52 Thoughts to “The World of Trump”

  1. nateX

    Trump’s followers are the same racist Teabaggers that the GOP always relies on. Trump is the ultimate candidate for the old white males who still believe in the old capitalist order even after 2008. He’s their dream candidate but their dream will turn out to be a nightmare when they lose the election. The days of white men running everything are over.

  2. Cargosquid

    @nateX

    Let me tell you, from the depths of my heart.
    After calling people like me a racist just because I support the Tea Party, you can fuck off.

    Since I can’t tell you to take your bigoted ass anywhere, since I don’t run this blog, please accept my sincerest disdain.

    Do the letters FOAD mean anything to you? In a fire would be best.

    Thanks.

    1. NateX needs to not come here to antagonize. If he does, he will go to permanent moderation.

      Please let me know of violations. As everyone knows, I have had computer issues. Whatever stirred up that sh!tstorm slipped by me.

    2. Does FOAD mean what I think it does?

  3. Cargosquid

    Moon,

    That’s a funny map…but you do realize that your questions are directed to the wrong people.

    Trump didn’t make that map. His critics did.

    His supporters seem to run the gamut from hardcore conservatives (misguided in my eyes) to Democrats disgusted with who the party is supporting and their crony capitalism.

    The one thread that they all have in common is that they feel that their representatives are ignoring their needs, going so far as to REJECT their needs. And they are pissed off about it.

    1. I realize that. These people referred to him and his followers. I am not an English major.

    2. Did you read the Esquire article on Rage and Anger? It has some great discussion points. I just can’t post the entire article.

      Someone is always going to be pissed off. Some people just handle it better than others.

  4. nateX

    @Cargosquid
    So it was just a coincidence that the teabaggers showed up right after we elect the first black President huh? That a bunch of big time teabaggers are “former” members of the KKK or other white surpremist groups is just another coincidence, right?

    Teabaggers say they want to stop the government infringing on peoples’ rights. But when a 12 year black boy (Tamir Rice – Say His Name) is murdered by cops, teabaggers sure do get quiet.

    Trump and his supporters want to build a wall to keep all those brown people out cause they’ll be raping all the white women. Nothing racist there either.

    I’m sure you think you are a nice guy and not at all racist. Some of your best friends are black you know. But if you are a member of a group run by white surpremists, what does that make you? Do you support disenfranchising people of color through BS “voter ID” laws? If you do, you are a racist.

  5. @nateX
    I would prefer racist be used to describe behavior rather than specific individuals. Unless you know what is in people’s hearts, I don’t think we can necessarily label someone a racist.

    Now there are exceptions, of course. If someone comes out and says I hate White people or I hate Black people, then all bets are off. I would consider that person a racist. Now if someone uses a racists word, like ” How many gooks did he kill?” I would have to know more about that person.

  6. Steve Thomas

    @Moon-howler
    NateX needs to not come here to antagonize. If he does, he will go to permanent moderation.

    I think NateX is more likely a troll/mischief-maker, than he/she is an actual Black Liberation Activist, as the SNL character whose ID he/she have adopted played. NateX is a caricature…not real, and I suspect any serious consideration of the stock tripe he/she is posting, is giving NateX a chuckle.

  7. Steve Thomas

    @Cargosquid
    “His supporters seem to run the gamut from hardcore conservatives (misguided in my eyes) to Democrats disgusted with who the party is supporting and their crony capitalism.”

    Agreed. I will admit, his continued and growing popularity, and the inability of the MSM to slow him down, is like a “siren-song” to some. Even some of the traditional, long-time GOP’rs are starting to say “Trump just might pull this off”. I think his unconventional, un-polished, un-scripted approach to the stump is confounding those who rely on “conventional wisdom” in their analysis.

    Me? I look at the history. Trump’s history, his previous statements, positions, who he’s supported politically in the past, these are the facts that give me pause. Also, there’s a lot of “Big Picture”, “Great Pumpkin” campaign promises…lot’s of “sizzle”, but no steak, and the media can’t punch through the bloviation to pin him down on specifics.

