by members or conference attendees of ALEC…"
http://investigations.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/08/21/13392560-flurry-of-vo...
43
I have to agree that there is no evidence of widespread voter fraud. But I'm a fair-minded person, and I'd like to see the evidence for voter disenfranchisement after voter ID laws are enacted. It's all hypothetical, on both sides of the issue, from what I have seen. How about dealing in facts, on both sides of the issue, instead of all this reflexive ideology?
17
Do you think they would pass the voter ID laws if they thought their effect was only hypothetical? They know exactly what they are doing.
2
Lindah, didn't you read the article? It's thick with facts. And as for disenfranchisement following the passage of these laws, what do you suppose is the purpose of them if not precisely to disenfranchise?
1
Why would anyone object to identification? Requiring identification is ubiquitous in our society.
19
OK so why isn't it provided to citizens, free of charge, from the government?
It's not my problem that I don't have ID on me. I still am entitled to my constitutional rights.
It's not my problem that I don't have ID on me. I still am entitled to my constitutional rights.
34
All voters have registration cards, and sign in when voting. That signature is then examined by a poll worker to ascertain that it matches the voters previous signature. Why, in a country where voter fraud is negligible, must the rules be changed? Unfortunately, we all know the answer to that question...gerrymandering hasn't done enough to change election outcomes, so let's attack the voters directly.
32
It is provided free of charge, anyone can get a voterID card for free if they don't want a drivers license.
1
What, really, is the fear?
Paul Weyrich, one of the founding figures of the modern conservative movement, infamously said in during a speech before conservative activists in Dallas in August 1980: "I don't want everyone to vote... As a matter of fact, our leverage in the elections quite candidly goes up as the voting populace goes down."
Citizens would do well to ask themselves, whose "leverage" is Weyrich referring to here? And what are the interests behind this "leverage"? What does it want, that voting threatens?
Race and racism has always been a means to an end for the conservative movement. The 10,000 (or TEN BILLION) dollar question really is, what is their end? What is it that they fear about democracy so that voter suppression is their ally and a significant political tactic?
Answer that question, and you understand a lot about the conservative establishment in the US. They fear the vote in general.
Paul Weyrich, one of the founding figures of the modern conservative movement, infamously said in during a speech before conservative activists in Dallas in August 1980: "I don't want everyone to vote... As a matter of fact, our leverage in the elections quite candidly goes up as the voting populace goes down."
Citizens would do well to ask themselves, whose "leverage" is Weyrich referring to here? And what are the interests behind this "leverage"? What does it want, that voting threatens?
Race and racism has always been a means to an end for the conservative movement. The 10,000 (or TEN BILLION) dollar question really is, what is their end? What is it that they fear about democracy so that voter suppression is their ally and a significant political tactic?
Answer that question, and you understand a lot about the conservative establishment in the US. They fear the vote in general.
34
Here in North Carolina, a "right to work" state, there is no legal protection for workers taking time away from their job to vote, so in addition to being docked for hours not worked, employees can be outright fired with impunity. Maybe that's the new poll tax people are talking about.
42
Can you vote by absentee ballots in NC?
If a workplace were so uncertain that one could not take time during the 12-hour(?) window of time polls are open to go vote, that is what a determined voter could do. It would be nice to have the legal protection but as a practical matter there are workarounds while you wait for things to change.
If a workplace were so uncertain that one could not take time during the 12-hour(?) window of time polls are open to go vote, that is what a determined voter could do. It would be nice to have the legal protection but as a practical matter there are workarounds while you wait for things to change.
Instead of voting on workdays we should do as France does -- hold elections on the weekends.
2
Most of the NC counties have extended the poll hours so workers can vote early on the way home from work. When there were more days poll closed at 5PM and there was little chance of voting except on weekends.
First, this thorough analysis should be used as part of a curriculum in a course in American History. Young people would benefit greatly from reading about this crucial part of our country's history - from post-Civil War through the present.
Second, among those "activists" are the GOP appointees to the Supreme Court who proclaim "judicial restraint", but almost always vote to overturn congressional and other legislative enactments which, by coincidence I guess, don't comport with their own right-wing politics. Those in past, from the KKK to the enforcers of Jim Crow, were a pretty odious crowd. It's sad to see them joined by some on the Supreme Court.
Second, among those "activists" are the GOP appointees to the Supreme Court who proclaim "judicial restraint", but almost always vote to overturn congressional and other legislative enactments which, by coincidence I guess, don't comport with their own right-wing politics. Those in past, from the KKK to the enforcers of Jim Crow, were a pretty odious crowd. It's sad to see them joined by some on the Supreme Court.
28
If everyone voted, the conservatives (Republicans) would never win.
As for vote fraud - it is accomplished in the counting, not the casting.
As for vote fraud - it is accomplished in the counting, not the casting.
38
So an illegal with no proof of citizenship voting in a swing state during a Presidential election isn't voter fraud?
The law and sanity disagree with you.
The law and sanity disagree with you.
4
To DCBarrister:
And the proof or other factual evidence in support of your
premise is ...?
And the proof or other factual evidence in support of your
premise is ...?
13
Undocumented illegals voting in NC during the 2012 Presidential election, a state Obama "won" after the more populated precincts in NC (where there are high concentrations of illegals) live?
Photos of voter queues?
Common sense? If there's NO requirement that anyone voting show an ID, you are opening the gate for voter fraud.
Photos of voter queues?
Common sense? If there's NO requirement that anyone voting show an ID, you are opening the gate for voter fraud.
11
Let me cut to the chase...the only way these GOP 2016 shysters think they can win an office is by deceptive and restrictive means...They feel completely at ease with their dismissive and ...yes, demeaning messaging...because they figure that their patrons will outspend their competition.
We assert our own"exceptionalism" in bragging on "one person-one vote"...pompously reviewing other country's "integrity" at the polls. Who are we kidding?
We are exceptional only in our hypocrisy...and while there is perhaps equal blame to go around in our political parties...the GOP, in its latest so-called "conservative" iteration has failed any expectation of decency and enshrined justice.
We assert our own"exceptionalism" in bragging on "one person-one vote"...pompously reviewing other country's "integrity" at the polls. Who are we kidding?
We are exceptional only in our hypocrisy...and while there is perhaps equal blame to go around in our political parties...the GOP, in its latest so-called "conservative" iteration has failed any expectation of decency and enshrined justice.
24
Or... or it could be the Republicans simply want a fair voting field where non-citizens and the dead don't get to vote against them.
1
I am disgusted by the undoing of Voters Rights. While some progress in civil rights has been made, it seems we have to keep fighting many of the old fights over and over again: voting rights, women's rights, etc. and I am just exhausted from it all..... I guess I will die fighting but at least I know I was part of the solution, not the part of the problem....
17
I guess NY is an extremely racist state - we have to register at least a week before the election, we have to vote at our assigned polling place, and we can only vote on election day.
I fail to see how these specifications are racially biased, every black person I know can read the calendar just as well as I can.
I fail to see how these specifications are racially biased, every black person I know can read the calendar just as well as I can.
1
The GOP has yet to produce a shred of data showing voter fraud being so rampant that changes to the law are necessary. Yet the GOP demands that those changes be made.
Contrarily, we have a massive amount of data showing the need for stricter gun laws, but the GOP routinely claims that we only need to enforce the laws already on the books, and that the last thing we need are more laws, more regulation, more interference from the Nanny Fed.
The double standard is palpable, but then, consider the source.
Contrarily, we have a massive amount of data showing the need for stricter gun laws, but the GOP routinely claims that we only need to enforce the laws already on the books, and that the last thing we need are more laws, more regulation, more interference from the Nanny Fed.
The double standard is palpable, but then, consider the source.
40
So according to liberals only white people can get photo ID, The rest of the people are too stupid to get ID. I'm a black man and I got 2 forms of photo ID so maybe i'm special. Liberal please stop trying to help black people you only make things worse. Have a nice day.
21
I'm glad you have ID. There are many people in rural areas, miles from the nearest government office who don't have transportation or who can't take an entire day off from work.
Believe it or not, the whole world isn't just like you.
Believe it or not, the whole world isn't just like you.
1
OK, so now ONE black man gets to vote in NC. I guess that's better than none.
1
The Voting Rights Act of 1965 did prompt southern Democrats to switch political affiliation. Also, Nixon's "Southern Strategy" in 1968 won him election against a fractured Democratic party. However, the election of 1964, held four months after the Civil Rights Act was signed by Lyndon B. Johnson, was a significant impetus for the movement of racist Democrats to vote Republican for the first time.
In 1964, the Republican nominee, Barry Goldwater, only carried his home state of Arizona and five southern states, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana. The country voted for Johnson in a huge landslide. The electoral votes were 486 to 52 and the popular vote went 61 % to 39 %. Johnson was prepared for the consequences of the Civil Rights Act by quipping when he signed the bill that “we just lost the South.” It was the first time that these five southern states voted Republican since reconstruction.
Although it has been noticed many times that all politics is local, it seems to be sometimes racial as well.
In 1964, the Republican nominee, Barry Goldwater, only carried his home state of Arizona and five southern states, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana. The country voted for Johnson in a huge landslide. The electoral votes were 486 to 52 and the popular vote went 61 % to 39 %. Johnson was prepared for the consequences of the Civil Rights Act by quipping when he signed the bill that “we just lost the South.” It was the first time that these five southern states voted Republican since reconstruction.
Although it has been noticed many times that all politics is local, it seems to be sometimes racial as well.
8
Fear of non-whites voting is the only cogent reason the VRA is being attack. The small % of voting fraud is negligible. Perhaps if, we had more access to voting (more early voting or two voting election days). Why not limit the amount of official campaign time, instead.
16
How about fear of non-citizens voting to elect the President of the United States? Given the electoral college, power of swing states?
What about the fear of liberals organizing and busing in illegals to vote in swing states?
What about the dead US troops at Arlington who died for our right to vote as US citizens?
Oh yeah those are things sane people think about.
What about the fear of liberals organizing and busing in illegals to vote in swing states?
What about the dead US troops at Arlington who died for our right to vote as US citizens?
Oh yeah those are things sane people think about.
7
Yes, that "busing in" part sounds particularly sane.
1
DCBarrister - in Texas there are many elderly people who have no means of obtaining a photo ID. Not everyone has a drivers license. Texas lacks public transportation systems thus making it impossible for elders to go out any further than they can walk. Do you have a remedy for this?
1
Many among the elderly have trouble obtaining current identification once their identities slip into expiration. One can only hope that eventually even these vote obstructionists will be disenfranchised.
14
to quote those on the other side of the issue, what evidence do you have for that claim?
1
Welcome to present day America, NY Times.
This should have been front-page news every day for decades.
The hijacking of our democracy has a long and ignominious history - but the "cleansing" of the Florida voting rolls in 2000 was there for all to see. From that moment on, if not before, this deliberate attack on the American way of life should have been story number one. It was then, and is now, the most important thing happening - because all other wrongs stem from voter suppression/disenfranchisement.
https://emcphd.wordpress.com
This should have been front-page news every day for decades.
The hijacking of our democracy has a long and ignominious history - but the "cleansing" of the Florida voting rolls in 2000 was there for all to see. From that moment on, if not before, this deliberate attack on the American way of life should have been story number one. It was then, and is now, the most important thing happening - because all other wrongs stem from voter suppression/disenfranchisement.
https://emcphd.wordpress.com
26
Excellent, lengthy yet concise, just-the-facts-ma'am presentation of the latest machinations of The Vast Right Wing Conspiracy.
Fascism is on the march. At least one American journalist if paying attention. Thanks and congratulations, Jim Rutenberg.
From Sinclair Lewis's 1935 novel "It Can't Happen Here":
"But he saw too that in America the struggle was befogged by the fact that the worst Fascists were they who disowned the word 'Fascism' and preached enslavement to Capitalism under the style of Constitutional and Traditional Native American Liberty." (Wikiquote)
Is that the 21st century Republican Party or what?
Fascism is on the march. At least one American journalist if paying attention. Thanks and congratulations, Jim Rutenberg.
From Sinclair Lewis's 1935 novel "It Can't Happen Here":
"But he saw too that in America the struggle was befogged by the fact that the worst Fascists were they who disowned the word 'Fascism' and preached enslavement to Capitalism under the style of Constitutional and Traditional Native American Liberty." (Wikiquote)
Is that the 21st century Republican Party or what?
21
Never underestimate Republican resistance to moving the country forward.
9
If everyone has to follow the same rules it is neither racist nor discriminatory. If Democrats are not disciplined enough to register to vote early or make it to the polling both within a known time frame why should they get extra consideration?
9
Because, on the whole, the targeted populations have less time and money to navigate through through an obstacle course explicitly designed to require exactly those things. In effect it's the same as the old Jim Crow voter-literacy requirements Refuse to educate a population, then deny them the vote because they lack education.
We could go into just why that population has less time and money, but that would require facing more unpleasant historic realities -- which have at their root the basic truth that a significant proportion of the white population cannot accept any person of color as a "real" American.
We could go into just why that population has less time and money, but that would require facing more unpleasant historic realities -- which have at their root the basic truth that a significant proportion of the white population cannot accept any person of color as a "real" American.
2
Why don't we just require a million dollars to vote then? It would be the same rule for everyone. If people can't earn it, then that's on them!
Same reasoning, isn't it? What am I missing?
Same reasoning, isn't it? What am I missing?
Some commentators repeat the lie that some people, especially the elderly, cannot get state-issued photo IDs because they were born without birth certificates. People born without birth certificates do not go through life without identification. They get court-issued Affidavits of Non-Availability, which permit them to get state-issued identification cards or driver's licenses just like everyone else. It is virtually impossible to go through life in America without identification. The elderly are extremely well-documented. We have to be to draw Social Security retirement benefits and use Medicare.
9
Once I had to get my elderly father his birth certificate. He was born at home in Chicago. It took weeks of effort to obtain his baptismal certificate and other documents, then to provide them to the state office that would issue a late birth certificate. It was complicated and time consuming, with some costs involved. This would have been very inconvenient for some older people to have done. Yes, he had other documentation including SS card, driver's license, etc. But his birth certificate was a problem.
9
If your father had a driver's license, he wouldn't need a state-issued voter ID. At one time, he probably had an affidavit of non-availability.
1
It's been a long day, so I could be asleep, but I am reading a NY Times comment board, and seeing Obama supporters passionately arguing that undocumented illegals should vote in presidential, Congressional, Senate and statewide elections, no ID required to prove citizenship.
Great. So let's get 500,000 Russians (preferably women) 200,000 Canadians (again women) 150,00 French (yes, women) and another 100,000 Swedes (again women please) to come to America during the 2016 election and vote in various swing states that will come down to a few thousand votes. I've got a spare bedroom if nobody tells my fiancée. Pretty sure she'd be ticked. But hey, democracy requires sacrifice right?
Great. So let's get 500,000 Russians (preferably women) 200,000 Canadians (again women) 150,00 French (yes, women) and another 100,000 Swedes (again women please) to come to America during the 2016 election and vote in various swing states that will come down to a few thousand votes. I've got a spare bedroom if nobody tells my fiancée. Pretty sure she'd be ticked. But hey, democracy requires sacrifice right?
6
Nobody is arguing for that.
However, the Supreme Court has proactively allowed unlimited foreign funds to influence our electoral process, it's enshrined into law and I bet you enthusiastically support it.
However, the Supreme Court has proactively allowed unlimited foreign funds to influence our electoral process, it's enshrined into law and I bet you enthusiastically support it.
12
Foreign funds vs non-citizens voting for an American President.
Which one has the most immediate impact? Hmm...
Which one has the most immediate impact? Hmm...
1
My first job was as an Assistant Professor at Duke University in 1967. When my new wife and I arrived at the housing office in September we noted that almost all the listings had a red star. When we inquired what that meant, we were told "Whites only." We also noted job listings in the Durham newspaper for "Whites only" as well as a Ku Klux Klan sign on the main highway outside of Raleigh. Racial segregation was still a way of life in the South then, as it is now, only it's just not as blatant. Jesse Helms fed off that racism saying truly outrageous things on the air like Martin Luther King "got what he deserved" in being assassinated and celebrating the British Nazi Party leader Oswald Mosley. The only surprise is that it took Southerners so long to figure out a new way to re-impose Jim Crow. It's sickening now to see it spread north of the Mason-Dixon line to states like Wisconsin, the birthplace of Robert La Follette, a Republican, and the father of modern progressivism. We desperately need a Constitutional amendment to replace the electoral college with the universal right to vote that bans all state Voter ID laws. It's time to stop whittling away our democracy and to restore it to "We, the People."
16
The key to conservatives getting away with this is to conflate voter fraud with election fraud, two completely different things. Election fraud is done under the color of officialdom and since republicans control the vast majority of state legislators and governorships and state election infrastructure, simple arithmetic tells you they commit far more election fraud.
10
Oh, that is really a hoot. There is a long and storied history of election fraud in the US, the great majority in Democrat machine controlled cities.
Its all about capital vs. labor. Capital hates this framing and cried "class warfare" but the facts are that 5 points of GDP have moved from labor to capital over the last 20 years.
This is nothing more than ensuring that the folks who carry the water for capital get elected.
This is nothing more than ensuring that the folks who carry the water for capital get elected.
6
I usually vote.
But a few years back, while living in Pennsylvania helping a relative whose husband had unexpectedly died, I tried to register to vote for an upcoming election.
It was impossible.
No matter how many proofs of ID I submitted, the Pennsylvania Registrar of voters kept rejecting my application until I gave up and didn't vote.
But a few years back, while living in Pennsylvania helping a relative whose husband had unexpectedly died, I tried to register to vote for an upcoming election.
It was impossible.
No matter how many proofs of ID I submitted, the Pennsylvania Registrar of voters kept rejecting my application until I gave up and didn't vote.
11
I had no idea Pennsylvania is in the South and controlled by Democrats, or are you saying that registering to vote can be a chore in any state?
Poll taxes and literacy tests once barred all black voters from voting. They were flagrantly racist in intent and effect. Today's Voter ID laws are very different. They benefit Republicans for sure, but they are a far cry from the Jim Crow days. Instead, they need to be measured against similar Democratic measure, like keeping the polls open late, requiring that election materials be printed in Spanish, and including pictures of the candidates in election materials. The parties today use whatever tactics they can to get out the vote among their constituents. Anyone who argues that Democratic partisan efforts are just while Republican partisan efforts are unjust is merely demonstrating their own partisan bias.
5
There's a huge difference between getting out your own vote as opposed to denying your opponents access to the vote. Which raises the question of just how the "partisan" Democratic practices which you sight restrict anyone's right to vote? As far as I can see, the answer is "not at all."
2
Why should election materials be in Spanish? To vote, you must be a citizen, and to be a citizen, you must speak English.
I have a comment to the author and a question. I guess this is what you're resigned to writing about the more the emails come out that snow Hillary Clinton indeed transmitted classified material over her private email account. The fact that she lied? So to take to focus off the habitual liar the New York Times once again starts engaging in scare tactics and baseless allegations. And the fact that the election is 15 months away shows you how desperate they are. Hilary is sinking faster the a rock in water and no amount of trying to gin up trump up charges, charges this paper brings up every time there is an election
For those who refuse to do it or it's too far? Have you ever heard of an absentee ballot? I have done that for years. It's just another cop out by the left.
Finally, do these same liberals who whine about the same thing over and over complain about
1) needing photo ID to pass through a TSA checkpoint
2) pass through customs
3) rent a csr
4) buy alcohol
5) buy cigerettes
6) test try a car
7) enroll your kids in school
8) open a credit account
9) open a bank account
10) withdraw cash from bank (inside)
11) Cash a check
and there's more. You people don't have a problem whipping it out for your Bud Light or your MD 20/20 but you'll say you're being discriminated against. If you have nothing to hide you would just do it.
Democrats don't want voter ID. That way the can ensure all the illegals will vote for Hillary and we'll become a nanny state for sure
For those who refuse to do it or it's too far? Have you ever heard of an absentee ballot? I have done that for years. It's just another cop out by the left.
Finally, do these same liberals who whine about the same thing over and over complain about
1) needing photo ID to pass through a TSA checkpoint
2) pass through customs
3) rent a csr
4) buy alcohol
5) buy cigerettes
6) test try a car
7) enroll your kids in school
8) open a credit account
9) open a bank account
10) withdraw cash from bank (inside)
11) Cash a check
and there's more. You people don't have a problem whipping it out for your Bud Light or your MD 20/20 but you'll say you're being discriminated against. If you have nothing to hide you would just do it.
Democrats don't want voter ID. That way the can ensure all the illegals will vote for Hillary and we'll become a nanny state for sure
13
The right to vote is basic in our democracy. Why should it be made dependent on having a plastic card in your hand?
2
In this article NYT maintains that "a small group of Republican activists has dismantled almost all of" voting rights protections. It is a very well written history of previous ills, but nowhere does it show or prove that Republicans actually dismantled these protections.
Putting history and liberal propoganda aside, there are a few well defined key issues regarding voting discussed here:
1,Early voting - not eliminiated, only reduced. Isn't a week enough?
2.Eliminate same day registration - why should we have it in the first place?
3.Disqualified ballots filed outside home precincts. Well, shouldn't they be disqualified?
4.And of course the photo ID. It seems so reasonable, especially when the state pays for those who can't afford it. Once you have it, no need for student ID; university administrations are not politicall neutral.
When these key points are proposed and debated, most of the people felt they were reasonable and elected representatives to put them into effect. These representatives are neither idealogues nor partisan operatives; if you insist otherwise, same labels applies to the dems who oppose them.
One can debate the effect of this or that point, but to pronounce them the workings of ill intent is sheer propoganda, serving only the democrats but not journalism.
Putting history and liberal propoganda aside, there are a few well defined key issues regarding voting discussed here:
1,Early voting - not eliminiated, only reduced. Isn't a week enough?
2.Eliminate same day registration - why should we have it in the first place?
3.Disqualified ballots filed outside home precincts. Well, shouldn't they be disqualified?
4.And of course the photo ID. It seems so reasonable, especially when the state pays for those who can't afford it. Once you have it, no need for student ID; university administrations are not politicall neutral.
When these key points are proposed and debated, most of the people felt they were reasonable and elected representatives to put them into effect. These representatives are neither idealogues nor partisan operatives; if you insist otherwise, same labels applies to the dems who oppose them.
One can debate the effect of this or that point, but to pronounce them the workings of ill intent is sheer propoganda, serving only the democrats but not journalism.
12
Oh, good grief, rimantas, what planet do you live on where everyone is on your personal timeline?
We need same-day registration because life happens. If, on voting day, you lose your registration card through theft or fire or in the washing machine or, I don't know, a strong wind gust, same-day registration covers you.
As for a week being enough for early voting, tell that to the cop who works third shift that week or the woman who has been in the hospital delivering a baby and needing aftercare. So no, one week isn't enough for everyone, and it might not be for you at some point. Ever consider that?
As for photo i.d.s, I pay enough in taxes, thank you very much, so I don't need, nor do I want, the extra burden of paying for other people's photos. I'm fine with there being no photo, as voter fraud is almost non-existent.
Republicans would do well to remember that Democrats are fighting for ALL voters, unlike Republicans. And the Democrats have it right: if you're going to demand standards for others, you'd better be willing to abide by them if you want them taken seriously. The Democrats want unencumbered access to voting for themselves AND for their opponents - unlike Republicans.
Careful what you wish for, rimantas.
We need same-day registration because life happens. If, on voting day, you lose your registration card through theft or fire or in the washing machine or, I don't know, a strong wind gust, same-day registration covers you.
As for a week being enough for early voting, tell that to the cop who works third shift that week or the woman who has been in the hospital delivering a baby and needing aftercare. So no, one week isn't enough for everyone, and it might not be for you at some point. Ever consider that?
As for photo i.d.s, I pay enough in taxes, thank you very much, so I don't need, nor do I want, the extra burden of paying for other people's photos. I'm fine with there being no photo, as voter fraud is almost non-existent.
Republicans would do well to remember that Democrats are fighting for ALL voters, unlike Republicans. And the Democrats have it right: if you're going to demand standards for others, you'd better be willing to abide by them if you want them taken seriously. The Democrats want unencumbered access to voting for themselves AND for their opponents - unlike Republicans.
Careful what you wish for, rimantas.
3
Saffron: no one is talking about personal timeline. Seems you are making this up, claiming only dems represent the people. They don't, and they certainly messed things up during first two years of Obama administration, when they had full control. Now the people are returning to Republicans with the hope of having many things corrected.
The voting points which the article discusses and which I summarized were presented to the nation every year. Most people agreed with the Republicans and voted them in. Why? Because most people just don't see how the various extra accomodations for the minorities denied any voting rights. One must put in at least some effort to take advantage of what this wonderful country has to offer.
Same day registration? Are you saying that several months, if not up to six, isn't enough to register??? Early voting is great of course, but why isn't one week enough?
The voting points which the article discusses and which I summarized were presented to the nation every year. Most people agreed with the Republicans and voted them in. Why? Because most people just don't see how the various extra accomodations for the minorities denied any voting rights. One must put in at least some effort to take advantage of what this wonderful country has to offer.
Same day registration? Are you saying that several months, if not up to six, isn't enough to register??? Early voting is great of course, but why isn't one week enough?
I will never vote for a candidate running for a party that has as one of its principle aims denying people the right to vote. I don't care whether the opponent is a corrupt lunatic, I am never rewarding a Republican candidate with my vote until the entire party signs on to legislation that makes voting easier for everyone and not the chosen few. The utter sham about needing to combat the phantom menace of voter fraud is just despicable and gives the lie in bold neon to any notion that the party actually cares about equality or democracy.
8
This story literally makes me sick to my stomach. I know I am not alone in feeling a profound sense of loss.
15
Just a new way for racists to change the laws in their favor but only of handful of them would admit they are racists. I just find it curious why the article did not examine how many poor whites are actually being affected by the same laws.
8
Poor whites are just as reviled in some circles as people of color are. So my guess would be: Plenty. I must agree, it would be interesting.
We need a constitutional amendment: the right to vote shall not be infringed.
11
I moved to Colorado 20 years ago this week, from Texas. I went to the DMV, to gen my Colorado driver's license. At the same time I was asked, do you want to register to vote. I was surprised, I thought i had to go some place else to do so, like I did in Texas. No they say, we can take care of you and one extra trip was saved. Since I moved to Boulder County, in 1996, I was able to vote in the comfort of my home. I get a mail in ballot, fro all elections. It was easy to absentee voting, in the early days, but these ease was expanded to anyone who votes in Colorado. Some minor elections are now conducted this way.
There are polling places for those who still want to vote the old fashioned way. As for voter fraud? Zero. Though, the GOP and something called the American Constitution Party have been trying to get the law overturned and have been declaring fraud, where none exists.
The previous Attorney General tried the tactic of fraud and stricter voting procedures. He came up with a huge list of people and it turns out it was completely wrong. Hard tactic in state with is as "purple" as you can get.
While states east, north, and west of Colorado continue their campaign of voter fraud and needed id laws; Colorado continue sin the opposite direction.
People who remain silent, or don't vote, and let their "representatives" restrict voting, help to curtail what we call democracy. Voting is a right that should never be denied, doing so erodes the foundations of this republic.
There are polling places for those who still want to vote the old fashioned way. As for voter fraud? Zero. Though, the GOP and something called the American Constitution Party have been trying to get the law overturned and have been declaring fraud, where none exists.
The previous Attorney General tried the tactic of fraud and stricter voting procedures. He came up with a huge list of people and it turns out it was completely wrong. Hard tactic in state with is as "purple" as you can get.
While states east, north, and west of Colorado continue their campaign of voter fraud and needed id laws; Colorado continue sin the opposite direction.
People who remain silent, or don't vote, and let their "representatives" restrict voting, help to curtail what we call democracy. Voting is a right that should never be denied, doing so erodes the foundations of this republic.
35
As for voter fraud? Zero.
===============
Baloney. We don't know because no one is looking.
Ballots are mailed to the last address on record for a voter. Think about how many people move in the two years between elections. Every election there are tens of thousands of "orphan" ballots mailed to locations where the intended recipients no longer live. If you don't think these don't get harvested and used by third parties you are one naive person.
===============
Baloney. We don't know because no one is looking.
Ballots are mailed to the last address on record for a voter. Think about how many people move in the two years between elections. Every election there are tens of thousands of "orphan" ballots mailed to locations where the intended recipients no longer live. If you don't think these don't get harvested and used by third parties you are one naive person.
I do not understand how the NC voter ID law can be constitutional unless the state makes provisions to provide ALL of its citizens with the necessary ID. Many people do not own cars, and some of these people will not have driver's licenses (especially the young, old, poor, and disabled). Requiring a driver's license to vote inherently favors citizens with driver's licenses - favoring one group of citizens over another has to be unconstitutional.
Could I get an ID to vote from NC? I don't know. I was born in another country and would have extreme difficulty producing a birth certificate. I suspect that many others might have trouble finding a birth certificate. No hurdle like this should prevent anyone from voting.
Could I get an ID to vote from NC? I don't know. I was born in another country and would have extreme difficulty producing a birth certificate. I suspect that many others might have trouble finding a birth certificate. No hurdle like this should prevent anyone from voting.
11
If you were born in another country, and your parents aren't US citizens, you could use a valid US Naturalization Card (green card) to obtain a state issued ID legally. If your parents are US citizens and you were born in another country, your parents could obtain a birth certificate capable of allowing you to obtain a state issued ID legally.
The "hurdle" preventing non-citizens (illegals) from voting is called not being a citizen.
The "hurdle" preventing non-citizens (illegals) from voting is called not being a citizen.
4
Proof that you are an American citizen comes in many forms and should be shown when you want to vote. A birth certificate from another country does not make you eligible to vote here! This is exactly the point! The Liberals have everyone convinced that they can live and work here in the U.S. Not true! You must follow a process to be a legal resident and then citizen that can take years. I lived in the Philippines for 7 years and the UAE for three and there was little chance that I could be a citizen of either one of those countries.
1
But I'm sure you could use your citizenship papers.
