Who could be against this legislation, and why?
Let me show you the legislation I am talking about, and then re-ask that question.
Excerpted from Joseph Lord’s article at theepochtimes.com:
Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) has introduced a bill in the lower chamber of Congress that would ensure that illegal immigrants do not vote in federal elections.
Although noncitizen voting in federal elections is already unlawful, past Supreme Court decisions limit states’ power to ensure that voters are citizens.
Mr. Roy’s bill seeks to strengthen safeguards around voter registration to ensure compliance with existing law against noncitizens voting.
To this end, it demands that a state “shall not accept and process an application to register to vote in an election for Federal office unless the applicant presents documentary proof of United States citizenship with the application.”
It lists several acceptable documents to verify the citizenship of a would-be voter, including a REAL ID compliant identification, a U.S. passport, a military ID card, or any valid state, federal or tribal identification, such as a birth certificate, hospital record, or adoption certificate, showing that the individual was born in, or is a naturalized citizen of, the United States.
Can you find anything wrong with this legislation? All it does is minimize the likelihood of people voting illegally, by requiring they provide proof of citizenship that any legal citizen almost certainly has.
Asking again: who could be against this legislation, and why?
Is the answer Democrats, and the reason because it makes illegal voting harder?
I ask this question because, over recent years, EVERY effort to make illegal voting harder, such as (but not restricted to) an ID requirement, has been adamantly opposed by Democrats. So why would I expect anything different here?
And, ugly though it is, the usual reason Democrats float to explain their opposition to such legislation is that “it suppresses the minority (read that Black) vote”.
In other words, Democrats are telling us they believe Black people are less capable of getting/being able to produce a valid ID than non-Blacks. They are, literally, telling us Black people are inferior to non-Blacks when it comes to something as elementary as producing proof they are who they say they are.
If I were a Black person that would be extremely offensive to me.
And if I were a Republican, I would make good and sure to tell Black voters – over and over and over again – that this is what Democrats who oppose voter ID laws are saying about them.
It is nothing short of astounding to me that Republicans have – at least to this point – not jumped all over such a seemingly obvious campaign issue.
But then again, since Republicans have shown a remarkable inability to strategize effectively in other areas as well, I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised.
Maybe this is the year they finally get it.
