Republicans in key 2020 states ramp up their war on voting

Republicans have a plan for winning in 2020, and as usual, it’s not to propose broadly popular policies such as raising the minimum wage. No, keeping people from voting is more the Republican style, and lawmakers in several states, including key swing states, are working hard at it.

In Florida, voters passed Amendment 4 last fall, restoring the vote to 1.4 million disenfranchised former felons. Republican lawmakers looked at that and at increased voter registration numbers and crafted a law to keep more than 500,000 people from regaining their voting rights. The bill, versions of which have been passed by both the state House and the state Senate, bans people from voting until they’ve paid all restitution, fines, and fees—payments many cannot afford.

In Arizona, another potential battleground state, Republicans have moved to curtail emergency voting in the days between the end of early voting and Election Day.

Tennessee just passed a law attacking voter registration drives by imposing big fines on groups that turn in incomplete voter registration forms. The catch is that groups are required to turn in any voter registration forms they collect. So if they collect an incomplete form, they’re screwed either way—not turning it in is a violation, but so is turning it in.

Texas Republicans, too, are moving to clamp down on voter registration in the wake of an election where Democrats picked up 12 state legislative seats and came closer than expected in a race for the U.S. Senate.

“If you can’t win fairly, cheat” is the unofficial Republican motto on multiple fronts. They fairly obviously take it as a bonus if the cheating deprives black people and poor people of their voting rights.

from Daily Kos http://bit.ly/2PM1JZ6