1
....a small group of Republican activists has dismantled almost all of its protections.
Read "....a small group of white, Republican, right-wing racists...."
Read "....a small group of white, Republican, right-wing racists...."
27
"All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others".
- Excerpt from Animal Farm, George Orwell, 1945
- Excerpt from Animal Farm, George Orwell, 1945
20
And although the pigs and all the animals knew that sheets were not to be slept on by animals, the pigs having moved into the farmer's house found sheets to sleep on and eventually the workers were convinced that the pigs needed the comfort of sheets after all.
The ones with the money, power and prestige will always sleep between soft sheets, even if the rest of the world sleeps on hard dirt or cracked pavement.
The ones with the money, power and prestige will always sleep between soft sheets, even if the rest of the world sleeps on hard dirt or cracked pavement.
2
The Times once again forgot to mention those evil Republicans also kick their dogs and hit their spouses.
11
I'm offended by use of the American flag to emblemize this op-ed. Mr. Rutenberg, and even those who support his worldview, have every right to determine for themselves what is "American", but the clear attempt to present his views as GIVENS in terms of what constitutes an America we all share is just ... deeply offensive.
No educated person in America, particularly those of us born BEFORE Mr. Frye's outrageous experience and whose childhood was spent largely DURING the last vestiges of Jim Crow, questions as untrue what went on in our deep South fifty years ago and more. And almost all of us, Democrat OR Republican, regard such practices as outrageous.
What doing away with early voting and same-day registration and the remaining litany of actions has specifically to do with blacks in our society MORE than whites is quite beyond me. Republicans in the states at question are trying to return voting to the status it once held for those who could vote, which is that those who inform themselves of the issues and candidates and are willing to take the TROUBLE to vote should vote, and that those who don't ... shouldn't. Now, many in our country disagree with this conviction, but it's a very different disagreement than whether our black community should be discouraged from voting.
The Voting Rights Act is alive and well. If Mr. Frye were to be challenged today in NC as he was challenged in 1956, I'd be among the first to condemn it roundly as an outrage; and I'm a Republican.
No educated person in America, particularly those of us born BEFORE Mr. Frye's outrageous experience and whose childhood was spent largely DURING the last vestiges of Jim Crow, questions as untrue what went on in our deep South fifty years ago and more. And almost all of us, Democrat OR Republican, regard such practices as outrageous.
What doing away with early voting and same-day registration and the remaining litany of actions has specifically to do with blacks in our society MORE than whites is quite beyond me. Republicans in the states at question are trying to return voting to the status it once held for those who could vote, which is that those who inform themselves of the issues and candidates and are willing to take the TROUBLE to vote should vote, and that those who don't ... shouldn't. Now, many in our country disagree with this conviction, but it's a very different disagreement than whether our black community should be discouraged from voting.
The Voting Rights Act is alive and well. If Mr. Frye were to be challenged today in NC as he was challenged in 1956, I'd be among the first to condemn it roundly as an outrage; and I'm a Republican.
9
You are more offended by the image of a shredded flag than you are by the shredding of the rights of US citizens? Interesting priorities. As a resident of North Carolina, and as someone who has worked with several people involved in this case, the shredding is real, and it is crudely cynical.
1
The 15th Amendment plus my birthright citizenship affirms my inalienable right to be illiterate, ignorant, and of malicious intent, and nobody can prevent me from entering the voting booth.
My question is,
Where is the government task force to make a voting app? Seriously! Why do I *need* to be so inconvenienced in the modern era? And don't you think we would have exponentially higher participation by making it this easy!
Unless you don't want higher participation, of course.
My question is,
Where is the government task force to make a voting app? Seriously! Why do I *need* to be so inconvenienced in the modern era? And don't you think we would have exponentially higher participation by making it this easy!
Unless you don't want higher participation, of course.
The well-documented and admitted application of the Southern strategy, which continues to this day in Republican circles, indicates that the statement made in the final sentence of your second paragraph is demonstrably false. Clearly, a significant proportion of Republicans do not think as you do.
One would think that a policy of "divide and conquer" is not the best of foundations on which to build a lasting democracy. However some, apparently, disagree. And therein lies the crux of the problem.
One would think that a policy of "divide and conquer" is not the best of foundations on which to build a lasting democracy. However some, apparently, disagree. And therein lies the crux of the problem.
Suppression of voting rights, brutal often fatal treatment of African Americans by police, cruel and unusual punishment of prisoners all make me want to ask President Obama: what right did you have lecturing African leaders about their human rights violations? Who are we to set ourselves up as the bastion of democracy and human dignity?
6
Really now? IS "Obama" responsible for the horrendous, disgraceful, to put it lightly, treatment of Africans in America? No, he's not. Not by far. Therefore, by the right of him being President of the United States he is in the position to lecture African leaders, leaders who for the most part have not been able to get their own nations together, economically, politically, socially, etc.
1
Racism seems 'alive and well', a shameful reminder that our 'willful' ignorance (and its attendant prejudices) continues to rear its ugly head, a mockery of a country advocating equality, freedom and the beauty of diversity.
9
Do the people that can vote, vote? I think not, if you look at the turn out for some of the past elections. It kind of throws a monkey wrench in the importance of voting rights. Rather than moan your life away, figure out how to overcome and then go do it. My guess is that the black turn out for voting, now that we have had a black president, who can no longer can run, will be close to ground zero. And when the Republicans stride in to the White House, America will be looking around, and the paltry black turn out will stick out like a sore thumb or two, but it will be more like the black voter giving the middle finger to the rest of the country. Talk about voting against your own interests, then there is not voting for your best interests. Which is worse?
4
I moved to the San Francisco Bay Area last year and got a job as a Trainer with one of the local counties. The job involved training the election workers, or poll workers, for the upcoming election in the procedures and rules regarding voting. There was one key elements to the election process that made me proud - we were tol to make it clear to the election workers that everyone, with or without ID gets to vote. Even if they were in the wrong precinct, they still get to vote. If the election worker couldn't find someones name in a roster, they could still fill out a ballot write out their name and address, cast the vote, the the main office staff then would check it manually against the sign in sheet from the election night to make sure they didn't vote twice. It's a simple, yet ingenious way to make sure no one votes more than once. In some elections, people might forget that they mailed in their ballot last month, and if they then vote in person, this simple method would not count the second vote. So when I hear about that people could be stuffing the ballot box, I now know that in order to make something like that to happen, you have to bribe a whole ton of people and then hope nobody reports it - and it probably doesn't happen because it's so hard to do because there are reps from different political parties in the room.
77
On November 25, 2001, the Coast Guard found 8 or more absentee ballot box tops floating in San Francisco Bay and in the ocean, near the Golden Gate Bridge, at the end of a weekend for which rain was predicted. The concern is that ballots may have been dumped into the Bay.
Ingenious indeed!
Ingenious indeed!
4
So someone who broke the law to come here can vote right? I guess anyone voting trumps enforcing our laws doesn't.
4
Box tops? And that calls for a conspiracy theory? In our warehouse we had tons of boxes, including those used for training, and tons of extras. Every box has to come back, that's how you track them, not with anecdotal evidence. That's the genius behind it, you don't leave the power at the poll, it's at the main office.
Show me on of these states that introduced Voter ID laws and at the same time made it easy to obtain this ID and the proponents of voter ID laws might have a case. In most if not all states nothing was done to encourage people to get the ID's. In many states permits and other identification more likely to be owned by a whites, gun permits and state driver licenses, are preferred over ID possessed by those they wish to disenfranchise, e.g. the student ID.
18
are preferred over ID possessed by those they wish to disenfranchise, e.g. the student ID.
================
All a student ID says is that you are a student. A foreign student from Norway would have a student ID - should she be able to use that to vote illegally?
================
All a student ID says is that you are a student. A foreign student from Norway would have a student ID - should she be able to use that to vote illegally?
3
Texas issues free voter ID cards called Election Identification Certificates (EICs). It charges $1 for certified copies of birth certificates if people need one to get an EIC. Texans can pick up an IEC as they registered to vote. Texas maintains a fleet of mobile voter registration vans that table through all neighborhoods.Texas issues only a few hundred EICs per year. The demand of EICs is almost nonexistent because virtually all Texas voters already have a state-issued photo. Texans who don't drive get a Texas identification card that they use for the same identification purposes for which people use driver's licenses. The Texas voter ID laws has been in effect for two elections, and no one has complained they could not get an EIC. Poll workers have reported no unusual problems. If thousands were disenfranchised by the voter ID law, someone would complain they were not allowed to vote.
2
Thanks for your coverage of this, NYT.
15
The New York Times forgot to inform you that New York bans early voting altogether, does not allow voters to cast ballots out of their precinct, and requires voters to show identification when they vote and register to vote. The "alternate" forms of identification New York poll workers accept are more difficult to obtain that state-issued photo IDs. For example, to get a utility bill with your name on it, you have to show the utility company identification, you have to make a deposit, and you have to pay monthly utility bills.
New York City’s watchdog Department of Investigations recently demonstrated how easy it is to commit voter fraud in New York. DOI undercover agents showed up at 63 polling places last fall. Using non-photo IDs, they pretended to be voters who should have been turned away by election officials; the agents assumed the names of individuals who had died or moved out of town, or who were sitting in jail. In 61 instances, or 97 percent of the time, the testers were allowed to vote. (Those who did vote cast only a write-in vote for a “John Test” so as to not affect the outcome of any contest.)
New York City’s watchdog Department of Investigations recently demonstrated how easy it is to commit voter fraud in New York. DOI undercover agents showed up at 63 polling places last fall. Using non-photo IDs, they pretended to be voters who should have been turned away by election officials; the agents assumed the names of individuals who had died or moved out of town, or who were sitting in jail. In 61 instances, or 97 percent of the time, the testers were allowed to vote. (Those who did vote cast only a write-in vote for a “John Test” so as to not affect the outcome of any contest.)
2
I, for one, have problems understanding how restricting others right to vote makes anyone someone a good leader.
13
I, for another have "problems" understanding why it's totally fine for undocumented illegals to vote in a presidential, congressional or US Senate election, and why liberals have to drag up stuff from the 1950s (30 years before I was BORN) that isn't happening in 2015 to justify letting illegals vote.
6
It is rare, please see https://www.brennancenter.org/issues/voter-fraud
The politicians want us to think it happens often, but ebola coming to the US has almost a good a chance as voter fraud.
The politicians want us to think it happens often, but ebola coming to the US has almost a good a chance as voter fraud.
8
Fifty years of voting rights is a milestone indeed. Unfortunately it is accompanied by legal parsing of decisions and perpetuation of stereotypes and propaganda of all types. My parents, both life long Republicans, moved to my father's home state of Texas after my father's retirement in 1961 from the military. Committed and conscientious voters and citizens they became the precinct chairs in our neighborhood. We even had voting in our garage but my parents were soon disabused of their faith and trust in democracy because they refused to collect poll taxes or administer literacy tests anywhere at any time.
Now the Roberts court wants to examine even the foundational ideas of voting as outlined in the Constitution. It is a very different Republican party and Republican ethos to the one my parents voted for.
Now the Roberts court wants to examine even the foundational ideas of voting as outlined in the Constitution. It is a very different Republican party and Republican ethos to the one my parents voted for.
13
In a word:
Nonsense.
With a copy of the NC voter ID law and the federal complaint at my side, I did not find a word identifying any ACTUAL events of Black voter disenfranchisement or the names/sworn statements of ANY citizen of North Carolina stating they had been denied access to vote under the NC law.
Not one incident. Not one name.
What begins anew is the exploitation of MY skin color to advance a liberal agenda item and buttress a failed presidency by dividing a new generation of Americans along racial lines.
Nonsense.
With a copy of the NC voter ID law and the federal complaint at my side, I did not find a word identifying any ACTUAL events of Black voter disenfranchisement or the names/sworn statements of ANY citizen of North Carolina stating they had been denied access to vote under the NC law.
Not one incident. Not one name.
What begins anew is the exploitation of MY skin color to advance a liberal agenda item and buttress a failed presidency by dividing a new generation of Americans along racial lines.
9
Mr. "Barrister":
I have read your comments for a while here in the NYT and you invariably deny there is racism and extended corruption within the Republican Party and within most police departments. It is self evident you disregard widespread reports and data that show you are wrong. it is very unfortunate people like you are allowed to disrespect all those who have been abused.
I have read your comments for a while here in the NYT and you invariably deny there is racism and extended corruption within the Republican Party and within most police departments. It is self evident you disregard widespread reports and data that show you are wrong. it is very unfortunate people like you are allowed to disrespect all those who have been abused.
4
What makes you think that evidence of actual disenfranchisement is necessary to prove a violation of the Voting Rights Act?
Under your test, a state law that expressly limited voting to white people couldn't be challenged until after it went into effect.
Under your test, a state law that expressly limited voting to white people couldn't be challenged until after it went into effect.
2
Do you have a name?
A Black citizen in NC who was disenfranchised under the NC voter ID law? None appear in the court documents. Rev. Barber hasn't named or produced names.
It's unfortunate that you are so gullible. Then again you're probably a liberal.
What happened in the 1950s, 30 years before I was born has no bearing on me, or any Black person who chooses to make better life choices.
A Black citizen in NC who was disenfranchised under the NC voter ID law? None appear in the court documents. Rev. Barber hasn't named or produced names.
It's unfortunate that you are so gullible. Then again you're probably a liberal.
What happened in the 1950s, 30 years before I was born has no bearing on me, or any Black person who chooses to make better life choices.
1
Instead of listening to the logical hokum about a "race-blind Constitution," it's time we all started demanding a "political party-blind" Constitution.
2
Who are these people above age 18 who can't obtain photo ID?
In our security obsessed society, ID is needed to enter hospitals, schools, office buildings, do banking, travel, collect benefits, etc.
In NYC we use signature matching. That seems to work.
I worry about voter fraud among all parties.
Also, with Democrat Obama in office all these years why are Blacks suffering more financially than when GW Bush was Prez?
In our security obsessed society, ID is needed to enter hospitals, schools, office buildings, do banking, travel, collect benefits, etc.
In NYC we use signature matching. That seems to work.
I worry about voter fraud among all parties.
Also, with Democrat Obama in office all these years why are Blacks suffering more financially than when GW Bush was Prez?
11
Blacks and many others have become poorer in this country because Barak Obama is a disguised Republican, who like most Republicans has been supporting corporations over individuals through his two terms.
4
Who are these people who think that burdening a fundamental right is no different from adding inconvenience to a trip to the bank?
1
Not all ID is accepted at the polls in states where voting restrictions are the most severe. Furthermore, if the state demands an ID to exercise a Constitutional right, it should provide that ID free of charge. But for the state to make a requirement to exercise a Constitutional right by separating those who can get the required ID on their own from those who cannot is egregious. It doesn't matter whether people can get the ID or not. What right has the state to base our Constitutional right on the ability to get ID? I'm sure even the gun nuts can agree with that. Apparently, it is easier for a white man to get an automatic weapon than it is for a black men to vote. Again, if the state wants to make the exercise of a Constitutional right contingent on ID, it has an obligation to provide that ID to every eligible voter.
5
Some good history presented here but overall this is just another typical NYT propaganda piece about allegedly disenfranchised black voters. While this may well still be an issue in some parts of the country, it should not dissuade us from implementing smart voter identification laws.
Voter fraud is real but does not EVER get reported in these pages because the fraud is overwhelming pro democrat party. For example here in MN, Al Franken stole the 2008 US Senate race with a couple hundred illegally cast convict votes.
But even the potential of voter fraud demands strict control of the ballot door. Protecting the process of democracy is the obligation of every American as a point of patriotic duty and simple common sense.
Voter fraud is real but does not EVER get reported in these pages because the fraud is overwhelming pro democrat party. For example here in MN, Al Franken stole the 2008 US Senate race with a couple hundred illegally cast convict votes.
But even the potential of voter fraud demands strict control of the ballot door. Protecting the process of democracy is the obligation of every American as a point of patriotic duty and simple common sense.
9
Wrong, Al Franken did not steal the election. Just another right wing myth/lie.
16
@ BearBoy There is no--absolutely no--evidence that the 2008 election for senator was stolen by Senator Franken. In-person voter fraud through stolen identity in Minnesota is nearly impossible and could never have been done at a level to affect any election results. The process of counting and re-counting the votes in the Franken-Coleman election was public, bipartisan and accepted by all except the "crazies" for whom no proof will ever be enough.
The forces supporting Mr. Coleman used every legal strategy possible to delay the seating of Mr. Franken and deny the Democratic majority in the Senate the 50th vote so important legislation could be passed over Republican obstruction during a time of national economic emergency. Mr. Coleman was rewarded by the GOP with a safe, well-paid political job for his embarrassing participation in the unnecessarily long recount which violated Minnesota values as clearly as his senatorial career did.
Minnesota's record of voter participation is rarely exceeded in any election. While there are certainly innovations which could further improve voter participation among minority groups especially Native American populations, the restrictions on registering voters and on actual voting which states in the former Confederacy continue to adopt have been rejected by Minnesota voters.
The forces supporting Mr. Coleman used every legal strategy possible to delay the seating of Mr. Franken and deny the Democratic majority in the Senate the 50th vote so important legislation could be passed over Republican obstruction during a time of national economic emergency. Mr. Coleman was rewarded by the GOP with a safe, well-paid political job for his embarrassing participation in the unnecessarily long recount which violated Minnesota values as clearly as his senatorial career did.
Minnesota's record of voter participation is rarely exceeded in any election. While there are certainly innovations which could further improve voter participation among minority groups especially Native American populations, the restrictions on registering voters and on actual voting which states in the former Confederacy continue to adopt have been rejected by Minnesota voters.
3
Too bad you can't actually document EVIDENCE that voter fraud is rampant and favors Democrats. The idea that Al Franken stole the senate election in MN is ridiculous. Again, where's the proof?
6
This piece is published as "news"?
Opinion page at best -- however, yellow political journalism is a more likely accurate description.
Opinion page at best -- however, yellow political journalism is a more likely accurate description.
9
Recent testimony in Federal court regarding the NC voter ID laws the information was provided to the Court that NC voter fraud was a whopping 0.00000571% for the years 2000-2012. A $25 million dollar Republican solution for a non-existent problem.
25
Elon University in 2012 estimated there were 6.6 million eligible voters in North Carolina.
The testimony (clearly by someone on the plaintiffs side opposing the voter ID law) that NC voter fraud was supposedly "00000571%" still works out to 37 voters illegally casting ballots in NC.
If you are the candidate who lost NC by 37 votes, its just as wrong as if there were 37,000 illegals voting.
Again, when you are the victim of a crime, any number higher than zero is too high.
The testimony (clearly by someone on the plaintiffs side opposing the voter ID law) that NC voter fraud was supposedly "00000571%" still works out to 37 voters illegally casting ballots in NC.
If you are the candidate who lost NC by 37 votes, its just as wrong as if there were 37,000 illegals voting.
Again, when you are the victim of a crime, any number higher than zero is too high.
1
Bad math. 2 illegal votes we cast in NC between 2000-2012 out of million votes cast during that period
3
Mr. "Barrister":
I doubt anyone of your kind would agree to spend $25 million dollars to help 37,000 people whose vote was denied, but you worry your candidate may lose by 37 votes ?
Isn't your worry so bothersome because all or some those 37 votes could benefit a black or colored person ?
I doubt anyone of your kind would agree to spend $25 million dollars to help 37,000 people whose vote was denied, but you worry your candidate may lose by 37 votes ?
Isn't your worry so bothersome because all or some those 37 votes could benefit a black or colored person ?
2
The Republicans, dealing with the lowest approval ratings in modern history are doing everything they can to suppress open elections. Whether through gerrymandering, anonymous corporate campaign financing blessed by the Supreme Court's Citizen United decision, or through the dismantling of the Voting Rights Act the ultra-right GOP will not hesitate to pursue the destruction of democracy as we know it. For them it is a matter f survival.
27
A party run by decent people wouldn't need to lie, cheat and steal.
9
True, and the Democrat party is very guilty.
When will the NYT explain why NY has NO early voting...and why one can only vote on voting day? Re: "early voting days rolled back..." perhaps the writers should explain that instead of 3-4 weeks of early voting, some states have cut back to 2-3 weeks (a heck of a lot better than NY); same day registrations...like VT in 2012, fraudulent voting by claiming one-day residency in state); photo ID requirements....come on....95% of the voting population has to have valid ID; voting out of precinct...that vote will count, but will be put aside and have to be verified.
registering to vote ath the DMV: ..with santuary cities illegally granting licenses to illegal aliens, voter fraud does and will certainly be a fact. The one question we all should ask....if there is no voter ID, than how does one know there is not voter fraud? Amen.
registering to vote ath the DMV: ..with santuary cities illegally granting licenses to illegal aliens, voter fraud does and will certainly be a fact. The one question we all should ask....if there is no voter ID, than how does one know there is not voter fraud? Amen.
8
When will the NYT explain why NY has NO early voting...and why one can only vote on voting day?
==============
I was wondering that myself. Jim Crow must be alive and well in New York
==============
I was wondering that myself. Jim Crow must be alive and well in New York
5
Really? Really?? Are we going to bring up literacy tests again (and again, and again) as if that somehow has any impact whatsoever on the current debate?
And "Republicans flipped control of 11 state legislatures" is a lie; the voters flipped control (it's called democracy). The article discussed "restrictive" voting laws when no one is being restricted from voting. Does one have to follow a few basic rules to vote? Well duh.
Later on, it's a bad thing that "justice should be colorblind?" This article is written as if to indicate that any educated reader would be opposed to this, when pretty much every person I know holds this as a central pillar of democracy.
As to the conservatives' claims of 'fraud', I could not agree more. There is little fraud. So shame on them, but that don't mean that motor voter or 30 days of voting is a good thing. One should have to put out effort to want to be part of the electorate, and I endorse a return to the sanity of modest voting time periods. As to the DOJ objections under the VRA, does anyone really believe that the DOJ acts independently of political influence? Finally, I note that the author can find no fault with that statement by Mr. Farr, which are patently true: blacks are no less welcome to vote that whites with shortened early-voting periods. What happened to personal responsibility?
And "Republicans flipped control of 11 state legislatures" is a lie; the voters flipped control (it's called democracy). The article discussed "restrictive" voting laws when no one is being restricted from voting. Does one have to follow a few basic rules to vote? Well duh.
Later on, it's a bad thing that "justice should be colorblind?" This article is written as if to indicate that any educated reader would be opposed to this, when pretty much every person I know holds this as a central pillar of democracy.
As to the conservatives' claims of 'fraud', I could not agree more. There is little fraud. So shame on them, but that don't mean that motor voter or 30 days of voting is a good thing. One should have to put out effort to want to be part of the electorate, and I endorse a return to the sanity of modest voting time periods. As to the DOJ objections under the VRA, does anyone really believe that the DOJ acts independently of political influence? Finally, I note that the author can find no fault with that statement by Mr. Farr, which are patently true: blacks are no less welcome to vote that whites with shortened early-voting periods. What happened to personal responsibility?
5
There were rumors that during the Reagan years', (Ron AND Nancy, that is) the attack on civil rights escalated to a fever pitch, not only at the high court levels, but also local administrations in tiny towns, one by one, day by day, began to revoke through legislation and brute force to dismantle what the Voting Rights Act had initiated. Certain nefarious cabinet members were said to have take a strong personal interest in this affair, assuring a rather right-centrist President (at least in Term I) that these actions would assure the domination of the Republican Party for decades to come.
2
Apparently the courts care deeply about nullifying gerrymandering that favors minority communities, but look with loving eyes on the same tactic where it carves up urban areas into ridiculous association with far-flung rural areas and thus favors rural conservative voters.
21
When the Republican party comes out and tells the American people that they want to limit voting to only well healed white people, & ignorant poor people, who vote against their own self interests, they'll be finally telling the truth.
But they'll never do that.
They'll continue to wrap themselves in the flag and talk of Sweet Liberty and Freedom. All the while working diligently to limit freedoms for the rest of us.
They think they're patriots? What kind of patriotism is that?
Seems more like tyranny and treason to me.
But they'll never do that.
They'll continue to wrap themselves in the flag and talk of Sweet Liberty and Freedom. All the while working diligently to limit freedoms for the rest of us.
They think they're patriots? What kind of patriotism is that?
Seems more like tyranny and treason to me.
27
So since the Republicans haven't said a WORD or done ANYTHING to support your wild claims of a vast right wing conspiracy against Black people (by the way I'm Black) you just invent one to pile on the nonsensical meme of racism by Republicans.
The evil, imaginary, nonsensical, non-existent right wing Tea Party GOP Boogeyman lives on.
The evil, imaginary, nonsensical, non-existent right wing Tea Party GOP Boogeyman lives on.
2
The Republican rhetoric to which you refer doesn't convince any one, but it does give a certain number of liberals apoplexy, which shortens their lives, resulting in fewer democratic votes.
sophisticated evil indeed, and almost worse than the original evils.
3
Those evil republicans, why, trying to influence an election, for shame! Why not try the democratic line, where they simply use their government offices to intimidate the opposing party! IRS, secret subpoenas, gerrymandering (which is ok if dems do it, evil if republicans do the same), creating bigger and bigger government bureaus with more and more rules governing the oppositions supporters. THAT is the way to handle all this "voting rights" stuff.
4
I find it tragic that the people behind this effort are mainly from the baby boom generation. They grew up during the civil rights era. They know how deeply ingrained prejudice is in this country, yet they spend their energy, money, time to limit the right to vote. They were in their formative years when four little girls died in a Birmingham church, when Medger Evers was gunned down in front of his family, when Martin Luther King was assassinated. I don't even know what to say about this other than I find it extremely sad for our country.
9
whoa, steve. as a proud progressive baby boomer, i beg you not to generalize about me and my cohort.
GO BERNIE!
GO BERNIE!
Justice Roberts, like many of the commenters here, believes racism is so over. He should get out more.
24
Another irony of this article is the New York Times whining about reductions in early voting days in some states. This of course, when New York doesn't have and never has had early voting.
5
We need to replace or, at least, balance the Voter Rights Act with the Voter Responsibility Act which would include having proper ID, being legally registered to vote, and passing a simple test to show you understand how our government is designed to work.
In America today I am hearing way too much about rights and far too little about responsibility!
In America today I am hearing way too much about rights and far too little about responsibility!
3
Oh please. North Carolina reduced early voting from 17 days to 10 days. New York has NO early voting.
Student ID's do not show where students reside. Students should not be allowed to vote where they go to school. They will not be there long, and do not have a stake in the politics of where they go to school. They may of course vote in their hometowns.
NC, with a Republican governor and house and senate, is doing exceptionally well. Lowered taxes, lowered unemployment and more revenue. It is a great place to live.
The Voting Rights Act was an anachronism. There is nothing unique about southern states and voter fraud.
This is absolutely laughable.
Student ID's do not show where students reside. Students should not be allowed to vote where they go to school. They will not be there long, and do not have a stake in the politics of where they go to school. They may of course vote in their hometowns.
NC, with a Republican governor and house and senate, is doing exceptionally well. Lowered taxes, lowered unemployment and more revenue. It is a great place to live.
The Voting Rights Act was an anachronism. There is nothing unique about southern states and voter fraud.
This is absolutely laughable.
6
Make students travel potentially several hours, maybe miss classes, to exercise the same right that you do with probably only a few minutes taken out of your day? That's your idea of equality? And yeah, our state is doing just fine under Republican control. That is, if you don't care about public education, health care, infant mortality, water and air pollution, and regressive taxes.
2
North Carolina is NOT doing exceptionally well.
Your governor got rid of K-12 teacher tenure and paid teachers bonuses of several hundred dollars - big deal - to make up for it and paid for those bonuses by making drastic cuts in higher education budgets in NC universities.
Meanwhile, the talk was to get rid of the medical school at UNC Chapel Hill.
Western North Carolina has high unemployment and the state takes more from the feds than what it contributes.
As for your call to disallow students to vote: students are part of a community either because they are from there or because they will live there for several years, AND they pay taxes. So what if they move away?
Your suggestion smacks of voting rights long ago by which only landowners could vote.
No, thank you.
Your governor got rid of K-12 teacher tenure and paid teachers bonuses of several hundred dollars - big deal - to make up for it and paid for those bonuses by making drastic cuts in higher education budgets in NC universities.
Meanwhile, the talk was to get rid of the medical school at UNC Chapel Hill.
Western North Carolina has high unemployment and the state takes more from the feds than what it contributes.
As for your call to disallow students to vote: students are part of a community either because they are from there or because they will live there for several years, AND they pay taxes. So what if they move away?
Your suggestion smacks of voting rights long ago by which only landowners could vote.
No, thank you.
1
Between these laws and the systematic, wholesale incarceration of African American males for non-violent drug crimes, enough citizens are prevented from voting to skew national and local elections for decades. Given that many elections are now decided by a couple of percentage points, these demographic games by the GOP have the potential to be brutally effective. The GOP seems intent upon wasting their advantage, however, as they completely alienate two other important groups, Latinos and women.
3
In front of the State House in Columbia, SC, there was not only the confederate flag. There is still the statue of Benjamin Tilman, the super-racist governor who disfranchised afro-americans in South Carolina by law.
4
The GOP believes that if you can't get your way, then every means necessary to force your opinion on others is OK. Most people believe we are a democracy and everyone should vote. Even republicans will give lip service to this, but when actual people are involved who you do not believe share your views then anything goes to stop them from voting.
Was this country ever a true democracy? The founding fathers did not often trust the people as they put into the constitution such things as the electoral college to stymie direct voter participation. Now Republicans use these statutes based on local states rights rule to once again take away rights from individuals. And yet they claim to stand up for the individual. Hypocrisy on a grand scale.
Perhaps they only stand for the rights of the people who look like them or agree with them. Does anything really change? The Supreme Court claims it has, but bigotry and oppression is still a part of the character of our country and we must constantly be on guard against it.
Was this country ever a true democracy? The founding fathers did not often trust the people as they put into the constitution such things as the electoral college to stymie direct voter participation. Now Republicans use these statutes based on local states rights rule to once again take away rights from individuals. And yet they claim to stand up for the individual. Hypocrisy on a grand scale.
