Do You Believe Us Now?
Jul 29, 2012 00:09:39 #
From Salon:
In the debate over new laws meant to curb voter fraud in places like Florida, Democrats always charge that Republicans are trying to suppress the vote of liberal voting blocs like blacks and young people, while Republicans just laugh at such ludicrous and offensive accusations. That is, every Republican except for Floridas former Republican Party chairman Jim Greer, who, scorned by his party and in deep legal trouble, blew the lid off what he claims was a systemic effort to suppress the black vote. In a 630-page deposition recorded over two days in late May, Greer, who is on trial for corruption charges, unloaded a litany of charges against the whack-a-do, right-wing crazies in his party, including the effort to suppress the black vote.
In the deposition, released to the press yesterday, Greer mentioned a December 2009 meeting with party officials. I was upset because the political consultants and staff were talking about voter suppression and keeping blacks from voting, he said, according to the Tampa Bay Times. He also said party officials discussed how minority outreach programs were not fit for the Republican Party, according to the AP.
The comments, if true (he is facing felony corruption charges and has an interest in scorning his party), would confirm what critics have long suspected. Florida Gov. Rick Scott is currently facing inquiries from the Justice Department and pressure from civil rights groups over his purging of voter rolls in the state, an effort that critics say has disproportionately targeted minorities and other Democratic voters. One group suing the state claims up to 87 percent of the voters purged from the rolls so far have been people of color, though other estimates place that number far lower. Scott has defended the purge, even though he was erroneously listed as dead himself on the rolls in 2006.
As Vanity Fair noted in a big 2004 story on the Sunshine States voting problems, Florida is a state with a history of disenfranchising blacks. In the states notoriously botched 2000 election, the state sent a list of 50,000 alleged ex-felons to the counties, instructing them to purge those names from their rolls. But it turned out that list included 20,000 innocent people, 54 percent of whom were black, the magazine reported. Just 15 percent of the states population is black. There were also reports that polling stations in black neighborhoods were understaffed, leading to long lines that kept some people from voting that year. The NAACP and ACLU sued the state over that purge. A Gallup poll in December of 2000 found that 68 percent of African-Americans nationally felt black voters were less likely to have their votes counted fairly in Florida.
Former Republican Gov. Charlie Crist, who has since become an independent and is rumored to be considering his next run as a Democrat, wrote an Op-Ed in the Washington Post recently slamming Scott's current purge. Including as many Americans as possible in our electoral process is the spirit of our country. It is why we have expanded rights to women and minorities but never legislated them away, and why we have lowered the voting age but never raised it. Cynical efforts at voter suppression are driven by an un-American desire to exclude as many people and silence as many voices as possible, he wrote. A recent study from the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU Law School found that voter ID laws disproportionately affect poor, minority and elderly voters.
In the debate over new laws meant to curb voter fraud in places like Florida, Democrats always charge that Republicans are trying to suppress the vote of liberal voting blocs like blacks and young people, while Republicans just laugh at such ludicrous and offensive accusations. That is, every Republican except for Floridas former Republican Party chairman Jim Greer, who, scorned by his party and in deep legal trouble, blew the lid off what he claims was a systemic effort to suppress the black vote. In a 630-page deposition recorded over two days in late May, Greer, who is on trial for corruption charges, unloaded a litany of charges against the whack-a-do, right-wing crazies in his party, including the effort to suppress the black vote.
In the deposition, released to the press yesterday, Greer mentioned a December 2009 meeting with party officials. I was upset because the political consultants and staff were talking about voter suppression and keeping blacks from voting, he said, according to the Tampa Bay Times. He also said party officials discussed how minority outreach programs were not fit for the Republican Party, according to the AP.
The comments, if true (he is facing felony corruption charges and has an interest in scorning his party), would confirm what critics have long suspected. Florida Gov. Rick Scott is currently facing inquiries from the Justice Department and pressure from civil rights groups over his purging of voter rolls in the state, an effort that critics say has disproportionately targeted minorities and other Democratic voters. One group suing the state claims up to 87 percent of the voters purged from the rolls so far have been people of color, though other estimates place that number far lower. Scott has defended the purge, even though he was erroneously listed as dead himself on the rolls in 2006.
