Ag Schimel appeals to base bragging up scheme to suppress voting.

Scott Walker's simpleton lackey AG Brad Schimel just admitted voter ID was meant to suppress certain targeted voters from casting a ballot. Sometimes these guys forget that everyone can hear them. 

Based on decades of research, we already know our elections were "clean" and "honest," Schimel's slip of the tongue and concluding lie confirms what we already knew...he's a tool:

"We battled to get voter ID on the ballot for the November '16 election," Schimel told conservative host Vicki McKenna on WISN (1130 AM) on Thursday. "How many of your listeners really honestly are sure that Senator (Ron) Johnson was going to win re-election or President Trump was going to win Wisconsin if we didn’t have voter ID to keep Wisconsin’s elections clean and honest and have integrity?"

Funny thing, the "Soros" money used to challenge voter ID laws is simply being used to find out if they're constitutional. What is Schimel or any Republican afraid of? I guess if the money dried up to make these challenges, all would be well? 

He has fought in court to keep the law in place and his opponent, Josh Kaul, is the lead attorney challenging it and a host of other election laws. Kaul "works for George Soros going across the country suing states that have voter ID laws," Schimel said.

It really was about a National Voter Photo ID!!!

Was Trump trying to justify a nationwide requirement for photo ID? Was that the point of the Presidential Advisory Committee on Election Integrity? Of course it was, and Kansas' Secretary of State and Vice-chairman Kris Kobach the best man to make it happen. Real "states rights" and "small government-like," right? 

But when Trump dissolved the committee, he and Kobach spewed completely different answers. Why did they lie, and what are they trying to hide?

It's NOT about Photo ID? Well, that's what Kris Kobach told NPR's Robert Siegel:

SIEGEL: Do you think that's entirely about stubbornness on the Democratic - on the left side of this? There are people who think that the right to vote is so vitally important that requiring somebody to have a state, you know, photo ID or something is compromising one of the most basic democratic right. They have a different point of view. You couldn't reach some kind of compromise with them about these things?

KOBACH: Well, the commission wasn't even opining on the subject of photo ID. So that wasn't even on the - that wasn't even a topic of discussion at any of the meetings.

SIEGEL: I think your critics felt it was all leading in that direction, and that you've characterized...

KOBACH: Well...

SIEGEL: ...What should be the outcome (unintelligible).

KOBACH: The critics were making a bizarre and frankly idiotic argument. They were claiming that by looking at the issue of voter fraud, that was going to cause state legislatures to pass laws that would, in their view, make voting more difficult. And in their view, that would include photo ID. Well, that's ridiculous.

Trump says it was about Photo ID!!! Now here's what Trump officially said twice, in two consecutive tweets, contradicting Kobach:

Again, the simple truth behind Republican efforts to put as many hurdles in front of voters as they possibly can, like union membership, food stamps and unemployment, is to suppress voter participation: Here's a quick summary:

Voter ID = Rigged Elections/GOP Wins?

It's almost like Republicans get to keep old talking points by simply adding to them with new ones. Just saying....

Judge Peterson on DMV Voter ID Suppression: "Disturbing pattern...state is willing to take minimal effort unless compelled (by) litigation.

Now that we have a totally partisan elections board, few Wisconsinites will take seriously actual problems raised by a few “minority” Democratic members, as long as we have a Republican administration. 

The actual problem was predictable, and pretty simple:

The advocacy group VoteRiders showed Division of Motor Vehicles offices statewide gave inaccurate information to people seeking IDs to vote in November.

That's when the normally rabid Republican preoccupation with electoral integrity disappeared completely.

And that's when a federal judge took immediate action September 30th:

Judge James Peterson ordered the state to “investigate these allegations and provide a report to the court by Oct. 7,” which would include “any corrective action to be taken.”

As expected, Scott Walker’s embarrassing AG lackey Brad Schimel said he didn't see what VoteRiders saw and recorded:

Two Democratic state election commissioners, Mark Thomsen and Ann Jacobs, in a newly released letter to a federal judge, accuse GOP Attorney General Brad Schimel’s Department of Justice, representing the state in the case, of misleading the court in a report submitted Friday. 

In that report, the DOJ said it found no additional problems with how DMVs were handling voter ID in addition to what was previously reported … The DOJ also described state efforts to publicize the petition process as “robust” — which Thomsen and Jacobs dispute in their letter. They note the Elections Commission, the state agency overseeing elections, has gotten no new funding to publicize the petition process.

Federal Judge James Peterson had a few things to say about that at this mornings hearing. Here are a number of reporters tweets during the hearing:

Judge Peterson: "pretty clear" state of WI fell short on obligations for #voterID process at least through September … #voterID training for WI DMV workers was "manifestly inadequate," additional training added recently a "welcome improvement … The WI DMV (was) not communicating to voters what they need to get an ID.