Perhaps they only stand for the rights of the people who look like them or agree with them. Does anything really change? The Supreme Court claims it has, but bigotry and oppression is still a part of the character of our country and we must constantly be on guard against it.
4
Symbolically, and in juxtaposition with the Stars and Stripes (that adorn this exceptional piece about the racial best and worst of us) should be the Stars and Bars. Each flag clearly represents the diametrically opposed states-of-mind and factions that sadly/clearly still remain in our country.
While the American flag proudly represents unity, civil rights, voting rights, and liberty and justice for all; the Confederate flag (finally being challenged) represents the opposite.
Thus, we must do everything possible to make sure that those Republican voices in favor of antiquated deleterious attitudes reflected in Stars/Bars do not drown out the forward moving voices that support continuing progress, freedom, and inalienable rights.
It's said that historic free-floating fear can be a powerful sinister motivator. And that's especially true if the fear (of loss of control) has darted from the conscious part of the mind to the subconscious. And, I believe, it's just that hidden fear from the past that's driving those who seek by "hook or crook" to force us back to "the good old days" of Jim Crow, of women walking 50 paces behind men, of LGBT isolation, no marriage equality or woman's rights. I also believe it's that underlying fear that the NRA diabolically taps into and uses to manipulate the vulnerable among us to believe they should still own muskets for protection from the "British are coming."
We must not let any of that happen. We've come too far.
While the American flag proudly represents unity, civil rights, voting rights, and liberty and justice for all; the Confederate flag (finally being challenged) represents the opposite.
Thus, we must do everything possible to make sure that those Republican voices in favor of antiquated deleterious attitudes reflected in Stars/Bars do not drown out the forward moving voices that support continuing progress, freedom, and inalienable rights.
It's said that historic free-floating fear can be a powerful sinister motivator. And that's especially true if the fear (of loss of control) has darted from the conscious part of the mind to the subconscious. And, I believe, it's just that hidden fear from the past that's driving those who seek by "hook or crook" to force us back to "the good old days" of Jim Crow, of women walking 50 paces behind men, of LGBT isolation, no marriage equality or woman's rights. I also believe it's that underlying fear that the NRA diabolically taps into and uses to manipulate the vulnerable among us to believe they should still own muskets for protection from the "British are coming."
We must not let any of that happen. We've come too far.
2
Legitimate empirical evidence indicates that voter fraud is statistically insignificant.
Legitimate empirical evidence indicates that Republicans won Florida in 2000 and Ohio in 2004 through voter suppression.
So, what other reason than minority (Democratic) voter suppression do Republicans have for passing laws that that accomplish just that? Do they really simply want to solve a non-existent problem by creating a very real one?
Legitimate empirical evidence indicates that Republicans won Florida in 2000 and Ohio in 2004 through voter suppression.
So, what other reason than minority (Democratic) voter suppression do Republicans have for passing laws that that accomplish just that? Do they really simply want to solve a non-existent problem by creating a very real one?
5
No, the GOP wants to solve what is, for them, a real problem by creating and solving a non-existent one. More simply, they want to trash the Constitution and the very basis of our government in order to gain power. The only bright side is that it's a measure of their fear of the population...so our only hope is to be sure that what they fear is real.
3
Cynical, disgusting and shameful. Can't say anything more.
5
We are long past the days when the drawing of congressional districts should be done by technically and ethically challenged state legislators. Surely, software has been or could easily be developed that will draw, by scientific measures of validity and reliability, districts that do a far better job of approaching the ideal of 'one person, one vote' than the gerrymandered jokes we have now. And we are years behind in moving to the kind of systems that allow registered voters to stay home and vote at their own computers. Even so, our Supreme Court seems to present the greatest danger to voting rights
3
The Republican party knew long ago, obviously, that in the absence of popular and constructive programs and policies that benefit the country as a whole, (and win them elections), it would have to rely on "Jim Crow-lite," by making voting increasingly difficult for certain Americans. The GOPs tactics and cynicism are both shocking and outrageous, yet, sadly, not in the least surprising. The great Ruth Bader Ginsburg said it best when some of her fellow Supremes gutted the Voting Rights Act: "it's like throwing away your umbrella in a rainstorm because you're not getting wet."
11
Demographics are pushing the Republican party towards regional status. Their tenuous hold on power requires they reduce non-white registration and turn out. Led by their luny tea party conservatives the angry white man's party is already sliding into the dust bin of history.
14
Demographics are pushing the Republican party towards regional status.
==================
Demographics have so "pushed" the Republicans they only control both houses of Congress, most governorships and most state legislatures
==================
Demographics have so "pushed" the Republicans they only control both houses of Congress, most governorships and most state legislatures
29
Only by gerrymandering and voter suppression.
2
A republican president has not won the popular vote for I believe 5 maybe 6 elections; regional is quite appropriate.
1
Voter "registration" is archaic and outdated. How ironic that politicians still think we need a "waiting period" before exercising our right to vote, as if we were exercising our right to bear arms... I have met many people who did not understand that there was a certain registration period, that they had to request an "absentee ballot", etc. I met several people whose signature was simply challenged, but had no idea how to fix it - they were intimidated by the official tone of the letter and did not understand what it meant, but thought they would be arrested if they tried to correct things, had no idea who to ask for help, and had never dared to think of voting after that.
In this day & age, anyone with a social-security number should be able to vote anywhere, anytime as easily & instantly as they allowed to do their taxes. Online taxes are not without fraud, of course (every American should also be guaranteed the right to a free nondriver photo ID along with their social-security number!) Just note that politicians are more than willing to take our money while exposing us to economic identity theft, but politicians don't trust our urge to choose our leaders and laws...
In this day & age, anyone with a social-security number should be able to vote anywhere, anytime as easily & instantly as they allowed to do their taxes. Online taxes are not without fraud, of course (every American should also be guaranteed the right to a free nondriver photo ID along with their social-security number!) Just note that politicians are more than willing to take our money while exposing us to economic identity theft, but politicians don't trust our urge to choose our leaders and laws...
6
"In the 50 years since the Voting Rights Act became law, a small group of Republican activists has dismantled almost all of its protections"?
"Activists"?
Why dignify them with such a term as "activists"? A term that's utterly Orwellian in its intent-to-distort as well?
Why not 'obstructionist,' 'opponent of voting rights,' or even (in many cases) 'racist'? All those terms are at least correctly descriptive and reflective of these people's true intentions?
People working to undermine voting rights and to reduce the number of voters are no more "activists" than those seeking to destroy public education are "reformers," another Orwellian double-speak term that's frequently used!
"Activists"?
Why dignify them with such a term as "activists"? A term that's utterly Orwellian in its intent-to-distort as well?
Why not 'obstructionist,' 'opponent of voting rights,' or even (in many cases) 'racist'? All those terms are at least correctly descriptive and reflective of these people's true intentions?
People working to undermine voting rights and to reduce the number of voters are no more "activists" than those seeking to destroy public education are "reformers," another Orwellian double-speak term that's frequently used!
121
The very idea of in-person voter fraud being wide-spread is laughable. To be effective to any degree, it would have to be a Dr. Evil-style overly-elaborate, easily foiled plot to actually work. If one wants to rig an election, it's much easier to be an election official and do something illegitimate when no one is looking (stuff the box, lose some ballots...). And besides the fact that we'd be wasting millions of dollars to stop in-person voter fraud, a problem that is statistically non-existent, these new voting restrictions are an anathema to our republic.
58
Statistically insignificant? One false vote that effectively disenfranchises (erases) the hard earned vote of one Black man is one too many.
Time for a national voter id card valid for all federal elections and made easy to get. If constitutionally permitted it should be made valid for all elections. If states refuse to acknowledge such ids for local elections I suspect those local state laws and/or judicial decisions could be invslidated as unreasonably discriminatory.
6
Ironically, carrying a nation-wide identity card has been anathema with the righties since the 1930s. The fear was that the Social Security card would be used for identification and for many of the first years of issuance, the cards carried a statement the they were not to be used for identification. A national voter id card makes sense because we are citizens of the USA and residents of the various states. Let's see just how far such a proposal would go in today's ultra-dysfunctional congress.
3
I am an advocate for voting rights – however I am strongly opposed to having districts carved out specifically for minority politicians. We have two congressional districts that meander through east Georgia where none of the constituents have anything in common except being African-American. There should be no congressional districts ‘reserved’ for a minority but rather for a candidate that represents an actual district where geography and common interest other than skin color. If you want no encumbrance to voting make it fair for everyone.
6
Josh, there are districts carved out specifically for white politicians. What's your opinion on that?
7
You do not understand the concept of gerrymandering. Those African-American carveouts mean that a GOP chance of winning in close districts is increased.
2
This is an editorial. It is for liberals the hackneyed equivalent of a piece Fox News might do on the subject for conservatives. In both instances, the warring factions see what their political impulses compel them to see. Because none of this is about truth. It is about power, it is a mostly non-violent war, if you will. And as it is often said, truth is ever and always the first casualty of war.
5
"A handful of Republican activists" nonsense. We voted for GOP office holders, who are doing exactly what they need to do. We do not scrutinize the operations of elections boards. We allow GOP operatives to terrorize would-be voters. Disgusted, yes. But how can we claim to be surprised?
4
GOP operatives terrorizing would be voters?
You mean like members of the Black Panther Party setting up shop outside voter polls during the 2012 Presidential Election to intimidate White voters?
I live and work in Washington DC, and I am a Black man who loves my country. I am not sure what would have been left of some thug trying to bully White voters away from the polls if that nonsense had occurred here. I went into the voting booth after standing in line wearing my Romney 2012 t-shirt. Proudly.
You mean like members of the Black Panther Party setting up shop outside voter polls during the 2012 Presidential Election to intimidate White voters?
I live and work in Washington DC, and I am a Black man who loves my country. I am not sure what would have been left of some thug trying to bully White voters away from the polls if that nonsense had occurred here. I went into the voting booth after standing in line wearing my Romney 2012 t-shirt. Proudly.
2
Since you obviously read the portion of the article that deals with the New Black Panther Party Case, you know that the case was controversial not because of what you describe the members doing but because of the handling of the case by the Justice Department.
The flaw in the Voting Rights law that was struck down was that it didn't cover all 50 US states. Funny politics isn't the sole possession of the South. Cell phone cameras are catching bad cops but cell phone cameras don't reveal to us what bad clerks & registrars are doing to minority voters.
This week we found out that former speaker of the House, 90 year old Jim Wright was denied a voter ID in Texas. I must point out he's white & well off. How many other good people in Texas have been denied a Voter ID because rotten Republicans are in charge?
This problem is easy to fix. Those found guilty of cooking the voter books should get long prison sentences & high fines. Put a few dozen in jail & maybe the rest of the crooks will see the big picture! I'd feel exactly the same if Democrats were putting up roadblocks in front of eligible voters.
I don't have a lot of years left on this side of the dirt & I'd sure like to see some signs that America is getting better before I drop. Bring back a new Voting Rights act covering all US states & territories & lets stop the crooks who have given us the lousiest government this country has seen in decades.
This week we found out that former speaker of the House, 90 year old Jim Wright was denied a voter ID in Texas. I must point out he's white & well off. How many other good people in Texas have been denied a Voter ID because rotten Republicans are in charge?
This problem is easy to fix. Those found guilty of cooking the voter books should get long prison sentences & high fines. Put a few dozen in jail & maybe the rest of the crooks will see the big picture! I'd feel exactly the same if Democrats were putting up roadblocks in front of eligible voters.
I don't have a lot of years left on this side of the dirt & I'd sure like to see some signs that America is getting better before I drop. Bring back a new Voting Rights act covering all US states & territories & lets stop the crooks who have given us the lousiest government this country has seen in decades.
10
If everywhere in this article when the author used the term "minorities," or "blacks," or "African-Americans," he instead used the term "Democrats," he would have been accurate 95% of the time.
I do not see any problem with setting up rules or establishing election districts that favor the Republican party. In states like Massachusetts and Maryland, where the Democratic Party controls the legislature, they design election districts to favor Democrats. If the Democrats want to re-district Virginia, North Carolina, Pennsylvania or any other Republican controlled State, they should try to win a majority. If the Democrats can not win, too bad.
I do not see any problem with setting up rules or establishing election districts that favor the Republican party. In states like Massachusetts and Maryland, where the Democratic Party controls the legislature, they design election districts to favor Democrats. If the Democrats want to re-district Virginia, North Carolina, Pennsylvania or any other Republican controlled State, they should try to win a majority. If the Democrats can not win, too bad.
6
There's no way to design a district in Massachusetts to favor Republicans. And don't point to Charlie Baker, Bill Weld, etc. Anywhere else they'd be Democrats.
How interesting that the government would not turn you away when you need to pay your taxes, but they turn you away if you are black and need to register to vote? That is taxation without representation and those states should incur heavy fines, of say $20,000.00, for every person they turn away or have turned away. That would turn things around in a jiffy. Why can't proof of paying taxes register you automatically to vote if you are a citizen? The IRS seems to be able to find every one and knows if they are a citizen. Why is it managed at a local level? Why isn't it managed by the feds?
19
The point is not that it's "impossible" for certain people to vote, it's that's is "harder" for certain people to vote than others.
If you had to wait in a line for 10 days to vote, I could still claim that there is nothing "stopping" you from voting.
As soon as the Roberts court released the south from voting oversight, it took Republican controlled state legislatures all of one and a half seconds to start legally implementing the "harder" part. Any and all means to make it "harder" were immediately put into place. All in the name of protecting the polls from STILL undocumented and unsubstantiated voter fraud.
The only people this power grab isn't transparent to is the blindly faithful right wing.
And the only thing more transparent would be a poll tax. "Look people, elections cost money, so we have to recoup that money somehow, so as of now, there is going to be a $50 tax for each vote cast. etc, etc, etc."
I find it incredible that in a day and age of the likes of Donald Trump, that the GOP hasn't gone for a poll tax. Must be the "small government" angle. After all, all Republican ethics come down to who pays for what.
If you had to wait in a line for 10 days to vote, I could still claim that there is nothing "stopping" you from voting.
As soon as the Roberts court released the south from voting oversight, it took Republican controlled state legislatures all of one and a half seconds to start legally implementing the "harder" part. Any and all means to make it "harder" were immediately put into place. All in the name of protecting the polls from STILL undocumented and unsubstantiated voter fraud.
The only people this power grab isn't transparent to is the blindly faithful right wing.
And the only thing more transparent would be a poll tax. "Look people, elections cost money, so we have to recoup that money somehow, so as of now, there is going to be a $50 tax for each vote cast. etc, etc, etc."
I find it incredible that in a day and age of the likes of Donald Trump, that the GOP hasn't gone for a poll tax. Must be the "small government" angle. After all, all Republican ethics come down to who pays for what.
27
Exactly right. Nothing "stopping you from voting." That is like the people who opposed same sex marriage saying "You can still get married -- just marry someone of the opposite sex." That problem was solved by a national decision and this needs to solved the same way. One consistent, national set of rules.
3
Requiring documentation for voting that is not freely supplied, as most of this ID legislation does, is exactly a poll tax.
We are already in the new poll tax era.
We are already in the new poll tax era.
1
The fight for decency and fairness is exhausting and never ending.
Sometimes I wish the haters would just go away.
Sometimes I wish the haters would just go away.
14
Why is everything the NYT publishes of such a liberal bent? This was a great opportunity to publish something educational and objective, but the author instead writes some left-wing screed. I just wish there were editorial balance. The article, btw, is very well-written and well-researched, it's just the political proclivities of the author that I wish were absent.
6
By well researched, do you mean accurate?
2
Perhaps you are reading the wrong paper? A publication in the Murdoch line of media should satisfy you more. The NYT, in case you hadn't notticed, IS a liberal publication. But political leaning by no means means inaccurate. You yourself acknowledge it's well researched. This is what the Times stands for. Journalists aspire to work for this paper. And it's quality shows. Don't knock a liberal paper for being paper.
1
I disagree that it was well researched. There are numerous instances of voter fraud, but you can't see them if you refuse to look.
Republicans always need there fingers on the scale. In this instance, the scale was the scales of justice. It makes no difference to them, they always need a edge!
5
There are voting rights and then there are voting rights.
The electoral college certainly defeats the one person, one vote concept. Smaller states will always block any change here.
The creation of House of Representatives districts is a joke. In New Jersey, the outcome is predictable. It also leads to politicians not caring about certain portions of states. I have lived in the Northwest section of New Jersey for over thirty years and I can count on one hand the number of times we have been visited, that is if I cut off all my fingers.
Being white I know of different voter rights.
The electoral college certainly defeats the one person, one vote concept. Smaller states will always block any change here.
The creation of House of Representatives districts is a joke. In New Jersey, the outcome is predictable. It also leads to politicians not caring about certain portions of states. I have lived in the Northwest section of New Jersey for over thirty years and I can count on one hand the number of times we have been visited, that is if I cut off all my fingers.
Being white I know of different voter rights.
2
Why is it always Republicans who dismantle things, usually called "rights"? What have they given us? A special Sunday session was called to repeal the Affordable Health Care Act, but no session has ever been called by a group of Republicans to write a new affordable act. McCain and Romney called for a repeal as well, and offered no alternative. McCain called health coverage a "privilege" for yes, the privileged. They want to repeal a woman's right to govern her body, deny coverage for birth control and on and on. When we they have offer us something besides talk of Jews going to ovens, rapists coming across the border (where did Ted Bundy come from?}. When will they call a session to do something besides dismantle the last sixty years of our lives?
16
For all the talk about seeking color-blind voting rights, these tools do the exact opposite. Our Chief Justice is a regular Henry Billings Brown. He's jealous of an esteemed legacy, so he picks and chooses the cases and outcomes that will further his conservative leanings---but not too much, less he be accused of being driven solely by his own in-born political sympathies. he is completely unprincipled.
5
The most powerful tool to wield in this country is the power to vote. It is the greatest equalizer in our country that cuts across party,color,orientation, and gender lines. While voter suppression is nothing new here or elsewhere because those who fear the power to vote which can tip the balance of power in a true democracy. For those who support marriage equality and had a hard earned right enshrined into law..see this as a lesson and has a warning. Republicans and their allies will seek to dismantle your rights as well piece by piece until you wake up one day and find yourself back at square one. We must stay ever vigilant against those who will restrict and destroy our personal freedoms that our Founding Fathers fought for with blood, sweat, and tears.
3
From the “poll tax” to “literacy tests” to “grandfather clauses” to the present trumped up allegations of wide spread voter fraud, the long line of resistance by the white power structure to thwart democracy and infringe upon the rights of Blacks to vote continues.
With Dr King at his side, President Johnson signed the Voting Rights into law on August 6, 1965. It was subtitled, “An act to enforce the Fifteenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States,” the latter a law that had been ratified in 1870. It had taken ninety-five years for America to meet its promise.
50 years later, thanks to the Supreme Court, the battle for the fundamental right to vote for Black people starts anew.
With Dr King at his side, President Johnson signed the Voting Rights into law on August 6, 1965. It was subtitled, “An act to enforce the Fifteenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States,” the latter a law that had been ratified in 1870. It had taken ninety-five years for America to meet its promise.
50 years later, thanks to the Supreme Court, the battle for the fundamental right to vote for Black people starts anew.
7
Excellent and thoroughly researched article but one of the saddest I've ever read. The US is really no different from areas of the Middle East, the former Yugoslavia, or anywhere where old battles keep being fought over and over like some kind of Kabuki theater.
Our ancient rivalries ( ancient is of course a relative term) are race based under the guise of states rights. I found it so sad and ironic that the landmark voting rights act was signed into law on August 6: the very date set for the first Republican debate.
The right to vote is a founding principle of our democratic republic. That it can be so easily attacked over and over does not speak well of our great American experiment. Nor does it legitimize our nonstop efforts to lecture the world about democracy, given our sorry history of denying the fruits of that principle to an entire swath of US citizens: African Americans. "Justice is colorblind" says Roberts.
Please.
Our ancient rivalries ( ancient is of course a relative term) are race based under the guise of states rights. I found it so sad and ironic that the landmark voting rights act was signed into law on August 6: the very date set for the first Republican debate.
The right to vote is a founding principle of our democratic republic. That it can be so easily attacked over and over does not speak well of our great American experiment. Nor does it legitimize our nonstop efforts to lecture the world about democracy, given our sorry history of denying the fruits of that principle to an entire swath of US citizens: African Americans. "Justice is colorblind" says Roberts.
Please.
22
Seeing the choices that voters make having the right to vote would seem a meaningless exercise in choosing between one slate of marauders as opposed to another. In a universe where a Paul Broun, Steve King, Scott DesJarlais, Louis Gohmert, Ted Cruz, Mark Sanford, etc., hold high elective office the whole business has been reduced to farce.
8
The article mentions that South Carolina passed a voter ID law in 2011. I wonder how many legislators in that state who suddenly found themselves moved to take down the Confederate battle flag and suddenly were shocked, shocked to say it is a racists symbol said aye to the voter ID law. Tell me which is more racist, a voter ID law that can disenfranchise people of a piece of cloth hanging from a pole.
13
The affirmative duty to create minority-majority districts is a gift to the Right. It allows Republican state legislators to lock 1 or 2 enormously favorable Democratic safe seats by "fencing in" minority voters and as a result creates many more Republican safe seats, but with smaller majorities.
Neither result is actually good for democracy. If anything, the goal should be regional representation first (ie an Oakland or San Antonio Congressional district) followed by the goal of competitive elections.
Neither result is actually good for democracy. If anything, the goal should be regional representation first (ie an Oakland or San Antonio Congressional district) followed by the goal of competitive elections.
8
Hilarious.
The Voting Rights Act was meant to thwart Democrat-controlled southern states' efforts in the 1930's and 1940's to restrict the rights of minorities in their region.
Democrat-controlled states ==> voting discrimination.
It is outmoded and antiquated, nothing now but a statement by the political left to show their disdain for an entire region of the country. No teeth, no meaning.
But hey! It gets the progressive/socialist/Democrat/Left all riled up. Let's use this as a political tool!
The Voting Rights Act was meant to thwart Democrat-controlled southern states' efforts in the 1930's and 1940's to restrict the rights of minorities in their region.
Democrat-controlled states ==> voting discrimination.
It is outmoded and antiquated, nothing now but a statement by the political left to show their disdain for an entire region of the country. No teeth, no meaning.
But hey! It gets the progressive/socialist/Democrat/Left all riled up. Let's use this as a political tool!
6
As others have commented, our democracy's health is determined by the degree of citizen participation, and we have certainly reached a low as measured by voter turnout. I'd rather see us swing the pendulum all the way in the other direction: Let's make voting mandatory. If you want to partake of government services, such as driving on well-policed and maintained roads, or public education, then you MUST vote every time. If you don't your access to those services will be reduced. No renewal of your driver's license. No registering your car. No access to schools.
Now I know this isn't without its difficulties; but other democracies operate this way. And it makes voter suppression a moot point.
Now I know this isn't without its difficulties; but other democracies operate this way. And it makes voter suppression a moot point.
3
Reading the comments is informative. Those who agree never cite any objective. They do not describe how voting rights are denied, who has been denied, etc. They just emote how they feel about the issue, which is completely interchangeable with their feeling on anybracial issue. They are not really talking about voting rights, because they hear "racism".
Leftism is a religion. The comments on this topic are no different than the comments from a religious jew, Christian, muslim, etc reciting verses.
There is no discussion of specifics, of mechanism that are in play, or root causes, merely a reciting of dogmatic verses and themes.
This is why the problem will never be solved. Half the population doesn't troubleshoot the issue, instead they see it as an affirmation of their pseudo-religious ideology.
Leftism is a religion. The comments on this topic are no different than the comments from a religious jew, Christian, muslim, etc reciting verses.
There is no discussion of specifics, of mechanism that are in play, or root causes, merely a reciting of dogmatic verses and themes.
This is why the problem will never be solved. Half the population doesn't troubleshoot the issue, instead they see it as an affirmation of their pseudo-religious ideology.
4
I'll take that invitation :). So you've read all 360+ comments? If you've completed pontificating about the religion analogy, I'd love to hear what you have to say about the Act having been reauthorized FOUR times. I imagine you could distill that down to a sentence or two ..
2
Reading the comments is informative. Those who agree never cite any objective. They do not describe how voting rights are denied, who has been denied, etc.
==============
True - they never cite a single name of a person who wasn't allowed to vote by any of the new laws .
==============
True - they never cite a single name of a person who wasn't allowed to vote by any of the new laws .
1
Outstanding and informative article. This decision was one of the most outrageous by the Supreme Court (with the exception of the previous appointment of Bush). Extensive research had been conducted before the almost unanimous reauthorization by Congress of the Voting Rights Act. The Roberts Court threw away democracy once again: the conservative justices ignored Congress and the president, and also ignored the provable fact of persisting racism in the South and other areas.
The immediate Republican rush to enact voter suppression also gave proof to the necessity for the Voting Rights Act. People died for the right to vote, but the Roberts Court and Republican legislators took it away again with their new Jim Crow laws.
The immediate Republican rush to enact voter suppression also gave proof to the necessity for the Voting Rights Act. People died for the right to vote, but the Roberts Court and Republican legislators took it away again with their new Jim Crow laws.
40
The Republican tactic on issues like this is always the same: Start with your conclusion and pick the facts that support it. If none of the facts support your conclusion, simply change the facts.
For anyone with an IQ over 100, this is extremely frustrating.
In fact, I don't think the Republicans could get a single voter with an IQ over 100 to vote for them, unless or course that voter is extremely wealthy and morally bankrupt.
For anyone with an IQ over 100, this is extremely frustrating.
In fact, I don't think the Republicans could get a single voter with an IQ over 100 to vote for them, unless or course that voter is extremely wealthy and morally bankrupt.
26
You sir, are the perfect example of an open minded liberal.
4
A self-proclaimed "messiah" from North Korea exerted a lot of influence on the Hollywood actor's administration, and other conservative politicians since. Perhaps the now deceased "messiah's" organization's computer hacking skills were employed to move (blackmail) spineless Republicans closer to the North Korean way of running a nation's government.
1
One of the saddest articles I have read about the decline of a once great country. "America" and all that used to mean seems to be over. Maybe it should be divided into those who want to go forward and those who want to live in some Confederate-like fantasy.
19
While the enactment of voter ID laws: photo id requirements, the elimination of same day registration, the restrictions on early voting and so forth are troubling as they impinge on efforts to make our democratic process as inclusive as possible, it is demagoguery to assert that this represents the undoing of the Voting Rights Act and a return the Jim Crow conditions that existed in the South before 1965. That is a wild exaggeration and, moreover, many of these efforts to restrict voting have occurred in far northern states to which the Voting Rights Act did not apply. The article is also a blatant example-a caricature really-of political bias completely infecting an ostensible news story, particularly the sensationalistic headline, which does not comport with professional journalistic standards, something that will surely add grist to the mill of those who complain about "liberal media". Yes this is a serious issue, but the manner it is addressed here does not do it justice, unless the article is to be candidly denominated as an opinion piece. Thus, this is an issue that should be addressed by the Public Editor.
4
This issue is so serious that the state of North Carolina is presently in federal court to stop the draconian laws passed by the Republican Legislature and signed into law by the Republican Governor. The situation has passed the Jim Crow stage since these new laws target young voters, minorities and anyone new to the state. Most recently a Republican NC Election Board Commissioner (people who enforce voting laws)who was appointed by the Republican Governor was "forced" to resign because he used his power to cut off valid voting my students who were registered by making sure no voting polls were available. He did this while also be "investigated" regarding illegally funding of Republican candidates. The situation in North Carolina has hit a crisis level so much so that even the NC Legislature is attempting to walk back some of the stringent voter ID requirements. There are no wild exaggeration nor caricature in this article just the facts the plain facts of how one state under Republican rule can have basic civil liberties denied.
2
History was clearly terrible. It's important to understand it
But I live much of the time in a multiracial part of the U.S. where whites are in the minority, and I see all the election laws applying to all people. All colors (as if this is easy to determine), origins, religions, economic status, etc
I am totally opposed to any form of voting discrimination, but I keep reading these pieces and still fail to see how these assertions only apply to one segment of society alone.
In other parts of my life I have seen first hand the effects of gerrymandering. See for example the old Congressional district of Barney Frank. It was an absurd carving up of Massachusetts that had nothing to do with the legal towns where voting was organized
Great history piece. But seems to have little bearing on the new multi-diversity of the United States
But I live much of the time in a multiracial part of the U.S. where whites are in the minority, and I see all the election laws applying to all people. All colors (as if this is easy to determine), origins, religions, economic status, etc
I am totally opposed to any form of voting discrimination, but I keep reading these pieces and still fail to see how these assertions only apply to one segment of society alone.
In other parts of my life I have seen first hand the effects of gerrymandering. See for example the old Congressional district of Barney Frank. It was an absurd carving up of Massachusetts that had nothing to do with the legal towns where voting was organized
Great history piece. But seems to have little bearing on the new multi-diversity of the United States
6
The vision of the GOP at this point in time is to defeat by any means at all a pluralistic society in which all its members have a say and contribute, who work together to promote the common good, and share in the benefits. The GOP wishes to create a society of a tiny wealthy ruling class that oppresses and exploits everyone else. I firmly believe that if given their own country, say Texas to use for that purpose, they would restrict voting--if they even had voting--to wealthy white males. They would reinstitute slavery. Women would be deprived of all rights and kept in the home (or thrown on the street as in other poor countries like Afghanistan and Nepal). For some reason, the GOP believes this would be a good way to live, poisoning the planet for profit, exploiting all others for personal gain. These are people who have no care even for their own children's and grandchildren's future. They believe their own hate-filled, bigoted, selfish thinking, inventing all kinds of slippery explanations and excuses to continue doing the vile work of harming others. Sorry GOPers. This is what I have come to understand about you, from extensive reading, from listening to the ignorant ranting of people, not just Fox Noise. You have succeeded in building this situation. Don't complain when the curtain is pulled back and you are revealed for who you really are.