    This reminds me of the run up to the 2008 elections, where Obama’s history was deemed “inconsequential” by the media. “Don’t look at what he’s done, or hasn’t done…that doesn’t matter. What matters is what he’s saying today…and what he promises to do if elected.”

    We elected someone based on the “Cult of personality” in 2008, did it again in 2012, and it looks like there’s a better-than-even chance we’ll do it again, only this time, a “Conservative Republican”. I always remind myself that in a democratic republic, we deserve the government that we get.

    1. I think that you are seeing things I am not seeing. There are a whole bunch of moderates and liberals out there who would vote for almost anyone other than Trump. There are really no real Democrats supporting him that I am aware of.

      Trump truly represents the ugly American.

  8. nateX

    @Moon-howler
    That’s fine, but when the KKK and white supremist groups support the same policies as Trump can’t we tell a lot about that person? Especially when those policies (like voter disenfranchisement or building a wall to keep out Latinos) has no purpose other than to hurt black/brown people.

    THere are a gazillion white guys running for president in the GOP. If somebody supports the most racist one (Can I call Trump a racist?) that says something about that supporter too. Teabaggers support the most extreme fringe of the GOP and support policies that do nothing but hurt black/brown people. What does voter ID do except disenfranchise black/brown people?

    There are some people in the GOP who aren’t intentionally trying to hurt black/brown people but the effect is still the same. When the black grandma gets turned away at the polls like she did when she was a young woman, that’s the fault of everybody who supported that racist policy.

    1. Now we are having a discussion. You bring up some valid points. Let’s talk about voter ID. Do you think people should just be able to walk in off the street and vote, no questions asked? What seems fair to you for all people?

      As for supporting policies that do nothing but hurt black and brown people–I disagree. I think a lot of people get hurt from some of the GOP policies, including white people and asian people. Let’s take the 400,000 people in Virginia who don’t have Medicaid even though the Feds will pay for it. Surely you don’t think all of those people are black or Latino? I am willing to bet that the majority group represented are white, many of them males.

      I don’t mind talking issues with you but I am not going to allow names to be hurled at my users. We are a unique blog in that we are a mixed group, liberal, conservative and moderate. We often find common ground. We can fight like dogs but we are fair dogs. Finally, we are family. I welcome you if you chose to join in to respectful discussion.

  9. Cargosquid

    nateX :
    @Cargosquid
    So it was just a coincidence that the teabaggers showed up right after we elect the first black President huh? That a bunch of big time teabaggers are “former” members of the KKK or other white surpremist groups is just another coincidence, right?
    Teabaggers say they want to stop the government infringing on peoples’ rights. But when a 12 year black boy (Tamir Rice – Say His Name) is murdered by cops, teabaggers sure do get quiet.
    Trump and his supporters want to build a wall to keep all those brown people out cause they’ll be raping all the white women. Nothing racist there either.
    I’m sure you think you are a nice guy and not at all racist. Some of your best friends are black you know. But if you are a member of a group run by white surpremists, what does that make you? Do you support disenfranchising people of color through BS “voter ID” laws? If you do, you are a racist.

    Oh look….someone is trying to rehash lies from 2009. No..its is no coincidence that the Tea Party showed up as very progressive, spendthrift that promised to “transform America” got elected and then rammed through an unconstitutional POS called Obamacare.

    After the assertion that the Tea Party equals the KKK….well…on this site, you need to prove it.

    Shootings by police officers or otherwise don’t usually get comments from the Tea Party…so your point is irrelevant.

    You are merely an race baiting bigot that is not worth our time. As I said in my first reply. Fuck off and die. In a fire. Bigot.

    1. OK, Cargo, you are better than this. Nate knows now that we are going to have respectful discussion here or his comments won’t go through.