The state is willing to take minimal efforts unless it is compelled to do so because of this litigation. Judge tells #WI DOJ "disturbing pattern here, state only responds to litigation when the problems were entirely predictable" … Judge Peterson says he's inclined to keep voter ID law in place, says he's not sure he has authority to knock it down anyway.

BONUS: Who Would Have Guessed - "Anecdotal Evidence" Voter Fraud is Rampant in NYC: Just for fun, I had to pass on this wonderfully over-the-top, evidence free declaration that NYC is going voter fraud crazy. Not surprisingly, every nonsensical stereotype is listed by a voter ID supporting disgruntled "Democrat." I almost can't remember all the times Republicans said voter ID will help their candidates win...

The conservative nonprofit group Project Veritas has released an undercover video of a Manhattan Democratic representative on the city’s Board of Elections Alan Schulkin ... Footage released Tuesday shows him blasting fraud that New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio’s municipal ID program has cultivated in the city.

“He gave out ID cards, de Blasio. That’s in lieu of a driver’s license, but you can use it for anything. But they didn’t vet people to see who they really are. Anybody can go in there and say, ‘I am Joe Smith, I want an ID card. It’s absurd. There is a lot of fraud. Not just voter fraud, all kinds of fraud … This is why I get more conservative as I get older.”

"Certain neighborhoods in particular” have unregistered voters bused around the city to vote multiple times ... when prompted on minority areas he replied, “Yeah, and Chinese, too. Your vote isn’t really counting, because they can go [into the polling station] with a burqa on and you don’t know if they are a voter. Your vote gets discounted because they come in with a burqa on and they can vote.”

Mr. Schulkin told the Post for its story that he should have said “potential fraud” instead of “fraud,” and that he was “just trying to placate” the Project Veritas employee when they met. “She was like a nuisance,” he told the newspaper.

Walker's phony Voter ID Credentials Scheme Exposed! Judge orders State Report by October 7th.

In a block bust discovery: The Nation's Ari Berman reported that Scott Walker's plan to provide a quick voter IDs to those who don't have a birth certificate still wasn't up and running yet. So US District Judge James Peterson immediately stepped it:

WSJ: Judge orders state to probe report that DMV gave false information on voter ID: Judge James Peterson's order followed a report this week by The Nation that cast doubt on whether Gov. Scott Walker's administration is following a judge's instructions in a court challenge to the state's voter ID law.

I know, it seems crazy to have the state (fox) investigate itself (the hen house) over defying a court order to provide these ID credentials for at least the upcoming election:

The Nation report featured recordings of exchanges with DMV employees that appear to thwart efforts by a homeless man to obtain an ID to vote in the November election.

Peterson, who is presiding over one of two pending legal challenges to Wisconsin's voter ID law, ruled in July that the state must promptly provide voter ID credentials, valid in the November election, to people who request them -- even if they lack some of the underlying documents needed to obtain an ID.

"These reports, if true, demonstrate that the state is not in compliance with this court’s injunction order" from July, Peterson wrote. "The report should explain the scope of the investigation, its results, and any corrective action to be take.”.

Peterson's order instructs the state to "investigate these allegations and provide a report to the court by Oct. 7."

Here's a Twitter screen capture posted by Nation reporter Ari Berman:

"It Just Takes Time:" Admit it, Walker never had any intention of following through on his plan to provide voter ID's until after the election, whether he got caught or not:

Molly McGrath, the national campaign coordinate for VoteRiders, which helps people get voter IDs, accompanied Moore to the DMV and recorded the trip. Read this exchange between her and DMV employees:

More here at Think Progress

Molly: If you initiate the petition process do you get an ID for voting?

DMV Employee 1: No, you don’t get anything.

DMV Employee 2: No, you don’t get anything right away.

Molly: Ok, so even if we start the petition process, and it takes eight weeks, he wouldn’t be able to vote.

DMV Employee 1: Right, right, right.

DMV Employee 2: Well, I don’t know, they’re working on that. It’s kind of up in the air right now.

Molly: I thought you could get an ID, like the sign says over there: “No birth certificate, no problem.” You can get an ID to vote.

DMV Employee 3: You can. It just takes the time.

Molly: So even if we just start the petition process, he wouldn’t get anything temporarily that says you can vote?

DMV Employee 3: Nope. Nope.

Here's Zack Moore,in his own words:

Walker's "small government" gets BIGGER!!! 3 ID's; less Secure Voter Photo ID, Photo ID for voting and check cashing, and a Drivers license. People who don't drive pay for Roads!

Let me see, a photo id card for voting, issued by the state, makes it legally clear you are who you say you are. After forking over a birth certificate, social security card and other forms of ID, Wisconsin knows it’s you, so vote. Again, the card codifies for legal purposes, you are who you say you are…with a picture to boot.

