This page was last updated on July 30, 2012.
Voter ID law nothing but politics; Alexander Andres; Beaver County Times; July 29, 2012.
The only previous Andres letter of which I’m aware was entitled “Priorities in health care are skewed.”
Below is a detailed critique of the subject letter.
“The new Pennsylvania voter ID law is nothing more than election year politics.”
[RWC] Last summer, Rhode Island passed a law requiring a photo ID to vote. RI voters reliably vote Democrat and Democrats hold overwhelming majorities in both houses of the General Assembly. The governor is an independent, a former U.S. Senate RINO with high ADA Liberal Quotients. Further, leftist darling former-President Jimmy Carter supports a photo ID for voting. This is info we’re not supposed to know.
Back in 2008, ACORN (Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now), the recipient of in excess of $800,000 from the Obama campaign during the 2008 primary, was under investigation for voter fraud in at least 13 states, by Democrat and Republican officials alike. This was a recurring problem since at least 2004. As a result of one scandal after another, ACORN legally ceased to exist, though some of its chapters simply changed names.
Even if voter fraud were non-existent, should we wait until it becomes a problem? At the same time lefties tell us “The right to vote is one of our most important rights,” they tell us we should not ensure only legal voters vote. Rather than help people get the ID needed to vote, folks like Mr. Andres would rather do without photo ID. You can read more on the topic here.
“It is an effort to turn a borderline blue state, red. Why now, unless it is an an [sic] attempt to restrict the democratic process? Photo ID is already required when first registering and when changing polling locations. A matching signature is required at the time of the vote. Local polls are staffed with local officials all elected locally.
“I personally know many of the poll workers in my precinct. They can identify me with personal eyewitness recognition, which was what was originally intended and far better than any bureaucratic documentation with a photo. If I lost my wallet on Election Day I could get money from my bank and buy tobacco or alcohol, without ID, but I would not be able to vote, even though I could be easily and positively identified by the election workers.”
[RWC] I’ll go out on a limb and guess most poll workers aren’t even close to knowing every voter in their precinct. In Mr. Andres’ mind this will never happen, but what should happen if none of the poll workers recognize a voter without ID? In any case, who’s to say a poll worker can’t be part of the fraud? Consider the following. Pollworkers For Pennsylvania claims to be “A non-partisan project of VotePA dedicated to Pennsylvania Pollworkers.” Contrary to the “non-partisan” claim, however, the group lobbies against better voter ID and urges people to “Join the WFTE Progressive Radio Community in northeast Pennsylvania at 90.3 FM/105.7 FM or online at wfte.org! WFTE is a grassroots coalition building a listener-supported, volunteer-operated community radio station in northeast Pennsylvania. WFTE gives an independent voice to progressive people committed to social, political, economic and environmental change.” (1/16/12) In its own words, WFTE is “The Voice of NEPA’s Progressive Community.” It appears this group and I have different definitions for “non-partisan.”
As for Mr. Andres’ assertion he could get money from his bank “without ID,” sure. Unless the teller personally knows Mr. Andres – not merely recognizes his face, I want to know the name of the bank to make sure I don’t have an account there. As for buying “tobacco and alcohol, without ID,” that’s probably true if he’s over 30 years old and doesn’t have a baby face. Otherwise, since retailers and offending clerks who sell to underage customers are in big doodoo, I suspect Mr. Andres would get carded.
“Most sad is that a man or woman who served their country during World War II and may no longer drive or have any valid photo identification will be turned away, or offered a so called provisional ballot, denying them from participating in this great American experience they so nobly protected.”
[RWC] I have a hard time believing any significant number of WWII vets doesn’t have appropriate ID and/or can’t get it fairly easily. How is providing a vet with a provisional ballot “denying them from participating in this great American experience?” The whole idea behind the provisional ballot is to allow a person with an ID problem to cast a vote while their ID issue is resolved.
© 2004-2012 Robert W. Cox, all rights reserved.