Although people in the nation’s smallest state can obtain photo voter IDs with ease, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) says that requiring an ID in order to vote is a hardship.
The group’s Rhode Island chapter has demanded an end to the photo voter ID law that a ---solidly Democratic legislature--- enacted in 2011. It’s the latest attack by the ACLU and other leftist groups against state election reforms that are specifically designed to prevent vote fraud.
Over the past few years, courts have struck down laws in Arkansas, Missouri, Pennsylvania and Texas, while upholding them in Georgia, Tennessee, Ohio and Wisconsin. In 2008, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld Indiana’s photo voter ID law, which has been a model for other states. North Carolina’s voter ID law, which also curbs early voting and ends out-of-precinct voting and same-day registration, went to trial in late July in a federal court.
The charge that such laws “suppress the vote” of minorities, the elderly, the young and the disabled is especially absurd in Rhode Island, where accommodations for people to get a free ID are impressive — from students, to welfare recipients, to the homeless, to senior citizens, to the incapacitated, etc.
If you’re a Rhode Islander and you don’t have an ID, you can’t blame the state government, whose outreach program even includes a mobile phone app that gives a wealth of voter information including GPS directions to the nearest polling place.
Anyone can register to vote upon showing several forms of ID, including (but not limited to)-- “Employee ID card; ID card provided by a commercial establishment; Credit or debit card; Military ID card; Student ID card; Health club ID card; Insurance plan ID card; or a Public housing ID card.”
Even If they don’t have one of the above, they can still use any of another 19 items, such as utility bills, bank statements, vehicle registrations, senior citizen or disabled discount cards, or even a prescription drug invoice. About the only thing missing is last week’s grocery receipt.
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DelMarVa's Premier Source for News, Opinion, Analysis, and Human Interest Contact Publisher Joe Albero at alberobutzo@wmconnect.com or 410-430-5349
6 comments:
The REAL idiots are the judges who are deciding against Voter ID laws.
Of course, they know what they're doing.. but they aren't figuring on the unintended consequences that will surely follow their decision.
Photo ID for voting should be MANDATORY!!!!!
If your name and address aren't showing in the database it would be "Sorry".
There is plenty of time to take care of this now. No need to be a slacker, then try to blame someone else down the road.
Back in the day you had to own property to vote. Perhaps we should go back to that!
If there was a scandal involving white voters committing election fraud, you can bet the NAACP and every politician out there would outraged, and demanding strict voter ID laws enforced.
Actually 1:04, many of the people committing fraud ARE white..
white liberals who think the end justifies the means.
In my opinion if you're required to show a photo id in order to vote, it should be free to obtain (like a social security card) and there should be mechanisms in place to help people who don't have a photo id for another reason obtain one. Eliminate the difficulties and fees and you've eliminated the complaints that a photo id is essentially a poll tax.
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