25
Exception makes bad law. The test is, if you set up something to give the current beneficiary an edge, will that special deal, bite you, if it is working against you?
Will democrats come out against street by street voting without ID's when the candidate is a Cuban American, and the neighborhood is all Cuban? In NYC recently, hispanic voters outnumbered black voters in a "black safe" district just in a democrat primary like in Rangel vs. Espaillat in 2014?
I can see a day in which black incumbents joining with republicans, looking for IDs for Hispanic voters, and wanting to know if they are citizens, and even protecting black constituents government benefits from the encroachment of other immigrant groups.
On the democrat side, they gerrymander districts to keep the incumbents in, no matter what their race. Is that democracy, saying you only get one black rep, and this person gets it for life? In MA no women got to run because the dance card was all filled with old men for 30 odd years. Senator Warren never had a chance to be a congresswoman before she ran for senate, because incumbents had those positions. There are elections every two years, if only someone would buck the system and run, our congress would at least be more refreshing, and less a seniority system, which you see, neither democrats or republican voters/grassroots really like.
Will democrats come out against street by street voting without ID's when the candidate is a Cuban American, and the neighborhood is all Cuban? In NYC recently, hispanic voters outnumbered black voters in a "black safe" district just in a democrat primary like in Rangel vs. Espaillat in 2014?
I can see a day in which black incumbents joining with republicans, looking for IDs for Hispanic voters, and wanting to know if they are citizens, and even protecting black constituents government benefits from the encroachment of other immigrant groups.
On the democrat side, they gerrymander districts to keep the incumbents in, no matter what their race. Is that democracy, saying you only get one black rep, and this person gets it for life? In MA no women got to run because the dance card was all filled with old men for 30 odd years. Senator Warren never had a chance to be a congresswoman before she ran for senate, because incumbents had those positions. There are elections every two years, if only someone would buck the system and run, our congress would at least be more refreshing, and less a seniority system, which you see, neither democrats or republican voters/grassroots really like.
2
As a Black voter, I'm already there. Voter ID is the only thing I see that will prevent my disenfranchisement. It isn't white voters that I am competing with.
How about this: the nation's laws will be enforced without special treatment for any segment of society, with one exception: those who are descendents of people who were held as slaves. This should be the the rule until the stain of slavery is finally removed from the fabric of our nation.
1
When does that special treatment end? And is a black person who's ancestors were slaves in the American South more deserving of special treatment than an immigrant from Somalia whose ancestors never left the African continent? How does special treatment for anyone fit into the promise of a democracy where everyone is equal?
1
My ancestors include both slaves and slave-owners (being from Louisiana where many blacks owned slaves .. and one of my ancestors was one of the first African-American Officers on American soil .. in the first Louisiana Confederate Army .. and the reason I proudly display a Confederate flag on Memorial Day alongside the Stars and Stripes). Do I get your special treatment? Or perhaps I should pay myself reparations and call it a wash?
This article is utterly blind to reality.
In 2015, throughout the entire united states, minority voting is as easy as filling out a registration form, and then showing up at the polls a few months later.
Before the voting rights act, it was common for minorities to be denied or obstructed from voting.
99.99% of the problem has been erased. Any suggestion that the voting rights act has been "undone" ignores the basic reality of the situation.
In 2015, throughout the entire united states, minority voting is as easy as filling out a registration form, and then showing up at the polls a few months later.
Before the voting rights act, it was common for minorities to be denied or obstructed from voting.
99.99% of the problem has been erased. Any suggestion that the voting rights act has been "undone" ignores the basic reality of the situation.
10
There are none so blind as those who will not see - that all of the recent restrictions put in place have been promulgated by those who would disenfranchise minorities, because (for good reason, mostly) minorities don't vote for Republican candidates.
Jason, it looks like the shoe fits you.
Jason, it looks like the shoe fits you.
13
The coordinated efforts described in this article describe something deeper and more dangerous than classic racial disenfanchisement.
The GOP and its cohorts are engaged in a decades-long, coordinated attach on the very foundations of democracy itself. Claiming that whites have to clear the same non-obstacles as blacks is irrelevant and even enlightening in this context.
If the sanctity of voting is so important, why the hurdles for students and urbanites? Why NOT allow early voting, particularly when there is zero documented evidence of fraud potential?
Why? Because the goal is to produce obstacles to participation in democracy.
The GOP and its cohorts are engaged in a decades-long, coordinated attach on the very foundations of democracy itself. Claiming that whites have to clear the same non-obstacles as blacks is irrelevant and even enlightening in this context.
If the sanctity of voting is so important, why the hurdles for students and urbanites? Why NOT allow early voting, particularly when there is zero documented evidence of fraud potential?
Why? Because the goal is to produce obstacles to participation in democracy.
2
Jason, you are utterly blind to reality. Your boss will dock your pay if you vote. You don't have a car to get to a polling place. No car, no ability to get an ID in certain areas. This are some of the handicaps to voting people like you don't think about.
Rehnquist, the dead CJ, engaged in his own voter intimidation of Hispanics in the 1960s, standing around the polling places. In my view he was an unreconstructed racist. Roberts CJ follows in his footsteps. No military service for them! To busy selling themselves to enter the "halls of power."
us army 1969-1971/california jd
us army 1969-1971/california jd
5
I am not for these strict voter ID laws, but maybe the best strategy is for the Democrats to get behind these laws full steam and start making the biggest effort they possibly can to get people the proper ID and get registered to vote. Of course, it wouldn't be a bad idea either to point out who is responsible for demanding these ridiculous requirements in the first place.
3
Nice hatchet job. Portrays the very-old-news debate between conservatives and liberals in this area of civil rights law as if a "drama" of subversion of justice by an evil cabal. Truly amazing stuff!. As if the Left interpretation is the obvious truth, leaving the Right interpretation to be seen as a conspiracy of "activists" out to kill the truth. I especially like the weaving in of stories of injustice along the way to give this propaganda moral force. A real tour du force!
10
As an immigrant, and now a citizen, trying to understand this adopted land - one thing that becomes clearer to me by the day - "winning at all costs" seems to be at the core of both the good and evil in this country. Republicans trying to win at all costs seems shortsighted and may cost us plenty down the road.
10
"The ends justify the means" is a shield for so much unconscionable evil in the world.
1
Not only should one be registered to vote at birth, removed from the roles at death, one should be required to vote. And for goodness sakes, get rid of gerrymandering! Cheating seems to be the way some people want to get things done.
3
Choosing not to vote is a vote in and of itself. If there are two candidates neither of whom I know anything about running for a position, I refuse to give my vote to either of them. It's one thing to vote, it's another thing to be an informed voter. Uninformed votes are worse than no votes.
Yes, uninformed voters are the worst, however, not voting is a vote for the winner, you are responsible for that winner with your vote. And...no complaining about anything if you don't vote.
New York State has the most segregated school system in the Country, New York State has the highest level of segregation by Census tract in the country. New York state is a national leader in the lack of minority participation in elections. NYT - the South is bad.
11
Everyone is allowed to vote now.
Making excuses to say you're "disenfranchised" is a weak response with the only goal being special considerations due to skin color.
Making excuses to say you're "disenfranchised" is a weak response with the only goal being special considerations due to skin color.
6
This is an old trick that takes me all the way back to law school--burying the lede. Often in older court rulings, judges or justices attempting to appear inspired by Brandeis (who was a natural) will spend over half the opinion on granular, often irrelevant history, hoping our eyes will glaze over and as we fall asleep we miss the subterfuge being enacted.
That's what we have here. An exhaustive, needless visit to Jim Crow and atrocities of the past, because Rev. Barber's case has no credible merit. So conflating the two under the guise of 21st century Jim Crow memes to demonize Republicans (which seems to be all the Times does lately) is an exercise in ignorance.
If this was such a problem, such a pox upon our nation, you would not need to lead off with dramatic demagoguery, instead you'd have facts. And by facts I mean real stories, of real Black voters in NC in the 21st century being turned away from the polls on election day, subjected to poll tests or chased away by law enforcement. I don't see any of that.
What I do see is a charlatan masquerading as a reverend, invoking horrors of past centuries, conflating non-events and meritless accusations into a vast right wing conspiracy against my race, all for self-promotion, fresh out of the Al Sharpton playbook.
With each passing day of this nonsense, my decision to become a registered Republican after meeting Barack Obama in 2004 is vindicated.
That's what we have here. An exhaustive, needless visit to Jim Crow and atrocities of the past, because Rev. Barber's case has no credible merit. So conflating the two under the guise of 21st century Jim Crow memes to demonize Republicans (which seems to be all the Times does lately) is an exercise in ignorance.
If this was such a problem, such a pox upon our nation, you would not need to lead off with dramatic demagoguery, instead you'd have facts. And by facts I mean real stories, of real Black voters in NC in the 21st century being turned away from the polls on election day, subjected to poll tests or chased away by law enforcement. I don't see any of that.
What I do see is a charlatan masquerading as a reverend, invoking horrors of past centuries, conflating non-events and meritless accusations into a vast right wing conspiracy against my race, all for self-promotion, fresh out of the Al Sharpton playbook.
With each passing day of this nonsense, my decision to become a registered Republican after meeting Barack Obama in 2004 is vindicated.
5
When you don't have hard core facts to support a given position, the next best thing is to wring one's hand, whine and soap box. Who needs to deal in facts when one can cite historical scenarios as though they were current events. Lets have specific examples and statistics where given persons were unable to vote at a recent poll.
1
Lois you are correct.
As a lawyer we are trained to identify and actually lead with our strongest evidence when we write.
Notice this fluff piece in the Times buries the so-called allegations of voter disenfranchisement of Black people in NC at the bottom of the page? And then doesn't even cite any actual instances.
As a lawyer we are trained to identify and actually lead with our strongest evidence when we write.
Notice this fluff piece in the Times buries the so-called allegations of voter disenfranchisement of Black people in NC at the bottom of the page? And then doesn't even cite any actual instances.
1
If this was such a problem, such a pox upon our nation, you would not need to lead off with dramatic demagoguery, instead you'd have facts. And by facts I mean real stories, of real Black voters in NC in the 21st century being turned away from the polls on election day, subjected to poll tests or chased away by law enforcement. I don't see any of that.
===============
Exactly so! Who has been prevented from voting?
===============
Exactly so! Who has been prevented from voting?
1
The increasing restrictions being placed on minority and other Democratic-leaning groups (e.g., students) are correlated with a couple of things. First, there is the increasing wealth inequality that has developed over the last 30+ years. Second is the de-industrialization with the shift in factories from the U.S. to other countries.
Both trends are signs of growing inequality and a failure to create broad-based wealth. While it is true that technology has exploded as a sector, that growth is occurring in mostly "Blue" states that vote Democratic anyway.
It's almost as if the elite in the old industrial states and in the South (the so-called "1%" but it's more like 0.1%) have formed a 'coalition' that wants to eliminate opposition to policies they have adopted in order to preserve their control over a shrinking economic base.
If this is a correct interpretation, then it is possible that politics will eventually split between the high-tech coasts and the middle of the country.
Both trends are signs of growing inequality and a failure to create broad-based wealth. While it is true that technology has exploded as a sector, that growth is occurring in mostly "Blue" states that vote Democratic anyway.
It's almost as if the elite in the old industrial states and in the South (the so-called "1%" but it's more like 0.1%) have formed a 'coalition' that wants to eliminate opposition to policies they have adopted in order to preserve their control over a shrinking economic base.
If this is a correct interpretation, then it is possible that politics will eventually split between the high-tech coasts and the middle of the country.
1
A long and troubling article. When one peels away the layers of onionskin covering this dodge, what remains clear is that African-Americans have not been fully franchised in this country. It has been documented ad nauseam that "voter fraud" is about as common as a cure for cancer. All these dressed-up lawyers and nibblers at the Voting Rights Act wish to accomplish is an ante-bellum culture of disenfranchisement of black people and other racial minorities. They cannot accept that their historical racial majority is sufficient to allow them to maintain (and extend) their political, governmental and societal domination in every area of the country, at the federal and local levels. They couch their evil in faux high-minded phrases without meaning a word of what they say. "It's all goes back to winning elections," is how Carter Wrenn put it. Well, the shape-shifters from Strom Thurmond to Richard Nixon to Ronald Reagan to Karl Rove to ALEC haven't changed their spots. Their goal is voter suppression at any cost. John Roberts, now the Chief Justice at SCOTUS, dismissed historical racial disparities with an "it's time to move on" contempt, no doubt inherited from William Rehnquist, at whose knee he learned. If the plaintiffs are defeated next June, the Right's next step will be an outright attack on proof of citizenship. One might laugh at that, but when one considers the arsenal of hate marshaled against black people, both historically and presently, can this be far behind?
5
This article brings two other issues tightly into focus:
1) The war on drugs and the statistically proven disproportionate effect it has had on the black community. If more black people are felons, they are effectively kept out of the polls.
2) The violence and aggression perpetrated by white police against black citizens. Again, a lack of real justice leads to a disparity in the application of the law. One result is a disproportionate percentage of the aggrieved population disqualified from participating in the political process.
1) The war on drugs and the statistically proven disproportionate effect it has had on the black community. If more black people are felons, they are effectively kept out of the polls.
2) The violence and aggression perpetrated by white police against black citizens. Again, a lack of real justice leads to a disparity in the application of the law. One result is a disproportionate percentage of the aggrieved population disqualified from participating in the political process.
18
1. I've never used drugs.
2. As a lawyer I have defended white police officers wrongly accused of violence and aggression. Successfully.
3. I have never been approached by a police officer for any criminal reason. In my entire life.
4. The color of my skin has never denied me ANY rights as a U.S. Citizen, nor has it ever been an obstacle to me in pursuing my academic, personal and career goals. Ever.
5. It's 2015, Barack Obama is President of the United States and BOTH U.S. Attorney Generals (the highest law enforcement position in the land) are Black.
Put away the race card. We are on to you.
Sincerely,
Decent, hardworking taxpayers who love America and respect our laws. (i.e. people who didn't vote for Obama).
2. As a lawyer I have defended white police officers wrongly accused of violence and aggression. Successfully.
3. I have never been approached by a police officer for any criminal reason. In my entire life.
4. The color of my skin has never denied me ANY rights as a U.S. Citizen, nor has it ever been an obstacle to me in pursuing my academic, personal and career goals. Ever.
5. It's 2015, Barack Obama is President of the United States and BOTH U.S. Attorney Generals (the highest law enforcement position in the land) are Black.
Put away the race card. We are on to you.
Sincerely,
Decent, hardworking taxpayers who love America and respect our laws. (i.e. people who didn't vote for Obama).
2
Exactly. These issues, along with the protection of gun violence in general, health being reserved for only the rich, inequality in general makes it very difficult to be proud of the United States. I think we are at the point where the United Nations needs to step in and sanction the violations to human rights. The routine governmental killings with impunity makes the US not different than Syria and other places.
1
1. did someone accuse you of using drugs? If so, who?
2. Have you successfully defended folks against police officer who were violent and aggressive towards them?
3. Never approached, good. Does that mean no one else has ever been approached or is lying about being approached by police for alleged criminality.
4. Never experienced discrimination due to skin color? You live in a very rarefied world. Does that mean no one else has had that experience or are you saying everyone else is lying about it?
5. What does the election or appointment of Blacks in the positions you identified have to do with other people experiencing racial discrimination either overtly or inadvertently? Are their experiences negated because yours did not happen.
PS. Own my business, employ 100s, have multiple degrees, and yet would not want you as my lawyer - your life experiences and views are too narrow for the real world notwithstanding who you did or did not vote for.
2. Have you successfully defended folks against police officer who were violent and aggressive towards them?
3. Never approached, good. Does that mean no one else has ever been approached or is lying about being approached by police for alleged criminality.
4. Never experienced discrimination due to skin color? You live in a very rarefied world. Does that mean no one else has had that experience or are you saying everyone else is lying about it?
5. What does the election or appointment of Blacks in the positions you identified have to do with other people experiencing racial discrimination either overtly or inadvertently? Are their experiences negated because yours did not happen.
PS. Own my business, employ 100s, have multiple degrees, and yet would not want you as my lawyer - your life experiences and views are too narrow for the real world notwithstanding who you did or did not vote for.
I'm confused -- is this a news piece or an editorial?
7
It's a piece in the Magazine section, where it's very common to run in-depth analysis articles on all sorts of matters. It is "news-y" in that there is a renewed focus on voting rights given the republican interest in getting rid of them and SCOTUS' recent ruling, and it is "editorial-y" in that, as with all articles that outlay facts and in-depth analysis, they tend to be seen as having a liberal bias as there is a rigorous intelligence to understanding things with great clarity and precision. Republicans would rather this type of article were not published, as in their world ignorance is bliss.
4
It's rather obvious that it is a news piece about what has happened, who was involved, who it has affected, and how it's hurt our country in the process. That is the definition of news. The fact that you would even suggest it is possibly just an editorial opinion leads me to believe you support the "more sophisticated" effort of today's Republicans to block voting rights.
2
It is a magazine feature... neither.
What no photo of Kansas' Kris Koback? He is our public enemy #1 election fixer in the nation right now.
3
Kudos to Ben Wiseman for the superb illustration. To me, it captured the shredding of American's voting rights everywhere in a country where much more than half the eligible voters abstain or protest.
Excellent article as well. Thank you NYTimes.
Excellent article as well. Thank you NYTimes.
10
All of the arguments, for and against, notwithstanding, in a democracy shouldn't we always be erring on the side of maximum inclusion and participation? Anything less makes a mockery of the core principals that our country was founded upon and of the multitude of Americans who have sacrificed so much to advance and uphold those principles. It is disgraceful, to say the least.
25
The speed and vigor with which racist Southern states slammed the door on voting rights will be proof positive of their malign intent to discriminate when the Supreme Court revisits Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act.
4
Voter suppression comes in mnay forms. Having lived and voted both in the suburbs and inner cities (New York and Boston) I never had to wait to vote in any election in the suburbs and never waited less than 45 minutes and often 1-2 hrs in the inner cities. Yet another disincentive to vote for those of us who work on election day and, even in the true blue Northeast, tilting the playing field toward the more conservative localities.
9
Canada requires ID to register and to vote. They must be terribly racist, intent on disenfranchising many of their citizens.
When the Dept of Investigations in NY demonstrated how easy voter fraud is in NYC, the coverage in the media was minimal and mainly about how the board of elections wanted to prosecute the investigators for voting fraud (they only voted for Test...) - which they would never have discovered without the DOIs report.
Please note also - it is the group most likely to benefit from voter fraud that is strongest in denying that it ever happens. Should that not be considered when writing these articles? Who are most undocumented immigrants likely to vote for?
Finally, is there any inconsistencies in enforcing these requirements as there were in the fifties?
When the Dept of Investigations in NY demonstrated how easy voter fraud is in NYC, the coverage in the media was minimal and mainly about how the board of elections wanted to prosecute the investigators for voting fraud (they only voted for Test...) - which they would never have discovered without the DOIs report.
Please note also - it is the group most likely to benefit from voter fraud that is strongest in denying that it ever happens. Should that not be considered when writing these articles? Who are most undocumented immigrants likely to vote for?
Finally, is there any inconsistencies in enforcing these requirements as there were in the fifties?
6
When the Dept of Investigations in NY demonstrated how easy voter fraud is in NYC, the coverage in the media was minimal and mainly about how the board of elections wanted to prosecute the investigators for voting fraud (they only voted for Test...) - which they would never have discovered without the DOIs report.
====================
Absolutely true.
====================
Absolutely true.
1
Interesting, but this article goes on at great length about these awful voter ID laws and how they disenfranchise voters.
But somehow, it doesn't come up with the name of a single person who has been prevented from voting by these laws. It also ignores the fact that minority voter turnout has actually increased after the laws were implemented.
But somehow, it doesn't come up with the name of a single person who has been prevented from voting by these laws. It also ignores the fact that minority voter turnout has actually increased after the laws were implemented.
5
Why don't you go to Boone NC where the voting station was moved from on Campus at Appalacian State University to a fifth floor office building 10 miles from campus with 35 parking spots. I'm sure you'll find some voters who are disenfranchised there.
More telling was the Watagua County NC Election official (Republican) who was interviewed on national TV and stated that the plan was developed for the sole purpose of preventing Democrat turnout. (he was fired the next day poor soul)
More telling was the Watagua County NC Election official (Republican) who was interviewed on national TV and stated that the plan was developed for the sole purpose of preventing Democrat turnout. (he was fired the next day poor soul)
1
Name a single person who has been shown to have voted twice or under someone else's identity. You actually deny, with a straight face, that each and every state where these laws have been passed by Republican legislatures wasn't done to suppress voting by those (minorities and students) who traditionally vote Democrat? Come spend some time down here and see if you can maintain the charade.
Name a single person who has been shown to have voted twice or under someone else's identity.
=============
Woman Convicted for Voting Five Times Under Five Different names in Election
http://www.gopusa.com/news/2014/04/03/woman-sentenced-to-six-months-home...
Poll Worker Voted Twice in Mayoral Election
http://www.cincinnati.com/article/20140211/NEWS/302110052/Poll-worker-s-...
A Shorewood man has been charged with more than a dozen counts of illegal voting, accused of casting multiple ballots in four elections in 2011 and 2012, including five in the 2012 gubernatorial recall.
http://www.jsonline.com/news/crime/shorewood-man-charged-with-13-counts-...
=============
Woman Convicted for Voting Five Times Under Five Different names in Election
http://www.gopusa.com/news/2014/04/03/woman-sentenced-to-six-months-home...
Poll Worker Voted Twice in Mayoral Election
http://www.cincinnati.com/article/20140211/NEWS/302110052/Poll-worker-s-...
A Shorewood man has been charged with more than a dozen counts of illegal voting, accused of casting multiple ballots in four elections in 2011 and 2012, including five in the 2012 gubernatorial recall.
http://www.jsonline.com/news/crime/shorewood-man-charged-with-13-counts-...
1
As a white son of the South who attended a well integrated high school in the late 60's, I was oblivious to continuing hidden work underway to turn back the clock, not to the "good old days" but rather the "bad old days." In my 40's I found out, to my embarrassment, that one of my relatives was instrumental in closing the Prince Edward County, Va, schools rather than allow them to be integrated. At least family history says he became tormented by his decision.
David Neal of North Carolina recently published an excellent article about his family's personal involvement in the (now) hidden movement within North Carolina to perpetuate white dominance (http://www.scalawagmagazine.org/articles/hiding-in-plain-sight). His article connects some of the characters you mention (including Tom Elllis and Jesse Helms) to the overt white supremacist groups of the 50's and 60's. the Neal's are a well respected family, and his main point is that without younger white generations being informed and understanding what was done and how it was done, it is easy to believe that the relative conditions and status of the races is a natural state.
David Neal of North Carolina recently published an excellent article about his family's personal involvement in the (now) hidden movement within North Carolina to perpetuate white dominance (http://www.scalawagmagazine.org/articles/hiding-in-plain-sight). His article connects some of the characters you mention (including Tom Elllis and Jesse Helms) to the overt white supremacist groups of the 50's and 60's. the Neal's are a well respected family, and his main point is that without younger white generations being informed and understanding what was done and how it was done, it is easy to believe that the relative conditions and status of the races is a natural state.
13
If we (white folks) are interested in a education I would recommend Anne Moody's book "Coming of Age in Mississippi" and Martin Luther King's Riverside Church Speech where he comes out against the war in Vietnam (and if we'd have taken his advice it would have saved this country a lot of pain in Iraq I Iraq, 2, Afghanistan and Vietnam). You can Google that and come up with the books and YouTube Videos.
1
Yes, Richard, I read that article by David Neal a few weeks ago. It was very eye opening for me as well as this article. I, too, am a child of the South. An African-American child that grew up in the 70s and 80s. Although my parents and other family members lived through the Civil Rights Movement and the disheartening treatment at the hands of whites because of their race, I, however, was raised during a time of integration and everybody getting along fabulously. I can't recall my (white) friends and I having to deal with racial issues in school. We had no idea all this was going on behind the scenes. Not that life was peaches and cream. Racial inequality wasn't an issue for us at that time. Now, as a mother, I find myself explaining to my children why are discriminatory things happening in America. Why does one segment of the population dislike US so much simply because of the color of our skin. Why are we as a country moving backward instead of forward? It seems such a waste of energy and precious time in trying to disenfranchise minorities. Obviously we are not going anywhere. So I suggest we all try to get along and make due with one another. One would think we would learn from our history and do better. But obviously not. It's a shame.
TAKEAWAY The gutting of the 1965 Voting Rights Act by the Extremist Activist Judges on the Supreme Court will be a most shameful stain upon its record. The hypocrisy of saying out of one side of the mouth that we're a post-racial society, while out of the other side justifying willful denial of voting rights is the hallmark of GOP extremists, who in the name of liberty, deny the rights of citizens based upon their race. How long will it take our country to recover from the regressive, destructive rulings of this most arch-conservative, activist courts? I hope fewer years than the 150 it has taken to have the Union Jack flag of slavery removed from government buildings in Dixie.
5
As long as humans are involved, voting district maps will be manipulated to favor different factions. Voting districts should be drawn by computers programmed to ignore all factors except population density. Race, ethnicity, civic boundaries, economic status, party affiliation and past voting histories should not count. But politicians and advocacy groups would never let this happened.
1
As a black man i find it very offensive when the Liberals make the claim that requiring people to have photo ID prevents minorities from voting. If the Federal Government were giving out 10,000 dollars to all the black people living in the United States i guarantee that no one would have a problem showing a photo ID.
5
Another fake letter. Some people can't take time off work to get a voter ID, don't have a car to get to the office, or can't produce a birth certificate, like the 90 year old woman who was initially prevented from voting. Someone savvy phoned the local TV station, and the poll workers couldn't let her vote fast enough.
I'm the real deal and to use a 90 year old woman as an excuse is pathetic. So anyone should be able to show up at a polling place without ID and vote with no verification of whom they are. Liberals please stop drinking the extra sweet Kool-aid it can be toxic.
1
The voting rights act is suppose to be non partisan. I don't know if it ever was, but it certainly has not been for about the last 30 years. It's principal use now is to maintain (or bring back) the Democrat majority. Time to move on.
1
Time to ban the republican party and be done with it. And then get one voting system, with paper ballots, non-partisan election heads, and voting booths open as long as people are on line. Adequate voting booths in all neighborhoods. No more electoral college while we are at it. And require anyone running for office to have A or B grades from highly ranked colleges.
9
Ban a political party? Wow, Miriam, I'm as liberal as it gets, and yet even I would never go that far. We do have free speech, still.
1
Conservative mantra... if you cannot win fair, change the rules, even if its a constitutional amendment.
It still did not stop a black person from being elected twice, with second term win coming in a down economy. You can't gerrymander a presidential election nor filibuster (in record numbers) it, the main tools of the worthless GOP.
It still did not stop a black person from being elected twice, with second term win coming in a down economy. You can't gerrymander a presidential election nor filibuster (in record numbers) it, the main tools of the worthless GOP.
8
Medgar Evers, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Fannie Lou Hamer, and even members of my family (relatives in the deep South) who were murdered, beaten and run from the polls in the 1960s and 70s.
All of them are being disgraced by this reckless, careless hyperbole by the Times over a lawsuit filed by Rev. Barber in NC that would have been thrown out of at least 10 of the 13 federal circuits here in America.
I have said this before, but Obama, his supporters and the mainstream media refuses to hear me. This is offensive. It eerily resembles Black History Month, where I often found myself singled out (and it still happens) for one month of the year to recall past horrors in some odd attempt to solicit White guilt or gin up racial divisions where there should be none. I am Black for 12 months a year, not just in February and unlike Obama I have no desire to escape that reality when it politically suits me (i.e. see Obama's first term).
The NC law does NOTHING to conjure up images of Reconstruction, Jim Crow, Bull Connor or any of the offensive hyperbole and demagoguery being spewed by Barber in NC, or celebrated on the pages of the Times.
Let it go people. Let it go.
All of them are being disgraced by this reckless, careless hyperbole by the Times over a lawsuit filed by Rev. Barber in NC that would have been thrown out of at least 10 of the 13 federal circuits here in America.
I have said this before, but Obama, his supporters and the mainstream media refuses to hear me. This is offensive. It eerily resembles Black History Month, where I often found myself singled out (and it still happens) for one month of the year to recall past horrors in some odd attempt to solicit White guilt or gin up racial divisions where there should be none. I am Black for 12 months a year, not just in February and unlike Obama I have no desire to escape that reality when it politically suits me (i.e. see Obama's first term).
The NC law does NOTHING to conjure up images of Reconstruction, Jim Crow, Bull Connor or any of the offensive hyperbole and demagoguery being spewed by Barber in NC, or celebrated on the pages of the Times.
Let it go people. Let it go.
7
Don't you mean, "Let it go people. Just let your rights go."
You must have a friend in the comments section editors group in order for your singularly myopic right wing party vitriol to get published on a daily basis.
You're the perfect compass of all things unethical and illogical.
Aren't they hiring over at Fox News - you'll find a lot of friends there!
You must have a friend in the comments section editors group in order for your singularly myopic right wing party vitriol to get published on a daily basis.
You're the perfect compass of all things unethical and illogical.
Aren't they hiring over at Fox News - you'll find a lot of friends there!
2
Not until the right to vote is restored to everyone.
Right to vote "restored" to illegals? Undocumented aliens who never had voting rights to restore?
Uh, no thanks.
I like the Constitution of the United States' plan. And I plan to keep this plan no matter what Obama says.
Uh, no thanks.
I like the Constitution of the United States' plan. And I plan to keep this plan no matter what Obama says.
1
"([Rehnquist] later said the memo [supporting Plessy v. Freguson] did not represent his true thinking.)"
These hypocritical racists will say anything to get on the Supreme Court. I blame the Senate for letting the racist Republican Presidents stack it.
This is THE single most important reason to vote for the establishment (i.e. electable) Democratic candidate.
Sorry, Bernie.
These hypocritical racists will say anything to get on the Supreme Court. I blame the Senate for letting the racist Republican Presidents stack it.
