I’m just upset by the cynical efforts of Republicans to suppress the poor and minority vote under the mantel of protecting the integrity of the voting process. Under HAVA (the Help America Vote Act), first-time voters have to present certain forms of ID (photo and non-photo) in order to vote for the first time. My question to Republicans is, why not just extend the HAVA ID requirements to all voters?
The Indiana legislature, but requiring all voters to present government-issued photo ID that cannot be expired, etc., and by requiring individuals who want to obtain government issued-photo ID to present a birth certificate or the equivalent, is erecting significant barriers to individuals who do not have the time, the money or the savvy to negotiate the bureaucratic maze it takes to get such documentation. I can tell you from personally experience that it takes numerous phone calls, about $30 and several weeks to get a copy of one’s birth certificate, (especially from another state).

-blackrobe