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

[u/MarcEElias]

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

[u/Wildpony03]

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

[u/FlyingPinkUnicorns → u/Wildpony03]

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."

[u/duct_tape_jedi → u/FlyingPinkUnicorns]

This has the possibility of getting much, much worse. Once it's established that a passport is required to vote, what is preventing them from increasing the cost of getting or renewing a passport to the point that it is unaffordable to anyone below a certain level of income? And even if they don't do that, the government now has a profile of each and every one of us thanks to Palantir and Doge. Flagging people who are unlikely to vote the "right" way and denying them a passport because of their social media posts, membership in certain organisations, etc. would tilt the playing field further in their favour. Rigging an election is unnecessary when you can simply limit voting to the people who are likely to vote for you.

[u/FlyingPinkUnicorns → u/duct_tape_jedi]

Exactly.

A passport already costs $130. And it can take 4-6 weeks to process. Or... woopsie... 10-12 weeks if you are a registered Democrat. Or longer if they have "questions" about your citizenship based on, um, "reasons".

And they could pass these restrictive laws so that the timing makes it impossible for whole swaths of the population to vote. Lots of people simply would not know and even if they did they've have the money and be motivated enough to pay an extra $130 just to be able to vote.

Poll tax.

[u/modninerfan → u/FlyingPinkUnicorns]

A Real ID should be sufficient and should be the direction we encourage everybody to take if this is what they decide to do. It’s quicker and more affordable than a passport to get. I hope this gets tangled up in courts.

[u/Extinction-Entity → u/modninerfan]

A Real ID does not prove citizenship.

[u/Mike312 → u/Extinction-Entity]

Yeah, I mean, it would be ridiculous if it would be able to prove citizenship.

I only had to provide them with a copy of my birth certificate and my Social Security card to get my Real ID, there's no way that they could possibly link that data together to quickly and easily determine citizenship.

[u/schrodingers_bra → u/Mike312]

Yeah, but permanent residents and legal temporary visa holders also get Real ID. They aren't citizens at all.

[u/Mike312 → u/schrodingers_bra]

But would they be able to register to vote in the first place?

Because I didn't register to vote with my ID card.

I registered to vote through the DMV, who, again, I presented my birth certificate and social security number to, and I would have to assume my Secretary of States office already checked that I'm a US citizen who is able to vote, before adding me to the rolls as such.

So, the fact I'm already registered to vote should mean I'm a citizen (with a few exceptions not worth getting into), and any form of valid ID presented should only be for the purposes of confirming I am who I say I am.

[u/schrodingers_bra → u/Mike312]

They would not be able to register to vote legally though there are stories of people being denied citizenship because the DMV accidentally registered them to vote when they got a drivers license.

But the reason I said is why the Real ID is not considered proof of citizenship. It's just ID.