      This blog isn’t going to become a firing squad. You are family. I am giving you the job of leading by example, please.

      Thank you for clarifying the expression. Now. We are going to howl politely. Firmly but politely.

  10. Cargosquid

    @Moon-howler
    THIS is the type of idiot I deal with on the internet everyday.

    You have NO IDEA what an oasis of civility this blog is.
    The only way to deal with bigoted trolls like NateX is to not feed them.

  11. Cargosquid

    @Steve Thomas
    Exactly.

    That is why I don’t trust Trump at all. The ONLY thing I like about him is the chaos that he has thrown both parties into and that he has opened the eyes of a lot of people.

  12. nateX

    @Steve Thomas
    The nickname NateX does come from Chris Rock’s SNL character Nat X but I’ve been called NateX for years. Pretty much since we saw Nat X. Nate is my first name so you can see how I’d get called that. There’s also a brand of condoms called nateX. Had some fun with that too.

    White people thought Nat X was funny. So did black people. Just for a lot different reasons. That’s what was so good about Rock’s early stuff. He was like Pryor. White people actually didn’t realize they were the butt of the joke most of the time. We thought it was histerical that you guys didn’t get the real joke.

    Are there any other black/brown people around here? I bet I don’t sound like a troll to them.

    I don’t see myself as some Black Liberation guy from the 70s. They had their time and their fight. Now it’s our time and our struggle. What’s sad is that the very modest demands of today’s Civil Rights movement (like BLM trying to make police accountable for killing unarmed black men) seems radical to some people. Everybody should be pissed off and demonstrating about Tamir Rice’s murdered getting off. And when white people ignore it, it does piss a lot of us black folks off.

  13. Steve Thomas

    @nateX
    Sorry Nate. Until I can look you in the eye, speak with you in a civil manner, and we can each take the measure of the other, I’m not buying what your selling. If you are indeed legit, you will receive a very public apology from me, but until that time, you remain a caricature in my judgment.

  14. Steve Thomas

    @nateX
    There’s a gazillion Americans running for the GOP, period. A bloviating billionaire baby boomer, two GenX Cuban Americans, a brilliant black neurosurgeon, a successful business woman, current and former governors, current and former senators, etc. What you see is a diversity of personality, age, experience, ethnicity. What do you see on the Dem side?

  15. Wolve

    Natex has a population attrition problem: abortion of Black babies and the murder stats in our urban areas.

  16. Pat.Herve

    Do not feed the trolls. He is inappropriate and abusive.

  17. nateX

    @Cargosquid
    I attempted to post with the proof you requested but it’s been in moderation since yesterday. I guess I’ve been banned for being a troll.

    1. You have not been banned. You have been moderated. What I ask of you is to not call names and attempt to inflame my regulars.

      I will see if you can comply with my rules. Frankly, I have more to do in my life than sit here in front of a computer monitor just to ensure that a sh!tstorm doesn’t errupt.

  18. nateX

    What rule haven’t I followed with? Cargosquid said he wanted me to prove links between tea party leaders and KKK and other white supremist groups. So I posted links to the NAACP and SPLC that name names of tea party leaders with ties to Aryan Nation, the KKK and other hate groups. I included a link to a Huffington Post article about Storm Front and the tea party.

    If posting facts in response to Cargosquids demand is inflaming your regulars, then you should talk to Cargosquid. He asked, I answered. Put up my post and let people decide for themselves if I called him any names.

    In fact, I have not called anybody here any names. Ever. Full Stop. Cargosquid got pissed off because I said the tea party and Trump supporters were racist. I never said a word about him or anybody else here. I described a generic suit and he claims it was tailor fitted for him. He then called me a bigot and told me to “fuck off and die” twice.

    And I’m the one that calling people names?

    I didn’t say that every GOP issue is targeted only at brown/black people. But there are policies that the GOP is pushing that are targeted directly at black/brown people. Voter ID, permanent disenfranchisement, and districting based on total population instead of eligible voters are all targeted at black/brown people and have no purpose other than taking away our voting rights.

