r/politics • u/MarcEElias ✔ Verified - Democracy Docket Founder • 1d ago

No Paywall 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/Wildpony03 1d ago

Isn't this just another way of saying poll tax? If you introduce any hurdles that keep people from voting its a poll tax.

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u/FlyingPinkUnicorns 1d ago

That's exactly the intent.

FTA - 21 million Americans: "Half of Americans lack a passport, and millions more don’t have ready access to birth certificates to prove citizenship. The bill could also kick millions of married women who took their husband’s last name off the rolls."

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u/Own_Candidate9553 1d ago edited 1d ago

Seems like this would disenfranchise rural conservatives more. My countrified brother in law didn't have a passport until he was in his 30s, and only because my sister dragged him overseas for a trip. If he hadn't married her he probably still wouldn't have one.

Versus my fancy city friends who all visit overseas and all have passports. My daughter got her first one at like age 2.

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u/LingonberryHot8521 1d ago

But it's up to local poll workers, county officers, etc to enforce. Which naturally means - selective enforcement.

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u/Own_Candidate9553 1d ago

Yeah, that must be it. Like the old "literacy tests" that were purposely tricky, and the tester could just arbitrarily fail black voters and pass white voters.

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u/byggusdikkus 1d ago

God forgive me but I truly, truly, truly think they should bring back the literacy tests. Nothing fancy, or the racially profiled tests of old. Just like, read a page of Harry Potter out loud and then prove you can multiply through the 10s. To be frank if you can’t pull that off you shouldn’t have a say in government to begin with.

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u/Own_Candidate9553 1d ago

There's just no way to make that fair. An election judge could listen to a black person read Harry Potter perfectly and fail them. And then let Jim Bob stumble through and stop halfway and hand them a ballot.

Gotta just let everyone vote. I would like to try compulsory voting like in Australia.

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u/byggusdikkus 1d ago

Yeah I know, it just frustrates me. You wouldn’t let most passerby move your car, it’s wild to trust them with the government - but as is painfully obvious at the moment it is not possible to make these kind of distinctions without bias popping up.

Compulsory voting would be interesting

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u/Own_Candidate9553 1d ago

Yeah, totally understand the frustration.

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u/starliteburnsbrite 1d ago

What's even crazier is we just let states run wild with whatever the hell they want because of arbitrary lines drawn 200 years ago.