As Vanity Fair noted in a big 2004 story on the Sunshine States voting problems, Florida is a state with a history of disenfranchising blacks. In the states notoriously botched 2000 election, the state sent a list of 50,000 alleged ex-felons to the counties, instructing them to purge those names from their rolls. But it turned out that list included 20,000 innocent people, 54 percent of whom were black, the magazine reported. Just 15 percent of the states population is black. There were also reports that polling stations in black neighborhoods were understaffed, leading to long lines that kept some people from voting that year. The NAACP and ACLU sued the state over that purge. A Gallup poll in December of 2000 found that 68 percent of African-Americans nationally felt black voters were less likely to have their votes counted fairly in Florida.
Former Republican Gov. Charlie Crist, who has since become an independent and is rumored to be considering his next run as a Democrat, wrote an Op-Ed in the Washington Post recently slamming Scott's current purge. Including as many Americans as possible in our electoral process is the spirit of our country. It is why we have expanded rights to women and minorities but never legislated them away, and why we have lowered the voting age but never raised it. Cynical efforts at voter suppression are driven by an un-American desire to exclude as many people and silence as many voices as possible, he wrote. A recent study from the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU Law School found that voter ID laws disproportionately affect poor, minority and elderly voters.
Jul 29, 2012 01:32:21 #
[quote=tschmath]From Salon:
In the debate over new laws meant to curb voter fraud in places like Florida, Democrats always charge that Republicans are trying to suppress the vote of liberal voting blocs like blacks and young people, while Republicans just laugh at such ludicrous and offensive accusations. That is, every Republican except for Floridas former Republican Party chairman Jim Greer, who, scorned by his party and in deep legal trouble, blew the lid off what he claims was a systemic effort to suppress the black vote. In a 630-page deposition recorded over two days in late May, Greer, who is on trial for corruption charges, unloaded a litany of charges against the whack-a-do, right-wing crazies in his party, including the effort to suppress the black vote.
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If the blacks are not screaming RACISTS, they are screaming BLACK VOTER SUPPRESSION --- they need not
worry, since Holder relieved the charges on the Black Panthers during the intimidation of white voters the last time, now he will release them all over the country to make sure all whites will be SUPPRESSED at the voting booths by not allowing them to enter - Then it will be the WHITES turn to scream BLACK RACISTS BAR WHITE VOTERS from voting booths!!! Think it'll do any good??? Naw !!!!! The Blacks always win.... even in Football, Baseball, Socker, Basketball, Track and even becoming a President.....and now Voter Suppressing!! The only thing they're not too good at is becoming a Navy Seal !!!! Perhaps they can work on that too.
In the debate over new laws meant to curb voter fraud in places like Florida, Democrats always charge that Republicans are trying to suppress the vote of liberal voting blocs like blacks and young people, while Republicans just laugh at such ludicrous and offensive accusations. That is, every Republican except for Floridas former Republican Party chairman Jim Greer, who, scorned by his party and in deep legal trouble, blew the lid off what he claims was a systemic effort to suppress the black vote. In a 630-page deposition recorded over two days in late May, Greer, who is on trial for corruption charges, unloaded a litany of charges against the whack-a-do, right-wing crazies in his party, including the effort to suppress the black vote.
--------------------------------
If the blacks are not screaming RACISTS, they are screaming BLACK VOTER SUPPRESSION --- they need not
worry, since Holder relieved the charges on the Black Panthers during the intimidation of white voters the last time, now he will release them all over the country to make sure all whites will be SUPPRESSED at the voting booths by not allowing them to enter - Then it will be the WHITES turn to scream BLACK RACISTS BAR WHITE VOTERS from voting booths!!! Think it'll do any good??? Naw !!!!! The Blacks always win.... even in Football, Baseball, Socker, Basketball, Track and even becoming a President.....and now Voter Suppressing!! The only thing they're not too good at is becoming a Navy Seal !!!! Perhaps they can work on that too.
