Victory for Honest Elections
Phyllis Schlafly | Mar 25, 2014
A federal court in Kansas just rendered a much-needed decision against the central government's interference with state efforts to combat voter fraud. Kansas and Arizona won total support for their laws to stop voter registration by illegal aliens and other noncitizens, and the court ordered a federal agency to revise its forms "immediately."
It's not every day federal bureaucrats are told to submit to state law. Big-government liberals have been in disbelief ever since the issuance of this ruling, which upheld the power of the states to require the federal Election Assistance Commission to include proof-of-citizenship requirements on voter registration forms pursuant to the National Voter Registration Act of 1993.
Kansas and Arizona had enacted laws requiring real proof of citizenship, such as birth certificates or passports, in order to register to vote. Until now, the federal voter registration form required only a signature to affirm citizenship, without showing any documents or real proof.
Illegal aliens break the law to enter this country, so it is obviously naive to pretend they would never lie in signing a form. Moreover, legal aliens who are here on green cards or temporary visas have not sworn their loyalty to the United States, nor have they surrendered the citizenship of their countries of origin.
The brilliant approach of requiring proof of citizenship on the registration form is the brainchild of Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, and this new court decision obliges the Obama administration to comply with this common-sense regulation. This is a great step forward for states that are trying to protect their citizens against a federal government that refuses to enforce federal immigration law.
Kobach explains to the Associated Press, "This is a really big victory, not just for Kansas and Arizona but for all 50 states." Alabama immediately moved forward with its own law against illegal voter registration, and the other 47 states can now do likewise.
The phony canard of "voter suppression" is already being chanted by liberals, even though the only "suppression" is of illegal votes that never should be cast. The U.S. Supreme Court has upheld the requirement to show identification in order to vote, so showing a document to prove citizenship is plainly reasonable.
This dispute started in October 2012, when the Election Assistance Commission refused to cooperate with attempts by the states to crack down on illegal voting. Federal bureaucrats typically refuse to take orders from states unless commanded to do so by a court. |
