Voter fraud vs. voter *registration* fraud

[Jerome]

Hiya Chuck! How are those billable hours going?

[ChuckF]

There are too many of them right now, that is why I have been scarce around here lately!

Where have you been anyway?

[SR71]

Originally Posted by ChuckF

There are too many of them right now, that is why I have been scarce around here lately!

Where have you been anyway?

I was going to try to fill in for you, but that was just unrealistic. I was able to pick up a little slack here and there, like pointing out that shooting yourself in the body parts is really a good example of excellent fire arms safety practices.

[erimir]

Originally Posted by ChuckF

There are too many of them right now, that is why I have been scarce around here lately!

Where have you been anyway?

We demand more ChuckF!

[ChuckF]

I do observe dangerously low levels of mob police brutality here at the moment.

[Jerome]

Originally Posted by ChuckF

Where have you been anyway?

Picking fights with dragons.

[Angakuk]

This is for all you kool-aid drinkers who have bought into the liberal myth that voter fraud is not a massive problem.

Also this pretty much puts paid to that other liberal myth about global warming.

Just call me Mr. Mythbuster, bitches!

[The Man]

“Or We Could Try Appealing To More Voters.” [Pause] Hearty Laughter Breaks Out All Around. - Lawyers, Guns & Money

ugh

[The Man]

Scott Walker is so terrible

[Ensign Steve]

So the only people who get to vote early are those who have the time to run errands during bankers hours in the first place?

(Do the thin blue lines represent fewer hours in the day than the thick ones?)

[Jerome]

The only real reason for early voting is the ability to count the votes to find out how many are needed to fix the election.

[Dingfod]

That would be the elderly, who tend to vote Republican.

[The Man]

Having done some research, it looks like this does indeed refer to reduced hours. Slightly more than bank hours, but not much.

In other news, Arkansas' voter suppression law loses its first court challenge.

[The Man]

Wisconsin's voter suppression law loses its latest challenge as well. The judge's statement is an excellent smackdown. Gov. Scott Walker is considering appealing, because he is terrible. As commenter Callyson says:

"We're reviewing decision before deciding on potential action" = "We're desperately looking for anything that will cover up what this law is really intended to do."

[The Man]

Republicans' own investigation attempting to find voter fraud finds that the idea of voter fraud is still a fraud.

[Watser?]

GOP vote scheme finally imploding: Why the end may be here - Salon.com

[erimir]

You know, I would actually be totally fine with voter ID laws... if they were implemented in any reasonable fashion.

For one, they would have to be laws with two phases. The first phase would be ensuring that all eligible voters (perhaps as a subset of all citizens) have a valid ID. These IDs would be free, or at least you'd be guaranteed a free ID every time period X (in other words, there'd be a replacement fee, not an issuing fee). Any additional paperwork required, such as birth certificates, would also be available for free. At least if you don't have a valid ID. Ideally we would have more DMVs in underserved areas, but if the goal is giving out IDs, this could be most simply done by allowing more government agencies that interact with the public to issue the basic, non-driving ID card. Another would be to have mobile ID stations (possibly that provide other services as well) to help those with limited mobility and so forth.

This phase should last at least a year or so, and ideally it would have some kind of evaluation of success included, such that the second phase only kicks in when the first phase has succeeded to a proper level. There would be some easy way of changing your address which does not require you to travel and get a new ID issued immediately. That way when you vote in your precinct you will be on the voter roll despite your address on your ID being out of date.

The second phase would require ID for voting. Of course, absentee votes would still be susceptible...

But Republicans will never propose such a thing, even though it would solve the "problem" of voting fraud and likely be far less contentious. Mainly because it would no longer hurt poor people. Also because some crazies will say it's the mark of the beast or whatever.

Of course, if we were being rational, we would make Election Day a national holiday and/or extend early voting periods nationwide to a certain minimum. And ensure that voting precincts have conveniently located polling places, with a set minimum number of voting booths per capita and geographical area (ensuring that neither distance nor long lines are an impediment to voting). And utilize the best voting machines which are secure, transparent and not susceptible to fraud (which means having a paper trail).

[chunksmediocrites]

Well if we're dreaming, then we would also get rid of the electoral college and end gerrymandering.

[erimir]

I am a little surprised that Democrats don't ever try to amend those bills in the way I describe.

Americans are pretty dumb on this issue and mostly agree with the Republicans because they think that voter fraud is a thing. Making the Republicans admit that they don't want to make it easy for poor people to get these voter IDs would help turn the issue against them.

Maybe.

[Jerome]

I just renewed my driver's license, the state now only allows you to be registered as Democrat or Republican.

[chunksmediocrites]

Originally Posted by Jerome

I just renewed my driver's license, the state now only allows you to be registered as Democrat or Republican.

I have never heard of a driver's license that listed political affiliation- does yours?

Or are you talking about two unrelated things- a driver's license... and voter registration? Maryland has had Democrat, Republican, or unaffiliated as the only three options for voter registration since 2010. Which I agree is wrong. Surely you read it in the Daily Paul back in 2010.

All this assuming that you reside in Maryland, of course.

[Jerome]

Originally Posted by chunksmediocrites

I have never heard of a driver's license that listed political affiliation- does yours?

It is obviously tied to the driver's license in the same system, otherwise when I got the renewal they wouldn't have known I was registered to vote under a party other than Republican or Democrat.

[The Man]

Pro-voter ID candidate Asa Hutchinson forgets ID needed to vote | MSNBC

[Dingfod]

[Adam]

Originally Posted by The Man

Pro-voter ID candidate Asa Hutchinson forgets ID needed to vote | MSNBC

Christian Olson, a spokesman for the Republican candidate, told the AP that Hutchinson believed the situation was a “little bit of an inconvenience” and that a staffer retrieved his ID so he could cast a ballot. Olson said the former congressman still believes voters should be required to show an ID.

I think the candidate makes a good point. Why the big fuss over such a "little...inconvenience" when voters can just send their staffers to retrieve their IDs for them?