Not anymore, in our madcap upside down bubble world of Scott Walker. This Walker scheme is truly unbelievable, and would give Wisconsin 3 separate forms of ID. My head is hurting. That’s small, deregulated government? JS

Gov. Scott Walker’s administration wants to stamp “voting purposes only” on the free

IDs the state makes available, making it harder for people to use them to open bank accounts or prove their identity when they pick up their children from day care.

Walker’s not done dragging everybody down the rabbit hole: 

The Division of Motor Vehicles also is proposing having the state produce cheaper, lower-quality IDs that have fewer fraud protections.

Huh, FEWER fraud protections. Kinda the opposite of what Republicans said they wanted to with voter photo ID?

And it doesn’t stop there either. This is Walker’s way of funding the transportation department. Those cheaper low quality ID’s will force the poor and elderly who don't drive to spend money on the better photo ID, which should be free.

State officials believe the changes would increasing transportation funding by nearly $1 million over two years.

Jon Peacock, research director for the Wisconsin Council on Children and Families said, “I don’t think the elderly and low-income people who don’t drive should be the state’s target for boosting revenue for transportation spending.”

Ya think? These are the people that most likely don’t drive, paying to build the highways? My god.

Peacock said the proposal would create confusion because the state would begin issuing two types of IDs – ones that could be used only for voting and ones that could be used more broadly – as well as driver’s licenses. “Do state lawmakers want a pharmacist to tell my 80-year-old uncle that he can’t get his heart medication because he has the wrong kind of ID?” Peacock asked.

Walker’s Republicans promised those who didn’t have an ID could get a free one, avoiding the whole constitutional problem…until they realized it costs the state money.

The voter ID law made state IDs free to those who said they needed them for voting purposes. The result: Very few people pay the $28 fee for state IDs these days, according to budget documents.

In fiscal 2015, the state took in $437,000 from ID sales – 86% less than the $3.2 million it received in fiscal 2010.

In a comment only Republicans lacking a conscience would say or even think:

In the DMV budget request filed last week, officials noted the free ID cards have value beyond their ability to be used for voting. “If free ID cards were marked for ‘Voting Purposes Only’ this may discourage people from obtaining a free ID for purposes in addition to voting.” 30% of those seeking IDs would begin paying for them if the free ones were eligible for voting only.

There's a reason Walker refused to raise user fees -taxes- to fund transportation:

That would generate $970,000 over two years. However, some of that new money would be offset by $164,000 in costs because the state would have to alter its computer systems to accommodate the new type of IDs.

Courts catching on to Voter Suppression Laws!

No really, Republicans are definitely trying to suppress voting.

Here's the amazing facts behind the decision:

A federal appeals court on Friday struck down a North Carolina voting law finding that Republican lawmakers intentionally discriminated against African-Americans when they passed it. (The) 4th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals ruled that the measure's provisions "target African-Americans with almost surgical precision."

The voting law imposed a voter ID requirement, cut early voting opportunities, eliminated same-day voter registration and banned out-of-precinct voting, among other provisions.

Most damming, The appeals court — citing a lower court’s findings — noted that North Carolina legislators not only sought data breaking down voting practices by race, but then crated the law’s new provisions to single out practices disproportionately popular among African Americans, like early voting and provisional ballots. 

Race and Politics: Know now that they just aren't lying, they're also rigging elections because they can't win with their dystopian policies:

The state's history of racial discrimination in voting, the appeals court said, "highlight[s] the manner in which race and party are inexorably linked in North Carolina. This fact constitutes a critical — perhaps the most critical — piece of historical evidence here. The district court failed to recognize this linkage, leading it to accept "politics as usual; as a justification for many of the changes in [the voting law]. But that cannot be accepted where politics as usual translates into race-based discrimination."

The ruling is just the latest court win for voting rights advocates. A different federal appeals court ruled this month that Texas's voter ID law is racially discriminatory and must be softened. And a district court softened Wisconsin's ID law, too, though that decision is being appealed.

Walker trolls with dumbest tweets that can't help but embarrass state.

I would have assumed Scott Walker did all he could to appeal to the lowest common denominator with these recent tweets. But in an uh-oh moment, he appears to think just like them, unapologetically.

He really doesn't get the difference? Maybe now you know what we're dealing with in Wisconsin.

Walker says Super Delegates, not Voter ID, disenfranchises voters!!! Yet GOP still thinking about replacing Trump, disenfranchising voters!!!

Republicans are probably not familiar with the following old saying...

"Those who live in glass houses should not throw stones"

...because they keep throwing stones from the same glass house that keeps shattering around them time and time again.

The thing is, the following hypocrisy is so common place now that I may be the only one who is still frustrated enough to point it out:

By the way, Walker's wonderfully subtle and unintentional admission that voter ID has something to do with disenfranchisement is not to be forgotten anytime soon.