This is THE single most important reason to vote for the establishment (i.e. electable) Democratic candidate.
Sorry, Bernie.
3
Plessy v. Ferguson is an 1896 Supreme Court case.
For William Rehnquist to be 21 years old (still too young to be on the Supreme Court) he would've needed to be born in 1875.
If William Rehnquist was born in 1875, he was 130 years old when he died.
I am nearly 100% sure William Rehnquist wasn't alive or on the bench to support Plessy v. Ferguson, but why let reality, sanity and facts get in the way of a liberal rant?
For William Rehnquist to be 21 years old (still too young to be on the Supreme Court) he would've needed to be born in 1875.
If William Rehnquist was born in 1875, he was 130 years old when he died.
I am nearly 100% sure William Rehnquist wasn't alive or on the bench to support Plessy v. Ferguson, but why let reality, sanity and facts get in the way of a liberal rant?
My country 'tis not of thee, sweet land of hypocrisy, of thee I sing...
2
This article puts into context the sick minds who have made conscious efforts to prolong the denial of equal opportunity of so many Americans who have fought body and soul for the ideals and law of the Constitution. It is called racism and opportunism. It is no wonder then, that the United States cannot get rid of the black/white disparity and the headlines are filled with police brutality on a year by year basis.
5
Voting is completely antithetical to the goals of the modern republican party, i.e. a world completely controlled by the wealthy.
Is there a single republican in congress that wouldn't get rid of voting right now if they could? That way the only "voting" people could really do, is deciding what corporation they want to work for.
"You pick the winner! Exxon? Fox News? Dow Chemical? A golf course in a gated community? McDonalds? - the CHOICE is all yours!"
Is there a single republican in congress that wouldn't get rid of voting right now if they could? That way the only "voting" people could really do, is deciding what corporation they want to work for.
"You pick the winner! Exxon? Fox News? Dow Chemical? A golf course in a gated community? McDonalds? - the CHOICE is all yours!"
11
Our focus on important issues like social justice has been disrupted by a witch's brew of addictive technology and narcissism. Nobody to else to blame but ourselves for failing to pay attention. Courageous leaders like Dr. King, Bayard Rustin, and Saul Alinsky are ghosts of another era. We have to start all over again.
4
My thought is about a woman who lived to be 107. She was proud when she got to vote as an African American woman. I hope that all Americans could be that proud.
3
And what, precisely is it that is preventing all Americans (who are eligible) from voting. What exactly is it that the "evil Republicans" have done today which impedes that goal. I am still not clear as to what are these regressive provisions which the article (and others here) reference but do not actually spell out. I would like to see a listing of these statutes and/or proposed legislation which are preventing given persons from voting.
The 2000 Florida election debacle was probably the most important failure of a state to promote a fair election since 1965. The outcome of which was George Bush being able to name John Roberts to the court with dire consequences to election fairness with the Citizens United case and the Voting Rights decision. I might add Abraham Lincoln was not an abolitionist. He was Free Labor and Free Soil who fought against the expansion of slavery into the territories. The Emancipation Proclamation was a military expedient for the flagging fortunes of the Union during the Civil War.
10
There is absolutely nothing, at all, that is stopping eligible black voters from voting today. Nothing. 0. They can freely vote. Whether you're white, black, Asian, Hispanic, or any other ethnic group, as long as you're an eligible voter, you have the same ability to vote and can get voter IDs with ease. I think comparing voter ID laws, which are legitimately aimed at stopping fraudulent voting, to literacy tests, which were aimed at stopping black constituents from voting, is an insult to the work done to stop segregation. Implying that Republicans are a racist bunch because they aren't fitting the state voting schedules around "souls to the polls" is bizarre. What I found most insulting was the implication that Roberts is promoting racism. I think there is a lot of work to be done to stop hate, but making agenda-driven false parallels by insulting entire groups is not only counterproductive, but itself is hateful.
5
Your premise is patently false. And demonstrably so.
But, never let the facts get in the way of your zealotry.
But, never let the facts get in the way of your zealotry.
1
I never understand this position. Nothing was stopping people before all these new, more restrictive laws came into being either. So - why the new laws? The red-herring presented is always "voter fraud" but that's not the the real reason. It's about maintaining a majority party (Republican) in these states where they are increasingly becoming the minority party (by population) The only way to stop the inevitable is to try and dis-enfranchise, in any way possible, the ability to vote.
The point is not that it's "impossible" for certain people to vote, it's that's is "harder" for certain people to vote than others.
If you had to wait in a line for 10 days to vote, I could still claim that there is nothing "stopping" you from voting.
From the moment the Roberts court let the south free of voting oversight, it tool those republican controlled states all of one and one half seconds to start legally implementing the "harder" part.
Any and all means to make it "harder" were immediately put into place.
All in the name of protecting the polls from STILL undocumented and unsubstantiated voter fraud.
The only people this power grab isn't transparent to, is the blindly faithful right wing.
If you had to wait in a line for 10 days to vote, I could still claim that there is nothing "stopping" you from voting.
From the moment the Roberts court let the south free of voting oversight, it tool those republican controlled states all of one and one half seconds to start legally implementing the "harder" part.
Any and all means to make it "harder" were immediately put into place.
All in the name of protecting the polls from STILL undocumented and unsubstantiated voter fraud.
The only people this power grab isn't transparent to, is the blindly faithful right wing.
Exactly what are these repressive provisions? For all of the (typically) long-winded and whining rhetoric, I did not see a list of current provisions which would impede given sectors of our population from exercising their right to vote. Can we clearly delineate the facts first then engage in characteristic melodramatic whining. If a given provision is truly discriminatory, I'd be the first one to object. However, I'd like to see what exactly we are addressing - in terms of "oppression" first and I'd like to see it outlined succinctly.
15
"If a given provision is truly discriminatory, I'd be the first one to object."
Typical response of a narrow minded person who cannot see another's point of view. Think about the mean spirited attitude of Republicans, afraid to face the poor's rage, by denying them a voice in the voting booth. What are Republicans afraid of? What is it you don't (can't or refuse to?) see?
Typical response of a narrow minded person who cannot see another's point of view. Think about the mean spirited attitude of Republicans, afraid to face the poor's rage, by denying them a voice in the voting booth. What are Republicans afraid of? What is it you don't (can't or refuse to?) see?
Read the article. It's all right there. Here's an excerpt from the article which will hopefully answer your question:
In 2010, Republicans flipped control of 11 state legislatures and, raising the specter of voter fraud, began undoing much of the work of Frye and subsequent generations of state legislators. They rolled back early voting, eliminated same-day registration, disqualified ballots filed outside home precincts and created new demands for photo ID at polling places.
In 2010, Republicans flipped control of 11 state legislatures and, raising the specter of voter fraud, began undoing much of the work of Frye and subsequent generations of state legislators. They rolled back early voting, eliminated same-day registration, disqualified ballots filed outside home precincts and created new demands for photo ID at polling places.
3
What I can't "see" is specific examples of persons who were being denied the right to vote. I would like to see hard core facts not grandstanding and soap-boxing. Show me specific examples of where otherwise eligible persons were denied the right to vote by the "evil Republicans" and perhaps, then, I would not be so "narrow-minded." Talk and speculation (and grandstanding) is cheap. Show me where and how it is actually happening today. Hint That it happened 150 years ago is not in dispute. Show where it is happening today and then fostered by the hand of the Republicans.
The revered former Texas congresswoman Barbara Jordan once reflected "We, the people, It’s a very eloquent beginning. But when that document (the US Constitution) was completed, on the seventeenth of September in 1787, I was not included in that ‘We, the people.’ I felt somehow for many years that George Washington and Alexander Hamilton just left me out by mistake." Congresswoman Jordan certainly was being facetious in her comments about mistake exclusion. She knew as was the framer's original intent (so eloquently indicated by former Chief Justice Roger Taney) that Blacks (which includes anyone not White) definitely are NOT the people!
7
And then we fought the Civil War, and then we passed the 13th and 14th Amendments.
2
The sad fact is that Republicans do better when fewer people vote. Some 30 years ago, Paul Weyrich, the founder of ALEC and co-founder of the Heritage Foundation, said the following "I don't want everybody to vote. Elections are not won by a majority of people. They never have been from the beginning of our country, and they are not now. As a matter of fact our leverage in the elections quite candidly goes up as the voting populace goes down." Republicans are carrying out his vision and unfortunately they are succeeding.
40
'give it up NYT, the reason these laws are going the way of the dodo is because they are no longer needed, unless of course you talk to the NAACP.
6
And we certainly can't have THAT!
1
Ahhhh......another variant of American exceptionalism! If these nutters believe they are doing something to maintain and preserve the root stock, they and their minions are seriously deluded. An amazing legacy to leave our children and the generations to follow. They will reap what is sown.......
3
Seriously? Asking for proof of citizenship is an infringement of rights? This is about one political party making it's last ditch effort to have as many illegal and imaginary voters as possible in the face of the digital age where all of us will be easily identified. More Democrat propaganda from the Times...
9
I am a white, native born, elderly woman with a Hispanic last name (due to marriage to a European).
Let me assure you, just as black people have reason to fear discrimation for their skin color. I now go to the polls fearing that, due to my last name, there could be trouble with my registration or the counting of my vote. It's not just the south:
Scott Walker, who cannot stop telling us how he won three elections, is systematically limiting the vote in WI. Perhaps his so-called "wins" are not as clear cut as they seem? Otherwise, why try to limit and thereby manipulate the vote? Should he be elected, God forbid, to the presidency, expect a national effort to restrict voting. He never tells people in advance what draconian plans he has. Not till after an election, when he springs laws on the citizenry and tries to ram them through a compliant, gerrymandered legislature.
We need a complete reform of voting, including same day registration, early voting, a voting holiday or voting weekend, vote by mail, an end to gerrymandering, strengthened counting of the vote to ensure the ultimate tally has not been hacked, and a method for the automatic issuance of voter ID when persons reach age 18 or become citizens.
We preach democracy abroad. We should practice what we preach.
Let me assure you, just as black people have reason to fear discrimation for their skin color. I now go to the polls fearing that, due to my last name, there could be trouble with my registration or the counting of my vote. It's not just the south:
Scott Walker, who cannot stop telling us how he won three elections, is systematically limiting the vote in WI. Perhaps his so-called "wins" are not as clear cut as they seem? Otherwise, why try to limit and thereby manipulate the vote? Should he be elected, God forbid, to the presidency, expect a national effort to restrict voting. He never tells people in advance what draconian plans he has. Not till after an election, when he springs laws on the citizenry and tries to ram them through a compliant, gerrymandered legislature.
We need a complete reform of voting, including same day registration, early voting, a voting holiday or voting weekend, vote by mail, an end to gerrymandering, strengthened counting of the vote to ensure the ultimate tally has not been hacked, and a method for the automatic issuance of voter ID when persons reach age 18 or become citizens.
We preach democracy abroad. We should practice what we preach.
334
Ridiculous, provide one example where you had trouble voting not just this ridiculous "fear."
1
I would add two more items to your well thought out list of voting reforms. Publicly funded elections, and short election "seasons.". No more private fundraising for campaign purposes. Funds for campaign purposes would be available for only one month prior to each national election. This would mean that candidates would have to run on their actual records, rather than years worth of privately funded lies.
2
I voted under the new law for the first time in a small special election. I wrote UNDER PROTEST In large CAPS above my name when I signed in to get my ballot. I am 65, and I have never felt so angry/sad/demoralized in my life.
It is a travesty that these laws are being effected without a shred of evidence of so-called fraud.
It is a travesty that these laws are being effected without a shred of evidence of so-called fraud.
I am curious; when and why did the GOP and Democrats exchange their racist politics?
3
Between 1960 and 1964 because Republicans saw that they could take the South by supporting racism while the Democratic Party could no longer stomach it.
The racist Dixiecrats like Strom Thurmond left the democratic party and joined the republican party afte the Civil Rights Act passed in 1960's.
The Republicans did not switch - they just wrapped racism in the folds of sexism. Which they have perfected over the years. And the women do not even realize it.......
My experience is that the only way the incompetent can survive and thrive is to undermine and destroy the competent. At some companies, even the rules against retaliation in the workplace have been twisted into a way to attack people who are competent, to slow them down and get them viewed suspiciously so the incompetent can rise. Same thing has been done by the GOP re voting rights - and re abortion rights. They set up lies to destroy laws designed by the competent to promote their personal, incompetent views. The only way to defeat the incompetent is to expose them and remove them from power. That has to be our constant goal - expose and remove.
14
This is typical of GOP and other extremist actions against the law of the land. Since the Supreme Court determined that the Constitution gives women the right to make their own decisions, within certain limits that most people consider reasonable, of what happens to their bodies, the GOP and other extremist right-to-lifers have been chipping away at the right to abortion. To the point where it is now extremely difficult for many women, especially poor ones, to exercise that right. We are onto their game now, and need to take steps to counter it.
10
Personally, I like the Clinton plan where you don't have to actively register to vote but you do have to actively "opt out" of voting. At age 18 every American citizen should receive a voter ID card automatically. If they want to opt out of the process, they may do so.
32
This is despicable. Infuriating. Voters of color are being systematically barred from participating in what should be, one of greatest examples of democracy. Inalienable rights guaranteed by our sacred Constitution outright ignored and trampled on.
Make no mistake, this is a calculated effort to marginalize the voting power of minorities, and to keep from having any say in government. It was acts such as this that precipitated Jim Crow, and we all may as well return to this bygone era if nothing is done.
If this current trend continues, I fear that this group of very influential people will continue until they reduce our constitution to the status of toilet paper.
Make no mistake, this is a calculated effort to marginalize the voting power of minorities, and to keep from having any say in government. It was acts such as this that precipitated Jim Crow, and we all may as well return to this bygone era if nothing is done.
If this current trend continues, I fear that this group of very influential people will continue until they reduce our constitution to the status of toilet paper.
20
College students are also often disenfranchised - sometimes requiring them to vote where they have official residence and inadequate voting booths. College students tend to vote liberal, need I say more?
That said, maybe there should be a bonus vote for people who have voted regularly for 20 years, and a second bonus if you have voted regularly for 40... At least one hopes those people have more of a historical perspective and pay attention to politics. I am not thrilled that idealistic college students (and I was one once) gave us Obama. Had they a historic perspective, they might have understood what happened during the Clinton years of "let's make nice with Republicans" and what it wrought.
That said, maybe there should be a bonus vote for people who have voted regularly for 20 years, and a second bonus if you have voted regularly for 40... At least one hopes those people have more of a historical perspective and pay attention to politics. I am not thrilled that idealistic college students (and I was one once) gave us Obama. Had they a historic perspective, they might have understood what happened during the Clinton years of "let's make nice with Republicans" and what it wrought.
It is not just voters of color that Republicans want to disenfranchise. It is also young voters as shown by their exclusion of college IDs as valid proof of identity. The Republicans are targeting groups they think will vote Democratic, of whom people of color may be the largest subgroup, but students and poor people of any race are also in their crosshairs.
Black voters aren't being prevented from voting. The racism hysteria is out of control.
1
Republicans know the growing share of the electorate comprised of minorities represents an existential threat to their power, and they've concluded that they're better off trying to prevent some of them from voting than to make an unconvincing and probably fruitless attempt to appeal to them with new policies. Pathetic and sad, but with the support of five Supreme Court justices, also disturbingly effective.
17
I moved to NC from CA in 1978 to live, work, and attend graduate school. The first registrar with whom I tried to register to vote turned me away. The second registrar happily regeistered me, but then denied the African-American man in line behind me, which immediately taught me that I'd moved from a democracy to a state dominated by individuals who violated the franchise on the basis of their own prejudices. It was almost as shocking as finding ourselves unable, several years later, to convince the "good" neighbors in our Durham precinct to vote for a party plank to condemn the killings of Communist protesters on the streets of Greensboro. Sadly, Southern hospitality is often not even skin deep.
103
Are there lists of eligible voters at each polling place? Are the names checked-off as people get their ballots? Why is it so difficult to produce an ID to validate you are who you say you are?
5
IDing is just a small part of the problem, even though its over-done.
after 50 years, with minuscule voting problems, why now ;) !?
after 50 years, with minuscule voting problems, why now ;) !?
When I vote I have to sign a document saying I am who I say I am. that signature is then compared to the one they have on file. That signature never expires, I can never lose it, it is easier to obtain and a lot harder to fake than an ID. So now I ask why all of this additional verification is necessary?
1
Republican attempts to restrict the vote will create revolution. There's no democracy when a citizen is unable to vote.
12
When people register to vote, they sign their registration. Why is it so hard to check signatures when they vote. The cost benefit ratio, so dear to environmental issues, is astronomical in voter id issues. No need for id.
Does anybody here buy Roberts' phony legal-purity argument, basically that if we have racially-based decision-making in this country, our justice system will be tainted and, presumably, fall apart at some point?
When you've got a population that was dragged here against its will, made second-and-third-class citizens for a few centuries, OF COURSE you need some race-based decision-making if you're going to make any headway toward redressing the situation. Any at all. Roberts is more blatantly racist than I realized.
When you've got a population that was dragged here against its will, made second-and-third-class citizens for a few centuries, OF COURSE you need some race-based decision-making if you're going to make any headway toward redressing the situation. Any at all. Roberts is more blatantly racist than I realized.
34
I applaud the NY Times for publishing this article. It is bold. It is direct. If is factual. It is much needed. This is the journalism we need in the United States. Bravo! Bravo! Bravo!
32
North Carolina, which votes Republican, has reduced the number of early voting days. However, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Maine, Delaware, Michigan and Minnesota, which vote Democrat, disallow early voting altogether. Only 10 states permit same-day registration. All states except New Mexico requires voters to present identification when they vote or register to vote. (New Mexico lets people with no ID sign a sworn affidavit.) Virtually all states, including New York, requires voters to vote in their own precincts. The state-issued photo IDs required in some states are free and easier to get than non-state identification accepted in other states. (For example, to get a student ID, you have to present identification, a high school transcript and pay thousands of dollars in tuition.) Opponents of voter IDs have never been able to present an eligible voter who could not get a state-issued voter ID.
5
Can you clarify what you mean by disallowing early voting? I lived in New York for 8 years and was always able to vote early at one of several locations (outside my precinct) around NYC.
Since you are factually wrong about my state, Maine, I have to suspect that you may be wrong about much else. Maine allows early voting. With a Republican governor, Senator (the other Senator is an Independent) and congressional Representative, I don't see how you can say Maine "votes Democrat."
You are flat out wrong. The most populous state in the country, California, does not require people to present identification to register to vote OR to vote.
I have no idea how many other states you are wrong about.
I have no idea how many other states you are wrong about.
The Republican right might win in the short run, but they can't stop the changing demographics of America and they will rue the days of trying to keep citizens from voting and will guarantee Democratic dominance for decades. I am not a Democrat or Republican, as I feel both parties don't represent working families or anybody but the "1 percent", we need a realignment of parties to give the working people a voice.
11
What it comes down to is that the GOP doesn't like the idea of any African American holding power, period. They have not shown Barack Obama the respect he should be getting as president. They have not wanted to make it easier for people to register or to vote. They do not want minorities voting because more minorities voting might lose them their seats in state, local and federal government. They are beginning to remind me of South African officials who enforced apartheid.
27
And for all the money, time and effort put into campaigns, our voter turnout is notoriously low. Compare our turnout with that in the UK - and they have a brief campaign period, limited spending and restricted advertising. If there is no other way to drive home that voting is a civic responsibility, election day should be a national holiday. Get out and vote!
19
When it comes to civics we are a lazy nation. Ask the next 10 people you meet who the secretary of state is and you will then understand.
2
Would it not be more strategic for Republicans to evaluate why their party is anathema to so many citizens than to disenfranchise voters looking to represent an ideal platform?
18
Our so called democracy is failing our citizens at so many levels.
Firstly I question the logic and fairness of having the States set the rules for
Federal elections as the consequences of these elections can affect all Americans. We have all seen how the balance of the Senate can be impacted by a managed vote in some small state
I still bristle at the thought that 38 million Americans in California have the same impact as less than a million people in many states.
I often wonder if you added up the popular vote for each Senate member who would garner the most votes, I believe the Democrats.
So much for the will of the people.
Firstly I question the logic and fairness of having the States set the rules for
Federal elections as the consequences of these elections can affect all Americans. We have all seen how the balance of the Senate can be impacted by a managed vote in some small state
I still bristle at the thought that 38 million Americans in California have the same impact as less than a million people in many states.
I often wonder if you added up the popular vote for each Senate member who would garner the most votes, I believe the Democrats.
So much for the will of the people.
13
"Our so called democracy is failing our citizens at so many levels."
I think actually that it is the other way around--the citizens are failing to make democracy work by not being participants. too few vote, too few know the issues, too few care about anything other than entertainment, cars, sports, drugs, and more.
I read an article yesterday that suggests California no longer matters anyway, it is Ohio, Florida and some other states where the bulk of the political campaign money was spent in the last election, some states $37 per voter, some less that a penny. It is all about money, pleasing the moronic masses with political platitudes, retaining the greased-palm candidates who will keep jobs and military bases in their towns and more.
Members of congress are still asking "what their country can do for them (monetarily among others) rather than what they can do for their country.
democracy as we see it here is simply a shell. We have devolved to a government for hire by the rich, which in my opinion is MUCH much worse than a dictatorship. At least there you know from the start who is against you.
I think actually that it is the other way around--the citizens are failing to make democracy work by not being participants. too few vote, too few know the issues, too few care about anything other than entertainment, cars, sports, drugs, and more.
I read an article yesterday that suggests California no longer matters anyway, it is Ohio, Florida and some other states where the bulk of the political campaign money was spent in the last election, some states $37 per voter, some less that a penny. It is all about money, pleasing the moronic masses with political platitudes, retaining the greased-palm candidates who will keep jobs and military bases in their towns and more.
Members of congress are still asking "what their country can do for them (monetarily among others) rather than what they can do for their country.
democracy as we see it here is simply a shell. We have devolved to a government for hire by the rich, which in my opinion is MUCH much worse than a dictatorship. At least there you know from the start who is against you.
63
On a very basic level, I think government should not be in the business of trying to create headaches for people as they try to enjoy their basic constitutional rights. I'm being a little hypocritical, as I'm in favor of background checks for arms purchases. Nevertheless, citizens should not be made to jump through hoops in order to experience their most fundamental liberties. The burden should be on the state to facilitate the voter's enfranchisement, not the individual. Imagine the uproar if you had to present your credentials to government in order to attend the house of worship of your choice. But somehow we've evolved to see voting rights as just icing on the cake.
77
Perhaps we should insist on a system where every adult citizen will be automatically eligible, and it would be up to voting rights opponents to prove which voters are not eligible, one by one.
8
Gun reform is not quite akin to voting- and since there is little evidence of in person voter fraud- it doesn't seem like a hypocrisy to seek thorough background checks for lethal weapons and facilitating policies for all citizens to vote.
What a gross travesty- to keep a 90 year old rural woman from the polls !
Why not issue a national voter's ID- with Soc Sec/Mcare/IRS mailings and allow polling stations to stay open on a weekend day for working folks & single moms ?
What a gross travesty- to keep a 90 year old rural woman from the polls !
Why not issue a national voter's ID- with Soc Sec/Mcare/IRS mailings and allow polling stations to stay open on a weekend day for working folks & single moms ?
1
How do we know who's a "citizen" if there is no ID?
1
It's pretty telling of the state of affairs in the U.S. when the chief justice of the supreme court is so resoundingly shallow in both integrity and wisdom.
35
Agreed.
Chief Justice Roberts proved he lacked integrity and wisdom--twice.
Both times to save Obamacare and allegedly a questionable adoption in his family.
Chief Justice Roberts proved he lacked integrity and wisdom--twice.
Both times to save Obamacare and allegedly a questionable adoption in his family.
you are of course referring to his decisions saving obama care and gay marriage, right? Or do those decisions make him the greatest Judge in history and this decision makes him wisdomless?
1
As a lawyer in Washington DC, I have to say the Obamacare decisions make Chief Justice Roberts to date, the worst Supreme Court Justice this side of Taney in the Dred Scott case.
I want ALL U.S. citizens to vote. I just do not want someone who is NOT a U.S. citizen to vote. My son just turned 18 two weeks ago. He had absolutely no problem registering to vote. I want his vote and my vote respected by having proper protections in effect against voter fraud. Even if there were absolutely no evidence of voter fraud EVER having taken place, which is not the case, I would still want those protections in place.
6
yes, they keep people from voting who are legal citizens..
2
What exactly do you mean by protections?? Protections against what voter fraud specifically? What do you suggest?? If there is no evidence of a problem, why do you want to spend my tax dollars to fix a problem that does not exist???
1
It is amazing how quickly Republicans can come up with solutions to problems that do no exist.
Real problems appear to be another matter.
Real problems appear to be another matter.
4
Funny, I had no trouble registering when I moved away from Ohio, and then moved back a few years later.
It was so onerous and difficult, that I actually had to go the PUBLIC LIBRARY and fill out a POSTCARD (self-stamped). Ooo! the horror! the inconvenience!
Had I been a shut-in, they would had mailed the postcard TO me.
As it was a postcard, and I live in a mixed race suburb, they could not possibly know the race of the person turning in the registration.
Later, due purely to laziness and sloth, I voted by absentee ballot. Ooo! the horror! the inconvenience! I actually had to request a ballot (on the phone), then fill it out and mail it back.
The horror! the horror!
This is a biased and slanted article, full of the hatred and bigotry it claims to want to end -- it is biased against whites and Southerners, 150 years AFTER the Civil War and 50-60 years after Jim Crow. No black person is denied registration or voting. The Old South is long gone. You've even taken away their right to fly their own flag. Instead of being glad, you are trying to drag out and maintain your snobbish hatred of anyone who thinks differently than you do.
And BTW: where is your next black savior/messiah on the Democratic ticket? I see only old rich white people (Clinton, Sanders). Not even a hispanic or asian. Pathetic.
It was so onerous and difficult, that I actually had to go the PUBLIC LIBRARY and fill out a POSTCARD (self-stamped). Ooo! the horror! the inconvenience!
Had I been a shut-in, they would had mailed the postcard TO me.
As it was a postcard, and I live in a mixed race suburb, they could not possibly know the race of the person turning in the registration.
Later, due purely to laziness and sloth, I voted by absentee ballot. Ooo! the horror! the inconvenience! I actually had to request a ballot (on the phone), then fill it out and mail it back.
The horror! the horror!
This is a biased and slanted article, full of the hatred and bigotry it claims to want to end -- it is biased against whites and Southerners, 150 years AFTER the Civil War and 50-60 years after Jim Crow. No black person is denied registration or voting. The Old South is long gone. You've even taken away their right to fly their own flag. Instead of being glad, you are trying to drag out and maintain your snobbish hatred of anyone who thinks differently than you do.
And BTW: where is your next black savior/messiah on the Democratic ticket? I see only old rich white people (Clinton, Sanders). Not even a hispanic or asian. Pathetic.
5
Ah, conservatives' other favorite sleight of hand: equating standing up for equal rights with "snobbishness".
1
This article doesn't address why blacks don't have a license to drive? No one in this country cannot do anything without a photo id. Opening bank accounts, traveling, picking up your social security check all require photo id's. Why shouldn't voting require the same thing? Are they protecting the voting fraud? The Act served it's use in the 60's. Our society has changed and everyone today has access to Id's. Like Gay Marriage and other court decisions the Voting Rights Act needs to change as society changes.
6
I bet many poor and inner city people do not have drivers licenses since they use public transit. Still, they were born here and should be able to vote.
11
Even foodstamps applications: photo ID and a copy of your birth certificate to prove your identity. Even those poor enough to qualify for public assistance must be able to prove identity with photo ID.
1
Americans should automatically be registered to vote at the age of 18. They could to it by mail as they do in Washington State. The voter would keep a bar-coded copy of their vote in case there were need for a re-count. There should also be federal laws governing votes for federal elected office holders. Perhaps we should follow Australia's law of making voting mandatory? The War Party would hate that!
18
Yes, voting in federal elections should be national. not state controlled.
2
We are a Republic of sovereign States and sovereign individuals. These United States are not one giant mass democracy subject to the tyranny of the majority. That is why.
It took 250 years to build our nation to where it is today - the beacon of freedom and democracy. And that beacon is being dismantled by a small group of passionate, close-minded and probably terribly frightened people whose only goal seems to be to accumulate greater and greater wealth and power at the expense of everyone else. The animal kingdom run amok. When will they have enough? Never. When will they be happy? Never. But we have the power to effect change. Ask yourself, "What can I do to create a better world for my children and grandchildren" - and then act.
8
Everyone should have the right to vote, however to get on a plane, train, or into federal, state and local offices, and businesses you need to show ID. I do not think having to show ID is an issue or a problem for anyone in this country
6
Except when the elderly and the poor cannot afford to spend money to meet the ID requirements for each state....that amounts to a poll tax pure and simple....If there is a universal ID which the government can fund and make it easy to apply for....then I would listen.
4
Finding the comment section has not been easy nor can I find the Save or Email functions which accompany, I thought, all Times' online articles.
Is this an illustration, though on a minor moral scale, of how difficult it was for some people to vote?
Is this an illustration, though on a minor moral scale, of how difficult it was for some people to vote?
2
"After 1965, though, partisan mapmakers also had to be mindful not to violate the Voting Rights Act. They could only rarely draw lines that reduced minority participation, and they had an affirmative duty under certain conditions to create “minority-majority” districts, where blacks or Latinos made up the majority."
End the racial gerrymandering. Then when liberals cry for an "end to gerrymandering" they might seem a little less hypocritical.
End the racial gerrymandering. Then when liberals cry for an "end to gerrymandering" they might seem a little less hypocritical.
6
Whose being naive? Both parties do it whenever they can get away with it.
@Ryan: "Whose being naive?'
What does naive have to do with it?
I am calling for an end to racial gerrymandering, which is what Republicans use to pack African-Americans into districts to make them overwhelmingly African-American. This makes it a "safe seat" but also takes Democratic votes from surrounding districts.
