Civil & Human Rights

(Update) GOP voter suppression in North Carolina

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Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

David Firestone at the New York Times delivers a damning critique of GOP voter suppression in North Carolina, in a case of "Tea-Publicans Gone Wild." North Carolina: First in Voter Suppression:

[A]s yesterday’s events in the state capital showed, one thing is
making a comeback: an old habit of suppressing the votes of minorities,
young people and the poor, all in the hopes of preserving Republican
power.

Freed of federal election supervision by the Supreme Court, the North
Carolina legislature passed a bill that combines every idea for
suppressing voter turnout that Republicans have advanced in other
states. Rick Hasen, an election-law expert at the University of
California, Irvine, called it “the most sweeping anti-voter law in at least decades.”

The law requires a government-issued photo ID card to vote, but doesn’t
allow student IDs, public-employee IDs, or photo IDs issued by public
assistance agencies. It shortens the early voting window, bans same-day
registration during early voting and prohibits paid voter registration
drives. Counties will not be able to extend voting hours in cases of
long lines, or allow provisional voting if someone arrives at the wrong
precinct. Poll “observers” are encouraged to challenge people who show
up to vote, and are given new powers to do so. [This would be the Tea Party True The Vote voter intimidation organization.]

(Update) Voter ID on trial in Pennsylvania

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Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The voter ID trial in Pennsylvania has gone into extra innings, and is now expected to wrap up sometime next week. The AP reports Balancing voter ID law against voters' rights:

After nine days of testimony by state
government bureaucrats, nationally known experts on statistics and
communications and individual voters frustrated by the new photo ID
requirement, Commonwealth Court Judge Bernard McGinley put the trial on
hold for a four-day weekend as lawyers prepare to sum up their cases in
closing arguments anticipated next week.

* * *

So far, the debate has been largely hypothetical – the court has blocked enforcement of the March 2012 law since before the presidential election – but the trial verdict will be a major step toward deciding whether it is allowed to take effect.

The law would require all voters to show a Pennsylvania driver's license or another acceptable photo ID with a current expiration date before they may cast ballots in an election. Voters who go to the polls without proper ID could only cast provisional ballots, which would be counted only if they provide local officials with an acceptable ID within six days after the election.

AG Holder to seek ‘bail-in’ of Texas under Section 3 of the Voting Rights Act

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Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The New York Times reports today, Holder
Wants Texas to Clear Voting Changes With the U.S.:

Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. announced on Thursday that the Justice Department would ask a court to require Texas to get permission from the federal government before making voting changes in that state. The move opens a new chapter in the political struggle over election rules after the Supreme Court struck down a portion of the Voting Rights Act last month.

In a speech
before the National Urban League in Philadelphia, Mr. Holder also
indicated that the filing, expected later on Thursday, was most likely
just an opening salvo in a new Obama administration strategy to try to
reimpose “preclearance” requirements in parts of the country that have a
history of discriminating against minority voters.

* * *

“This is the department’s first action to protect voting rights
following the Shelby County decision, but it will not be our last,” Mr.
Holder said. “Even as Congress considers updates to the Voting Rights
Act in light of the court’s ruling, we plan, in the meantime, to fully
utilize the law’s remaining sections to subject states to preclearance
as necessary. My colleagues and I are determined to use every tool at
our disposal to stand against such discrimination wherever it is found.”

(Update) Voter ID on trial in Pennsylvania

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Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

This trial was originally scheduled for nine days, but it looks as if we are going into extra innings.

The eighth day of trial on Pennsylvania's voter-identification law ended
in disarray Wednesday as plaintiffs' attorneys contesting the law's
constitutionality refused to rest their case until they learn more about
potential problems in issuing mandatory photo ID cards. Pa. voter ID trial recesses in disarray:

Commonwealth Court Judge Bernard McGinley expressed impatience at the slow pace of the trial and cleared the courtroom briefly to huddle with lawyers from both sides, but court recessed for the day with little sign of a compromise. The state did, however, present some testimony in defense of the law.

Questions for Martha McSally: What is your position on comprehensive immigration reform?

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Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

In this new series, "Questions for Martha McSally," we pose questions to
the McSally campaign about her positions on current hot topics — I am
not going to give her a free pass until after the GOP primary like our local media did in 2012.

Preface: The "Gang of Eight" in the U.S. Senate, which includes Arizona senators John McCain and Jeff Flake, crafted a bipartisan comprehensive immigration reform bill that passed the U.S. Senate on a super-majority vote of 68-32, with 14 Republicans including Arizona's seantors voting in favor.

The "Gang of Eight" bill includes a "border surge" amendment from Sen. Bob Corker (R-TN) that throws $30 billion in spending over a 10-year period at border security which would produce a financial windfall to some of America's
largest aerospace, technology and security companies, and to
border states. Sen. Corker conceded that his "border surge" is "almost overkill."