North Carolina Governor Signs Restrictive Voter Bill That He Obviously Hasn't Read

One more word on Republican led voter discrimination, (okay, two words): North Carolina.  

This week, Gov. Pat McCrory (R) signed North Carolina's new voting bill into law. Among other changes, the bill eliminates same day registration and requires voters to present a photo ID.   A few weeks ago, when the bill first passed, he was asked if he would sign it.  At that time, he told reporters he was in favor of the bill because it would prevent voter fraud in his state.

When pressed for details, he seemed confused about what was in it.  He bragged about the new on-line registration option--there is no such provision.  When asked how eliminating pre-registration for those under 18, (an annual high school voting registration drive has, for years, been seen as a right of passage for graduating seniors), he replied "I don't know enough, I'm sorry.  I haven't seen that part of the bill."

what eye thynk:   You would hope that in the weeks between the bill's passing and his signing it, and after admitting that he wasn't really very knowledgeable about the bill's details, he might have spent a few minutes informing himself of the bill's particulars...but no.

In three separate interviews, including one with NPR, he said  the new law would give voters two weeks of early voting and that all precincts would be open during that period.  He was wrong on both points.  The new bill reduces early voting from 17 days to 10 days--thus eliminating one full weekend of early voting.  His claim that all precincts would be open for early voting is blatantly false. One example is Wake County NC which has 198 precincts. During presidential election years, only 15 precincts will be open for early voting.  

And it seems that individual counties are free to eliminate even more early voting precincts.  Four days after the bill was signed into law, the Watauga County Board of Elections announced that it was eliminating one early voting site and a voting precinct location on the campus of Appalachian State University, a historically black university.

In Pasquotank County, the Board of Elections ruled that an Elizabeth City State University senior who was running for city council, would not be on the ballot. They reasoned that his on-campus address did not establish local residency.  The head of that county's Republican Party said he plans to challenge all student voter registrations at Elizabeth City State University, which just co-incidentally happens to also be a mostly black university.

State Senator Kay Hagan (D) has asked the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate.

Gov. McCrory's claim that "This new law brings our state in line with a healthy majority of other states throughout the country" is true to a point. A more accurate statement would be "...a healthy majority of other Republican run states throughout the country."

When I look beyond the obvious exasperating bias in these new Republican sponsored restrictive voter laws, what I see is desperation. It can only be desperation that would make a major political party in this country feel they have to cheat to stay in the game. 

But it is their own policies--policies on voter rights, on women's rights, on gay rights, on immigration, on taxes, on budgets, on the environment--that has put them in this position.  They have become their own worst enemy, becoming more and more intransigent, more and more reclusive, more and more resistant to moving forward, mired in a love of what was instead of a confidence in what can be.  

Only the GOP can save itself from the GOP, but first they have to give up their battle to weight the playing field in their own favor.  Democracy only works when everyone is equally represented.