Saturday, April 30, 2005

It Makes No Sense to Me

MADISON, Wis. (AP) Gov. Jim Doyle vetoed a bill Friday that would have required voters to show government-issued picture identification at the polls, saying it would disenfranchise elderly voters.

How in the world can Governor Doyle say this with a straight face? How can being required to have a picture ID disenfranchise (how I hate that word!) anyone, including the elderly? If an elderly person does not have a picture ID and cannot go to a government office to get picture ID, then how in the world do they go to vote? If they can't go get a photo ID, they probably can't get to the poll to vote.

My mother, who never drove, had a State of Florida identification card. She had to go the the DMV to get it. It looked just like a driver's license except that it clearly stated it was for identification purposes only and was not a DL. My dad had a driver's license up until the day he died at age 81. He hadn't driven for a couple of years, and intended to get an identification card when his DL expired. In the meantime, he was using his DL as ID.

Voters in Florida, at least in Manatee County, must show accepted photo ID (DL, passport, Florida Identification card) when we go to the polls. No ID, no vote. It ensures that voter is the one who is voting and no one else is casting a vote for them, or in their name.

If no ID is shown, it could be anyone voting under that name. The listed voter could be dead, moved, or simply not voting. It's a situation ripe for fraud. Think about the 2004 elections. How many states investigated voter fraud?

Any time a person is concerned about proving their identity, I have to wonder why. Honest people conducting honest business (and voting should be done honestly) should not be afraid to prove who they are. If I lived in Wisconsin, I'd be wondering why my governor would veto this bill. I'd be wondering whether he was honest and ethical. I'd be wondering if he deserved my vote the next time he was up for election as governor or for another office.

3 comments:

Random10 said...

In reading the various press releases it is clear to me that the Republicans are making the case that elections need to be accurate. Since the Democrats have no problem with accuracy, they are making the case that all the election problems are entirely administrative. In an ideal world the election process is both accurate and efficient, however, accuracy always needs to be the first priority. This issue can not be allowed to die because there can be no fairness or justice unless our elections reflect the true will of Wisconsin’s eligible voters.

Kitten said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Kitten said...

Hello, Random! Welcome to my Corner! You make some excellent points. As long as we, as citizens, are so cavalier in our attitudes toward our voting privileges, election fraud will continue. It doesn't make any difference who's perpetrating the fraud, it's still fraud.