Detour - Courts may cast final vote on North Carolina's election revamp
Published August 6, 2013
Editorial by Fayetteville Observer, August 6, 2013.
Gov. Pat McCrory and the General Assembly have come face-to-face with elder baseball philosopher Yogi Berra: "It ain't over till it's over."
That existential truth applies to several pieces of controversial legislation passed in the just-concluded session that await the governor's signature.
Foremost is a bill that brings sweeping change to North Carolina elections. What began as an initiative to require voter IDs changed, in the session's final hours, to a measure that also shortens early voting, ends same-day registration and straight-ticket voting, won't count votes cast in the wrong precinct, ends high school pre-registration, limits campaign-finance disclosure and raises donation limits, ends public financing for judicial races, and repeals "stand by your ad."
The broad revamp sparked outrage near and far, mostly among Democrats, who are the target of many of those changes.
At least one civil rights group in Washington, the Advancement Project, says it will sue if the bill becomes law. And the U.S. Justice Department says it will act against measures like this one, which it sees disenfranchising some voters.
Unless the governor surprises us and vetoes the bill, we expect it will be tied up in litigation for a long, long time.
August 6, 2013 at 9:57 am
Jiovanna Louisa says:
I'm moving out of NC ASAP! This is not a spiritual environment for the majority of people. It's disgraceful.
August 6, 2013 at 1:46 pm
Norm Kelly says:
Bye.
Anyone who wants to move to a more liberal state has that option. So far. The feds have yet to make this illegal, but it could happen before 2016.
We need more constitutionalists in our state. We need more people who know that faith in voting is vital to the continuance of our representative republic.
August 6, 2013 at 1:41 pm
Norm Kelly says:
What Liberals fail to instill in the hearts & minds of voters, what they fail to accomplish through legislation, they push through the courts.
Is it just me or does anyone else see Liberal politicians across the country governing in opposition to the general population? It happened in Wisconsin. It's happened in Washington. Now Liberals, and their buddies in the lame-stream press, are hoping to reach the same goal in NC.
No one can show any evidence that a voter ID requirement disenfranchises anyone. (OK. Someone may disagree with that claim, but there's been no evidence shown by anyone anywhere in the country. The only ones making the claim are Liberals.) Liberals, typically Democrats, complain that poor & "underprivileged" will be prevented from voting if a picture ID is required to vote. But no evidence is produced. And if preventing voter fraud means that Democrats lose votes, then it means that voter fraud was happening, and it was benefiting liberals.
Other sections of the bill waiting governor signature may be problematic. But it's time to get over the fact that picture ID requirements actually work, actually make sense, and don't disenfranchise anyone. Helpless, hapless people will continue to be. Contrary to popular Liberal thinking, the average Black is NOT helpless or hapless. Given the chance to act like an adult, even liberal blacks will meet the challenge. (before anyone labels me a racist, go back & reread what i typed. i'm standing up for the intelligence of blacks. my statement is that liberals are the ones who believe blacks need their support.)
Unlike BHO, when you present evidence, you will be able to change my mind. Until evidence of true voter disenfranchisement is demonstrated, until helpless blacks are demonstrated, I don't buy your argument. Is this another case of "if you tell the same lie often enough, people will begin to believe it"?
