Voter advocates were out in full force today.There will be lawsuits if this bill passes and the Gov doesn’t have courage to veto.
Southern Poverty Law Center, ACLU, NAACP, Democracy for NC, NC Center for Voter Education, NC League of Women Voters, NC AARP, Institute for Southern Studies.(all against photo ID, citing the groups it will disenfranchise and the enormous financial cost)
I have to say, Bob Hall of Democracy for NC hit a home run when he called the bill and its intents "phony as a $3.00 bill".
It will cost millions of $ to implement. GOP did not attach much funding at all, and it might not be legal for lawmakers to use
Help America Vote Act funds for this purpose. It looks like Counties would be stuck with additional costs that lawmakers
haven’t owned up to at this time.
The legislative hearing room was divided – the "for" photo ID side was smaller than the "against" photo ID side. .
There were people who remembered the literacy tests and some whose parents nearly gave up their lives to vote.
Some remembered the days when their parents were disenfranchised by laws aimed to prevent African Americans from voting.
You don’t have to go back very far to have a family member who was impacted.
Have you read the bill?
http://www.ncleg.net/gascripts/BillLookUp/BillLookUp.pl?Session=2011&BillID=h351&submitButton=Go
The bill won’t stop people determined to commit felony voter impersonation –
fake ID kits are cheap at EBAY -starting bid $12.95 sale price $14.95 with hologram if you want it.
http://cgi.ebay.com/Make-ID-Cards-Home-ID-Supply-Fake-Proof-Hologram-/320668763777?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4aa9590681