The Grand Old Party of anecdotes whines Democrats using anecdotes! Claims more time to vote gives "...too much access to the voters."

A federal judge continues to wade through the most outrageous excuses for voter ID and shorter voting hours ever. 

This breath taking partisan headline gleaned from a comment by a supposed nonpartisan county clerk caught my attention. Cap Times:

Waukesha county clerk: Weekend voting gave 'too much access' to Milwaukee, Madison.

That’s the problem; too much access for voters to vote. Who knew. Couldn’t have summed up the Republican scheme better.

The party that uses hearsay and anecdotal constituent stories to write policy, doesn’t like it when tables are turned, even though in this instance the stories aren’t anecdotal:

Attorneys for the state argue the plaintiffs are using anecdotal, "one-in-a-million" cases as an argument to strike down the laws.

Of course it was at that point state attorneys ironically went immediately to their anecdotal evidence:

Cedarburg City Clerk Constance McHugh said she hasn't seen long lines or other complications as a result of the photo ID requirement, and said voters in her community have been pleased to have it in place. 

And while Republicans claim voters are smart, and don’t need a costly ad campaign educating the public about the new voter ID laws, they aren't smart enough to handle more than one location for in-person absentee voting…which confuses them.

Clerk McHugh testified that a policy limiting in-person absentee voting to one location allows her to have more control over the process, and said she believes more than one location would be confusing for Cedarburg voters.

Port Washington city clerk Susan Westerbeke agreed … arguing statewide consistency can limit voter confusion.

So we’re smart, but easily confused? 

Here it comes, “TOO MUCH ACCESS TO THE VOTERS AS FAR AS OPPORTUNITIES.” God forbid that from ever happening:

"If there’s an office open 30 days versus an office that’s only open 10 work days, there are obviously voters that have a lot more access than someone else," Novack said.

"There has to come a point where it’s just giving over-access … to particular parts of the state." Asked whether she thought voters in Milwaukee and Madison had too much access, Novack said, "too much access to the voters as far as opportunities."

Large populations centers need more time to process voters, right? Not according to the Republican brain trust, who actually believe it (I thought they were just BSing). Here's the deal though, if small towns want to have longer voting hours like the cities, they should find a way to pay for it, and not take city hours away. Makes sense doesn't it? 

Waukesha County clerk Kathleen Novack. said she believes eliminating weekend voting "level(s) the playing field" between large urban areas and smaller suburban and rural communities that lack the resources to staff weekend hours.

While small communities argue against spending extra money on voting, they’re quick to spend city cash; with lines around the block, cities should spend more money on additional poll workers.

If long lines start to form at a polling place, Novack said, it would make more sense to add more staff and open more lines within that location rather than opening a second one. "For instance if you’re in the grocery store and there’s a long line, they open up another line," she said.

Finally, down the right wing rabbit hole we go for this classic…

She also argued long lines could be evidence that access is not an issue in urban areas. "Apparently access is an easy thing or they wouldn’t have long lines," she said.

Turns out Racial minorities Majority trying to get Voter ID's at DMV's

Are they that stupid, think we’re that stupid, or are they just that bad at running government? All three folks.

Nearly one-in-five applicants for a state-issued voter ID have been unable to obtain one ... that of the 61 applicants whose requests were denied, 85 percent were African-American, Latino or Native American. 

The well-researched claims voter ID regulations targeted minorities and low income individuals has been borne out by Wisconsinites who tried to get an ID. In an insulting attempt to distract from that reality, the DMV’s administrator claimed they weren’t “considering” race in the petition process, suggesting racial bias after “seeing” the applicant. No, we’re talking about those forced to go to their nearest DMV to exercise their right to vote. WPR:    

Kristina Boardman, administrator of the state Division of Motor Vehicles, which gives out the IDs, acknowledged there have been particular challenges locating vital records for some individuals born in the South, the Chicago area and Puerto Rico. She stressed, however, that race isn't considered during the petition process.

Again, that’s not the point. It’s now extremely clear; those who tried to get voter a ID at the DMV were minorities, the intentional target of suppression by Republicans …and they know it.  

African-Americans and Latinos make up more than half of those who obtain a free, state-issued ID card after going through a special petition process according to testimony heard in a federal trial on Monday on Wisconsin's controversial voter ID law … lawyers for the plaintiffs focused on racial disparities … despite the fact that those populations make up only 12 percent of the state’s general population.

Boardman did have to openly admit:

"Knowing generally the percentages of races of people in Wisconsin, it is disproportionate," testified Kristina Boardman, administrator of the state Division of Motor Vehicles, which gives out the IDs.

I will continue to use Scott Walker’s own standard for voting, and I’m paraphrasing: Even if one vote is stolen, that's one vote to many. The same should be true for taking even one vote away do to a lack of vital records.

