Last week on the show, we brought you the story of the Massachusetts conservatives who'd set up shop in a polling place with a sign saying "Show I.D. to Vote." Massachusetts doesn't require you to show I.D. at the polls. "Show I.D. to Vote" is the name of the conservatives' group, which would like to make it harder to vote.
At the time, no one complained about their sign. Now the state says displaying that sign was illegal. By way of @chrismatth at Blue Mass Group, the news from South Coast Today:
[Elections Commission Chair] Maria Tomasia said she will go back to requiring a letter from the Secretary of State for all election observers. She said she didn't know about the "Show ID to Vote" signs until she arrived at the Parker Street precinct at 4 p.m., but acknowledged that she herself didn't ask the dynamic duo to take it down.
She said Secretary of State William Galvin's office has now informed her that the "Show ID to Vote" sign was illegal. The secretary's office says it is taking "remedial" steps to make sure the group never displays a similar sign inside a precinct.
Producer Mike Yarvitz just got off the phone with the Massachusetts Secretary of State's office. They say they'll be taking steps to keep this from happening again at municipal elections next month. Those steps include reminding the local elections commission about statutes that prohibit electioneering at the polls, specifically by election observers. Mike asked whether they'd refer what they described as an "illegal" act for possible prosecution, the office had no comment.
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And THESE wackadoodles have the audacity to call us on the Left fascists...OMG!!!!
These are DANGEROUS people!
Yet again republican conservatives break the law and get away with it. Put these criminals where they belong. IN JAIL!!!!
Well said!
I think our problem with this on the left is that we would never do this ourselves, let alone think of it, so we keep getting caught flat-footed by the jaw-dropping actions these people keep taking, well outside the law, to get their way.
These people are like little kids throwing a tantrum and then going to all sorts of devious lengths to get their way in spite of our efforts to stop them. It's like trying to prevent a river from flowing using only your hands!
Well said....we need to get better at thinking like them to block things before they happen.
This is election meddling, plain and simple.
It's apparent to everyone, especially the right, that they will not win on issues and performance. That's why they are resorting to dirty tricks, dishonesty, voter deterrence and their tenacious grip on the Big Lie method of persuasion. They are either ignorant, arrogant or both. I'm going with the latter. God help us.
In case no one else has noticed, hard-core evangelicals and leftists are operating out of a terrorist mindset. They will say or do ANYTHING to further their cause. ANY opposition elicits a nuclear retribution. Their offense strategy is "scorched earth" and damage done to freedom and democracy is just collateral damage in creating their delusional "chosen and saved" vision of a post-humanitarian society. They are terrorists.
Which hard-core leftist is doing this?
Someone doesn't know their left from their right or so it seems.
LOL, what??
Um, Suzy,PearheadTX, leftists have nothing in common with evangelicals. Leftists and evangelicals are 180 degrees away from each other, in fact. Back to back in the duel, as it were.
Leftists believe in people, and evangelicals believe in controlling people.
Leftists try to work within the laws to change them for everyone's benefit, evangelicals pursue the scorched earth policy to put their own controls in place and damn the consequences.
Sadly, leftists have been in reactive mode, trying to reverse the damage done when they weren't paying any attention, not believing there were people in this country trying to destroy it for their own greedy, selfish interests.
Evangelicals have been on the offensive. They are offensive, and they need to be stopped. YOU need to be stopped. You do not have this country's best interests in mind. You have your own bottom line in mind. Well, your bottom line won't do better until everyone else's does, too.
The very wealthy will eventually have no one to sell to in this country. Eventually, there will be no more money to take from the rest of us. What will they do then? With the roads, bridges and buildings falling down around their ears, and no one to wait their table, or paint their nails...
WELL SAID!!!!!! This should be at the top of the blog page as best message/comment of the day!! When Liberals or people just fed up(I am 99%) and we went out to drum up fervor for people to vote for change we got called all kinds of names and thrown in with the likes of ACORN..and my friends were just trying to bring awareness of the power to make your voice heard finally and the value of your vote...that even though one vote is a small voice...if enough the small voice becomes the sound of thunder... And we won. These people are doing everything they can to suppress that voice...
When people finally had hope that their one voice can be heard amongst many..opposition stepped in to say"oh no it doesn't, it is what is in your pocket that determines your voice or how it can be heard". This is sadly true now thanks to new regulations and trickery done by people such as these. BUT we have to believe that WE can change this..at least point our course in a better direction for all of us..
I remember when I was a kid in the eighties and the BUY AMERICAN mantra was everywhere. We believed in America.. Why is it now in this century that if we want change that benefits 99 percent of Americans we are called socialists, leftists, unamerican. Whereas the way I see it it is the 1 percent who has lost all love for the country that has given them the wealth they so long to worship???? Why can't they sacrifice a weekend to the Bahamas so I don't have to sacrifice choosing between medication and food..What are their sacrifices costing them really? Versus the sacrifices I and 98 percent of Americans are? And if they continue this course that money will run out... It's like living for the day..and not at all thinking about tomorrow.