So how about we end it or quit pretending one is upset about gerrymandering?
What does naive have to do with it?
I am calling for an end to racial gerrymandering, which is what Republicans use to pack African-Americans into districts to make them overwhelmingly African-American. This makes it a "safe seat" but also takes Democratic votes from surrounding districts.
So how about we end it or quit pretending one is upset about gerrymandering?
1
Several years ago, as a NC Democrat and County Dem Board Member I investigated voter fraud in NC, gathering the hard data and talking with State Election officials.
As confirmed in this article, the so-called "voter fraud" is a fraud itself and a myth. The occasional person who registers twice or tries to vote twice appear to be an occasional person who is sadly mentally ill or has Alzheimers, etc.
What person would take the chance of committing a felony? Would go through the trouble it entails? It is a lie and needs to be buried.
As confirmed in this article, the so-called "voter fraud" is a fraud itself and a myth. The occasional person who registers twice or tries to vote twice appear to be an occasional person who is sadly mentally ill or has Alzheimers, etc.
What person would take the chance of committing a felony? Would go through the trouble it entails? It is a lie and needs to be buried.
254
One is too many.
The only person I know who would commit voter fraud (and has) is one of my uncles, who owns homes in two states. He regularly votes in both states because he feels that he is entitled by his superior (white) intellect to cast his vote twice. He probably tells his wife how to vote as well, so in essence, he gets three votes (maybe four) to support his candidates.
I have seen men follow their wives and children into the voting booths at my local precinct where the men actively point out the candidates they should choose. I've even asked poll workers if this is allowed, and the reply is always that if the voter does not complain or request the person leave them alone while they vote, they are allowed to have someone with them.
During the last election, I found several sheets of paper INSIDE the polling place which listed the "preferred" candidates supported by the local conservative weekly paper. (This is illegal.) I handed them to the poll workers, who threw them away, but found several more had been placed back in the same spots as I walked out after voting. I called the election board to report this as well.
We should be genuinely worried about voter fraud, but we should be looking at the people complaining the loudest about it, not those who are being actively disenfranchised by Art Pope and our GOP-led NC legislature.
I have seen men follow their wives and children into the voting booths at my local precinct where the men actively point out the candidates they should choose. I've even asked poll workers if this is allowed, and the reply is always that if the voter does not complain or request the person leave them alone while they vote, they are allowed to have someone with them.
During the last election, I found several sheets of paper INSIDE the polling place which listed the "preferred" candidates supported by the local conservative weekly paper. (This is illegal.) I handed them to the poll workers, who threw them away, but found several more had been placed back in the same spots as I walked out after voting. I called the election board to report this as well.
We should be genuinely worried about voter fraud, but we should be looking at the people complaining the loudest about it, not those who are being actively disenfranchised by Art Pope and our GOP-led NC legislature.
Obviously your uncle is committing a crime by voting in two states and show you the damage that can occur when voting rules, regulations and tabulation are done state by state (the states rights nonsense).
Rules and regulations for Voting, certainly for president of the United States, should be standardized through the feds such that social security can be easily checked and everything is standardized for dates, times of voting as well as registration, etc.
I'm hoping your Uncle ends up in jail.
Rules and regulations for Voting, certainly for president of the United States, should be standardized through the feds such that social security can be easily checked and everything is standardized for dates, times of voting as well as registration, etc.
I'm hoping your Uncle ends up in jail.
Everyone who votes, registers. They sign a document attesting they are a U.S. citizen and they provide information on themselves regarding where they live. To lie is perjury, and crime. The truth is people don't perjure themselves to vote in an election. To all my GOP friends: there is no voter fraud conspiracy which requires restricted hours, or voter ID confirmation. All these restrictions do is inhibit regular Americans, and generally poor ones, from voting. This country was founded because as colonists we had issues with our representation in government. As Americans in the 21st century, it shouldn't matter if we own land or not, if we are educated or not, if we are white or black or Asian, or not. A fundamental right in this country should be a person's right to vote for their representative in government. Any hindrance is both unethical and un-American. To register to vote is to stand up to be counted, to offer truthful testimony, as in a court of law, that you are an America citizen. Until proved otherwise, that should be enough.
197
I am never surprised by the hypocrisy of the GOP and its various ultra-conservative sects. One hand preaches free speech, free choice, a life unburdened by government action. The other squeezes to constrict the rights of those who do not look like them or agree with them.
16
Jim Rutenberg and the Times should receive a Pulitzer in Explanatory Reporting for this excellent piece.
I hope every American who believes in the power of democracy reads this and takes to heart the fact that a small cabal of partisans has been quietly chipping away at the very thing that makes us Americans. 200 years ago, George Washington warned us about this. Now we need to sit up and listen, and then stand up and take action for our rights.
I hope every American who believes in the power of democracy reads this and takes to heart the fact that a small cabal of partisans has been quietly chipping away at the very thing that makes us Americans. 200 years ago, George Washington warned us about this. Now we need to sit up and listen, and then stand up and take action for our rights.
12
Just let anyone vote, no ID needed, no signing in process either. Vote once as your dead grandfather. Then vote again as yourself. Vote if you are here illegally. After all, who cares about laws or the sanctity of the election process? /sarc
4
To call this a Strawman argument is an insult to Scarecrows everywhere.
The only solution is a massive effort to register voters, in the South, and elect politicians who will over-turn these restrictive laws. As an American, I find this effort to limit voting a blight on our democracy...
2
The right to vote is a bedrock principle, which underlies our form of government. It amazes me that the same folks who so loudly tout American exceptionalism are often the very ones trying to undermine, even destroy, this bedrock principle and basic right.
Like rats nibbling away at cheese, many states are busy today gobbling up voter rights and protections. Interesting, however, that what is being done here at home is not being promoted abroad. Why is that? If it were indeed so important, so beneficial, why is there no campaign to enshrine multiple voter restrictions in every new constitution of every young democratic state?
How can this country pretend to export democracy while limiting it here at home?
If cars can be hacked and controlled long distance via computer, imagine the creative things that can be done when it's time to count the vote. Or when someone tries to register.
Are my votes really being counted any longer? I never used to worry about it. But now I do.
There is nothing so sacred as one's vote, one's opportunity to weigh in on who represents my views and preferences. So to rob me of my vote is to destroy my voice, my views, my choices.
There is no reason to restrict the votes of citizens other than to try and manipulate the outcomes. One party is trying to install itself via these undemocratic methods.
What a message to the world at large! Hang your head in shame, America!
Like rats nibbling away at cheese, many states are busy today gobbling up voter rights and protections. Interesting, however, that what is being done here at home is not being promoted abroad. Why is that? If it were indeed so important, so beneficial, why is there no campaign to enshrine multiple voter restrictions in every new constitution of every young democratic state?
How can this country pretend to export democracy while limiting it here at home?
If cars can be hacked and controlled long distance via computer, imagine the creative things that can be done when it's time to count the vote. Or when someone tries to register.
Are my votes really being counted any longer? I never used to worry about it. But now I do.
There is nothing so sacred as one's vote, one's opportunity to weigh in on who represents my views and preferences. So to rob me of my vote is to destroy my voice, my views, my choices.
There is no reason to restrict the votes of citizens other than to try and manipulate the outcomes. One party is trying to install itself via these undemocratic methods.
What a message to the world at large! Hang your head in shame, America!
12
Oh my, all of that and the fact remains that it is no different for a black to vote in this country than that is a white.
In fact what this article really tells us is that blacks and whites are very similar in that many don't vote.
Furthermore most of the controversy is attached to the voter ID laws that have been passed which should bother no one. If you can't manage to get an ID then perhaps voting is beyond your capability anyway.
In fact what this article really tells us is that blacks and whites are very similar in that many don't vote.
Furthermore most of the controversy is attached to the voter ID laws that have been passed which should bother no one. If you can't manage to get an ID then perhaps voting is beyond your capability anyway.
7
And why does a student ID not count as a voter ID?
The Beatles were wrong. Money can buy you love.
The enormous upward redistribution of wealth that has occurred in America since 1970 has created a moneyed class that thinks it should be able to own everything, including the political system we call democracy. They have of course largely succeeded in that effort.
But some sweeping up remains. And that includes making sure that the black vote is suppressed as much as is humanly possible. After all, blacks tend to vote for social justice, which is something foreign to the .1%.
With the advent of digitally-tallied elections suppressing black votes will become less of an issue, but right now we have returned to the Jim Crow era largely through the efforts of men and some women who are directly or indirectly funded by the .1%
Anyone who has watched even moments of the Sandy Bland arrest know that blacks are routinely subjected to harsh treatment at the hands of white run government organizations.
That John Roberts could condone this in any way, shape or form makes a mockery of what it means to be a Chief Justice.
Mr. Roberts shames us all.
I would simply ask Justice Roberts, on behalf of all Americans, "Have you no sense of decency?"
The enormous upward redistribution of wealth that has occurred in America since 1970 has created a moneyed class that thinks it should be able to own everything, including the political system we call democracy. They have of course largely succeeded in that effort.
But some sweeping up remains. And that includes making sure that the black vote is suppressed as much as is humanly possible. After all, blacks tend to vote for social justice, which is something foreign to the .1%.
With the advent of digitally-tallied elections suppressing black votes will become less of an issue, but right now we have returned to the Jim Crow era largely through the efforts of men and some women who are directly or indirectly funded by the .1%
Anyone who has watched even moments of the Sandy Bland arrest know that blacks are routinely subjected to harsh treatment at the hands of white run government organizations.
That John Roberts could condone this in any way, shape or form makes a mockery of what it means to be a Chief Justice.
Mr. Roberts shames us all.
I would simply ask Justice Roberts, on behalf of all Americans, "Have you no sense of decency?"
137
I agree that John Roberts will be vilified in future analysis of the Supreme Court. Citizens United and the backtracking on the Voting Act are ideological, non Constitutional results.
Contempt for "states' rights", as this author clearly shows by putting the term in quotes and declaring it "ominous", is contempt for the Constitution.
The Constitution grants the federal government about a dozen-and-a-half enumerated powers, and the Tenth Amendment declares that any power not specifically granted to the feds by the Constitution belongs to "the states, respectively, or to the people".
Adherence to the states' rights clause of the Constitution is not "dog-whistle racism", rather, opposition to said clause is rooted in a love for the leviathan of centralized power.
The Constitution grants the federal government about a dozen-and-a-half enumerated powers, and the Tenth Amendment declares that any power not specifically granted to the feds by the Constitution belongs to "the states, respectively, or to the people".
Adherence to the states' rights clause of the Constitution is not "dog-whistle racism", rather, opposition to said clause is rooted in a love for the leviathan of centralized power.
15
And one of the powers given the federal government is the power to legislate to assure states are not preventing people from voting because of their race. (15th Amendment) That John Roberts and his racist crew were able to substitute their opinions for that of the Congress of the United States in renewing Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act was a blatant undercutting of the Constitution.
People who claim "state's rights" are usually trying to take away an individual's rights and the Federal government is trying to stop them.
1
This is a pre-Civil War argument. Read the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution, and cases thereunder.
1
Wonderful article !
Oprah Winfrey demonstrated this (indelibly & searingly in my memory) when she went to register to vote in the Lee Daniels/Danny Strong film, The Butler.
Now, what are we going to do about it ?
From my perspective our very non-exceptional country seems to be going backwards, not forwards.
Oprah Winfrey demonstrated this (indelibly & searingly in my memory) when she went to register to vote in the Lee Daniels/Danny Strong film, The Butler.
Now, what are we going to do about it ?
From my perspective our very non-exceptional country seems to be going backwards, not forwards.
6
Many of these red states are just itching for the chance to re-impose Jim Crow. Restrictionists claim that, of course, everyone can vote and no state would ever openly legislate that away; and that the integrity of all elections must be maintained. But they also know that millions of American citizens live paycheck to paycheck, and may not have the $31 to spare for authenticated birth certificate to get the photo ID. Voting isn't made illegal; it's just that financial hurdles are created with the foreknowledge that many just won't be able to get over them. These voting poor are usually Democrats. If someone was down to their last dollars until their next paycheck ten days away, would they spend them on the abstraction of voting, or on the real problem of keeping the lights on? I also say that so long as the Republican Party is the party of popular voter suppression, it will continue to lose non-gerrymandered elections.
65
I believe the Republicans fear their brand does not appeal to the middle class, students and the elderly. That's true! Everyone votes their self-interest, and so
the right wing desire to restrict the voting of most Americans is seen to advance the Republican cause. Their members would then be able to advocate the things dear to their heart without the interference of criticism from Democrats. No wonder the Republicans answer to constantly losing is to restrict voting rights. FYI non-citizens are not permitted to vote; this is more Repub paranoia and soothes the party's anxiety over why their candidates lose so often: the Democrats cheat, of course!
the right wing desire to restrict the voting of most Americans is seen to advance the Republican cause. Their members would then be able to advocate the things dear to their heart without the interference of criticism from Democrats. No wonder the Republicans answer to constantly losing is to restrict voting rights. FYI non-citizens are not permitted to vote; this is more Repub paranoia and soothes the party's anxiety over why their candidates lose so often: the Democrats cheat, of course!
We living in 'blue' states have no idea what is still happening in southern red states. We take our votes for granted and I had no problem to vote since I became a US citizen in 1978.
The article shows both progress and regress in some states. Senator Helms is, fortunately, no longer with us but Republicans are...
We should have no illusions about them.
The article shows both progress and regress in some states. Senator Helms is, fortunately, no longer with us but Republicans are...
We should have no illusions about them.
7
Mr. N.
We agree on more things than not, way more (based on my reading of your many comments; and on a side note: The confederate battle flag is anathema to me; it is a symbol of white supremacy and treason). You are a reasonable person; think about what you said in the first sentence: "We ... have no idea what is still happening ..." So, why do you think (as others on this board) that "the south" is on its way to Jim Crow? That's too absurd to comment on, except it seems to be conventional wisdom in this comment section.
in Georgia one can register to vote when one gets a license plate; at the post office; driver's license agency (and other places)... many of the people working behind all these counters are black, Do you think they are impeding other black people to register to vote?
Why doesn't the democratic party identify the people who are having trouble getting the annoying documents together and Help them (I had to wait in line 4 hours to get the new "secure" driver's ID last year ... it was stupid, but there we all were, black, white, hispanic, asian etc etc (not exaggerating here) waiting together)?
Help the people who have trouble getting the documents and get them an ID. And IMPLORE them to vote!
We have absentee ballots and early voting here and free govt ID. these people with these laws are stinkers, but are they really accomplishing anything? That's not a rhetorical question.
Seems to me their hostility is motivating people to get out to vote.
We agree on more things than not, way more (based on my reading of your many comments; and on a side note: The confederate battle flag is anathema to me; it is a symbol of white supremacy and treason). You are a reasonable person; think about what you said in the first sentence: "We ... have no idea what is still happening ..." So, why do you think (as others on this board) that "the south" is on its way to Jim Crow? That's too absurd to comment on, except it seems to be conventional wisdom in this comment section.
in Georgia one can register to vote when one gets a license plate; at the post office; driver's license agency (and other places)... many of the people working behind all these counters are black, Do you think they are impeding other black people to register to vote?
Why doesn't the democratic party identify the people who are having trouble getting the annoying documents together and Help them (I had to wait in line 4 hours to get the new "secure" driver's ID last year ... it was stupid, but there we all were, black, white, hispanic, asian etc etc (not exaggerating here) waiting together)?
Help the people who have trouble getting the documents and get them an ID. And IMPLORE them to vote!
We have absentee ballots and early voting here and free govt ID. these people with these laws are stinkers, but are they really accomplishing anything? That's not a rhetorical question.
Seems to me their hostility is motivating people to get out to vote.
Since the republicans have no solutions, this is a component of their strategy to win elections. Combined with their deception of the ignorant, their lock on states through gerrymandering, their wealthy benefactors, and their robust propaganda machine, the republicans continue to win elections with no viable ideas to address the issues of our nation today or going forward. Constantly looking through the rear view mirror, the GOP looks to gain any advantage they can through any means to perpetuate their pathetic agenda.
9
I think the only politicians who actually believe in upholding the Constitution were those who wrote it, and even some of those weren't too happy with it. It's just the best compromise we've been able to come up with, but even then it's been under attack from day one, an attack that continues to this day as this article shows.
Everyone wants freedom for themselves, but when it comes to granting that same freedom to others who disagree with them, they're not too happy to do so.
The Constitution is for everyone, or it's for no one, it can't be unevenly applied without destroying the moral foundation it's based on. Those who attempt to apply it unevenly make a mockery of it. Unfortunately morality is one of the most difficult things to teach, with huge moral deficits showing up specific parts of our country, again, as this article shows. The best the moral can do is to continue to fight for that freedom, it's a battle that can never be definitively be won, but must always be fought.
Everyone wants freedom for themselves, but when it comes to granting that same freedom to others who disagree with them, they're not too happy to do so.
The Constitution is for everyone, or it's for no one, it can't be unevenly applied without destroying the moral foundation it's based on. Those who attempt to apply it unevenly make a mockery of it. Unfortunately morality is one of the most difficult things to teach, with huge moral deficits showing up specific parts of our country, again, as this article shows. The best the moral can do is to continue to fight for that freedom, it's a battle that can never be definitively be won, but must always be fought.
1
Thanks for this well researched article. I'm glad the author was willing to name names, including the history of "Justice" Roberts' long-standing antagonism to minority voters. The truth is obvious and simple: Republicans know they don't represent the majority and so cannot afford to let all qualified voters vote.
19
It amazes me how the public can very quickly get riled up enough to banish the Confederate flag, a largely symbolic gesture with little practical effect, yet allow the systematic disenfranchisement of a large part of the populace without the outrage it surely deserves. What will it take to address this issue and right the wrongs?
213
Media play, and the issue is generally tamped down by the wealthy media.
Answer: that one was easy and cheap.
1
Flags, as symbols, are easily recognised and easily remedied. People like to fight the battles with simple solutions and immediate victory.
I was fortunate to work for John B. Anderson, the 1980 independent candidate for President. JBA began his congressional career in 1961 as a highly conservative, reactionary U.S. Representative from Rockford, Illinois. Yet, Anderson quickly evolved, opening his eyes to the signs of the times. He supported the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
The race riots following Martin Luther King’s 1968 assassination were a crystallizing event in JBA’s life and career. When proposed open housing legislation came to the House floor, Anderson’s remarks galvanized support for the measure. Author Jim Mason highlights his speech in “No Holding Back: The 1980 John B. Anderson Presidential Campaign”:
“We do stand at the crossroad. We can continue the Gadarene slide into an endless cycle of riot and disorder, or we can begin the slow and painful ascent toward that yet distant goal of equality of opportunity for all Americans regardless of race and color …. God grant us that faith in our destiny as a great nation – for Abraham Lincoln once described us a ‘God’s almost chosen people.’ We cannot know how long the journey will take, or even precisely where it will take us, but with patience and perseverance, and nobility of purpose, we can advance toward our goal of reconciliation and racial understanding.”
Today, those words remain timely and prophetic, but we, as a nation, sadly seem poised to begin a new Gadarene slide into the discord, division and decline.
The race riots following Martin Luther King’s 1968 assassination were a crystallizing event in JBA’s life and career. When proposed open housing legislation came to the House floor, Anderson’s remarks galvanized support for the measure. Author Jim Mason highlights his speech in “No Holding Back: The 1980 John B. Anderson Presidential Campaign”:
“We do stand at the crossroad. We can continue the Gadarene slide into an endless cycle of riot and disorder, or we can begin the slow and painful ascent toward that yet distant goal of equality of opportunity for all Americans regardless of race and color …. God grant us that faith in our destiny as a great nation – for Abraham Lincoln once described us a ‘God’s almost chosen people.’ We cannot know how long the journey will take, or even precisely where it will take us, but with patience and perseverance, and nobility of purpose, we can advance toward our goal of reconciliation and racial understanding.”
Today, those words remain timely and prophetic, but we, as a nation, sadly seem poised to begin a new Gadarene slide into the discord, division and decline.
33
I wish I were surprised by the heartlessness of the Republicans in the South, but this behavior is consistent with their history of hate and oppression. What disappoints me is when decent people fail to speak up and confront such evil.
I want people to drive down South and help the marginalized register to vote. I want the Times to highlight vetted non-profits that help in voter registration so those of us who cannot go can help those who do.
I want an online campaign for our AG Ms. Lynch to go after these states for effectively imposing poll taxes.
I want us, the decent Americans, to do something to help our fellow Americans to exercise their fundamental right to vote.
I want people to drive down South and help the marginalized register to vote. I want the Times to highlight vetted non-profits that help in voter registration so those of us who cannot go can help those who do.
I want an online campaign for our AG Ms. Lynch to go after these states for effectively imposing poll taxes.
I want us, the decent Americans, to do something to help our fellow Americans to exercise their fundamental right to vote.
80
Amen. As a native North Carolinian who has supported voting rights and followed related legal and political developments since my college days in the 1980s, I completely agree with Grace I's comment. The thorough reporting and trenchant analysis of Mr. Rutenberg and the NY Times should serve as a call to action for all decent Americans who value our democracy and our fundamental right to vote.
1
Unfortunately it's not just in the South. States headed by republican governors and majorities are guilty of these undemocratic actions - Wisconsin is a prime example.
Republican Party + demographic shift to non-white populations + white racism/fear/paronoia = Jim Crow 2.0
7
Working towards the goal of disenfranchising people, to actively deny them their Constitutional right to vote. And the GOP wonders why they're perceived as the party of hate or why they can't seem to grow their base?
Their words, and their actions, disgust me on a daily basis.
Grand Outdated Party, and bigoted to boot.
Make sure to take a look at the crowd at their next presidential convention, it's so blatantly apparent they do not represent all citizens.
Their words, and their actions, disgust me on a daily basis.
Grand Outdated Party, and bigoted to boot.
Make sure to take a look at the crowd at their next presidential convention, it's so blatantly apparent they do not represent all citizens.
8
Did the Times or any of the Obama supporting liberal carnival barkers take a second to look into North Carolina NAACP leader Barber's background?
He is trying to invent a controversy as a vehicle of commerce, not consequence of color, essentially trying to become another Al Sharpton (complete with the special interest, Obama WH cash flow).
Ending outdated preclearance requirements in states that have made leaps and bounds on civil rights in all aspects of life isn't a racist conspiracy against the Black community. However, ginning up Jim Crow atrocities that happened in past centuries and generations before I was born as a Trojan Horse to gain looser voting requirements for undocumented illegals is wrong, unjust and from the standpoint of my race and American history, sickening.
The most likely reason why you cannot produce a valid voter ID card is because you are not a citizen. Period.
I cannot process how far afield of sanity and integrity this article reaches.
He is trying to invent a controversy as a vehicle of commerce, not consequence of color, essentially trying to become another Al Sharpton (complete with the special interest, Obama WH cash flow).
Ending outdated preclearance requirements in states that have made leaps and bounds on civil rights in all aspects of life isn't a racist conspiracy against the Black community. However, ginning up Jim Crow atrocities that happened in past centuries and generations before I was born as a Trojan Horse to gain looser voting requirements for undocumented illegals is wrong, unjust and from the standpoint of my race and American history, sickening.
The most likely reason why you cannot produce a valid voter ID card is because you are not a citizen. Period.
I cannot process how far afield of sanity and integrity this article reaches.
8
Can you document any voter fraud? A few cases nationwide perhaps (if that)? And for that you would endanger access to the ballot for thousands, if not millions of legitimate voters.
We can clearly see through your "concern" and are quite aware of what republican intentions are be making it harder for certain voters to vote. You are not fooling anyone.
We can clearly see through your "concern" and are quite aware of what republican intentions are be making it harder for certain voters to vote. You are not fooling anyone.
13
"The most likely reason why you cannot produce a valid voter ID card is because you are not a citizen. Period."
There are large numbers of voters, especially older people born in rural parts of Texas, who never had birth certificates issued. University Law Clinics here often try to help people like this. Now, some officials in Texas are trying to refuse to issue birth certificates for babies born here that they suspect are children of undocumented immigrants. Both are examples of attempts to codify discrimination and exclusion into law. You even concede "the most likely reason" in your argument. What is your proposed remedy for those with "unlikely" reasons, how much will it cost the state, how much of a barrier will it still represent, and for what? To prevent not even a handful of illegitimate votes?
There are large numbers of voters, especially older people born in rural parts of Texas, who never had birth certificates issued. University Law Clinics here often try to help people like this. Now, some officials in Texas are trying to refuse to issue birth certificates for babies born here that they suspect are children of undocumented immigrants. Both are examples of attempts to codify discrimination and exclusion into law. You even concede "the most likely reason" in your argument. What is your proposed remedy for those with "unlikely" reasons, how much will it cost the state, how much of a barrier will it still represent, and for what? To prevent not even a handful of illegitimate votes?
5
The Constitution makes it hard (actually illegal) for non-citizens to vote. So let me see if I get this, as a Black man I am supposed to sit quietly as my race is exploited AGAIN--this time to garner voting rights for undocumented illegals?
Great. I am so excited. Nothing better than having events that happened 60 years before my parents even MET thrown in my face to argue something that doesn't even exist, namely Jim Crow era voting disenfranchisement of Black people in NC or any state.
You clearly see nothing. Take off your blinders and just try thinking for once.
Great. I am so excited. Nothing better than having events that happened 60 years before my parents even MET thrown in my face to argue something that doesn't even exist, namely Jim Crow era voting disenfranchisement of Black people in NC or any state.
You clearly see nothing. Take off your blinders and just try thinking for once.
2
If the United States restricts the African American citizens voting rights, then you can not lecture anyone in the world on the values of democracy.
In the last elections, Ethiopia had a 100 percent vote results for their parliamentary elections, now you can accuse the Ethiopians of stuffing ballots, but least they are not restricting their citizens voting rights.
In the last elections, Ethiopia had a 100 percent vote results for their parliamentary elections, now you can accuse the Ethiopians of stuffing ballots, but least they are not restricting their citizens voting rights.
3
James, I am a Black man.
I am also an attorney in Washington DC.
I have read the entire plaintiff's complaint in the NC case.
There. Is. No. Evidence. In. Any. Form. The. NC. Law. Blocks. Any. Black. Citizen. Of. The. United. States. From. Voting.
Not a word, phrase, sentence fragment or partial thought anywhere in the court documents that alleges provable instances of Black voter disenfranchisement.
It's like suing me for being married to Jennifer Garner.
I am also an attorney in Washington DC.
I have read the entire plaintiff's complaint in the NC case.
There. Is. No. Evidence. In. Any. Form. The. NC. Law. Blocks. Any. Black. Citizen. Of. The. United. States. From. Voting.
Not a word, phrase, sentence fragment or partial thought anywhere in the court documents that alleges provable instances of Black voter disenfranchisement.
It's like suing me for being married to Jennifer Garner.
3
Diabolical but brilliant move by the party of god. Otherwise the top 1% could not rule over the 99%.
10
Cute graphic effect.
But it bothers me a little that the graphic for such a serious story elicits from me the response of "cute".
But it bothers me a little that the graphic for such a serious story elicits from me the response of "cute".
1
Rev. William Barber's "prayer shawl" - more likely a red stole worn by clergy to denote their ordained status. Of course he could pray while wearing it.
1
this ongoing effort to dismiss democracy for minority voters is disappointing, illegal and shameful. I had hopes that the south would change but good people there have stood by and allow this to continue. I tell everyone avoid the place like the plague.
3
Why we have a free press is a question seldom answered so correctly. I greatly hope The Times will preserve a hyperlink to this article on the digital edition, through the 2016 election. The inference to be drawn from the candidate pool for the Presidency is that the great question of the franchise fundamentally depends on electing representatives to Congress who will commit themselves to preserving it. This stability cannot be obtained in the Executive Branch. Only the greater energy and determination needed for that transformation can withstand the exotic jurisprudence of a self-deceived Supreme Court, which has only burdened self-government, in turn, with egregious expense. There isn't a larger issue.
3
The GOP wears the shame of this betrayal of the American dream as a badge of courage within their myth of a society of "takers." It really has been an ingenious plan of mad men to game the system and con the public with the gospel propagated by fox news and their minions. We would do well to honor the sacrifice of Schwerner , Goodman and Chaney once more and fight back against the disenfranchisement of so many fellow Americans. May this meaningful attempt by NYT to display the truth on the very essence of democracy, bring the grapes of wrath to vintage.
6
Nice job, Jim! Keep up the good work!
2
Of course the federal government should have oversight over elections for federal office. Can someone explain to me why that would be considered a states rigths issue? State and local offices, of course those jurisdictions should have a say in how elections are held, as long as they don't violate federal laws.
4
Sadly conservatives are better at this sort of thing: exclusivity that is. They're smarter in knowing that slow and steady wins the race, something progressives are relatively poor at. We have a penchant for declaring a problem solved when in fact the pea is simply under a different cup.
6
And we vote.
We don't just bather about it; we actually go out and do it.
We don't just bather about it; we actually go out and do it.
Not that many years ago in a country called Iraq the Bush administration tried to show how well their effort to bring "democracy" (reason 33g or whatever for the invasion) the new hand picked (by US) leadership of iraq held elections.......remember the inked fingers? I dont remember hearing or reading anything about requiring photo ID.........Given that the excuse of voter fraud has shown to be fraudulent it is very obvious the real reason is voter exclusion..... lots of irony here
2
In 2015, the fact that the US still has debates protesting the Voting Rights Act and its consequences is rather disgraceful. The Republicans' central messages are wrong- they look to place limits on many rights which should be seen as fundamental. I cannot grasp how they manage to discriminate against others based on color and gender but tell the voters that they are looking to move the country forward.
1
This otherwise excellent article and progressive efforts to uphold voting rights (and not just the Voting Rights Act) miss one key point: Republicans are not just going after minorities in barring legitimate voters from the polls. They are going after any Democratic constituency, such as college students. As a legal matter, perhaps it makes sense to use the Voting Rights Act as a means to fight a rear-guard action against the Republicans' anti-democratic (with a small "d") manipulations. But as a political matter, the racial implications are just one big part of a broader argument to be made about the Republican Party (including its Supreme Court branch) undermining American democracy.
