You can't fight voter fraud because it might hurt their feelings
Common Sense and Wonder
Black paranoia exploited by the Democrats to keep their fraudulent voter schemes operating. The mindset of fear exhibited by some of those quoted in this article is simply amazing.
What are they afraid of: Being beaten, embarassed, discovered as welfare cheats? Nonsense. As the Left often says, perhaps democracy isn't for everyone. I'm truly tired of the whiney imagined slights. If they are afraid to vote it says more about them than the system.
The legislation doesn't apply to blacks only: Everyone would have to show an ID. In California if you want an ID you can get it from the DMV with the same proof you would use to obtain a driver's license. If you don't have a license you need one of these ID's because no one will take your credit card for purchases without some form of photo ID. Blame it all on the bad guys.
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Sitting at a table at Smokin' Good Soul Food on 38th Street this week, Robert and Mary Harvey topped off their lunch with a bit of talk about a controversial voter ID bill that has divided the Indiana Statehouse.
Legislative Democrats, led by black leaders, have protested the bill like almost none other in recent years. They've called the measure to require voters to show a government-issued photo ID a blatant attempt to suppress turnout among black Hoosiers.
Robert Harvey, a 46-year-old pastor, agreed. He believes the Republican-led effort is aimed at convincing black voters like him that hassles could accompany a trip to the polls.
"Asking them to go through an extra step in order to vote is just asking for people not to vote," he said. "Especially people who feel disenfranchised by the system -- that feel their voices are not being heard."
Although Democrats at the Statehouse are united in opposition to the bill, saying it would especially hurt elderly and poor residents who don't have state IDs, Mary Harvey's opinion suggested the issue is not so clear-cut among black Indianapolis residents. Interviews with about 20 black residents this week found a range of opinion missing from the partisan debate at the Statehouse.
As her husband talked about his concerns, Mary Harvey shrugged. "But if you have a form of ID on you anyway, you're just confirming that there is no wrongdoing going on," she said.
Other interviews, however, found significant opposition to the bill and a concern that its intention is to hurt black voting rates. Some said supporters of the bill don't understand the fear people have about being questioned at the polls, or the difficulty some people have in obtaining a driver's license.
At American Legion Post 249 near Downtown Indianapolis, Steve Barnett, who has been involved in Democratic politics for years, said many black people already head nervously to the polls.
"It's really sad because we know throughout history that black America has a fear, and a justified fear, of government in general," said Barnett, 49.
Barnett believes Republicans are concerned about high turnout in black areas.
There was some support for the bill. Micah Wallace, a 24-year-old landscaper who is black, said he supports the call for photo IDs because of scofflaws who "might slip through the system."
Effect on turnout
Regardless of their opinion on the issue, most said having to show a photo ID wouldn't keep them from the polls. Ethel Mills, however, said it would.
"No, I wouldn't vote -- on moral grounds," said the frequent voter while waiting for a friend at the City-County Building.
Mills, who plans to retire soon, fears the law would keep away blacks, as well as whites, who don't have IDs or who just object to showing them.
For Mills and several other black residents, the idea was just one more reason to be cynical about government officials. "After a while, they're going to take all our rights away," she said.
While waiting her turn at a Bureau of Motor Vehicles branch on Virginia Avenue, Mia Haggerty criticized lawmakers for wasting time on this issue when other problems, like poverty and jobs, deserve attention.
The 28-year-old single woman suspects Republican lawmakers who back the bill are trying to keep people who probably would vote for Democrats away from the polls.
Ted Patterson, who works at the Old-Fashioned Shoe Shine stand at the City Market, says he doesn't think it's needed because he can't imagine people bothering to vote twice. "You need to worry more about the politicians rather than the common man," he said.
Intended to fight fraud
At the Statehouse, the matter has sparked some of the angriest debates on the floor of the House.
Republicans argue that their bill, Senate Bill 483, would ensure honest elections by requiring photographic proof that voters are who they say they are. They have included provisions allowing residents to get free state ID cards and to cast a provisional vote if they don't bring an ID to the polls. The voter would have about six days to prove his or her identity.
Gov. Mitch Daniels said he would sign the bill if, as expected, it arrives at his desk, because "I'm in favor of any bill that ensures no one else's vote is stolen."
Critics say there is no proof of voter fraud at the polls in Indiana. They point out that the bill does not cover absentee ballots, which have led to recent investigations.
"They're rushing to create an obstacle to a large number of voters to solve a problem that's minimal, if it exists at all," said state League of Women Voters' President Edith Dallinger.
Rep. Ryan Dvorak, D-South Bend, who opposes the bill, said about 611,200 people age 18 and older in Indiana don't have driver's licenses, according to 2000 census and federal transportation statistics. A spokeswoman from the Bureau of Motor Vehicles could not say how many adult Hoosiers do not have a driver's license or state-issued ID card.
Getting a photo ID may not seem hard for the average person, said Dallinger. "It's difficult to understand," she said, "unless you have an elderly parent or know someone who is disabled or living in a battered women's shelter."
Making it harder for those people to vote was a worry raised by black city residents. Many said a requirement that people present a birth certificate to receive a new driver's license or state ID card is too difficult for some who were born in other states.
Amos Brown, a black commentator, said callers to his radio show overwhelmingly oppose the bill. Their main concerns, he said, are that black voters might be intimidated and that the new requirement won't be carried out equally.
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