What are Republicans afraid of? Voters

If the fairness of the election process is doubtful, can a place be called a democracy? If the majority uses its power to take away the voting rights of the minority, can a place be called a democracy? If those in power manipulate the voting process to reduce their opponents’ voter turnout, can a place be called a democracy?

We’re living through a period of Republican tyranny — sad, ironic tyranny.  Republicans have used their majority to pass legislation that would shorten the time for voting, require voter ID, eliminate straight-ticket voting and same-day registration and forbid counties from voter registration programs. If these were to become law, the result would be lower voter turnout because of disenfranchisement and complication of the process. Who would be most affected? Senior citizens, the disabled, women (especially the newly married or divorced) and minorities.  All these are Democratic constituencies. North Carolina’s rise in voter turnout over the last decade would be reversed — something Republicans desperately need if they are to hold power.

Ironically, Republicans claim that they want a return to the Founding Fathers, but our Founding Fathers saw fairness as the core idea in the new democracy. They began with a spiritual concept: that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights. The doctrine of fairness appears all through our founding documents. Fairness is basic to America.

What the Republicans are doing in Raleigh is not just unfair. It’s shabby, Third World, petty, sordid, tawdry, demeaning, last-class. It belongs to the Ralph Reed “win by any means” school of subterfuge. It’s not worthy of people who claim to hold Christian values, like Philippians 2:3. It’s certainly not American.

So what are Republicans afraid of anyway? Oh my, could it be the voters?

— Lee Ballard
Mars Hill

SHARE

Thanks for reading through to the end…

We share your inclination to get the whole story. For the past 25 years, Xpress has been committed to in-depth, balanced reporting about the greater Asheville area. We want everyone to have access to our stories. That’s a big part of why we've never charged for the paper or put up a paywall.

We’re pretty sure that you know journalism faces big challenges these days. Advertising no longer pays the whole cost. Media outlets around the country are asking their readers to chip in. Xpress needs help, too. We hope you’ll consider signing up to be a member of Xpress. For as little as $5 a month — the cost of a craft beer or kombucha — you can help keep local journalism strong. It only takes a moment.

About Webmaster
Mountain Xpress Webmaster Follow me @MXWebTeam

Before you comment

The comments section is here to provide a platform for civil dialogue on the issues we face together as a local community. Xpress is committed to offering this platform for all voices, but when the tone of the discussion gets nasty or strays off topic, we believe many people choose not to participate. Xpress editors are determined to moderate comments to ensure a constructive interchange is maintained. All comments judged not to be in keeping with the spirit of civil discourse will be removed and repeat violators will be banned. See here for our terms of service. Thank you for being part of this effort to promote respectful discussion.

20 thoughts on “What are Republicans afraid of? Voters

  1. indy499

    People who participate in voter fraud would also be disenfranchised if an ID were required.

    I’d personally like to require and IQ and an ID, but the former probably isn’t going to happen.

  2. chops

    travelah –

    Saying that voters put them there is an oversimplification of the process. Many voters don’t vote, or can’t vote for their candidate.

    We can do better. I think that our form of democracy is still evolving, and we have a long way to go before it is fair.

    For example, IRV and public campaign funding are two areas where the process can be improved.

  3. travelah

    … he was really happy when he congratulated himself over the great job he is doing in fundamentally transforming the country into something unrecognizable by most Americans. The smile will instantly transform into a frown when he comes to realize that executive decisions are easily reversed by succeeding executives.

  4. travelah

    In a very real sense, that is true although the acceleration of the decline is becoming exponential.

  5. Damm the torpedos, full steam ahead….we’re headed for hell in a hand basket. There’s no turning back once we slide down the abyss.

  6. bill smith

    [b]the acceleration of the decline is becoming exponential. [/b]

    Yes, the true costs of decades of spending on the military industrial complex are indeed coming to fruition. I take it you’re voting Ron Paul?

  7. John

    @Bill

    Ummm… I’m not sure I follow. But in the interest of fairness, every Ron Paul supporter I know is a vocal opponent of the MIC. It’s one the things they get right.

  8. bill smith

    [i]Ummm… I’m not sure I follow.[/i]

    I’m noting the possible irony of the Republican’s claim that the current ‘acceleration of decline’ is somehow the direct result of the current POTUS and not the decisions made by both parties over decades time. The reference to Dr. Paul is just a tongue-in-cheek reference to how Republicans like to PRETEND they hold the values that man espouses, but generally vote for the GW Bushes.

  9. Ashevegasjoe

    Trav, the voters also put Bev Perdue in as Governor, and I would like to thank her for vetoing like W in his last term– chop em’ down Bev!

  10. bill smith

    It’s going to be a tough election year for Republicans. They will have to vote for Romney, who is too similar to Obama for their alleged tastes. But then, who else they gonna vote for? Bachman? Pawlenty? Gingrich? Heck, Obama’s a better Republican than all of them.

    Poor guys. Their party jumped the shark.

  11. Ashevegasjoe

    I hope they go with Bachman and force even more independents to leave the party. Plus a Bachman Obama debate would just be hilarious.

  12. NativeMtnBoy

    I love it when liberals use the “But that’s not Christian of you” argument. First to remove God from public exposure, but first to hold someone else to standards they themselves wouldn’t abide by.

Leave a Reply to mat catastrophe ×

To leave a reply you may Login with your Mountain Xpress account, connect socially or enter your name and e-mail. Your e-mail address will not be published. All fields are required.