Donna Brazile and the latest conspiracy theory

In an article in USA Today, Donna Brazile is charging that the GOP is trying to disenfranchise black voters. Why? Well, according to Brazile, the various GOP-controlled states that are enacting photo ID requirements for voters are doing so just to keep poor African Americans from voting. Not only is this pure BS, but it is a conspiracy theory designed to keep those same poor African Americans voting Democrat.

First, lets look at the actual facts. Many states have photo ID requirements at the polls. I happen to live in one: Connecticut. No one can vote here in the Nutmeg State without first presenting a photo ID. The law was passed about a decade ago to cut down the potential for vote fraud. It was not a response to a wave of phony voters; it was passed as a way to keep that wave from developing. And here's the key, it was passed in a legislature that had a two to one Democrat majority. Were those Democrats trying to depress the vote by poor blacks? Of course not. They were trying to assure the integrity of the election process. Had the legislature been one with a Republican majority (in Connecticut????) Brazile would tell us that it was a racist move designed to keep blacks from voting. But the truth is that Brazile is just playing the race card to keep African Americans firmly tied to the Democrats.

So how hard is it to present a photo ID? Well, in Connecticut we just use our driver's licenses. Sure, there are some folks who don't have those licenses (although the number is small). They can use any other ID's issued by the government. The department of motor vehicles will issue a photo ID to anyone that can be used in lieu of the driver's license as ID.

Second, let's look at reality of what Brazile is saying. Anyone who wants to fly on a commercial airplane in the USA needs a photo ID. Under Brazile's logic, that is a racist effort to keep poor blacks of the planes. Anyone who wants to enter nearly any office building in New York City needs a photo ID. Brazile would tell you that this is a racist effort to keep African Americans from getting office jobs. One cannot get into the federal or state courthouses in this area without a photo ID. Under the Brazile logic, that means that the state and federal government are trying to keep African Americans from getting justice. Perhaps we should all write to president Obama about these terrible racist acts by the federal government.