Author Archives: J Christian Adams

“DOJ and IRS tight-lipped on campaign finance probes” but Cruz not silent on First Amendment

Politico reports that the federal agencies didn’t have much to say and only two Senators showed up.  However, Senator Cruz provides a defense of the First Amendment despite his personal experience. 

Cruz — the only other senator at the hearing — repeatedly raised questions of possible First Amendment violations.

“In my view, whenever congress acts in the area of political speech,
the touchstone of everything we do should be the First Amendment of the
Constitution,” he said.

“I would point out that in saying this I’m not unfamiliar with the
downsides,” he added. “In Texas I just came off of a campaign, where I
was outspent 3 to 1, and let me just say those who chose to put
resources into launching attacks against me had a First Amendment right
to do so. And God bless them for speaking out and being involved in
politics.”

“More States Look to Voter ID laws as Solution to Voter Fraud

IVN reports: Since the beginning of the year, 30 states have introduced voter ID proposals. Of the 30 proposals,
12 states wish to introduce new voter ID laws: Illinois, Iowa,
Maryland, Massachusetts, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New
York, North Carolina, West Virginia, and Wyoming.  Arkansas now joins the list of seven states pushing for stricter
voter ID laws, accompanied by Connecticut, Missouri, Montana, North
Dakota, Oklahoma, and Virginia.

Rand Paul at Howard U on Voter ID

A must read article about Sen. Rand Paul’s speech at Howard University, civil rights and Paul not being afraid to tackle racial issues, including the disservice of the civil rights groups to the communities they purportedly represent:

Paul tackled some 30 minutes of tough questioning ranging from Malcolm X to the Environmental Protection Agency. When asked by a former Obama intern how he felt about voter ID laws, Paul said he didn’t think it was a burden for people to show a driver’s license to maintain the integrity of the polls, but didn’t approve of 100-page literacy tests Democrats forced blacks to take during reconstruction to suppress their vote.

Ouch.  And more:

Paul asked a hushed audience:


“How did the party that elected the first black US Senator, the party that elected the first 20 African-American congressmen become a party that now loses 95% of the black vote?”


He said after the Great Depression and Civil Rights Act, blacks wanted “economic emancipation” and began voting Democrat because Democrats promised “unlimited federal assistance”. He added: Republicans offered something that seemed less tangible-the promise of equalizing opportunity through free markets. After nearly 50 years of Democrat policies, Paul argued the evidence shows that big government is not a friend to African Americans. He pointed to persistent high unemployment among blacks, presently 13.3%, nearly twice the national average, blacks trapped in failing schools and their declining wealth.

Some other Republicans could take a lesson from Rand Paul on how to handle these issues.  Some popular Republicans are petrified of talking about these issues, unless they are saying how they will capitulate on issues like Voter ID.  Paul provides a different model.

More at PJ Media, including some misguided student who attended the event with a sign profoundly noting: Howard Does Not Support White Supremacy. 

Who does?






More Voter Fraud in Illinois Election

“Charges of election fraud are being leveled in two metro east communities. St. Clair County Clerk Bob Delaney says his office is holding on to nearly 400 absentee ballots and applications for absentee ballots for this municipal election that he believes are fraudulent.

“Two weeks ago we started getting calls from people who’d seen the public posting of the names of those who’d requested absentee ballots and they were saying that’s not me.”

Full story here.

Prison Time for Non-Citizen Voter

A must read story from a sentencing hearing in Michigan:

A Berrien Springs woman who is not a U.S. citizen was given jail time for signing a voter registration form and voting in the 2008 presidential election.

Dilsa Maria Saddler, 46, got a tongue lashing from sentencing Judge Dennis Wiley in Berrien County Trial Court Monday. She also heard the assistant prosecutor on her case speculate that Saddler was the victim of an overzealous voter registration drive by the campaign of then-U.S. Sen. Barack Obama in 2008.



Wiley sentenced Saddler to 10 days in jail and 100 hours of community service.



Wiley gave a lecture during sentencing.



“When people zealously or otherwise go through voter registration efforts to register people to vote who can’t vote, (it’s) offensive,” Wiley said. “That’s not the way this country was founded. Every person has one vote, from the president to the most lowly of citizens. I think what struck a chord with me was that we have people out to undermine that.”



Wiley said the case is an argument for requiring photo identification for voting.



“When I hear the hue and cry about denying people the right to vote by requiring an ID, I think about how people have to have papers to get on a plane, but it seems like people can sign a piece of paper and show up to vote,” he said. “It shows the vulnerability of the system.”



Four Months for Democrat Legislator Fraudster


“Former Rep. Stephen “Stat” Smith has been sentenced to four months in federal prison for two misdemeanor counts of voter fraud.


The Everett politician pled guilty earlier this year with an agreement from U.S. Attorney Carmen Ortiz that prosecutors would recommend a six-month sentence.”  Patriot Ledger.

Notably, the U.S. Attorney’s office didn’t emphasize the irrelevant question of whether enough votes were fraudulently cast to flip an election.  Rightfully, that isn’t the point:

“We can never know whether this crime has altered the outcome of an election,” prosecutors wrote in a sentencing memorandum. “Nevertheless, the public’s confidence in the electoral process has been adversely affected by the defendant’s actions.”

Florida Voter Fraud Charges

From the press release:

LAKE CITY – Following an investigation by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, two Lake City residents surrendered themselves to authorities on charges of election fraud today.  Betty Jefferson, 64, of Lake City, Fla., faces 24 felony and two misdemeanor violations of state election laws, and Linda Ivery, 56, of Lake City, Fla., is charged with six felony and two misdemeanor counts of election law violations.  Both suspects turned themselves into the Columbia County Jail earlier today and were released on their own recognizance.   


The allegations stem from the election of Eugene Jefferson to the District 10 city council seat.  Betty Jefferson, wife of Eugene Jefferson, and Ivery allegedly asked voters to sign absentee ballots that were already completed, fraudulently obtained absentee ballots, and attempted to influence or deceive persons into signing absentee ballots.   


 


The investigation began following complaints to the Florida Department of State, Division of Elections, and the FBI.   State Attorney for the Eighth Judicial Circuit, William Cervone, will prosecute this case. 


 

Colorado Democrats: Election Process Wins Elections

Colorado Democrats (as well as Democrats all over the country) recognize that changing the rules involving election process issues helps Democrats win elections.  They also know that if you can package the suggested changes as “trying to make voting more accessible,” then the victims of the process changes tend to keep quiet.  The central fact remains: Democrats propose these changes not for good government reasons, but to help them win and keep power, period.  If the changes did not benefit Democrats, Democrats would not propose them.

The Colorado Springs Gazette:


Colorado Democrats are planning sweeping changes to how elections are run in the state, to the dismay of Republican leaders who say they’ve been excluded from crafting a bill that that would allow same-day voter registration and require mailed ballots to every eligible voter.



A bill of more than 100 pages is expected to be introduced this week, likely sparking a big partisan fight over whether the changes benefit one party over the other, according to the Associated Press.


Supporters of the changes, which also include eliminating the so-called “inactive voter” status, say the goal is to make voting more accessible.


“I think people are like me, they just want people engaged in the Democratic process,” said Democratic Sen. Angela Giron, one of the bill sponsors. She insisted they didn’t exclude Republicans from the process.


Republican Secretary of State Scott Gessler, who oversees elections and has butted heads with Democrats on a range of issues, said the bill was “written in complete secrecy excluding anyone who may have a different point of view.”