Mississippi Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann today publicly addressed questionable comments about Mississippi reportedly made by a DOJ employee: “I find these comments unprofessional, unwarranted, irresponsible, and misguided, particularly with Mississippi’s pending voter identification submission before the Department of Justice. I respectfully request the Department of Justice take appropriate disciplinary action against Ms. Gyamfi and to publicly clarify its own position that such a statement does not reflect the opinions of its department.” Hosemann was responding to comments allegedly made by Department of Justice employee Stephanie Gyamfi , who reportedly posted on Facebook: “A Justice Department employee stating our state is ‘disgusting and shameful’ is another indication Mississippi’s voter ID submission will not receive fair consideration,” said Hosemann. “I do not believe an employee who makes such statements should review any voter identification application by the State of Mississippi, or, for that matter, any state subject to Section 5.” GulfLive.com has the full story.
“They never do…disgusting and shameful. Hey, that should replace the state motto! “Mississippi: Disgusting and Shameful.”…forget the magnolia state motto.”
Monthly Archives: May 2012
“Mississippi SecState Blasts DOJ Employee’s Comments”
Bryan Preston at PJ Tatler has more.
So does WLBT-TV.
Fox 40.
WDAM.
Y’All Politics.
WLBT-TV on DOJ Voting Section
Section 5 Lawsuit in SC
Parents bring a case under Section 5 to block uncleared changes by the Florence School Board. No word why DOJ didn’t bring the suit. Perhaps the changes were cleared or not changes. Perhaps not.
Mississippi Addressing DOJ “Disgusting & Shameful” Comments Today
The Scoop from the Magnolia Report: Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann will hold a press conference at 10 a.m. on the Second Floor of the State Capitol Rotunda. Secretary Hosemann will address recent comments allegedly made by a United States Department of Justice Voting Rights Division employee calling Mississippi “Disgusting and Shameful.” Anita MonCrief, ACORN whistleblower and National Spokesperson for True the Vote, is also expected to attend the news conference. Last week it was revealed that Stephanie Celandine Gyamfi , a DOJ employee responsible for reviewing election law preclearance applications from states subject to Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act, had THIS to say about Mississippi, via her Facebook page: “Disgusting and shameful. Hey, that should replace the state motto… Mississippi: Disgusting and Shameful… Forget the magnolia state motto.” Hosemann has said that he hopes to have Mississippi’s voter ID law precleared and in place by November.
“The Left’s National Vote Fraud Strategy Exposed”
A detailed, heavily linked discussion of everything at AIM.
More on South Carolina Ballot Access Wipeout
Sun News. “Any change to the state’s election laws requires approval from the U.S. Justice Department because of the 1969 [SIC] Voting Rights Act, and Justice Department officials can take up to 60 days to make a decision. South Carolina’s Republican and Democratic primaries are scheduled for June 6 – 29 days away. Lawmakers will meet Tuesday to try to address the problem. “The big obstacle is we don’t control our own destiny,” Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Larry Martin, R-Pickens, said Monday. “We’re going to make a good-faith effort to convince them to expedite any change we make to the benefit of affected candidates … assuming we can get it passed.”
“Texas Gets Last Shot” – Perverse Scheduling
Business Week. “Texas, which sued the U.S. seeking permission to enforce the photo ID requirements, pushed for a quick trial, telling the federal court that it needed a ruling by Aug. 15 to have the law in place for the election. A state election official later told the court a ruling could come as late as Aug. 31.”
This story illustrates a perverse situation. States, bearing the burden of proof, are the ones who would benefit from more time to prepare for trial. The DOJ, with the favorable statutory environment they face under the amended (2006) Section 5, would seem to benefit from a quick trial. Yet the states (Texas and South Carolina) are both pushing for quick trials. DOJ is asking for time. No doubt they do this because they assume, perhaps rightly, that the statutory environment is very favorable to the DOJ case.
This is why the challenge made by Texas to the constitutionality of Section 5 may determine the outcome of voter ID there. If a state does not challenge the constitutionality of Section 5, they are not likely to prevail in a straight statutory trial, especially one set in July of this year. The constitutional challenge may be the only way to preserve voter ID, and Texas seems to get it.
DOJ Monitoring Wisconsin Elections
DOJ is on the ground in Wisconsin today monitoring elections. No word if attorneys are joined by Assistant Attorney General Tom Perez on another of his many multi-purpose trips to Milwaukee.
The Next Breitbart Carpet Bomb: Justice for Sale at DOJ
“Attorney General Eric Holder and the Department of Justice are operating under a ‘justice for sale’ strategy by forgoing criminal prosecution of Wall Street executives at big financial institutions who just so happen to be clients of the white-shoe law firms where Holder and his top DOJ lieutenants worked. There’s more.”
First sortie here at Breitbart.com.