And the argument extends beyond voting. From Citizens United to gerrymandering (admittedly a practice Democrats have indulged in as well), we see Republican efforts yielding: fictions about corporations being people; right-wing billionaires distorting the electoral process; and a Republican-controlled House of Representatives, in the wake of more people voting for Democratic House candidates nationwide in 2014.
The 2016 elections will be about many things, but Clinton will be smart to make the Republican assault on democracy not just about race about about democracy itself.
And the argument extends beyond voting. From Citizens United to gerrymandering (admittedly a practice Democrats have indulged in as well), we see Republican efforts yielding: fictions about corporations being people; right-wing billionaires distorting the electoral process; and a Republican-controlled House of Representatives, in the wake of more people voting for Democratic House candidates nationwide in 2014.
The 2016 elections will be about many things, but Clinton will be smart to make the Republican assault on democracy not just about race about about democracy itself.
223
The Voting Rights Act has always been evil because it does not apply to all states and territories.
If Northern states have no problems with voting rights then demonstrating compliance should be simple and easy. What are they afraid of? Why did the North so bitterly oppose applying the Voting Rights Act to their states?
The VRA is going down because Liberals oppose a 50-state VRA. There have been several occasions in the past to reinforce the VRA if the Left would agree to a 50-state VRA. But, liberals would not agree to a 50-state VRA.
That said, any liberal who thinks proposed voter ID, etc. is unfair needs to look up Canadian voting laws and be reminded that Canada is a liberal, egalitarian, multi racial, socialist Mecca in their eyes.
If Northern states have no problems with voting rights then demonstrating compliance should be simple and easy. What are they afraid of? Why did the North so bitterly oppose applying the Voting Rights Act to their states?
The VRA is going down because Liberals oppose a 50-state VRA. There have been several occasions in the past to reinforce the VRA if the Left would agree to a 50-state VRA. But, liberals would not agree to a 50-state VRA.
That said, any liberal who thinks proposed voter ID, etc. is unfair needs to look up Canadian voting laws and be reminded that Canada is a liberal, egalitarian, multi racial, socialist Mecca in their eyes.
12
The imposition of voter ID in the new "Fair Elections Act" by a decidedly right wing government is the same tactics they learned from the US. right wing. NIce try!!! Odds are they will lose October 15th this year and this odious act will be sent to the garbage where it belongs.
BJ refers to Canadian election laws. Less than a year ago, the right wing Government of Canada introduced the so-called Fair Elections Act which puts into law many of the voter suppression tactics described in this article. Voter ID will be much more difficult in the next Canadian election this coming October. Scrutineers will be party hacks, not impartial observers. There are several changes. All of them based on the lessons from south of the border.
I'm no fan of the fact that the Supreme Court effectively annulled section 4(b) of the Act (thereby neutralizing section 5), but the reasonable solution to the problem introduced by voter ID laws is for Congress to take action. We should ask our congressional leaders to introduce legislation designed to protect us and to guarantee our right to vote, and not simply limit its supervision of voting legislation to a select number of southern states. Such action would guarantee that voters in Wisconsin, Indiana, and Kansas would be assured safe passage to the ballot and would cripple future efforts to curtail democracy in America.
Some think that the Voting Rights Act has been a success, and having competently served its purposes, many high-maintenance areas need not require the tending once much needed to ensure access to the polls.
It is as if there can be no successful resolution of civil rights matters, as if to admit success would itself be a failure. The wisdom of Chelm in action.
It is as if there can be no successful resolution of civil rights matters, as if to admit success would itself be a failure. The wisdom of Chelm in action.
1
Only 36.4 percent of the voting-eligible population cast ballots in the 2014 mid-term elections. So, who's committing all the fraud? If people can't get themselves to the polls to vote for themselves, it hardly seems likely they'll drag themselves out to vote as someone else.
21
Excellent article. Helps to make up for the ghosts that took over the editorial room (Jayson Blair, Judith Miller) when you published that rubbish about Hillary Clinton and a criminal investigation.
I look forward to the next in this series. Meanwhile, what's to be said? That the hypocrisy of the deniers is beyond belief? No racism, no evolution of any kind?
I look forward to the next in this series. Meanwhile, what's to be said? That the hypocrisy of the deniers is beyond belief? No racism, no evolution of any kind?
2
Nonsense. The Voting Rights Act was enacted to end a situation in which people were denied the right to vote by physical intimidation, refusal of registrars to register them, unfair literacy tests (a classic story is someone being asked to recite the entire Constitution), and similar abusive practices applied in a racially discriminatory manner.
That's long over. It's not 1965 any more (the NYT seems nostalgic for that moment of moral clarity). Issues such as early or absentee voting and hours are within the purview of each state to decide, according to the Constitution (that extends even to giving non-citizens the right to vote in state elections, which was formerly quite common). However a state decides, if the criteria are not applied in an explicitly racially discriminatory manner---not some convoluted argument based on supposed "disparate impact" when everyone has the right to avoid that impact on him---it's legally and Constitutionally acceptable. It may not be good policy, but that is a political, not a legal, decision, and it is the job of state legislatures to make such decisions.
That's long over. It's not 1965 any more (the NYT seems nostalgic for that moment of moral clarity). Issues such as early or absentee voting and hours are within the purview of each state to decide, according to the Constitution (that extends even to giving non-citizens the right to vote in state elections, which was formerly quite common). However a state decides, if the criteria are not applied in an explicitly racially discriminatory manner---not some convoluted argument based on supposed "disparate impact" when everyone has the right to avoid that impact on him---it's legally and Constitutionally acceptable. It may not be good policy, but that is a political, not a legal, decision, and it is the job of state legislatures to make such decisions.
2
The only genuine instance of voter fraud during the last few years that I'm aware of was committed by Dinesh D'Souza.
1
The only significant documented case of voter fraud in modern America happened under Jeb! Bush's leadership in Florida before, during and after the 2000 Presidential Election.
http://www.usccr.gov/pubs/vote2000/report/exesum.htm
As usual, Republicans can't stand it when all the votes get counted; they can't stand democracy, the very founding principle of America.
http://www.usccr.gov/pubs/vote2000/report/exesum.htm
As usual, Republicans can't stand it when all the votes get counted; they can't stand democracy, the very founding principle of America.
21
I think Anne Coulter had a problem too when she voted in the wrong precinct - good, loyal American that she is.
The United States is clearly not that "Shinning city on a hill." Once again States Rights is a cover for hate. A Pulitzer Prize should be in the future for Mr. Rutenberg.
1
There was a time when I was very, very naive. In my mind, I entertained the notion that the time might have come and gone when labor unions were necessary. Certainly no human being living in the modern era would want to expose fellow humans to the dangerous, low paying and demeaning work that originally gave rise to the labor union movement. I was so, so wrong. The Supreme Court seems to labor under similar naivety (perhaps I'm being charitable) that the time came and went when the protections created under the Voting Rights Act had served their purpose. They are so, so wrong.
3
You are being charitable.
I think the crux of the problem is summed up in this quote from Republican pollster Carter Wrenn:
“I may be dead wrong,” he added, almost as an afterthought. “Because one thing I’ve learned is that I do not understand the mind of the black voter.”
It is safe to presume that Mr. Wrenn and his colleagues working to restrict black votes do not lack the intelligence to understand black voters; what they lack is the curiosity and courage to ask themselves questions like "What kind of influences/experiences would affect my political thinking if I were black?" This type of question, which assumes a shared humanity between the questioner and the not-yet-understood other person, is at the heart of a liberal arts education and is central to critical thinking. Contemporary conservatives have consistently shown themselves opposed to critical thinking, whether it be applied to Biology, Climate Science or American History. As blind spots go, this one is Mack Truck size, and its threat to our shared future as Americans and human beings is hard to overstate.
“I may be dead wrong,” he added, almost as an afterthought. “Because one thing I’ve learned is that I do not understand the mind of the black voter.”
It is safe to presume that Mr. Wrenn and his colleagues working to restrict black votes do not lack the intelligence to understand black voters; what they lack is the curiosity and courage to ask themselves questions like "What kind of influences/experiences would affect my political thinking if I were black?" This type of question, which assumes a shared humanity between the questioner and the not-yet-understood other person, is at the heart of a liberal arts education and is central to critical thinking. Contemporary conservatives have consistently shown themselves opposed to critical thinking, whether it be applied to Biology, Climate Science or American History. As blind spots go, this one is Mack Truck size, and its threat to our shared future as Americans and human beings is hard to overstate.
10
This article purports to tell the story of “a largely Republican countermovement of ideologues and partisan operatives who, from the moment the Voting Rights Act became law, methodically set out to undercut or dismantle its most important requirements.” Actually, the most important requirement of the Voting Rights Act has always been its prohibition of denying anyone the right to vote because of race, and in recent years there has never been any significant movement — Republican or otherwise — to the contrary.
Subsequent disputes over the act have involved only the use of the “disparate impact” approach to its enforcement, and whether one section of the act — involving “preclearance” of state and local voting changes by the federal government — is any longer justified. The race-based decision-making encouraged by the former is bad for any number of reasons, and the Supreme Court was quite right to rule two years ago that, indeed, the preclearance formula of Section 5 can no longer be justified.
If anyone believes that the right to vote has been denied because of race, the act did and does contain plenty of ways to challenge such discrimination, and nobody of any significance in either party is opposed to that. But plaintiffs have to prove their case in court — just as they must under any other civil-rights statute, and indeed that burden is on plaintiffs in any civil lawsuit.
Subsequent disputes over the act have involved only the use of the “disparate impact” approach to its enforcement, and whether one section of the act — involving “preclearance” of state and local voting changes by the federal government — is any longer justified. The race-based decision-making encouraged by the former is bad for any number of reasons, and the Supreme Court was quite right to rule two years ago that, indeed, the preclearance formula of Section 5 can no longer be justified.
If anyone believes that the right to vote has been denied because of race, the act did and does contain plenty of ways to challenge such discrimination, and nobody of any significance in either party is opposed to that. But plaintiffs have to prove their case in court — just as they must under any other civil-rights statute, and indeed that burden is on plaintiffs in any civil lawsuit.
3
When it comes to the right to vote, it is unfair and unrealistic to put the burden on individual plaintiffs and the rare and few organizations that can afford to litigate against a governmental entity. The gutting of the Act by the elimination of the preclearance protections did just that. Multiple municipalities following orchestrated suppression schemes that vary slightly (such as voter ID requirements, ward gerrymandering, etc.) require persons whose voting rights are limited or diluted as a result of those schemes to file individual suits. This is unfair and unreasonable and it should be unnecessary.
41
There has been no shortage of lawsuits (this article focuses on the one in North Carolina), and there is no shortage of well-heeled plaintiffs on this issue: The Obama administration's Justice Department, the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, the ACLU, MALDEF, labor unions, various arms of the Democratic Party, and the list goes on. The question is, Should they be required to prove their case with actual evidence? The answer is yes.
The power of Section 5, as I am sure you know sir, is that it stopped the discriminatory attempt immediately, while Section 2 litigation is costly and protracted for the plaintiffs, who are often minority and poor, and gives no immediate protection from those whose intent is to disenfranchise.
2
Northerners (and Westerners) love to point at the South and shake their head, yet fail to look at themselves in the mirror. The onerous requirements of Section 5 were meant to be temporary and were based on data that is now extremely outdated. The U.S. is a very different place now than in the '60s. Let's update the law and make the law equitable across all the states. Three possible ways to do this are 1) no pre-clearance for any state (the status quo post Shelby), 2) pre-clearance for all states, or 3) agreement on a new pre-clearance formula that is automatically recalculated every census to determine voting district applicability. Northern politicians should be willing to accept VRA burdens on their own states, not just put them on the South.
9
I agree. It's crazy to use a 50 year old map here, this place is totally different. It makes no sense at all.
Voting should only be on election day. Only US citizens should be allowed to vote. Early voting by mail only invites fraud. Don't even consider online voting. Why is the act of voting considered difficult?
5
The act of voting can be very difficult, depending on where you live. Aside from many other factors, I witnessed people, after work, standing in line for three to four hours to vote in multiple inner-city polling places in Detroit because of having just a few old voting booths (one or more invariably broke down) for an entire precinct. In the suburbs there were no such problems, or wait, at all. But these people stayed because they were determined not to have their vote taken away from them.
10
What if you're a US citizen living abroad temporarily (a matter of months), you're saying I don't have the right to vote?
What about people that work 3 jobs, and who are paid hourly and find it hard to leave work and lose pay?
What about people that work 3 jobs, and who are paid hourly and find it hard to leave work and lose pay?
16
Because election day is in the middle of the week and is NOT a national holiday. This makes it unreasonably burdensome for people who have inflexible jobs, among other things.
23
Attorney General Eric Holder said, " “I knew things had gotten bad at the civil rights division,” he told me. “But I was really surprised,” he said, “at how bad things had become.” That is exactly what the vast majority of Americans think about OUR country today when they actually figure out what happened. How dare these white "conservative" men, and their democracy destroying money masters, attempt to destroy democracy in America. WE THE PEOPLE will not let it stand. Disenfranchised voters in the south should show up at the polls to vote and record being turned away, then send the recordings viral on social media. When average Americans who still do not understand the depth of the abhorrent "conservative" attempt to takeover of OUR governments at all levels learn of this there will be outrage. It is time for US to take a stand and send home every BIG money politician who wants to give OUR country to the top 1% global financial elite. WE WILL NOT HAVE IT!
114
If people *were* being sent away from the polls, you can bet we'd be exposed to plenty of film coverage of the event. The reason why we don't see it is that it just isn't happening. Requiring someone to present an ID before casting a ballot seems to me to be the acme of reasonableness, and I'm what you'd have to call a liberal. The days of preventing large segments of the population from voting in the South are over with, and to that extent, the scrutiny of Southern states by the Federal govt. is unfair and an unjustifiable imposition from without.
The effort to gut voting rights suggests that the GOP doesn't really believe their own rhetoric about speaking for the people. They clearly believe that they can only win elections through rigging elections rather than letting the electoral process run its course.
110
I can barely breathe after the lunacy of this glossy, rambling article.
As a Black attorney in Washington DC (I know I say that a lot but it's always relevant) this over the top, shark jumping dive into historic granularity would be laughable, if not sad.
Yes. Absolutely. There have been voting rights atrocities in the past. My parents weren't even dating in 1956, so I struggle a little to see how any of that applies to me and why so much of this article was spent ginning up misplaced Black anger and White guilt.
Ultimately, this is about a frivolous lawsuit filed by a deranged NAACP "leader" in North Carolina who would call a piano sharing Black keys with White ones part of a vast right wing GOP racist conspiracy.
The fact is this. Times HAVE changed.
Liberals want to have their cake and eat it too--using the argument that its the 21st century to buttress a nonsensical creation of constitutional rights and a protected class based on marriage preferences. Yet when states that have clearly made advances are doing away with antiquated preclearance requirements, the Times, Obama WH and liberals are running around as if I should be watching my back for burning crosses on the steps of the federal court buildings when I go to work.
What this entire voting rights kerfuffle is REALLY about are undocumented illegals who entered this country from our border with Mexico, and getting people who are not citizens, the right and ability to vote. Which of course is reprehensible.
As a Black attorney in Washington DC (I know I say that a lot but it's always relevant) this over the top, shark jumping dive into historic granularity would be laughable, if not sad.
Yes. Absolutely. There have been voting rights atrocities in the past. My parents weren't even dating in 1956, so I struggle a little to see how any of that applies to me and why so much of this article was spent ginning up misplaced Black anger and White guilt.
Ultimately, this is about a frivolous lawsuit filed by a deranged NAACP "leader" in North Carolina who would call a piano sharing Black keys with White ones part of a vast right wing GOP racist conspiracy.
The fact is this. Times HAVE changed.
Liberals want to have their cake and eat it too--using the argument that its the 21st century to buttress a nonsensical creation of constitutional rights and a protected class based on marriage preferences. Yet when states that have clearly made advances are doing away with antiquated preclearance requirements, the Times, Obama WH and liberals are running around as if I should be watching my back for burning crosses on the steps of the federal court buildings when I go to work.
What this entire voting rights kerfuffle is REALLY about are undocumented illegals who entered this country from our border with Mexico, and getting people who are not citizens, the right and ability to vote. Which of course is reprehensible.
13
Talk about lunacy ... the numbers of undocumented immigrants who vote is absolutely minuscule. That's a complete red herring that the GOP uses to whip up immigration hysteria.
Your protests are pretty over-the-top ... and you ignore the facts that the Republicans have been busy gerrymandering the daylights out of voting districts for decades.
DCBarrister, you sound a lot like Justice Thomas ... maybe you ARE Justice Thomas! That would explain a lot ...
Your protests are pretty over-the-top ... and you ignore the facts that the Republicans have been busy gerrymandering the daylights out of voting districts for decades.
DCBarrister, you sound a lot like Justice Thomas ... maybe you ARE Justice Thomas! That would explain a lot ...
12
Has anyone confirmed your actual identity?
9
When it comes to undocumented immigrants voting in elections, especially presidential elections in the United States, any number higher than ZERO is too many.
I get it, gerrymandering is bad, bad things happened in the past. We should be outraged.
I read the NC complaint alleging Black voter disenfranchisement SEVEN times. Not one letter of one word contains ANY viable, credible proof that ANY Black person who is a citizen of the United States and the State of North Carolina has been denied the right to vote in North Carolina under this new law.
No affidavits of Black voters (I'm Black so put the race card away) being subjected to poll tests, having to recite the Constitution, being forcibly removed from a voting booth--nothing. Rev. Barber is Rev. Sharpton incarnate, and the worst case scenario for the Black community are more Sharptons.
I get it, gerrymandering is bad, bad things happened in the past. We should be outraged.
I read the NC complaint alleging Black voter disenfranchisement SEVEN times. Not one letter of one word contains ANY viable, credible proof that ANY Black person who is a citizen of the United States and the State of North Carolina has been denied the right to vote in North Carolina under this new law.
No affidavits of Black voters (I'm Black so put the race card away) being subjected to poll tests, having to recite the Constitution, being forcibly removed from a voting booth--nothing. Rev. Barber is Rev. Sharpton incarnate, and the worst case scenario for the Black community are more Sharptons.
3
The unfortunate consequence of the Voting Rights Act is that it veered us away from an enduring Constitutional amendment stating that the right to vote cannot be abridged.
9
Voting in the U.S. should be obligatory, as it is in several countries. And we should have a national identity card, as most other countries do. Show up at the poll, show your ID card, and vote---or pay a fine. Simple.
33
Everyone should be automatically registered to vote as soon as their Social Security number is issued. Easy ... but that would not please those who want to disenfranchise certain people ...
YEP - and that ID card should be free! Unlike having to pay for a state ID card at the DMV....
1
In short: you can't attract enough black and hispanic voters for your left wing candidates, so just FORCE them to vote, and you can obtain your dream of a one-party system and total Democratic rule, and impose social engineering on the nation.
So sad you are kept from your "victory" by the total apathy of your supporters!
So sad you are kept from your "victory" by the total apathy of your supporters!
1
I dare anyone to write SPECIFICALLY how in-person voter fraud happens.
Tell me how a person, and even more importantly, why that person would take all the trouble and risk to register twice in their same County using a different name or address, OR forge another person's information and try to pass as them, then run around to extra precincts all to cast ONE EXTRA VOTE!
And why that person would think all that trouble and risk might sway an election when, if this is common place, someone supporting the other candidate might vote twice too, thus offsetting their efforts.
(ie- if this is common, the cheating would balance itself out)
And tell me why, conservatives, who claim this happens so often, haven't made a huge national stink with a single egregious case of one person registering and voting two, three, five times.
Cause it's a farce.
Doesn't happen.
Experts say in-person fraud is almost non existant.
Fraud, when it rarely occurs, typically involves absentee ballot tampering - that's it.
Lastly, I dare anyone to tell me why two forms of written ID (a utility bill and a credit card or health insurance card) are not as good as a photo for voting. You're telling me some joker would take time and risk to forge those documents to pretend to be you or me all to cast ONE EXTRA VOTE!
And, no, you don't need photo ID to fly.
Call any airline to prove that and stop spreading lies.
Obama should commemorate the law by rebutting all the bull.
Tell me how a person, and even more importantly, why that person would take all the trouble and risk to register twice in their same County using a different name or address, OR forge another person's information and try to pass as them, then run around to extra precincts all to cast ONE EXTRA VOTE!
And why that person would think all that trouble and risk might sway an election when, if this is common place, someone supporting the other candidate might vote twice too, thus offsetting their efforts.
(ie- if this is common, the cheating would balance itself out)
And tell me why, conservatives, who claim this happens so often, haven't made a huge national stink with a single egregious case of one person registering and voting two, three, five times.
Cause it's a farce.
Doesn't happen.
Experts say in-person fraud is almost non existant.
Fraud, when it rarely occurs, typically involves absentee ballot tampering - that's it.
Lastly, I dare anyone to tell me why two forms of written ID (a utility bill and a credit card or health insurance card) are not as good as a photo for voting. You're telling me some joker would take time and risk to forge those documents to pretend to be you or me all to cast ONE EXTRA VOTE!
And, no, you don't need photo ID to fly.
Call any airline to prove that and stop spreading lies.
Obama should commemorate the law by rebutting all the bull.
106
Real voter fraud is quite easy to commit by folks like our Florida "snow birds" who own property both here and in another state. Vote absentee in one place, in person in another. But since we're talking older, generally affluent, white people, no one is concerned.
2
The last time I was in the airport security line I had to show a photo ID. Both coming and going. Talk about lies.
It does happen, though.
One vote does count. When lefty liberals learn this, they will have learned a valuable lesson.
Please google the name "Mellowese" if you want a clear-cut example.
One vote does count. When lefty liberals learn this, they will have learned a valuable lesson.
Please google the name "Mellowese" if you want a clear-cut example.
1
This is a marvelous article.
And notice the comfortable economic and social positions of the profiled opponents of the Voting Rights Act.
But, although its specific membership has changed a bit from time to time, we've had a right-leaning U.S. Supreme Court for many years now, and only three words are really needed to cast the most withering doubt on its supposed veneration of the sanctity of elections: Bush versus Gore.
And notice the comfortable economic and social positions of the profiled opponents of the Voting Rights Act.
But, although its specific membership has changed a bit from time to time, we've had a right-leaning U.S. Supreme Court for many years now, and only three words are really needed to cast the most withering doubt on its supposed veneration of the sanctity of elections: Bush versus Gore.
41
"They rolled back early voting, eliminated same-day registration, disqualified ballots filed outside home precincts and created new demands for photo ID at polling places. "
These are all reasonable things.
These are all reasonable things.
9
Reasonable if you want to restrict access to the voting booth, yes.
Also reasonable would be to make Election Day a national holiday where EVERY CITIZEN votes and it is a required day off from work to do so and that all employers are required by law to allow employees time off or be subject to a felony charge of treason. Also reasonable is to make Election Day a Saturday.
1
Reasonable, except that they are only doing these things specifically to reduce the numbers of voters who are young or people of color under the guise of fear of non existent voter fraud. Also note that voting date (middle of the week, not a national holiday) makes it impossible for many working class people to not vote on that specific day, and absolutely impossible for all young college students who attend a college away from their home town.
These new rules do not exist in a vacuum, and the people who put them in place know that.
These new rules do not exist in a vacuum, and the people who put them in place know that.
5
Why does the NYT pretend that it's difficult to vote?
9
In your statement, you find no difficulties for voters. Have you not noticed the unbearably long lines outside NY during presidential elections? In Ohio, fewer voting machines in Democratic districts, people needing to choose between losing a day of work or voting, elderly people standing in brutal heat up to eight hours in Florida, students denied their vote, the elderly unable to acquire the new ID cards. And you see nothing wrong. I see a well planned attack on voters rights, with no basis in truth. Voter fraud is negligible, but the fraud on voters is clear to anyone taking the time to look.
Why do you deny that it isn't?
I don't get how requiring someone to identify themselves at the voting booth is a problem. They need ID to drive, apply for social security, and a host of other things.
There are at least 11,000,000 illegal aliens in the country. We should be doing something to prevent them from voting, and asking for ID is not too much.
This is a downright silly article and a waste of ink and electrons.
There are at least 11,000,000 illegal aliens in the country. We should be doing something to prevent them from voting, and asking for ID is not too much.
This is a downright silly article and a waste of ink and electrons.
10
The real hooey is that there is scant evidence of any voter fraud at the polls. Making voting mandatory and possible on a weekend for working folks could be added to a national voting ID and solve ALL worries !
3
And where have there been documented cases of people voting one, two, three times or more. Our problem in the U.S. is that too few people vote and attempts like this to erect barriers will only reduce election turnout. The only abuse that I can discern is the attempt to limit and restrict a person's access and right to vote. SHOW ME the data!! It's not surprising that those spearheading this effort which falls most heavily on those with the least means to effectively and easily access voting, are those who stand to gain the most politically by keeping poor and minority voters away from the polls.
6
My understanding of the US constitution is that driving is a privilege, not a right.
Voting, on the other hand, is a right, not a privilege to be granted by the Republican Party.
Voting, on the other hand, is a right, not a privilege to be granted by the Republican Party.
2
It is reprehensible that there are those who claim to be American that actively make it harder for another American citizen to vote. In a Democracy the competitive debate between ideologies and ideas is supposed to result in better government. Eventually those with the more progressive ideas win out and government does likewise. If the ideology of a group is too weak to stand the test of the voter booth and they use manipulation and disrupt the voting process in order to enact their ideas than it hurts the country as a whole. These people are not patriots, they are not true Americans, and should be ahamed.
26
The author is technically right but doesn't take into account relativity. While the Republicans have proven themselves willing to make it harder for minorities and others to vote with your recent voter ID bills and can't be trusted we are still light yrs better than as little as 50 yrs. ago.
Pre 1965, black voting in the south was almost unheard of, they were routinely discriminated against or worse if they attempted to vote.
Now only the most poor, marginalized minorities are threatened with no vote with the Republican tactics.
We should guard against these new wave Republican tactics to limit minority votes but also congratulate ourselves for how far we came since 1965.
Pre 1965, black voting in the south was almost unheard of, they were routinely discriminated against or worse if they attempted to vote.
Now only the most poor, marginalized minorities are threatened with no vote with the Republican tactics.
We should guard against these new wave Republican tactics to limit minority votes but also congratulate ourselves for how far we came since 1965.
3
For lefty liberals, it is still 1865, and they are still fighting the Civil War.
Bravo, brava !
Here is journalism worthy of this paper's reputation (as compared to recent carelessness re Hillary email).
This issue should be at the forefront in the 2016 election, which may be the last that approaches something fairly termed democratic. I dread the tacit approval of these laws which were knowingly encouraged by the Supreme Court.
Here is journalism worthy of this paper's reputation (as compared to recent carelessness re Hillary email).
This issue should be at the forefront in the 2016 election, which may be the last that approaches something fairly termed democratic. I dread the tacit approval of these laws which were knowingly encouraged by the Supreme Court.
17
During all the years between the passage of the Voting Rights Act and the onset of the recent voter suppression conspiracy black people in the South could have registered to vote in large enough numbers to have taken control of most of the State Houses of the old Confederacy, and there would have been nothing to write about here. For failing to take the opportunity that was granted I say, shame on you--what were you thinking not to reap the reward of so much struggle, available through such easy process?
The good news is that the tax penalty for Obamacare which the Conservatives in the Supreme Court ratified will be the silver bullet that slays the GOP when it's used to impose a universal voting requirement (or pay a tax penalty) by the next 2-house Democratic congress, but it's a shame that we're having to talk about the next phase of a struggle that could have been ended by simple participation long ago...
The good news is that the tax penalty for Obamacare which the Conservatives in the Supreme Court ratified will be the silver bullet that slays the GOP when it's used to impose a universal voting requirement (or pay a tax penalty) by the next 2-house Democratic congress, but it's a shame that we're having to talk about the next phase of a struggle that could have been ended by simple participation long ago...
2
What? Blacks constitute 30 percent of Georgians, and I am assuming that includes children and the elderly no longer able to vote, and the vast majority probably live in or around already "blue" areas such as Atlanta, Savannah, Columbus, and Macon. How would that be a force large enough to take over state houses, when there are counties, such as those in north Georgia, where there are hardly any blacks at all?
I vote in EVERY election because I know that people, white, black, and other, died so that I could have that right. But my vote has not counted for anything in Georgia in a long time. I can't even complain to my congressman because I've been gerrymandered into one of the last three Democratically held districts. My senators? My governor? They couldn't care less about what their black and Democratic constituents think or need.
So I could see why someone with several jobs, dependent on public transit, and just plain sick and tired of it all may sit elections out. It is a truly demoralizing state--pun completely intended.
I vote in EVERY election because I know that people, white, black, and other, died so that I could have that right. But my vote has not counted for anything in Georgia in a long time. I can't even complain to my congressman because I've been gerrymandered into one of the last three Democratically held districts. My senators? My governor? They couldn't care less about what their black and Democratic constituents think or need.
So I could see why someone with several jobs, dependent on public transit, and just plain sick and tired of it all may sit elections out. It is a truly demoralizing state--pun completely intended.
1
Participation is the problem, and the recent participation has been low is because of off-the-books tactics to prevent people from voting. Did you not read the article?
Without the right to vote you will ultimately have no rights at all.
27
I did not serve eight years in the USN to have this abomination inflicted on my fellow citizens, regardless of race or color. The law may be blind, but too often the administrators of that law are not.
The fear we must have is for those who terrorize our brother & sister citizens with discretionary application of laws to obtain advantage in the guise of "protection". There is no hell or purgatory satisfactory for such hypocrisy.
With courage and dignity, these folks have persevered.
What may be said is that at this point, the ability for people of color to claim their just right may be here regardless of the Act. Rather than reliance on the Act, they have the ability to affect their own destiny. They are a political force, and they have fewer (if not more vocal) opponents operating on phantom fears, and they have many many more of us white folks who love them and fully support their struggle.
