Texas Voter ID Law Imperiled

Yeah right guys. Anybody who would argue against you is doing it only because they are stuipid or somhow landed a non-appointive position in the Justice Department. We need to revise the SAT so it will identifiy pure intelligence as exmplified in the posts of Leftwith, Cedar Park Fan, MSDW, et al. who have generously supplied us with a new understanding of transcendant literacy and cultural understanding. Only a mush headed liberal would care the 'hassle factor" with getting an ID is a lot less for folks with some flexibility in their schedules, a car anytime they want one, good health, ever present cash in the back pocket to miss work, pay for parking or bus fare. The DOJ should ignore the fact that it is a lot easier to get photo IDs when you live in affluent areas with better government services. Especially since that while there is little evidence of organized elction fraud, it's better to imagine the dangers and prevent the possibility. And it's just an "unexpected" bounus that the voter ID laws vote makes the voting electorate more Republican. God, I'm sure our governor and legislators never gave that much thought.
 
A few issues I've got with the Left on voter ID. Before mentioning them, I am confident that partisanship is a major factor in the GOP supporting voter ID. If they thought they were going to prevent a bunch of people in Highland Park or Plano from voting, they wouldn't be pushing this. They're self-serving politicians just like the Democrats are, so I'm not going to argue that their intentions are good.

Nevertheless, here's why I still favor voter ID. First, like Cedar Park Fan said, it does make common sense as a basic line of defense in the voting system. We require an ID before virtually every transaction except voting regardless of any demonstrable need. Was there a big investigation to see if fraud was widespread before requiring an ID to write a check? Were there loads of unauthorized people boarding aircraft before we required an ID? I don't know. I would argue it wouldn't have made a difference.

Second, you guys hide behind this argument that there isn't evidence of widespread voter fraud while (1) preventing the primary measure someone would use to find fraud and (2) ignoring fraud that has been found in the past. It would be like firing all the police officers and investigators and shutting off all the phone lines at the Austin police department and then saying, "look, there's no crime in Austin" because none is being reported.

Impersonating other live voters isn't the only way to cheat. Voting on behalf of dead people or fake people is also a method. However, without a voter ID, you'd never catch the fraudulent voters. You could investigate after the fact to see if any occurred, but you'd have to cross check every single ballot. You'd be looking for a needle in a haystack. And of course, you'd have no chance of catching the perpetrator.

Nevertheless, fraud has been found. Look at the 1960 election where fraud was rampant in Texas and in Illinois. Hell, there were 1243 more votes in Fannin County, Texas than there were registered voters. How does that happen without fraud? Hell, Mayor Daley basically admitted there was fraud in Chicago. His defense against the allegation was only that there was just as much of it in the southern part of the state.

Third, I'm not convinced that getting an ID is a major encumbrance. People have to register to vote. That's also an encumbrance, and Democratic activists have been helping old people and minorities register for years. If the activists are not trying to cheat, why not help them get IDs as well? They're free.
 
Excellent post, Mr. Deez. The only thing I'd add is, it Is also in the GOP's interest because the GOP knows the Dems cheat on a much larger scale than Republicans.
 
Btw, I think I'll head down to the welfare office today and scream disenfranchisement when they insist on an ID before they'll give me one of those debit cards they hand out like candy.
 
While you are there Leftwith, get some comfort in knowing the folks with the Lone Star cards and time on their hands aren't the ones I'm worried about. I honestly share your contempt for the lazy poor. For folks who regularly avail themselves of public assistance getting photo ID card would be no challenge at all. It's the people with two jobs trying like hell to keep their kids in shoes or too infirm to get out of the house without assistance who are in a situation that get my sympathy. Maybe you guys have never known any of the workin' poor and assume all poor folk are the lazy?
 
Crockett, my post wasn't really aimed at the poor. I was just pointing out out the absurdity of this ID argument.

One more thing: How many people are there that are so removed from society as to not have an ID, but that would still bother to vote? Or even know there was an election taking place? Ten? Twenty? A hundred?