Yes I am ranting a bit and going across the board...and maybe that is what OWS is doing too...we are fed up ..with ALOT! There is no one easy fix...but at least start by fixing something..And working together always helps...
I believe America would find its pride again if we all agreed it would not be an overnight change, but a work in progress..Cain says get a job...well pay me to be retrained to a job that is available, or get me a list of places actually hiring for my position that doesnt already have 40 resumes identical to mine on their desk..
Obama said yes WE can..Not Yes He can.. We have to do this together, and OWS maybe sending a mixed message such as mine, but at least it is being sent. I am an American, so can YOU!! VOTE!!!! And to the ones in your local offices that you did not vote for or were the lesser of the two evils...WRITE THEM! Tell them your concerns...and keep doing so until they reply..and if you don't like what they say-remind them when their next election is.. AND BE VOCAL...but do it in a respectful intelligent way..even if you got a lot to say and may touch on 10 other issues like I did..do it respectfully... AND LISTEN to each other..maybe the person you disagree with may actually teach you something..or vice versa.. Hopefully the latter because we are 99 percent and the 1 percent still isn't listening.
My 27cents worth(was 2 cents in the Clinton era but look at our economy :) )
Dear Suzy in Pearland...this is TRMS from SPRING, TX....are you out of your mind? What you said makes absolutely no sense....putting evangelicals and leftists in the same group?...man, we're BOTH insulted by that. We're the exact opposites of each other.
Sorry, sorry. DO Not know left from right; overtired from cooking cupcakes for OCCUPYHOUSTON. When I checked in, I cracked up. Thanks for the feedback:-)
Thats alright Suzy, I had a feeling you just mis typed your post. No democrat lady from Texas would ever put the left in the same catagory as the evangelicals.
LOL, best reply EVER! Can I have a cupcake? Suzy, it's your other left!
:D
Whew...Sorry I jumped so hard, Suzy...I want a cupcake, too. Say hello to all my OCCUPYHOUSTON buddies. Wish I could be there. I'm out of town but am there in spirit. I am 99%....
I would think that these guy violated the voting act by intimidating voters which is a criminal offense. They can be prosecuted with their own photo.
Isn't this voter fraud the same thing the Republicans are lying about saying it is rampid in voting aren't people arrested for voter fraud why are they not in jail?
IOKIYAR
If only the New Black Panthers had set up a folding table with a sign on it, these guys wouldn't have had any problem with them at all.
And what exactly is the basis for your biased, bigoted and ignorant statement? If you can point to any example of any progressive group trying to suppress votes in similar ways I can guarantee that the media would be equally concerned.
It may be uncharitable of me to say so, but haven't you answered your own question?
I did some poll-watching as a volunteer attorney in Illinois for the Democratic party during the last general election. I was stunned to discover election"judges" routinely requesting ID from voters who had not [yet] been challenged, as they walked in the doors of the polling place. Completely illegal. When I informed them that this practice is not legal, I kept hearing the excuse that since some polling places housed more than one precinct, the judges were simply trying to expedite the process by viewing the voters' ID cards to check their addresses and direct them to the proper precinct. Yeah. Right.
You did not say where you were poll watching. But the election judges were correct because I live in a suburb and the polling place had 3 precincts using the same location. Most voters do not know which precinct they are located. If the voter does not have the voter card issued by the state then asking for an ID does expedite the process. If you had stated that judges demanded a photo ID, then you would have a point.
I used to live in Boston and always had to fight my way into the polling place ...thru the illegal hangeroners crowding the doors and stuffing papers in my face. When I complained I was looked at as though I were complertely out of my mind.
I know this was just a typo, but I think "complertely" is my new favorite word.
The MAIN question should be is why aren't these people being charged and prosecuted?
Wonder how many people were intimidated and turned around and went home because they didn't think they were going to be allowed to vote.
Not only did I have to watch the commercial but then the video stopped to soon..
I have had it!!! When I click on a video and see an ad I "X" it out.
These guys should be prosecuted, and given the evidence there is no doubt that they violated the law. At a minimum they should be assessed substantial fines.
Let me first establish that I'm a Center-left moderate social libertarian. Anyway, I don't really see what the big deal is. I have my state issued Id on me 100% of the time. I need it at the post office when paying for services using my credit card as well as other daily, mundane tasks. In fact, I would have to purposely go out of my way to be in a position where I were unable to establish my identity/citizenship. I once asked a dude, trying to buy alcohol, without an ID, shortly before he punched me in my face... "What kind of gimp doesn't have a drivers license?" In his case, it was an underage redneck with something to hide.
