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Politics : PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: CYBERKEN who wrote (708696)	10/25/2005 6:08:21 PM
From: Mr. Palau	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 769670

"DOJ official urges Voting Rights renewal By JEFFREY MCMURRAY ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER WASHINGTON -- A Justice Department official urged Congress Tuesday to renew an essential part of the Voting Rights Act, saying it deterred local election changes that could discriminate against minorities. Brad Schlozman, who oversees the department's civil rights division, said that of the 121,000 changes reviewed in the past 40 years, it has objected to only 1,400 - just over 1 percent. In the past decade, the rate was even lower - with only 37 objections, or 0.2 percent. The House Judiciary Committee's panel on the Constitution is trying to determine whether that success is enough to scrap a requirement that says states, many in the South, with a history of discriminatory practices need federal approval before changing their voting laws. Congress is expected to pass a 25-year extension next year. "The declining number shows it has had a very valid deterrent effect," Schlozman said. But Edward Blum, a visiting fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, said the department's own figures prove that the requirement is outdated. He also cited a recent study that shows the turnout rate for black voters exceeds white voters in Georgia and that black candidates have little trouble getting elected there. Rep. Tom Feeney, R-Fla., dismissed that argument, saying it was akin to doing away with meat inspectors just because there has been a drop in the number of infected cows. Of the 4,000 to 6,000 election changes the Justice Department reviews each year, most are not contentious, such as a request to move a polling place or extend voting hours, Schlozman said. Only a very small number involves redistricting - the most politically charged change - and few of those face significant opposition."