# I Pit the ID-demanding GOP vote-suppressors (Part 1) **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [June 12, 2012, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-id-demanding-gop-vote-suppressors-part-1/624943 "2012-06-12T19:15:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 428
**Author:** ![The\_Lurker\_Above](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dc4da7/32.png) [@The\_Lurker\_Above](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Lurker_Above)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2016, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-id-demanding-gop-vote-suppressors-part-1/624943/8541 "2016-02-09T23:53:35Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > Wait a minute. Aren’t you Canadian? Doesn’t Canada have [similar laws?](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voter_ID_laws#Canada) Similar in that we require ID, yes (or someone with ID to vouch for you). But just [**look**](http://www.elections.ca/content.aspx?section=vot&dir=ids&document=index&lang=e) at what counts as ID (49 bullet points, some of which cover multiple kinds of ID!). Elections Canada really wants every eligible voter to vote. And they make it hard to _not_ have enough ID to vote. A prescription bottle and a library card are enough! ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2016, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-id-demanding-gop-vote-suppressors-part-1/624943/8542 "2016-02-10T00:10:56Z")
I really hope that all this back-and-forth isn’t taking too much time from friend **Bricker** ’s analysis of the methodology of the recently added evidence. I would do it myself, but I’m just a country boy from Waco, and wouldn’t presume. Wouldn’t get away with it, at any rate. Anyway, how’s that going, hoss? Under your strict scrutiny, I trust? You know, there are some statistics geeks hereabout, you find yourself in a difficult question about methodology, you could just ask. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2016, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-id-demanding-gop-vote-suppressors-part-1/624943/8543 "2016-02-10T00:12:29Z")
> [@MaxTheVool](#): > > Menstruating Christ!!! > > You’re not stupid, John Mace, so you ought to have realized by now that basically no one in this thread is arguing against the idea of voter ID laws, _in a vacuum_. No one is saying “well, Germany has voter ID laws, clearly someone is screwing over the poor people in Germany, because that’s not how it should be”. > > Rather, we’re complaining about switching from a system with no voter ID laws to a system with voter ID laws, with (potentially) insufficient access to IDs for all citizens, for blatantly partisan reasons. I’ll confess to not having read all 8,500 posts in this thread, and I probably brought this up before, but every country had to transition to such laws at some point, and I know that **Bricker** is on record as saying that such laws should not be sprung on folks without sufficient time to adjust. So, not I’m not seeing people defend the laws for partisan reasons, even if the laws might be proposed for such reasons. And of course I know that after 8,500 posts, this isn’t _really_ about the issue any more, just people sniping at each other. I pop in here from time to time just to get a bit of a chuckle and to see if anything new is possibly being brought up. And I get defensive when someone goes out of their way to criticize the US for things their country does as well. I will note once again that… if most every other country in the world does this without suppressing votes, it’s unclear to me that there is such a certainty that voter suppression will happen in the US when we implement it. The courts are there to adjudicate things when claims are made, so it’s not like these laws are writ in stone, never to be changed if needed. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2016, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-id-demanding-gop-vote-suppressors-part-1/624943/8544 "2016-02-10T00:20:14Z")
> [@The\_Lurker\_Above](#): > > Similar in that we require ID, yes (or someone with ID to vouch for you). But just [**look**](http://www.elections.ca/content.aspx?section=vot&dir=ids&document=index&lang=e) at what counts as ID (49 bullet points, some of which cover multiple kinds of ID!). > > Elections Canada really wants every eligible voter to vote. And they make it hard to _not_ have enough ID to vote. A prescription bottle and a library card are enough! Similar here in Baja Canada (MN), including that part of a neighbors vouching for someone being sufficient to register and vote. Also had a very very close election, Norm! against Franken. A butterfly’s eyelash of margin, lawyers, recounts, so one and so forth and then, just settled. Votes counted, transparent as all git out! Voter confidence has not yet been reduced to smoking ruin, best anyone can tell. An eminently sensible approach. That’s the thing about Minnesotans, they manage the trick of being dull without being stupid. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2016, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-id-demanding-gop-vote-suppressors-part-1/624943/8545 "2016-02-10T01:03:51Z")
