NationStates Jolt Archive

Anyone heard of HAVA? The Helping American's Vote Act? It provides a bunch of federal funds to register voters, improve polling places and purchase voting machines. Sounds cool right, strictly non-partisan. But the area's most in need of polling place improvement and new voting machines happen to be the poorer districts. Well it's no secret that the GOP doesn't speak for or to the poorest American's so instead of trying to reach out to them they decided it would just be easier if they discouraged them from voting. California's Govenator has frozen almost 18 million in HAVA funds pending an 'audit' that is expected to take until after the November election. Coincidence? What do you think?

They don't even try to cover this shit up

Some of the changes due to HAVA made the voting system worse, the most spoken example being the increase in electronic votes that don't heve a paper trail. Though Arnold Schwarzenegger is a Republican, he's working with California's Democratic secretary of state on this

why do these people need extra "help" to vote? let's hear a polite politicly correct answer to that one........

These GOP conspiracists with all the cunning of Moriarty, decide to implement this little "trick" of theirs in the one state of the union where it will make absolutely no difference. The GOP will NOT win California. If they were actually going to try something like this in a viable bid to swing the election, they would have done it in a state where it might have actually had a chance of impacting election results.

No, lets play this straight, the simple fact is this. The program itself is bloated with less than 10 cents of every dollar actually going to any events that might impact voter registration, and that's why they are getting an audit. The "Governator" has made it his goal while in office to shrink the state government, and to eliminate waste. This program has just about the most waste of any program in the state, so its a damn good place to start.

ah, yes, facts, I thought they were banned from this godforsaken liberal la la land. excellent first post!

ah, yes, facts, I thought they were banned from this godforsaken liberal la la land. excellent first post!

:rolleyes:

I apologize for saying that, but it really did make me feel better.

ah, yes, facts, I thought they were banned from this godforsaken liberal la la land. excellent first post!
Don't apologize for this. It is your opinion, you are entitled to it. All too ofter, when Conservatives act like liberals, it is the liberals who whine. Take it to them.

Anyone heard of HAVA? The Helping American's Vote Act? It provides a bunch of federal funds to register voters, improve polling places and purchase voting machines. Sounds cool right, strictly non-partisan. But the area's most in need of polling place improvement and new voting machines happen to be the poorer districts. Well it's no secret that the GOP doesn't speak for or to the poorest American's so instead of trying to reach out to them they decided it would just be easier if they discouraged them from voting. California's Govenator has frozen almost 18 million in HAVA funds pending an 'audit' that is expected to take until after the November election. Coincidence? What do you think?
This from a man who deeply admires Richard Nixon? No! I'll never believe it!

well, you know, I don't think anyone should be pushed into the voting booth. If they are not intelligent enough to get themselves to vote on election day why should they help decide an election?

the GOP can only win thru cheating--it has always been that way

Some of the changes due to HAVA made the voting system worse, the most spoken example being the increase in electronic votes that don't heve a paper trail. Though Arnold Schwarzenegger is a Republican, he's working with California's Democratic secretary of state on thisWorking with the Secretary of State? It's the Secretary of State and the state Democrats who has been raising all the questions about Diebold, it's the govenor's Department of Finance that froze the funds. The Dems were definately not in on that decision, they likened the move to "using 300-pound goons to block Latinos from voting in California".

Yeah right, he's working with the secratary of state on this.

Working with the Secretary of State? It's the Secretary of State and the state Democrats who has been raising all the questions about Diebold, it's the govenor's Department of Finance that froze the funds. The Dems were definately not in on that decision, they likened the move to "using 300-pound goons to block Latinos from voting in California".

Yeah right, he's working with the secratary of state on this.


When John McCain says:
"I think its a sad thing that so much negativity is being used to spread lies about the Democratic candidates war record, when there is a war going on RIGHT NOW."

What does that tell you aboit what they are willing to do to win this election?

No, lets play this straight, the simple fact is this. The program itself is bloated with less than 10 cents of every dollar actually going to any events that might impact voter registration, and that's why they are getting an audit. The "Governator" has made it his goal while in office to shrink the state government, and to eliminate waste. This program has just about the most waste of any program in the state, so its a damn good place to start.Uh, one problem with your little rant, these are federal funds, seperate from the state budget, he can't use them elsewhere, he can't 'shrink' or 'eliminate' it. Even if it is wasteful, it's federal waste and really doesn't impact California's budget.

Regardless, it IS the reson for the audit. There is no possible way it can influence the election in Calaifornia. The GOP is intelligent enough to know this, thus to conclude that they did this simply as a plot to influence the election is simply assnine.

I am shocked and amazed that no one has pointed out that it may NOT be a ploy to influence national politics, but instead be a strategiem to impose GOP will at a more local level, where this sort of strategy might have some notable, albeit miniscule effect. Again, I throw this notion largly aside based on passed precident and also the manner in which the audit i being carried out.

If the actaul intention of the audit was to influence voter registration and turnout - it would have been conducted much differently. You cannot simply register on November 1st and show up to the polls on November 2nd. The cut off for voter registration in order to be eligable to vote in the Nov 2 election is 6 weeks prior, although that may change in varioius localities, on this point I'm unsure. That would make the cut-off in about 5 days. If this was simply a ploy to influence political decisions, either at the state or national level, the fix would have been put in far sooner.

Also, you can throw this inane idea aside based on passed precident. HAVA itself has been shown to be largly ineffective in increasing voter turn out. Getting a man registered to vote and haveing him actually show up at the polls TO vote are entirly different matters. All in all, it is not a program that greatly frightens the GOP at any level, and is hardly worthy of their concern. It certianly does not rate some grand ploy to disable it.

All in all anyone who believes that this is a ploy by the GOP is either paranoid or delusional. Given the current level of concenus in this thread that believes the GOP cannot win without "dirty tricks" I'm inclined to lean towards dellusional.

I think this is a bad thing bit I don't see how it benefits the Republicans in elections. You can't be sure that if these poor people were voting, that they would vote Democrat. Many poor Americans actually do vote Republican, for some reason.