"What kind of gimp doesn't have a drivers license?"
These kind of people don't have driver's license or other state issued picture ID
http://www.npr.org/2011/10/19/141508278/opponents-say-s-c-s-voting-law-unfair-for-the-poor
Oh, I didn't realize google mapping one's local DMV and taking 20 minutes out of one's busy schedule wasn't an option.
I'm still waiting for someone to show me any evidence at all that Voter I.D. laws prevent fraud or are otherwise beneficial in any way. I hear a lot of complaints about non-US citizens voting, but I have yet to see any studies or statistics that back up the idea that asking for an I.D. does anything to help or deter such fraudulent votes. From what I have seen Voter I.D. laws have a tendency to create situations in which fraud exists, but they do not seem to deter it or prevent it.
In addition I am someone who was robbed on Sunday. I now have to get a new driver's license, but because I have no other form of photo I.D. I am going to have to fork over the cash to get a re-issue of my birth certificate (60$), and then a re-issue of my social security card, and then a passport. All of which will run me- in total- about 150$. Most poor people don't have that type of cash lying around. The only reason why I'm able to do it is because my neighbor helped me out when she heard about the robbery. I'll end up having to pay her back over time for the next few months. If I were homeless this would be impossible.
And I can't get a social security card or a passport unless I have either a. an insurance card or b. a bank card of some kind, which means I have to wait until they get re-issued to me before I can even begin the process of re-applying for a license. The fact that I have either of those makes me lucky. Someone who was poorer or otherwise more disenfranchised than me would not have access to such items. A student who doesn't have a checking account and who is attending school w/o health insurance would be virtually screwed in this situation. Voter I.D. laws, as far as I can surmount, are nothing more than laws attempting to prevent students, the poor, and the elderly from voting for reasons that don't seem to be all that clear. No one has been able to prove to me that voter fraud is discouraged by these laws, but I can see that legal US citizens are discouraged from voting by them. And to me that is blatantly unconstitutional.
Oh and one more thing: center-left/center-right are not actual political positions. Just so ya know.
"Oh, I didn't realize google mapping one's local DMV and taking 20 minutes out of one's busy schedule wasn't an option."
Did you read the article planecrash? These people don't have computers aand live very far away form any DMV. Many were born at home with a midwife aanddon't have birth certificates. And when has it ever been, even with an appointment, taken 20 minutes to go to any DMV. Do you have some magic pass that whips you through the lines planewreck?
For the record, I agree with both of you. I guess my point was, is that I already have to establish my identity every day for a wide range of mundane tasks. Should we fight for the "poor" shipping a textbook we sold online? I even had to establish identity, via state issue ID on at least a "same last name as the registered voter I say I am" when I voted for President Obama in '08 here in Chicago IL. For me, it wasn't and won't ever be an issue, because back in '06 I googled the location of my local DMV, and dedicated my time to commuting and standing in line for a couple dozen minutes.
"These people don't have computers"
I knew you'd take that bait. Yeah, I was being ironic.
"[...] taken 20 minutes to go to any DMV. Do you have some magic pass that whips you through the lines?"
I recommend avoiding peak hours.
planecrash, all the things you talk about aren't rights. voting is a right. that's why the standard for denying someone the ability to do it should be higher.
"These people don't have computers"
I think you need irony lessons. ;-)
"[...] taken 20 minutes to go to any DMV. Do you have some magic pass that whips you through the lines?
"I recommend avodiing peak hours"
Here in So Cal peak hours would be when it opens in the morning and when it closes in the afternoon.
Yes, I agree with you. I just didn't realize there was such a multitude of people, a.k.a. "gimps", unable to locate their own DMV, to fear a swing in election results. But yes, voting should be as easy as possible. Maybe on my commute home today I'll survey some of the most disheveled people I encounter about their state ID, or lack thereof. Currently, I can say, regardless of left or right, I've never encountered an American/Illinoisan without one above the age of 16.
Same here in Houston....I have been to DMV all hours of the day over the years and never gotten out in less than an hour. The point is, this is just one avenue they are using to try to disenfranchise voters. Every one of them is initiated by the Republican Party and every one of them targets poor, elderly and/or minority voters...ie, people who historically are more apt to vote Dem.
Gee - 74 years old and now I'm a gimp!!! It breaks my heart.