> [@The\_Lurker\_Above](#): > > Similar in that we require ID, yes (or someone with ID to vouch for you). But just [**look**](http://www.elections.ca/content.aspx?section=vot&dir=ids&document=index&lang=e) at what counts as ID (49 bullet points, some of which cover multiple kinds of ID!). > > Elections Canada really wants every eligible voter to vote. And they make it hard to _not_ have enough ID to vote. A prescription bottle and a library card are enough! Plus the registration process is ridiculously easy. Check a box on your tax return. Nobody trying to fuck you over or anything. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Lurker\_Above](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dc4da7/32.png) [@The\_Lurker\_Above](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Lurker_Above)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2016, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-id-demanding-gop-vote-suppressors-part-1/624943/8546 "2016-02-10T02:10:11Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > Plus the registration process is ridiculously easy. Check a box on your tax return. Nobody trying to fuck you over or anything. And if you’ve moved or something; just show up at the polling place and do a same-day registration. I’ve been a deputy returning officer and it’s really, really easy to register someone at the polls. ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2016, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-id-demanding-gop-vote-suppressors-part-1/624943/8547 "2016-02-10T02:40:38Z")
> [@The\_Lurker\_Above](#): > > And if you’ve moved or something; just show up at the polling place and do a same-day registration. I’ve been a deputy returning officer and it’s really, really easy to register someone at the polls. Well, that’s the beauty of a representative democracy: Canada’s citizens were able to adopt a system that makes them happy. I salute them. But of course, I wouldn’t ever presume to tell Canadians how to run their country. I don’t participate in Canada’s representative democracy, after all. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2016, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-id-demanding-gop-vote-suppressors-part-1/624943/8548 "2016-02-10T13:22:45Z")
> [@Bricker](#): > > But of course, I wouldn’t ever presume to tell Canadians how to run their country. I don’t participate in Canada’s representative democracy, after all. Good - it leaves more room for those of us who see wrongdoing in other countries to comment on it. Besides, if we weren’t bringing you news of the superior Canadian system, you might not ever realize that a better way existed. ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2016, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-id-demanding-gop-vote-suppressors-part-1/624943/8549 "2016-02-10T14:00:30Z")
> [@The\_Lurker\_Above](#): > > And if you’ve moved or something; just show up at the polling place and do a same-day registration. I’ve been a deputy returning officer and it’s really, really easy to register someone at the polls. :eek: :smack: So you’ve got immigrants and other riff-raff voting. Your Marxists probably vote 3 or 4 times each. Before you know it you’ll end up with universal health care and then where will you be? Gak! ---
**Author:** ![MaxTheVool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc29f/32.png) [@MaxTheVool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MaxTheVool)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2016, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-id-demanding-gop-vote-suppressors-part-1/624943/8550 "2016-02-10T16:23:46Z")
Psst, Bricker, you seem to have missed post 8511. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2016, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-id-demanding-gop-vote-suppressors-part-1/624943/8551 "2016-02-10T16:28:43Z")
> [@MaxTheVool](#): > > Psst, Bricker, you seem to have missed post 8511. Bricker don’t do numbers. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2016, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-id-demanding-gop-vote-suppressors-part-1/624943/8552 "2016-02-10T17:56:00Z")
How can you say that, what with the Counselor knee-deep in his analysis of this most recent evidence! And this: > [@](#): > > …Yes, it may well. For example, the paper targets the states with the most strict voter ID laws; assuming I agreed with its methodology and conclusions, I most likely would favor less strict voter ID standards… How open-minded can you be but to firmly declare that if the new evidence passes his strict scrutiny for statistical _kosher_, he _might_ very well change his opinion on the matter. Perhaps. Maybe. Of course, it might be noted that this is just the kind of thing that someone of lesser scruple would use to beat a hasty retreat and permanently postpone having to cope with damaging evidence. But, hell, its only been four days! Math is hard! ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2016, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-id-demanding-gop-vote-suppressors-part-1/624943/8553 "2016-02-12T21:24:18Z")
Interesting articles on voter suppression and who is funding it: > **[Republicans champion voter ID laws absent credible evidence of fraud](http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2016/2/10/republicans-champion-voter-id-laws-absent-credible-evidence-of-fraud.html)** > > Despite little evidence of in-person fraud, Republicans champion voter ID laws > **[Who’s funding voter suppression?](http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2016/2/12/whos-funding-voter-suppression.html)** > > Web of conservative funding groups lines up behind key voting rights Supreme Court case > **[Who’s funding voter suppression?](http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2016/2/12/whos-funding-voter-suppression.html)** > > Web of conservative funding groups lines up behind key voting rights Supreme Court case It’s particularly interesting that this is in Al-Jazeera America. Here’s more from them: > **[Jim Crow returns](http://projects.aljazeera.com/2014/double-voters/index.html)** > > Double voting: Election officials in 27 states, most of them Republicans, may launch a massive purge of black, Hispanic and Asian-American voters. ---
