Just minutes ago, I noticed that Secretary of State Ross Miller had announced his plan to sponsor a voter ID bill early next year when the Legislature returns to Carson City. And my eyes were about ready to pop put. What. The. F***??!!
In looking at the details, it doesn't seem quite as gruesome. Apparently, registered voters without DMV approved ID's would have their pictures taken while signing affidavits stating who they are. Still, this is raising serious red flags.
For one, there's the $7-10 million cost of implementing this. For all the complaining about the budget, why take this on now? Couldn't that money be better spent maintaining roads?
Also, there's the issue of "voter fraud". Long story short: One is far more likely to be struck by lightning and/or encounter an UFO than to witness "voter fraud"! This truly is a "solution" in need of a problem...
Unless one takes into consideration a distinctly political problem that Republicans have. Rep. John Lewis (D-Georgia) alluded to it at the Democratic Convention in Charlotte in September.
Even if Ross Miller believes he's acting in good faith by reaching across the aisle and proposing a voter ID bill, chances are most Republicans have no plan to do the same. Rather, they may see this as an opportunity to snatch some "bipartisan cover" to push voter suppression. This is truly disappointing.
(What's more likely is Miller is setting himself up for a "Nixon goes to China" moment to boost his political future. We'll see how well this goes...)
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