1,389 people have entered the petition process between September 2014, when it was created, and May 12. About 1,100 of those cases have been resolved, resulting in the applicant receiving an ID, 98 cases have been cancelled, 67 are pending and 52 have been denied.

Last week, testimony revealed that 85 percent of ID denials since September 2014 were handed to African-Americans or Latinos. Denials occur when the individual and state -- working together -- are unable to find the vital records necessary for an ID. 

And how about Walker's last minute "rule." That can change or go away in an instant, because it it isn't a state law.

Boardman also spoke about an emergency rule approved by Gov. Scott Walker earlier this month ... allows individuals working through the petition process to vote by providing them a receipt that serves as valid identification at the polls.

Don't forget the arrogant off the cuff comments by Republican state legislators:

Dr. Allan Lichtman has testified ... that changes in Wisconsin's voting laws, particularly the shortening of early voting periods and the elimination of special registration deputies, disproportionately effect minorities and students. He also said Wisconsin politicians have been more open than others across the country about the political intent of the voter ID law.

Walker now writing election law, he calls "rules," to Influence Voter ID court challenges.

Wow, did voting in Wisconsin just get a whole lot more convoluted?

Let’s start with the idea that Scott Walker can write election law, which he's calling a “rule,” without the help of the legislature. Is this one of those executive orders usurping the legislatures constitutional duties?

Walker is now trying at the last minute to influence lawsuits now affecting voter ID. This would not have happened otherwise. What a guy. JS:

Voters who are seeking a photo ID card but not yet received it will be able to use a Division of Motor Vehicles receipt to vote in more cases, under a new rule Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker approved Wednesday just ahead of Monday's federal trial on the state's voting laws.

1. In December, U.S. District Judge James Peterson in Madison threw out a challenge to the voter ID law itself, but determined the liberal One Wisconsin Institute and others who brought the lawsuit could keep alive their arguments that voters should be able to use a broader range of IDs for voting. A trial is set to begin Monday.

2. Wednesday's action also comes in the wake of a unanimous ruling last month by the U.S. 7th Circuit Court of Appeals that opened the door to the possibility that people could cast ballots without presenting IDs if they have great difficulty getting them. That decision returned the case to U.S. District Judge Lynn Adelman in Milwaukee for further proceedings. "The right to vote is personal and is not defeated by the fact that 99% of other people can secure the necessary credentials easily," Appeals Judge Frank Easterbrook wrote for the panel. The ruling was targeted at some of the same people and ID problems covered by the new Walker administration rules, such as those whose birth certificates contain errors or are no longer available.

COMPLICATED, CONVOLUTED...or, maybe you should think twice about going through all that trouble: With all the hoops already in place just to vote, add to that, this...

1. The DMV is changing the process used to issue receipts to residents who are seeking a photo ID to vote

2. The receipts are meant to be used for voting while the DMV sorts out whether those applying for regular ID cards should get them.

3. The ID cards are free and under the new rule the DMV will have to pay for applicants to get birth certificates or other key documents.

4. The receipts will be issued by mail within six days if the DMV is unable to make a determination before then on whether a regular ID card should be issued. The receipts will include the applicant's photo and be marked "for voting purposes only."

5. People who have previously been denied ID cards or whose requests are pending will be issued receipts for voting, according to the rule.

And check this out. You think the administration won't check to see if your name is on any of the existing recall lists? This applies to point 4 above as well:

6. Administrators in DMV's central office in Madison will make the final call on who gets ID cards if they don't have birth certificates or other documentation of their identity. In the past, that's been left to officials in DMV offices around the state. Having the decisions made at the agency's headquarters is aimed at more consistent rulings.

7. The DMV will have to provide translators for those who cannot read or understand information about the process for getting IDs, the rule says.

At no cost to the state? Oh, who cares...

Walker angry about money spent challenging Voter ID, will punish us by opposing cash for information campaign on the new Law.

Scott Walker doesn't like it when Wisconsinites question his authority. Those who challenged his voter ID law are now going to regret speaking out against him. They'll think twice next time, as Walker ponders punishing everyone by not telling them about the new voter ID regulations. JS: 

Republican legislative leaders showed an openness this week to spending $250,000 on ads informing the public about the state's voter ID law even as GOP Gov. Scott Walker expressed skepticism about the idea.

Sen. Alberta Darling (R-River Hills), the committee's co-chair. "I think it's something we should look for. It contributes to more people knowing what has changed in the system."

But Walker: "The fact is that the state had to spend a whole lot of time and money defending the law, and continues to do so today," he told WBAY-TV. "If people were really serious about that, they should have allowed the state to use all that money to fight in courts to use that in promoting the system."

Yes Scott, we've all learned our lesson, dissent will not be tolerated and may be costly, that whole 1st Amendment thing. 

Scott Walker's Rube Goldberg Voting System may just get more complicated...for all the right reasons this time.

