Challenging Voter ID
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| by Gary Varvel |
A recent Wall Street Journal editorial highlights the fact that many of the states that passed these voter ID laws are not in the south where Jim Crow laws were prevalent. Wisconsin, Kansas, and Rhode Island are just a few of the non-southern states that believe that a voter should be required to show some identification.
Bill Clinton also claimed that Republicans are trying to “make the 2012 electorate look more like the 2010 electorate than the 2008 electorate.” Other Democrats disagree with him. Democrats control both state legislative houses in Rhode Island, and the
Democratic speaker there co-sponsored the new voter ID law. Jon Brien says that “party leaders have tried to make this a Republican versus Democrat issue. It’s not. It’s simply a good government issue.”
Most Americans agree. They know that they need to show a photo ID before they board an airplane, rent a video, or cash a check. A Rasmussen poll in June showed that three-fourths (75%) of likely voters favor voter ID laws. Nearly two-thirds (63%) of Democrats also favor these laws.
Federal court decisions also uphold the constitutionality of voter ID laws. The author of the 2008 Supreme Court decision was John Paul Stevens, one of the more liberal justices. He wrote that such laws do not constitute an undue burden on citizens attempting to vote. The last two elections have shown that minority voting in states with voter ID laws went up not down.
Despite what some politicians might say, these laws are not racist or partisan but are being implemented to prevent voter fraud. I’m Kerby Anderson, and that’s my point of view.
Tags: Kirby Anderson, Point of View, voter, voters, voter id, elections, Gary Varvel, political cartoon, voter fraud, politics, editorial cartoons, ID, identity theft To share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!
Posted by Bill Smith at 2:19 PM - Post Link
3 Comments:
bill Clinton's comment was wrong and I don't know why he made such a comment. Arkansas always has checked ID and I am the same age he is.
ProudInfidel, Many in Arkansas believe that Arkansas has a mandatory voter id rule. We do not. Arkansas tried this last session to require mandatory photo ID and that was blocked by an Arkansas Senate committee.
Arkansas election law requires the poll worker to ask for identification (drivers license, voter id card, military id, electric bill, etc.) However, the voter is not required to present any id.
The voter is required to state their name, address and birth date. If they are in the voter books, they may vote and the poll worker enters "no id" provided.
And the voter must always be allowed to vote even if it is a provisional ballot -- even if their name is not in the voter roles.
Great article Bill, I twittered it :)
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