Sunday, August 12, 2012

A voter ID law is a no-brainer

How does one begin to answer those who want to suppress a law for voter ID? A law that will guarantee the ability of all “eligible” citizens during an election to cast a safe ballot.

One would like to believe that any intelligent, law-abiding, “legal” citizen would want his or her vote protected. That each legal vote is not cast out by a vote from an “illegal” resident, a vote that is cast by a legal citizen, just not a legal resident of the city, town, or state they happen to be in on an election day.

Recently, a letter appeared in the paper stating that the Cheshire Republican Party did a voter fraud check and that is incorrect. It was a private citizen, and I am the citizen who did a very small mailing. It was done predominately in the area surrounding Keene State College following the 2004 election.

Out of 75 mailings, 35 first class post cards were returned undeliverable. With the assistance of Bill Gardner, secretary of state, and then-Assistant state Attorney General Bud Fitch, the voters in question were investigated. Five of the voters were found to be registered not only in Keene and Rindge, but also in their hometowns or state, although the investigation did clear them of voting in more than one location.

From this same group, the Attorney General’s Office notified the voters in question that they cannot continue to have an out-of-state, or town driver’s license while registered to vote in Keene and Rindge.

They were advised they had 60 days (RSA 261:44 -2005) to change their licenses to a valid New Hampshire driver’s licenses, and for those with out-of-town New Hampshire driver’s licenses, they have 10 days (RSA263:9 - 2005) to update them or risk being removed from the local voter checklists.

The AG’s office did find one case of fraud by a person who was not, nor ever, a resident of Keene. Once the information was validated, a bench warrant was issued. The remaining voters were primarily students who moved back to their “legal” residences and it was requested they be removed from local checklists.

This again brings us back to the persistent and serious problem of students voting in their “host” state, as opposed to voting in the state of legal residence. No student should be prevented from his or her right to vote and that is why we have absentee ballots.

The tired overworked mantras of those who want to go against the laws of our land are tossed around ad nauseam. Oh, the poor, minorities, infirm, and anyone in between will be disenfranchised!

Not a word of it is true: The poor are provided free identification, the infirm are provided absentee ballots.

Who would have thought in 2012 this country would need to rise up and fight for the rights of religious groups across the country.

The fictitious “war on women” is nothing more than a smokescreen to hide the outright anti-Catholic sentiment that is being promoted by the present administration.

We are witnessing untold damage by a “minority” of union thugs, and when we should have the assurance of our top law enforcement leader, Attorney General Holder, to protect our rights, he blatantly refused to prosecute those (Black Panthers) who physically prevented citizens from voting in the last general election.

What can we expect in the upcoming election?

MARILYN HUSTON
362 Roxbury St.
Keene

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

REF: Letter to Editor, "One would like to believe that any intelligent, law-abiding, “legal” citizen would want his or her vote protected. That each legal vote is not cast out by a vote from an “illegal” resident, a vote that is cast by a legal citizen, just not a legal resident of the city, town, or state they happen to be in on an election day".

This leaves Winchester intelligent, law abiding resident out...... When you file 22 complaints of voter fraud to the Attorney General's Office who couldn't get off his lazy a$$ by coming to Winchester to interview the complaintents. The selectmen rifled threw the absentee ballots. Fair votes that count...my A$$

;iars one and all said...

Ya and don't forget there were 3 different "official" absentee ballots to boot. Talk about a rigged election, how do you think they stay in office and get their cronies elected. And don't forget the two warrant articles that didn't pass until Gus Ruth did a recount and suddenly after several people had already counted the ballots, Ruth finds errors and those warrants pass. This town is as crooked as a snakes back. Oh that's right, it's run by snakes.

Anonymous said...

Do you recall which warrants those were?

The Sidewalk was one of them. Hummmm!

Anonymous said...

One was Sharra's "Bridge To No Where"!

Anonymous said...

I remember the former school superintendent, the Red Dragon, bringing in carloads of people to register to vote on election day. The only ID required was a Winchester utility bill. Mary Johnson just put them all through. The passed the huge bond to rebuild Thayer. After a year or so of legal challenges the kids got sent to Keene and the money was still spent on the building and we continue to pay for it.