Republicans don't like to make anything easy. Imagine how much extra time we'd all have if we didn't have to shop for health insurance every year. I'm also convinced Republicans want to make voting so hard or inconvenient that people will eventually just lose interest.

As the title suggests, there's a possible change coming to the voting process, and this time as Martha Stewart would say, "it's a good thing." I can't wait to see what Scott Walker and the Republican legislature will do next, since this puts them in a tough spot. If they don't go along with it right away...it just confirms what Rep. Glenn Grothman said was true. JS:

Wisconsin and other states have adopted voter ID laws more stringent than Indiana's. For instance, Indiana's law allows people who can't get IDs to sign affidavits at the polls instead of showing IDs. Wisconsin has no such provision — a point the appeals judges noted Tuesday.

"Indeed, one may understand plaintiffs as seeking for Wisconsin the sort of safety net that Indiana has had from the outset. Under Wisconsin's current law, people who do not have qualifying photo ID ... cannot vote, even if it is impossible for them to get such an ID. Plaintiffs want relief from that prohibition, not from the general application of (the voter ID law) to the millions of persons who have or readily can get qualifying photo ID. The right to vote is personal and is not defeated by the fact that 99% of other people can secure the necessary credentials easily."  

But the panel of appeals judges on Tuesday ... noted instances where government agencies have lost birth certificates in fires or where people have been told they can't get an ID without a Social Security card and they can't get a Social Security card without an ID. The three judges who issued Tuesday's ruling — Easterbrook, Diane Sykes and Michael Kanne — were all appointed by Republican presidents.

The almost laughable argument yet, came from Walker's AG lapdog Brad Schimel. Only a total incompetent screw-up would offer up this excuse, and I'm paraphrasing; a record number of people, mostly Republicans, turned out voter! So hey, what's the problem?  You can't make this stuff up:

Johnny Koremenos, a spokesman for Attorney General Brad Schimel, emphasized, "Given the overwhelming success of the DOT program, and the fact that our state's recent primary elections involved record turnouts, we are confident that we will prevail on the narrow issues that the court remanded on." Koremenos ... noted voters can get IDs for free from the state Department of Transportation.

Of course that has nothing to do with the problem, but it'll probably sufficiently fill the dead still air between the voters ears who are dying for another order.

Check out the Nation's story on one victim of voter ID:

"Voter ID Fraud" Exposed, "stand with Walker" suckers!!!

Oddly, the day after the election, media coverage of the primary made no mention of long lines and waiting periods to vote.

Thankfully, the national coverage still thinks it's an important issue, especially after the disaster in Arizona that still boggles the mind. Here's a collection that includes Chris Hayes, Glenn Grothman, Todd Allbaugh, and WKOW's Greg Neumann's reporting:



Voter ID suppression is back, thanks to Glenn Grothman (growth-men). CNN noted TMJ4's reporter didn't somehow red flag that statement, and ask a followup question:

Grothman pivoted back to praising Cruz and the interview moved on without any follow-up.

Voter ID law is the fraud. I wonder how "stand with Walker" dupes now feel having bought into the "voter fraud" con? In the weekly Isthmus, chief of staff for former state Sen. Dale Schultz (R-Richland Center), Todd Allbaugh blasted the ID law:

"I was in the closed Senate Republican Caucus when the final round of multiple voter ID bills was being discussed. A handful of the GOP Senators were giddy about the ramifications and literally singled out the prospects of suppressing minority and college voters." 

Allbaugh saw the suppression first hand:

The truth? There was almost no fraud. Oh wait, GOP Speaker Robin Vos' estranged wife allegedly voted in both Idaho and Wisconsin, and a GOP staffer was caught voting twice. But it was good rhetoric.

Yesterday, one of my employees, born in California, went to get a Wisconsin ID. He was told he couldn't use his California ID to get a Wisconsin ID without his birth certificate, which is back in California. The result? He's not able to vote. Here's a young man in his early 20s, who is interested in voting for the first time in his life. He was excited to go to the polls. What kind of a state, a legislature, a political party is it that denies this young man his right?

All In's Chris Hayes interviewed an energized Allbaugh who made it amazingly clear:

Allbaugh: "These people in the Capitol, forget about Robert M. "fighting Bob" La Follette, dhe was a Republican. His wife Belle Case La Follette moved women's suffrage forward in this state. Republicans used to fight for voting rights, and here they're taking it away."  

Lines, Lines and More Lines: Dripping with Democratic suppression in Arizona, Helen Purcell fell on the party sword acting surprised there would be lines after going from 200 polling places to 60. Stunning and transparent, you can't help but feel embarrassed for Purcell:

Maricopa County's top elections official, Recorder Helen Purcell, cut the number of polling places in the presidential primary from 200 in 2012 to just 60 on Tuesday, although those were larger voting centers where any registered voter could cast a ballot. During the last high-turnout presidential primary, in 2008, there were 400 polling places in the county of 4 million residents. Purcell took responsibility for Tuesday's foul-up and acknowledged she made a mistake. She said she relied on voter turnout expectations, the fact independents could not vote in the primary, and that most Arizonans are mailed early ballots. But she said the problems at the polls were in no way intended to suppress participation.

