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Reform Updates
Vermont House Approves National Popular Vote bill
House Republicans reverse course, object to fair elections
5 Responses to “Reform Updates”
While listening to Air America yesterday, I heard an accusation that the Republicans had some how messed with the voting machines in Philadelphia during the Democratic Primary. Of course, in a city that is totally controled by the Democrats and in a state controlled by the Democrats, the caller and the host both talked about how the Republicans cheated in the Democratic Primary. It was laughable in its paranoia and stupidity.
Of course, if the Democrats were really interested in stopping voter fraud they would support picture I.D. for voting and would get rid of motor-voters initatives. However, since the Democratic Party benefits from having illegal aliens and non-citizens vote, the Democratic Party has no crediblity when complaining about voters fraud.
Gah, Superdestroyer, have you ever come up with one thing that isn't some form of Clinton-did-it-too? It's like a verbal tick that you can't pass up, to say 'well, the Democrats are also bad.' On this instance, they're not. They supported a bill and Republicans supported it too, and it seems to make very little sense as to why Republicans decided to keep it from a vote.
Voter ID fraud isn't something with salient cases that you could prove, and we could go back and forth about voter disenfranchisement brought about with Voter ID's, but we wouldn't get anywhere primarily because I don't particularly care and you wouldn't be particularly apt to change your mind. There's not a ton of illegal aliens voting in New York, and aren't you supposed to be laying bait about them maybe not going for Obama cause of the hispanic-African American divide? I would love that one. 'Are illegals going to break for Obama or McCain? I don't know. McCain used to support President Bush's proposal and that sat well with many illegals, but he reversed course on that. However, Obama is black. I guess we'll just have to wait and see who gets that crucial illegal immigrant vote.' Basically, Voter ID isn't yet a strong enough or sane enough case to point to not only to say this should be fixed, but in terms of solutions that don't seem a shady way of kicking people to the curb who should legally be allowed to vote.
That said, voting machine errors have happened, and are likely to happen again. The federal government helping local governments with funding to thus allow them a paper trail and auditing can work as a corrective measure. Now, Republicans saw it from that point of view about two weeks ago, but now don't see fit to bring it to the floor, and there's no particular reason for it.
Basically, you need all of it, and Republicans haven't yet put forward a plan to make Voter ID's work for everyone here legally and avoid disenfrachisement. And to that end, Democrats haven't either, instinctively fighting them as opposed to adapting the legislation and making it better. Part of the ways to do it is supporting gradual implementation. When you rush voter ID's, say, to just before an election as opposed to giving it several years so every citizen that wants it can get it, and every new voter gets theirs promptly and the management that runs the whole thing is in place and running well, you create problems. Voter ID's need to be put in place gradually, and not mandated until the receipt of these ideas has been in one way or another confirmed. I think 2012 would be an optomistic, but a good point for an election with a citizenry full of Voter IDs and paper trails.
Rignt on, HappySurge.
“It was laughable in its paranoia and stupidity.” [outdoing any Birchers or Klansmen]
It was no surprise, given it was on Air America [sic]. I've heard plenty of idiocy on it.
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“if the Democrats were really interested in stopping voter fraud they would support picture I.D. for voting and would get rid of motor-voters initatives”
To fight vote fraud is for them to commit self-destruction, suicide They'll never do it!