    You asked about Medicare. Of course Medicare should be expanded to cover everyone. And I mean everyone, black/brown, white, Asian, Latino, everyone. Health care is a universal human right. Universal Medicare is the best way to do it.

    1. Nate, I am not around every minute to monitor what is said on here. New folks, especially if they come on like a blaze of glory often have comments moderated until I get to know them. Its a trust thing because ultimately, I don’t know you from Adam’s ass and I am the one who holds the responsibility for the content on here.

      Yes, you were name calling, although not directly. No, you aren’t the only one doing it.

      I was specifically referring to Medicaid–not Medicare. ~Care if for those 65 and older. ~Caid is for people without adequate income for whatever reason. I agree–access to medical care is a human right. I distain what our state GOP are doing.

      I know at least one person who should be on medicaid and can’t get on. Gender. Males are rarely granted Medicaid.

    2. I am going out for a while and won’t be able to release comments. Just so you know….@Nate

  19. Ed Myers

    Oh my. Cargo is trying to enforce his own version of Political Correctness. NateX, there are just some things that you can’t say about ultra-conservatives or it hurts their feelings. They have fragile egos and are very fearful which is why they insist on having unfettered access to guns so they can enforce Conservative Political Correctness on others with the threat of violence.

  20. Steve Thomas

    Ed Myers :
    Oh my. Cargo is trying to enforce his own version of Political Correctness. NateX, there are just some things that you can’t say about ultra-conservatives or it hurts their feelings. They have fragile egos and are very fearful which is why they insist on having unfettered access to guns so they can enforce Conservative Political Correctness on others with the threat of violence.

    What?! Conservatives want guns to impose political correctness on everyone else? Ed, you have made some bizarre assertions before…but you have outdone yourself this time.

  21. Steve Thomas

    @nateX
    “Voter ID, permanent disenfranchisement, and districting based on total population instead of eligible voters are all targeted at black/brown people and have no purpose other than taking away our voting rights.”

    Prove it, please. Please present a logical argument supporting your assertions, and refrain from simply posting articles from publications or organizations with a clear bias toward one side of the argument. Specifically, please explain:

    How requiring a government issued photo ID is intended to suppress minority votes.

    How “districting based on total population instead of eligible voters are all targeted at black/brown people”, and furthermore, exactly which candidates/elected officials are pushing such policies?

    How anyone becomes “permanently disenfranchised”, and what specific policies or laws pushed by the GOP result in one permanently losing their franchise?

    1. I believe that Virginia does do things to discourage voting but not nearly so much as in other states. I don’t like the practice of having to bellow out your name and address, when they are sitting there holding your freaking photo ID. That tells me someone wants to intimidate me (which did happen)

      I also think anyone should be able to request voting by absentee ballot without having to give a reason.

      I would also like to see cameras banned from the front of the polling places and absolutely banned inside.

  22. nateX

    @Steve Thomas
    Not sure how I can prove this without linking to any articles, but here goes.

    Voter ID: States that toughened their voter identification laws saw steeper drops in election turnout than those that did not, with disproportionate falloffs among black and younger voters, a nonpartisan congressional study released Wednesday concluded.

    From: http://www.politico.com/story/2014/10/voter-id-laws-minorities-111721#ixzz3wUHvdNlE

    Or do you not accept the GAO as a legitimate source?

    Non-white voters, especially poor folk are less likely to have a government issued ID and there are a lot black people in the South that live out in rural areas where going to get a government ID takes hours. For poor folk, that’s a major deterrent to voting. It ain’t a poll test, but it’s only purpose is to make it harder for the “wrong” kind of people to vote.

    Districting based on total population instead of elligble voters reduces the voting power of blacks in urban areas by bundling a larger number of people into a single district. It’s going to the Supreme Court and of course the GOP is fighting to reduce the voting power of non-whites.