"When you see people who are still willing to cast that vote and wait in line until well after the polls close, I don't think that's voter suppression," Purcell said.

Check out more coverage at the Huffington Post

Denied his vote, senior Iwo Jima Veteran should have done his research first, says GOP mouthpiece Media Trackers.

Media Tracker’s Brian Sikma is a real piece of work. Many years ago I had a friend who used his fake cluelessness as an excuse to get away with saying the dumbest things. Sikma reminds me of him.

Sikma couldn’t resist taking a shot a veteran turned away when he tried to vote.

Liberal Justice’s should Shut Up: Because Justice Ann Walsh Bradley came out against the voter ID law, she’s using her position to attack poor Scott Walker. JS:  

A veteran who fought at Iwo Jima in 1945 and who, for the first time, was denied his right to vote thanks to the state’s voter ID law being in effect … was brought to light because his niece, Justice Ann Walsh Bradley of the state Supreme Court, wrote a letter to Gov. Scott Walker outlining her displeasure over the situation and her opposition to the law. Bradley was among the minority of justices who dissented from the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the law. Leo Olson of Reedsburg, tried to use his veterans ID card ... but that form of identification can’t be used under the state’s voter ID law.

Who would have though a veterans ID card wouldn't be enough: Sikma is quick to blame a veteran for not getting another ID:

Oddly, (JS's) Patrick Marley never ... (got an) explanation about why the veteran never obtained a free state ID card which meets current voter ID requirements.

Of course Sikma skipped blaming Republicans for purposely excluding the veterans ID card in the first place, while acknowledging the legislatures sudden plan to reinstate it, now that the shit hit the fan:

Marley did point out that state law could be changing soon to allow veteran ID cards to suffice for voter ID purposes. 

Oh, and don't fund the elections board to pay for an ad campaign to explain the new law. Anyone see billboards, newspaper ads and television PSA's detailing the process? Nope, so Sikma decided to lie:

While the story of a veteran not being able to vote tugs at heart strings, it is hardly the fault of the law. The Government Accountability Board has spent a significant amount of time and money on a public awareness campaign emphasizing a valid ID.

Biting the (Vets) Hand that feeds them (votes): What the heck is wrong with veterans in their 80's, not doing their research, scouring every page of information, and jumping through a few "minor" hoops so they can vote? Why didn't Leo Olson think to check out...

...the GAB’s website “BringIt.Wisconsin.gov” 

Marley noted that the veteran’s wife was upset because her husband’s Veterans Administration card didn’t work for voter ID purposes ... the VA itself emphasizes on its website that VA cards function as enrollment and identification cards for VA services and may sometimes be used as ID cards for travel. However, the VA carefully notes the card is not a substitute for other forms of identification.

And why couldn't Olson just go through the process all over again to get an ID requiring the same documentation he used the first time applied for his veterans ID? Common sense-like...

Fascinatingly, the VA requires veterans to undergo a rigid process to prove their identity before getting a VA card. In fact, if you can get a VA identification card you have what it takes to get a free Wisconsin voter ID card. The required documents to obtain a VA card are listed here, the required documents to get a Wisconsin voter ID card are here. The lists closely parallel one another.

Sikma is one sick dude. This reminds me of the Republican Medicare plan to force seniors into shopping every year for the best deal on health insurance, as if the problems with mobility and declining mental alertness simply don't exist for the aged.

Like I've said before, someone should require a recordable ID process and signature for all gun purchases. Let's see how long that small inconvenience would last. 

Believing in the Voter Fraud Fairy.

When my conservative friend in Milwaukee called and asked me how I liked voter ID in the primary, he was smugly reminding me of how smoothly the GOP’s voter suppression scheme went. It was sad.

I asked him if he actually believed this whole voter fraud, voter ID scam, and he said he did. He seemed excited about creating the most convoluted restrictive system ever. It’s similar to seeing someone marvel at the latest Rube Goldberg contraption to fry eggs. 

Why make this constitutional right delegated to the states harder? I asked him if he’d be okay with a picture ID and defined hours to buy a gun? After all, the Constitution doesn’t say anything about retail sales.

But to Republicans, the inconvenience is the price of freedom (except when it comes to guns. Heck, we just got rid of the 48 hour cooling off period to buy a gun because it was inconvenient. Not surprisingly, a young woman was murdered by an angry guy who bought his gun within that 48 hour cooling off period).

