Voter Suppression Tactics Backfire on GOP, Galvanizing Voters' Resolve

[xchrom]

http://www.alternet.org/election-2012/voter-suppression-tactics-backfire-gop-galvanizing-voters-resolve



In his symphony of a victory speech, President Barack Obama bounded out of the gate putting his opponents on notice that he hadn’t missed all the tricks they tried to keep his voters from casting their votes.

“I want to thank every American who participated in this election,” Obama said, “whether you voted for the very first time, or waited in line for a very long time — by the way, we have to fix that.”

For all of the efforts that Republicans put into suppressing Democratic votes in the presidential election of 2012, the result may prove to be the greatest turnout of African American voters ever. Exit polls show that the black vote in this election appears to have exceeded the record high turnout of 2008 , despite the fact that this year even more people had to wait on lines for hours, endured confusion at polling places, were told to produce IDs that the law does not require, and made to cast provisional ballots because of snafus at election sites.

“Funny thing about black folks -- just try to tell us we can’t do something,” said Dr. Ron Daniels, former third-party presidential candidate and former executive director of the Rainbow Coalition, on the election-night special hosted by Mark Thompson on SiriusXM radio.

[Skidmore]

1. We need to start preparing for the next election now

and plug the holes in the system while getting reforms in place.

[Anthony McCarthy]

2. Hurray for The Voters

the roots and trunk of democracy, the only reason the branches exist.

NOW DEMOCRATS MUST PROTECT THE VOTE, its integrity, its status as a civil right. The right to cast an informed vote is the most important of all political rights. It's the major reason that free speech and free press matter.

[Scuba]

3. Americans standing up for their democracy.

[randome]

4. The GOP pissed off EVERYONE this election.

Foreign heads of state. Gays. Women. Blacks. Car industry. And, finally, their own voters.

They are eating themselves.

[AsahinaKimi]

5. They are like that "Mayhem" guy in

The All State Insurance commercials. They would simply reply.."Its our job to do that."

[randome]

6. Excellent!

[fasttense]

7. It seems to me RepubliCONS Always over do it.

They always go to such extremes that it galvanizes people against them. The war on women went from anti-choice, to no birth control, to no planned parenthood, to no women's health care insurance.

The voter suppression went from looking for illegal immigrants voting, to papers please, to crazy ID laws, to reduction of voting hours and places, to unimaginable long lines.

They just can't keep it within the bounds of common sense. They always move on to the crazy and anger normal thinking Americans.