    The GOP opposes automatic restoration of voting rights for people who are arrested. This disproportionally impacts black/brown people because of the disparity in sentencing in the criminal ‘justice’ system. This is a big part of why (along with larger numbers of immigrants) districting on the total population reduces our voting power. Hundreds of thousands of black/brown people are arrested for minor or trumped up crimes, forced into a plea bargin and lose their right to vote forever.

    And don’t get me started on how the GOP gutted the Voting Rights Act. Or was that not targeting black/brown folks either?

    So I’ve explained how all of these are targeted black/brown people. How about you explain what legitimate purpose these policies serve? I know the GOP likes to claim voter ID prevents fraud, but yet they never seem to come up with an example of it.

    1. Nate said:

      Non-white voters, especially poor folk are less likely to have a government issued ID and there are a lot black people in the South that live out in rural areas where going to get a government ID takes hours. For poor folk, that’s a major deterrent to voting. It ain’t a poll test, but it’s only purpose is to make it harder for the “wrong” kind of people to vote.

      Districting based on total population instead of elligble voters reduces the voting power of blacks in urban areas by bundling a larger number of people into a single district. It’s going to the Supreme Court and of course the GOP is fighting to reduce the voting power of non-whites.

      I think Nate makes a valid point. I would like to throw in the elderly as being less likely to have a govt. picture ID. He is correct. This has always been true of rural poor folk. It’ hard to imagine in PWC. I remember it being true when I taught headstart.

  23. Starryflights

    If Trump becomes the nominee, Hillary will win the presidency by a landslide.

  24. Steve Thomas

    Starryflights :
    If Trump becomes the nominee, Hillary will win the presidency by a landslide.

    If she’d not under Federal indictment for “servergate” which could happen.

  25. Steve Thomas

    @nateX

    Voter ID: Correlation does not equal causation. You haven’t demonstrated why. Is it people of color are somehow denied a government issued ID, upon request? If this is the case, please cite at least one verified example. A court-case would be irrefutable. A likely explanation for the drop-off could be a simple look at the cycle, was it a mid-term where minority voters have historically dropped off, that was compared to a Presidential which happened to have a minority on the ballot?

    “Districting based on total population instead of elligble voters reduces the voting power of blacks in urban areas by bundling a larger number of people into a single district. It’s going to the Supreme Court and of course the GOP is fighting to reduce the voting power of non-whites.”

    I think you have this reversed. The claim is: Drawing districts based on the population of eligible voters, rather than the total population in a district would result in lower representation for minorities, especially in areas with a high population of ineligible residents, like illegal aliens, children, and those who’ve lost their franchise due to felony conviction. This would disproportionately impact urban areas, and states like California, with a high population of illegal aliens…or so the claim goes. The GOP has been accused of pushing the “eligible voter” angle, and the Democrats wish to maintain the status quo. Actually, the plaintiffs in the case argue on Citizen vs. Non-citizen grounds, and live in Southern Texas…hardly a bastion of Urban minority voting. There are other cases too, where the Voting Rights Act forces those drawing district lines to construct “Majority Minority” districts, to meet the requirements of the act, AND the requirements that districts have equal population. The result is a whole bunch of lilly-white districts, and a few VERY gerrymandered Majority Minority districts. The status quo is VERY partisan, and drips with racial bias. Clearly you don’t understand the issues well enough to articulate a cogent response to my question.

    “The GOP opposes automatic restoration of voting rights for people who are arrested.”

    Um…sorry, but you don’t have a clue as to what you are talking about. First, you need to be convicted of a felony, in a court of law, by a jury of your peers, before losing your voting rights. 2nd, more whites are convicted of felonies than are blacks or hispanics, due to the sizes of their respective populations. Third, the GOP doesn’t oppose “automatic restoration”, it’s a matter of individual state law. Furthermore, no one fought harder to restore the voting rights of petitioning felons than our former Governor and AG, both Republicans. McDonald granted more petitions than did Kaine or Warner…and Cuccinelli fought vigorously to get Thomas Haynesworth fully exonerated. Has Herring done anything remotely close to this? Nope. http://www.innocenceproject.org/news-events-exonerations/wrongfully-convicted-virginia-man-exonerated-after-27-years

    “And don’t get me started on how the GOP gutted the Voting Rights Act. Or was that not targeting black/brown folks either?”