Let tell you the kind of "gimp" doesn't have an identification card. I moved back to Minnesota in 2004. Sadly, my Nevada Driver's license expired the day before my daughter-in-law was able to take me down to the DPS to get an ID, since I no longer drive. We walked in with what I thought was adequate identification (birth certificate, Nevada driver's license, voter registration, etc.) only to be told that they couldn't accept any of that documentation because my birth certificate is in my maiden name and my DL is in the name of my last husband. I was told that I would have to bring in documentation verifying the name change from my maiden name to my married name. I asked what constituted that documentation and was told I needed my marriage certificate and divorce decree. I was last married better than 50 years ago and have moved better than 30 times in that period. What documentation I had was lost years ago and since neither marriage was much of a joy, the loss was not critical. Understand I was married more than once, to obtain that information I would need documentation from one town in Wisconsin and 3 towns in Minnesota. The certified documentation would cost $20 - $35 each.
I am on Social Security with a disabled son who is unable to work. I don't need to tell you that having that kind of money isn't readily available, but I will. After 7 years, because of the threat of not being able to vote in up-coming elections, I finally chased down a person at the Department of Public Safety that after some discussion of the issues, informed me that lacking the documentation I could apply for a variance from the state to obtain an ID.
I took every document I had that I thought would prove that I am me: I had my birth certificate, my Nevada driver's license, my voter registration card, my social security card, the birth certificate of my son stating my maiden and married name, my military ID stating that I was the wife of my husband, my ID for TAM, Health Department and Gaming cards from Nevada, the obituaries from my father and mother (who died with my maiden name and clearly stated that I was their daughter under my married name), I even included the Driver's License number that I had in the State of Minnesota 20 years ago. My application was denied, however the State very kindly suggested that if I could obtain a statement from the Social Security department that my Social Security number has shown my maiden name and my married name, they may allow the variance.
Ok, I am a gimp that has no Identification Card. But I have hope that somehow the state of Minnesota will now acknowledge that I am me - that I had a Driver's License in this state for over 30 years, that I am the person that owned property in this state, that for 30 years I voted in this state, raised 3 sons in this state, worked for better than 30 years in this state, have lived in this state for the last 7 years because they have sent me rental refunds for 7 years, paid taxes for 37 years in this state and am a viable human being with the opportunity to have an Identification Card. I hope.
Perhaps you should consider the fact that everyone hasn't lived your life and had the security you have had. Perhaps you should consider the idea that you don't have all the information or answers for everyone and not be so quick to consign someone to a category they don't deserve.
" they couldn't accept any of that documentation because my birth certificate is in my maiden name..."
What other name but your maiden name is your birth certificate suppose to have?! That is the most bogus excuse I have ever heard! I am so sorry for your troubles granmapoetmn. This is what voter suppression means. Denying ID to someone who obviously has plenty of documentation as to who she/he is. This has got to stop.
BTW this is obviously sex discrimination too. No one would question a man about the name on his birth certificate.
Republicans are waging a brutal wear on the constitutional right of every American citizen to have a voice at the ballot box. This is the core principle that our country was founded upon, and these partisan thugs are actively seeking to rip it away from the people. This is nothing short of a plan to instigate one-party rule. No American can sit idly by and watch as our democracy is shredded by these right-wing thugs. http://www.sunstateactivist.org
This is my big frustration with election laws. They aren't actually enforced. When people are caught meddling in elections, they are rarely prosecuted, and it never invalidates the results of the election. The cost of getting caught is absurdly too low to actually prevent people from tampering with our elections.
prosecute--send to jail--let the inmates deal with them--no more smiles on their face.
How about this...
This will be small potatoes compared to what the GOP has in store for many voters in the upcoming election:
http://www.aclu.org/maps/2011-voting-rights-under-attack-state-legislatures
Buy Smoke ID required
Buy Booze ID required
Vote the most Powerful person in the world into office.....dont need an ID?
LMAO
Is the prohibition of electioneering in a polling place a Federal or State law, because I've known about this since I was 18 years old and first registered to vote.
They promote voter intimidation. If I go to vote, I don't want someone filming me.
http://sites.google.com/site/showidtovote/files-docs
Ralph Zazula posted on May 4, 2011 the Mass. rules, so he his group knowingly has violated the rules.
Are we the United States or Afghanistan?
Thanks for the shoutout - Show ID to Vote seems to be carrying on, however. Check out my latest blog post on how they're planning to video tape polling at every polling location in Lawrence, Mass., a city full of minorities:
http://chrismatth.bluemassgroup.com/?p=167
They could use some there not because of the voters . The Mayor is on the news constantly for corruptive practices. This Mayor continued to collect his state pay, you know double dip, his girlfriend where he lives collected fuel assistance , they are trying to recall him , he laid off most of the firefighters and over used mutual aid , even when he got money from Homeland Security he tried to pocket that , Should I go on Rachel nobody can be acused of all these things and not be guilty . Some of his excuses is that claims he didnt know he couldnt do it. Amazing for a former State Representative. I am not for IDs because of some hardship but this is needed here. I bet you he will give the Republicans the ammo to require them everywhere.