The Supreme Court just handed down some truly awful news for voting rights

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

Source: Vox

The Supreme Court handed down two brief, unsigned orders on Friday concerning what restrictions states may place on absentee voting during the coronavirus pandemic. Though neither order is a final judgment — one grants a temporary stay of a lower court decision, the other denies expedited review of an important voting rights case — the practical impact of both orders is that voters in Alabama and Texas will find it harder to cast a ballot during the pandemic.

The Texas order is particularly ominous because it suggests that Texas will be able to apply election rules that ensure that older, Republican-leaning voters have an easy time casting a ballot — while younger voters could be forced to risk infection in order to vote.

The Alabama case

The Alabama case is Merrill v. People First of Alabama. Alabama law allows anyone to cast an absentee ballot during the pandemic, but it also imposes certain restrictions on those voters. Among other things, absentee voters must provide a copy of their photo ID, and their ballot must be signed by either two witnesses or one notary public.

A lower court blocked these restrictions “for voters who cannot safely obtain the signatures of two witnesses or a notary public due to the COVID-19 pandemic” and “for absentee voters who are over the age of 65 or disabled and who cannot safely obtain a copy of their photo ID due to the COVID-19 pandemic.” But the Supreme Court stayed that lower court decision — ensuring that, at the very least, the restrictions will be in place for Alabama’s July 14 runoff primary election.

Read more: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/the-supreme-court-just-handed-down-some-truly-awful-news-for-voting-rights/ar-BB16j38M?li=BBnb4R7&ocid=DELLDHP

[jorgevlorgan]

1. Biden leads nearly every age group by double digits

Especially older voter 65 plus but about 20 points. Making it easier for anybody to vote is bad for trump at this rate. But still this is truly stupid...

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

3. It's not just about the prez. We'll vote for representatives, senators, etc.

It should not be difficult to vote.

[jorgevlorgan]

6. Completely agree

Making voting more difficult should be felony.

[NYC Liberal]

13. Enforce the 14th Amendment:

when the right to vote at any election for the choice of electors for President and Vice-President of the United States, Representatives in Congress, the Executive and Judicial officers of a State, or the members of the Legislature thereof, is denied to any of the male inhabitants of such State, being twenty-one years of age, and citizens of the United States, or in any way abridged, except for participation in rebellion, or other crime, the basis of representation therein shall be reduced in the proportion which the number of such male citizens shall bear to the whole number of male citizens twenty-one years of age in such State

Note the "in any way abridged" part.

[muriel_volestrangler]

19. But in Texas, where it's tight, Trump still leads in the older age group

Fox News poll June 20-23rd (A- rating from fivethirtyeight.com): Overall Biden 45%, Trump 44%; but under 45 52% to 35%; over 45 41% to 50%.

https://static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2020/06/Fox_June-20-23-2020_Complete_Texas_Topline_June-25-Release.pdf

There's a big difference by age. Texas hasn't completely turned against Trump; it's younger people.

[Maxheader]

24. Corona might change those stats..

Just saying...

[llashram]

2. this SCOTUS majority

is living the dream. How a sexual predator could end up on the nations...oh wait we have one as POTUS, never mind.

[sheshe2]

7. +1

[vlyons]

4. We simply must pack the court

with 2 or 3 more SCOTUS seats to take away their majority.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

10. That is never going to happen.

People here need to stop fantasizing this.

[bluestarone]

28. Seems like the rethugs did!

I feel THEY had this planned for many years tho, and received much help from PUTIN!!

[pecosbob]

5. We need a new Voting Bill of Rights in Spring 2021

[Lonestarblue]

9. Yes! And process for verifying voting machine programs.

With tight election results, ballots can be fed through machines and counted again, but the programming behind the aggregation of total votes cannot be checked because machine manufacturers do not allow it. That needs to change. Diebold proved in 2004 that machines could be se to change election results.

[zstat]

8. Lets be honest. It is an effective strategy by the Chief Justice.

We are in a lose-lose situation.

When it comes to supreme court decisions on social issues, lo and behold, the court sides in support of progressive values.

When it comes to supreme court decisions about power and control and tRumph the court sides with the conservative.

The Conservatives win in both cases. They really win big.

The decision on the social issues kicks the can down the road. for another day of rapid, vicious, campaigning and rallying the right day in and day out, especially during election time.

The decision on the power issues increases the power of the right and delays and stalls efforts for reckoning and justice.

So lets not be fooled by the Chief Justice. He knows exactly what he is doing.