    I won’t, because you’d just be wrong. The “GOP” didn’t strike down key provisions of the Voting Rights Act…The Supreme Court did. 5-4…in 2013. They found it to be unconstitutional.

    “So I’ve explained how all of these are targeted black/brown people. How about you explain what legitimate purpose these policies serve? I know the GOP likes to claim voter ID prevents fraud, but yet they never seem to come up with an example of it.”

    No you haven’t. All you’ve done is make an argument predicated on false assumptions and a demonstrated ignorance of the basis, underlying, demonstrable facts. But I do appreciate the effort. As far as Voter ID goes, we have it in Virginia, and it has withstood legal challenge. Apparently, plaintiffs couldn’t demonstrate to the court(s) that the laws targeted minority voters or presented an unconstitutional burden to voting. ID’s are required to demonstrate eligibility for so many things, purchase a gun, tobacco, alcohol, drive a car, board a plane, enter many buildings, so many things subject to government regulation. So by your rationale, these laws are racist too.

  26. Starryflights

    I think it’s funny that Trump is accusing Cruz of being ineligible to run for president.

  27. Cargosquid

    @Starryflights
    Well..he is a known Clinton fan, and they started the Birther movement.

  28. Steve Thomas

    Cargosquid :
    @Starryflights
    Well..he is a known Clinton fan, and they started the Birther movement.

    Good point! Trump kept the Birther torch burning through Obama’s 1st term. Only logical that he’d turn that light on Cruz.

    When confronted with a Birther, I would immediately shut them down with: “It doesn’t matter where Obama was born. If his Mother was a US citizen, then he is a US Citizen born Abroad, or a US-Born Citizen…eligible for president. Same as John McCain. Same will apply to Cruz.

    1. I agree, Steve. It simply doesn’t matter. They all have American parents. Location, Location, Location, is irrelevant.

  29. nateX

    @Steve Thomas

    Steve Thomas :
    @nateX
    As far as Voter ID goes, we have it in Virginia, and it has withstood legal challenge.

    ‘cuz if something is considered legal by Virginia courts it can’t possibly be racist, huh?

    (Let me give you a tip on arguing racism with a black person. Don’t say something isn’t racist because the courts said it was OK. We’ve got a LONG list of examples of things the courts said were perfectly OK.)

    The fact is that thousands of black/brown people were/are disenfranchised because of voter ID. And nobody can name what the alleged benefit of voter ID is. Where is the voter fraud it supposedly prevents?

    If voter ID harms thousands of black/brown people with no other effect, how is it not a racist law?

    1. Nate, do you think voters should have to have any form of ID? If so, what?

  30. Steve Thomas

    Moon-howler :
    I agree, Steve. It simply doesn’t matter. They all have American parents. Location, Location, Location, is irrelevant.

    I guess I understand the question a bit better, as my son was born in Okinawa, and his birth-certificate issued by the US State Department as “US Citizen Born Abroad”.

  31. Steve Thomas

    nateX :
    @Steve Thomas

    Steve Thomas :
    @nateX
    As far as Voter ID goes, we have it in Virginia, and it has withstood legal challenge.

    ‘cuz if something is considered legal by Virginia courts it can’t possibly be racist, huh?
    (Let me give you a tip on arguing racism with a black person. Don’t say something isn’t racist because the courts said it was OK. We’ve got a LONG list of examples of things the courts said were perfectly OK.)
    The fact is that thousands of black/brown people were/are disenfranchised because of voter ID. And nobody can name what the alleged benefit of voter ID is. Where is the voter fraud it supposedly prevents?
    If voter ID harms thousands of black/brown people with no other effect, how is it not a racist law?