This is all about cheating and nothing else. The Dems will no longer be able to drive a bus down to skid row and load up the bums with promises of free donuts if they'll vote straight ticket D.
 
I'll repeat for emphasis. This has nothing to do cheating, It is an effort to make sure that high numbers of minorities who participated in the '08 elections are not matched or exceeded in this years election. Conservatives are still smarting from BHO's election and they understand math.,
 
Leftwith, I don't think it's ever been legal to let dead people vote or for people without identification to vote. You can't go load up voters the same place you go to pick up day laborers. There were a lot of steps available to make voting more secure that would have been less onerous for the working poor. Because the gov and leg ignored them, there's a justice department inquiry to which they have responded with a combination of contempt and ineptitude. Even if you are innocent, it's best to be represented by a competent lawyer and show deference to the judge.
 
Actually, you can get absentee ballots. Also, with early voting ( a really good thing) folks who are frail can go vote typically with easy access to handicapped parking, no lines etc. at a time when family or friends may be able to help them to the polls. Again, this arguement is not about whether the integrity of elections should be protected, but how much hassle factor there should be. Should the elderly who no longer drive be required to get an updated ID even if an expired license seems to provide perfectly good identification? Is that requirement in place to protect voter integrity or to create another barrier to voting for folks who may not be reliably Republican? Ever helped an old person for whom getting in and out of a car is a big deal with more than a little pain and danger? Imagine how much fun half a day at the DMV is for them. I guess only people with a mental disorder give a crap.
 
So I35, you are saying the voter ID law is a good thing because the people it will prevent from voting don't vote intelligently?
 
And you'd be one of those giddy over the prospect of Marco Rubio on the GOP ticket because he's held elective office for 20 minutes.
 
____________________________________________________________"
You're only emphasizing how wrong you are. The race card
is all you've got on this one. You simply can't discuss the merits of the issue."
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If the only issue were the integrity of elections, this would have flown through Justice Department Review. Your obliviousness to their reasonable and linked representations on the merits of the issue by Satchel or issues discussed in my posts doesn't mean they don't exist. Right wing posters here would love to have us believe they care only about the integrity of the voter system Evidence that the old system was working pretty well, mention of the hassle factor of the elderly going to the DMV when they no longer drive etc. are issues that apparantly reside in a realm inaccessible to their conscious thought.
 
Crockett, are you seriously implying that conservatives only want this because we think it will hurt Obama and the Dems?
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For many people, integrity and fairness (not BO's selective, fake fairness) are important to anything, let alone voting. And like I said above, the real impact this law would have on minorities voting would be negligible to nil. It's the cheaters who would be shut down, and yes, that WOULD help the GOP, but it damn well should.
 
Crockett, it's much easier to have integrity of an election and ask people to bring their ID's to vote than to catch all the cheating that is going on. Cheating is very hard to catch and for them to catch as many as they did shows that we are only looking at the tip of the iceburg.

It's not that hard to get an ID. There are so many things you have to have an ID for and it would be in everyones best interest to go get a friggin ID. It's really that simple. This is more about the left wanting cheating to get the votes than it is GOP wanting to block people without ID's. If someone doesn't want to go to the trouble of getting an ID then I have to question how bad they want to vote in the first place. I'd drive to BFE to get a DL's or ID to have the right to vote.

This is just another stupid thing the left does to try to stay in power that they don't deserves due to the hack job they did to our present economy.
 
Great post, I35.

Crockett, I expect that kind of nonsense from Satchel, but not you. This really is very simple. It's Twilight Zonish that we're even arguing about something so obvious.
 
I35 -- because I accidentally left my driver's license at home, I used my employee ID badge and social security card to give blood. Such would not have worked at a polling location under the new voter ID law. Again, I have no objection to setting reasonable standards for presenting identification. A 95 year old man who doesn't drive and whose license expired in 2011 would be turned away at the polls unless he got a new ID.
This is about erecting barriers along with preserving integrity of voting. If it was just about voting integrity, it would have sailed through with DOJ approval.
 
Yes, Michtex. Any and all of that garbage should be eliminated. We should also verify citizenship of all candidates before their name appears on any balltot.
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