**Author:** ![BigAppleBucky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigapplebucky/32/178_2.png) [@BigAppleBucky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigAppleBucky)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2016, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-id-demanding-gop-vote-suppressors-part-1/624943/8554 "2016-02-16T16:39:16Z")
John Oliver https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?height=224&width=400&href=https://www.facebook.com/LastWeekTonight/videos/843162895812721/ ---
**Author:** ![lance\_strongarm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/87869e/32.png) [@lance\_strongarm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lance_strongarm)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2016, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-id-demanding-gop-vote-suppressors-part-1/624943/8555 "2016-02-16T17:21:30Z")
> [@Clothahump](#): > > Vote suppressors, my ass. > > For the last 20+ years, whenever I vote, I simply walk into the polls and show them my driver’s license. They look me up in the book, I sign it, I go vote. > > Why are so many people opposed to the concept of someone showing an ID to vote? You have to have an ID of some sort to function in today’s society. What is so frickin’ bad about having to show it to vote? YOU are not the center of the universe. 11 percent of eligible voters don’t have IDs. Now, you may think it’s still okay to require them, but don’t go around saying that because something is easy for you, it’s easy for everyone. FYI, here are some interesting details and suggestions from the Brennan Center for Justice: > [@](#): > > Studies show that as many as 11 percent of eligible voters do not have government-issued photo ID. That percentage is even higher for seniors, people of color, people with disabilities, low-income voters, and students. Many citizens find it hard to get government photo IDs, because the underlying documentation like birth certificates (the ID one needs to get ID) is often difficult or expensive to come by. At the same time, voter ID policies are far more costly to implement than many assume. Instead, Improvements in voting technology and modernization of our voter registration system will both increase efficiency and close the door on mistakes and fraud. > **[Voter Identification](https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/voter-identification)** > > Every voter should demonstrate that they are who they say they are before voting. That form of proof should not include restrictive documentation requirements like overly burdensome photo ID or redundant proof of citizenship requirements that serve... ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2016, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-id-demanding-gop-vote-suppressors-part-1/624943/8556 "2016-02-16T18:48:30Z")
> [@lance\_strongarm](#): > > YOU are not the center of the universe. > > 11 percent of eligible voters don’t have IDs. > > Now, you may think it’s still okay to require them, but don’t go around saying that because something is easy for you, it’s easy for everyone. > > FYI, here are some interesting details and suggestions from the Brennan Center for Justice: > > [Voter Identification | Brennan Center for Justice](https://www.brennancenter.org/analysis/voter-id) I thought the study shows “up to” 11 percent. ---
**Author:** ![lance\_strongarm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/87869e/32.png) [@lance\_strongarm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lance_strongarm)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2016, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-id-demanding-gop-vote-suppressors-part-1/624943/8557 "2016-02-16T18:58:33Z")
> [@Bricker](#): > > I thought the study shows “up to” 11 percent. Okay, “up to.” ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2016, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-id-demanding-gop-vote-suppressors-part-1/624943/8558 "2016-02-16T19:40:13Z")
Say, good that you’re here, **Bricker!** We are awaiting with bated breath and rapt attention the results of your methodological analysis of the recently released study. Any time soon? ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2016, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-id-demanding-gop-vote-suppressors-part-1/624943/8559 "2016-02-16T20:00:10Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > Say, good that you’re here, **Bricker!** We are awaiting with bated breath and rapt attention the results of your methodological analysis of the recently released study. Any time soon? Yes. Sorry for the delay. Had a death in the family. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2016, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-id-demanding-gop-vote-suppressors-part-1/624943/8560 "2016-02-16T21:03:57Z")
For what it’s worth, I would normally be okay with suppressing the vote of Clothahump’s ass, except that as far as I can tell he’s 100% ass, so his vote would be suppressed as well which I oppose on principal. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-id-demanding-gop-vote-suppressors-part-1/624943.md?page=427) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-id-demanding-gop-vote-suppressors-part-1/624943.md?page=429)