    Nate,

    Let me give you a tip on arguing racism (or anything else for that matter)…with anybody: Opinions without facts are meaningless. You have made a series of gratuitous assertions (you can google the term), and offer nothing in the way of proof to substantiate your claim. I asked for you to demonstrate how, exactly, a non-white is somehow disenfranchised by voter ID laws. Are Asians disenfranchised? I mean, something intended to limit minority participation in elections would also impact Asians, right? I was at the DMV last month, and at the Registrar’s office a few weeks before that. I missed where they refuse to issue free ID cards to those seeking to vote.

    As far as the courts go, I asked you to cite a single case where an eligible minority voter was denied a photo ID (which would indeed be a disenfranchising). You have failed. Plaintiffs in the various challenges to voter ID laws have also failed to demonstrate this. Not even a single.successful.case. Not one. Bupkiss. In contrast, I can refute your claim that voter fraud doesn’t happen, and I can do it with a couple of key-strokes, where people were actually convicted of voter fraud, including fraudulent registrations, and voter impersonation.

    Here’s one: http://assets.news21.com/fraud/?category=3&type=&status=&offset=0&query=&state=&year=

    Here’s another: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/07/17/cincinnati-illegal-voting/2530119/

    Do I think there is massive voter fraud? No. But in a time when some elections are decided by less than 1%, a few hundred fraudulent votes can sway the results. The point is, you assert that voter ID laws are racist, because they target minorities, and are unjustified because “voter fraud doesn’t happen”

    Let me ask you this? What is to stop an eligible voter from registering and voting absentee? Nothing. That’s how the military does it. Lot’s of civilians do too. Doesn’t seem to be a problem for all the minorities serving in the military, especially when they have to show their government issued ID to their unit voting assistance officer.

    The point is, you gratuitously assert that voter ID laws are racist, because they target minorities, and are unjustified because “voter fraud doesn’t happen”. You have failed to cite a single example to support this, which is what makes the assertion gratuitous. I am not obligated to refute a gratuitous assertion, but I have, by providing examples of people actually convicted of voter fraud. I could post more, but there is a 2-link limit rule on this blog.

  32. nateX

    @Moon-howler
    As long as getting a voter ID card is completely free and not unduly burdensome. (Like get a free voter ID at any school or post office in less than 30 minutes) that would be reasonable. Especially if it was combined with a program to educate people about getting an ID. The card should either never expire or have at least a 10 year expiration on it so that people aren’t constantly forced to renew.

    You’d also need to account for elderly people who don’t have proper documentation. The kind of people Steve Thomas claims don’t exist. Grandmothers being denied ID because the name on their utility bill doesn’t match a 70 year old birth certificate.

    You could even use social security cards with a ink mark on your finger to prove nobody was voting twice.

    @Steve Thomas
    I don’t have to cite a court case. Congress’ own GAO said that voter ID laws suppressed black/brown turnout more than whites. Based on the percentages they listed, that’s thousands of black/brown voters that were disenfranchised because of voter ID laws. So either you don’t believe the GAO or you just don’t care because you admitted there isn’t a massive voter fraud problem. Your own link says that nationally there have been 2000 alleged cases since 2000. Even if all those were true, the GAO numbers show thousands of disenfranchised voters in just two states in one election.

    Maybe you need to read up on the 200+ year long history of tricks that have been used to keep black/brown people from voting. And we’ve gotten pretty good at sniffing them out. If voter ID laws were really about preventing fraud, they’d look and smell a lot different than they do.

    1. Nate, I think the laws for voting in federal elections ought to be standardized in all states and territories. Old people can be excluded, especially older rural people who had home births and the family bible was the place of record. Yes, there are still some of those folks around. However, they are outliers.

