Republicans are attempting once again to divert attention from their own propensities for potential voter fraud to others. In psychology, the trait is known as "projection." In litigation, the tactic is when you don't have the facts or the law in your favor, pound them. If not, pound the table.
Or, Why Are Republicans Really Attacking Non-Profit ACORN?
John McCain insists that ACORN, the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, and it's efforts to register low income and other under represented residents encouraging them to turn out for the vote will somehow be the biggest voter fraud in history. An astonishing claim.
As supposed "evidence,"- Republicans like McCain and their paid prejudiced pundits cite that some petitioners have signed voter registration cards with names of non-existent people such as "Mickey Mouse,"- forgetting of course that anyone actually showing up on November 4 claiming he is Mickey Mouse will have to produce ID to that effect. As usual though, little in the way of genuine hard evidence to support the Republican's theory and wild speculations is ever produced as to any actual voter fraud that resulted from such silly false names. And if any is, it typically is exaggerated and anecdotal at best. In other words, there are never any verifiable totals provided which even remotely hint this really is any sort of a significant problem.
Ignored entirely was the efforts of ACORN itself to prevent fraud from occurring and the fact that many such instances were only exposed because it was ACORN, not Republicans, who revealed them so they could be removed. It is even possible in light of prior dirty tricks by Republicans that some of the false names may even have been submitted covertly by Republicans hoping to discredit ACORN. False signings may be a fraud against ACORN, but it is not vote fraud unless and until it is attempted to be used by someone to actually vote. There are already laws against that.
And, have you ever noticed how it is almost exclusively Republicans, those who loudly assert they supposedly are all for "freedom and democracy,"- that constantly attempt to prevent others from voting? Yet, the mere suggestion of the possibility that Mr. Mickey Mouse will show up to ask for a ballot is sufficient for Republican legislatures to pass laws making it increasing difficult for poor, new, elderly, disabled and/or minority voters who would likely vote Democrat, and only such potential voters, to exercise their rights.
In contrast, the far greater possibility, in fact the proven opportunity, of hackable electronic voting machines with their secret "proprietary"- software built and serviced exclusively by Republican zealot owned companies like Diebold is completely dismissed despite tests showing again and again how quickly and easy it is to do so. Also, largely dismissed by the same Republican legislators and pundits is the unquestionably large number of legitimate votes by low income groups almost routinely blocked or thwarted by misinformation given to prospective voters either deliberately or inadvertently, purging of rolls without timely alerting the voters purged, direct and indirect nuisance intimidation of such groups by police or press or partisans, unequal treatment of voting stations regarding number of voting machines and polling staff available which adversely affects length of time and stress on voters election day. And, have we forgotten difficult ballots (remember the Florida "butterfly ballots"-)? All of these tactics tend to punish or disenfranchise primarily the poor, new, elderly, disabled and/or minority voters who tend to vote for anyone other than McCain.
Over time, it has become fairly clear that Republicans would apparently secretly prefer the only people who get to vote in America be white, elderly, males who are registered Republican . . . and sit on the US Supreme Court.
Or, Why Are Republicans Really Attacking Non-Profit ACORN?
John McCain insists that ACORN, the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, and it's efforts to register low income and other under represented residents encouraging them to turn out for the vote will somehow be the biggest voter fraud in history. An astonishing claim.
As supposed "evidence,"- Republicans like McCain and their paid prejudiced pundits cite that some petitioners have signed voter registration cards with names of non-existent people such as "Mickey Mouse,"- forgetting of course that anyone actually showing up on November 4 claiming he is Mickey Mouse will have to produce ID to that effect. As usual though, little in the way of genuine hard evidence to support the Republican's theory and wild speculations is ever produced as to any actual voter fraud that resulted from such silly false names. And if any is, it typically is exaggerated and anecdotal at best. In other words, there are never any verifiable totals provided which even remotely hint this really is any sort of a significant problem.
Ignored entirely was the efforts of ACORN itself to prevent fraud from occurring and the fact that many such instances were only exposed because it was ACORN, not Republicans, who revealed them so they could be removed. It is even possible in light of prior dirty tricks by Republicans that some of the false names may even have been submitted covertly by Republicans hoping to discredit ACORN. False signings may be a fraud against ACORN, but it is not vote fraud unless and until it is attempted to be used by someone to actually vote. There are already laws against that.
And, have you ever noticed how it is almost exclusively Republicans, those who loudly assert they supposedly are all for "freedom and democracy,"- that constantly attempt to prevent others from voting? Yet, the mere suggestion of the possibility that Mr. Mickey Mouse will show up to ask for a ballot is sufficient for Republican legislatures to pass laws making it increasing difficult for poor, new, elderly, disabled and/or minority voters who would likely vote Democrat, and only such potential voters, to exercise their rights.
In contrast, the far greater possibility, in fact the proven opportunity, of hackable electronic voting machines with their secret "proprietary"- software built and serviced exclusively by Republican zealot owned companies like Diebold is completely dismissed despite tests showing again and again how quickly and easy it is to do so. Also, largely dismissed by the same Republican legislators and pundits is the unquestionably large number of legitimate votes by low income groups almost routinely blocked or thwarted by misinformation given to prospective voters either deliberately or inadvertently, purging of rolls without timely alerting the voters purged, direct and indirect nuisance intimidation of such groups by police or press or partisans, unequal treatment of voting stations regarding number of voting machines and polling staff available which adversely affects length of time and stress on voters election day. And, have we forgotten difficult ballots (remember the Florida "butterfly ballots"-)? All of these tactics tend to punish or disenfranchise primarily the poor, new, elderly, disabled and/or minority voters who tend to vote for anyone other than McCain.
Over time, it has become fairly clear that Republicans would apparently secretly prefer the only people who get to vote in America be white, elderly, males who are registered Republican . . . and sit on the US Supreme Court.