Jul 29, 2012 07:08:11 #
donrent
Loc: Punta Gorda , Fl
Yes , you are correct... Trying to uphold the law is very unconsitutional...
Jul 29, 2012 07:40:58 #
tschmath wrote:
From Salon:
Florida Gov. Rick Scott is currently facing inquiries from the Justice Department and pressure from civil rights groups over his purging of voter rolls in the state, an effort that critics say has disproportionately targeted minorities and other Democratic voters. Scott has defended the purge, even though he was erroneously listed as dead himself on the rolls in 2006.
Florida Gov. Rick Scott is currently facing inquiries from the Justice Department and pressure from civil rights groups over his purging of voter rolls in the state, an effort that critics say has disproportionately targeted minorities and other Democratic voters. Scott has defended the purge, even though he was erroneously listed as dead himself on the rolls in 2006.
Our beloved Gov. Scott even trys to use this event as an object lesson in how well 'poll purging startegies like these work' because he was able to produce photo ID's of himself and fill out and cast a provisional ballot.
Scott said he 'Pulled out his drivers license and insisted he was alive. I just showed them my ID and they let me vote provisionally. Im sure it counted.
It sure did! twice according to Collier County voting records that show he cast back-to-back provisional ballots in the Republican primary and general elections six years ago. Yep, if you're a real American like Gov. Scott and have readily available, photo ID's you can vote ...and often as you like!
Jul 29, 2012 07:57:51 #
From Salon:
Florida Gov. Rick Scott is currently facing inquiries from the Justice Department and pressure from civil rights groups over his purging of voter rolls in the state, an effort that critics say has disproportionately targeted minorities and other Democratic voters. Scott has defended the purge, even though he was erroneously listed as dead himself on the rolls in 2006.
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Why do they only mention minorities.... Doesn't the President know there are white people who are equally as poor and have no transportation or ID's either... don't they count or is it only for blacks and mexicans they're worried about?
Florida Gov. Rick Scott is currently facing inquiries from the Justice Department and pressure from civil rights groups over his purging of voter rolls in the state, an effort that critics say has disproportionately targeted minorities and other Democratic voters. Scott has defended the purge, even though he was erroneously listed as dead himself on the rolls in 2006.
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Why do they only mention minorities.... Doesn't the President know there are white people who are equally as poor and have no transportation or ID's either... don't they count or is it only for blacks and mexicans they're worried about?
Jul 30, 2012 10:49:02 #
George Bush's handlers suppressed enough votes in both elections to get him elected. To think it won't happen again is naive. The ultra right wing has said time and time again that its major objective is to keep Obama from initiating any kind of legislation, good or bad, and make sure he doesn't win a second term. I don't know how to run a country, but this I do know. When one segment of the ruling body has as its only goal the ruination the other segment, then NOTHING gets accomplished. We have had four years of this, and you see the result. The ultra right and ultra left have both acted like spoiled children while the country goes down the tubes while ignorant voters keep relying on emotion and their hates instead of understanding that running a country depends on every legislator having the best interest of ALL citizens as its goal.
Jul 30, 2012 10:53:40 #
Jul 30, 2012 11:18:29 #
Re voter suppression in Florida: It is a fact that there are many errors on the voter rolls; dead people, family pets, and illegals (non-citizens). It is pure stupidity to ignore this fact and not try to correct the errors. Those that are so strenuously trying to stop the correction process have an obvious motive; they believe that the majority of those illegal votes will be cast for their party.
The same rationale applies to the controversy about having a govt issued ID to vote. We accept as perfectly normal a request for ID when boarding a plane, cashing a check,using a credit card, operating an auto, buying a beer, etc., but to authenticate ones identity when voting; its a big deal. What a farce ! The Democrat party has no credibility for it's stand on these positions.
