The U.S. Department of Justice typically makes sure voting laws comply with the Voting Rights Act. President Barack Obama’s administration has already shot down voter ID laws in South Carolina and Texas.  The scuttlebutt around the Capitol is that Mississippi officials may attempt to bypass the DOJ and let the federal courts decide on Mississippi’s law.  In its recent budget, lawmakers appropriated $495,000 to Mississippi Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann’s office for voter ID litigation.  link

Mississippi has prudently anticipated a half million dollar down payment for the upcoming administrative and court battle with DOJ and at least a year delay of enactment of the state constitutional amendment and implementing law, all in an effort to gain preclearance from DOJ under Section 5 of the VRA.  South Carolina similarly anticipates the cost of the entire litigation will be over one million dollars as it attempts to enact its photo ID law.  The lengthy and contentious litigation with Texas has to be reaching a million dollars.  And don’t forget the dozens of intervenors that like to insert themselves into the process and drown the states in paper and discovery requests. 

Rest assured, DOJ will treat this voter ID litigation like death penalty litigation – no expense or litigation tactic is off the table.  And that is after the Supreme Court and the 9th Circuit has ruled on photo ID, upholding the law finding no burden on minorities.  DOJ has provided no deferrence given to judicial direction.  Now compare that burdensome road to Tennessee, Kansas and Rhode Island who faced no similar delay or expensive litigation battle with the Department of Justice.