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April 8, 2009 · Yesterday Texans got their chance to let lawmakers know what they thought about the proposed Voter ID bill. The proposal would require a photo ID or two other identification items to allow Texans to vote.
Public testimony was nearly buried when the state Senate took about 23 hours to hear private and citizen testimony on a voter ID bill. So with a second chance in the House, dozens — both for and against the bill — showed up.
Many of the arguments echoed so-called expert testimony Monday. Republican Party of Texas vice chair Robin Armstrong said, “Sometimes it’s difficult to determine whether it’s voter fraud or voter ignorance. But I think the result is the same. And I think we probably should have legislation to make sure that that doesn’t happen.”
Opponents of the bill continued down the path of voter suppression. Meaning the elderly, minorities and college students could be turned away from the polls under this bill. Election lawyer Randall Wood says the fraud this bill claims to fix doesn’t even happen on Election Day — when ID would be required.
“Almost all the voter fraud in Texas is done through early voting by mail. And I’ve worked with Senators—House members through the years to try to figure out something about it. And we’ve never been able to come up with a way to do something about it, and this bill doesn’t do anything about it,” he says.
The hearing continued until late last night. The House’s version of the Voter ID bill could come up for vote in the next couple of weeks. |
