This would be a good place to start. Obama also needs to clean up some of Bush's signing statements that pre-empted the constitution and took away our civil liberties. The recent Syria event is all political and needs re-dressed in the media as well.
Posted by Linda in Texas at October 28, 2008 07:07 PMI disagree Linda. The organized and deliberate effort to disenfranchise goes to the very basis of our Democracy. And to use the Justice department as part of this smacks of totalitarianism.
What if a minority party has deliberately manipulated the last two elections through voter suppression to take us in a direction that over 50% of us disagreed with?
What if placement of key partisan officials as state secretary of states, voter suppression efforts helped by DOJ, funky voting machines, etc ... allowed them to disenfranchise a larger number 55%, 60%?
To me this crosses a line. We are no longer in a discourse of differing views. This undermines the basis of our whole system.
We need national voting systems and laws that leave no room for fraud and encourage everyone to vote.
This can never happen again or next time it could orchestrated by a party into never giving up power.
Posted by allansfca at October 28, 2008 10:24 PMYou guys just don't get it
1. Create clear federal laws that each state has to abide by by:
a) Making it a DUTY to register
b) Taking registration and election organisation out of the hands of politicians (and into the hands of civil servants)
c) Take redistricting out of the hands of partial people and use independent panels guided by strict criteria on numbers and integral communities
d) Outlaw computer voting and use paper and pencil
It should be federal as everyone should know the rules about how to do the main thing that keeps the democracy afloat
Posted by John at October 29, 2008 02:54 AMIt should start with a Constitutional Amendment.
* All citizens over age 17 and not currently in prison for a felony have the right to vote in a national election.
* Votes must be by secret ballot. (We've forgotten the problems in the past with unsecret ballots, but if we keep forgetting they will return. I am stunned that these electronic vote machines are out in the open for all to see.)
* Voting procedures must be easily accessible to all eligible voters.
* Votes must be counted in total, fairly, accurately and securely, using the best available techology at the time.
* The best technology must be used to prevent and detect fraudulent voting.
* Election day shall be the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November, but all eligible voters shall be permitted to cast ballots for one month prior to election day.
* Vote casting and counting procedures must be uniform across the United States, and funded by the US Congress.
* The ballot for National offices may not in any way be shared with the ballot for other elections. The two may occur concurrently, but ballots must be separate. (This avoids the Republican dirty tricks of creating extremely complicated ballots.)
Once passed then national laws can set the stage, and the courts can then protect the people from future Republican attempts to game the process.
Now, Republicans are likely to try to stop such an amendment. In this case Democrats should pull them into the corner and offer the following choice. "We are now in charge. If you don't agree to a uniform, fair system, then we'll start using your tactics on you. You know you can't win national elections now if all eligible voters vote and the votes are counted. It will be even worse for you if we supress Republican vots the way you did to us. So, agree to a fair system and then start figuring out how you'll appeal to the center, and not just your hard right."
Posted by Anonny at October 29, 2008 04:26 AMAnother difference between the parties.
Repubs propose one (nonsense) constitutional amendment after another, Dems never propose a single (good) one.
Posted by euzoius at October 29, 2008 06:35 AM