And this is important; No culture has ever appreciated or cherished freedom or enfranchisement that they themselves did not claim with struggle and sacrifice.
I support with all my being their right to be citizens, and I will stand in support and protection of their efforts. But I cannot take from them, their success and honor, by giving them what they must win. Perhaps this action by the courts is a great opportunity; we just need time to see it.
The fear we must have is for those who terrorize our brother & sister citizens with discretionary application of laws to obtain advantage in the guise of "protection". There is no hell or purgatory satisfactory for such hypocrisy.
With courage and dignity, these folks have persevered.
What may be said is that at this point, the ability for people of color to claim their just right may be here regardless of the Act. Rather than reliance on the Act, they have the ability to affect their own destiny. They are a political force, and they have fewer (if not more vocal) opponents operating on phantom fears, and they have many many more of us white folks who love them and fully support their struggle.
And this is important; No culture has ever appreciated or cherished freedom or enfranchisement that they themselves did not claim with struggle and sacrifice.
I support with all my being their right to be citizens, and I will stand in support and protection of their efforts. But I cannot take from them, their success and honor, by giving them what they must win. Perhaps this action by the courts is a great opportunity; we just need time to see it.
8
Shouldn't the ability to read and write English be a pre-requisite to vote in this day of universal high school education? Shouldn't we put in place regulations to guard against illegals voting (after all, there are over 10 million of them, and they will al vote for one party who promises them amnesty and the ability to bring all their family and friends here)? Shouldn't people understand the Constitution to vote? The alternative is to descend into a third world "faux" democracy where the illiterate and illegals vote based on race, tribe, religion or the promise of amnesty. This is not racism, it's enlightened democracy.
Of course, this view is against everything the NYT stands for - open borders, multiculturalism and racial quotas.
Of course, this view is against everything the NYT stands for - open borders, multiculturalism and racial quotas.
6
1) There is NO EVIDENCE that "illegals" vote in our elections. The only result from GOP "safeguards" is the unethical hindrance of poor voters from the polls because they on average vote Democratic. Voter restriction is a political strategy by the GOP, and a shameful one at that.
2) There can be no test, no baseline such as you suggest. American Democracy is not just for the well-educated white man. You want a better educated population: invest in education (vote Democratic).
2) There can be no test, no baseline such as you suggest. American Democracy is not just for the well-educated white man. You want a better educated population: invest in education (vote Democratic).
11
Many of the competencies you describe are desirable but would cause significant constitutional concerns if required. Being able to provide identification and to be qualified to vote is another matter, and it seems inane that politicians and their news outlets keep banging the drum of an unfairness that does not exist.
2
Is English our official language now? And have you not heard that the literacy rate in the U.S. is embarrassingly low? More than 30 percent of the population can't read above an 8th grade level.
3
What a load of horse puckey! The voting fraud going on across the country is never ID'd as involving black Americans or the poor workers, as far as I've seen. Can the bleeding heart mewing because some of us finished high school and we know better.
Voter fraud, especially in the south, is about non-Americans and bussed-around multiple voters, largely young liberal white college students or dropouts picking up lunch money.
Whether to believe the serious accusations about the repeated interference by the New Black Panthers on the second go-around is up to the readers, but when a political fixer carrying the worst personal reputation ever into the Attorney General's office comes right out and admits that he is going to take care of ''my people,'' the observer sees a huge chip on Holder's shoulder. Only fools and sellouts look the other way.
Voter fraud, especially in the south, is about non-Americans and bussed-around multiple voters, largely young liberal white college students or dropouts picking up lunch money.
Whether to believe the serious accusations about the repeated interference by the New Black Panthers on the second go-around is up to the readers, but when a political fixer carrying the worst personal reputation ever into the Attorney General's office comes right out and admits that he is going to take care of ''my people,'' the observer sees a huge chip on Holder's shoulder. Only fools and sellouts look the other way.
7
"Voter fraud" is never ID'd at all. Bussing around non-Americans and multiple voters as you suggest is illegal. Period. It doesn't happen. Period. There are only a handful of cases in each state of individuals breaking the law regarding voting, and most often it is clerical in nature. There is nothing that justifies the large scale changes to our voting system proposed by the GOP. With an average 42% turnout, we need more Americans at the polls, not less.
Nitpicking here. Why would Henry Frye go to Rockingham County in 1956 when he lived (and still lives) in Greensboro which is the county seat of Guilford County and is where I live, too? I think you need to correct that error. It's almost as bad as putting Charlotte in South Carolina.
2
Rockingham is the seat of Richmond County, which is where Greensboro is.
Had you read the article more carefully, you'd have realized that he was talking about Rockingham, the city, which is the county seat of Richmond County, where his parents lived (Ellerbe, NC is in Richmond County). His fiancee lived in Greensboro.
So Bush had lawyers change their political party so he could stack the Commission on Civil Rights with a conservative majority? Is there no end to that man's unethical and probably illegal activities? Wasn't it bad enough when he lied to get the U.S. into an avoidable war?
51
Have any problems with Obama using drones to kill people, some of which were US citizens?
No, I didn't think so!
No, I didn't think so!
That's what Republicans do - dismantle our government covertly piece-by-piece - ....they care only about old, white, male Republicans, preferably those who have been in office seemingly forever. The unfortunate part is that they are so good at the game, far better than most any Democrat could hope to be. Pogo was right - we know who the enemy is: US !
38
Voting Rights should be protected from fraud and that requires voter identification which the Democrat/liberal/progressive/Communist do not want. I do not find voter id to be a burden.
4
There is a balancing act here. How much fraud is actually prevented by voter ID laws vs. how many people are disenfranchised as a result thereof.
If more people are disenfranchised by the law than The number of fraudulent votes prevented, then the law itself becomes the fraud.
I will refrain from making an ultimate judgment because I don't know all the facts but I suspect voter ID laws hurt more than they help.
If more people are disenfranchised by the law than The number of fraudulent votes prevented, then the law itself becomes the fraud.
I will refrain from making an ultimate judgment because I don't know all the facts but I suspect voter ID laws hurt more than they help.
11
It's not needed. Voter fraud is miniscule. Every election there are 4-5 fraudulent votes,certainly not enough to care about.
17
The Republican Party is aware that unless it acts to curtail the ability of poor blacks and Hispanics to vote, it cannot win elections. It does this in a variety of hypocritical "voter protection" measures, and "voting equality" drives designed to destroy measures meant to ensure equality of voting access by blacks, and restore the old vast white imbalance.
44
Nobody's right to vote has been violated. The whole law is being skewed by opponents to be seen as something that it is not. The Supreme Court did not strike down the Voting Rights Law as I have heard from so many people but one part of it which was out of date and could no longer be supported. It was focused on certain states and areas that no longer showed the same racist problems that use to be in place. We have to move past this race battle and learn to treat everyone the same. It seems that the special interest groups don't want to let the past go so that hatred is pushed today by them so they stay in business. Being in Florida, I see every person being treated the same as I go through the voting sites. I see people of all colors, nationalities, and political persuasions voting, being handed the same ballots, and all being given the same opportunity to vote for their candidate of choice. If someone doesn't have an ID, they can still cast a vote but have to bring a valid ID to the Registrar's office to certify the vote. Voters can also get free voter IDs if they cannot afford one. Other countries have always required IDs to vote and they don't seem to have problems with that. Get off your racist high horse and learn to judge by content of character not by the color of someone's skin.
8
If the section was no longer necessary why didnt the laws pushed by those pre-clearance states which all happen to be the old Confederate states, not pass DOJ muster before the SCOTUS gutted the VRA? Because they were discriminatory and suppressive. One thing I noted was that many of the arguments conservatives use to argue discrimination of white voters such as minority only districts were engineered themselves with racial gerrymandering to pick their own right thinking voters. A newer stronger VRA is needed now more than ever to take down these repressive and suppressive laws.
9
If the section was no longer necessary why didnt the laws pushed by those pre-clearance states which all happen to be the old Confederate states, not pass DOJ muster before the SCOTUS gutted the VRA?
================
Baloney.
Georgia's voter ID law was pre-cleared.in 2005.
================
Baloney.
Georgia's voter ID law was pre-cleared.in 2005.
1
Yes, and New York had at least one county covered by the VRA, and it ain't southern. Admittedly the Mayor of New York City proposed secession in 1862, but it didn't go far.
1
The shocking hypocrisy of the right wing - slamming reproductive choice, marriage equality, voting access- while 'trump-eting ' freedom & less govt intrusion....this outrageous inconsistency in Principles ...is dwarfed by their reckless use of smears, the Big Lie and other unprincipled propaganda stunts.
Patriotism should mean focusing on the good of all ( in the Federalist Papers: the general welfare), maximum citizen representation at the polls and clear separation of Church & State. How is it that the heart of a pluralist democracy is ripped out by these so-called patriots???
Patriotism should mean focusing on the good of all ( in the Federalist Papers: the general welfare), maximum citizen representation at the polls and clear separation of Church & State. How is it that the heart of a pluralist democracy is ripped out by these so-called patriots???
44
Sorry, you see this law as a punishment for the sins of their fathers. This law was in place to correct an injustice. By the way, the children still have the same mindset as their fathers.
11
I despair. Grateful that there is only 5 years' momentum this time, not a decade or a generation. Will oppression never cease?
6
When I lived in Brazil as a teenager, I learned that in that country, voting was mandatory - you could turn in a blank vote, but you had to vote. At the time I saw sinister intentions during the era of military dictatorship, but now this approach makes all the sense in the world. Everyone votes - end of problem with disenfranchisement.
20
and you think the Republicans will roll over and agree to this? Their entire model is based on reducing turnout and any such move ( like the one you propose) will quickly become an existential threat for them.
6
No one is kept from voting. All may do so, if they are citizens. Are we forcing people not to vote?
2
Mark, the entire point of the article is to demonstrate and explain how our politicians have systematically disenfranchised American citizens throughout our history. You may choose to believe that no one is kept from voting, but that's magical thinking divorced from reality. Republicans in our recent history, and Democrats in more distant history did everything possible to keep African Americans from voting.
The point of new voting laws pushed through by Republicans is to make voting as difficult as possible. Why can't we be more like Canada, where I understand government policy is to help citizens register and vote, rather than hinder the process? Perhaps because of our long history of racism?
The point of new voting laws pushed through by Republicans is to make voting as difficult as possible. Why can't we be more like Canada, where I understand government policy is to help citizens register and vote, rather than hinder the process? Perhaps because of our long history of racism?
9
This article missed one important point about John Ashcroft. He was a mediocre one-term Senator from Missouri (1995-2001) who spent most of his time in that chamber railing bitterly against Bill Clinton for having oral sex in the White House. In his 2000 re-election campaign, he literally lost the election to a dead man (Mel Carnahan, who was killed in a plane crash in October 2000 but whose name remained on the ballot because it was too late; Carnahan's wife ended up serving in the Senate in his place).
Defeated by a dead man, Ashcroft's enraged supporters invented the lie that black Democrats in St. Louis had stuffed ballot boxes with fraudulent votes in Carnahan's favor. No such thing happened; a majority of voters in Missouri voted for a dead man over Ashcroft because they realized the latter was a lousy Senator.
But truth didn't matter. The myth of voter fraud in St. Louis among blacks took hold, the defeated Ashcroft was nominated for attorney general by his equally mediocre fellow Yale graduate George W. Bush after the latter had become President-elect due to some shenanigans carried out by Bush's younger brother Jeb in Florida, and the witchhunt against nonexistent voter fraud by blacks began.
Defeated by a dead man, Ashcroft's enraged supporters invented the lie that black Democrats in St. Louis had stuffed ballot boxes with fraudulent votes in Carnahan's favor. No such thing happened; a majority of voters in Missouri voted for a dead man over Ashcroft because they realized the latter was a lousy Senator.
But truth didn't matter. The myth of voter fraud in St. Louis among blacks took hold, the defeated Ashcroft was nominated for attorney general by his equally mediocre fellow Yale graduate George W. Bush after the latter had become President-elect due to some shenanigans carried out by Bush's younger brother Jeb in Florida, and the witchhunt against nonexistent voter fraud by blacks began.
373
What's truly weird here is that you think it is OK to ever vote for a dead candidate -- or to have voters vote for that dead guy, then put his WIFE (unelected, unqualified) serve in his place.
Whatever Ashcroft's failings, what Missouri did was not remotely democracy.
Whatever Ashcroft's failings, what Missouri did was not remotely democracy.
1
it's a good thing we now have a mediocre one term senator from IL running the country who got into harvard in his own special way.
i can't get on an airplane without showing ID. i can't get into a bar without showing ID. why would anyone in their right mind have a problem demanding ID for the most sacrosanct of all american duties - voting?
jim crow is thankfully long dead, except in the mind of al sharpton and eric holder. funny how they also don't worry about mexicans pouring into the country without going through the immigration process - why stop a new crop of democrats from walking into the country undocumented?
why bother with ID at all? if you say you're a citizen, then the entitlement state awaits you with open arms. all courtesy of the US taxpayer.
i can't get on an airplane without showing ID. i can't get into a bar without showing ID. why would anyone in their right mind have a problem demanding ID for the most sacrosanct of all american duties - voting?
jim crow is thankfully long dead, except in the mind of al sharpton and eric holder. funny how they also don't worry about mexicans pouring into the country without going through the immigration process - why stop a new crop of democrats from walking into the country undocumented?
why bother with ID at all? if you say you're a citizen, then the entitlement state awaits you with open arms. all courtesy of the US taxpayer.
3
I wouldn't mind a citizen ID myself, especially if it were given for free by the federal government to all US citizens. We have not had fraud since the 19th century, but we might yet have some, and the card might help prevent it. But passports are expensive. Drivers' licenses are state documents seldom aquirable by people who don't own cars. (Nonvoters bicycle or take the bus, if the voters have agreed to pay for buses). Any states willing to accept a Social Security card?
2
Mr. Wrenn comes pretty close to admitting very clearly that he and his paymasters (and fellow travelers discussed in the article) are racists and bigots using money, influence, and political machinations to get their way in violating the spirit and the law of equal rights. A shameful version of American Exceptionalism.
53
I have a hard time getting too upset about this. The entire electorate has been emasculated by the influence of big money and a bought and paid for congress whose only real skill is ignoring the wants and needs of the very people they are supposed to represent. The right to vote is overrated.
7
Seriously? So you propose that, given big money influence, that voting is now overrated? Things would be better off if everyone stopped voting? Just hand the keys to everything over to them?
You might be on to something. Maybe we all ought to camp out on the Koch's front lawns and say "well, you bought us, now you own us, and now all of us are YOUR problem".
You might be on to something. Maybe we all ought to camp out on the Koch's front lawns and say "well, you bought us, now you own us, and now all of us are YOUR problem".
6
Swing and a miss. If your vote makes a such a big difference, then why are incumbents re-elected 95% of the time and not only do things never change, they get worse?
1
I have to say, when Republicans pursue their ideology in the public arena, they are clever, organized and relentless, as this article affirms. It bothers them not at all to lie about their objectives; in fact that is often the central part of the strategy. It has proven to be remarkably effective, however, over and over. Like saying that legislating unnecessary regulations on Planned Parenthood clinics is for the purpose of protecting women's health--a transparent lie, but one they never get challenged about. Or saying that John Kerry or Max Cleland were unpatriotic. They do it because it works.
I wish Democrats could be half as effective in pursuing our goals, although I disagree with using deception as one of the main tools. It is disappointing that journalists and others do not call out the lies, inaccuracies and deliberate deceptions for what they are; amazing, really. Democrats look bumbling and ineffective in comparison to the steely determination of the Republicans.
I wish Democrats could be half as effective in pursuing our goals, although I disagree with using deception as one of the main tools. It is disappointing that journalists and others do not call out the lies, inaccuracies and deliberate deceptions for what they are; amazing, really. Democrats look bumbling and ineffective in comparison to the steely determination of the Republicans.
117
Well, your comment about democrats is explained by the fact they are also controlled by the tenth of per cent, and are just covering up. Example, when first elected Obama had a majority in both houses but did not push single payer or Medicare for all.
1
There is not doubt that one way to win at the polls is to place obstacles in the path of the other party. Is it due to racism or just wanting to win at any cost who knows.
That said, if you want to vote, and happen to be poor and black, yellow, or brown you still can. Sure, it will take more effort than if you are white. But it is not a Herculean task.
Learn to read well, try to register a year before you want to vote, and make sure you can take the day off, call in sick, or just be standing at the polling place at 7 in the morning.
The structure is such that if you really want to vote you can. Are they going to make it hard yes they will. Can you overcome it, yes you can.
If you stop whining about it, vote, take over the system, then you can change the law and tilt it into your interests.
That said, if you want to vote, and happen to be poor and black, yellow, or brown you still can. Sure, it will take more effort than if you are white. But it is not a Herculean task.
Learn to read well, try to register a year before you want to vote, and make sure you can take the day off, call in sick, or just be standing at the polling place at 7 in the morning.
The structure is such that if you really want to vote you can. Are they going to make it hard yes they will. Can you overcome it, yes you can.
If you stop whining about it, vote, take over the system, then you can change the law and tilt it into your interests.
3
That's ridiculous. You should not have to climb mountains in order to exercise your voting rights under the law.
62
I hardly see those problems as 'mountains'. They are the same for all.
2
Learn to read well? How will this be gauged? Do whites need a reading certificate in order to vote?
23
The Republican Party doesn't just need to be defeated. It needs to broken down to its constituent atoms. Then, it may rebuild as a party that belongs in a Democracy.
193
The democrats are not any better. See Democrat one per-centers in bed with Scott Walker and the Republicans to chop millions from education so it can be redirected to the pay for new forum for the Milwaukee Bucks to play basketball and the Bucks owners can reap the profits. Sounds like pubic welfare, except the public involved is already wealthy.
Just a simple question. The voting rights act is such a great thing? Why isn't it a NATIONAL law? Why don't Northern states have to submit to this nonsense.
Please don't tell me history, blah blah blah. The worst discrimination now is in Northern states.
Good for the goose? Good for the gander.
Please don't tell me history, blah blah blah. The worst discrimination now is in Northern states.
Good for the goose? Good for the gander.
7
It is a national law. Section 2 of the VRA - which is the only operative section left, since the Supreme Court eviscerated Section 4, and by extension, Section 5 - applies to every state in the union. Goose, gander, eggs - all covered.
26
It was punishment for the South. Just read comments on forums here; lefty liberals in the Northeast are still fighting the Civil War after 150 years -- still fighting Jim Crow after 60 years -- they still want to call the entire SOUTH "treasonous" and then preen in their self-satisfaction that they alone have the moral high ground (*while sending their lily white kids to lily white private schools in Manhattan).
And NOW, in an election cycle, they want desperately to have their Anointed One Hillary win -- and she's not doing well -- heck, she's losing against that imbecile Trump -- so they are pulling out all the stops. Gin up the base! Rile up black voters! Create paranoia!
What are they scared of? Think about that.
And NOW, in an election cycle, they want desperately to have their Anointed One Hillary win -- and she's not doing well -- heck, she's losing against that imbecile Trump -- so they are pulling out all the stops. Gin up the base! Rile up black voters! Create paranoia!
What are they scared of? Think about that.
1
On the contrary, what are right wing conservatives scared of?
6
The Rep party seems to be dominated by a small group of scared, white men who are trying their best to deny the reality of the US. And, to their credit, they have achieved some success in politics. Congrats to the scared white men. But, sooner, or later, you will be voted out. Let's try for sooner.
249
The perfidious nature of voting rights restrictions came home to me when a close elderly African American college friend told me of his experience as an undergrad at HBUC Jackson State where he was forced, along with all of his classmates, to take a literacy test before voting while they watched University of Mississippi graduates walk in to vote without taking the test. He later received a PhD after leaving Mississippi and taught undergraduate university chemistry.
73
That was awful and unfair. It was also 60 years ago.
It's time to move on.
It's time to move on.
2
Please read the article, Concerned Citizen. You will find that we are not moving on; we are moving backwards.
8
bes, CC doesn't care. He or she is just a Republican troll.
5
If the voting rights act imagined the abuses perpetrated on our elections, i.e. Black Churches busing their members to the voting booth after implying through sermons to vote Democratic or the nursing homes with seniors who can barely remember their name being bused to the voting booth with the words Democratic party whispered in their ears the whole way. Seriously, if you want your country's fate decided by such groups with members often dependent on Government handouts so be it.
As for me I still think that votes should be cast by well-informed individuals who actually pay taxes to keep this country going. If that was done in 2008 we would not be having the nightmare we are currently experiencing.
As for me I still think that votes should be cast by well-informed individuals who actually pay taxes to keep this country going. If that was done in 2008 we would not be having the nightmare we are currently experiencing.
5
I suspect your idea of a nightmare is a black president, no matter the vast number of forward-thinking initiatives he managed to enact despite a hostile GOP.
But rest easy. My American friends assure me there is little chance a black person will be on the presidential ballot in 2016.
But rest easy. My American friends assure me there is little chance a black person will be on the presidential ballot in 2016.
169
Thank you for making clear the true nature of your position - that only people who believe as you do deserve the vote, and all others are fit only to be ruled.
265
You have a typo that we should fix. Pretty sure you mean 2000, not 2008.
184
It's MUCH easier for a psycho to get a gun in America than it is for a person to vote. If republicans have slowly dismantled this, it's because we let them. We can end this simply by voting, however difficult it is to do that, and elect alternative candidates.
464
I'm not sure I've ever seen this stated so succinctly. I've read Tom J's first sentence three times now, and I still can't read it without a slight involuntary flinching at the horrible truth it contains.
4
That is an irresponsible, stupid remark. If nothing else, Barack Obama proved that black voters could and would vote -- if they thought they would be electing a fellow black candidate and/or if they thought they would derive a direct benefit from that election.
There are no Jim Crow barriers today; the Voting Rights Act had purpose 50 years ago, that purpose was outgrown after 30 some years, and it is rightfully ended today.
There are no Jim Crow barriers today; the Voting Rights Act had purpose 50 years ago, that purpose was outgrown after 30 some years, and it is rightfully ended today.
1
It is also easier to get a gun than it is to access health care for women.
20
Given the way demographics are changing in our country the Republican's only hope to retain power lies in doubling down on gerrymandering and voter suppression. That they would see to dismantle the voting rights act is as predictable as sunrise. What they will not do is waver in their single minded obsession to pander to the wealthy. Another corporate-written trade agreement, anyone?
45
I live in one of the most gerrymandered districts in the US, and has been for 50 years -- gerrymandered by Democrats, to ensure the election of a liberal black Democrat.
I guess that's OK, because this is not the deep south, and hey! you like Democrats, so they can do any rotten underhanded thing, and it's OK ,but Republicans are always "evil".
I guess that's OK, because this is not the deep south, and hey! you like Democrats, so they can do any rotten underhanded thing, and it's OK ,but Republicans are always "evil".
2
Not a very convincing argument, if you can't say which district you are talking about.
6
Oh, sure Concerned Citizen. Tell us, where is that? Show statistics. But no, you are from Anywhere, so you can spew whatever you want. As any good repuglican, no data...just magical thinking. Read the stats on gerrymandering why don't you.
3
Articles like this one should make it clear that the voting franchise is absolute gold. White southerners understood this for decades. Why else did they resort to (not mincing words here) shooting, stabbing, impaling, garroting, castrating, disemboweling, and burning alive those African-Americans who tried to exercise their constitutional right to vote (as supposedly guaranteed by the 15th amendment)?
I guess voting doesn't matter unless you have been the focus of a targeted campaign to keep you and people who look like you out of the voting booth.
I guess voting doesn't matter unless you have been the focus of a targeted campaign to keep you and people who look like you out of the voting booth.
135
They did a more thorough job on the indigenous peoples.
The myth of American Exceptionalism falls apart with the systematic elimination of large numbers of people of color from the voting rolls. A republic that only allows access to the ballot to a minority is not a democracy. It becomes a system run of, by, and for the few and the wealthy.
The great tragedy here is that so many risked their lives for the simple ideal of voting for candidates who they believe best represent their interests, and perhaps even the greater good. Great shame on the Republican Party!
The great tragedy here is that so many risked their lives for the simple ideal of voting for candidates who they believe best represent their interests, and perhaps even the greater good. Great shame on the Republican Party!
560
Totally agree with your comment; only wish to add the irony that those who participated in the elimination of the right to vote of minority citizens are the chief proponents of the American Exceptionalism myth.
4
American Exceptionalism = Manifest Destiny = death to indigenous persons [the first people, living in harmony with their environment].
By the way Republican candidate Scott Walker and his Republican and Democrat one per-centers chopped millions out of the Wisconsin education budget so they could shovel it over to build a new forum for the Milwaukee Bucks. I guess big sports doesn't pay unless you public welfare for your big business.
us army 1969-1971/california jd courtesy of gi bill/public education
By the way Republican candidate Scott Walker and his Republican and Democrat one per-centers chopped millions out of the Wisconsin education budget so they could shovel it over to build a new forum for the Milwaukee Bucks. I guess big sports doesn't pay unless you public welfare for your big business.
us army 1969-1971/california jd courtesy of gi bill/public education
5
It may be owned and run by and for the wealthy, but it owes its current majority in Congress to the votes of Joe and Jodie six-pack. Shame on them!
2
When Pres. Obama won the elections, supposedly we lived in a color-blind society. Now, we are just blind.
89
Your last sentence is the most depressing one I've read in ages, because it is becoming absolutely true in a country that claims to be the beacon of light for democracy. It never really has been, but it seemed that the light was going to shine when the Civil Rights Act and the Voting Rights Act was passed. There have been those who would put out that light entirely if they possibly could. What frightens me and should frighten others is this: those who want to stop certain groups from voting now just may enlarge that group that shouldn't vote. The list of those who should be stopped from voting will increase over time to include not race but other factors that are deemed "unsuitable."
Americans must either defend the right of all citizens in good standing the right to vote, or their own right to vote will, in time, be in peril. As an atheist, I would never be allowed to be POTUS because of the Christian voters very likely. What if I were to be part of the group that no longer had a right to vote even if I am white?
Americans must either defend the right of all citizens in good standing the right to vote, or their own right to vote will, in time, be in peril. As an atheist, I would never be allowed to be POTUS because of the Christian voters very likely. What if I were to be part of the group that no longer had a right to vote even if I am white?
24
According to the Chief Justice of the United States, racism is non-existent in the United States - period.
And, I'm pretty sure that he thinks that if he thinks it's so, than it is so.
And, I'm pretty sure that he thinks that if he thinks it's so, than it is so.
6
The number of Democrats voting will drop by 50% and they will never be a force again.
2
you seem pleased. which is why the republican south is so horrendous (and losing).
35
No, but you seem to realize that the only way Republicans can win is by disenfranchising large groups of people. I don't worry too much - demographics are working against them, Georgia and Texas are on their way to becoming blue states.
25
@Sally: says someone in SWITZERLAND; what a hoot!
Texas and Georgia are becoming more racially diverse, but new (legal) hispanic and asian residents will in time become conservative voters as they merge with the mainstream (or their kids do).
Texas and Georgia are becoming more racially diverse, but new (legal) hispanic and asian residents will in time become conservative voters as they merge with the mainstream (or their kids do).
For the life of me I can't imagine why Americans of any political stripe have allowed the right to vote to be held hostage by a small group of zealots.
438
Force maintained slavery. Force maintained Jim Crow. Force limits black voters.
33
The number of people (poor, black) in prison skyrocketed under the Reagan era Republicans. Why?
If you are in prison, you can't vote. Get it?
If you are in prison, you can't vote. Get it?
17
There are two brands of Americans, Lew. One brand, who used to be known as Southern Democrats, decided to register instead as Republicans and took over the Grand Old Party. Or, to put it another way, the former GOP morphed into a revived KKK.
10
It still shocks me that this type of subterfuge to eliminate the voting rights is not considered fascistic and treasonous. With the disgraceful display of the Confederate Battle Flag being removed from the Statehouse Grounds in South Carolina, distinguishing the Confederacy and its symbols as a mark of slavery should herald the beginning of a "New Reconstruction," to finally guarantee all rights of citizenship to sectors in the American population that have been denied, outmaneuvered, and disenfranchised their inalienable right to participate in democratic governance.
247
From "E pluribus unum" to a variant of "Sieg heil!" in two generations. Disgraceful! It seems that Hitler and what Nazism stood for posthumously won World War II some 70 years later.
As a Jew who lost what family remained in Europe in the Final Solution, I find the participation of Mr. Blum particularly loathsome. It's as if a Jew felt he had dispensation to join the equivalent of the Nazi Party.
As a Jew who lost what family remained in Europe in the Final Solution, I find the participation of Mr. Blum particularly loathsome. It's as if a Jew felt he had dispensation to join the equivalent of the Nazi Party.
27
I live in Monroe county, Florida. It is a ethnically diverse community. It was subject to preclearance under the voting rights because in the 1960's it didn't issue ballots in Spanish. There have been no charges of voter suppression since then. For a community to be punished in perpetuity for a issue which occurred long before most of the current voters were born is unamerican, punishing children for the sins of the fathers. The Supreme court was correct to reject the validity of fifty year old maps for determining preclearance.
11
Just because Monroe may have been treated a bit unfairly does not invalidate the entire law, as the efforts by states to disenfranchise since that section of the law was tossed by the SCOTUS shows quite clearly.
58
Mr. Stuart, if the sons of those fathers are ethnically-diverse, they may well deserve - and require - protection.
14
The Voting Rights Act contain(ed) a bailout provision PRECISELY for this reason, and hundreds of local jurisdictions used it over the years to remove themselves from Section 5 oversight.
Monroe never did because it could NOT HAVE MET the bailout provisions because of some statewide voting laws in Florida.
Monroe never did because it could NOT HAVE MET the bailout provisions because of some statewide voting laws in Florida.
29
Rather than a voting issue, why isn't this seen as an empowerment issue? A photo ID--better a driver's license--a bank account, internet access are needed for so many things in our society. They have become necessary for full citizenship. If both sides weren't so focused on their own candidates, they would fund a program that provides this entire package and solve the voting issue and so much more.