I’m very disturbed by this story, which suggests one of the principal motivations for the U.S.-attorneys-purge was to facilitate suppression of “voter fraud” in 11 key states in 2008. “Voter fraud,” for those of you not familiar with the phrase, is Pubspeak for “Democrats voting,” and in particular for “poor people voting.” We’ve had severalthreads in the past touching on “voter fraud,” and no Doper has yet come up with any evidence for this as a real, widespread problem worthy of concern. (Republican voter intimidation, OTOH, is a real problem, or has been recently.)
What can we do, starting now, to make sure the 2008 elections will be free, fair and clean?
First off, stop letting people on the other side off the hook. If they make a mistake or lie, correct them then keep an eye on them. If, after the correction, they repeat what they said before call them on it. How many times does “Golly gee, I don’t see why everyone is upset about the firings-what did the admin do that was so wrong?” have to be asked and answered before we say,“Asked and answered. Quit pretending it hasn’t been and move on.”
We may have some more work to do identifying the exact nature and prevalence of the phenomena described as “voting fraud” and “voter intimidation”. To make sure we’re all on the same page, here’s the Federal Election Assistance Commission’s December 2006 Initial Review (PDF) of election crimes.
Especially helpful were the appendices, which illustrated numerous examples of voter fraud that were committed by Democrats as well. Problems like vote buying, fraudulent registration, double voting, and ineligible felon voting were noted.
So let’s please not pretend, even on these boards, that this is a problem restricted to one party. That isn’t supported by the facts. Moreover, if people are convinced that both parties are dirty in this (even if not equally dirty) they will be more likely to support measures to really make things secure and fair.
How about starting out with educating people on the mechanics of voting and provide assistance for anyone who needs help.
Oh wait! We already do that and idiots who can’t read a ballot, poke a hole in a piece of paper with a metal stylus, or touch a screen in the right spot still fuck it up every year.
I’ve had my eye on Tim Griffin since before this came out. The neocons and their lackeys can scream ‘conspiracy theory’ only so long before their cries are silenced by mountains of corroborating information leading to the same conclusion, that this administration and its representatives are not simply complicit, but active in the pursuit of making Karl Rove’s ideal of a permanent republican majority a reality by any means, right or not, moral or not, ethical or not, discriminatory or not, legal or not.
What can we do? Impeach both Bush and Cheney, and that’s just for starters. Rove needs to be called to account in a court of law and tried for his involvement in Plame-gate, Gonzo-gate and every other freaking gate that’s caused near-irreparable damage to this country, its citizens, and our standing in the world in the last 6 years.
Unfortunately, I believe we’re at a stage where certain actors in this administration need to be made into public examples to show what happens to those who abuse their positions and power to such an extent that it’s woefully obvious they believe laws apply to everyone except them.
The difference is in degree. Voter suppression disenfranchises far more people than voter fraud could ever hope to. Yes, both parties are guilty; but the Republicans have raised it to a fine art, and make the Dems look like pikers in comparison.
Nope. That bill addressed problems near and dear to Democrats while doing nothing to address legitimate Republican concern about the integrity of the voter registration process, among many other concerns.
Far better we look to the Commission on Federal Election Reform, cochaired by former President Jimmy Carter and former Secretary of State James Baker. That did a far better job than that bill in Congress.
These recommendations are fairly straightforward and reasonable. They include having states manage voter roles, using secure ID cards as evidence of voter eligibility, and providing an auditable paper trail from voting machines.
Did you even bother to read the caption on that picture? Just in case you didn’t, it says:
When you look at two objects in different planes at an angle, they don’t line up right. Anybody without enough brains to look directly down to see how they line up shouldn’t be voting.
Ahh, the old “Since we didn’t get away with it this time, that proves we don’t cheat!” gambit. Actually, it just proves you screwed up and pissed off too many people.
Askance, I think it’s specifically “voting fraud”—i.e., people voting when/where they’re not entitled to—that BrainGlutton says isn’t documented as a serious problem. Palast, on the other hand, seems to concentrate on the issue of “vote suppression” or “voter intimidation”—i.e., people not being allowed to vote, or discouraged from voting, when they are entitled to. BrainGlutton agrees with Palast and you that vote suppression is definitely a documented serious problem.
