For the record, No American should have to show pic ID to Vote!

[texpatriot2004]

On another thread this statement struck a chord, it resonates with DUers and presumably with other Americans.

Here's the thing, bottom line, NO American should have to show a photo ID to vote! Period. The only thing an American should need to vote in the United States of America is a voter registration card that is valid. This new poll tax nonsense being issued by the Rethugs is bogus and UN-American.

Proper ID must be shown in order to register to vote in America and that is all that should be required of an American. IMHO

I really don't see this as a gray area. It's not fuzzy, there is no need to "clarify" this - Capt. Obvious says, "No photo ID necessary to Vote in America."



:rant:

PS So glad to hear others who agree about this matter :patriot:

[WHEN CRABS ROAR]

1. Show us your papers comrade.

[texpatriot2004]

2. Exactly nm

[Eric J in MN]

3. We don't have Voter ID cards in Minnesota.

We don't have to show anything to vote.

[texpatriot2004]

5. Nothing? Really? Not even a voter registration card? nm

[PSPS]

9. In the states I've lived in, you just sign the book.

You don't show anything at all, just say who you are and sign next to your name in the book. They can compare signatures to verify identity later if there's any doubt.

This is also the way they handle absentee ballots -- you sign the ballot or the envelope.

Until now, that is. Now we have to show photo ID in Washington State (to vote in person) because the losing republican candidate for governor made up a story about "rampant voter fraud." (Of course, it was he who tried, but failed, to steal the vote with those vulnerable "machines" in some counties.)

[texpatriot2004]

10. Oh yeah, now the Rethugs are all about the fraud eh?

In committing it alright but not in fighting it.

[Eric J in MN]

17. You don't have to show them anything.

They may ask your address.

[davidinalameda]

4. why?

I really don't understand what's the big deal about someone having to show ID to vote

you have to show ID to pick up packages at the post office-why should our voting system be any less stringent especially when there's a lot more at stake

and the bill that was just passed by the House did have a requirement that the states provide free IDs for people

[texpatriot2004]

6. Our voting system is NOWHERE near "stringent' and it's wrong

to have to show photo ID to vote in America. If you're voting in the former Soviet Union perhaps you would have to show a photo ID but here you shouldn't - IMHO.

[pat_k]

11. You don't need to qualify with "IMHO." It's not a matter of opinion.

The right to vote is ours. It is NOT a privilege like driving.

Simple procedures that seek to ensure that we vote only once in the jurisdiction in which we live are part of ensuring equal access, and opportunity, to vote.

But when a state requires voters to present documents that some may have difficultly getting their hands on because it has some notion that some people who present themselves may not be who they say they are, the state has crossed the line. Our individual right to participate trumps the generalized concern.

The state can certainly deny an individual the right to vote if they can prove the individual is not who they say they are, but the burden is on the state, not the voter.

[texpatriot2004]

12. Yes, you're right nm

[davidinalameda]

13. I don't understand what the big deal is

honestly

what is going to stop someone from going from polling place to polling place pretending to be someone they're not, which has happened

[pat_k]

14. Where has it happened?

[Gormy Cuss]

19. How frequently has that happened?

No one will talk numbers on this issue. I suspect it's because a handful of anecdotes has been conflated to suggest a massive problem where none exists.

People are becoming comfortable with the idea of 'proving' their identity everywhere, yet such proof has not stopped identity theft. It's debatable whether it even interferes with it that much any more. When criminals know that a barrier has been put in place, they simply find a workaround. Mandatory IDs at polling places will be deemed insufficient in a few years, and then something like biometrics or some other new whiz bang technology will be required. Each time these 'security' steps are added, there's a cost to municipalities in terms of procedures and staff and a cost to individuals in terms of time if not money. Offering free IDs, as this bill does, only addresses a portion of the cost. Individuals will need to go to DMV and wait in line in order to obtain the ID. Some individuals will need to spend time and resources obtaining the supporting documentation prior to that DMV visit too. If you're working two jobs or have a persnickety employer it may be very costly to obtain such a 'free' ID. If you're disabled and unable to move about freely, it will take a considerable effort and perhaps cost to present yourself in person for that photo. Those are just two groups of people who would bear a cost for this unnecessary move.

We have laughably low voter participation rates as it is. Placing another barrier in front of voters is a step in the wrong direction, IMHO.

[pat_k]

7. It is our RIGHT to vote. If the state doubts . . .

. . .that we are who we say we are, the burden is on THEM to prove we are somebody else.

Without a COMPELLING reason backed by concrete evidence, any effort to stop us from voting is a gross violation of our most fundamental right -- the right to participate in electing our representatives.

When that right is denied us, the principle of consent -- the SOLE moral principle on which our Constitution is founded, goes out the window.

[texpatriot2004]

8. Well said. nm

[genie_weenie]

15. It's not like voting matters

But I am glad I can choose from 2 (Yes folks you heard that Right! 2 choices!) on whom to rule me!

Wow!

Whom Should I choose:

Scylla or Charybdis

[lonestarnot]

16. Agree!

[texpatriot2004]

18. Thanks nm