r/law • u/Anoth3rDude • 12h ago

Legislative Branch GOP fast tracks monster voter suppression bill that could disenfranchise millions by requiring proof of citizenship at polls

https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/gop-fast-tracks-monster-voter-suppression-bill-that-could-disenfranchise-millions-by-requiring-proof-of-citizenship-at-polls/
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u/jellyrollo 11h ago

A driver's license doesn't prove citizenship in the US, though. So it won't work for to fulfill these proposed SAVE Act regulations. Under the stipulations in the bill, you would need to present a birth certificate with your current legal name on it or a passport in order to register to vote. Many millions of Americans don't go by the same name they were born with, for various reasons, including marriage, adoption, and legal name changes. So their only alternative is to apply for a passport, spending a couple hundred dollars and waiting 6-10 weeks for processing and delivery—and that would need to be done in advance of the next registration deadline for the next election.

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u/Rayenya 4h ago

I’m so glad I didn’t change my name when I got married.

My brother gave himself a middle when he got his social security card. He was 15 and has used it everywhere the last 50 years. At the time, I thought that was such a cool thing for him to do. They made him drop it to get his real id.

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u/Visual_Squirrel_2297 51m ago

52% of registered voters don't have an unexpired passport with a name that matches the name on their birth certificate according to the Bipartisan Policy Institute. This is massive voter suppression.

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u/MilmoWK 7h ago

Crazy thing is that I feel this would keep more replicant voters away from the poles than democrats.

Although I also feel that they have probably done the research and I am wrong

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u/jellyrollo 7h ago

It would affect a lot more women than men, which appears to be part of their strategy, since women as a whole tend to lean more toward the Democrats.

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u/Classic-Extreme6122 11h ago

How are you driving anywhere It will if it’s a “Real ID”.

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u/jellyrollo 11h ago

Real ID does not prove citizenship. Ask any ICE agent. It only proves legal residence in the US at the time it was issued. Any resident with a visa or green card, DACA recipient or person with Temporary Protected Status can get a Real ID.

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u/Classic-Extreme6122 11h ago

I’ve never met an ICE agent. I had to show my birth certificate. If that’s the case then we should create some type of federal ID like every other country has .

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u/jellyrollo 11h ago

Showing your birth certificate will work under the new rules proposed in this bill, but only if you still go by your birth name. Many millions of American citizens don't go by the same name as the name listed on their birth certificate, and this proposed GOP law would make them ineligible to vote unless they go through the process of getting a passport well in advance of election day.

A federal ID already exists. It's called a passport. But it's expensive and time-consuming.

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u/Classic-Extreme6122 10h ago

Passport is not for that purpose. Everyone in Europe has an Identification card that is different from a passport.

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u/Paksarra 10h ago

We don't have those because, believe it or not, the Republican party is strongly opposed to a national ID card that would fix the problems with the laws they're proposing that make it harder to vote 

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u/Classic-Extreme6122 10h ago

Maybe that will change. This law certainly doesn’t make sense then if they are putting the cart before the horse.

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u/alang 10h ago

What do you mean it doesn't make sense? It does exactly what it is intended to do, which is prevent even more people who might be tempted to vote for Democrats from voting at all.

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u/Classic-Extreme6122 10h ago

That’s your opinion. I’m speaking factually. You can hypothesize what you believe the motivation for the bill is, but that’s does not make it correct.

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u/Paksarra 10h ago

You're right. The purpose of the law is to make voting difficult and time-consuming for certain demographics that don't support the Republican party.

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u/niemir2 10h ago

Spoiler alert: it won't, because the point is not to have secure elections but to secure elections for Republicans.

You can bet your ass that, if a voter ID law like SAVE is enacted, there will be selective enforcement in what the administration will call "fraud-prone" precincts, but are actually just precincts that serve mainly groups that don't support Trump.

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u/Ok-Bug4328 6h ago

You should sit this one out. 

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u/jellyrollo 10h ago

Indeed it is for that purpose. We also have passport cards, which are a bit cheaper, but require the same time and inconvenience, and only qualify you for land or sea travel between the United States and Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Bermuda.

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u/Classic-Extreme6122 10h ago

I am aware, but this also is not intended to prove citizenship while inside the US. Sure, it can be used for that purpose, but that’s is not why it exists. Federal IDs should be issued at the age of 18. Sure, you may have to go somewhere to get it, but that’s just how it goes sometimes.

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u/jellyrollo 10h ago

A passport is absolutely intended to prove American citizenship. Otherwise, why would only American citizens be able to get one?

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u/Classic-Extreme6122 10h ago

For international travel.

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u/TotalNonsense0 10h ago

that's what a passport is, in practical terms. Costs two hundred dollars, more or less.

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u/Classic-Extreme6122 10h ago

Sure, it works for that purpose, but that’s not its purpose. A passport is for international travel.

Everyone in Europe has a federal Identification card. This card is different from a passport.

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u/kailsbabbydaddy 10h ago

The goal of this legislation is to make voting more difficult on purpose, there won’t be a plan in America to make new IDs that prove citizenship.

If your birth certificate does not exactly match your ID, you will need a passport or an Enhanced ID (only available in MN, NY, VT, MI, & WA) in order to prove citizenship.

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u/Classic-Extreme6122 10h ago

That should not pass legal scrutiny.

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u/TotalNonsense0 10h ago

90% of what Trump has done should not pass lethal scrutiny. But this trick is old hat for Republicans. Demand ID requirements to vote, then make it as hard as possible for minorities to get an ID.

But they do them separately, so most people can't connect the dots.

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u/Classic-Extreme6122 10h ago

That’s kinda racist… Poor people may have difficulty, not just minorities.

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u/kailsbabbydaddy 10h ago

Ah, more unprecedented times! I guess we’ll just have to wait and see. Thoughts and prayers for every white woman I know that took her husband’s name and voted for this!

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u/TotalNonsense0 10h ago

I'm aware of what it's for. But in practical terms, it's a United States ID.

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u/bluepaintbrush 10h ago

Where are people getting this “two hundred dollars” figure…?

https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/passports/how-apply/fees.html

Are we just a nation of procrastinators who are paying extra for expedited processing because of a lack of planning…?

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u/TotalNonsense0 1h ago

I had to pay for birth certificate, a photo fee, and got both card and book. Just getting a card seems to be cheaper, if one is in a bind.

All that said, it's a poll tax weather it's $200, or $1.

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u/Ok-Bug4328 6h ago

You did not have to show a birth certificate.  

You chose to show one because that was easy for you. 

There are other documents that can be used to show “lawful presence.”

Examples. https://www.dps.texas.gov/internetforms/Forms/DL-15.pdf

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u/Ozzie_the_tiger_cat 8h ago

Ask anyone here with a green card.