The same rationale applies to the controversy about having a govt issued ID to vote. We accept as perfectly normal a request for ID when boarding a plane, cashing a check,using a credit card, operating an auto, buying a beer, etc., but to authenticate ones identity when voting; its a big deal. What a farce ! The Democrat party has no credibility for it's stand on these positions.
Jul 30, 2012 19:07:33 #
tschmath wrote:
From u Salon /u : br br In the debate over new l... (show quote)
A corrupt politician about to go to prison, angry because he's not getting party support during his unfortunate circumstances, "blows the lid off" of something for revenge? Hmm... I'll bet that's a real honest statement.
15% of Florida is black? Come on... look at the demographics of most major Florida cities and you'll see that it's almost always at least 25% and sometimes as much as 45%. Tallahassee, Gainesville, Jacksonville, and all the northern cities of the state are highly black - I believe because of their proximity to southern Georgia. I'm down here in the Ft. Myers area and it's 25% or more here as well.
I supposed if you took all the white and Hispanic farmers and farm workers outside the cities, all the retirement communities of wealthy whites who came down from northern states, the rich executive-types and rock stars living on the coasts, snowbirds spending 6 months of the year in FL, Cubans on the Miami coast, and heavily-white military personnel in the bases up north and combined them, that might end up being 85% but that's not what's going on here in real life. Rooting out a couple thousand illegals or dead voters isn't going to harm any black to white voter ratio here, despite what accusers might say.
I'll just say what has been said on TV several times: If you're a legal voter you can damned sure show a legal ID card with your picture on it. You drove to the voting place and have a state drivers license or you have a state ID card for other purposes and they are supposed to be with you at all times. A dead person or illegal does not have one that is valid. That separates a legal voter from those who are not legal. Easy as pie and fair for everyone.
There's still plenty of time to correct a mistake if you are counted as non-eligible but you are. The only reason time is as short as it is now is because the DOJ would not cooperate to send comparison lists that the Governor requested so they could do the count quickly. So this whole thing is a big pile of hog... wash.
Jul 30, 2012 23:47:10 #
tschmath wrote:
From Salon:
Former Republican Gov. Charlie Crist, who has since become an independent and is rumored to be considering his next run as a Democrat
Former Republican Gov. Charlie Crist, who has since become an independent and is rumored to be considering his next run as a Democrat
That's funny, Crist can only run as a Democrat because he burned any and all other bridges he may have had during his failed Senate campaign... He is currently working with the biggest Ambulance chasing law firm in the state of Florida... Hope he does run...
Got a campaign song for him... kinda sums up where he finds himself these days.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3-pTLDP0K4&feature=related
Jul 31, 2012 00:38:13 #
I just heard that the illegals in Arizona are asking not to be called illegals or undocumented workers. They now prefer being called undocumented Democratics.
Jul 31, 2012 01:31:43 #
The Salon article cited here is rather thin after the drama inspiring phraseology is swept away. The numbers are not too convincing when put in context.
The loudest voices in this controversy seem to belong to people who have a valid picture ID firmly nestled in their pocket (pssst: I think most of them are white, too...sshhhh). They clearly are NOT pushing an agenda of their own.
Or are they...
The loudest voices in this controversy seem to belong to people who have a valid picture ID firmly nestled in their pocket (pssst: I think most of them are white, too...sshhhh). They clearly are NOT pushing an agenda of their own.
Or are they...
Jul 31, 2012 01:33:36 #
gmcase wrote:
I just heard that the illegals in Arizona are asking not to be called illegals or undocumented workers. They now prefer being called undocumented Democratics.
Yeah I heard that a little differently, they want to just be called Democratic voters...
Aug 2, 2012 14:15:37 #
amyinsparta wrote:
George Bush's handlers suppressed enough votes in ... (show quote)
You're correct in one respect. We DO want Obummer to fail. Everything he has tried to pass, including this monstrosity of a health care law, is nothing but unadulterated socialism. We don't want his style of government. He WILL be gone come November. Even some of his fellow Dems are already distancing themselves from him.
Aug 2, 2012 14:24:55 #
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