I asked my conservative friend if he noticed any ads or billboards explaining the new voter ID requirements? He didn’t. That’s not suspicious? The fact that Republicans didn't give the Government Accountability Board any money to promote and explain the voter ID law to Wisconsinites should point to motive. Nope.

Here are a few other examples. The Daily Beast:

1. In North Carolina, the Republican-controlled legislature and Republican governor eliminated early voting days. In 2012, 900,000 voters cast their ballots during the early voting window. In 2016, that number will be zero.

2. Dale Ho, Director of the ACLU’s Voting Rights Project said, “We’ve litigated over Voter ID laws in a number of states—Indiana, Pennsylvania, Washington, North Carolina. In none of those states were government officials able to point to a single instance of in-person voter impersonation happening. But in every case we’ve had we’ve identified tens of thousands of people who don’t have photo IDs. There’s no evidence of voter fraud and plenty of evidence of disenfranchisement.

3. Ten years ago there were zero states with a strict voter ID law, and no states cutting back on early voting. All these laws started after the 2008 election, which saw record numbers of young voters and record participation by people of color” voting Democratic. 

4. Dale Ho explained: “And then, as if by coincidence, we have all these laws passed—25 in 2011-12 alone—that disproportionately impact young people, people of color, and poor people. That is, to put it mildly, suspicious. We do catch other kinds of fraud … an organization paid people based on the number of registrations they got, and people filled out Donald Duck and Mickey Mouse and so on. The point is, we catch them.”

But will that one fraudulent voter swing an election? It might be difficult:

Between 2000 and 2014, there were 31 reported instances of voter impersonation out of more than 1 billion ballots cast. But that means the odds of voter fraud are 1 in 32 million. By way of comparison, your odds of actually becoming president are 1 in 10 million.

Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach … prosecuted … all of three cases, none of which involved voter impersonation. In fact, all three appeared to be mistakes, in which senior citizens voted in two states by accident.

Not a single instance of voter impersonation. Bans on early voting wouldn’t even prevent these kinds of fraud; it’s not clear what they’re supposed to do, other than make it harder for working people to vote, and harder for get-out-the-vote operations to help people do so. In short, none of these laws prevent voter fraud. They prevent voting, mostly for Democrats. And thanks to new laws in four swing states, Virginia, North Carolina, Wisconsin, and Ohio, they might just prevent a Democrat from getting into the White House.

Scott Walker's idea of Local Control: Floats idea of overriding liberal voter rights states with strict Voter ID laws.

He wants it all folks. John Dean didn't pick Scott Walker as a the best example of a rightwing authoritarianism for nothing.

Here's Scott Walker's nationwide, one-size-fits-all voter suppression idea, that abandons individual state control for the sole purpose of smashing and eliminating blue state opposition. Walker doesn't just beat the opposition, he destroys them too. Consider yourself lucky on this one; Walker usually springs stuff like this on the public without warning:

Walker and J.B. Van Hollen try keeping voters confused and wary of ID's impossible return before election.

Scott Walker could not explain away his continued attempts to suppress voter turnout, except to say in the most contradictory way:

Walker: "The law in the state of Wisconsin is simple, it's easy to vote, and hard to cheat." 

As casual observers know, elections are getting overly complicated and regulated by the party of

ACLU voter regulation chart.

deregulation. Voter photo ID is just one of many restrictions.

Even the press was quick to notice how Walker and J.B. Van Hollen were oddly trying to keep the idea of complication and intimidation alive in the voters minds, by suggesting some magical way to "reinstate the law" sometime with the remaining 3 weeks. That would contradict the Supreme Courts reason to block the law, which is crazy, and the media sensed it.

From WPR, guest John Nichols found the ploy curiously obvious as well. In reaction to a reading of Van Hollen's statement, former Republican state senator Dan Kapanke said "I didn't see that quote...!" Ah, like the show host would have made it up?



Walker thinks voting, the backbone of our democratic republic, is a distraction that takes time away from more important issues? Mary Burke counters, by pointing out how Walker is willing to block 300,000 people from voting to save us all from one fictitious instance of fraud. Pretty simple stuff:



If we're worried about one instance of voter fraud, creating a complicated system along the way, then why aren't we just as cautious with another constitutional guarantee; gun ownership. Walker's tired old line "if just one vote is stolen," could just as easily be "if just one life is taken." And yet, gun regulation is bad, voting regulation is good.

Wisconsin Voter ID Blocked by Supreme Court....

Pinch me I'm dreaming. Maybe Rep. Robin Vos will blame GAB's Kevin Kennedy for that too.

Oh, and predictably Justices Samuel Alito, Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas dissented. Should we be able to predict their decisions...somethings wrong with that. Here's Rachel Maddow:



Maddow also feature this comedic bit by Lewis Black featuring Wisconsin's amazingly convoluted system of voting:



Here's the ACLU's Dale Ho with Lawrence O'Donnell with an explanation, and warning this isn't a final ruling: