We need to use every possible means to keep Republicans from disenfranchising the poor. Eric Holder just took a big step in that direction.
After years of deliberate neglect, the Justice Department is finally beginning to enforce the federal law requiring states to provide voter registration at welfare and food stamp offices. The effort not only promises to bring hundreds of thousands of hard-to-reach voters into the electorate, but it could also reduce the impact of advocacy organizations whose role in registering voters caused such a furor in 2008.
The National Voter Registration Act of 1993, better known as the motor-voter law, is well-known for making it possible to register to vote at state motor vehicle offices. However, the law also required states to allow registration at offices that administer food stamps, welfare, Medicaid, disability assistance and child health programs. States were enthusiastic about the motor-vehicle section of the law, and millions of new voters got on the rolls while getting a driver’s license. But registration at public assistance offices proved far less popular.
In part, that was because of additional paperwork at those offices, but in many states, Republican officials did not want to provide easy entry to the voting rolls for low-income people whom they considered more likely to vote Democratic. The Bush administration devoted its attention to seeking out tiny examples of voter fraud and purging people from the rolls in swing states. It did little to enforce the motor-voter law despite years of complaints from civic groups and Democratic lawmakers.
In April, however, President Obama’s Justice Department sent the states a set of guidelines making it clear that it expected full compliance with the public-assistance office section of the law — the first time in the 15-year history of the motor-voter law that the Justice Department has explained what kinds of offices are covered and what procedures are to be used. The guidelines make it clear that people applying for benefits must not only be offered the chance to register but must be given help in filling out the forms if they ask. If states do not comply voluntarily, lawsuits are likely to follow… [emphasis added]
Inserted from <NY Times>
Republicans have been depriving poor and minority citizens of their right to vote ever since racist politicians deserted the Democratic for the Republican, because Democrats passed the Civil Rights Act. This is welcome news, and I hope Holder enforces it passionately.
12 Responses to “Since ACORN Is Gone”
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poor and minority citizens have been depriving themselves of the right to vote by not registering. At the very least in MI everyone who has a drivers license or state ID card is asked directly every 4 years when that card needs to be renewed if they want to register to vote. No one no matter where it is done can force someone to register much less participate in the process. Every bit of lack of education in political processes and necessity is not a right wing conspiracy any more than the socialization of government systems is a left wing conspiracy.
Most people not registered are just flat out are too lazy to register and even lazier when it comes to actually voting.
Mark, to a large extent you are correct, but in red states, Republicans often locate places where poor and minority voters can register far from where they live and inaccessible by public transit. The lazy will be lazy no matter what we do, but we must do everything we can to give everyone the opportunity to vote.
ACORN had its problems, but it was hanged for a crime it didn’t commit. I think it was targeted because it was effective in promoting voter registration.
We have been bombarded for the last thirty years with anti-government propaganda– disparaging the worth of the vote and the value of citizen participation. It doesn’t help that our politicians often let us down. It’s a flawed and fragile system, but without the government, the rule of law, the protection of individual rights; we’ll be divided up between corporations and religion.
I’m happy the Obama administration is reversing the narrowing of the vote that has been in progress for decades. It is a national disgrace that voters were turned away at the polls in Florida in 2000 because someone, somewhere had the same name.
Welcome Nancy. 🙂
I fully agree with everything you have said, and while this topic does not include other methods by which Republicans disenfranchise poor and minority voters, all such tactics are disgraceful.
Imagine that, using the law passed by majority to increase voter registration and voter turnout.Instead of slimy ads, political favoritism, gerrymandering, payolla, incumbancy advantages, or other well used forces to get people to vote.I would never make voting mandatory, and we do get the representation we vote for. Those who vote, define the future for America.
Tom, I would oppose mandatory voting as well.
None of this will matter until we end “faith based” voting where electrons are counted instead of paper ballots. The GOP’s fraud efforts are just a means to rally their base. They know that they can flip an election via the machines. To restore democracy in America we need to pull the plug on voting machines and have publicly financed federal elections. With the first we will never know who actually got the most votes and without the 2nd we will never have a real choice between candidates for the people or candidates for the corporations.
Welcome Rv.., Is that your real name? 😉
While this is a different topic, I think that all voting machines that to not have a paper trail, including a receipt that a voter may check for accuracy. I have no doubt that the Ohio results in 2004 were electronically manipulated.
I’m glad Holder is going to finally enforce the motor voter law and prevent people from being tossed off the rolls because of some BS excuse!
Me too, Lisa.
The solution seems so easy. Every American citizen should automatically be registered to vote, the day they turn 18. If a person wants to re-register to support some political party, that would be up to them.
Welcome, WD. 🙂
That sounds like a good idea, but since the census is only once every ten years, how will we know where people may correctly cast their ballots without registration?