Perhaps, the next four years is a time to increase the number of justices on the court. Otherwise, we are a goner as they say.

[iluvtennis]

11. Voter suppression to the core. Sad day for democracy. nt

[milestogo]

12. A notary public. How ridiculous.

[Bayard]

14. Dang.....KY makes it easy

You request an absentee ballot from the county clerk. You receive it, you vote, sign the outside of the envelope, put it back inside another envelope (provided), and mail it back. I don't think it even needs a stamp.

[MuseRider]

16. That is how we do it here

in Kansas. I am sitting right next to my primary ballot. I will fill it out and send it in next week with a request for one for November. No questions asked.

I always vote at the polling place in the little church in my little village. I love to go there but those ladies sent us all request forms so that we will all be safe in this little country, farming community.......while the R's in our legislature and our county leaders fight our governor and her mask orders every step of the way the people in our little communities (you know, the farmers that everyone likes to complain about) are doing everything to make sure we vote easily and are safe doing so.

[yellowdogintexas]

17. and didn't they send postcards to every registered voter to

inform them that they could do this and how to go about it?

That is why their VBM was so large.

[Hip2bSquare]

15. If voter suppression didn't exist..

..I wonder what the political landscape would actually look like. I always thought Alabama and Texas, like much of the south were red to the core, by birth, by the grace of God..or whatever. But apparently that's not the case. What is it that signaling to grand old party that they policies are not grand, just old?? Is it new voter registrations where new voters aren't checking the republican box? Is it more educated people realizing republican policies aren't working? The effort republicans put into voter suppression, even in red states, is mind blowing. They have given up, if they have tried in the first place, to explain how conservative policies may be better for America. They will fight until exhausted and take it to the highest courts to make it harder for people to vote easily and safely.

If voter suppression didn't exist, would the republican party exist anymore? And if no, when would it have ended?

[yellowdogintexas]

18. The Texas Democratic Party has been sending VBM applications to

qualifying voters who can be identified as Democrats. Voting in Democratic primaries is the main factor but there are some other weird formulas used to identify Democratic leaning voters. Also, consistent voters who never vote in primaries because Rs tend to turn out for primaries more than Ds.

This began in 2012 and vote by mail has gone up significantly. The applications arrive in late January, in time to get them in and receive the ballot with plenty of time left to vote.

Every ballot for the remainder of the year will be sent to those voters. We held on to our applications, and my husband decided to VBM instead of work the election. His ballot came today.

The other very helpful thing here is that the high population counties ( and some lower population counties as well) now use voting centers. We have 175 voting locations open on Election Day, and a voter can vote at any one of them regardless of their home precinct. No more arriving at 6:55 at the wrong precinct!!! Helps with long lines because if one location is crowded, we can text the nearby locations and check their wait time.
We will not be closing or combining any locations until 2021 at the earliest. Early voting is available at 50 locations here in Tarrant County.

[Scruffy1]

20. I live in an older neighborhood in El Paso.

Most of my neighbors are old like me. There may be one or two Republicans around here, but I haven't found them yet. Those over 65 are allowed to vote by mail. Im guessing El paso will be at least 80% for Biden as a whole and Houston close to it. Maybe 73%.

[TeamPooka]

21. The Roberts Court is the most corrupt SCOTUS in history.

[JudyM]

25. Rehnquist was no model of integrity, either.

[sakabatou]

22. GAH!

[Locutusofborg]

23. No one ever said it was gonna be easy

Americans have been lynched and had their homes burned down for having the audacity to try to vote. Americans have had to recite Article 1 of the Constitution from memory without missing a single word, or pausing in order to be able to register to vote.
The best way to overcome voter suppression is to not allow yourself to be suppressed no matter what obstacles are put in your path.

[IronLionZion]

26. Vox link

https://www.vox.com/2020/7/3/21312553/supreme-court-voting-rights-alabama-texas-democratic-party-abbott-merrill-people-first

[SunSeeker]

27. There is no rational basis for a notarization. This is voter suppression.

It amounts to a poll tax since notaries charge anywhere from $10 to $50, plus it exposes you and the Notary to Covid-19, as does the 2-witness alternative. This is sickening, literally.

[cstanleytech]

29. I so love it when the conservative justices use their power to help their political party

maintain power in its hour of need.

[the_sly_pig]

30. The "republican" Supreme Court.....

Handed down some bad news. Moscow Mitch made the court partisan. It’s a republican court. Call it what it is.