      Your post office idea is a good one. It would cost some bucks but, it would still work. Getting a passport at our post office is very time consuming. I wonder how that could be circumvented?

      I don’t think that just black folks are excluded from voting. I think working class people have been excluded, under the guise of voter fraud. In our area, working class people have long commutes. It’s difficult to get back to your polling place. You have to jump through hoops to vote at central. I would like to see the poll times expand, especially during presidential elections.

  33. Steve Thomas

    @nateX
    “You’d also need to account for elderly people who don’t have proper documentation. The kind of people Steve Thomas claims don’t exist. ”

    You mean those elderly people who have a social security number? Or someone willing to sign an affidavit that the person is who they say they are, when the free photo-id is produced?

    NateX…if people were being denied access to voting, these voter ID laws would be getting tossed by the courts everywhere, and both the NAACP and the ACLU would be getting rich off of the recovered fees. As it stands, you are making strawman arguments. Produce the case! Cite the example!

    And just to inflict the Coup de Grace on your argument…ANY person can walk into the polling place fill out an affidavit, and cast a provisional ballot. No ID. They have until the Friday following the election to submit a copy of their ID to the registrar…and they don’t even have to do this in person. Here’s the rules: http://elections.virginia.gov/casting-a-ballot/in-person-voting/

    People cast provisionals all the time. I’ve been a poll-watcher, and twice-part of a recount team. Provisional Ballots are counted during the canvass that occurs about a week after the election. I’ve watched the process, and it’s clean.

  34. Steve Thomas

    @nateX
    Nate,

    You do have to cite a court case. But since you refuse (or can’t) I’ll put your GAO argument to bed.

    Here’s the link to the abstract, since you can’t even manage to do that much:
    http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-14-634

    It doesn’t conclude that which you claim it does. You are either distorting, or just repeating someone else’s distortion.

    From the report:

    GAO also estimated changes in turnout among subpopulations of registrants in Kansas and Tennessee according to their age, length of voter registration, and race or ethnicity. In both Kansas and Tennessee, compared with the four comparison states, GAO found that turnout was reduced by larger amounts:

    among registrants, as of 2008, between the ages of 18 and 23 than among registrants between the ages of 44 and 53;
    among registrants who had been registered less than 1 year than among registrants who had been registered 20 years or more; and
    among African-American registrants than among White, Asian-American, and Hispanic registrants. GAO did not find consistent reductions in turnout among Asian-American or Hispanic registrants compared to White registrants, thus suggesting that the laws did not have larger effects among these subgroups.

    So, turnout was lower amongst young people, those who weren’t regular voters, and blacks. But, there was no decline amongst the elderly (as you claim) or amongst other minorities (Asians and Hispanics). Kinda blows your “racist” claim there.

    It’s not that I don’t believe the GAO, it’s the GAO report doesn’t conclude what you assert it does, and it certainly doesn’t make any conclusions regarding “Causation”. What it says is “We looked at TN and KY. They implemented Voter ID, and compared them to a few other states that didn’t change their laws. We compared several election cycles. We found there was some reduction in voter turn-out among 1 age demographic, and 1 racial demographic, but others remained consistent. They also admit that it was a “quasi-experimental analysis” which means it is not scientific, nor expected to withstand peer review (ie. someone else could repeat their experiment and obtain the same results). Sorry Nate…you haven’t proven anything.

  35. Steve Thomas

    “Maybe you need to read up on the 200+ year long history of tricks that have been used to keep black/brown people from voting.

    Nate, since you are new, I’ll let you know, I have a BA in History with a minor in PoliSci. I know my history, and I know how to read studies. So you tell me: How can a law intended to disenfranchise blacks be so laser-focused as to not suppress Asian or Hispanic voters? And why, with the current trend in Demographics, would the GOP deliberately miss these two demos, which tend to vote Democrat, AND are growing faster than blacks (due to a high abortion rate) ?

  36. Steve Thomas

    @Moon-howler
    Long commutes are racist.

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